The Ark Maxim glided silently ten thousand meters above the ground, its streamlined hull cutting through the milky sea of clouds and trailing a long contrail across the azure sky.
On deck, Enel stood stiff-backed at the helm, his Golden Staff casually planted beside his feet to serve as a crutch.
Distinct bruises from five fingers still marked his right cheek, and every turn of the heavy wheel sent searing pain through his ribs.
Cold sweat mixed with blood soaked his purple headscarf, and his vision kept darkening from blood loss.
"Steer..."
That devil had just said that and gone to sleep! Enel roared inwardly, yet dared not let his gaze stray even a fraction.
In the white plastic chair at the bow, Kirishima sat with his head tilted, white hair falling over his forehead and his chest rising and falling gently with his steady breathing.
Was he asleep? Or merely resting his eyes? Enel had no way of telling.
Around that man, Mantra met nothing but dead silence, as though it had struck a black hole.
He could only stare fixedly at the boundless clouds ahead, keeping the ark on a straight but utterly meaningless course.
Below, Sky Island's pristine cloud ground gradually shrank into a blurry point of light.
Faint cheers drifted up on the rising air currents. His former subjects were celebrating their tyrant's disappearance.
Enel clenched his teeth, humiliation winding around his heart like poisonous vines.
A god? He was now just a... driver and power bank who didn't even dare ask for directions.
Night fell.
The Ark Maxim hovered in the silent night sky, the energy patterns along its hull giving off a faint blue glow like a colossal beast asleep among the stars.
Almost completely drained, Enel leaned against the wheel, holding himself up