The sea of the West Blue had never been so calm...
Gern stood on the warship's deck, his single hand resting on the hilt of black blade eight desolations, his gaze fixed on the island outline gradually appearing in the distance.
"Report! Ashen Port is straight ahead!" A Marine soldier hurried over, a trace of unease in his voice.
"According to intelligence, the Blood Spear Pirates landed this morning..."
"Landed this morning..." Gern didn't reply, merely narrowing his eyes slightly.
Ashen Port—a famous fishing town in the West Blue, renowned for its precious night-luminescent pearls, where residents had lived peaceful and prosperous lives for generations by fishing.
But now, this town, which should have been bathed in the morning light, was shrouded in an eerie silence.
The warship slowly docked, and a strange smell drifted through the air... charcoal, blood, and decaying flesh.
Gern's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"Something's wrong..." The Marine soldier behind him swallowed, "It's too quiet here..."
When the warship fully docked at the pier, everyone froze in place.
Blood.
The entire port ground was stained dark red, the viscous blood not yet dry, and boots stepping on it made a sickening "squelch" sound.
Bodies were piled haphazardly, some impaled through the chest by spears and nailed to wooden crates, others dismembered and discarded like rags by the roadside.
"Ugh!" A young, new Marine recruit finally couldn't hold back and bent over to vomit.
Gern paid him no mind, stepping forward, his military boots treading on Ashen Port's pier, feeling a sticky sensation underfoot.
On both sides of the street, houses were burned down to charred skeletons; the flames had long since extinguished, but thick smoke still lingered.
Several charred bodies were curled up in the ruins, maintaining their struggling postures from their last moments.
The fishing boats that once filled the harbor were burned to mere skeletons, their charred hulls floating on the water, while submerged bodies were vaguely visible beneath, like a school of drowned fish.
And this was just the port!!!!!
"These pirate beasts..." A Marine following Gern gritted his teeth, his fists clenching audibly.
Gern's steps didn't falter; his gaze swept over every horrific scene, his expression remaining as cold and hard as iron.
Until he walked into the fishing town...
The entire town, famous for its 'night-luminescent pearls,' had been reduced to a hellscape.
On the streets, bodies were piled in twisted postures, some nailed to walls with spears, others disemboweled, their entrails dragging on the ground like dark red carpets.
Children's bodies were hung from the lighthouse ropes, swaying gently with the sea breeze.
Their throats were slit, their blood long drained, leaving only hollow eyes staring at the sky.
At the entrance of the tavern, a man's head was impaled on the flagpole symbolizing the Marine, his jaw violently pried open, a night-luminescent pearl stuffed into his mouth.
Using Ashen Port's specialty as a sarcastic "decoration."
The town center square.
There, a "tower" made of bodies stood tall.
Dozens of bodies were cruelly stacked together, and at the very top was a naked little girl draped in a Marine flag.
Her throat was slit, her hands nailed to wooden stakes on both sides, like a butterfly pinned to death.
But her eyes were still open, staring blankly at the sky, as if questioning something.
"This... is this even human?!" Many Marines with poor psychological resilience broke down and roared on the spot.
And Gern silently stared at this "corpse tower," his eyes terrifyingly deep, his clenched knuckles deeply indented.
It turned out that behind the romanticized banquets in Oda's pen... were children clutching their mothers in charred buildings...
Those civilians nailed to mastheads as human flags, without exception, were telling Gern...
Just what kind of... most free adventure world this was.
"Report! Gern Warrant Officer, we've found survivors on the east side!" A Marine soldier ran up in a hurry.
"Take me there." Gern immediately turned and strode towards a half-collapsed warehouse on the east side.
Inside the warehouse, several blood-soaked militiamen huddled in a corner; one of them was still alive, but barely.
His abdomen was pierced, and blood continuously gushed out, staining the straw beneath him.
"Hold on! Medic will be here soon!" The Marine soldier rushed forward, trying to stop the bleeding.
The militiaman, however, trembled and raised his hand, gripping the soldier's collar tightly, his voice hoarse:
"Th-they... deliberately... delayed time..."
"What?" The soldier was stunned.
"Pirates... they... deliberately let us... call for help..." The militiaman's pupils began to dilate, "They want to... lure you... here..."
Gern's eyes suddenly turned cold.
Just then, a flurry of footsteps came from outside the warehouse.
"Gern Warrant Officer! The Blood Spear Pirates' ship has been spotted at the east port! They... they haven't left at all!"
Gern pursed his lips, slowly rising from beside the dead militiaman's body, "So this is a hunt."
The Blood Spear Pirates massacred the entire town but deliberately left distress signals, just to wait for the Marine to arrive and then wipe them all out!
"These pirates, despicable..." The Marine soldier's face turned pale.
Gern walked out with black blade eight desolations on his back, his tone icy, "Direction."
Hearing Gern's words, the new Marine recruit paused, then reacted and said, "East port, the Blood Spear Pirates haven't left."
"Hm." Gern replied, his voice deep and cold.
At the same time, his steps showed no hesitation; he walked through the street, black blade eight desolations on his back swaying slightly with his movements.
The Marine soldiers on both sides, seeing him, straightened their backs and saluted, their eyes filled with awe.
"Gern Warrant Officer!" The young Marine caught up, his voice hesitant, "We..."
Gern's steps didn't stop, his cold voice exceptionally clear in the sea breeze: "Take the warship out. If you find any stragglers, kill them without mercy."
"But Warrant Officer..." The Marine swallowed, "How many men will you take?"
"No need." Gern's silhouette cast a long shadow in the sunlight, "I alone am enough."
"But that's the Blood Spear Pirates! They..." The young Marine's words abruptly ceased.
He saw Gern suddenly stop, his gaze fixed on the small body wrapped in the Marine flag.
The girl's body had been carried off the deck, but that blue and white flag now felt like a resounding slap.
"All hands, listen up!" Gern's roar silenced the entire pier.
The Marines turned in astonishment, seeing terrifying fury burning in their Warrant Officer's eyes.
"The flags on the warship..." His voice trembled with suppressed rage, "Tear them all down!"
"Warrant Officer, this..."
Gern slowly turned, his gaze sweeping over each young face, finally resting on the small body.
"Justice that arrives late..." His voice was soft, yet it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer, "is not worthy of being called justice at all."
When Gern's figure disappeared at the end of the port, the young Marines still stood rooted to the spot.
Someone raised a fist first, then a second, a third...
A glimmer of admiration flashed in the young Marines' eyes, and they shouted in unison, "Lower the flags!!!"