Chapter 478: Six Years
After arriving once again at the location of the Ark Maxim, Ian placed all the gold on the ship's deck and then began inspecting the damage to the vessel.
Earlier, in order to stop Enel from ascending into the sky, Ian had attacked this ark by any means necessary. Now that it was time to reclaim it, he felt he might have been a bit too heavy-handed.
Although Ian wasn't very knowledgeable about the ship's internal technology, he could tell that the propulsion system was definitely damaged. Fortunately, during his inspection, he discovered a large number of shells embedded in the ship's bottom.
These must be the Wind Dial Shells, right? With these Wind Dial Shells, even if the propulsion system was destroyed, the ship might still be able to fly!
Ian couldn't help but glance at Enel, who pretended not to care as Ian inspected the ship, but his eyes secretly and nervously watched Ian.
Ian sneered inwardly. This guy Enel wasn't being honest. He was probably still trying to gamble, betting that Ian wouldn't recognize these Wind Dial Shells...
But not only Ian, even Usopp recognized these shells. Usopp had already encountered some of the unique shell culture on this island and was very interested in it. After fiddling with the shells at the bottom of the ship, he discovered their wonderful uses.
"Big Brother Ian!" Usopp now called Ian the same way Nami and the others did. He excitedly ran up to Ian, waving his hands and feet, and said, "These shells seem to be able to spray out strong winds! Maybe this ship can fly again with the help of these shells!"
Ian smiled and glanced at Enel beside him, seeing his face turn pale and then red. This guy probably never expected that even if Ian didn't expose these shells, Usopp, the little inventor, would uncover the secret of the Wind Dial Shells.
These little tricks showed that Enel was still thinking about his ark.
Ian understood very well that Enel's obsession was likely with this ark. He had grown up in his hometown, Skypiea's Birka. Although he was a half-breed, influenced by his surroundings, his desire for the earth was the same as other Skypieans. To reach the infinite earth, he needed this ark.
After being severely beaten by Ian earlier, Enel was indeed scared, so he obediently followed Ian, doing whatever Ian said. But if you thought he had truly accepted his fate, that was impossible.
He knew very well that as long as he was within Ian's sight, he couldn't escape. If Enel wanted to run, he would have to turn into lightning, but Ian's strange power could precisely control him. This kind of natural enemy-like power made Enel realize that unless he stayed far away from Ian, he might have a chance to escape.
The problem was that Ian ordered him to stay, so Enel couldn't find an opportunity to run.
Although he had thought about grabbing Ian's companions to threaten him, he felt the success rate was too low because while he was grabbing Ian's companions, Ian could immediately control him!
Helpless, the only thing Enel could rely on now was Ian making a mistake, relaxing his vigilance at some point, so he could find a way to escape, quickly pilot the ark, and leave.
That was also why, after the ark's propulsion system was damaged, he didn't activate the Wind Dial Shells. He had kept a trick up his sleeve, intending to make Ian think the ark was completely immobile.
To summarize Enel's mindset: as long as the green hills remain, there's no need to worry about firewood! As long as the ark was preserved, he still had hope of reaching the infinite earth.
For this reason, even if Ian took all the gold on the ship, he would accept it.
But unfortunately, Ian was even more despicable than he thought. He didn't even intend to let go of the damaged ark and wanted to take it back for use!
This was like grabbing his last weakness.
Too much! Enel was now trembling all over. After Usopp exposed the secret of the Wind Dial Shells, Enel was already considering whether to fight to the death with Ian, risking everything.
However, Ian saw through his thoughts and immediately placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, sneering at him, "What, Enel, are you planning to make me determined to cut you down?"
"You...!" Enel tightly gripped the golden staff in his hand, hesitating.
He knew very well that he couldn't beat Ian. The so-called fight to the death was probably just a joke. It was likely that the fish would die, but the net wouldn't break.
Look around; at this moment, not only Ian, but Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy were also watching Enel warily, ready to fight at any moment.
Seeing his hesitation, Ian thought for a moment and said, "I know you want to go to your hometown, the Moon! I never intended to stop you. But since you've fallen into my hands, you have to pay a price. How about this: you will follow me and serve under my command for six years! After that, whether you stay or leave, I won't stop you!"
Earlier, Ian had been completely unreasonable and beaten Enel severely. Now that he finally proposed a condition, Enel saw a turning point.
Enel knew very well that Ian was just after his power. But if he insisted on going his own way, Ian would probably really kill him.
Ian indeed had this idea. He knew Enel's arrogant nature. If they really couldn't reach an agreement, Ian planned to kill him. After a Devil Fruit user dies, a new Devil Fruit is reborn. At worst, he would spend some effort to find the Rumble-Rumble Fruit again.
The Rumble-Rumble Fruit was a rare and powerful Logia Devil Fruit. Ian couldn't give it up. If Enel couldn't be used, then he would create a new Rumble-Rumble Fruit user!
Ian had even thought that if he found the reborn Rumble-Rumble Fruit, he could consider giving it to Sabo or even Zoro...
After drinking the sworn brotherhood wine, Sabo had become Ian's sworn brother, so Ian would naturally give it to someone he trusted.
As he thought this, Ian couldn't help but leak a hint of killing intent. Enel, who had been watching Ian, naturally felt this killing intent and emotion, and he immediately sensed trouble.
Although Enel was arrogant, he wasn't stupid. Facing a natural enemy who could kill you at any time, persisting in resistance was irresponsible to one's own life. However, he felt that Ian's condition was a bit harsh, so he couldn't help but bargain, "Six years is too long!"
Hearing this, Ian knew that Enel had truly surrendered this time. He slightly moved his hand away from the sword hilt and said, "You spent six years building an ark; can't you wait another six years? Don't worry, after six years, I'll return your ark to you intact. Besides, don't you need my help to repair this ark now?"
"Alright... alright!" Enel said reluctantly, "You have to keep your word!"
The agreement was reached, and Ian breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that force could make Enel submit, but if Enel was determined to escape, with his abilities, Ian couldn't watch him all the time. He couldn't chain Enel like a dog with Seastone handcuffs even when sleeping. That would be too insulting, and Ian couldn't do it. So the best way was to get Enel to cooperate willingly.
Ian's Dragon Hunter Pirates had never forced anyone to join. Enel was an exception. Ian could have threatened Enel with soul extraction like he did with Crocodile, but he estimated that this madman Enel wouldn't care about losing a tenth of his vitality.
Now, with the ark in hand and this agreement with Enel, he temporarily gave up the idea of escaping, which would save Ian a lot of trouble in the future.
Zoro regretfully sheathed his sword. He had really wanted to spar with Enel. Because of Ian's intervention, they hadn't been able to fight Enel, so he didn't know how strong Enel really was and was curious.
"How long can these Wind Dial Shells support the ark's flight?" Ian asked Enel.
"Only two hours!" Enel shook his head and said, "Once the energy stored in the Wind Dial Shells is depleted, we have to land! And there are no other Wind Dial Shells to be found. These shells, even in my hometown of Birka, are already extinct."
Ian nodded, indicating he understood, and asked Enel, "You built the ark according to the design drawings. Can you repair the propulsion system?"
"I don't know how!" Enel explained, "I just had the captured slaves build it according to the design drawings. I'm familiar with the propulsion system, but that doesn't mean I can build or repair it."
Reiju understood Ian's intention and spoke up, "Then, can we bring back the builders to help us repair it?"
"That might be difficult!" Robin glanced at Enel and said, "Even if this ship has changed owners, it still brings back painful memories for them..."
"Forget it, we'll do it ourselves! We'll repair as much as we can!" Ian sighed and said.