While Ritter was busy one-sidedly beating up Enel, warriors from Shandia and the citizens of Skypiea began gathering from all directions, weapons in hand. Though wary of one another, they had no choice but to face the same overwhelming threat Enel.
"What exactly are you trying to do?" Wiper gripped his Burn Bazooka tightly, his eyes fixed on Ritter with unyielding intensity.
Having just finished his brawl with Enel, Ritter sat casually on a fractured golden pillar. His Black Tide greatsword stood planted in the ground beside him, and a mist of blood hung in the air, adding to the oppressive atmosphere.
(Can't rest yet. Still have to keep up the act. Ugh, exhausting. But damn, it feels good.)
He swept his eyes over the ragtag group of warriors in front of him.
"I gave Enel a choice. Now I'll give you one too."
One of the Skypiean elders, his voice trembling, asked, "Enel… was really defeated?"
Perona floated lazily in the air, swinging the Tone Dial in her hand with a cheeky grin. "Of course~ He's our ship's 'Thunder God' now!"
The Shandians turned pale. "You've tamed a god?! That's impossible!"
Moria let out a deep laugh. "Heh heh heh… Don't measure our captain by your standards."
Ritter felt comfortable now this was the beauty of having a crew.
Both Shandian and Skypiean warriors stiffened, weapons still trained on him.
Ritter rose to his feet, blood mist surging outward to blanket the field.
"Listen up." His voice was cold and sharp. "Your grudges? None of my business."
Everyone froze.
"But this island? This island is mine now."
He pointed toward the distant Golden Bell. "Four hundred years ago, Noland and Calgara agreed to ring that bell as a symbol of friendship."
"Four hundred years later, you're still killing each other over this scrap of land. Don't you find that laughable?"
The elder's face turned ashen. "But… Jaya is our holy land…"
"Holy land?" Ritter sneered. "Where was that talk when Enel took over? Funny how you suddenly remember it's sacred now that I won. You feared Enel, but not the one who defeated him? What, you think I'm easier to push around?"
A Shandian warrior gritted his teeth. "We just want to reclaim our ancestors' homeland! We won't run anymore. We are proud warriors!"
Ritter's gaze swept across the crowd. "Same deal. Two options."
"One, keep fighting me until you're all dead."
The blood mist churned. The Black Tide greatsword vibrated faintly. A sliver of Conqueror's Haki rippled outward. Ritter had to be careful not to accidentally wipe them all out.
"Two, you share the island. The Golden Bell is mine. The pet inside it, and all the gold, are also mine."
Silence blanketed the air.
Time for the good cop to show up.
(You call wiping out entire factions "good cop"? Editor's note)
At that moment, Enel emerged from the clouds, lightning dancing around him like a divine aura.
"Captain Ritter is right," he declared in that same divine, imperious tone. "You worms have no right to claim this land."
The Skypieans and Shandians both took a step back, fear etched on their faces.
Enel sneered. "If it weren't for the captain's mercy, I'd have turned you all to ash by now."
Ritter raised a hand. "That's enough."
Enel snorted and fell silent.
"See?" Ritter said, sweeping his gaze over the crowd. "Your real enemies were never each other. It was people like Enel so-called 'gods.' And now I'm the new god of this island. You can live here freely. I won't interfere with your lives. On the contrary, I'll offer you protection. In return, I want one thing your absolute loyalty."
"I'm giving you one chance."
"Make peace or…"
The blood mist exploded, morphing into countless blades that hovered at every throat.
"…Die."
Wiper clenched his fists, burning with frustration at his own powerlessness.
(Sorry, Wiper. You're no Tesoro. You're not the one Ritter's looking for.)
Ritter knew he needed to press the point. "You've been ruled because you're weak. Let's be real you know about the Blue Sea, right? Serving a strong leader isn't shameful. It's survival."
A long silence followed.
Then Wiper slowly lowered his weapon. With someone taking the lead, the others followed.
"…We accept."
The Skypiean elder nodded shakily. "We… accept as well."
Ritter drew back the blood mist, satisfied. "Good."
Perona floated down, her ghosts tossing flower petals in the air. "Yay~! From now on, we're all good friends!"
The Shandians and Skypieans exchanged awkward glances, lowering their weapons.
(MC-style narrator voice) They had lived under Enel's tyranny, only to see him crushed and replaced by a new overlord. Now, their entire future hung on the will of a single man.
(Ritter: Hey! Don't make me sound like some tyrant. Oi, you hack of an author, can you write properly for once?)
Ritter slung the Black Tide over his shoulder, blood mist swirling lazily around him.
He scanned the crowd with lazy, yet commanding eyes.
"Alright, fight's over. Let's talk about how to make your lives better."
The Skypiean elder asked hesitantly, "You… you're really not going to drive us away?"
"Drive you away?" Ritter raised an eyebrow. "Then who's going to pay taxes? Nah, nah, nah… You're all my wings now."
Check out my totally sincere, sparkly anime eyes.
Enel scoffed again, lightning crackling at his fingertips, but he held his tongue.
Ritter's first royal decree? "Build roads!"
(Tax hike! New taxes! The king declares new taxes!)
The Shandians and Skypieans had spent centuries spilling blood over land disputes.
Ritter wasn't about to let that nonsense continue. Every soldier mattered he'd be devastated to lose one.
"Connect Angel Island and the Shandians' ruins," he ordered. "From now on, you're one big family. Anyone caught stirring up trouble… gets to take a nice long nap. Forever."
Moria's zombie construction crew worked at terrifying speed. Within days, cloud bridges, ladders, and a floating marketplace rose from the ground.
Ritter even healed the surviving priests. As long as he didn't want someone dead, no one was dying on his watch.
Not that he had much choice Skypiea's combat power was trash. If he was going to turn this place into his territory, he'd need actual talent. Still a long road ahead.
But what was Skypiea's most valuable asset? Dials.
The reason Ritter had bothered with this long speech was simple: he needed to keep Skypiea running. This place was his golden goose.
Sky-exclusive commodities like Breath Dials, Flame Dials, Tone Dials, Impact Dials… All rare treasures in the Blue Sea.
Uncle Tom had used up nearly all his Dial stock to build the Nirvana.
Ritter rubbed his chin, plotting. "Monopoly. Monopoly! A glorious new monopoly! Ritter declares a new monopoly!"
And so, the Skypiea Dial Trade Company was born. The Shandians would handle harvesting, while the Skypieans would take care of refinement.
As for revenue sharing?
"I'll pay you a salary."
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