"Brothers!"
"Burn the village down! Straight for the mansion!"
"Raaaarghhh!"
There was nothing in the world more exhilarating to this band of pirates than pillaging and killing.
A dark, seething mass of pirates surged upward, charging ferociously along the narrow, sloping path.
The bloodthirst in their veins could barely be contained.
Thud-thud-thud-thud,
Like a pack of rabid dogs that had caught the scent of prey, the pirates stormed up the hill, leaving chaotic footprints behind them, hungry for the slaughter ahead.
"Ah!"
One pirate at the front of the pack suddenly stumbled.
His foot had landed in a shallow hole, just the size of an adult's foot.
He hadn't noticed it at all.
Thrown off balance by momentum, he pitched forward, falling helplessly.
None of the others paid him any mind. To them, he was just a clumsy fool.
Until,
"Aaarghhh!!!"
A blood-curdling scream tore through the night.
The pirate had landed face-first onto a jagged stone. The sharp, gleaming tip, razor-like and glinting like steel, plunged straight into his eye socket.
Crunch!
The stone drove deep into his skull, silencing him instantly with one final, instinctive cry.
"Ah!?"
Hidden in the tall grass, Usopp instantly covered his mouth, trying not to scream from shock.
He had just witnessed, with his own eyes, a living, breathing person killed by the trap he had designed.
Blood gushed violently from the wound, spraying from the pirate's eye.
For the normally kind-hearted Usopp, the reality of death sent a wave of fear crashing over him.
So this… is how easy it is to kill someone…
─────────🏴☠️────────
The rest of the pirates came to a sudden halt, stunned by the horrifying scene.
Their wide, terrified eyes stared at the gruesome sight before them.
Cold sweat drenched their backs, soaking through their clothes.
"W-What the hell was that?"
A pirate stammered, frozen in place.
Buchi, one of the feline brothers, stepped forward without hesitation. Ignoring the blood, he flipped over the fallen pirate's body.
The stone spike was still lodged in his eye, blood trickling from the wound.
Grimacing, Buchi tossed the body aside and growled through clenched teeth:
"This idiot got himself killed by being careless!"
"Forget him! Keep moving!"
"Yes, sir!"
Clatter!
The pirates resumed their march toward the village.
But the reckless excitement from before was gone.
Now they moved slowly and cautiously, wary of what lay ahead.
Crunch…
Another trap.
A pirate's foot sank into a hole, just like the last one.
But since they were moving carefully now, the next part of the trap hadn't been triggered.
"Buchi! Something's not right!"
The pirate called out, bending down to inspect the ground.
He pulled out another sharp stone and showed it to Buchi.
Once might be a coincidence.
Twice? Someone was clearly behind this.
Buchi snatched the stone from his hand and crushed it lightly.
The outer layer crumbled away, revealing a metal spike embedded within.
The sharp end pointed straight upward.
"Damn it! Someone's toying with us!"
Furious, Buchi hurled the spike to the ground.
Just then, a manic laugh echoed through the air, bouncing off the stone cliffs on either side of the slope.
"Ahahahahahaha… Ahahahaha!"
It was a distorted, echoing sound, reverberating across the valley in a ghostly, mocking tone.
"W-Who's there?!"
The pirates snapped to attention, their eyes darting upward.
There, at the top of the slope, stood Usopp, arms crossed confidently.
Wearing his signature goggles, his long nose angled upward at a dramatic 45 degrees, he looked down upon the pirates with theatrical flair.
"Minions of the Black Cat Pirates!"
"Welcome to the great Captain Usopp's amusement park!"
"Ahahahaha!"
"Who the hell are you!?" Buchi shouted, not bothering to entertain Usopp's theatrics.
From this distance, they couldn't see Usopp's trembling legs or the tears welling up in his eyes from sheer terror.
But Usopp pushed forward, steadying his voice with every ounce of courage he had.
Not a single tremor escaped his lips as he shouted down at them:
"Listen carefully!"
"I am the legendary warrior of the seas! The mighty Captain Usopp, commander of 80 million pirates!"
"And you've all been betrayed by Captain Kuro!"
"He's agreed to surrender the Black Cat Pirates' treasure to me, in exchange for a place under my command!"
"Ahahahaha!"
"W-What?! Captain Kuro betrayed us?!"
Some of the pirates immediately fell for it.
"Idiot!"
Buchi slapped the gullible pirate hard across the face, pointing at Usopp furiously:
"Use your damn brain! There's no way someone like him commands 80 million men!"
"Tch, "
Seeing his lie unravel, Usopp knew the time for bluffing was over.
He turned around and pointed his backside at the pirates, making mocking gestures.
"Morons! Can't believe you actually fell for that! What a bunch of idiots! Stuuupid~ Stuuuupid~!"
His taunts sent the pirates into a frenzy.
"Kill him!"
"I'll slice him to pieces!"
"Burn him alive!"
The Black Cat Pirates lost all reason, charging forward with swords and guns raised.
"Idiots! Watch your step!" Buchi shouted, trying to hold them back.
But he wasn't the captain, few actually listened.
Boom!
"Aaaaah!"
A section of the ground gave way beneath them, revealing a massive pit lined with steel spikes.
Five or six pirates were instantly impaled.
Others, skewered through the gut, lay writhing, clinging to life by a thread.
"You brainless fools!" Buchi cursed. Then he barked orders:
"Go around the edges! No traps there!"
The pirates followed his command, skirting the sides of the slope and pressing onward.
Heh…
Usopp's lips curled into a confident smile.
He turned swiftly, drew a knife, and sliced through a rope behind him.
Thunk… Thunk…
Two large barrels perched atop the cliffs tipped over.
Thick, reeking oil poured down onto the pirates below.
"Special Attack, Fire Star!"
Without hesitation, Usopp whipped out his slingshot and launched two special flammable pellets.
They hit the pirates' soaked clothes, igniting instantly with a whoosh!
Fwoooom!
Twin pillars of fire surged skyward, lighting up the entire shoreline.
Usopp wasn't done.
He grabbed two more oil barrels from behind, tipping them over and sending them tumbling down the slope.
Boom! Boom!
The barrels exploded, sending flames roaring even higher.
The pirates, now ablaze, screamed and flailed, trying in vain to douse the flames.
But the sticky oil clung to their bodies, feeding the fire.
As panic erupted, more traps were triggered.
Pitfalls, spikes, snares, one by one, pirates fell to their deaths.
What had once been a clean, peaceful shore was now a blazing inferno.
Dozens of dying men writhed and screamed, their agonized cries echoing into the sky.
Blood soaked the ground, only to be seared dry by the searing heat.
Amid the carnage, Usopp stood at the top of the hill, arms crossed, his head bowed.
The fire danced in the reflection of his goggles, masking his eyes completely.
No one could tell what he was thinking at that moment…
=============
150+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon! Patreon.com/Veltoria