Though Charles asked that, he hadn't actually planned to have the three attackers lead the way to the so-called Cloud-Hidden Village.
The three were Shandians, the people who, along with part of Jaya Island, had been blasted into the sky by the Knock Up Stream four hundred years ago.
For four centuries, the Shandians had never given up on taking back the land seized by the sky islanders, so they formed a guerrilla force and kept fighting the "God" of the sky island.
Whether something had gone wrong with their heads or not, they had the gall to attack people from the Blue Sea indiscriminately while targeting God's Army of Angel Island.
And this time, they rolled the truck. Even Wyper, the new leader of the guerrillas known as the "Berserker," was subdued in a single move.
A man called "Berserker" might not have much in the way of strength, but what he didn't lack was fighting spirit.
Apart from one line about his injured comrades, Wyper didn't say a single word.
That didn't mean Charles couldn't find the Cloud-Hidden Village. There's a saying: when you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss gazes back into you.
It didn't originally mean that, but it fits. When the little girl named Aisa sensed Charles with Observation Haki, she exposed herself to Charles's senses as well.
…
Deep in the White-White Sea, the layer above the White Sea, a small sky island—this was where the Shandians hid after being driven from their ancestral land on Jaya.
Aisa crouched with her hands pressed to her head, visibly terrified.
A statuesque woman asked anxiously, "Aisa, what happened?"
Shaking all over, Aisa said, "Wyper and the others' voices disappeared! That man is a monster—worse than Enel!"
"What did you say! What happened to Wyper and the others?" the woman cried.
An old man in a feathered cap gripped the woman's shoulders. "Calm yourself. Wyper and the others have the great warriors' spirits watching over them. They won't die just like that."
He crouched to look Aisa in the eye. "Aisa, what exactly did you hear?"
His words brought Aisa a measure of clarity. She lifted her head. "I've never heard a voice like that. It wasn't human at all—it was a monster that could bite a god to death!"
Her rambling made the elder thoughtful.
He didn't possess the Heart Net Aisa had by nature, but he knew the child's gift.
By "voices," Aisa meant others' will or emotions. He'd never heard of her being able to tell whether a target was strong.
Unless Aisa's ability had evolved, the only explanation he could think of was that the strength of the one she heard exceeded her imagination—so strong she could feel their power just from the "voice."
Aisa started shaking even harder. "H-he found me—he's coming this way!"
The elder didn't panic. He stood. "In that case, there's only one thing to do: prepare to receive our guest.
Aisa, one more question. Aside from strength, did you feel anything else from that voice?"
…
By the time Charles reached the Cloud-Hidden Village, the Shandians were already waiting.
Seeing Wyper and the other two clutched in Zhongming's talons, the Shandians showed immediate hostility, but the elder standing at their front held them back.
The elder stepped forward. "Guests from the Blue Sea, I am the current chieftain of the Shandians. I sincerely apologize for Wyper and the others' discourtesy and ask you to forgive them.
I will accept whatever punishment in their place."
With that, he dropped to both knees and prostrated himself in a full dogeza.
To be honest, seeing an elder who looked every inch the Native American assume a distinctly Japanese pose was jarring.
Even so, this posture from the chieftain left Charles little room to press the matter.
Having been attacked without cause, Charles wasn't about to just shrug it off. An elephant may not mind an ant's provocation, but if the ant actually bites, even without drawing pain, the elephant still gets mad.
What soothed Charles's anger was the man's courage.
He'd wondered how the Cloud-Hidden villagers would react to his approach. They might scatter to preserve their people's spark.
Or, for the honor running in their blood, they might charge in a death match. He hadn't expected this.
This world is cruel; the strong do as they please to the weak, even inflicting violence without reason.
The chieftain dared bet Charles wasn't a brute and chose to kneel here and apologize. That kind of courage and boldness wasn't simple.
Wisdom forged over long years is worthy of respect, and for that, a little displeasure was nothing.
Charles stepped up. "Forget it. It wasn't a big deal to begin with, and given this, I've no more to say.
Since it's our first time on the sky island, we'll be in your care."
Helped up by Charles, the chieftain said, "Your magnanimity shames us. If you don't mind, come into the village and let us host you properly."
With the air cleared, Zhongming released the three and turned back into a paper doll, returning to Charles's hand.
Surprisingly, when Wyper was set free, he didn't charge as Charles had half expected; instead, he calmly held his two companions back.
As the Shandian guerrillas' leader, Wyper wasn't a brainless mad dog.
Not everyone was as clear-headed as the chieftain and Wyper, though; Charles could still feel plenty of hostility from the others.
The chieftain led Charles and Stella into the village and into a spacious house.
The Cloud-Hidden Village lay in the White-White Sea above the White Sea; here, island clouds were like packed cotton, with a special feel underfoot.
On that foundation, the sky island had a complete ecosystem. Not only could island cloud be processed into materials, plants could grow atop it.
Even the island cloud held various mineral molecules that could be refined into many materials. Combined with the sky island's special shells, they'd developed a rich shell-based technology.
The core of the gear Wyper and the others had used to skim the cloud sea was the wind dial that could jet air.
To boil water for tea, the chieftain used a heat dial that spat flame.
Over tea, Charles and Stella heard the tale of Noland and the great warrior Calgara again from the chieftain, and learned of the Shandians' resolve to rekindle Shandora's light.
Charles rather wanted to hear what that soul-stirring bell sounded like, but Enel didn't inspire much motivation.
It was the Rumble-Rumble Fruit—one of the strongest Logias—yet Enel hadn't developed any truly impressive power.
To fancy himself a god like that… what a waste of a top-tier fruit that balanced offense, speed, and growth potential.
In any case, the Straw Hats would reach the sky island before long—let Luffy, his natural counter, handle that boss.
For now, Charles was more interested in Aisa, the little girl born with Observation Haki.
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.
Every 5 reviews = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.