Tell Me the Answer (5): Flags in the Endless Blue
In this vast expanse of blue, the only things fluttering were a handful of flags.
The first thing that caught my eye was a massive ship of the line.
Atop its bowsprit, a man with a hook jammed in place of his hand was bellowing.
"Edward!"
That bastard had to be Locke of the One-Armed Hand Pirate Crew.
He was too far away to make out the details, but just like the rumors said, the fucker was built like a goddamn telephone pole.
Man, I really fucking missed that guy.
So I climbed onto our own bowsprit, just like him, and thrust out my Cutlerus.
Whether the prick got excited or what, he roared even louder.
"Today, I'll send every last one of you to the depths!"
Yeah, right. Tell me something I don't know.
With that, the One-Armed Hand Pirate Crew's main fleet closed in, and soon I could see their bow turning.
—Boom! Bang!
Let me say it again: long-range combat is a last resort. Firing back here would've been a waste—we wouldn't even break even.
We had to drag them into close quarters.
The Albatross cut across the gorge, putting distance between us and those bastards.
A narrow passage. Barely wide enough for one ship of the line.
Their main fleet halted.
No idiot would get lured into a choke point like this.
Well, duh—this was pirate shit 101. I'd seen it coming.
But now that the channel was tight, they couldn't fire from all sides anymore.
That was what I'd banked on.
—Boom!
Flames erupted in the distance. Black cannonballs hurtled toward us.
Cannons back then packed a punch, but their accuracy sucked. Out of ten shots, you'd be lucky to land two.
With those sheer cliffs blocking the flanks, they couldn't rain hell from every angle—so at most, two direct hits from straight ahead.
Of course, for a pirate ship like ours, even that would've been fatal.
But hey, that just meant dodge 'em, right?
I gripped Cutlerus tight.
—Crackle!
Blue lightning danced around my soles.
And then—
—Boom!
I leaped.
Toward the incoming cannonballs, I tilted the sword's hilt at an angle.
—Scraaaape!
Blade met shell. My arm felt like it was gonna rip off, but I gritted my teeth and held.
Home run.
It whistled off course and plunged into the sea.
I landed on deck, catching my breath.
Plan was to deplete their ammo like this.
When I first pitched the idea, Elise had lost her shit, yelling if I was out of my mind.
But now?
"...W-Wait, no way! This can't be real?! I knew the captain was strong, but this ain't human!"
She was the loudest one freaking out.
See? Told you it'd work.
It's a classic trope in comics, after all.
"...What did you say?"
Chaos erupted on the One-Armed Hand Pirate Crew's captain's ship.
Thanks to a lookout's insane report.
The guy was sweating bullets, repeating it a dozen times.
"S-So, he batted the cannonball away with his sword..."
"The fuck?!"
Of course they'd react like that. Over and over.
"Batted a cannonball... with a sword?"
"Yes, Captain."
"Hah."
Locke rubbed his temple, chuckling darkly.
"Looks like that pup really is a goddamn mage."
Magic had always been seen as the domain of the elite.
Legends said it was born from knowledge and rigorous training.
Not that anyone knew for sure. At least in the Gray Line, no one could wield it.
For rookie pirates drifting these waters, they wouldn't even know if that bullshit miracle qualified as "magic."
"Definitely no ordinary pup."
Anything less, and he couldn't have lured out the One-Armed Hand's main fleet with that toy boat of his.
But could he block every shell from this armada?
Locke thrust out his hook arm and roared.
"Pour it on! Blast 'em to bits!"
Their barrage kept coming.
Cannonballs flew thick and fast; I smacked down every one inbound.
At night, poor visibility killed their aim, so I conserved energy and downed their entire salvo.
Meanwhile, our shots chipped away at their ship of the line.
Stalemate.
It dragged on for a good while.
No matter how they rotated firing squads, we didn't take a single hit—while their ships steadily bled damage.
And this was the sea. Even with supply ships, food runs dry fast out here.
Look at those behemoths. The fuel—er, grub—they guzzled.
Ammo would run out, rations too. They couldn't stall forever.
"Captain's a genius!"
"I know."
I grinned. They were closing in now.
Truth was, they had no reason to dodge melee. Numbers were on their side, blatantly.
Plus, the moment this little ship rammed their behemoth? Splinters. No fight needed.
That overconfidence from their edge? Easy prey in battle.
"Hard to port!"
We leveraged our small ship's agility to close too.
No collision—hug the cliffs. Aaron at the helm sucked ass, so we wobbled like hell.
Still, we advanced steadily.
"Mad Dog! Surrender now!!"
Not the captain's ship first. Scout vessel, probably.
Tsk, shame. Locke was cautious for a lanky fucker.
No biggie.
I clenched my fist.
Grin crept up.
They'd stepped into our turf willingly. How could I not smile?
Toes dug in.
"Here I go."
"Huh? Captain, what do you—"
—Boom!
Push the limit now, preserve manpower.
That was my call.
Lightning-wrapped legs launched me onto their deck, meters away.
Eyes locked on—pure shock staring back.
"Y-You're gonna take us solo?"
One trembled, lips quivering.
Damn right.
One of me's plenty for small fry like you.
I stepped forward.
Right in their faces now.
Swept Cutlerus wide.
—Crackle!
Lightning-charged slash exploded across a wide arc.
"F-Fuck, block it!"
Ridiculous.
Every time I crushed trash like this, same thought hit me.
Until recently, they'd preyed on the weak.
Snatching helpless women, hunched elders, tiny kids—trafficking humans like goods.
Call that piracy? Fuck no.
Not the pirates I knew.
Even if we broke laws and did whatever the hell we wanted.
Bullying the powerless? Disqualified.
Pirates are free souls above all.
Conquering fear, charging unknown seas.
That's true piracy to me.
—Slash!
Blood sprayed. It trickled down my cheek.
Sticky stench filled my nose.
Clash of steel, screams.
Please don't come. Spare me. I won't do it again. Kill him. Block it, please.
—Bang!
Gunshot snapped the whispers.
Smoke from the matchlock pistol.
Since awakening my power, bullets looked slow-motion.
Dunno why. When I focused, the world crawled.
So I casually tilted my head aside.
"Gaaah!"
Guy behind me ate it instead.
Idiots. Infighting now.
How long'd it been?
"Fuckin' exhausting, shit."
Lungs burning by the time I paused.
No more blades aimed my way.
Just rolling heads or sobbing wrecks.
I strolled forward.
Their captain pissed himself, collapsing.
"T-This is the infamous Mad Dog..."
—Slash!
That was it. No time for games.
Whew, fucking wiped.
Sheathed Cutlerus.
Turned around.
"Eek!"
The survivor who met my eyes shook like he was foaming at the mouth.
I smiled.
"Tell your fancy vice-captain his captain's head says hi."
The frantic nodding was quite the sight.