One Piece: Starting as a Marine Lieutenant, I Slack Off and Get Stronger

"Yes, sir!"

Ten minutes later, the warship started up and sped off in the direction the Blazing Pirates had fled.

But they had long since vanished, so Carl had to reanalyze their escape route.

"Sir, since they are planning to go to the Sabaody Archipelago, they must pass through the Devil's Triangle. Otherwise, it would take a long time to detour."

"So I speculate that they are definitely near the Devil's Triangle right now."

Karl stroked his chin and nodded: "You make a lot of sense. Let's head to the Devil's Triangle now!"

The Devil's Triangle, the territory of Gecko Moria, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, was a place Carl had long wanted to visit, but after acquiring Raven, he wasn't in a rush.

So when I came to Water Seven, I bypassed the Devil's Triangle area, but in the end I still had to go there.

Karl thought to himself, "Since that's the case, if I happen to run into Moria, I might as well take Shusui with me! After all, he's a Great Sword!"

Raven is useful, but it also has a drawback: it's an ability weapon, and once it gets wet, it becomes like a human.

It felt as if its body had been hollowed out, becoming limp and weak, and it had to be dried in the sun before it could be used again.

Don't ask why Karl knew; he just experimented with it. Raven was furious about that!

Devil's Triangle.

Roach Thompson chuckled and patted his subordinate on the shoulder, saying, "Haha, luckily you were quick-witted! Otherwise, I really wouldn't have known the Navy was waiting for us in Water Seven!"

"The expressions on those navy sailors' faces right now must be hilarious, hahaha!"

The surrounding pirates burst into laughter, mocking the Navy's foolishness.

"Boss Roach, look! There's something on the sea! Uh, it looks like a bucket!"

"Let me see, what kind of bucket is this?"

A knowledgeable pirate henchman said, "Boss, this should be a wine vessel used for sacrificial rites to the sea god; it's filled with fine wine!"

Roach's eyes lit up, and he burst into laughter, "Men, hurry up and bring it up! It'll be perfect for celebrating how we tricked the navy!"

"Great!!!" "The boss is brilliant!"

It didn't take long for the wine bottle to be brought up, and Roach couldn't wait to tear off the seal and open the bottle.

"Oh!"

"Fuck!"

A red signal flare shot into the sky, turning it red. Roach sat on the deck, looking up at the sky with a bewildered expression, not knowing what had happened.

"What the hell is going on?! Those are... fireworks?"

"Oh no, boss! That should be a signal flare. Could it be a Navy trap?"

Roach felt something was off the more he thought about it, and upon hearing the answer, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Damn it, I knew it! It must be those cunning marines!"

"Men, keep your eyes peeled! If the navy appears, issue a warning immediately!"

the other side.

"Sir, look! Someone's firing a signal flare up ahead!"

Karl smiled and put down the binoculars, thinking that this must be the thing Moria used to fish, and he knew without a doubt that the Fire Pirates had taken the bait.

"Proceed at full speed toward the direction of the signal flare."

"Yes!"

Just a few minutes later, the sky darkened, as if a storm was brewing, and the air became incredibly still.

"Sir, something seems amiss."

Karl glanced at the sky and said, "It doesn't matter, just do your job. We're very close to the Fire Pirates' ship, let's keep pushing!"

Flame.

"Boss, this weather's weird! Something's creeping up my spine... the Devil's Triangle... could there really be ghosts there?!"

Luo Qi swallowed hard and slapped his underling across the face.

"Useless! We're pirates! How can we be afraid of ghosts? Ghosts should be afraid of us!"

"Cheer up, all of you! Don't scare yourselves. Don't forget we have the navy behind us!"

"It's bad, boss! The navy is catching up! They're right behind us!"

Seeing the warships chasing behind them, the pirates on the Flame became somewhat agitated.

Chapter 50 The Thriller Bark

warship.

"Colonel, shall we fire?"

Karl shook his head. Fire? It doesn't matter, Moria will handle it.

The Flame Pirates have already taken the bait, and he doesn't believe Moria won't pull the trigger. Perhaps the people on their warship are also one of Moria's targets.

The Seven Warlords of the Sea, heh, are not like the World Government and Navy's lackeys that pirates say they are.

"Master, the prey has taken the bait. It's the Flame Pirates, but they have the Marines behind them."

Moria, who had been feigning sleep on the throne, opened his eyes, spread his hands, and laughed: "Hehehehe~ Whether they're pirates or marines, I want their shadows!!!"

"It's all up to you, Absalom!"

"Yes, Master!"

Absalom then left the castle, ready to close the net.

On the sea, the Flame Pirates were fleeing frantically. They had originally intended to use cannon fire to intimidate their crew, but after firing just one cannonball, a huge flying slash came from the warship behind them, slicing off their watchtower and nearly scaring them to death.

Flying slashes are the hallmark of a swordsman, meaning there's a naval swordsman on the warship behind them—someone they absolutely cannot afford to mess with.

So they could only run for their lives, and Karl wasn't in a hurry to chase them, following the Flame at a leisurely pace.

"Boss, there's a wall in front of us!"

"What! How is this possible! How could there be such a huge wall on the sea?"

Luo Qi rubbed his eyes, somewhat incredulous, but there was indeed a stone wall stretching for a thousand meters in front of them, with the only gap right in front of them. Even a fool would know there was something wrong.

The problem is that the navy is following them. If they don't head towards the gap, they'll just have to wait to be killed and cut into pieces by that navy swordsman.

"Damn it, let's go for it! Navigate the boat that way!"

"Boss, this is a ghost wall! We absolutely can't go in! If we go in, we'll be devoured by evil spirits!"

Roach turned around and yelled, "Go to hell! You're the captain and I'm the captain? Get the ship in here, or else we'll send you to Impel Down!"

And so, the Flame adjusted its direction slightly and headed toward the gap.

"Colonel, they're heading towards the breach. Should we follow them in? This is clearly a trap!"

Karl waved his hand: "Follow them. Our navy isn't afraid of any tricks or schemes!"

"Yes, sir!"

Ten minutes later, after Karl's warship entered the gap, a rumbling sound came from behind. It turned out that the gap behind was slowly closing.

Finally, a loud bang was heard, like a monster closing its gaping maw, making the atmosphere even more eerie.

If Karl hadn't stood fearlessly at the bow, the naval soldiers would probably have panicked long ago.

After all, at sea, such absurd and bizarre events can easily evoke images of demons or similar creatures.

Carl wasn't a hawkish general, and he didn't have any particular feelings about the group of terrified naval soldiers; it was just human nature.

"I have to say, Moria, that fat otaku, is really something; he creates a great atmosphere."

Karl, who knew exactly who was behind it all, remained calm. He thought that if Moria hadn't become a pirate and instead started a haunted house, it would have been a huge hit, and he might even have earned the title of King of Terror.

"Colonel, why isn't the Flame Pirates moving? Huh! They actually dared to drop anchor!"

Nelson was astonished. The pirates who had just been fleeing in panic were now anchoring right in front of them. They really had some nerve! Were they planning to take a gamble?

Little did they know, the pirates on the Flame were already in complete chaos.

"Who did it? Which idiot did this?!"

The underlings exchanged bewildered glances; none of them moved! Could something really be amiss?

"Boss, boss, look!"

Roach fell silent, staring at the anchor that was completely locked and hearing the clattering footsteps, because there wasn't a soul around.

The henchmen behind her then let out a scream that was even more effeminate than a woman's.

"Aaaaaah! There's a ghost!!!"

"Bang~"

Karl, who descended from the sky, looked at the chaotic Flame Pirates and couldn't help but chuckle. They were already scared like this before they even landed on the island. No wonder Moria was thriving in this backwater!

"Pirates, you're under arrest!"

Upon hearing Karl's voice, the terrified pirates clung to him as if he were their last hope.