“I don’t understand, why did you give them a month?” Lord Vallum queried.

“To be honest, Marzen gave me a good fight. I decided my word will be my bond long ago and he impressed me, so I honoured my word, and I am giving them a month.” Rancour relayed.

“I see, what shall I do in this month my master?” Lord Vallum asked.

“Prepare yourself, issue out orders to our armies and take command, I will join you shortly my friend.” Rancour replied, walking back inside of his castle.

“One month, Momo, I will need you to come to London to prepare, leave Stigandr in charge, my armies are mobilising to reinforce us by the time Rancour descends upon us.” Raúl instructed, as Momo complied, leaving for London with Raúl and his allies.

“Why did you bring us here, would it not be most useful to man the front?” Momo inquired.

“I have been secluded here, for a long while. This chamber, passes a day, in an hour, meaning in this month, we can do a years’ worth of training, giving us an overwhelming advantage.” Raúl responded, as they walked inside.

“So, this is where you have been recently.” Momo remarked.

“Yes, I used my knowledge of time, the past, present and future to create a calculation that could break this singular room off of the strand of causality, ending its relationship with linear time and making it flow separately to time, a vergence in time if you may.” Raúl explained.

“What exactly is making time flow differently, if not you?” Momo asked.

“By using my Dominion, and expanding it at speeds that are impossibly fast, I was able to branch a singular moment in time off of the flow of natural time, and by using a small void, I replicated this distortion in time, creating this room.” Raúl described.

“How can you replicate a distortion in time? That cannot seem possible.” Momo imposed.

“By applying pressure to the void. Although it seems impossible, by projecting a pressure, or simply a gravity high enough into nothing, I’ve created a constant speed within this void that is slightly above ninety nine percent the speed of light, sustaining this new flow of time. It took a very long calculation to get the exact speed to dilate time and I had to make a device that would provide a constant gravitational pressure that act as a counterweight to this escape velocity speed whilst fitting this all into a room inside my castle. Sustaining the pressure onto the void was going to be tricky, so I built a machine that would replicate an intense gravity similarly to a naturally occurring phenomena, a black hole. After I did all of that, one hour in here would be a day out there, so within this room, the outside pressure that makes an hour become a day, is inverted, making a day in this room become an hour out there." Raúl clarified.

“That is far beyond anything we are capable of. You should be very proud, king.” Takahiro observed, to which Raúl nodded.

“In here, the objective is simple, we are going to fight one another and work on expanding our techniques, especially with the beast you possess, Momo.” Marzen explained.

“You’re unfamiliar to me, I’m not sure I’ve made your acquaintance.” Momo remarked, extending a hand to Marzen.

“My name is Marzen, it is a pleasure to meet the Archduke of Haevaria.” Marzen commented, shaking Momo’s hand.

“You must be the new prince, I am pleased to make your acquaintance as well.” Momo replied.

“You must be Takahiro, I had no idea how well the Samurai dressed, but I can say you are a most distinguished people.” Marzen noted.

“It is a simple dress, this, the grey over-garment is called a Haori, the main piece is a Kimino.” Takahiro responded, giving Ojigi, to which Marzen replicated the act.

“Ah, Hjalmarr, you need no introduction, the legends of your time are truly impeccable, I am glad to have such a powerful ally in you.” Marzen revelled, as he and Hjalmarr shook hands.

“I can tell you are incredibly strong yourself, Marzen.” Hjalmarr replied.

“I doubt I could match you in a contest of sheer strength my friend, but I suppose we’d have to find out.” Marzen implored.

“That we will!” Hjalmarr exclaimed, joyous at the chance to fight in a contest of strength.

Raúl raised his hands. Expanding the room and branching off multiple bedrooms and other common areas to suit the party’s needs. With each room matching the personality of its host perfectly.

“How did you do that?” Hjalmarr inquired.

“I have studied all of you, your history, families and art. You all have broad and narrow details that I studied over the few weeks I spent inside of here before you arrived. Momo and Amirah Elric hide pain, tragedy and darkness in their stride, they believe themselves to be monsters, forged in the holes that were left when the injustice of their parents’ murder was carried out. However, the true essence of Momo is peace and hope. He is true to his very core and believes the monster to be the end of the means. Amirah is bright and a perfect representation of light and happiness, she supresses her darkness, her knee upon its neck until she can learn how to be that monster, like her brother.” Raúl described, to Momo and Amirah’s awe. They stood in total silence; their entire stories being laid bare.

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“How did you know…?” Momo cautiously asked.

“Your history indicates a feeling of injustice, pain and suffering, but the man you are, the art you display in the city and your initiatives as a ruler signal your hope and longing for peace. Pulling together the work of your forefathers I also deduced you have a long lineage of intelligent and just rulers. Your sister was harder to read however through you I assumed she would be similar, her time with you and Rancour reflected her happiness and bright nature, with her scars being deeply entrenched in her soul, hence, the monster.” Raúl replied.

“You are correct. Your reputation was truly accurate.” Momo observed with a slight hint of displeasure.

“Now, let us begin. I wish to see how your training has come along, you will have noticed a significant jump in my power, no? I have spent years in this chamber for what has been months to you. But you will only have the one year in here to prepare, so we must be quick.” Raúl instructed, entering a ready stance, as Momo mimicked it.

As soon as the other had cleared a safe distance, Momo leapt after Raúl, launching slashes down toward him as he drew his sword to engage him. Raúl effortlessly stopped the slashes with his Spatial Expansion technique, reconfiguring it to target Spectral Energy, and stopping Momo in his place as he forced him away with a low output Exterior. Raúl used Interior, forcing Momo back to him as he slammed his fist into Momo with a high output Exterior, detonating a Median into his midsection as he kicked him in the jugular forcing him to ground as he spun around, backflipping away.

“You’ve gotten incredibly powerful.” Momo panted.

“It’s been quite a long while in this room. I’m glad to show you the extent of what I’ve learned.” Raúl replied.

"O underworld I call upon thee, in the name of Momo, successor of Rowan Elric, I challenge you. Heed my word and bring forth the Sovereign of Souls and Constant of Brutality, Dæinvorol." Momo recited as Dæinvorol appeared behind him.

Raúl smiled, walking toward the two as they launched themselves at him. Raúl dodged their attacks, predicting their attack patterns as they attempted to force themselves toward him. Raúl teleported behind Momo, punching him into Dæinvorol with an Exterior enhanced punch. Dæinvorol put Momo down, swinging at Raúl as they clashed, the shockwave shaking the entire room.

Raúl teleported to the side of Dæinvorol, modifying it to become a pure blast of destruction as he destroyed Dæinvorol’s top half. Raúl leapt into the air, feeling Momo’s advance, landing next to him and brandishing his sword, they engaged in a duel. Raúl slashed left to right, throwing Momo around with the sheer force created by his strikes. Momo attempted to counterattack, launching amplified slashes at Raúl, which he blocked with his Spatial Expansion technique, stabbing Momo in the abdomen and disarming him, as he sheathed his own sword.

Raúl kicked Dæinvorol’s mace out of his hands, knowing he had adapted to all the forms of his techniques, he rushed after him, kicking him in the knee, forcing it to bend as he punched him with Spectral punches, causing severe damage, which it healed. The beast grabbed onto Raúl forcing him into a tight grasp.

This beast could move the Moon with such strength! Raúl thought as it began to crush his bones.

Raúl forced vast quantities of Spectral Energy into his body, breaking free of his grip and kicking him on the shoulder, as he was thrown away, he dashed toward him enveloped in an icy glow.

“Ardour’s Spark!” Raúl yelled, as he slammed his fist into the beast, heavily damaging it.

Momo retracted Dæinvorol, charging a Gamma Ray burst to entirely obliterate Raúl, firing it.

Raúl turned, speeding up and making the Gamma Ray and Momo himself seem entirely frozen. Raúl walked toward Momo, still entirely frozen, forming a ball out of an Interior, throwing him away and slowing himself back down to Momo’s speed.

“How did you do that?” Momo exclaimed, both horror and zeal in his voice.

“I spent twenty years here, which should equate to roughly ten months of the year we all spent apart.” Raúl answered.

“You barely look to be in your late twenties! How old were you before?” Momo inquired.

“I am fifty now. I am from a clan treasured for its longevity. Our lives are fairly normal until we reach fifteen, then we rapidly age to our primes until we reach twenty. Once we reach twenty, for the next one hundred years we are in our exact primes, once we reach one hundred and twenty years, we age quickly, at a rate of three years per passing year, passing away once we physically become eighty-five, or, if we are lucky, one hundred.” Raúl illustrated.

“That is quite an interesting lineage. I assume your clan is a warrior clan, and likely the reason for their aristocratic status.” Momo inferred.

“You would be correct. I suggest we get some rest for the night; this will be a long year ahead of us.” Raúl replied.

Momo nodded, returning to his room where he sat in contemplation, wondering what the king was planning.