Chapter 960: Five Minutes to Heal

When Ethan said, "Welcome back," Sean finally let out the breath he’d been holding. Relief washed over him, tinged with something sharp and bitter. He’d once walked beside Ethan as an equal. Now, he was asking to follow.

But after everything the apocalypse had taught him, he knew one thing for sure—only the strong survived. And Ethan? Ethan wasn’t just strong. He was terrifying.

Across the room, Matt’s face darkened.

He’d strutted around like a king in front of Sean’s group, but deep down, he knew the truth. Against those three monsters—Ethan, Chris, and Henry—he didn’t stand a chance. Hell, even if his Boxing Club had been at full strength, they’d still get steamrolled.

He’d seen it with his own eyes: Ethan killing a Tier 3 zombie like it was a stray dog. That kind of power? That was Tier 4. Already.

In just a few days.

It was insane.

Matt had hoped to stay invisible, maybe slip away unnoticed. But now that Sean had thrown in with Ethan, that hope was dead. And considering he’d nearly killed Sean and his crew just minutes ago... well, if Ethan wanted payback, Matt was screwed.

Behind him, eight members of the Boxing Club stood frozen, along with two guys from Bates West dorm. The two Bates West survivors exchanged a glance, then stepped out from behind Matt and approached Ethan with forced smiles.

"Ethan! What a coincidence, huh?" one of them said, all fake cheer. "We were actually with Sean’s group. Thought maybe we could, you know, join up too?"

Sean’s face twisted with disgust. He looked like he wanted to beat them to death on the spot.

But he didn’t move.

He’d made his choice—he followed Ethan now. That meant letting Ethan call the shots. Jumping the gun would only make him look weak, or worse, disloyal.

Ethan noticed the tension and turned to Sean. "What’s their deal?"

Sean’s lip curled. "They bailed on us. When things got bad, they sided with Matt. Tried to kill us, actually."

The two men paled.

"Ethan, wait—don’t just take his word for it!" one of them blurted. "We panicked, that’s all! It wasn’t betrayal, we just... we didn’t know what to do!"

Ethan didn’t even look at them. His eyes stayed on Sean. "What do you want to do with them?"

Sean’s grip tightened on the metal pipe in his hand. The two men flinched.

"Sean... you’re not seriously gonna kill us, are you?" one of them stammered.

"Come on, man," the other pleaded. "We’ve been through a lot together. You’re not gonna throw that away over one mistake, right?"

Sean raised the pipe—then lowered it.

"Get out," he said coldly. "Don’t let me see your faces again."

"Yeah, yeah, we’re gone!" they said, practically tripping over themselves as they backed toward the exit.

CRACK. CRACK.

Two skulls burst open like overripe fruit. The bodies dropped, twitching, then went still.

Ethan lowered his barbell bar, blood dripping from the end.

"People like that," he said, voice flat, "don’t get second chances."

The room went dead silent.

No one had expected him to be that ruthless. But Sean understood. That wasn’t just punishment—it was a message. A line in the sand.

Ethan turned, eyes locking on Matt and his crew.

"I hear you’ve been throwing your weight around."

Matt’s face went pale. "No, no, not at all. That’s a misunderstanding."

"You tried to kill my people," Ethan said, voice calm but cold. "And now you’re saying you weren’t being cocky?"

"They weren’t your people yet!" Matt protested, desperation creeping in.

"They are now," Ethan said. "And you tried to kill them. So... what do you think should happen?"

Matt swallowed hard. "What do you want?"

Ethan tilted his head. "Simple. You started this. You settle it. You and Sean—one-on-one. You win, you walk. You lose, your whole crew stays."

Matt’s eyes lit up. "You serious?"

He and Sean were both Tier 2 peak, sure—but Matt was a Golden Gloves boxer. He’d trained for this. No way he’d lose to Sean.

Sean, on the other hand, looked like he’d just been punched in the gut.

"Ethan, maybe we should think this through—"

"What’s wrong?" Ethan asked, eyebrow raised. "Scared?"

"It’s not that," Sean said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just... I might not be able to beat him. I don’t want to embarrass you."

Ethan gave him a look. "I asked if you’re willing to fight. Not if you’re sure you’ll win."

Sean straightened, eyes hardening. "Then yeah. I’ll fight."

He knew what this was. A test. Ethan was giving him a chance to prove himself. And even if it meant getting his ass kicked, he wasn’t going to back down.

"Atta boy." Ethan clapped Sean on the shoulder, then turned to Matt. "So? You in?"

"Of course I’m in!" Matt said quickly, though his eyes flicked warily between Ethan and the others. "But how do I know you won’t pull something shady? What if your people jump in when I’m about to win? Or you just decide you don’t like the outcome?"

Ethan raised a brow. "Relax. I give you my word—just the two of you. No interference. Win, and you walk. No one will stop you."

Matt narrowed his eyes. "You better mean that. No one respects a sore loser."

Ethan grinned. "My word’s solid. You’ll see. Now, since you’re both banged up, I’ll give you five minutes to patch yourselves up before the fight starts."

"Fine by me."

Both sides nodded and immediately dropped to the floor to rest, trying to squeeze every ounce of recovery out of the short break.

Matt leaned back, sneering at Sean. "You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that. But guts won’t save you. You really think you can take me?"

Sean didn’t answer. He just closed his eyes and focused on breathing, trying to calm his heart and slow the bleeding.

"Henry," Ethan said, glancing over. "Give Sean a hand, will you?"

"On it." Henry walked over and knelt beside Sean, placing a hand gently on one of the deeper wounds.

Sean opened his eyes, puzzled, but didn’t resist.

A soft white glow bloomed where Henry’s hand touched his skin. The gash began to close—fast. Muscle knit, skin sealed, blood flow stopped.

"...!"

Gasps rippled through the room.

"Is that—?!" someone blurted.

"A healing-type Awakened?!" Matt’s voice cracked with disbelief. "That’s cheating!"

Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Cheating? I said five minutes to rest and recover. You agreed."

"But I didn’t know you had a damn healer!"

"Not my fault you didn’t ask," Ethan said with a shrug. "You assumed we’d all just sit here and breathe through the pain. That’s on you."

Matt opened his mouth, then closed it again. He had no comeback. Ethan hadn’t broken any rules. He’d just played the game better.

In the end, Matt could only grit his teeth and swallow the bitter taste in his mouth.

"Whatever," he muttered. "Even injured, I’m not afraid of him."

Henry finished up in under two minutes, most of Sean’s major wounds now sealed. He still looked tired, but the blood was gone, and his breathing had steadied.

Then Ethan reached into his pocket and pulled out a gleaming Tier 3 crystal core. He held it out to Sean.

"Here. Eat something. You’ll need your strength."

"...!"

"Holy shit..."

"Is he serious?"

"!!!"

"!!"

"!"

...