Brady Island, Micity Port, south of the Clifford Kingdom.
As usual, the departure of the army hadn’t disturbed the tranquility here. The port remained bustling, vendors set up their stalls, fishermen went out to sea, and merchants from other places brought specialties.
Pirates drank in taverns, loudly discussing recent events or boasting, while bounty hunters eyed the surrounding pirates with ill intent, seemingly ready to draw their guns and ambush at any moment.
Al, twenty-eight this year, was a veteran of nine years in the army. He had fought pirates, armies from other countries, and even the World Government’s Marines.
However, in one battle against pirates, three fingers on his right hand were severed, forcing him to withdraw from the main combat legions. He now served as a squad leader at a guard post in Micity Port.
Just like any other day, Al carried a bottle of rum to Watchtower No. 3. He was on duty alone today. As he gazed at the sea, he was about to open his bottle when, suddenly, several black dots appeared on the distant horizon, followed by more and more.
"Merchant ships or...?"
Al was startled. He quickly put down his rum, picked up the monocular telescope beside him, and observed.
What met his eyes were more than twenty warships. They were clearly warships because they were heavily armed with cannons. And then he saw the flags...
Al’s mind exploded. What was he seeing? Skull flags! Pirate skull flags! And most of the flags were different, indicating many distinct pirate crews, yet they were gathered together.
"What do they want?" Al wiped the sweat from his brow, almost afraid to think further.
A dull bell rang, and then Al saw that the guard tower five hundred meters away had already lit its signal fire.
Seeing this, Al also turned and struck the brass bell behind him, then ran upstairs to light the beacon at the top of the tower.
Dong, dong, dong, dong...
Dull bell tolls rang out one after another, as all seven guard towers of Micity Port lit their signal fires, sending thick smoke billowing into the sky.
The Chris Grand Fleet, composed of over ten pirate crews and twenty-five pirate ships, sailed majestically across the waves, their metal cannons gleaming as they pointed forward.
On the largest ship in the fleet, a wolf-headed warship, Dimitri stood at the bow, acting as commander for the first time. Beside him were Aeridar’s four closest subordinates: Otto, Millie, Mina, and Gorbo.
In truth, if it weren’t for the need to utterly crush the powerhouses within the capital, Oliver and Arlan wouldn’t have been with Aeridar. This fleet commander position wouldn’t have fallen to Dimitri.
"They’ve spotted us. Tell Enrod, who’s leading the vanguard, to blast anyone or any ship that dares to attack the fleet, or any defensive forts. Show no mercy. If it’s destroyed, we can always rebuild it," Dimitri turned his head and instructed Millie, who was serving as the communications officer.
Millie’s pretty face was grim as she nodded and picked up a Den Den Mushi to make the call.
"Gorbo, are the trump cards ready?"
Next, Dimitri turned his head to the other side and asked.
"Everything’s ready on all the ships," Gorbo raised his left hand, grinning.
A black, ordinary-looking silk glove was on his left hand.
"Send out the ’Sky’ unit first. Air raid them."
Dimitri’s expression was cold. This was his first time commanding so many people, and the pressure was immense, but he absolutely couldn’t falter.
Screech, screech, roar, roar...
Soon, countless black shadows flew from the decks of over ten pirate ships. Upon closer inspection, there were ordinary birds like eagles and black vultures, as well as ancient flying beasts like Pterodactyls and prehistoric giant birds. There were even legendary exotic beasts like gargoyles and wyverns, numbering at least a thousand.
Without exception, most were stone sculptures carved from rock, and a small portion were metal-cast sculptures. Though they should have been inanimate, their eyeballs could move, and they emitted eagle-like shrieks or strange roars as if alive. These sounds quickly spread, reaching Micity Port several nautical miles away.
"They’re monsters! They’re demons! Run!"
A dark mass descended upon Micity Port from the sky. After a moment of terror, countless people began to scramble for their lives, and the port immediately descended into chaos.
Seeing a gargoyle fly overhead, a pirate couldn’t suppress the fear in his heart and immediately raised his gun and fired.
Smoke curled from the muzzle, and a piece of a gargoyle’s wing was instantly shattered. It then fell from a hundred meters in the air, crashing into a house with a "boom," kicking up a large cloud of dust.
Because of that single shot, many armed pirates, bounty hunters, caravan guards, patrolling soldiers, and even armed citizens drew their guns and fired into the sky.
Dozens of stone-carved flying creatures were shot down in quick succession.
However, these animated flying creatures immediately retaliated. Anyone who fired their weapon was attacked, especially the metal ones, which bullets had no effect on, being completely invulnerable. They instantly inflicted heavy casualties on those who resisted.
A fifteen-meter-long metal wyvern descended rapidly from high altitude, flying low over the streets. Bullets merely caused small dents and sparks on its body.
"Ah, no, ah! Let go of me!"
A metal dragon’s claw easily seized a kingdom soldier who had fired at it, carrying him into the sky. Its sharp talons pierced his shoulder, and blood streamed down.
But he quickly went silent, his head bitten off by another metal eagle.
"Get out of the way!"
A burly man in a brown captain’s coat, wielding a spiked club, roared as he leapt into the air, reaching a height of over ten meters. At the same time, his heavy spiked club swung, creating a gust of wind.
The spiked club, covered in sharp points, smashed into an eleven-meter-long stone Pterodactyl, instantly pulverizing it. Stone fragments flew, falling from the sky as countless shattered rocks.
The port quickly became a scene of corpses strewn everywhere and rivers of blood. After all, flying creatures were too agile and had a significant advantage.
"Release the Black Dragon and ’Ikou’! Inflict maximum damage on the resistors!"
At the bow of the Chris on the sea, Dimitri observed the battle in Micity Port through his telescope. Seeing the port already in chaos, he seized the perfect opportunity.
Soon, a metal black dragon, over forty meters in size, roared as it took flight from the deck of the Chris. Simultaneously, a metal bronze eagle with a five-meter wingspan also soared into the air.
For the success of the port fleet’s attack, Aeridar had specifically given the Animate-Animate Fruit to Gorbo.
The metal black dragon from the underground palace had also been specially repaired, and it, along with the five special metal guardian beasts, had been brought aboard the Chris to guarantee success.
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