Once the pirates I defeated were tied up and gagged, we got to work.
Trinity went to look around the town, finding out how many pirates there were in its crew, their characteristics, and other important things I was able to identify.
Arthur was in charge of searching for weapons and ammunition; he had to sneak into the town, in the areas where there were few or no pirates.
I began exploring the rest of the island to find some important things.
As I walked around as quietly as I could, something dawned on me.
It was Hunter. I didn't sense him since he had no ill intentions toward me, and I couldn't sense his movements.
As soon as I arrived, I petted him and asked him to go help Trinity.
He made a sound like he was saying okay, I think, and headed off in the direction of town.
As I continued walking toward a cabin, I quietly approached and looked through the window.
There was no one inside, since it wasn't that big, with a living room/kitchen, a bedroom, and a bathroom.
When I got inside, there were only normal household items. I entered the room, noticed a closet, opened it, and found clothes and a rifle.
Dante: "Bingo."
I continued searching the place, but didn't find anything useful.
I came out with some food, and at the entrance to the cabin, there was an axe, which I took with me as well.
I decided to return to the meeting place.
I was the first to arrive, sat down, and began counting the number of bullets in the rifle. There were 24 in total, including what was already inside.
After about 30 minutes, Arthur arrived.
He arrived with cable, more ammunition, a long piece of iron, two pistols, and other useful items.
Looking at the position of the sun, which was around 6 p.m., I calculated that Trinity would arrive in another hour.
So I started talking to Arthur.
He comes from a family of lumberjacks. The cabin I found earlier belonged to his uncle. His parents were in charge of selling and managing it, and he helped them whenever he could.
Sadly, from what I know, he's the only survivor from this town of this pirate attack.
You hear sounds in the distance. I grab my sword just to be safe.
It was Trinity with Hunter.
When they arrived, the raven moved from her to me.
Trinity: "There are 23 pirates in total, with their captain and vice-captain."
Dante: "Do we know who he is?"
Arthur: "When they arrived here, I heard them shouting about the dreaded Nilox, the crazy goat."
Something clicked for me. When I was on Salmonie's ship, I read in the newspaper about pirates with good rewards and their qualities.
Among them was this guy.
Dante: "I read about him in the newspapers. Nilox the Crazy Goat, captain of the Mountain Pirates, with a bounty of 42,000,000 Berries. He's said to have a Zoan-type Devil Fruit, which allows him to transform into a goat."
Trinity: "I think his vice-captain is a normal guy, just stronger than the rest. When they couldn't find us, they decided to tie my father up on a stake. Almost all the pirates are guarding him. It'll be hard to get him out of there."
Dante: "Okay, I've already come up with a plan to get out of this, but we'll have to do it tomorrow morning." He threw the rifle and the bullets to Trinity. "If you want to save your father, you'll have to use it."
Trinity: "I'm absolutely certain of that. I can't just sit back and do nothing."
I felt like her emotional state was a bit altered. Could it be Haki or my senses? Could it be the same thing, or both?
Dante: "Look, Trinity, you don't have to kill anyone. I just need you to leave them disabled or injured so it'll be easier for Arthur to take them down."
I felt him relax a little after my comment.
Dante: "Maybe it's not like it's 2 vs. 21, since if all goes well it'll be 3 vs. 21?"
Trinity: "You're right, my father wouldn't just sit idly by. Once he's freed, he'll help us in some way, that's how he is." She said, smiling as she looked at the campfire.
Arthur: "Why 21? It's 23."
Dante: "Because if everything goes according to plan, they'll only have to take care of weakening 21 pirates."
I asked them to gather in a circle that's not too small, not too large.
Dante: "The plan is this: during the night, the three of us will cheat our way through an escape route. We'll also do it in the town, taking advantage of the fact that they're distracted and sleeping." I looked at Trini. "They must be having a party, right?"
Trinity: "It's not like a party, but practically everyone is drinking and eating."
Dante: "Well, it might work," I continued explaining the plan. "Once we have the territory armed, we'll wait for tomorrow morning to attack, taking advantage of the fact that most of them are still sleeping or hungover." I looked at Arthur. "I need you to make a path on a remote side of town, where the entrance to the escape route will be. There, I need you to create a diversion, so I have the opportunity to quickly take Mr. Ruminoff without them being able to react."
Arthut: "If that's no problem."
Dante: "Good. It'll also be a signal for him to know where he should escape. Following on from this idea, I'll position myself at a safe distance from the pirates to buy time for you all to take up positions, with Arthur being the entrance to the escape zone and Trinity being a high area in the woods. Once Arthur's distraction has begun, I need Trinity to disable the vice-captain with a shot."
Trinity: "No problem, but why not the captain?"
Dante: "Because of his Devil Fruit, we might not be able to get rid of him in one hit with normal bullets. That's why I'll be there. As soon as the escape begins, I'll grab the captain and move him as far away from everyone else as possible to fight one-on-one." After a pause, I continued, "The idea is to separate him from his captain so they don't know what to do. The first and most obvious thing is to chase the hostage. That's why you two will be there, accompanying him on the safe side of the traps. Also, having only the captain in front of me will make it faster for me to defeat him, so I can quickly follow his lead to back you up in case of an emergency. That's why your job is more to injure and delay your crew than to defeat them. If you can, you can, but it's better to stall and play in a circle."
I looked at my two new companions.
Dante: "Any questions?"
Trinity: "No."
Arthur: "None."
Dante: "Okay, let's get going. Let's go make the traps."
We started making different types of traps. Trinity and I took care of the forest while Arthur went to the village.
After everything was ready, we went to rest.
I asked Hunter to keep an eye on where we were. We all had to be safe. When he's ready to leave, he can rest on Trini's shoulder, since if she's with me, it'll be very dangerous. He'll also wake us up when the sun rises in the morning.
Once we were awake and rested, we had a quick snack and set off.
While we were walking, I decided to discuss the plan a little more.
Dante: "As soon as I arrive, I'm going to make sure every possible pirate has their attention on me. That way, it'll be easier for them to get to their positions."
The two nodded.
Once we were at the edge of town, I checked if I was missing anything. I really only needed my sword, but I also have a small knife hidden in my clothes, just in case.
Dante: "Okay, I'm going. Wish me luck."
I started walking slowly toward the town, more specifically where the pirates were gathered.
I looked around and saw the captain standing next to Mr. Ruminoff, and at his side, a strange guy who, something tells me, is the vice-captain.
Before they could see me, I decided to go into a house. I picked up a pot and a spoon and walked back toward it. Once I was a little close, I started hitting the pot with the spoon.
Dante: "HOMEMADE! THE POTATOES, CARROTS, TOMATOES, ONIONS, EVERYTHING YOU NEED HAS ARRIVED!!"
As soon as I started screaming, I saw everyone wake up. Everyone was confused. Mr. Ruminoff had a look of bewilderment and fear, probably afraid for me, for what they'll do to me if they catch me.
At that moment, the captain stared at me and pointed.
Nilox: "YOU!! You're the brat who ran away with the girl yesterday."
I stared at him for a few seconds.
Dante: "WOW!! I thought my vegetable vendor act was good enough to fool you."
I saw him get angry.
Nilox: "Do you think I'm stupid?"
Dante: "Yes," I said sharply.
I saw how he got even angrier.
Nilox: "CAPTURE HIM!!
Dante: "Wait a minute, I still have a surprise in my pocket. I was planning to give it to you as a peace treaty between you and me."
They stared at me as I put my hand in my pocket, then took out my fist and raised my middle finger.
Just at that moment, an explosion was heard on the corner of town.
Okay, it's showtime.
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I'll upload two chapters every two days until the next fic arrives. After that, I'll upload the other one first, since I'm writing it in my native language. I'll then translate it and upload it the next day, adjusting some translation details if necessary. This is for two reasons: first, I upload the text of the other fic late, and second, university takes up a lot of my time, especially during the research period, and I struggle to find theoretical frameworks that work for me.