By that time, no matter the vice leader of the Shark Tooth Pirate Gang, or the invincible "White Shark" Sku, they would all be nothing but smoke to me.
I would have the full capability to go anywhere I desire, to establish my own pirate gang, and never have to heed anyone again.
Most importantly... to stay as far away as possible from that already insane leader...
Caressing the black sculpture, he knew clearly that within this shipwreck-like sculpture, lay an evil spirit filled with hatred for the world of order and civilization, always eager to launch the fiercest revenge against humanity.
But whether blindly optimistic, confident, or desperate, he had faith that after transferring his job, he could completely suppress it.
"With it, I, One-Eyed Becky, can surely become a powerful Extraordinary, and one day take the throne of Black Sea Pirate King!"
Greed drove him to abandon all restraint, solely because the effects of this Ocean Treasure were too formidable.
Every time a naval ship of the Order World was sunk, the pirate ship holding it would gain a certain boost, and as long as it continuously hunted naval ships, becoming a truly Legendary Battleship wouldn't be just a dream.
Combining with the "Shipwreck Mourner", an Extraordinary Profession symbiotic with ships, Becky was confident he would eventually become the ruler of the Black Sea.
All this led him to make the blatant decision to attack naval ships, and after succeeding once, he aimed to lay a large net in these waters to complete another hunt!
...
"Captain, sir, the lookout reports some discarded trash was found floating on the sea. We're heading in the right direction!" The First Mate on the Warrior reported to his captain, also looking exhilarated.
"Hahaha, tell the Sailor to advance at full speed, don't let this little mouse slip from under our noses."
"Yes, sir!"
Heave-ho—Heave-ho—
Immediately, there came the vigorous shouts from outside, the whole crew full of excitement, as if the bounty was already within reach.
Because their captain had always told them that One-Eyed Becky once battled a naval ship, injuring the enemy a thousand at a cost of eight hundred to themselves, proving he could not possibly be a match for them. Finding him would mean defeating him, with achievements and bounties belonging to every contributing crew member.
In fact, the captain of the Warrior had climbed to his current position based on real skills, not deceiving the crew, but making reasonable judgments based on common sense, firmly believing his assessment wouldn't be wrong.
With favorable wind direction and speed, the Warrior was able to unfurl its sails fully, achieving a speed of up to six knots. Two hours after parting from the Silver Wings, it finally "as wished" caught up with the expected Black Sail Pirate Ship.
That pirate ship was stationary on one side of the Chaotic Stone Island, seemingly not anticipating anyone discovering them, only beginning to weigh anchor and raise sails upon seeing the aggressive approach of the Warrior.
In a hurry to respond!
The Navy officers on the Warrior, seeing the pirates scurrying in panic on their ship, felt even more encouraged, directly veering to the leeward to intercept the pirate ship slowly trying to escape.
The cannons opened, knives sharpened!
"Hah—! Did they really think they had us figured out? These fools don't even realize they've fallen into a trap." The pirate officers hiding in the shadows of the pirate ship simultaneously revealed bloodthirsty sneers, looking at the Warrior as if surveying lambs for the slaughter.
Since all the power of a sailing battleship depends on the wind, wind's importance in naval battles cannot be overstated. Upwind and downwind don't have absolute pros and cons, but offer respective advantages in various tactics.
The Warrior's attack from downwind allowed it to open all two layers of gunports, fully unleashing its firepower, and also blocked the opponent's escape route, but it never guessed it played right into the pirates' hands, falling into their trap.
Putting down the handheld telescope.
"Gagong, this prediction was excellent. All captured Navy personnel are yours!" One-Eyed Becky was very pleased with Gagong the Wizard's prediction this time, rarely promising his most desired spoils before the battle even started.
"Gahaha, thank you, Captain." The brown-skinned old man with a shriveled face wearing all sorts of bone adornments laughed strangely with his wrinkled mouth, black tongue, black teeth, and black mouth, looking as terrifying and disgusting as a black mamba.
"Open the gunports, slow down a bit, don't scare our guests away."
"Yes, Captain!"
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"...
Fierce cannon fire burst forth, cannonballs flying wildly, ship decks shattering and masts snapping. With each unlucky soul occasionally being ground into mincemeat on both sides.
"Ah—"
"My leg..."
Whether one was the hunter or the prey, naval warfare was brutal, equally so for both pirates and the Navy.
The pirate ship, in the upwind position, used its wind advantage to slowly close in on the Warrior, poised to forcibly engage in boarding combat.
The Warrior wanted to maximize the performance of its ship's artillery, fighting and retreating, using a naval version of the kite tactic.
"Hold steady, Gunpowder Chief, fire all our reserve ammo, to think of challenging a naval ship in firepower, they're a few decades too early!"
"Yes, sir!"
In the midst of flying cannon fire, the two ships gradually sailed out of their original waters. Just one more rocky arm extending from Chaotic Stone Island, and they'd re-enter deep waters.
At this moment, a puzzling scene unfolded before the crew of the Warrior.
The pirates' sails steadily retracted, and their ship began to slow down.
"Strange, what are they trying to do?"
The bearded Captain of the Warrior put down his handheld telescope, baffled by the pirates' intentions, but to keep his cannon within range, he had to slow down too.
"Sailor, lower..."
"Bang!" A massive shock shook the Warrior, throwing several sailors on deck into the sea from the overwhelming force.
"Not good, we've hit a reef!!"
The sailors' cries made the bearded captain's face turn deadly pale, realizing he was so focused on preventing the pirates' escape that he'd forgotten to observe sea conditions, committing the most unforgivable mistake.
The Navy aboard the ship plunged into utter chaos.
No one knew better than him the consequences of losing mobility in such a chase, and with a deep sense of pain, the bearded captain closed his eyes: "Keep firing to stop the pirate ship from closing in, send out a distress signal, order the entire ship to defend and wait for Colonel Gel's rescue!"
For one always so proud and self-assured, this was a tough decision, but compared to his life, his reputation mattered little now.
As the shining red distress signal flared up into the sky, the pirate ship took new action.
Around seven or eight specially-made small wooden boats were lowered into the water, each boat carrying three pirates, one with a torch and two rowing, with something covered by sailcloth in the boats.
This time, no need for orders from the bearded Captain, the seasoned officers immediately understood the damned pirates' intention—this was a tmd fire ship attack!
What grudge, what enmity, they faced? Their battleship already grounded on the reef, yet the pirates sent a suicide squad to burn the ship?!!!
"Hurry, quick, fire and sink those fire ships!" The Gunpowder Chief's order was nearly hysterical, close to cracking, but the gunners' own mood wasn't much better, swiftly loading ammo and recklessly firing at distant targets.
But due to being grounded, the Courage leaned to one side overall, with the gunports facing the pirates' ship all pointed skyward, and they had sunk two fire ships by sheer luck as they descended into the water, yet when they got close, they could no longer be attacked.
Moreover, during this process, the pirate ship's artillery did not relent at all, the relentless cannon fire pinned the Navy officers on the Warrior down, the launched lifeboats also came under focused attacks, thoroughly cutting off the sailors' escape hopes.
"Madmen, madmen, dare they store so much flammable oil onboard, aren't they afraid of turning themselves into fireballs?!"
Yet at this moment, no matter how vicious the curses, it couldn't save the Warrior from its doomed fate.