The climb back to the surface took longer than the descent.
The labyrinth walls no longer shifted, but the black vines still clung to the stone in places, and the air remained heavy with the metallic scent of spent darkness. Sekai led the way with the controller ready in his hand. Whenever a section of stairway looked unstable or a lingering vine twitched toward one of them, he paused the world, cleared the danger, and resumed without comment.
Leafa noticed every single time. She said nothing, but the way she watched him had changed. It was no longer pure suspicion. Something closer to calculation sat behind her eyes.
They reached the upper levels just as the last of the liquid shadow drained from the trenches far below. Blue crystal veins in the walls began to glow again, brighter than before. The mountain itself felt lighter, as if a great weight had finally been lifted from its bones.
When they stepped out through the open gates at the summit, the king and his remaining knights were already waiting. The old man's face lit with relief the moment he saw them.
"The trembling stopped," he said. "The vines on the outer slopes are withering. You succeeded."
Fury gave a short nod. "The vessel is destroyed. The labyrinth should remain stable for years, perhaps longer if the King of Darkness does not interfere again."
The king bowed deeply. "Mount Cape is in your debt, Hero of Salvation. Whatever resources we can spare are yours."
Sekai accepted the thanks with a tired smile, but his mind was already on the timer. Two days and eleven hours remained. The voyage back to the capital would normally take a full week. Even with heavy use of the pause button, he could not stretch three days of real time into seven.
Niña stretched her arms over her head and groaned. "Please tell me we are not walking the whole way back."
A young knight stepped forward and held out a sealed letter. "This arrived by messenger hawk while you were below. It is addressed to the Hero."
Sekai broke the seal. The handwriting was neat and formal.
Prince Will's message was brief. The barrier ritual was holding, but the Realm of Darkness had begun to press harder against the edges of the new holy field. Alicia's prayer remained unbroken. Clau and her party still stood guard. The letter ended with a single line that made Sekai's chest tighten.
"Time is shorter than we hoped. Return as soon as you are able."
He folded the letter and slipped it into his pocket.
Leafa watched him carefully. "You are calculating something again."
"I am always calculating something," Sekai answered.
That night the king insisted they rest inside the fortress. Sekai waited until the others had settled into their rooms, then slipped out onto the same high balcony he had used the night before. The sea stretched black and endless below. Somewhere across that water Alicia still knelt in golden light, eyes closed, senses suspended, pouring every drop of her inherited power into a barrier that might not last.
He pressed the pause button and simply stood there for a long while, listening to the complete absence of wind and waves.
When he released time again, Fury was already standing in the doorway behind him.
"You use it more freely when you think no one is watching," she said.
Sekai did not pretend to misunderstand. "You always notice."
"Elves remember what others forget." She stepped closer, dark hair stirring in the night air. "Whatever power you carry, it is not infinite. The mountain may be safe for now, but the King of Darkness will not stay quiet. And your timer is almost empty."
He looked at her for a long moment, then reached out and pressed the pause button once more. In the frozen silence he closed the distance between them, rested both hands on her waist, and simply held her there while the world waited. When he finally resumed time, Fury's ears flicked once. A faint color touched her cheeks, but she did not pull away immediately.
"You are still a fool," she said quietly.
"Probably."
She turned and walked back inside without another word.
Sekai stayed on the balcony a little longer, thumb resting on the pause button, eyes on the dark horizon.
Two days and a handful of hours.
The King of Darkness was still out there.
Alicia was still praying.
And the only way forward was to keep moving faster than time itself allowed.
At first light they would leave Mount Cape and begin the long race back toward the capital.