Kyle held his breath, merging into the shadow at the cliff's edge, revealing only a pair of golden pupils as he calmly observed the ship gradually approaching below.
The ship wasn't large, capable of holding at most twenty people. Its hull was somewhat dilapidated, and the sails had several patches, clearly not belonging to a wealthy pirate crew.
The figurehead was standard—a ferocious skull with two crossed cutlasses below it, a classic design, just not very creative.
"Finally..." Kyle murmured to himself. Three years, a full three years! He had lived like a wild man on this island for so long, and finally, he had found an opportunity to leave!
Despite his excitement, he didn't immediately rush out to stage a "Dragon King's Return" drama.
Caution was the first rule for a transmigrator to survive, especially in this chaotic and dangerous world.
The pirate ship dropped anchor not far from the shore, and several figures jumped off the ship, wading through knee-deep seawater towards the beach.
There were twelve people in total, all disheveled and untidy, with cutlasses or flintlocks at their waists. They looked like desperadoes who had lived by the sword for years.
Leading them was a relatively burly, bearded man with a crimson cloth wrapped around his waist and a spiked club larger than his head on his shoulder. He was swearing and directing his subordinates:
"All of you, hurry up! Find some fresh water and food, and see if there's anything valuable on this godforsaken island!"
"Yes, Captain!" several pirates responded with laughter, scattering.
Kyle restrained his presence to the extreme, while silently activating his Boba Fruit ability. An invisible vibrational sense spread out from him like a radar, scanning these unwelcome guests.
"Hmm... their strength is mediocre. Compared to the monsters in the first half of the Grand Line, who have bounties of tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of Berries, they're just cannon fodder," Kyle silently assessed.
Although these people were fierce, they didn't possess the suffocating aura of a strong person, nor did he sense the presence of Haki. Dealing with them shouldn't be a problem.
The area where he was hiding was high up, offering a wide view, and the pirates' movements below were completely visible.
Several pirates searched around the beach, grumbling about the island's barrenness.
"What good stuff could there be in this godforsaken place!" a tall, thin pirate kicked a stone.
"Hey, at least there's fresh water. Captain, last time, in that place called... what was it called, that village, we got a lot of good stuff!" another pirate with a scar on his face chuckled, revealing yellow teeth.
The bearded Captain heard this and laughed proudly, "That's right! Those villagers wanted to resist? I smashed them with one swing of my spiked club, and their brains splattered out! And those girls, tsk tsk, they were really damn moist!"
"It's a pity, Captain, you were too heavy-handed. You killed two after playing with them, and the brothers hadn't had enough fun yet!" a monkey-faced pirate next to him echoed, his tone full of lewdness and regret.
"What are you afraid of! After we resupply, we'll go check out nearby islands. I guarantee you'll have all the fun you want! Those who don't listen, the men will be killed and fed to fish, and the women..." The bearded Captain let out a disgusting cackle, and the surrounding pirates joined in the raucous laughter, with vulgar words endlessly flowing.
They brazenly discussed their recent plunder and massacre of a certain village, their tone as light as if they were discussing today's weather.
The last trace of amusement on Kyle's face vanished, replaced by a somber expression. He had originally held a sliver of hope, thinking he might be able to "negotiate amicably" with these pirates, using some "special techniques" to get them to give him a ride. But now, it seemed these guys were utterly despicable scum, deserving of death!
The world of the Pirate King wasn't always about sunny adventures and passionate friendships. The cruelty and darkness hidden in the manga's cover stories, or briefly mentioned, were now laid bare before him. Violence, evil, and bloodshed—this was one of the more realistic backdrops of this great sea.
He wasn't a saint, but he was certainly not someone who could remain indifferent to such atrocities. Moreover, the appearance of these scumbags just happened to give him a "reasonable" opportunity to acquire a ship.
"It seems my first real combat will be against you bunch of scumbags," Kyle slowly stood up, a chilling killing intent flashing in his eyes.
He took a deep breath, choosing not to jump directly from the cliff to deliver justice, yelling, "Surrender immediately, you are surrounded by me!" Instead, he silently circled to the edge of the jungle where the pirates were scattered and searching.
A lone pirate was cursing and hacking at obstructive vines with his cutlass, completely unaware of the approaching danger. Kyle appeared behind him like a ghost, his right hand making a phantom grip, and an invisible vibration wave quietly condensed.
The pirate's movements suddenly stiffened. He tried to cry for help but couldn't make a sound.
The next second, the cutlass in his hand clanged to the ground, and his entire body slumped down as if his bones had been removed, a faint crackling sound coming from within his body, and dark red blood slowly seeped from his seven orifices.
Killed in one blow, without even making much noise.
Kyle looked at the scene before him, his stomach churning.
Although he was mentally prepared, the feeling of personally ending a life was far more unsettling than he had imagined.
He suppressed the discomfort in his heart and turned his gaze to another target not far away.
"Who?!" Another pirate seemed to have heard something and turned his head vigilantly.
What greeted him was an impact wave almost imperceptible to the naked eye.
"Puff!"
The pirate was hit head-on as if by an invisible heavy hammer, his chest instantly caving in a large chunk. He flew backward, breaking a small tree before stopping, spitting out blood, clearly not going to survive.
"Enemy attack!!"
Finally, a pirate discovered his companion's tragic state and screamed in terror.
The bearded Captain on the beach's face changed, and he roared, "Who is it?! Get out here!"
Kyle didn't respond. Instead, he walked directly out of the forest, his figure bathed in sunlight, with black hair, golden eyes, and a cold expression.
"A... kid?" The bearded Captain was first stunned when he saw Kyle's appearance, then he sneered, "You ignorant fool, dare to touch my men? Brothers, chop him up for me!"
The remaining seven or eight pirates immediately howled and charged towards Kyle, their swords and knives glinting with cold light.
Kyle didn't retreat but advanced, facing the charging pirates, pushing his hands forward.
"Buzz—Buzz—Buzz—"
Three solidified shockwaves spread out in a fan shape, precisely covering all the enemies in front. The pirates at the very front didn't even have time to scream before they were blasted away by the violent force, their bones broken and muscles torn, their lives unknown.
The pirates behind them were scared out of their wits by this terrifying power, stopping dead in their tracks, looking at Kyle in horror.
"You... what kind of monster are you?!" a pirate asked tremblingly.
Kyle didn't answer, his figure flickered, instantly appearing before him.
The pirate only felt a blur before his eyes, and then a strange vibration came from the arm holding the knife. He watched helplessly as his sturdy steel knife shattered like glass, turning into a pile of iron filings.
"My knife!"
Before he could react, Kyle delivered a hand chop to his neck, the vibrating force directly destroying his cervical spine.
In an instant, only the bearded Captain remained standing. He watched Kyle dispose of his subordinates like chopping melons and vegetables, the sneer on his face long gone, replaced by deep fear.
He finally realized that he had provoked an existence he absolutely should not have provoked.
"You... who exactly are you?" the bearded Captain roared, his voice feigning toughness while his hand gripping the spiked club trembled slightly from fear.
Kyle walked towards him step by step, each step like stepping on his heart.
"A righteous wild man passing by."
Before his words finished, Kyle's figure suddenly accelerated, turning into an afterimage.
The bearded Captain roared, swinging his spiked club down fiercely, bringing with it a gust of foul wind.
However, the spiked club hit nothing. The moment Kyle's body touched the spiked club, it became somewhat transparent, like shimmering air, and the spiked club passed through his body without any obstruction.
Elementalization!
The bearded Captain's pupils constricted. What kind of ability was this?!
The next moment, Kyle's body solidified again, one hand already pressed against his chest.
"I'll send you off. Go to hell and repent."
"Shockwave... Disintegration!"
"Puff—"
The bearded Captain's body trembled violently, his expression frozen in extreme horror and pain. He looked down at his chest, where his clothes and flesh seemed to be torn and pulverized from the inside out by an invisible force.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but only spewed out a large mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs, then fell straight down, completely lifeless.
The battle ended.
Kyle stood on the messy beach, the sea breeze carrying a strong smell of blood.
He looked at the bodies strewn across the ground, his face somewhat pale, his stomach churning. In the end, he couldn't hold it in, and with a "wah," he vomited up the roasted fish he had eaten that morning.
It was his first time killing, and he had killed so many people consecutively. Even though the opponents were heinous pirates, the strong physiological and psychological impact was still difficult for him to bear. This was a completely different experience from breaking stones and felling trees during training.
After a long while, he finally managed to recover, rinsing his mouth with seawater and wiping away the stains from his lips.
"Hoo... so this is the world of the Pirate King," he murmured, a hint of complexity in his tone. There was no passionate background music, no stirring declarations, only cold corpses and nauseating blood.
But he didn't regret it.
He walked to the pirate ship, examining this "ride" that was about to belong to him. Although it was a bit old, it was at least a ship that could go out to sea.
"The beginner's gift package has finally arrived," Kyle's lips curved into a slightly pale smile, "Although... the delivery man's attitude was a bit poor."
He jumped onto the ship and began to check its condition. There was some fresh water and food, but not much.
Unexpectedly, in one of the cabins, he also found a small wooden box containing some Berries and a few pieces of jewelry that looked quite valuable.
"Better than nothing," Kyle put the box away.
Now, he had a ship.
"So..." Kyle stood at the bow, gazing at the boundless sea, his eyes rekindling with light, "Grand Line, here I come!"