Inside the cabin.
Perona's hands were gripping the bed tightly, her nails nearly digging into the velvet sheets, her knuckles white from the strain. Yet her cheeks burned as if on fire.
She suddenly turned her head, her carefully applied makeup now smeared—eyeliner running, her face flushed crimson, a far cry from her usual fierce demeanor. Even the tips of her ears were red, and strands of pink hair clung to her sweaty neck, swaying slightly with each ragged breath.
"B-Boss…" Perona's chest heaved violently beneath her lace collar, her skin flushed a delicate pink. Her voice trembled with fear. "Someone like him is here… What do we do?!"
Though the name "Golden Lion" had terrified her, what frightened her even more was the man standing before her. In her eyes, when the boss got angry, he was far scarier than any legendary pirate.
Bahr remained silent for a few seconds, ignoring her question. Instead, he turned to Nico Robin, his voice low and steady. "What's the situation?"
Robin paused, then suddenly raised her hand toward the air. From beneath her sleeve, multiple arms sprouted with a soft poof, stretching rapidly across the ceiling beams toward the porthole, forming a cylindrical shape like a telescope.
"Enel is fighting Golden Lion. It seems he's at a disadvantage, but he's still holding his own." The arms swayed lightly outside the window, their fingers adjusting angles as if precisely tracking the battle.
Bahr nodded. Enel's Rumble-Rumble Fruit granted him lightning-fast speed. Even if he couldn't win against Golden Lion, he could at least stall him for a while.
"Keep watching with your ability. Let me know immediately if anything changes." He considered for a moment before adding, "I'll head over once I'm done here."
Stopping what he was doing now would be worse than death.
If Enel could hold out, then he might as well keep Golden Lion occupied. At the moment, nothing was more important than this.
Robin's eyelid twitched at his words. She pressed her lips together, saying nothing, but her gaze was unmistakable—"You're still thinking about that at a time like this?"—her temple vein nearly bulging in frustration.
But Bahr paid no attention to her expression. Instead, he turned back to Perona. "Sorry to trouble you."
Perona didn't react at first—until her twin pink pigtails were seized in his grip. Her face instantly paled, her voice shaking uncontrollably. "W-Wait, Boss! Not now—!"
Robin's lips curled slightly as she walked over to a nearby chair and sat down. Watching Bahr's unstoppable momentum, she simply closed her eyes and massaged her temples.
The enemy was literally at their doorstep, and he was still obsessed with this? Hopeless.
Yet, seeing Bahr's "calm" demeanor, her tense nerves inexplicably relaxed a little.
This guy would finish what he started even if the sky were falling—somehow, that was its own kind of reliability.
A long while later, Bahr finally rose from the bed, drenched in sweat, and walked over to Robin. Without ceremony, he grabbed the glass of water on the table and downed it in one gulp. "What's the situation now?"
Robin glanced at his disheveled state out of the corner of her eye, frowning as she turned her head away. "Golden Lion doesn't seem to be going for the kill."
Bahr exhaled deeply after drinking, unsurprised. The strong in this world were always like this—capable of ending things quickly, yet choosing to toy with their opponents like a cat with a mouse.
"I'm going to shower first."
Since Golden Lion wasn't in a hurry to finish things, this was the perfect chance to wash off the sweat. Against an old monster of that caliber, he needed to be at his peak.
Just like those protagonists in manga—didn't they always make their grand entrance at the last moment?
Bahr walked toward the bathroom without looking back, tossing out one last remark before leaving. "Take care of Perona."
The full force of his "firepower" wasn't something an ordinary person could handle.
As the sound of running water came from the bathroom, Robin walked over to the bed. Seeing Perona sprawled out limply, her lips twitched violently.
This guy is practically a beast… She'd have to prepare some contingencies for herself in the future—just in case she got dragged down by him one day.
Lightning and sword flashes intertwined in the clouds. Enel hovered midair, his body wreathed in blue-purple electricity, as he swung his golden staff. A bolt of lightning as thick as a bowl shot straight toward Golden Lion's face.
But Golden Lion merely blocked it with his sword, deflecting the lightning effortlessly. The gust from his blade sent Enel's hair whipping wildly.
"Kid, is this what you call the power of a 'god'?" Golden Lion laughed around his cigar, his tone dripping with mockery. "Even the weakest axe-wielder on my ship could hit harder than this!"
A vein pulsed at Enel's temple, his entire body crackling with electricity like a spiky hedgehog. "You think this god is some kind of circus act?!"
Before the words had even fully left his mouth, his body transformed into a streak of blue-purple lightning, teleporting instantly behind Golden Lion. His golden staff, wreathed in thunder, thrust straight for the man's back.
Golden Lion didn't bother to block head-on. Instead, he angled the back of his sword, Withered Tree, deflecting the tip of the staff with precision. At the same time, his eyes locked onto the burst of lightning at Enel's ankles.
This speed… It's not much worse than that perverted Navy bastard.
"Kid, you've got some skill. Why not join me?" Golden Lion turned his head slightly, the cigar in his mouth tilting arrogantly. "Let's turn this world upside down together—gyahahahaha!"
"A god does not bow to mortals!" Enel roared, his lightning flaring violently. With a flick of his right hand, a claw-shaped Thunderbird screeched as it launched toward Golden Lion.
Golden Lion's eyes turned cold. The blade of Withered Tree suddenly darkened with Armament Haki, its edge gleaming like a full moon as it slashed horizontally. The sword wave not only shattered the Thunderbird but continued onward with a piercing shriek, aimed straight for Enel.
Caught off guard, Enel was struck squarely in the chest by the shockwave. Like a broken kite, he plummeted toward the deck, crashing through the railing in a shower of sparks.
Golden Lion stood atop the clouds, dusting off his sleeves, his long hair billowing in the wind as he laughed loudly down at his opponent. "Calling yourself a god when you can't even control your own power? Come back after another five hundred years of training!"
Enel knelt on one knee, blood seeping from his chest, but he jerked his head up, lightning crackling wildly in his eyes. "Don't get cocky, old man! This was just the god's momentary lapse!"
Though his words were defiant, he couldn't deny the truth in his heart—this old man's strength far exceeded his expectations.
Just then, a ripple of spatial distortion appeared in the air above the deck. Bahr materialized out of nowhere, his freshly washed black hair still dripping with water. Seeing the blood on Enel's chest, he frowned. "You alright?"
"Hmph!" Enel forced himself up with his golden staff, deliberately straightening his posture despite the pain. "This god was merely going easy on that old fool. Do you really think such a weak attack could hurt me?"
As he spoke, his eyes flicked subtly toward Bahr. The man's calm gaze only made him grit his teeth harder.
Bahr didn't call him out. The kid had too much pride—if he exposed the lie now, Enel would probably explode on the spot.
He looked up at Golden Lion in the sky, his expression darkening.
A man who once pushed Roger to the brink, who stormed Marine HQ alone…
This pressure was anything but ordinary.