The blue arcs of electricity crackling around Enel grew even more violent after he spoke those final words.
The winged Skypiean stared at him in sheer terror. In his eyes, the young man's face had transformed into something horrifying, a vengeful ghost emerging from a storm of lightning.
"Die!" Enel roared, throwing his hand forward to command the lightning.
The raging electricity shrieked as it surged into the man before him.
"Ugh, !"
In barely three seconds, the high-voltage discharge scorched the man's body black. Smoke poured from his charred remains as he collapsed limply to the ground, terror frozen in his lifeless eyes.
Exhaling slowly while wrapped in crackling electricity, Enel stepped through the gate into the estate.
For the next several minutes, thunder repeatedly erupted from within the courtyard, punctuated by terrified screams and desperate cries for mercy.
Eventually, Enel walked back out, and silence returned to the night.
The lightning dancing across his skin gradually faded, and the twisted fury on his face settled into a quiet calm.
He was about to leave when a voice called out from behind him.
"Enel."
Enel turned, his expression serene. "Did you come to stop me?"
The newcomer was a burly man in tattered clothes, his appearance disheveled and his hair badly singed by electricity.
Hearing Enel's question, the man looked slightly uncomfortable. "I thought you would, "
"Destroy all of Birka?" Enel interrupted with a faint smirk.
"Yeah," the man admitted without hesitation.
"The old me probably would have," Enel said quietly. "But now..."
The memory of the man who could be gentle one moment and strict the next flashed in Enel's mind, and his expression softened.
"Now... I value something else more."
With that, Enel turned away. "There's nothing left for me here. I want to see a wider sky. Hopefully, we'll meet again someday, Uncle!"
Enel raised a hand in farewell, his body transforming into a streak of lightning that vanished into the night sky in an instant.
The man watched the bolt of lightning tear across the dark heavens, lost in thought. As Enel's words echoed in his mind, a warm smile slowly spread across his face.
"Congratulations, Enel. You've finally found your own path."
---
As people grow, there will always be a mountain blocking their path, a stone that trips them, or a single leaf that obscures their vision.
When that happens, there is no point in raging against the mountain, obsessing over the stone, or losing one's way over a leaf.
One must simply look further ahead.
After all, the future is always far grander than the past.
---
Under the silent night sky, a flash of lightning streaked across the heavens.
Within a few breaths, it crossed the expanse of the White-White Sea, coming to a stop above the 'Logan'.
The streak of blue lightning descended onto the deck, solidifying back into the young man.
"This is the place!" Enel smiled to himself.
He possessed extraordinary innate talent. After obtaining his godlike power, he had instinctively awakened a unique ability.
He called it 'Heartnet'.
It allowed him to sense everything within a one-kilometer radius. Even more unusually, it could detect the emotional shifts and intentions of people's hearts.
Because of this, Enel's perceptions were far more raw and sensitive than those of ordinary people.
An ordinary person might walk past someone who secretly despised them without ever noticing. Enel didn't have that luxury. Every malicious word and ugly thought around him had once driven him to the brink of insanity, twisting his mind over time.
Until he met Rojen.
He couldn't read Rojen, yet he could feel an unmistakable warmth radiating from him.
After observing Rojen and the crew earlier that day, Enel had realized they belonged to this ship. Now that he had settled his past, he had come to wait.
"I'll wait for him here," Enel mused, his mood lightening. "Big brother will definitely be surprised!"
With a light leap, he landed atop the skull figurehead at the bow of the 'Logan'.
Gazing down at the White-White Sea and Angel Island, Enel saw a peaceful landscape entirely different from the chaos of the day. The gentle sea breeze washed over him, soothing his weary mind as he closed his eyes to enjoy the quiet night.
Before long, however, the sound of approaching footsteps broke his trance.
Enel opened his eyes, the soft smile instantly vanishing and giving way to a cold, razor-sharp glare. He had never been a gentle soul; to those around him, he was far more often considered a demon.
"Stop!"
With a casual flick of his wrist, a bolt of lightning struck the ground inches beside the intruder, leaving behind a smoking crater.
The sudden explosion of power made the newcomer shriek, collapsing onto the ground in absolute terror.
Under the moonlight, Enel dropped down from the 'Logan' to inspect the intruder. Seeing that it was merely a young girl, his hostility lessened slightly.
"Stay away from this ship," he warned coldly before leaping back up onto the bow.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" the girl asked in a trembling voice, still shivering from the terrifying display of electricity.
Enel was quite pleased with her fright. "Leave. And don't ask questions."
"You're being completely unreasonable! This is Big Brother Rojen's ship! How can you just climb onto it whenever you want?!" the girl yelled back, fear giving way to indignance.
"Big Brother Rojen?" Enel's eyes flickered. 'So that's his name.'
He glared down at her. "You know him too?"
"Of course I do! I came here with him!" she snapped. When Enel said nothing, she added fiercely, "Are you trying to steal the ship? I'm warning you, God's Army is stationed right nearby! If you try anything, you'll be caught immediately!"
"Steal the ship?" Enel stared at her for a second before chuckling inwardly. "I'm here to make sure 'nobody else' steals it."
"What?" Dina froze in confusion.
She hadn't expected this strange boy to be here for the exact same reason she was. Since Rojen and the crew had headed to Upper Yard, the duty of keeping an eye on the ship had fallen to Dina and her father, who took turns checking on it. Meeting this strange young man tonight was purely an accident.
"You can leave now. I'll guard this place," Enel said, his tone growing impatient.
"You're being totally unreasonable!" Dina huffed.
"Reason?" Enel sneered. "What's that? When I feel like talking reason, 'then' it's reason. But right now? I don't feel like it. It's all nonsense."
He flicked his hand again. "Get lost!"
'BOOM!'
Another bolt of lightning struck inches from her feet, making Dina scream again.
"If you don't want to end up roasted, you'd better start running."
That final threat sent Dina scrambling to her feet, gritting her teeth as she turned and ran off into the night.
The sharp-tongued girl had no idea that the tyrannical young man she was so terrified of was the very same 'God of Thunder' destined to shake Sky Island.
(End Of This Chapter)
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