One Piece: Pirate Code

On the deck stood members of the Red Beard Pirates: Felton, Harden, Hutchison, Nadal, Wood, and others. They all stared at William, who held a glowing-hot blade, utterly baffled.

William's single command directed at Kuro, who had always held a relatively special status aboard the ship, left them all uneasy and unsure.

Felton, the first mate, stepped forward, frowning. "What are you doing, Stolt?" he demanded.

Then, turning to Kuro, who was busy lowering a small boat, Felton shouted, "Are you crazy? Stop it at once!"

Kuro completely ignored him, as did William. Sweeping his gaze over the gathered pirates, William fixed his eyes on a newcomer and gave an order: "Fetch the barrel of wine I hid at the bottom of the hold."

The new recruit froze, glancing hesitantly at Felton, who looked furious, but still nodded and dragged another new recruit along to swiftly head for the hatch. Like Kuro and William, the recruits seemed to completely disregard Felton's authority.

These newcomers had joined after the incident in Kalmar City. They hadn't experienced the prime of "Red Beard" Barbossa when he was at his peak. What they witnessed after boarding was a cruel and insane Barbossa. During this time, William, with his generosity and charisma, had garnered more respect among the newcomers than Barbossa himself.

After all, William wouldn't arbitrarily strangle them and hang their corpses from the bow as wind chimes.

Being continuously ignored, even by a mere recruit, enraged Felton. He stepped forward to stop Kuro, but after just two steps, he was blocked by the second mate, Harden, who shoved him firmly in the chest.

"Harden, have you lost your mind? Are you defying the captain's orders now?" Felton's face turned pale with anger. His two confidants quickly moved to stand behind him, glaring menacingly at Harden.

However, the other crew members, including the older pirates, didn't side with Felton. Even when he invoked Barbossa's name, they remained silent.

Barbossa had once unified the pirates aboard through his ability to bring them success and wealth. His cunning, alliances with land-based powers, and formidable strength had ensured the crew's survival and prosperity.

His constant victories had granted him immense prestige, allowing the crew to overlook his greed—taking the lion's share of spoils—and his favoritism toward Haredin's abuse of fellow crewmates.

But after the series of setbacks following the Kalmar City incident—Haredin's death, Reis's murder, Barbossa's failure against Zepp, the ship being attacked, and their treasures plundered—the cracks in Barbossa's golden reputation began to show.

In times of adversity, the crew might have remained loyal due to past successes. However, Barbossa, consumed by rage and incapable of accepting failure after ruling the East Sea for so long, became increasingly cruel. Instead of appeasing his crew, he turned on them, exhausting the last shred of loyalty they had.

Now, Barbossa's paranoia led him to forbid boarding enemy ships during battles, further alienating the crew.

Barbossa's brutality, once a symbol of his strength, had become a ticking time bomb. Pirates admired strong leaders because they delivered victory and prosperity. A powerful madman, however, who endangered his comrades, earned no loyalty.

In simple terms, the Red Beard Pirates—and most pirates—would follow a strong leader who brought them success, but never a beast-like lunatic.

Thus, the older pirates silently watched the confrontation. They neither explicitly supported William nor enforced Barbossa's orders to assist Felton.

These men, fearful and cautious, didn't want to intervene. They were dissatisfied with Barbossa's increasing brutality but lacked the courage to openly oppose their captain.

Bolder crew members like Harden, who always led the charge in battle, directly expressed their discontent. Harden had long despised Felton, viewing him as a sycophant who secured his position by currying favor with Barbossa and abusing his power. Harden, who hadn't flinched in the face of Zepp, a pirate equal in fame to Barbossa, wasn't about to back down to Felton, whom he regarded as a mere bootlicker.

Conversely, William's charisma, shown through his generosity before the Kalmar City incident and his calm, graceful demeanor afterward, aligned with Harden's temperament. William's courage and strength during his clash with Zepp only solidified Harden's admiration.

As for loyalty to Barbossa, it had evaporated the moment crew members saw their comrades executed without cause and left to rot as grotesque ornaments on the ship's bow.

William patted Harden's shoulder. When Harden stepped aside, William approached Felton and his men, unperturbed by the hands resting on their weapons.

William's tall stature contrasted sharply with the short and stocky Felton. Standing face-to-face, William gazed down coldly, his expression blank.

He didn't speak. Sometimes, silence is the most powerful weapon, especially under the watchful eyes of a crowd. The suffocating stillness exerted immense psychological pressure.

Felton dared not act. Setting aside William's strength, he was the ship's sole navigator. With the ship still near the Calm Belt, losing the navigator could doom their safe return.

After a few seconds, Felton, intimidated by William's presence, averted his gaze. William's eyes then shifted to Felton's two confidants. His icy blue eyes seemed to possess an unspoken power, forcing them to look away.

With his role as navigator, his unwavering composure during the clash with Zepp, and his evident strength and cunning, William had risen to become the second most influential figure aboard after the deaths of Reis and Haredin. He was no longer the insignificant figure he had been when he first joined.

Felton and his men, who seemed so imposing moments ago, were now utterly deflated without William needing to utter a single word. The surrounding pirates exchanged glances but dared not make a sound.

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