Several long minutes passed in silence.
The eerie blue radiance enveloping the Black Coffin gradually dimmed.
The strange energy crawling across its surface receded like a retreating tide, and the ancient runes etched into the black metal lost their glow one by one.
Then everything went still.
Rowan’s gaze sharpened.
It was finished.
Without wasting a second, he strode forward and pulled open the heavy lid.
A surge of anticipation flashed through him.
Inside, the scene was exactly as he’d hoped.
The ordinary fruit he had placed within the coffin had disappeared.
In its place rested a strange purple fruit covered in intricate swirling patterns.
Tiny arcs of electricity crackled across its skin, hissing softly through the air.
Even lying motionless, it radiated power.
Violent.
Destructive.
Untamed.
The Goro Goro no Mi.
The Lightning Fruit.
For a moment, Rowan simply stared.
Five years.
Five years of isolation.
Five years of relentless training.
Five years spent preparing for this exact moment.
Every drop of sweat.
Every broken bone.
Every battle.
All of it had led here.
Now the prize sat in the palm of his hand.
His fingers tightened around the fruit.
At the bottom of the coffin, Enel’s body remained motionless.
The self-proclaimed God of Skypiea was dead.
Truly dead.
No miraculous recovery.
No lightning-powered resurrection.
No second chance.
His era had ended.
A slow grin spread across Rowan’s face.
“Success.”
The word escaped as little more than a whisper.
Yet it carried the weight of five years of effort.
He looked back at the fruit.
Even before consuming it, he could feel the immense power sleeping within.
It was like holding a fragment of a thunderstorm.
A force of nature compressed into something small enough to fit in one hand.
There was no reason to delay.
The Four Priests remained kneeling nearby.
The giant eagle stood frozen in place.
Neither posed the slightest threat.
Even if all four priests attacked together, Rowan doubted they could survive a single punch.
So he simply returned to his human form.
Then he raised the fruit and bit down.
The taste hit immediately.
Rowan’s face twisted.
“…Disgusting.”
It was somehow even worse than he remembered.
Rotten garbage.
Burnt rubber.
Seawater left to ferment beneath the sun.
Every Devil Fruit seemed determined to compete for the title of worst thing in existence.
Suppressing the urge to spit it out, Rowan forced himself to keep chewing.
Then swallowed.
And took another bite.
And another.
Until nothing remained.
The moment the final piece disappeared—
Lightning erupted.
ZZZZZZZT!
Brilliant arcs of electricity exploded from his body.
White-blue light flashed across his eyes.
The air crackled violently.
The scent of ozone instantly filled the battlefield.
Power surged through him.
Not like the savage force of the Behemoth.
This felt different.
Sharper.
Faster.
Wild and untouchable.
For an instant, it felt as though his entire body had become a conduit for a storm.
Electricity coursed through his muscles.
Through his bones.
Through every cell.
Yet instead of tearing him apart, the power was welcomed.
Accepted.
His Behemoth-enhanced physique absorbed the energy effortlessly.
Muscles grew more responsive.
Reflexes sharpened.
His senses expanded.
It felt as though every part of his body had awakened.
CRACK!
The ground beneath him split apart.
CRACK!
More fractures spread outward.
Lightning leaked from his body uncontrollably, carving glowing scars across the earth.
The entire island trembled.
Nearby, Golden Gale’s feathers stood straight up.
The giant eagle stared in horror.
He’s getting stronger again?!
What kind of monster becomes stronger every time I blink?!
And where did the lightning come from?!
Every instinct screamed danger.
The exhausted eagle immediately flapped backward.
Fast.
Very fast.
Its survival instincts had never failed it before.
And they were currently shouting at maximum volume.
The Four Priests weren’t faring much better.
Their faces had gone pale.
Their eyes were wide with disbelief.
“That lightning…”
One priest swallowed hard.
“It belongs to Lord Enel…”
“No.”
Another shook his head.
His voice trembled.
“It’s stronger.”
“What…
what did he do?”
Nobody answered.
Because the answer arrived a moment later.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The heavens exploded.
Rowan rose into the sky.
Lightning spiraled around him in great twisting coils, dancing through the clouds like celestial dragons.
His feet left the ground completely.
The air itself seemed to bow beneath the pressure of his power.
Then he spread his arms.
And the sky answered.
Thunder roared.
Columns of lightning descended from above.
One.
Then another.
Then dozens more.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The entire Upper Yard shook beneath the bombardment.
Forests ignited.
Ancient trees exploded into splinters.
Crimson fire spread through the wilderness.
Massive craters appeared across the sacred land.
The earth blackened beneath relentless thunder.
For several breathtaking moments, it looked as though the heavens themselves had declared war on Skypiea.
Above it all, Rowan hovered motionless.
A lone figure suspended amid a sea of lightning.
Silver eyes illuminated by electric light.
Thunder rolling endlessly around him.
The image was unforgettable.
Not a warrior.
Not a pirate.
Not even a king.
A god.
The power filling his body exceeded every expectation.
The speed.
The mobility.
The destructive force.
The sheer freedom.
Everything about the Lightning Fruit was extraordinary.
And this was only the beginning.
Slowly, Rowan clenched his fist.
The lightning vanished.
The storm subsided.
The thunder faded into the distance.
Silence returned.
A smile appeared on his face.
“Unbelievable.”
He could feel it already.
The synergy was absurd.
The Behemoth Fruit had given him overwhelming strength, defense, endurance, and recovery.
The Lightning Fruit filled every remaining gap.
Speed.
Range.
Mobility.
Elemental devastation.
Together, they formed something terrifying.
A monster whose body rivaled the strongest beasts in the world now possessed the speed of lightning itself.
The weakness he’d once worried about had vanished completely.
Below him, the Four Priests stared upward.
The fear in their eyes had disappeared.
What remained was something far deeper.
Reverence.
Awe.
Worship.
Enel had commanded lightning.
The man before them had become lightning.
The difference was obvious.
One by one, the priests lowered themselves to their knees.
Their heads bowed.
Their bodies trembled.
“The god…”
one whispered.
“No.”
Another shook his head.
His voice was filled with conviction.
“The Thunder God.”
None of them even considered resistance.
There was no point.
They had witnessed a miracle.
Rowan descended slowly from the sky.
Lightning faded from his body as his boots touched the ground.
He glanced at the kneeling priests.
Then spoke calmly.
“Take me to Upper Yard.”
More specifically—
Apayado.
The sacred land at the heart of Enel’s domain.
Because Rowan knew exactly what awaited him there.
Gold.
Enough gold to make kingdoms jealous.
And more importantly—
The Ark Maxim.
Enel’s masterpiece.
The legendary flying vessel forged primarily from gold.
A ship capable of sailing the skies themselves.
Rowan intended to build the strongest pirate crew in history.
And every great crew needed a flagship.
The Ark Maxim wasn’t perfect.
It wasn’t large enough for his future ambitions.
But as a starting vessel?
It was exceptional.
After all, he’d already taken Enel’s greatest treasure.
There was no reason to leave the rest behind.
The Four Priests immediately lowered their heads even further.
“Yes, Lord Thunder God.”
“We will guide you there immediately.”
Their voices carried not the slightest trace of hesitation.
Only obedience.
And as thunder rumbled faintly in the distant sky, the age of Enel came to an end.
A new ruler had taken his place.