"I'll have a serving of seafood noodles."
Arriving at a small restaurant in town, Rowan found an empty seat and called out to the owner.
The restaurant owner naturally recognized him. With a friendly grin, he poured Rowan a glass of water before heading into the back kitchen, tying on his apron and getting to work.
Rowan sipped his water slowly while thinking about the direction of his future training and growth.
Suddenly
A noisy commotion erupted outside on the street, interrupting Rowan's thoughts.
He looked up and saw a large squad of Marines rushing through the town. They carried flintlock rifles and standard-issue steel swords, moving in organized groups as they searched every corner as if looking for something or someone.
"What's going on?"
A curious expression appeared on Rowan's face.
Had some pirate foolish enough to wander into town?
As he sat there observing the activity outside, one of the passing Marines suddenly glanced through the restaurant window and spotted him.
"He's here!"
The Marine froze for an instant, then shouted loudly. Without hesitation, he raised his flintlock and aimed it directly at Rowan.
In the blink of an eye, every Marine on the street swarmed toward the restaurant, surrounding it completely. Dozens of gun barrels were pointed through the windows, all aimed at Rowan.
"Criminal Rowan, surrender immediately!"
"Do not resist! You are already surrounded!"
A Navy Lieutenant Colonel pushed his way to the front, holding a long sword as he glared at Rowan with a stern expression.
Rowan was still holding his teacup.
For a moment, he simply stared at the chaotic scene unfolding around him, utterly bewildered.
"What exactly… are you all doing?"
He looked around the room. He was the only customer inside the restaurant.
His brow slowly furrowed as he set the teacup down.
The leading Lieutenant Colonel frowned.
"Stop pretending you don't know! The crimes you've committed cannot be erased. Surrender quietly at once!"
"Me? Committed a crime?"
A mixture of confusion, irritation, and disbelief flashed across Rowan's face.
He was a bounty hunter. Hunting pirates was his profession. Since when was that considered a crime?
As for his earlier thoughts about possibly recruiting Nico Robin one day, that was only a vague idea something he hadn't even acted upon.
Could the Marines somehow read minds?
Seeing Rowan remain confused, the Lieutenant Colonel's patience ran out.
"Come out and surrender immediately! If you resist, we will take action!"
Rowan's expression gradually turned cold.
He had chosen the life of a bounty hunter specifically because he didn't want to be tied down by Marine rules and hierarchy.
He also didn't want to be chased across the seas like a pirate.
But that didn't mean he feared the Marines.
They had barged in without explanation, declared him a criminal, and demanded his surrender as if he were some helpless nobody.
"Before anything else," Rowan said coldly, "how about you tell me what crime I've supposedly committed?"
The Lieutenant Colonel's face twisted with anger.
"You'll find out your crimes when you stand trial!"
With that, he gave the order.
All at once, the surrounding Marines pulled their triggers.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunfire erupted in every direction as countless bullets flew toward Rowan.
But at the exact instant the shots rang out
Boom!
The floor beneath Rowan's feet cracked apart like a spiderweb. The table in front of him shattered into splinters.
His figure blurred.
Like an afterimage, Rowan shot forward and vanished from sight.
"Where did he go?!"
The Lieutenant Colonel swung his sword wildly, but struck nothing but empty air.
Ghost Hand Rowan had already disappeared.
On a nearby rooftop, Rowan stood silently behind a chimney, looking down at the town below.
He quickly realized that the entire area had been sealed off by Marines. Even more troubling, two Marine warships were anchored along the distant coast.
His frown deepened.
This wasn't a normal arrest operation.
Aside from hunting pirates, he hadn't done anything that would provoke such a large-scale response.
Clearly, something had happened and someone had placed the blame squarely on his shoulders.
Annoyance surged within him, followed by genuine anger.
Whoever had used him as a scapegoat would not get away with it.
"First, I need to find out what's going on."
Rowan dropped down from the rooftop and slipped quietly into an alleyway.
As a squad of Marines passed by, he seized the opportunity.
In a swift motion, he grabbed the last sailor in the group, clamped a hand over his mouth, and dragged him into the narrow alley.
"If you make a sound, you lose your head."
Rowan pressed a dagger lightly against the Marine's throat and released his mouth.
The sailor trembled in terror, too frightened to even breathe properly.
Rowan spoke calmly.
"First question. What is your objective?"
"I… I…"
The Marine stared at him with wide, terrified eyes.
Rowan moved the dagger slightly away.
"Speak."
"To… to arrest Ghost Hand Rowan…"
Rowan nodded.
"Second question. Why are you trying to arrest me?"
The sailor froze, clearly surprised by the question.
After a brief hesitation, he answered shakily.
"It's… it's because of the Taro Town Tragedy. You're the culprit."
Rowan's eyes narrowed.
"Taro Town Tragedy?"
Before he could ask any further questions, a shout echoed from the alley entrance.
"He's here!"
Knowing he had been discovered, Rowan abandoned the interrogation.
Whatever this so-called tragedy was, he could investigate it later.
Swoosh!
Using Soru, Rowan vanished in an instant.
The terrified Marine slid down the wall in shock, staring at the empty space where Rowan had just been.
"He… didn't even know why we were arresting him?"
The Marines of the West Blue were far different from those stationed in the East Blue.
In the East Blue, capturing a pirate with a bounty of fifteen million Berries could promote an officer directly to the rank of Colonel, because the strongest pirates there rarely exceeded twenty million.
But the West Blue was another story entirely.
Here, the highest pirate bounties reached as high as fifty million Berries, and even in this particular sea region, pirates with over thirty million were not uncommon.
As a result, promotions were much harder to earn, and the overall strength of the Marines stationed here was far greater.
A pirate with a bounty around twenty million might be a menace in the East Blue.
In the West Blue, such a pirate would flee the moment they encountered a Marine Colonel.
Victory would be nearly impossible.
However
Rowan was no ordinary bounty hunter.
After unlocking the Soru talent, his strength had already surpassed that of average pirates with bounties around thirty million Berries.
Because of this, despite the large-scale manhunt, he managed to evade pursuit with ease.
Before long, Ghost Hand Rowan had completely slipped past the Marine blockade and disappeared beyond the town's borders.