Ten Minutes
«And so, the war began.»
Yet...
No one moved.
Not after the walls had fallen.
Not after the army of Yami no Enma had descended upon the capital.
Because every eye was fixed upon a single man.
Thalen.
If he moved...
The war would end.
That was what everyone believed.
The Emperor.
Tsukiro.
The leaders of Gaya.
Even Kaizen himself.
Kaizen looked at him and smiled.
"So?"
Silence answered him.
"Aren't you coming?"
Thalen took a single step forward.
And the moment he did—
The entire capital felt the spiritual pressure pouring from his body.
The earth split apart.
The heavens trembled.
Even the members of Yami no Enma...
Their expressions changed for the very first time.
"T-This is..."
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"The strongest man in the world."
Kaizen's smile widened.
"Finally."
He then pointed at his own chest.
"But before you attack me..."
His eyes met Thalen's directly.
"...are you prepared to kill him?"
Thalen stopped.
"Every strike."
Kaizen tapped his body.
"Every bone you shatter."
"Every drop of blood you draw from me..."
"...belongs to Jinsu."
Silence fell once more.
Yuna lowered her head.
Because she knew he was telling the truth.
Kaizen continued.
"Tell me, Thalen..."
"If you had to choose between the world..."
"...and your disciple?"
The air itself seemed to freeze.
At that moment, Tsukiro stepped forward.
"Answer."
Thalen's gaze shifted toward him.
Tsukiro's eyes, for once, carried an unusual seriousness.
"Will you save the world?"
"Or will you save Jinsu?"
And for the first time in many long years...
Thalen did not answer.
Kaizen laughed.
"Hahahaha..."
He spread his arms wide.
"Look at him."
"The strongest man in the world."
"A man capable of saving everyone..."
"...yet powerless to save a single person."
The spiritual pressure around Thalen intensified.
The ground beneath his feet shattered.
Meanwhile, the leader of Raikō no Ikari laughed.
"I knew it."
"That's why that boy should have been killed from the very beginning."
The instant those words left his mouth—
The smile vanished from Thalen's face.
Slowly, he turned his head.
And for a fraction of a second...
The second strongest man in the world felt Death itself staring back at him.
But then...
Something moved behind Thalen.
Something...
No one had sensed.
Not even Thalen himself.
Golden eyes.
And a twisted smile.
Gerudo.
He emerged directly from Thalen's shadow.
Yuna's eyes widened.
"Behind you!!"
Thalen spun around instantly.
But he was too late.
Gerudo seized his arm.
And in the next moment—
Thousands of black seals erupted across Thalen's body.
BOOOOOOM!!
The spiritual pressure exploding from him blasted through the capital, forcing the entire city backward by several meters.
"GERUDO!"
Thalen roared as he struggled to break free.
The seals began to crack.
One.
Then two.
Then dozens.
Until blood began to pour from Gerudo's eyes.
"Impossible!"
Valiana cried out.
"He's breaking the seal?!"
Gerudo laughed despite the blood spilling from his mouth.
"As expected..."
"Even this seal cannot contain you."
He pressed both hands against Thalen's chest.
"But..."
A gigantic black magic circle spread beneath their feet.
"This time..."
The color of Thalen's body slowly began to fade into gray.
"...I won't be sealing someone for decades."
Tsukiro's eyes widened.
"No..."
Gerudo smiled.
"No seal in this world can imprison the strongest man who walks upon it."
"But..."
"Even you..."
"...cannot escape time."
Then, with every ounce of strength left in his body, he screamed:
"TEN MINUTES!!"
And in the very next instant...
Thalen stopped.
His entire body froze.
He remained standing where he was.
His eyes were still open.
Yet...
He no longer moved.
Silence.
No one could believe what they were witnessing.
The strongest man in the world...
Had been sealed.
Gerudo collapsed to his knees, blood pouring from his eyes and mouth as he struggled to breathe.
He raised his head toward Kaizen.
"My lord..."
"You have ten minutes."
Kaizen stared at Thalen for several moments.
Then...
He smiled.
"Ten minutes..."
"More than enough."
He raised his hand toward the heavens.
And in the next moment—
The black gates above the capital began to open completely.
Thousands emerged from within.
Then tens of thousands.
Then...
Hundreds of thousands.
Kaizen turned his gaze toward Tsukiro and said:
"Now..."
"Let us see..."
"...how much of this world will remain before your hero returns."
Far away...
Within the depths of Jinsu's mind.
Jinsu suddenly raised his head.
For the first time in years...
He felt something.
His eyes trembled.
"Thalen...?"
Then, silence returned.
«Time Remaining: 09:59»