Chapter 261: Establishing Authority
The pirates at the port made way, and Ian didn't stand on ceremony, signaling the helmsman to steer their ship straight into the gap. The pirate vessel, converted from a Marine warship, looked so massive that when Ian and his crew entered the port, the pirates on the other ships moored along both sides could only look up and gaze at the Dragon Hunter Pirates.
With a crisp jingle of a bell, Ian was the first to jump off the ship, followed by Fujitora. The members of the Dragon Hunter Pirates came down one after another, lining up behind Ian and Fujitora. Most of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' combatants were former slaves from the colosseum, naturally appearing burly and fierce. After disembarking, they noticed the remaining crew members on other pirate ships around the port secretly sizing them up, so they glared back fiercely. Sardin, with his towering frame and massive double-edged sword slung over his shoulder, made everyone he looked at instinctively shrink their necks.
Ian turned around, looking at his own ship, then at the other pirate ships squeezed in on either side. The pirates left behind on those ships recognized Ian as the captain of the Dragon Hunter Pirates. As he glanced left and right, they watched him warily, wondering what he was up to. But in the next second, they understood his intentions.
"It feels too cramped!" Ian said aloud, stroking his chin as if talking to himself. "What if the paint on my ship gets scratched?"
With that, Ian suddenly drew the Thousand Cherry Blossoms from his waist, slashing two flashes of blade light through the air in quick succession. Two enormous sword qi streaks shot out from the flashes, converging in midair into a cross-shaped slash that flew toward the pirate ship on the right side of their vessel!
These two sword qi slashes came so fiercely that the pirates on that ship had no time to react, and they were struck directly. With a loud crack, under the stunned gazes of countless pirates, the ship was instantly cut into four pieces from the center by Ian's sword qi. The pirates on board felt the deck suddenly vanish beneath them and fell along with the collapsing vessel!
A sturdy ship went from stillness to complete collapse in just one second. Watching the pirates splash into the sea amid the wreckage, the remaining pirates were drenched in cold sweat, a strong urge to urinate hitting them as they instinctively clamped their legs together!
He cut down a ship just because he thought the port was too crowded?!
Ian rested his hand on the sword hilt, quite satisfied with the large empty space that suddenly appeared on the right side of his ship. Nodding, he then looked to the left!
The pirates on the left ship, seeing Ian's gaze turn toward them, suddenly shuddered violently and screamed in terror, "Mercy! Don't... don't strike! We'll leave the port and make room right now!"
The crew on that ship was quick-witted, jumping down to untie the mooring lines. But Ian didn't bother waiting for them to slowly move out—who knew how long that would take? So with two more flashes of blade light, he struck again.
With a thunderous crash, the left ship also collapsed, split into four pieces by the cross-shaped slash and sinking into the sea.
"Now it's symmetrical!" Ian muttered. "Can't stand asymmetry..."
Saying this, he turned and led the Dragon Hunter Pirates toward the city center.
The remaining pirates at the port, terrified, crouched on their decks with their hands over their heads, peeking over the gunwales with just their eyes as the Dragon Hunter Pirates departed. Nothing could instill more fear in pirates than seeing two ships instantly destroyed. Only after Ian and his crew disappeared did they dare straighten up and stare at the empty spaces on either side of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' berth.
"That was the Blood Fiend Pirates, with an 80 million Berry bounty, and the War God Pirates, with a 94 million Berry bounty... their ships are gone in an instant..."
"This island has some seriously dangerous people now. What should we do? Should we notify the captain and get out of here?"
"Yeah, if we piss off the Dragon Hunter Pirates, we won't even know how we died..."
Some members of the Dragon Hunter Pirates stayed on the ship, mostly women, including Margaret. But none of the surrounding pirate crews dared approach their vessel, let alone harass the girls. They wanted to stay as far away as possible, avoiding the Dragon Hunter Pirates' ship at all costs.
Ian's excuse for cutting down the ships was utterly unreasonable, but there wasn't a single good person among the pirates at the port. Many of them had likely participated in the massacre of the poor miners the night before, so Ian felt no guilt in teaching them a lesson. With those two slashes, he also prevented any potential harassment of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' remaining crew.
Leaving the port, Ian and his group moved forward, gradually seeing the city ahead. Due to the battle the previous day, the entire city seemed desolate, with few people on the streets. Occasional cannonball impact marks could be seen, and in the distance, faint smoke from gunpowder still lingered. However, the sound of raucous noise came from a tavern ahead, so Ian led the way toward it.
In this world, no matter which city, if pirates had landed, they could usually be found in taverns. This island was no different—since the king had hired a large number of pirates as mercenaries, such a noisy tavern was bound to be a gathering spot for them. Outside the tavern, a few pirates were keeping watch, but as soon as Ian's group approached, their faces changed, and they hurried inside to report.
Word had already spread that the Dragon Hunter Pirates had landed, and many pirate crews on the island knew about it. But they hadn't expected Ian to head straight for the tavern after coming ashore. As a result, just as Ian reached the tavern door, the previously noisy interior fell silent.
Jingle, jingle. The bell on the bandage wrapped around Ian's wrist rang out crisply. Soon, this sound would become his signature whenever he appeared.
Pushing open the tavern door, Ian stepped inside. He was met by a sea of gazes—some fearful, some shifty, some eager to test him, all mixed together.
The pirates in the tavern stared at the entrance, knowing the Dragon Hunter Pirates had arrived. But most of them were seeing the real Ian for the first time. His right arm was wrapped in bandages, his left arm bore the tattoo of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' emblem. He carried his sword, wore a bear-ear hat, and his jet-black hair was tied back in a ponytail. He looked exactly like his wanted poster, but his face was so young.
All the pirates in the tavern secretly sized up Ian, wondering what a 650 million Berry pirate was like. But Ian found their stares annoying.
He let out a cold snort, slowly releasing his Conqueror's Haki. As he stepped deeper into the tavern, the pressure expanded step by step.
Clatter! A pirate at a nearby table dropped his mug, which shattered on the floor. The man himself foamed at the mouth, rolled his eyes, and fell off his chair. Before the other pirates could understand what was happening, more victims appeared. As Ian advanced step by step, the pirates on either side of his path were knocked unconscious one after another by his Conqueror's Haki!
He walked forward, and they fell like dominoes. Ian controlled his Conqueror's Haki, arrogantly crushing everything in his path. The pirates farther away watched with wide eyes, stunned.
Ian had brought the Dragon Hunter Pirates to this island so openly precisely to attract the attention of the pirate king. The bigger the commotion, the better. To establish his authority among these pirates, the best way was to give them a severe shock.
"Hmm?" Just then, Ian stopped and turned to look at three pirates at a table to his right. These three had been swept by his Conqueror's Haki but hadn't fainted like the others. Instead, they gritted their teeth and held on.
"Not bad," Ian said with a cold smile, looking at them.
Then, in the next second, an even more powerful wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted, sweeping through the entire tavern!