A man lying at the edge of the cliff opened his eyes… something powerful had struck him. It was clear that he did not have an ear. He began looking around himself… chaos.

  A man who could grow in size was massacring members of the united army, another man was draining life from members of the army, another man controlled his sword and used it to cut off the heads of army members, another man…

  The observation of the catastrophe was interrupted. A man with the number eighty jumped toward the earless man and pinned his arm to the ground with his landing.

  “I missed? I aimed for your head… Shame.” - Eighty jumped into the air and prepared to finish his work. Eighty’s ability was a super jump.

  Just before impact, however, the earless man was saved. A spear was thrown across Eighty’s legs.

  Eighty fell to the ground, his legs were pinned by the spear. The earless man began crawling away from Eighty and crawled toward the person who had thrown the spear.

  In front of the earless man stood a person wearing a blue cloak and a blue helmet decorated with artificial corals. In one hand they held a spear decorated with kelp and in the other a shield with the symbol of a crown in the sea. The person who struck Eighty belonged to the elite unit of Seaway.

  “You shouldn’t be here.” - The person offered the earless man a hand and helped him stand up from the ground. - “You are too weak… but that’s alright, not everyone can match the strength of Two’s group… You did good work. Name?” - The man stood up while in the background another member of the elite unit pierced Eighty’s head with a spear.

  “M-minute… my name is Minute… Thank you very much for saving me.” - The elite unit member sent Minute toward the cave. The cave was a place prepared for the wounded during the battle on the cliff. The moment the united army was ambushed, many people ran toward it… they became afraid.

  Minute ran toward the cave. In the background members of the united army were falling like pears.

  About 100 meters from the battlefield stood 10 members of Two’s group, who were shooting crossbows into the battlefield and hitting more members of the united army. One thing that had not yet been mentioned was that even though most people focused on the superpowers that Two’s group possessed, nobody paid attention to their combat skills… which were, at worst, above average for every member. The battle on the cliff was 600 against 60… and even so the 60 were overwhelmingly winning.

  The elite unit regrouped. There were nine of them… ten with Aqua, who stood at their head. The elite unit consisted of the ten best warriors in the kingdom of the blue Crystal. Sapphire was the best member of this unit, but Aqua had asked him to participate in the raid and not operate on the cliff.

  “We are close… I can feel the energy of my Crystal growing.” - Aqua and his nine warriors had a clear goal… to reclaim the legendary trident.

  One of the members pointed in one direction. At the place where the member pointed stood Seven, holding the legendary trident in his hand and within a brief moment massacred several members of the united army with his abnormal strength.

  The elite unit immediately ran toward Seven. Seven managed to notice the approaching threat. One female member of the elite unit threw her spear toward Seven. Seven stomped the ground, creating a powerful wave that threw everyone nearby away.

  Aqua stood far enough away and the moment half of the elite unit was thrown back, Aqua was already sprinting toward Seven.

  Such shame… What Seven is doing with my trident… So many murders. The legendary trident is stained. As long as I'm alive, Seven’s actions cannot rise to such heights, because Seven can't use the abilities of the blue Crystal. That being said… the fact that I lost the trident weights heavily on me… I have to fix everything.

  Aqua aimed his new trident at Seven’s head. Seven blocked this trident with his own… and due to Seven’s strength Aqua’s trident shattered. This shocked Aqua greatly, because his new trident was made from Oceanite… Aqua had not expected Seven’s strength to be that immense.

  Seven wanted to strike Aqua’s body in the moment of surprise, which would certainly have killed him. Fortunately for Aqua, the remaining three members of the elite unit who were not thrown away already stood by Aqua’s side, ready to end Seven’s life.

  Seven had to abandon his goal of killing Aqua and react quickly… which he did. Three members of the elite unit were only a moment away from ending Seven’s life with their spears. Seven dropped the legendary trident and before it even touched the ground, Seven clapped.

  Seven’s clap was so powerful that it launched all three members into the air… However, Seven did not stop there. Before the members realized what was happening, Seven had already jumped into the air and stood face to face with one of them.

  This member received a kick to the stomach. The kick was so powerful that the member’s organs burst out through his back. The scene was disgusting, all members of the unit saw it… Everyone wanted to end Seven’s life.

  The first member of the elite unit reached Seven and attempted to strike him with a spear. Seven dodged the attack, but the unit member spun the spear quickly and struck Seven instantly from another angle, cutting his arm.

  Seven jumped backward to gain space to breathe, but the unit member did not give up and followed Seven, which led to another strike that cut his stomach. Another attack followed, cutting Seven across the neck.

  Seven had enough and finally managed to avoid the attack, grabbed the unit member by the throat and tore off his jaw.

  The unit’s advance toward Seven was paused for a moment. - T-this can’t be possible… We lost two… TWO. Ahhhh nooo… Please… this cannot be reality. - Similar thoughts ran through every member’s mind.

  The unit had been together for a very long time, because they had all trained together since childhood in a special program for those who wanted to become the best. It was a voluntary program, but those who joined always became some of the greatest warriors of Seaway. Even children from other kingdoms attended.

  Losing one person they had known since childhood filled them with rage… Losing two destroyed them.

  This moment did not stop Aqua, who picked up a spear lying on the ground and jumped at Seven from behind. Seven reacted in time and grabbed Aqua by the leg. He squeezed the leg so hard that the bone was completely destroyed and slammed Aqua into the ground with full force.

  This moment gave the unit the wake-up call they needed. Seven wanted to end Aqua’s life by stomping on him. Before his foot touched Aqua, however, a spear pierced through his leg. Before Seven turned around, two more spears embedded themselves into his arm and shoulder.

  The last two members of the unit with a spear rushed toward Seven and drove their spears into his chest. Seven fell to the ground and the two signaled Aqua to quickly seize the legendary trident.

  Aqua, without one arm from the previous battle, with a broken leg, several missing teeth from being slammed into the ground by Seven, and several smaller injuries, began crawling toward Seven.

  Aqua crawled to Seven and grabbed his trident. He once again felt the full energy of the blue Crystal. At that moment, however, Seven grabbed his hand. Aqua instantly looked at Seven in horror, who had a small smirk on his face.

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  Before anyone could react, Seven crushed Aqua’s second arm. Aqua dropped the trident and dragged himself away from Seven with all his strength. One of the two elite unit members who had stabbed their spears into Seven’s chest wanted to fix his mistake of not making sure Seven was dead. He pulled his spear from Seven’s chest and tried with full force to pierce his head.

  At that moment, time around Seven and the two elite unit members slowed greatly. Suddenly, thanks to a created zone of acceleration , Ten stood before them holding a spear containing the yellow Crystal.

  Aqua watched this scene, but even his eyes could not register what happened fast enough. One moment two elite unit members were preparing to end Seven’s life, the next moment both lay on the ground with their throats slit.

  The five surviving members formed a circle around Ten and aimed their spears or small swords, their backup weapons, toward him. Ten looked at Seven’s damaged body.

  Meanwhile, Minute reached the cave, near which several members of the united army were trying to defend the entrance. Several members of Two’s group were trying to get inside the cave.

  Minute slipped into the cave, where Horwann already was together with several other army members, whether wounded or unharmed.

  Minute looked at Horwann, who sat on a small rock mumbling something, completely out of himself and bleeding from the nose.

  “Hey… you look terrible, come with me.” - One of the army members startled Minute and led him into the wounded section of the cave.

  One of the army members ran toward Horwann. He wanted to say something but could not. - “What is it? What’s happening… Speak quickly!!” - “They, they… Your Highness they.” - “Well??” - “They broke through our defense.” - At that exact moment a laser shot from the eyes of one member of Two’s group passed through that person.

  Horwann stood up. He realized he had failed… Two had completely outplayed him. - “United army… I apologize… we have lost… TODAY I WILL FALL HERE WITH YOU AS YOUR KING!!” - Horwann drew his sword and prepared to attack.

  At that moment, however, one member of Two’s group knocked him to the ground. Horwann quickly stood up and looked around. Apart from the massacre of the cave’s population, he saw no one who could have knocked him down.

  At that moment, however, the person who had knocked him down appeared before him. His ability was dash. This person could move extremely fast in any direction… but only a few meters. The number twenty four was burned onto his arm.

  Twenty four dashed to a stop just a short distance from Horwann, ready to strike him with the knife he used as his weapon. Horwann reacted very quickly and blocked Twenty four’s strike with his sword.

  Horwann pushed Twenty four back and attempted to slash his head. Twenty four dashed away from Horwann. Suddenly Twenty four began dashing around Horwann to confuse him and attack by surprise… which he did.

  Twenty four attempted to strike Horwann from behind in a moment of surprise. Horwann, however, carefully followed Twenty four’s movements. When Twenty four came close, ready to strike, Horwann drove his sword into Twenty four's leg and slammed his shoulder into Twenty four's throat.

  Twenty four dashed away again, but that was a mistake, because his throat failed to recover his breath. Twenty four collapsed onto the ground.

  Horwann ran toward him ready to pierce him. No one from Two’s group could help Twenty four because they were busy massacring the 200 members of the united army who fled into the cave. Horwann reached the fallen Twenty four and pierced his head with his sword.

  Horwann looked around and saw the massacre his plan had caused. He trembled, but still managed to gather himself and run deeper into the cave where the wounded were, while in the background a member of Two’s group who could shoot his teeth, which had to power to instantly regrew fired at him… A few shots scratched Horwann, but most missed.

  That being said, two members of Two’s group had arrived there earlier and all the wounded had already been murdered. Horwann slipped on Minute’s blood and fell to the ground. Horwann was the last surviving member of the cave population.

  All the attackers began approaching Horwann. Horwann thought this was the end, but suddenly one attacker spoke. - “Ninety eight… go send the signal. We have Horwann! And… nobody touch him damn it… you know Two wants him in perfect condition. If he tries to escape, just punch him or something.”

  Meanwhile, the encounter between Ten and the elite unit continued. Ten looked at Seven. - “Seven… you pathetic weakling. Looking at you makes me want to vomit. The fact that your number is two digits lower than mine gives me suicidal thoughts.”

  Ten grabbed Seven by the head and aimed the legendary spear toward a member of the elite unit standing behind him. - “Move out of my way… or it will hurt.” - The elite unit did not move… which was a mistake, Ten created an accelerated zone and instantly stood behind that elite unit member… the member’s throat was slit.

  Ten spat blood. - “Damn, using this damn Crystal really hurts.” - Seven lay at Ten’s feet. The two were several meters away from the rest of the elite unit and Aqua.

  Ten leaned toward Seven. Seven tried to stand and escape with Ten’s help, but Ten did not allow it. - “Where do you think you’re going? Do you think I’ll let someone with greater value than me walk away? After a few people massacred you like this??? YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE SEVEN!!” - “Damn it Ten (Seven vomited some blood), don’t take those numbers so seriously… they are just damn numbers. Our goal is clear… don’t focus on numbers when we are trying to save Middleworld… actually the entire world!”

  “And here you are very wrong Seven… DAMN WRONG. Numbers matter. Do you think those we save will look at the large numbers… numbers that were only pawns in Two’s grand plan… or (Ten’s voice shifted from shouting into a very calm tone)… or the single-digit numbers… the numbers that stood beside Two?”

  “No one will remember me… ten… who the hell cares about some ten. No one will remember me… unless… unless I became the lowest number left… right?” - A more and more terrifying expression began forming on Ten’s face… the expression of a madman. The elite unit and Aqua watched the conversation from a distance, unsure how to react. As for Seven, he tried to strike Ten and escape, but he could not… because he realized his entire body except his head was laying inside a slowed zone.

  “Seven… Want to hear a little secret? After Six picked up the spear containing the yellow Crystal and felt the energy of time flowing through his body, after Horw was pacified he asked Two who he should give the spear to. I was there… and do you know what Two answered? (Seven shook his head in terror. Ten grabbed his head and whispered one word into his ear.) You.”

  “The moment I heard Two say that, I was sad. It made sense to give it to you, because Three to Five were dead. Six did not need the spear because he was our transport and our eye… so you were the logical choice. But I realized one thing… I had to use the opportunity. I came to Two, explained how my ability could work beautifully with the Crystal of time… and boom. Two was convinced!! Seven… you lost such power… because I knew I would be the better Crystal user.”

  “This move will be Two’s greatest mistake. Two is not a good enough leader… half of us are already dead because his plans are only… solid… I would be a far better leader. You and Two, Eight and Seven are the only two numbers separating me from leadership… because Six cannot command… but I might get rid of him just in case. Two can still be useful for now, but Seven… nobody needs that pathetic face of yours.”

  Ten prepared to pierce Seven. Seven began screaming. - “DAMN IT TEN… PLEASE NO… WE HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR SO LONG… OUR GOAL… DON’T FORGET OUR GOAL… GLORY IS NOT OUR GOAL...” - Seven would have continued, but Ten drove the spear through his mouth at that moment… ending his life. - “I wanted to do this from the moment you got a higher number than me.”

  Ten turned toward the elite unit and before his eyes he saw a crazy moment.

  A few seconds earlier.

  “Leader Aqua… I will help you reach the legendary trident.” - The legendary trident had been left on the ground after Ten dragged Seven away. Aqua had a chance to obtain it.

  The elite unit member brought Aqua to the trident. Aqua had one arm gone from earlier and the second was split in half because of Seven. Half of Aqua’s hand hung from the other half.

  The unit member placed the front half of Aqua’s hand onto the trident. Energy from the Blue Crystal began flowing through Aqua again. Aqua’s broken arm began reconnecting thanks to the water energy flowing through him from the Bbue Crystal.

  Aqua reached a state where as long as he held the legendary trident, his arm would remain together.

  Present.

  Ten saw Aqua regain the power of the blue Crystal. Ten clapped. Aqua and the four surviving elite unit members were ready to fight Ten, but he surprised them with what he said.

  “We have two options. Fight… and I will most likely massacre you within a few seconds… however that would be sad as I would lose part of my lifespan. Or the second option. (Ten pointed toward the cave.) Do you see that light? That is a signal. All Numbers are heading to the cave because Two will have a talk with Horwann there. Look around you, you are the last surviving members of your united army. All Numbers are leaving for the cave… This means that you can run away.”

  Aqua began thinking intensely. - This Number is truly insane. It is good to know Two’s group has cracks. Should I run or fight? The yellow Crystal is extremely powerful… but… I should reclaim it for Middleworld… This person should not possess the yellow Crystal. But do we even have a chance to win?

  Aqua began gathering water from beneath the cliff. Ten thought Aqua was preparing an attack, so he prepared to fight as well. However Ten was mistaken, Aqua created a water vortex beneath himself and his elite unit and departed back toward Seaway. - “Heh… he got scared… OH WELL! Time to go watch Two’s talk with Horwann.”

  Two finally regained consciousness meanwhile. He looked around, everyone around the mountain ruins was gone. - HUH? Was I out for that long. WHERE THE HELL ARE THE HOSTAGES.

  Suddenly Two noticed light coming from the cave. - At least I woke up exactly on time!

  Two arrived at the cave. Inside the cave all surviving Numbers were gathered. Horwann sat in the corner.

  “Horwann! Hellooooooooooo. Time to talk. Pick up your sword… I hate talking when no action is happening!!!”