Under relentless cannon fire, the Hunter Blade Pirates pushed forward, forcing their battered ship toward the training vessel.
The hull creaked and groaned, already on the verge of collapse.
"Despicable Marines!" Zacker roared, eyes bloodshot as cannonballs screamed overhead.
"Afraid to fight a boarding battle, are you?!"
If he knew Moonwalk, he would've leapt straight onto the Marine ship already.
But he didn't.
Worse still, as a swordsman, Zacker hadn't reached the level where he could casually cleave flying projectiles out of the air.
Left with no choice, he and a few capable subordinates stationed themselves at the bow, desperately hacking apart incoming shells to reduce the damage.
"Can't you go any faster?!" Zacker bellowed.
"If I don't slaughter these cowardly Marines today, I, Zacker, swear I'm not human!"
"Captain! If we accelerate any more, we won't be able to slow down! We'll ram the warship!"
A vicious glint flashed in Zacker's eyes.
"Then ram it! I don't care if the ship's lost—these Marines won't take us easily!"
Aboard the training ship, Ain watched the oncoming "suicide ship" with concern and turned to Karl.
"They're accelerating again. At this rate, they'll crash right into us."
Karl chuckled softly.
"Naive. You think I can't see through a trick like that?"
He immediately began issuing commands.
The training ship circled the pirate vessel at speed, maintaining distance while unloading continuous cannon fire—blatantly exploiting superior maneuverability to bully them.
Watching from the side, Zephyr nodded repeatedly in approval.
As expected of a ten-year veteran, he thought.
Karl understands naval warfare extremely well. He carries the air of a great commander.
At this rate, Zephyr could already see Karl's steady rise through the ranks.
Becoming an Admiral was only a matter of time.
In fact, with an ability like Karl's—one that could directly enhance strength and restore injuries—Zephyr felt that Fleet Admiral might be his true destination.
After all, Holy Light was far more practical than Sengoku shouting himself hoarse preaching ideals.
"Karl," Binz hesitated, "are we really going to beat them using just artillery? Isn't this a bit…."
If Binz were from another world, he might've said this kind of fight lacked "soul."
Here, though, it simply felt… off.
They had already been blessed by Holy Light, yet all they were doing was standing on deck firing cannons.
"Yeah!" other rookies chimed in eagerly.
"Karl, why don't we board them? They made us search for them forever!"
Watching the Hunter Blade Pirates' resistance crumble, the trainees grew restless, itching to charge in and fight face-to-face.
Rather than blasting the enemy ship apart and scooping pirates out of the sea, they wanted a real fight.
"…Are you guys serious?"
Karl was genuinely stunned.
We can win effortlessly and safely, and you want to risk your lives in melee?
Do you have the system… or do I?
"Mmhmm! Please, Karl—just this once!"
"This is our only internship mission!"
Are you teaching me how to do my job now?
Karl frowned, irritation bubbling up.
The rookies were getting carried away.
Even if the pirates posed little threat and things would probably turn out fine, this mindset was dangerous—especially with Weevil potentially appearing at any time.
If they carried this attitude into a true crisis, it would end badly.
At that moment, Zephyr stepped forward.
Hands clasped behind his back, eyes cold, he had witnessed the entire exchange.
His blood pressure was climbing fast.
"What do you think you're doing?" he barked.
"Karl is the commander. Are you questioning his orders?"
"There are countless pirates in this world—go kill them if you want!
Do you even have that ability? I think every one of you is getting cocky!"
"…Karl's approach is correct. Rational. Exactly what a commander should do."
After scolding the rookies until they lowered their heads, Zephyr suddenly pointed at Karl.
Karl's eyes widened.
Wait—how is this coming back to me?!
"You all know Karl's strength. He alone could wipe out this pirate crew."
"Then why do you think he held back and let you fight together?"
"Isn't this also his only internship mission?"
Silence.
The rookies finally understood.
Right…
Karl could have ended this instantly, yet he chose to buff them instead—giving everyone a chance to participate.
He sacrificed his own "mission experience" to let those weaker than him shine.
This is… selflessness.
This is noble spirit.
Some of the more emotional trainees even had tears welling in their eyes as they looked at Karl.
Karl: What just happened?
He felt those strange gazes but couldn't make sense of them.
I slacked from start to finish… I spent more time in the bathroom than fighting pirates. How did I become touching all of a sudden?
"Hmph. As long as you understand," Zephyr said, finally satisfied.
Then he turned to Karl. "Grant them their wish. These pirates have already lost their fighting spirit."
A slap, then a sweet date.
Zephyr knew exactly what he was doing—paving the road for Karl.
Look at those eyes. When Karl competed for Vice Admiral or even Admiral in the future, wouldn't these rookies become his most loyal supporters?
Karl instantly grasped Zephyr's intent, and the old man's image in his heart grew impossibly tall and heroic.
"All hands!" Karl shouted.
"Prepare for boarding combat!"
The rookies froze—then erupted into cheers.
"OOOOHHH!!!"
"KARL, YOU'RE THE BEST!"
"KARL!!!"
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Grappling hooks bit into the already-ruined pirate ship.
Marines swarmed across the ropes.
"Die, pirates!"
"Marine victory!"
Chaos erupted aboard the Hunter Blade Pirates' ship.
Broken in spirit long ago by Karl's methodical suppression, the pirates crumbled—some killed, some wounded, some surrendering.
The battle would end soon.
Zephyr and Karl stood side by side on the training ship, arms crossed, calmly observing.
"Hehehe… these kids sure have energy," Zephyr chuckled.
Karl shook his head helplessly.
"The captain's bounty is barely over twenty million. In the Four Seas, that's decent—but here on the Grand Line, it's nothing special."
"True," Zephyr nodded.
"But this is only an internship mission. I can't very well send you after pirates with hundred-million bounties, can I?"
Karl smiled faintly.
"Zephyr-sensei… do you think we're students of the first training camp?"
Zephyr froze for a moment—then laughed as they exchanged a knowing look.
Some things didn't need to be said.
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