LHT looked down at his feet.
A crimson seal had appeared—
etched directly onto the ground.
"…what the hell is this?"
---
His head jerked violently.
Pain slammed into him like a hammer.
He dropped to one knee.
His vision blurred.
His consciousness… began to drift.
---
"This seal…?"
"A curse… or something else?"
He clenched his teeth and whispered.
---
Then—
sound flooded in.
---
Laughter~.
Cry~ing.
Sorrow~.
~Rage.
---
They stretched.
Twisted.
Merged together—
into a horrific mass of noise.
---
His head felt like it was about to explode.
---
A red interface flashed before his eyes.
Boss is attempting to control you — move immediately.
---
The text hadn't even faded—
PAIN.
---
A sharp spike pierced straight through his skull.
---
Not normal pain.
---
Something was slipping into his thoughts.
Bending every intention—
trying to take full control.
---
LHT clutched his head.
His fingers tightened.
One step—
off rhythm.
Not his.
"…what—wait."
Thoughts flooded in.
Not his.
Wave after wave.
Relentless.
---
He glanced toward the distant cocoon.
"Damn it… trap set, field locked… they're trying to skip my turn."
The headache spiked.
His knees buckled.
His body felt heavy.
His eyes turned bloodshot.
---
Voices emerged.
Low.
Close.
---
"Holy Yugioh…"
"Ahh… damn it… stop…"
"You've come far enough…"
"Just rest…"
---
They didn't force him.
They… persuaded.
---
"Let go…"
"You don't have to keep going…"
---
LHT roared.
"Throw everything away… and run?"
Right when the goal was in front of him?
"Don't joke with me."
---
He pressed his hand against the ground.
Forced himself up.
Through the gaps between his fingers—
he saw the clones.
---
They surrounded him.
But didn't attack.
They just stood there.
Still.
---
"The clones… enjoying the show?"
Enjoying watching me suffer?
Or—
waiting for me to be assimilated?
---
A chill ran down his spine.
His instincts screamed.
Don't move.
If you do—
you'll lose everything.
---
The voices grew clearer.
Closer.
---
"Stop."
"You've done well."
"No need to go further."
---
They dragged him down.
Drowning him.
---
LHT bit down hard on his lip.
Blood spilled.
Hot.
Salty.
He tasted it on his tongue.
"…not enough."
"You want to devour me?"
"Not enough!"
---
He roared.
Then—
his hand tightened.
---
No button.
No switch.
Only—
intent.
---
At the side of the Magnum V—
a half-embedded metallic ring flickered to life.
Small.
But impossible to ignore.
---
Thin grooves, sharp like cuts, lined its edge.
Each movement—
a streak of light slid across its surface.
---
Like a roulette needle—
choosing fate.
---
click—click—click—
---
The soft blue glow shrank.
Then—
shifted to a cold white.
---
The Roulette Magazine spun faster.
Not reloading.
---
Selecting.
---
Energy configuration.
---
Mode Switch: Laser → Explosive.
---
A dry sound echoed.
Like a heartbeat.
---
The barrel trembled.
Not from weakness—
but from pressure.
Energy—
compressed to the limit.
---
The Magnum V vibrated in his grip.
"Click."
---
The chamber shifted.
One notch.
---
A flash of red slipped through the gap—
then vanished.
---
LHT held his breath.
His finger tightened on the trigger.
---
…a delay.
Too long—
for a battlefield.
---
Then—
the weapon responded.
---
A heavy force slammed back into his arm.
Hit.
---
The shot fired.
---
No explosion.
---
It tore.
---
Ripped through space itself.
---
A straight line—
distorted.
---
Everything in its path—
crushed.
---
Not by fire.
---
But by rupture.
---
In that instant—
LHT knew.
Luck…
was still on his side.
---
Ahead—
a path had been torn open.
---
Like something massive had just plowed through.
---
The clones staggered.
Their bodies twisted.
Warped by the aftershock.
---
Immediately—
LHT narrowed one eye.
Locked on.
---
A narrow opening—
right near the cocoon.
---
Golden light erupted.
Wrapped around his body.
---
He launched forward.
---
5s.
---
His eyes burned red.
---
4s.
---
The headache hadn't faded.
The red interface kept flashing warnings.
---
3s.
---
The Eva Spawn began to gather ahead.
Blocking his path.
---
2s.
---
They lunged.
---
1s.
---
LHT inhaled sharply.
Forced every foreign thought out.
---
He stepped forward.
---
The Everlasting Dream Wishing Stone in his hand glowed.
A hazy light spread outward—
---
The clones froze.
Collided into each other.
Chaos.
---
But this time—
he didn't cast the illusion outward.
---
He threw the entire effect—
onto himself.
---
A thin mist spread.
Wrapped around his mind.
---
Not to hide.
---
But to—
jam it.
---
His thoughts—
and the Boss's—
began to overlap.
---
Out of sync.
Misaligned.
Colliding.
---
Neither side—
could fully take control.
---
For a single moment—
everything destabilized.
---
And—
that was enough.
0s.
LHT vanished.
Then reappeared—
closer.
Much closer.
He tightened his grip on the Everlasting Dream Wishing Stone.
Forced the illusion over himself—
again.
And again.
Not to conceal.
But to hold on.
To his mind.
He raised his head.
The cocoon—
only a few steps away.
So close.
Inside his mind—
a countdown echoed.
Tense.
Relentless.
Like a death clock.
The Boss was breaking him.
Every reflex.
Every thought.
But the stone—
created a gap.
Thin.
Fragile.
But enough.
He felt himself being pulled.
Taken.
Dissolving into something that wasn't him.
But—
just one more step.
One more—
and he would reach it.
His heart pounded.
The crimson seal beneath his feet kept flickering.
But this time—
he held onto that moment.