One year.
That was the time limit Magnus had planned.
Too long, and this sea would forget him — if he disappeared for two or three years, the Marines would surely strike Sphinx again.
But too short, and if an admiral was still stationed here, their Kenbunshoku (Observation) Haki would easily spot him returning to Elbaf.
Admiral-level fighters weren't exactly cabbages lying around for the picking.
Even in the entire Navy, there were only a handful of them.
And only admiral-level strength could reliably capture the most notorious great pirates — the most dangerous and destructive class of all.
One year was just right.
Neither the Marines nor the World Government had the patience to keep pouring manpower into a single island for so long. And one year was also enough for Harald to recover and adjust to his injuries.
Even if there were still admirals on the island when he returned — Harald would be able to support him.
As for the possibility that the World Government had wiped out the giants completely…
Not with Ripley's ability.
That possibility was practically zero.
One year felt like an eternity — but to Magnus, in Tengetsu's (Amatsuki's) time-shifting state, it passed in an instant.
One second, Kong and Grindwin's attacks were on the verge of striking.
The next, they were gone.
Magnus had no memory of the traversal — only the change in scenery and what Tengetsu had told him beforehand clued him in.
He had arrived.
One year later.
His Kenbunshoku swept the surroundings. Confirming no enemies nearby, he finally let out a breath — and as soon as he relaxed, his whole body felt like it was splitting apart.
Magnus collapsed to the ground.
"Ah!"
A soft cry — and he suddenly remembered: he'd brought Tengetsu with him.
And now he'd fallen right on top of her.
"M-Magnus-san?"
Tengetsu tried to push him off, but when she looked up, she saw he'd already passed out.
Magnus had given everything in this battle.
At Sphinx, at least he'd had the option of retreat.
But here at Elbaf, he'd had to stand against several admiral-class enemies for half an hour, no retreat.
It wasn't just his body — even his spirit was drained.
He had to rest.
But with him collapsed, Tengetsu was stuck — and afraid to move too much, seeing how many terrible wounds he had. His back was a shredded mess of blood and bone fragments.
Still — she wasn't exactly a delicate little girl either. At 1.9 meters tall, she wasn't much shorter than him. Being pinned under him wasn't too uncomfortable.
What did fluster her, though, was that this was the first time in her life she'd been this close to a man.
'Did he… do this on purpose?'
But she quickly shook the thought away. From what she could tell, Magnus didn't seem to have any romantic designs on her. Even when he looked at her, it was always with a straightforward, almost appreciative gaze.
Realizing that, Tengetsu felt a faint pang in her chest.
She remembered what Ripley had told her.
Magnus, though unmarried, had had a few close companions before.
So… he probably wasn't interested in her.
She froze for a moment.
When had she started caring what he thought of her? They'd only known each other a month.
Come to think of it, she didn't really know that much about him.
She only knew that he was a terrifyingly powerful pirate who'd been heading for Elbaf to reunite with his crew — only to find himself caught in the middle of the invasion.
She'd thought it was just a minor skirmish.
But when Magnus clashed with the invaders — she realized just how wrong she'd been. Every moment, she'd felt like she might die.
And yet… she hadn't.
Magnus had deliberately steered the battlefield away from her. Even facing three fearsome enemies — he still protected her.
'He really is… a good man.'
For a moment she regretted rushing into the next time leap last time — maybe if she'd lingered longer, she could've met a younger Magnus.
She looked at his rugged, handsome face — lined with age yet full of strength — and felt her heart skip a beat.
His faint breath on her cheek made her chest pound.
Thump.Thump.Her heart was in chaos.
She didn't know how long she lay there before something at the edge of her vision caught her eye.
A massive cat — as tall as a mountain — slunk out from a distant hill.
At first, it just seemed to be lazily wandering. But the moment it saw her and Magnus, its pupils narrowed sharply.
An Elbaf beast!
Elbaf was home not only to giants, but to countless massive creatures so large the giants themselves called them prey.
And over the past year, as the Marines chopped down much of the surface forests, many beasts had been driven underground.
This one — a ten-meter-tall wildcat — was one of them.
To the giants it was just a pet.
But to an ordinary human like Tengetsu, it was a monster.
"Magnus-san, wake up!"
She tried to shake him — but he didn't stir. In his mind, a cat this size probably wasn't even worth waking up for.
As the wildcat crept closer, Tengetsu grit her teeth and prepared to slip out from under him. She wasn't that strong — but she was still a warrior. A warrior never turns their back on an enemy!
But then — the wildcat stopped.
Even though it was just a few hundred meters away — a distance it could close in a single leap — it froze, as if sensing a natural predator.
From far away, a shadow loomed.
A forty-meter-tall giant walked toward them.
When his eyes fell on Magnus and Tengetsu, his face broke into a broad, relieved smile.
And behind him —
Familiar figures appeared, one after another.
Ripley, Rocks, Newgate.
Even Charlotte Linlin and Carmel had come.
When they saw Magnus, it was as if they'd found their pillar of strength.
Everyone let out a collective breath of relief.
Harald the giant king threw back his head and laughed.
"Tonight — we feast!"
(End of Chapter)
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