Chapter 67: Gan Fall's Unexpected Arrival!
"Kneel... and offer reverence to your God."
The command rolled through the vast, open-air sanctuary like a peal of thunder, vibrating in the very marrow of their bones.
Wyper stood frozen, his boots rooted to the cold cloud-floor. He felt his scalp tingling, a sensation that had nothing to do with fear and everything to do with the lethal amounts of static electricity saturating the air.
The blue-white arcs of lightning dancing around Enel's shoulders were not mere parlor tricks. Wyper, a warrior born and bred in the sky, knew the difference. That was the raw, unbridled power of nature. It was the judgment of the heavens, capable of reducing a human body to a pile of smoking ash in less than a second.
His palms were slick with sweat against the grip of his Burn Bazooka. His heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird. Facing this absolute pressure—this biological signal that screamed predator—human instinct demanded only one thing: flight or submission.
However, not everyone in the room was human.
"Insolent wretch!"
A cold, biting reprimand sliced through the heavy, electrified atmosphere like a razor-sharp blade.
Albedo took a step forward. The air around her seemed to darken, shadows pooling at her feet and swirling like ink. Her pitch-black wings, usually folded elegantly behind her back, partially unfurled, casting a jagged silhouette against the bright light of the White Sea entering through the windows.
Her golden vertical pupils burned with a terrifying, freezing fury as she stared fearlessly at the "God" on the throne.
"The one who should be kneeling... is you, you filthy insect!"
Her voice dropped to a demonic hiss.
"How dare a low-born creature like you be so presumptuous in the presence of Lord Suzaku! To demand he kneel? I should tear your tongue out and feed it to the beasts!"
Beside her, Rem nodded her head vigorously. The usually polite maid had clenched her small hands into tight fists, her blue eyes filled with a rare, serious anger. She stood silently, ready to unleash her morningstar at the slightest signal.
Bzzzt...
The lightning around Enel crackled louder, becoming blindingly bright. It illuminated the playful, arrogant expression on his face, casting long, eerie shadows across the throne room.
He did not seem angered by the insult. Instead, he tilted his head, looking at Albedo with the curiosity of a child who had found a new, interesting beetle.
"Oh?"
Enel lazily shifted his posture, the gold drums on his back rattling.
"I... am a God," he emphasized again, his tone carrying an unquestionable, delusional certainty. "And everything that happens on this Sky Island—every whisper, every footstep, every heartbeat—cannot escape the ears and eyes of God."
He extended a long finger, wrapped in faint electrical arcs, and pointed it directly at Albedo.
"You possess a strange power. My Mantra tells me you are different from these other mortals. You did indeed show considerable strength in defeating my four useless Priests."
A cruel, benevolent smile spread across his face.
"As God, I am generous. I will give you a chance."
"Surrender to me," Enel proclaimed, his voice echoing. "Abandon these Blue Sea monkeys. Pledge your loyalty to me, and you will become my new Head Divine Officer. You will gain authority second only to God himself! You will rule the clouds!"
He looked at Suzaku and Wyper with disdain.
"Why sacrifice your life for these mortals who are destined to perish? Join me, and ascend."
As his voice fell, he gently clapped his hands.
Clap. Clap.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The sound of rushing wind filled the hall. From behind the massive pillars, the ceiling rafters, and the secret doors surrounding the palace, figures emerged.
Dozens—no, nearly fifty—Divine Warriors poured out. They were dressed in uniform white berets and goat-themed ceremonial garb, armed with various Dials—Flame Dials, Axe Dials, and milky-white cloud blades.
In an instant, they surrounded Suzaku, Albedo, Rem, and Wyper layer upon layer. The atmosphere shifted from a standoff to a siege.
Albedo's expression went from angry to utterly blackened. A palpable, suffocating killing intent began to spread from her body, lowering the temperature in the room by ten degrees.
Not only did this lightning-man blaspheme Lord Suzaku, but he actually thought... he actually dared to think he was worthy of her service?
This was the ultimate insult to the meaning of her existence. To a Guardian Overseer of Nazarick, created solely to serve the Supreme Beings, the idea of serving a "false god" was worse than death.
"You..." Albedo whispered, her hand trembling as she reached for the giant axe she could summon from the void. "You seek death."
She sharply turned her head to look at Suzaku, her scarlet lips slightly parted, her eyes pleading.
"Lord Suzaku. Permission to eliminate. I will tear these insects and that arrogant false god into pieces so small that even dust will look large by comparison!"
Suzaku stood with his hands in his pockets, watching the theatrical display unfolding before him. He sighed, shaking his head helplessly.
The arrogance of the Logia, he thought.
This Enel... after eating the Rumble-Rumble Fruit (Goro Goro no Mi), he had likely spent years unchallenged. He genuinely believed himself to be an omniscient and omnipotent being because nothing in this isolated ecosystem could touch him.
It was the classic tragedy of a big fish in a small pond.
"Albedo," Suzaku spoke calmly. His voice was not loud, but it cut through the tension instantly, soothing the demoness's turbulent killing intent like a cool breeze.
"Don't be angry over the ramblings of a madman. It's beneath you."
"Suzaku-sama..." Albedo paused, her killing intent receding slightly, though her glare remained fixed on Enel.
"I will handle him," Suzaku said, stepping forward.
His gaze passed over the heavily armed Divine Warriors as if they were invisible air. His eyes landed directly on Enel, carrying an emotion that Enel had never seen before: Pity.
"I will let him experience firsthand," Suzaku's voice remained steady, slowly echoing through the silent palace.
"That before he ate the Devil Fruit, seeing me was like a frog at the bottom of a well looking up at the bright moon—unreachable and incomprehensible."
He paused slightly, a chilling, predatory smile playing on his lips.
"And only after he ate the Devil Fruit, gaining this so-called 'invincible' power... will he truly understand the scale of the world."
Suzaku raised a hand, clenching it into a fist.
"He will realize that seeing me... is like a single, fragile mayfly attempting to glimpse the boundless, terrifying expanse of the blue sky!"
Hearing that Suzaku intended to act personally, Albedo immediately reined in all outward emotion. She stepped back and respectfully lowered her head, lifting the hem of her dress in a curtsy.
"As you command, Lord Suzaku!"
She cast one last look of utter contempt at Enel. "This arrogant insect will soon understand. Before your supreme power, the lightning he prides himself on is nothing more than a flickering firefly in the face of the sun!"
Enel's smile vanished. His eyebrows twitched.
"Frog? Mayfly?"
Sparks flew violently from his body, cracking the stone floor of the dais. "You Blue Sea trash... you dare mock God?"
"I am not mocking you," Suzaku said, his Conqueror's Haki beginning to hum in the air. "I am educating you."
Just as Suzaku was preparing to make his move, a piercing sound shattered the tension.
SCREE—!
A loud, majestic bird cry came from overhead, echoing through the open skylight.
Everyone looked up.
A blur of pink and silver descended from the heavens like a meteor.
"HYAAAAH!"
It was an old man, clad in shining medieval knight armor, riding a strange, pink spotted bird that seemed to have transformed into a Pegasus-like creature.
Gan Fall, the former God of Skypiea, and his partner Pierre.
He dove straight down, ignoring the Divine Warriors, ignoring the gravity. His jousting lance traced a cold gleam in the air and landed with a deafening BANG between Suzaku's group and Enel, kicking up a shower of sparks and dust!
"Hah... Hah..."
Gan Fall stood up from the crouch, his cape swirling. He looked older than Wyper remembered, but his eyes were burning with determination.
Enel did not even bother to lift an eyelid. He leaned back into his throne, lazily drawing out his words.
"Who do we have here... Isn't this Gan Fall? My defeated foe from six years ago?"
Enel bit into another apple. "Have you come again to experience the despair of fighting God? Or did you miss your throne?"
Gan Fall ignored the taunt completely. His wrinkled face was solemn, sweat beading on his forehead. He gripped his lance tightly, his knuckles white.
He suddenly turned his back to Enel, lowering his voice urgently to speak to Suzaku, Wyper, and the girls.
"Young ones! Listen to me!"
Gan Fall's voice was desperate. "His power is far beyond your imagination! It is not something humans can fight! It is the natural power to control lightning itself!"
He glanced at Wyper, recognizing the Shandian tattoos. "Warrior of Shandia... and you Blue Sea travelers. You are still young! There is no need to die in vain here!"
"Old man, what are you..." Wyper started, confused.
"I will hold him back!" Gan Fall roared, interrupting him. "Pierre and I will buy you time! You must leave quickly! Take the escape route through the cloud river! GO!"
The words had barely left his mouth when the stubborn old knight gave Suzaku and the others no chance to reply. As if determined to be a martyr, he kicked the ground.
"FOR SKYPIEA!"
Gan Fall let out a low roar and charged. His lance, honed by decades of battle, thrust forward with impeccable technique.
WOOSH!
The attack was perfect. It struck Enel squarely in the center of his chest.
Pfft!
The sound of metal piercing flesh echoed. The lance went straight through.
"Did I... succeed?" Gan Fall's heart clenched, a glimmer of hope rising in his chest.
However, there was no blood.
The "Enel" who had been pierced simply looked down at the lance in his chest with a bored expression. An eerie smile stretched across his face.
Zzzzt.
His body didn't bleed; it transformed into a flickering ball of blue electricity. The physical matter of his flesh dissolved into pure energy, allowing the lance to pass through harmlessly like a spoon through water.
"Over here, old man."
A mocking voice came from the side.
Gan Fall stumbled forward, his momentum carrying him through the dissipating electricity. He spun around in horror.
Enel was sitting on the armrest of the throne, composed and at ease, surrounded by swirling electricity. He looked as if he had never moved.
"Your attack is still the same as it was years ago," Enel sighed, looking disappointed. "Futile. Weak. Laughable."
"Bastard!"
Wyper roared. Seeing his former enemy, Gan Fall, treated like a toy ignited something in him. He couldn't restrain himself any longer.
"I won't let you mock us!"
BOOM!
Wyper pushed off the ground, rushing toward Enel like a cannonball. The Burn Bazooka was too slow for close range, so he activated the Impact Dial strapped to his palm.
"IMPACT!"
He thrust his palm forward, aiming a shockwave directly at the side of Enel's head.
"Tsk. Another impolite mortal."
Enel didn't blink. His figure vanished again, turning into a streak of lightning.
Zip.
The next second, he appeared directly behind Wyper.
"Too slow."
With a casual pat, Enel touched Wyper's shoulder.
ZZZT!
"Guh—!"
A faint but potent current of electricity surged through Wyper's body. It wasn't enough to kill, but it seized every muscle, locking his nervous system. Wyper stumbled, his knees buckling, smoke rising from his shoulder.
The ensuing scene almost became a clumsy farce.
"Haaaa!"
Gan Fall recovered and thrust his lance again. Enel leaned his head to the left, letting the steel graze his earlobe.
"Die!"
Wyper fired a small burst from his bazooka. Enel transformed his torso into a hoop of lightning, letting the fireball pass through the hole in his stomach.
He was like a phantom. A ghost made of light.
He flickered casually around the room, sometimes appearing above Gan Fall's head, tapping his helmet lightly with a finger—Ding!—and other times appearing beside Wyper, using electricity to light a cigarette from the heat of the warrior's anger.
It was humiliating.
"Do you see?"
Enel easily dodged a coordinated strike from both men, teleporting to the top of his throne.
He looked down at Albedo and Suzaku, who remained standing still. His tone was full of boastfulness and arrogance, as if displaying an interesting toy to a captive audience.
"This is the power of God! This is the Logia!"
Enel spread his arms wide, lightning exploding from his body to form a massive aura behind him.
"Mortal attacks are useless against me! Physical force serves no purpose! This is the true definition of 'invincible'!"
He grinned maniacally.
"Now, surely you understand? Struggle is meaningless. Submitting to God is the only wise choice."
Suzaku stood with his arms crossed, watching this clumsy "Hero Battles Evil God" play unfold. The corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
He had already assumed his stance. He had been seconds away from crushing this false god.
But what happened? That old Gan Fall had suddenly descended from the sky like a scripted event in a bad RPG. Without a word, he had staged a tragic performance of "I'll cover the rear, you run quickly!"
Now, instead of helping, the old knight and the angry warrior had provided a perfect stage for Enel.
They were basically punching bags, allowing the Lightning Human to thoroughly show off his elemental transformation, stroke his ego, and flaunt his power to the fullest.
"Are you done showing off?" Suzaku asked, his voice cutting through the crackle of electricity.
He took a step forward, the wood beneath his feet splintering.
"Because I'm getting bored."
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