The next day, Sakazuki brought Carol into town.
This time, rather than searching directly, they sought out elderly residents and asked roundabout questions about the island's history and what made it different.
Yet half a day passed with little to show for it. Too much time had gone by.
So much time that it had erased all history, leaving only a single saying passed down through the generations.
"Birka is the Primordial Light, the beginning of all things, the origin of everything."
As Sakazuki walked through town, his head ached. He had no leads whatsoever.
His Observation Haki swept the area again and again, but found no ruins or hidden chambers.
"Hm?"
Both Sakazuki and Carol sensed several children fighting behind the town.
One of them was Enel, whom they had met yesterday, so the two headed over.
In a clearing behind the town of Birka.
Panting, Enel warily watched the boys closing in on him. He had let his guard down...
Earlier that day, he had played another trick on the idiot who always bullied him.
But he had never expected to run into that idiot's big brother while fleeing.
Even though he had turned around when the boy was still two or three hundred meters away, he had still been caught. The gap between a three-year-old and a twelve- or thirteen-year-old was simply too great.
The bastards chasing Enel gradually surrounded him.
With his big brother backing him up, the five-year-old gave Enel a hard shove, knocking him to the ground, then looked down at him smugly.
"Heh, Enel, aren't you supposed to be good at running?"
"Go on, run."
"Let's see how you get away today!"
"Why aren't you saying anything?"
"Scared?"
"You actually dared to steal my apples. Watch me teach you a lesson."
Enel remained silent, knowing there was no escaping this beating.
He glanced down at his new clothes, a flicker of distress crossing his eyes. Damn it, this was my first time wearing new clothes...
The five-year-old ringleader waved his hand smugly and ordered the three- and four-year-olds around him:
"Beat him up!!!"
As he spoke, he raised his fist. He wanted to land the first punch!
Just then, Sakazuki's emotionless voice rang out.
"Brat."
"Do you want to die?"
A huge shadow fell over the children.
The five-year-old ringleader turned to look and saw a man towering over him from behind.
His powerful muscles and cold expression were utterly terrifying.
His eyes were even fiercer. The five-year-old ringleader froze in terror.
"I..."
"I..."
The ringleader's big brother pulled him close and looked at Sakazuki and Carol, forcing himself to stay calm.
"Who are you!"
Sakazuki glanced at the oldest boy without speaking.
His presence merely seemed to grow a little colder. At last, the ringleader's big brother lost his nerve and looked down at Enel.
"We'll let you off this time!"
Then he grabbed his little brother and ran, not daring to look back.
Carol helped Enel up and smiled as he said to Sakazuki:
"You haven't traumatized those children, have you, Vice Admiral Sakazuki?"
Sakazuki raised an eyebrow, recalling what he had just said.
He had meant to scare them, but he had certainly used a gentle tone.
Why had those children acted as though they had seen a ghost?
He dismissed the thought and looked at Enel.
"How did you get caught?"
Enel turned his head away and replied reluctantly:
"Tch, he only caught me because he's bigger. Otherwise, those idiots would never have caught me."
Sakazuki exchanged a glance with Carol before asking:
"What was that about stealing apples? There should have been Extol in your clothes pocket. Didn't you find it?"
Enel lowered his head and scuffed the ground with his foot.
"I found it. I hid it away."
"The apples were from before."
Sakazuki gave Carol a signal.
Taking Enel by the hand, Carol followed Sakazuki out of town.
Enel paused in surprise, then started walking with them and asked:
"Where are we going?"
Sakazuki's impassive voice came from ahead.
"Home. To eat."
Enel's mind went blank when he heard that.
He was led along for quite some distance before coming back to his senses.
"Home..."
Aboard the warship, it was mealtime again.
The chef in the kitchen was hard at work.
Enel sat in the dining room outside, surrounded by soldiers offering him all sorts of little gifts.
They were treating him like a three-year-old.
This left Enel, whose mind was far more mature than his peers' and comparable to that of a "six-year-old," blushing with embarrassment.
But more than anything... This feels so nice...
In the office, Sakazuki was chatting with Carol.
Carol wondered what Sakazuki was looking for, and Sakazuki answered plainly:
"Some ruins with a set of blueprints inside."
Carol looked thoughtful.
"Blueprints..."
Sakazuki pressed both hands to his temples and rubbed them to ease his headache.
There was no helping it. Keeping his Observation Haki at full power for over half a day had drained his mental energy.
Knock, knock, knock!
A knock sounded at the door. Sakazuki lowered his hands and said:
"Come in."
Enel pushed the door open a crack and peeked at the two men, then came in carrying an armful of snacks and toys.
Amused by the sight of Enel like this, Carol asked:
"What is it, Enel?"
Enel put all the snacks and toys on the sofa, then turned around and spoke uncertainly.
"Those ruins you were just talking about... I might know where they are."
Sakazuki paused in surprise, then asked:
"Tell me."
Enel said, a little embarrassed:
"When I was hungry before, I often stole offerings from the altar in the town square. I think it's hollow underneath."
Sakazuki and Carol frowned slightly.
That wasn't right. The altar had been a priority, and neither man knew how many times he had swept it with Observation Haki.
They had found nothing unusual.
Seeing their frowns, Enel paused. Remembering that they also had that ability to sense people, he hurriedly explained:
"You can't sense that place with that sensing ability. Once, when I was stealing food, I tried to hide from someone and accidentally fell."
"There was a thud when I landed there, like it was hollow underneath."
"I went back a few times at night afterward. It really is hollow under that stone slab, but I couldn't lift it."
"That slab's pretty heavy."
Both men's eyes sharpened as they listened. Technology that could completely block Observation Haki... Then Sakazuki spoke:
"Can you take us there?"
Enel nodded.
"Sure, but we have to go at night. The altar's in the town square, so people can see us during the day."
Sakazuki said:
"It's fine. Come with me."
Then Sakazuki motioned for Carol to pick Enel up.
The two men leaped off the warship and vanished in a few steps, heading for a corner near the altar in the town of Birka.
Sakazuki appeared there with Carol, who was holding Enel. No one was nearby at the moment.
Sakazuki lifted a cloud slab from the ground and activated his power. Magma surged out, rapidly destroying the island cloud.
Before long, an underground passage formed from magma appeared and rapidly cooled.
It led straight to the altar.
Carol jumped down with the stunned Enel in his arms.
Then Sakazuki picked up the cloud slab and jumped down as well, replacing it in its original position.
At the end of the passage, Sakazuki and Carol gazed solemnly at the stone wall before them.
It really could block Observation Haki. This technology...
The moment Sakazuki's palm touched it, a faint weakness spread through his body.
But it wasn't too severe. Does it contain a little seastone...?
Armament Haki flowed out toward the stone wall before him.
Humm-!
A faint vibration sounded.
Starting from the section Sakazuki touched, broad stretches of the wall shook loose into stone dust.
Before long, a passage-sized hole appeared, leading straight into the underground ruins.
Looking at the large pile of stone dust on the ground, he had Carol collect some.
The stone wall was probably made from special materials mixed with seastone powder.
That was how it blocked the perception of Observation Haki.
He could find someone to study it later.
They entered the ruins.
Activating his Observation Haki, Sakazuki used his power to suspend a ball of magma above his palm for light.
He followed what his Observation Haki sensed deeper inside.
Carol also set Enel down, letting him walk along with them.
Creak!
Sakazuki pushed open the wooden door of a stone chamber at the far end.
The ancient wooden door let out a piercing creak, as though it were about to collapse, and swayed precariously.
The room was empty except for three enormous murals that seemed to depict its history.
The first mural showed a thriving city filled with instruments, where Skypieans with several different types of wings worked together, each performing a different task.
The first type of Skypieans mined something, and whatever they extracted was transported to the upper level.
The second type used those materials to assemble little figures.
The third type placed their hands on the little figures' heads.
Finally, the fourth type led those little figures in performing some kind of work.
The second mural depicted an empty underground city, with little figures standing aboard an enormous battleship, bidding farewell to the Skypieans flying into the sky.
The Skypieans were flying toward an enormous blue planet.
In the third mural, the four types of Skypieans had reached the skies above the blue planet. Those with what looked like two snail feelers on their heads remained in the sky, along with those whose wings were slightly larger.
Meanwhile, the Skypieans wearing wolf-head hats flew toward the ground alongside another type whose wings were as tall as a person.
The three enormous murals told the story of the Skypiean Race's origins, while also displaying the advanced technology they had once possessed.
An entire mechanical city, little figures granted life, an enormous battleship-all of them bore witness to a former glory that inspired awe.
Creak!
He pushed open the door to another stone chamber beside it.
Inside stood an enormous bookshelf and a table with chairs.
He walked over to the bookshelf and picked up a book.
Before he could open it.
Countless scraps of paper scattered across the floor.
Before you continue