Though the townsfolk murmured among themselves, none of them made any move to cause trouble.
Everyone simply minded their own business. While they weren't afraid of pirates, they weren't reckless enough to start a fight over nothing either.
"Interesting," Aeridar murmured with a smirk, clearly amused. He didn't bother engaging with the crowd. Instead, he casually slipped into a booth in a far corner of the tavern and ordered some drinks.
As time passed, Aeridar quietly extended his Observation Haki to cover the entire tavern.
Eventually, he began to pick up on some useful intel.
The most important detail?
This small town was situated on just a sliver of the island. The truly dangerous part lay deep inland, in the vast wilderness that made up most of the island's landmass.
That untamed region was a dense, mountainous forest, swarming with ferocious beasts. But it wasn't the wildlife that made it deadly, it was the land itself.
Treacherous terrain, poisonous flora, and toxic creatures had claimed the lives of most would-be treasure hunters long before they found anything worth keeping.
As for the townsfolk, most of them made their living through fishing or hunting.
The hunters in particular were burly, battle-hardened men who wrestled with monsters in the forest every day. Naturally, they were strong. That strength alone was enough to make even the most hardened criminals think twice about messing with this town.
"So, these guys are after treasure too, huh?" Dimitri muttered, taking a slow sip of his beer, a flicker of killing intent flashing in his eyes.
At that moment, Aeridar's head turned sharply toward the bar. He'd just sensed a spike of murderous intent aimed directly at him.
Across the room, a pirate sneered, shark-like teeth bared in a twisted grin, as he met Aeridar's gaze and slowly drew a finger across his throat in a mocking slit.
"Bastard!" Dimitri and the others immediately shot to their feet, fury boiling over.
"Sit," Aeridar said calmly, pressing a hand down to stop them. His own expression was unbothered as he casually raised a middle finger toward the man who'd provoked him.
A dozen shirtless, tattooed thugs suddenly stood from nearby booths and swaggered over to the side of the man who had made the throat-slitting gesture—Vito. Each one glared menacingly at Aeridar and his group.
Rather than shrink back, the townsfolk leaned in with eager anticipation, their faces lighting up as if they were hoping for a fight to break out. They clearly weren't going to intervene, on the contrary, they looked like they wanted to be entertained.
"Don't get cocky, rookie. You might just end up dying a real nasty death," a brutish pirate with a face like a bulldog growled threateningly from beside Vito.
These men were members of the Triangle Pirates. They'd been stationed on Alvis Island for nearly six months.
The island wasn't on any major sea route, far off the beaten path. Even News Coo rarely came this way.
That's why they didn't recognize Aeridar and his crew. Had they known who they were dealing with, they might not have been so mouthy.
After all, the title of Warlord of the Sea carried massive weight in the New World.
It was one of the reasons Doflamingo had been able to seize and hold an entire kingdom, his personal strength was only part of it. The threat behind that title alone was enough to keep many pirates in line.
So many upstart pirates dreamed of fame overnight. Some even dared to fantasize about hunting down a Marine Admiral just to make a name for themselves.
Challenging a Yonko or a Warlord?
There were plenty who dreamed of it, but dreaming and actually doing it were two very different things.
That title alone was enough to make most hesitate.
"Your captain hasn't even said a word, and a worthless dog like you dares to bark?" Oliver said coldly, his eyes boring into the thug's soul. "Do you want to die, mutt?"
"The hell did you just say, bastard?!"
"You little shit, I'll gut you right here!"
"I'm a proud member of the Triangle Pirates!"
"You're dead meat, punk! Say your prayers!"
The pirates erupted, pointing and shouting at Oliver in fury. Even Vito narrowed his mismatched eyes, one large and one small, glaring darkly at him.
"Heh. Funny how the loudest ones are always the rabid strays," Otto chuckled, grinning ear to ear, entirely unfazed.
After all, he was a Super Rookie with a 190 million bounty on his head. Apart from Vito, whose bounty clocked in at 265 million, none of them had anything close.
If Aeridar hadn't beaten him into submission, and if his benefactor Switch Dalt hadn't also joined the Chris Pirates, Otto might still be rotting in the lowest cell aboard the Chris, locked up with Angus Abel, the Steel Demon.
"Heh. You sure talk tough. Let's see if you can keep that up," Vito scoffed, draining the rest of his beer in one swig before coldly waving his hand.
To everyone's surprise, he turned and led his men out of the tavern without another word.
He didn't back down because he didn't want a fight, he very much did.
Vito believed he was far stronger than he'd ever been, strong enough to even go toe-to-toe with one of the big names in the sea.
But starting a full-blown brawl here would attract too much attention. The townsfolk might get angry. Worse, the hunters might take offense and get involved. He couldn't afford that, not when he had bigger plans on this island.
The local hunters exchanged surprised glances as the group walked out. Murmurs of disappointment echoed across the tavern.
"They actually left?!"
"Think they're going to call in reinforcements?"
"That blond guy was a real piece of work when he showed up here before."
"Yeah, that guy was no joke. He's not any weaker than our top three headhunters. Could the newcomers be just as strong?"
Aeridar and his crew shared similarly baffled expressions.
Seriously? You're pirates. After all that posturing and provocation, this is how it ends? Not even a proper threat before walking away? What kind of anticlimactic farce was this?
"Seems like they're scared of the townsfolk," Dalt muttered, swirling his drink as he swept his gaze across the hunters. A flicker of interest lit in his eyes. "These guys are built tough... wouldn't be surprised if they made for premium experimental stock."
"Don't even think about it." Aeridar shot him a warning glance, clearly worried Dalt might try something reckless behind his back, like snatching a few hunters for his twisted experiments.
If that ever got out, they'd be making sworn enemies of this entire village.
Dalt licked his lips, a strange gleam flickering in his eyes. "Tomorrow, we head into the mountains. I want to unravel the secrets buried in these ancient woods."
Rumor had it, the deep forest was crawling with monstrous beasts and deadly venomous creatures, just the kind of setting that thrilled his obsessive thirst for exploration and experimentation.
If not for the fact that everyone was exhausted and nightfall was fast approaching, he would've insisted they set out today.
"No problem. I'm curious myself, what exactly is hiding in those mountains? And what's the real agenda behind those Triangle Pirates?"
Aeridar narrowed his eyes, the corners of his lips curving ever so slightly. He drummed his fingers lightly on the table, slipping into deep thought.
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