Pirates: Building a Pirate Family

The next morning, Charlotte took a dozen younger brothers out to sea on a fishing boat that had been transformed from three pirate ships.

These dozen or so boys were skilled at sailing. After learning that Charlotte was going out to hunt Neptunes, they all volunteered to control the fishing boat for her.

The fishing boat sailed out of port, heading toward the unknown sea.

It was the first time Charlotte had ventured this far.

As the port quickly disappeared from view, Charlotte focused her mind and prepared for any potential threats.

"Captain, there's a ship ahead!"

While Charlotte was sailing, a pirate ship appeared in the distance, targeting them.

Charlotte stood on the deck, closed her eyes, and sensed with her knowledge.

Suddenly, a ship appeared within her range of perception.

This intrigued Charlotte. She hadn't expected to encounter another ship so soon, just an hour after setting sail. She didn't know whether it was a pirate ship or a merchant vessel.

Just as Charlotte was considering her options, a loud noise rang out from afar.

"Here it comes! It must be a pirate ship."

Charlotte opened her eyes and watched as the enemy's cannonballs landed near her ship.

The enemy gunners, however, seemed to be poorly aimed, and their shells fell harmlessly around their own ship.

Even so, the sailors aboard Charlotte's ship began to panic.

"Don't panic! I'm still here!" Charlotte's voice clearly reached all the sailors aboard.

The dozen sailors forced themselves to calm down and looked to Charlotte for guidance.

"You handle the ship. Leave the pirates to me."

Charlotte then leapt into the air and punched a cannonball out of midair.

Using her knowledge, Charlotte predicted the shell's trajectory and blew it up before it could hit her ship.

Bang!

The cannonball exploded midair, and Charlotte landed back on the deck unscathed.

"Boss is amazing!" Seeing this, the sailors cheered.

Charlotte smiled.

Meanwhile, the opposing pirate group was watching with concern.

"Captain, the other side is no pushover!" a sailor with a telescope said, after seeing Charlotte destroy the shell with her bare hands.

"What are you afraid of? We have plenty of men. That kid can't be a match for us! Move forward!" The pirate captain shoved the lookout aside and barked orders to the helmsman.

"Yes, Captain!" the helmsman responded.

As the pirate ship drew nearer, Charlotte smiled. She had been worried that the enemy would try to wear her down with cannon fire, but now, they had passed the test.

"Don't panic. I'll handle this!" Charlotte leaped into the air, stepping lightly and rushing toward the enemy ship.

This technique, known as the "Moon Step," was part of the Navy's Sixth Form. Charlotte had only mastered the basics, so she couldn't fly as long or high as others, but it was more than enough to handle the pirate group in front of her.

"Boy! Who are you?" the pirate captain demanded, eyeing the young fighter who had appeared on his ship.

Initially, he had thought Charlotte was just a small fry, but now, it seemed like she was a formidable opponent.

"Aren't you pirates?" Charlotte pointed at the large pirate flag above the ship.

Before the pirate captain could respond, Charlotte charged straight at him, delivering a punch to his face.

Bang!

The pirate captain crashed to the ground.

"Get him!" The pirate captain, clutching his face, pointed toward Charlotte's crew.

He was furious at the surprise attack.

Charlotte smiled slightly. With so many pirates in front of her, she didn't even feel the need to draw her sword. Instead, she raised her fists and rushed into the crowd.

Bang, bang, bang!

Charlotte swiftly knocked out the pirates one by one before they even had a chance to react.

The fallen pirates were either dead from crushed chests or decapitated heads. None of them were intact.

"What?!" The pirate captain, witnessing the destruction, kicked his legs wildly in panic and started to retreat.

Charlotte approached, her fists stained with blood.

Without allowing him a chance to speak, she leapt in front of him and delivered a final blow.

Bang!

The pirate captain's head was instantly shattered.

Looking down at the headless body, along with the blood and broken flesh splattered across her own clothes, Charlotte muttered to herself, "Since when did I become so ruthless? There's not a single life left!"

She then waved for her sailors to approach.

When Charlotte rushed over, her crew had already retreated to the side of the ship, watching their boss handle things.

Seeing Charlotte's wave, the sailors hurriedly operated the boat to come closer.

"Boss!" several sailors exclaimed as they saw the corpses on the deck, their legs trembling.

"Pile up the bodies and use them to lure the Sea Kings!" Charlotte commanded.

She didn't want to waste time searching the endless sea. It was better to let the Sea Kings come to them.

"Yes, Boss!" the sailors replied, visibly shaken.

Charlotte then entered the captain's cabin to see if she could find any treasure.

To her surprise, the only item she found was a treasure chest.

"This chest... Could it be a Devil Fruit?" Charlotte wondered aloud, trembling as she approached it.

The chest was small enough to fit a Devil Fruit.

Could she really be so lucky? Had she stumbled upon a Devil Fruit on her first sea voyage?

She quickly unlocked it, her hands shaking.

Opening the chest, she was puzzled by what she saw.

"Hmm?" Charlotte muttered, inspecting the item inside. "What's this?"

It was a blueprint.

"Could it be a treasure map?" she thought aloud, examining the intricate drawings on the page.

The map seemed to depict a specific location.

"Could this be where the pirate captain's treasure is hidden? But where exactly is this place?" Charlotte wondered, unsure of where the map led.

She decided to keep it for now and hoped to figure it out later.

As she put the map away, Charlotte found several bounty posters inside, showing the rewards for the pirate crew.

"Ha! A pirate with a bounty of just 100 Berries dares to be this arrogant!" she scoffed, dismissing the weak bounties.

After searching through the captain's belongings, Charlotte found almost 600 million Berries.

"With this much money, I can afford to search again," she thought.

Suddenly, a voice called out from the sailors.

"Boss, help! There are a lot of Sea Kings!"

Charlotte's heart skipped a beat. "A lot of Sea Kings? How many are there?"

She immediately expanded her knowledge.

"Hiss!" The sight that greeted her was incredible.

"How many Sea Kings are there? Did I disturb their nest?"

Charlotte rushed out of the captain's cabin.

Looking around, she saw the Sea Kings surrounding the pirate ship.

"Quick! Throw the bodies overboard to lure them away! We need to escape!" Charlotte barked, panic rising in her voice.

The sailors scrambled to operate the ship in a frenzy.

"Boss, the Sea Kings are blocking the way!" the helmsman cried, his voice filled with despair.

"Damn it!" Charlotte drew the long sword from her waist.

patreon.com/luxeclu