NOVEL WEB Chapter 17: C17
Weiss walked to the edge of the ship's deck. Below, the pirates stood in absolute silence on the beach. Each one of them had witnessed Weiss's terrifying strength firsthand. Even as rain poured down on them, none dared utter a complaint—only fear gripped their hearts.
Now, all they could do was wait in silence for their judgment—life or death.
"You'll be surviving on this island from now on," Weiss said coldly. "The two most dangerous beasts on this island have already been taken care of by me. If you manage to survive, consider yourselves lucky."
"If you can't… then it just proves you're nothing special. What right do you have to call yourselves pirates?"
With that, Weiss turned around and called out to his three companions. The sails were raised, and the ship set off.
The pirates stared blankly at the slowly retreating Chris, unable to believe they were still alive after an encounter with that bloodthirsty monster.
—
Inside the ship's cabin, Kadun was preparing food. Deuce was changing out of his soaked clothes. Meanwhile, Ace was using his flames to dry his own.
Naturally, Weiss dumped the job of steering the ship onto Ace. Alone now in the helm room, Ace stared at the pile of gold coins on the deck, visibly conflicted.
Of course, it wasn't because he wanted to steal them. Sure, he'd done things like that before—but he'd changed now. What really troubled him was whether or not he should borrow money from Weiss.
Ace had already given up on inviting Weiss to join his own crew. The difference in their strength was just too vast. That meant they'd inevitably part ways someday. The problem was… Ace didn't even have a ship anymore.
His old one had been destroyed in a storm, and to get a new one, he'd need money—which he didn't have.
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"Should I ask him for a loan?" Ace frowned deeply, struggling to make up his mind. "We've only known each other for two days… and technically, he's my savior. How do you even bring something like that up?"
His brow furrowed so hard it nearly twisted into a knot. In the end, he still hadn't decided.
"Forget it. I'll wait until we reach the next island. If we run into a pirate ship, I'll just take it. After all, our 'crew' only has two people right now anyway."
—
While Ace mulled over his options, Weiss was focused on the map of the East Blue. He'd gotten it from his teacher—it was extremely detailed.
He too was torn. According to their current route, they'd reach an island called Valan in two days. There was a town there where they could restock supplies.
But that was only the temporary course.
What Weiss was really debating was whether to head straight for Loguetown and cross Reverse Mountain into the Grand Line, or to first seek out Koushirou for a duel—to test whether that man was hiding his true strength.
"Wait… there's no need to struggle with this. Going to see Koushirou would actually kill two birds with one stone."
Weiss suddenly remembered—Koushirou was from Wano. His sword, Wado Ichimonji, was forged by his own father.
That meant his father must have been a master blacksmith. Even if the old man was no longer alive, he surely had connections to other skilled forgers.
Weiss's current sword had been crafted by a blacksmith on Twin Swallow Island. It was fine for fighting pirates in the East Blue, but it would definitely fall short in the Grand Line.
For a swordsman, a good weapon was crucial. A poor sword could cut one's strength in half, while a fine blade could significantly boost one's power.
That's why every swordsman dreams of owning a Meito—a named sword.
But in the world of pirates, swords and blades are practically the same. Most famous swords are curved like katanas, which Weiss didn't like.
There were some double-edged swords, though.
The most famous was the cursed Seven-Star Sword (Shichiseiken), followed by Wintry Wind (Kogarashi) and Cherry Ten (Oto) used by Golden Lion, and the sword carried by Brook.
But none of these suited Weiss's taste. Golden Lion's and Brook's swords were too slender, and the Seven-Star Sword came with too much trouble.
More importantly—Weiss liked raising his weapons.
He preferred a blade that started fresh—tempered and molded by his own hands through constant battles, gradually becoming powerful. That was the true path of the sword.
Just like Mihawk's Black Blade. No sword starts out as a named blade. It's only through its wielder's armament haki and countless fights that it eventually earns its name.
Yoru, Shusui—they were forged not in fire, but in blood and battle.
"All right. That settles it then. I'll head for Koushirou's island, issue a challenge, and look for a blacksmith while I'm at it."
Having made up his mind, Weiss put the map away. First, they'd stop at Valan Island to drop the others off.
"I should also start gathering some proper crew along the way… I need to add a shipwright to my list of target recruits. I wonder what kind of person I'll run into."
Sitting on the couch, Weiss let his thoughts wander. Meanwhile, after changing his clothes, Deuce had joined Kadun in the kitchen to help. It had already been a struggle cooking for two. Now there were four—three of whom had huge appetites.
Kadun was starting to get overwhelmed.
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"Hey Weiss, who's your teacher anyway? He must be amazing to train someone like you," Ace asked while eating lunch. In his mind, anyone capable of producing a monster like Weiss had to be legendary.
"Just an old man no one's heard of. I'm just naturally talented," Weiss said calmly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Ace had the sudden urge to punch him in the face. It would feel so satisfying.
Kadun gave Ace a look—You're not the only one who wants to hit him. I do too.
As they ate, Deuce asked, chewing on a roasted leg, "Hey Kadun, how did you meet Captain Weiss? For me, it was fate—I happened to want to go to sea, and he just happened to show up. Destiny!"
Kadun hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to tell the truth. After all, he'd originally come aboard as a pirate prisoner. But then he shrugged—what was there to hide?
"Well, I was a pirate too. I was following my captain to an island, but before we could even land, Weiss split our ship in half with a single swing."
"I swam for my life. I tell you, it's a miracle I'm still alive. Lucky I'm a fast swimmer. You know what happened next?"
"What?" Ace asked, intrigued.
"A giant Sea King! It swallowed the entire ship whole. And that ship was over a hundred meters long! Can you imagine how huge that thing was?"
Kadun gestured wildly to emphasize the size, recounting the tale with dramatic flair.
"Weren't you sad though? Your crewmates all died."
"Sad? Nah. I was only on that ship because they needed a navigator," Kadun said nonchalantly as he continued eating.
As the tale went on, Deuce gasped and commented along the way. Kadun became even more animated. Despite being a 'salted fish' for ten years, he'd experienced a lot more than Deuce.
"Oh… so basically, if your captain had listened to you and changed course back then, you wouldn't have run into Weiss, huh?"
Kadun thought about it—yeah, maybe. If they'd gone the other way, he might be dead now. The Grand Line… really was something else.
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Currently at chapter 105 on Ko-Fi
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