"Unfair!"
Sami finally burst out, slapping the wanted posters loudly against the table as his gaze swept toward the officers gathering around him.
"Why do all your photos look so cool, while mine makes me look like a psychopath?!"
The officers froze for a moment before curiously crowding closer to look.
Isaac picked up his own poster.
The photo showed him grabbing an enemy by the face with one hand, lifting the man nearly off the ground. His muscles bulged with power, the image overflowing with raw strength.
[Iron Helm Isaac]
Bounty: 19,000,000 Beli
Officer of the Jellyfish Pirates. Dead or Alive.
He tilted his head, not quite understanding the captain's anger.
"…Isn't this normal?" he said in his deep voice. "I was just trying to crush his head and knock him out."
"Fine, you're normal," Sami said through gritted teeth. "But—Marcus! What the hell were you doing?! Do you normally lick your blade like that?!"
[Curved Blade Teresa Marcus]
Bounty: 29,000,000 Beli
Officer of the Jellyfish Pirates. Dead or Alive.
Marcus narrowed his long, sharp eyes slightly.
"Captain, it was improvisation. After all… it fits our reputation for heinous crimes, doesn't it?"
As he spoke, he slowly licked his lips again.
Sami pointed at him with trembling fury.
"That's not improvisation—that's full-on theatrical villainy! You leaned way too far into it!"
Aldo suddenly grabbed his own poster and burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! Boss, what do you think of mine? I spotted that Marine hiding on the dock back then! How's the pose? Pretty cool, right?"
[Bonecrusher Kate Aldo]
Bounty: 37,000,000 Beli
Officer of the Jellyfish Pirates. Dead or Alive.
The picture showed Aldo carrying a spiked club over his shoulder while boldly giving the camera the middle finger.
"Cool? I'll show you cool!"
Sami kicked him square in the backside, sending him stumbling several steps forward.
"Cool my ass! You noticed someone taking photos and didn't tell me—yet you stood there posing?! Aldo, are you even human?!"
"Boss, I'm sorry! Next time… next time I'll call you first!"
Meanwhile, Feich quietly studied his own poster.
The background was filled with explosions and smoke. Half his face was hidden behind the drifting smoke from a cannon muzzle, leaving only one eye visible—coldly aiming.
"…The lighting is a bit dim. It affects the shot."
[Heavy Cannon Blaze Feich]
Bounty: 22,800,000 Beli
Officer of the Jellyfish Pirates. Dead or Alive.
Sami looked at his own poster again—the one showing him wildly slashing an enemy while laughing like a maniac.
Then he compared it with the dramatically cool photos of his officers.
A surge of fury shot straight to his skull.
His anguished roar echoed across the entire deck.
"Those Marines must have done it on purpose! Why me?! Just because I'm the captain, I have to get the ugliest photo?!"
"Boss, our bounties went up! Let's throw a feast!" Aldo suggested enthusiastically.
Sami looked at this companion who had followed him from the very beginning and had now become one of his most reliable hands.
The unease brought by the name God Valley faded temporarily.
"Men! Dock and buy supplies!"
"Tonight—we celebrate with a FEAST!!!"
"YEAH!!!"
The sea breeze swept past the blazing bonfire, sending sparks swirling into the night.
After six years at sea, Sami had become a full-fledged banquet enthusiast.
He loved these moments—gathering around the fire with his companions, sharing food and rum.
It was the most vibrant moment of life between battles and voyages.
Now Sami sat on a fallen log near the bonfire with several officers, taking long gulps from a bottle of rum.
"Ah… this is great."
His gaze drifted over the crew dancing, singing, and shouting under the firelight.
Although he smiled, a faint worry lingered in his eyes.
The observant Feich noticed immediately.
"Boss… something on your mind?"
Sami fell silent for a moment.
His eyes slowly swept across the companions around him—Aldo, impulsive but loyal; the steady and dependable Feich; and the newer officers who had proven themselves through countless battles.
The firelight cast shifting shadows across their faces.
"Our crew's total bounty now exceeds 160 million Beli," Sami said slowly.
"In the West Blue… that already makes us a top-tier pirate crew."
He paused, turning the rum bottle slowly in his hand.
"So I've been thinking…"
"Maybe it's time we set sail for the Grand Line."
Five years.
To be precise, it had been six years since he had first arrived in this world.
He had gone from a starving drifter lying on a beach to the captain of one of the highest-bounty pirate crews in the West Blue.
Over the years, they had fought countless battles—roaming the seas to "punish evil and promote justice."
Well…
More like collecting gold, silver, and treasure.
Of the four original officers who had followed him five years ago, only Aldo remained.
The other three young faces had long since sunk into the cold depths of the sea.
Along with many brothers who had once shared drinks and laughter.
But after witnessing so many separations and deaths, Sami had grown numb to it.
That was the life of pirates.
Whether raiding mafia ships or being hunted by Marines, every day was spent with one's head on the line.
Kill today.
Be killed tomorrow.
It was perfectly normal.
Their ship had grown larger and stronger over the years, but the name Swordfish had never changed.
Interestingly, despite their rising bounty, the reputation of the Jellyfish Pirates among many civilians in the West Blue was not one of pure terror like other pirate crews.
Perhaps it was because this group of pirates had… rules.
They paid real money to street vendors.
They would even argue loudly over the price of a barrel of fresh water—yet never drew their swords during such disputes.
The ships they attacked were always mafia vessels or notorious criminals.
If they encountered weak merchant ships, a toll was enough.
Sometimes they even escorted them to their destinations.
And they never harmed women or children in towns.
To traditional pirates, these rules seemed laughably naive.
Yet they allowed the crew to resupply peacefully at most ports—and even obtain bits of useful information.
Earlier that day, Sami had personally walked around the port town of God Valley.
He still couldn't confirm whether this God Valley was the one he knew.
But the vague sense of danger gnawed at him.
He couldn't keep gambling like this.
"We're heading to the Grand Line?"
The officers were stunned for a moment.
Then excitement exploded across their faces.
They raised their bottles toward Sami.
"Boss! We've been waiting for you to say that!"
"Yeah, Boss! We're sick of the West Blue! Time to see bigger seas!"
"Of course! Wherever the captain decides—that's where we go!"
"Let's make our name in the Grand Line!"
"Alright!!!"
Sami felt a surge of heroic pride.
He drained the last of his rum.
"Then it's settled! Once we finish resupplying—"
"We set sail for the Grand Line!!!"
"We're coming!"
Laughing loudly, Sami tossed the empty bottle into the bonfire, drawing an even louder cheer.
Then he strode into the celebrating crowd with his officers.
The flames leapt greedily toward the night sky.
They illuminated every face filled with ambition and longing—
As if branding that night's passion and vows directly onto the vast sea of stars ahead.