There it was, the moment.
We were standing in front of the army, just as the bald man had said.
While I was looking at the army, the first snowflakes fell and it started to snow.
The army of about 100,000 men stood in front of a huge castle.
Behind the army, a long staircase led up to the castle and up there stood the emperor and his right-hand man.
I, with only Algris and Bente behind me in front of an army of 100,000 men, walked towards the army and Algris and Bente followed me.
All three of us are ready to die for victory.
When the three of us started moving, the 100,000 men ran at us and you could feel the earth vibrate from a kilometer away.
But we weren't too rattled by this and walked towards them at walking pace.
But when the 100,000-man army was only 200 meters away, people suddenly jumped out from behind.
It was the revolutionary army!
< "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be coming, you'll die here!" > I shouted, desperate, as I could no longer simply fight regardless.
It was a responsibility I didn't want to have, a responsibility I wasn't up to.
In the moment of uncertainty, Grandpa Jinsei came up to me and put his hand on my right shoulder and said < " Jun, something must be sacrificed to obtain something new. We are men who have been preparing for death for the last 20 years, so don't worry about losses. Dying for this cause is our job." >
He then smirked and told me < "Oh yeah, Nima got some friends too." > whereupon I looked at the revolutionary army and saw warriors from Vulaj, Wallace and Mubae.
Among them, Ray and Bigs came up to me and Bigs hugged me with full love <"I missed you Jun!" > he said.
<"Bigs you're blind, what are you doing here?" > I asked him, stressed out because Bigs was putting himself in such danger.
< "True, but just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't see. I just see differently than the others, but I see better without eyes than others with eyes. I realized that even though I had eyes, I couldn't see anything. Since I trained Ray and learned the KIE, I can see like never before. So you'd better worry about yourself instead of me." >Bigs told me.
I couldn't help smiling and thought to myself < "I trust you. You're not going to die, not this time!" >
So everyone ran into the war zone, but I knew exactly who my opponent was.
Bente and Algris had already made their way to the Emperor's right hand and were fighting their way through the army.
I sent Nima, who had sneaked onto the battlefield, to Bigs and told her to stay close to his side.
I was about to leave, but the Emperor eased my way to him and jumped into the middle of the battlefield with a long leap, saying in a very deep but loud voice < "So you're the one from the prophecy who's supposed to defeat me? You are nothing but a pipsqueak and a weakling at the same time." >
(The emperor is 4 times as tall as Jun)
< "You want to change the world? Go back home through the gate? But to do that, one of us has to die. A soul is needed to activate the gate. According to the prophecy, this is only possible through the sacrifice of one of our two souls. That's why I've been waiting for you Jun." > said the emperor.
< "How rude of me. I didn't even introduce myself. The man who will bring your death is me, Emperor Yume!" >, Yume introduced himself.
< "I'm not interested in your name. What interests me is your death." >, I told him with full hatred.
< "I am pleased that we agree with each other." >, Yume replied.
The whole battlefield stood still for a moment, looking at Yume and me as we faced each other and our auras met.
Thus began a battle like never before.
It was a battle that played to our advantage, as I had people like Bente, Algris, Ray and Bigs on my side.
They alone would be enough against the army, but the problem was Yume and his right hand.
I fought my first battle directly against Yume, so I used my KIE to the full, but Yume didn't seem surprised.
I didn't cause him any problems.
Suddenly he took a swing and used a black energy.
I remembered Grandma because she had told me about it before but didn't know how to use this energy.
At my reaction, Yume said < "What? The one who is supposed to defeat me doesn't even know the ONIKIE. I'm disappointed, but before you die, I'll tell you what it's all about. I would feel bad to defeat my prophecy rival with a technique he doesn't even know. It's like the KIE, where you use the energy from the sun, only without the sun the energy is completely weak and with the ONIKIE you use matter, or rather black matter, which is everywhere in the universe. So you have a much greater source of energy that seems infinite and that opens up great potential for you, but it's a pity you won't learn it because you'll die. Even if I were to explain it to you, it took me more than 5 years to be able to use this energy for my punches." >
< "We'll see about that." > I said, not wanting to show any weakness, but it worried me immensely because I couldn't counter him.
The fight between me and Yume continued, while a little away from us, Bente and Algris met with Yume's right hand.
I smiled and said <"We'll see about that."
The fight continued and during this Bente and Algris met the right hand of Yume.
The name of the right hand is "Tjai". Bente and Algris stood there and wanted to fight him.
But Bigs joined them and said <"I think you could use some help.">
<"I'm not here because I need help. I don't need anyone, but I'll definitely take this guy down,"> said Bente.
<"My Emperor has no use for you, but we can settle this easily and normally. You don't cause any problems and I'll send you to your deaths." >, Tjai said like a psychopath and suddenly stood behind Bente.
Bente was completely surprised, but Bigs rushed to his aid at the last second and fended off Tjai.
< "Don't focus on your eyes, focus on your KIE," > Bigs said.
< "That's what I hate about the lesser folk. You're nothing but trash anyway. You're only alive to serve us. But what do you do? You rebel against your fate. That shows how ungrateful you are. We give you permission to live and work for us and you do this," said Tjai, going mad.
Then Algris attacked and said <"You nobles love to talk a lot, don't you? How about you just put your energy into training instead of talking?" >, Algris said provocatively and attacked him.
Tjai took good damage from Algris, so Tjai tried to retaliate with an attack, but Bigs intervened and dealt him a good blow.
Bente came in last and said < "You surprised me I admit, but it wasn't your strength, it was your face that was so close to me. It disgusted me" >
This provoked Tjai, so he said angrily < "I will kill you in agony and then feed you to the children of your village." >
It was a very varied fight.
My fight against Yume was clearly in Yume's favor.
In addition, I fought with consideration for my people, whereas Yume fought without consideration and without losses.
We got to a point where I had to take more and more blows until I was on the verge of losing consciousness.
I was lying on the ground and Yume, who was standing on me with all his weight, kept hitting me harder and harder while my vision became increasingly blurred.
All of the revolutionary army tried to do something to help me, but Yume's army used it to their advantage and cornered our men.
The moment came when, just before I closed my eyes, all I could see was my sister crying from afar.
< "I've failed again. Like every time, I have to make someone sad and disappoint them. I don't want this anymore." >, I thought to myself in my head.
Yume went for his coup de grace.
Just before the blow hit me, I fainted.
But I was suddenly standing in an infinitely white room.
I heard voices that made me fall to my knees as they triggered a pain and grief in my heart that was deep.
I clutched my heart and it felt like my heart was about to burst.
The voices cried out in sorrow and hatred, < "Noooooooooooooooo! / YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS! / YOU DIRTY PEOPLE! / KILL THEM!" >
They were blurry memories that were not clearly recognizable, but I felt them as if they were mine, which was not the case.
The infinitely white room became darker and darker until it became completely black and a white figure with red eyes emerged.
This figure was a shadow-like or fire-like figure.
They were blurred memories that were not clearly recognizable, but I felt them as if they were mine, which was not the case.
The infinitely white room became darker and darker until it became completely black and a white figure with red eyes emerged.
This figure was a shadow-like or fire-like figure.
It approached me and said < "This pain, remember it! This hatred, remember it! This disappointment, remember it! It's these moments that make you stronger. But unfortunately that won't do you any good, because from now on I'll take over. You will be mine from now on. But I've learned to like you a little, because we're not very different Jun." >
This figure grabbed me and started to burn me.
The flames started small and kept growing, but before they enveloped me, I heard my sister's voice.
I regained some consciousness and fought against the flame.
Unconsciously, I used my KIE to fight the flame and as I did so, not only did the flame continue to go down, but the dark room slowly became a bright room again, until it was once more a completely infinitely white room.
Nima, who was crying and watching Yume about to give me the coup de grace, saw a kind of white smoke coming out of my body and stopped crying.
When the white smoke came, she had a feeling inside her that it's not over yet and stood up and shouted with all her might <"Juuuuuuuuuuuuun! " > and thought to herself in her head < "I know you're going to win, I'm convinced of it." > and squeezed her eyes tightly shut before Yume struck.
These events of the infinite white space and Nima's scream played out in reality in a few seconds.
Yume slammed into me and the whole floor caved in due to the tremendous pressure that came from Yume's punch.
Everyone looked at us in despair, thinking that it was over.
But as with everyone, there was a glimmer of hope for something unexpected that would change the situation.
So they looked blankly at the spot where Yume had hit, hoping for something special.
When the smoke cleared, Yume realized that he hadn't hit me and wondered what had just happened.
Every KIE user on the battlefield sensed my KIE and that I was alive, but they also immediately realized that something was different than before.
They couldn't recognize me because of the dust kicked up by Yume's impact, but when the dust settled, they saw me standing next to Yume.
All white with a shadow and flame-like appearance.
Yume looked back at me and heard me tell him coldly < "Keep fighting! But this time for your survival." >
Yume took a swing to hit me, but missed and realized that I was different from before.
< "What happened to you? It's not just your appearance that's changed, you're someone different than you were before." > Yume asked.
Then I replied < "Oh what? The one who wants to defeat me doesn't know what that is? Okay, I'll explain it to you." >, I said and teleported next to Yume and whispered in his ear < "I bring you the good news of your death!" >
Yume got angry and tried to attack me.
The fight was no longer even, but by now it had turned more to our advantage.
I felt that I had become stronger than before.
I was also suddenly able to use ONIKIE.
Even though the fight was in our hands, Nima ran to Bigs told him <"Bigs! We have to help Jun!" >
< "Why is that? His new appearance is also wondering me right now, but it comes in our advantage. Besides, he looks pretty fit and strong, he'll be fine." >, said Bigs.
< "No, you don't understand Bigs. I know my brother. He smiled all his life, never to worry us, his family, or to make us sad. Over time, I've learned when he's seriously laughing and when he's suffering. There are times when he doesn't want to show his pain and now is one of those times. He feels pain, he is in pain Bigs. I can see that. He is suffering a lot, help him Bigs." >, Nima pleaded with Bigs.
<"I'll do what I can Nima, you go back and get to safety." >, Bigs agreed and made his way to me.
Besides, Algris and Bente had a small problem, as they were one man down and slightly weaker than Tjai in terms of strength due to Bigs' disappearance.
This made the fight more difficult, and when Bente tried to jump on Tjai from behind, he took an unexpected blow from Tjai and flew up to the top of the stairs in front of the castle and fainted from the impact.
The fight between me and Yume was also slowly coming to an end.
But at the moment when everyone thought I had won, something unexpected happened.
I was about to give Yume the coup de grace when suddenly Tjai came over and threw himself in front of the punch, leaving Yume with only a hole in his body.
The hole had opened up the entire middle of his upper body.
Tjai, on the other hand, was completely obliterated.
Yume was on the verge of death, but he refused to give up and ran towards the castle in a moment of my carelessness.
I was about to run after him to end it for good, but the last attack in particular, which was supposed to give Yume the coup de grace, had pushed me to my limit and, as Nima had suspected, I couldn't take the pain any longer and I fell to the ground, screaming cruelly in pain.
It was the price I had to pay in exchange for that power.
Bigs ran to me and took me on his back after my pain had calmed down a bit.
As I was unable to do so at the moment, Algris rushed to Yume, but because he had to fight Tjai alone, he had lost his left leg and wouldn't make it in time as he was at the end of his strength.
The revolutionary army was also pushed back as they were outnumbered.
Victory was getting closer and closer.
< "The victory that was within reach was getting further and further away." > I thought to myself.
Bigs wanted to announce his retreat in order to regroup, but I told him < "No Bigs! Bente is still at the top of the stairs. Yume wants to see him. I can't move, but we have to save him." >
While Bigs wanted to run to Bente, Nima jumped on Big's back and I told her < "Nima what are you doing here. jump down and run quickly to Algris. It's too dangerous for you." >
She replied by telling me with tears in her eyes < "No Jun. I want to stay with you this time. Please don't leave me. I see how you are suffering and in so much pain. At least let me be with you so I can ease your pain. I want you to get rid of all your pain with me and forget all your worries with me." >
I couldn't say anything in reply, which is why she ran to Yume on Big's back.
But Yume had already reached Bente and grabbed him by the head and lifted him up.
Yume pulled a lever that opened the large cauldron at the top of the stairs.
There was boiling hot oil in the cauldron.
Yume shouted loudly to me < " Jun! You thought you could defeat me? I have received a tremendous humiliation at your hands and you must pay a price. This bowl here is a bowl full of boiling oil that I use to make up for this humiliation and since your little friend is already here, he can pay this price for you as your faithful friend." >
Bente, who was slightly conscious but unable to move due to all the visible fractures, shouted as loud as he could < " Jun! We swore no matter what, even if we die, we'll get this victory. I know you'll keep that promise, that's why I followed you. But ... I'm at the point where the vow will be fulfilled and I'll die for the victory." >
Then he tore himself away from Yume's hand and dropped into the oil, saying softly < " Thank you for everything Jun. It was a pleasure. I wish you a good life." >
He did this because he knew very well that Yume only wanted to lure Jun here to set a trap for him and Jun would have taken this risk just to save him.
Then he fell into the oil and there were terrible screams that brought the whole battle to a standstill.
All you could hear was an agonizing, suffering scream.
For a brief moment Bente tried to get out of the cauldron and you could see his flesh separating from his bones and he was half bone, with hanging flesh.
At that moment my eyes went black and I screamed, crying and barely coping with the pain that was building up inside me at the loss of Bente and the way he had died.
I briefly fell to my knees and clutched my heart.
Then I hit the floor and just screamed.
It felt like I was having a heart attack, which was tearing me apart from the inside.
I somehow gathered myself KIE and ran at Yume, Bigs and Nima followed me.
I grabbed Yume by his head and pinned him to the ground.
I couldn't see any remorse in Yume's face.
This situation caused a kind of black shadow or flame to form around me briefly and I regained a small spark of the power I had before.
When I realized this, I said to Yume with hatred < "Yume die the most painful death" >
I punched him so that he felt that pain intensely but didn't die.
I went over every part of his body and slowly beat him from bottom to top until his body disintegrated.
When only his head and heart remained, I was still not satisfied.
I did not manage to find peace.
I did not manage to be satisfied with my revenge.
I wanted to make him suffer even more, but I couldn't or he would die.
I clenched my fist and wanted to strike, but I couldn't. I wasn't going to let him get away that easily.
At that moment I heard a bubbling sound and looked towards the cauldron, where I saw Bente's skeleton.
At that moment, I collapsed to my knees and cried.
< "Why? WHY? WHYOOOOOOOOOOO? Over and over and over again I'm too weak. Always I'm too late. Always I have to lose someone. What have I done to deserve this. Why Bente. He was still young. He had finally met people after years of loneliness and who had to destroy it again? ME. ME. ME. ME. ME. ME. ME!" >, and hit myself in the process.
Then Bigs and Nima came.
Nima took me in her arms and I cried myself to tears.
Then came something unexpected.
< "I'm taking you all to your deaths! Your mistake was not to kill me Jun. You didn't before and you can't protect anyone now." >, Yume said and before I or Nima could realize anything, Bigs ran in our direction and threw us towards the portal, which had opened after Nima and I saw Yume blow himself up behind Bigs.
Big's last words were < "You must live. You're like my children, I have to protect you. Don't you?" >
With his last word, I saw Bigs disappear into the plasma of the explosion.
< "Bigs, NEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNN!!!!" > Nima and I screamed before we flew into the portal.
At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to sit at the breakfast table with everyone again and spend time with them.
I saw everyone I loved in front of me and she told me < "Jun, don't worry about us, we're with you." >
We then disappeared into the portal.