Boss Aibe

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After Corvin called out twice, the tavern fell silent all over again.

Around them, the pirates who had meant to stay out of it sensed something ugly in the air.

If the Sharp-Horn Pirates had not been blocking the door, they would already have slipped away.

The manager of Battleaxe Tavern had seen enough trouble in his life to react quickly. He gestured for the staff to retreat behind the bar, where it would be a little safer.

Kazt was the first to recover. His gaze, still thick with fury, moved away from Corvin, passed over Wolf Rat, and finally stopped on Aibe.

The way Corvin had called out to Aibe and Wolf Rat, combined with his position near Aibe, made the tangled questions in Kazt's mind suddenly straighten into a single line.

Why would the boy, who had no grudge against him, kill his navigator?

Why would Ragren, who had always been careful, get shot dead the very night after going to Wolf Rat?

And why would Aibe, the boy, and Wolf Rat all know one another?

Before this attack, Kazt was certain the Sharp-Horn Pirates had no contact with either the boy or Wolf Rat, much less any feud.

So what motive could the boy possibly have for killing his navigator?

It made no sense.

But if Aibe, one of his rivals, had been involved...

Then the motive became much easier to believe.

Kazt's stare toward Aibe immediately filled with open hostility.

How could he know that the real culprit, Corvin, had an ability called Hunter's Ledger?

And he had no way of knowing that Corvin's true target had been Red. The navigator who mattered so much to the Sharp-Horn Pirates had simply been unlucky enough to get caught in the middle.

Seeing Kazt shift his attention to Aibe, Corvin calmly considered his next way out.

The moment Kazt's fury had locked onto him, Corvin had reacted almost immediately, using Aibe, who had walked right up to him, as a shield.

As for Brother Wolf Rat, that had been an extra piece swept in along the way.

'If I knew the names of the pirates at the next table, I wouldn't mind shouting a few more.'

Dragging people into the mess had linked a few things together in a strangely convincing way, creating the scene now unfolding before them.

Corvin had no idea what role Wolf Rat really played in all this, yet that sudden cry of Brother Wolf Rat had become the final weight that crushed Kazt's reasoning.

No wonder Wolf Rat, who knew the truth, was cursing him so hard inside.

Corvin was an absolute menace.

Still, Corvin did not believe two convincing calls were enough to create a real chance to escape.

First he had to see how Aibe reacted. Then he could respond from there.

Ideally, Aibe and Kazt would start fighting, and he could use that opening to run.

If that did not happen, he would have to struggle his way out.

The stronger the danger became, the calmer Corvin felt.

Aibe met Kazt's hostile, murderous stare.

She did not know exactly what had happened, but she was not stupid.

She immediately understood the nasty intention of the handsome stranger behind her. He wanted to use her as a shield.

What truly puzzled her was how Kazt, that stupid bull, had fallen into the trap without thinking.

As a rival, she was happy to call Kazt a stupid bull, but she knew he was not actually stupid.

She had no interest in digging into the reason.

She was simply furious that Corvin had used her as cover.

In truth, if Aibe had not targeted Corvin first and walked toward him on her own, he would never have had the chance to use her that way.

Shing.

Aibe's displeased face did not change. Without a word, she drew her foil.

She turned.

She thrust.

The movement was clean and practiced, but its purpose was ice-cold.

The needle-thin point of the blade flashed toward Corvin's heart.

She did not care what grudge existed between Kazt and Corvin.

Nor did she care to explain anything to Kazt.

Right now, the thing she wanted most was to run Corvin through.

"Brutal."

Facing that sudden thrust, Corvin stamped his right foot hard against the floor. The burst of force drove his body backward, letting him avoid the attack by the narrowest margin.

Aibe's thrust was fast, vicious, and completely unannounced.

If he had not hunted Sam the fish-man the night before...

If he had not been watching Aibe's every reaction...

Corvin would probably have died right there.

Aibe's attack was something neither Kazt nor Wolf Rat had expected.

It came too suddenly.

What surprised them even more was that Corvin had actually dodged such a fast, sudden strike.

Aibe's thirty-eight-million-Berry bounty was tied in no small part to those lightning-fast thrusts.

"He dodged?"

Aibe looked at Corvin in surprise as he retreated.

Was it because turning around had slowed her thrust just enough to give him a chance?

Corvin had no time to care about that. As he widened the distance, grief spread across his face.

"Boss Aibe, you clearly said that as long as Brother Wolf Rat and I each killed someone from the Sharp-Horn Pirates, you would let us join your crew. We did it. But instead of taking us in, you tried to kill me the moment the Sharp-Horn Pirates came after us!"

Corvin's voice was full of despair.

He sounded like a general who had won battle after battle and still been denied recognition.

Hearing Corvin drag him in again, Wolf Rat's jaw tightened several times.

'Now I get it.'

'This guy is pure trouble.'

'Whoever crosses him gets dragged down.'

But he had been the one who chose to approach Corvin.

Since he had already been pulled in...

And since he needed to finish his mission as quickly as possible...

Wolf Rat hardened his heart. As if Corvin's words had struck a painful wound, he burst into tears with a loud wail.

With snot and tears running freely, he cried, "That's right, Boss Aibe! We admired you so much! We were even willing to risk our lives for you! But you... you... why would you treat us like this?!"

Wolf Rat looked so devastated that the pirates around them began looking at Aibe strangely.

Betrayal and abandonment were normal among pirates.

But using someone up and throwing them away right after was still the kind of thing people despised.

Seeing Wolf Rat not only cooperate but throw himself so deeply into the act, Corvin was quietly startled.

Feeling the strange looks from everyone around her, Aibe's composure started to strain.

Near the door, Kazt had already activated his ability and shifted into his hybrid form.

He glared at Aibe and forced the words out one by one.

"Good. Very good, Newtman Aibe."

As Kazt's grinding voice fell, the tension inside the tavern sharpened until it felt ready to snap.

Aibe, who had nothing to do with the incident, drew in a deep breath.

She did not feel innocent. She did not feel wronged.

She ignored Kazt's rage and looked seriously at Corvin instead. Her red lips parted into a dangerous smile.

"You made my heart race, handsome. So telling me your name isn't too much to ask, is it?"

"Boss Aibe, please give me and Wolf Rat another chance!"

Aibe fell silent.

"Boss Aibe, please give me and Usopp another chance!"

After being dragged in again and again, Wolf Rat did not miss the chance to retaliate. He pulled Corvin's name into it on purpose.

"Hm?"

Aibe smiled.

"Usopp, is it, handsome..."

She looked at Corvin and slowly ran her tongue over her lips.

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