In the Jinkawa Village, where time had stopped and only Makoto remained conscious.
Makoto suddenly vanished from beneath Lloyd's legs and reappeared at the side of the room. A low, almost sinister laugh escaped him.
"What is it this time, Lloyd? What did I do now?" Makoto said, chuckling as he twirled lightly on the balls of his feet.
"Tell me why you sent those ninjas to die!" Lloyd shouted, his voice echoing through the frozen air.
"Oh, they're dead? Well… oh, well," Makoto said casually, shrugging as if it was nothing.
Lloyd vanished instantly, charging at Makoto with a fist ready to strike. But Makoto, unfazed, caught Lloyd's arm mid-air and began to freeze it with a flick of his Spiritual Force.
"You expected to hit me that easily? How did you think I became a Spiritual King?" Makoto taunted.
With a powerful leap, Lloyd freed himself, landing a few meters away. His fists clenched tightly.
"I'm asking you a question! Why would you send ninjas to die if you knew we'd handle the situation?" Lloyd demanded, anger dripping from every word.
"You want to know something, Lloyd?" Makoto said with a sly grin.
"What is it?" Lloyd asked, wary.
"I told the ninjas everything—about the situation in that kingdom. I even told them your village was coming. And guess what they said?" Makoto's grin widened. "They insisted on going. They wanted to try and kill him themselves."
Lloyd's face paled, his voice trembling. "Why… why would they ask to go?"
"Because they saw glory in it. Fame. The chance to defeat a kingdom that dared threaten the twenty most powerful villages. They wanted to earn wealth, recognition, power. They didn't care about dying. They craved the reward," Makoto explained.
Lloyd clenched his jaw. "And you… you didn't stop them?"
"Why would I?" Makoto yelled, spinning his hands dramatically. "This world is built on power, greed, fighting,and money. We need wealth to survive. We crave it! You think we work our villages so hard under our command for nothing? No—we create fortune, we dominate, and yes, we thrive because of it! Money is power, Lloyd. Pure, unadulterated power!"
Lloyd exhaled slowly, resigning himself. "Then… I have nothing more to say. I suppose that is the way of the world."
Makoto laughed, shaking his head. "You broke a rule of the world: a Spiritual King attacking another Spiritual King. But hey, we're men. We have differences. You're still stuck in the past, clinging to your weak old sensei, Ryuu, huh?" Makoto started walking away.
In a blur, Lloyd dashed forward, catching Makoto off-guard, pressing his hands against Makoto's neck.
"Huh?!" Makoto gasped, surprised.
"Don't you dare speak of sensei Ryuu like that! One more word, and I'll kill you—even if it means breaking the rules of the world!" Lloyd growled.
"Oh, so I found your soft spot," Makoto teased, casually moving Lloyd's hands aside and continuing to walk.
"Bye-bye, Lloyd. See you at Rendo Village. And, please, unfreeze time. Thank you," Makoto said without looking back.
Laybirth Kingdom
Ryju wandered through the kingdom at night. The streets were empty; most villagers were asleep inside their homes. Many houses had been destroyed during the chaos caused by the four generals and the four Jinkawa spies.
Looking over the ruined buildings, Ryju muttered, "Damn…it's horrible."
At least the blood had been cleaned from the streets, he thought. He continued walking, his eyes scanning the shadows, until he spotted someone smoking near the golden palace.
Quickly, Ryju ducked behind a nearby house.
Who is that? he wondered.
Should I approach? he thought, unease gnawing at him.
He crept closer, keeping to the shadows, moving quietly across the cobblestones until he reached a vantage point where he could see clearly.
Turning his head, Ryju's eyes widened, his face pale with shock and disbelief.
"No way… it can't be," he whispered.
The man in front of the palace—the one he had longed to kill and hated most—was here. He was the new King of the Laybirth Kingdom, the same man who had slaughtered two thousand people in less than a minute: Jinko.
Ryju's heart raced. Jinko… I can stop him here. I must stop him, he thought, eyes narrowing in fury.
A rock lay nearby. Swiftly, Ryju swapped places with it, approaching silently.
"Hmph," Jinko muttered, noticing the movement. Ryju attacked immediately with a powerful punch, but Jinko was quick, summoning a blazing light sword to block it.
"Jinko!" Ryju shouted in anger.
"And who might you be?" Jinko said, voice calm but firm.
"The guy who's going to kick your ass!" Ryju replied, clenching his fists, fury and determination burning in his eyes.
To Be Continued…