Chapter 316: The Predicament

"This... is actually something similar to a barrier." Koby coated his fingers in Armament Haki and lightly touched the surface, causing faint ripples to radiate outward.

To the touch, it possessed the distinct, solid texture of physical matter.

"This construct originates from..." Tracing the curvature of the energy dome, his gaze gradually shifted upward.

Hancock's eyes had already locked onto the very apex of the barrier, spotting Luffy in a single glance. "Luffy! It's Luffy!"

"Where?! Where is he?" Koby swept his eyes across the sky. In his direct line of sight, the Demon Warder stood out above all else.

After all, anyone would instantly notice such a colossal, unidentified vessel.

Searching for several moments, he still couldn't locate Luffy's figure. Checking the direction of Hancock's gaze once more, he confirmed that she was indeed looking at the absolute peak of the energy dome.

This time, Koby widened his eyes, staring intently at the summit and scanning it sector by sector.

"Oh! I see him! It really is Luffy-san!" Koby finally spotted three minuscule silhouettes standing beside the Demon Warder.

Among them, the figure donning a straw hat was undeniably Luffy!

"It's been so long, Luffy-san..." Amid his emotional relief, Koby glanced at Hancock in subtle amazement.

Under such conditions, she had managed to pinpoint Luffy's location in an instant—she truly lived up to her reputation as a former Warlord of the Sea.

It seems I need to train my Observation Haki much harder, Koby thought to himself.

Time slipped by as the concentrated laser bombardment erupting from the dark filaments finally descended. Inside the Demon Warder, Drake stood with his hands clasped behind his back, exuding effortless swagger and supreme confidence.

Opportunities to stand in the ultimate spotlight like this didn't come around every day; if nothing else, the aura of mastery had to be maintained flawlessly.

"By the way, System, this energy barrier can block these laser beams, right?" With the barrage imminent, Drake asked casually.

Though he asked, he already assumed the answer in his heart—after all, if it couldn't block it, the System wouldn't have told him to deploy it in the first place.

[It cannot.]

"Mm-hmm..." Drake nodded pleasantly. Right, it can't—

"WAIT, WHAT?!"

The realization struck him like a thunderbolt.

"What did you just say?! It can't block it?!" Drake's composure evaporated entirely, shedding every shred of his grandmaster posture.

"Hey, hey, hey... You're telling me now that it can't hold?!"

"You—"

KABOOM!!

Before Drake could finish his sentence, a deafening explosion rocked the heavens. The hull of the Demon Warder shuddered violently, nearly knocking him off his feet.

Just as Drake moved to steady himself, his pupils contracted sharply. His face drained of color as agony seized his entire frame.

"My body... is so heavy!"

It felt as though Mount Tai were crashing down upon him, as if the weight of the entire world had been loaded onto his shoulders, crushing the air straight out of his lungs.

[The Demon Warder's energy reserves are limited. It can only transfer the kinetic strain directly onto your body to prolong the defense for a bit longer.]

The System offered an unprecedented explanation.

Yet Drake was in no mood to feel grateful. He felt as though he had been plunged into a suffocating realm where the physical pressure on his body instantly reached the absolute limit of what he could endure.

[Core defense matrix engaged. To conserve energy to the maximum extent, the Demon Warder automatically calibrates the load to the highest threshold the pilot can withstand.]

[In other words, from this moment on, you will continuously endure the maximum pressure your body can physically tolerate. If you can hold out, you should be able to maintain the barrier for about half an hour.]

Hearing this, Drake nearly blacked out on the spot.

Enduring his absolute physical limit without pause? The System made it sound so easy, yet every passing second felt like pure torture.

Worse still, what was the point of that thirty-minute window?

Did this mean that enduring such inhuman torment would merely buy everyone on the battlefield an extra half hour of life?

Energy... energy reserves...

Insufficient energy?

A sudden realization struck Drake, and he pressed urgently: "By energy, do you mean Demon Ward Stones?"

[Precisely.]

"Then just hand some over, damn it! With our relationship, what's a few stones between us? I'll pay you back later—just put it on credit for now!"

Drake let out a breath of relief, but his expression instantly stiffened again. "Wait, System, let me ask you: if we have sufficient energy, can we hold it off completely?"

This time he dared not make assumptions; a single miscalculation could doom them all.

[It can hold, but having the barrier broken is still only a matter of time. Maintaining a purely passive defense simply wastes energy for nothing.]

[Furthermore, allow me to formally inform you of one thing.]

"What?" Drake asked, caught off guard.

[Items in the System Mall are beyond my administrative authority. I have zero permissions to issue credit.]

The System spread its tiny paws, wearing an expression of complete detachment.

Drake stood dumbfounded.

[Also, let me remind you of one more thing: we are not that close, so please refrain from flattering yourself.]

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Drake stared in utter disbelief, nearly coughing up a mouthful of blood. Dropping to one knee, he gritted his teeth against the crushing pressure.

"You..."

Drake felt an overwhelming wave of frustration, yet he couldn't spare the breath to speak. The moment he opened his mouth, the immense load threatened to crush him entirely.

Cold sweat drenched his forehead as thirty agonizing seconds ticked away.

Down below, Luffy and the others watched the spectacle in awe. It turned out they didn't even need to intervene!

Drake had neutralized the enemy's ultimate attack entirely on his own.

"So cool!" Luffy's eyes sparkled with golden stars. Even though he had seen the ship before, witnessing it again still filled him with wild excitement.

Ace, on the other hand, was seeing it for the very first time, left entirely speechless with shock. "What... is that?!"

"That is the flagship of the Dragon Flag Pirates, the Demon Warder! As for why it has that name, when I asked Drake, he just smiled and said it was a secret," Sabo explained.

He then gave a brief summary of the ship's miraculous capabilities, leaving both of his brothers marveling in wonder.

While everyone below stood captivated by the emergence of the Demon Warder, Drake's mind inside the vessel was racing frantically. Yet bearing such extreme physical strain made it nearly impossible to formulate a coherent strategy.

No matter how anxious he was, he had no easy answers.

Beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down his forehead, veins bulging across his temples as he strained against the load.

"You need money!" The System spoke up, this time addressing him directly rather than through a mental transmission.

"Powering the Demon Warder for combat requires an immense quantity of Demon Ward Stones as fuel. Right now, you have no other choice—you must rely on your comrades to pool together enough funds to purchase the necessary energy."

"Heh, how cold-hearted," Drake scoffed inwardly. Bringing up money at a time like this felt like a cheap blow to their bond.

Still, a flicker of gratitude surfaced in his chest; after all, instances where the System actively offered assistance were exceedingly rare.

For it to step forward voluntarily meant everything was likely within its calculations.

Yet asking others for money on the spot... how was he supposed to bring that up?

Hey, we're in the middle of a war—how about handing over some cash?

What was this, collecting a protection fee?!

It was truly putting him in an impossible spot!

He didn't fear combat in the slightest, but dealing with such awkward, frustrating trivialities drove him mad.

Besides, they were in the middle of an active warzone! Who brought massive fortunes and treasure chests to a battlefield?

How was he supposed to borrow anything under these circumstances?!

"Have you forgotten where you are? This plateau happens to be the dwelling of the World Nobles, the highest-ranking aristocrats in the world," the System reminded him once more.

Hearing those words, Drake's eyes lit up instantly.

Right! That was it! How could he have overlooked something so obvious?!

Could the Celestial Dragons possibly lack money?

That was utterly impossible!