Chapter 117: The Power to Erase the World, The Power to Sustain the World (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 117: The Power to Erase the World, The Power to Sustain the World (1)
Crack—!
Just before the ship’s cannons could fire, Talaris swung Ten Thousand Ice a fraction of a second faster.
From the tip of her translucent blade, a massive wave of sword energy erupted—a strike so formidable it could have cleaved the Kozec in two without resistance.
As the sword energy, saturated with a biting chill, surged toward the cannons, the air in its path froze instantly, leaving a trail of shimmering light in its wake.
However, there was no time to admire the beautiful and majestic display of power.
Grab!
In a single fluid motion, Jin hoisted Laosa onto his shoulder and sprinted behind Talaris, with Siris following close on his heels.
But in that same instant, the cannons designed to wipe Colon off the map fired.
Rumble—!
The dim dawn sky was instantly dyed a brilliant gold. It was the color of mana, condensed and compressed to its absolute limit, pouring out from the Kozec’s muzzles.
Had Talaris’s sword energy not intercepted it, the blast would have completely erased the heart of Colon.
Screeeech!
An ear-splitting, metallic roar erupted as the sword energy and the cannon fire collided. The strength of a single human was clashing with the majesty of the Kozec, the most overwhelming war machine in history.
The Kozec’s shells never reached the ground, and Talaris’s sword energy never reached the hull floating high in the sky.
Instead, a shockwave so powerful that even ancient, deep-rooted trees could not withstand it began to sweep across Colon.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the ice barrier Talaris had erected around the natives, and the tens of thousands of ice crystals swirling near her shattered into dust.
A moment later, fragments of aura and mana began to fall like rain, flashing with a blinding, dizzying light.
This was exactly why Talaris had screamed for them to get away. Each falling shard, a piece of lethal hail, possessed enough destructive power to kill a trained warrior instantly.
There was a limit to how many they could dodge. Though they ran frantically toward an area with less impact, no part of the ruins was truly safe.
"Priestess! Get down and don't move a muscle!"
Jin and Siris drew their swords simultaneously and began deflecting the fragments. Fortunately, thanks to the elixir of the Secret Palace that Siris had given him, Jin’s body had recovered enough to execute his rapid sword techniques.
Perhaps because they had crossed blades at the Runcandel banquet, their swords moved in perfect harmony amidst the chaotic downpour, as if performing a choreographed dance.
Even so, their stamina was draining rapidly.
Each fragment carried the force of a strike from a 6-star knight. Parrying the debris felt like fighting dozens of warriors at once.
"Your skills have improved since then, Jin Runcandel."
"You as well, Lady Siris," Jin said, breathing heavily. "But this situation is grim. It doesn't look like we can get Lady Laosa to the natives right away."
It would be one thing if the horrific shower of fragments ended after a single volley.
But the Kozec was already preparing its next round. Talaris, too, was gathering her energy, ready to unleash the full power of Ten Thousand Ice at any moment.
"Wow, I didn't think you'd actually fire. I am Talaris Endorma. Get a grip, you babies."
Talaris spoke as she brushed her hair back with an exaggerated gesture.
The faces of the White Night mages staring down at her were grim. They had expected her to block the attack, of course, but none had imagined she could slice through the Kozec’s cannon fire with a single stroke.
"This is your final warning! Palace Master, if you do not comply, we will kill all of your clients, even if it means erasing all of Colon!"
"Hmph, I suppose you're too embarrassed to say you'll kill me? That would be impossible even if your entire force were gathered here."
"That is true. However, Palace Master, even you cannot protect all of them amidst this bombardment. We only have to endure a small humiliation, but you will bear the disgrace of a failed mission."
Talaris smiled.
It was a forced smile, one that acknowledged she had no rebuttal.
"Since it’s come to this, let’s see who ends up disgraced—the Secret Palace or the Zipple. Daughter! You lot, stay sharp! Find a way to get that woman over there!"
She pointed toward the natives performing the ritual.
The spot where Jin and Siris stood was about seven hundred steps away. It was a distance they could normally cover in an instant, but the remnants of aura and mana flowing across the ground emitted a heat more intense than lava.
Without a full-body coating of aura, even walking was impossible.
Furthermore, the Kozec’s muzzles, already gathering light again, glowed with a gold even deeper than before. Talaris would have to unleash an even stronger wave of sword energy to offset it.
More fragments than before… will come raining down.
They had to reach the ritual site while parrying lethal fallout and ensuring Laosa’s safety, all while navigating ground that flowed like lava.
Murakan is busy protecting the natives in place of the cracked barrier, so he can't help. That means Siris and I have to do this alone.
Moreover, one of them had to carry Laosa.
Even as a priestess, Laosa’s physical abilities were no different from an ordinary person’s; it was impossible for her to cross ground radiating such intense heat.
This is a trial unlike any other.
In all his life, had a distance of seven hundred steps ever seemed so vast?
But if we don't make it… all the battles we've fought will mean nothing. They’ll be a forgotten disturbance that no one in the world will ever know about. And the centuries of abuse the people of Colon have endured will have been for nothing.
As Siris let out a low sigh, Jin met her eyes.
"Lady Siris, stay behind me. Focus only on protecting the Priestess. I will open the path."
"What? What are you talking about? You'll do alone what would be difficult for both of us? Besides, your body isn't even fully recovered."
"That’s exactly why. If I'm deflecting the shards alone and I'm the first to die, the chances of you and the Priestess reaching the natives are higher. You’ll still be in top condition, Lady Siris."
"Are you serious?"
"Of course."
"I don't understand. Why go that far?"
"Aren't you and Lady Talaris also overextending yourselves right now? To a degree most people wouldn't understand."
"This is different. My mother and I operate on the premise that we will absolutely avoid death. We pity the people of Colon, it’s true, but if a crisis comes where we must risk our own lives, we will withdraw immediately."
At that, Jin gave a small, meaningful smile.
"Lady Talaris is a powerhouse I can't even begin to fathom. If she hadn't arrived when she did, I would already be dead or would have paid a price just shy of it."
"What is your point, Jin Runcandel?"
Siris’s voice was tinged with anger. In her eyes, Jin looked like a moth flying into a flame, and she couldn't understand why that fact upset her so much.
"My point is that I am resolving a task that should have been handled by my comrades and me, but I'm doing it with the help of the strong. I couldn't forgive myself if I didn't at least have the desperation to put my life on the line."
As Jin answered in a calm voice, Siris’s eyes widened.
At the same time, Laosa, who had just picked herself up, felt a shiver of shame run through her entire body.
I… as the Priestess of Colon… how desperate was I to save my people?
—Run away, Priestess!
—If you die, Colon and the mission Klam bestowed upon us are over! Please, go somewhere they can never find you!
—Priestess, leave before you lose any more of your divine power. We will be fine.
Those were the urgent cries she had heard three years ago when she escaped Colon with Pan.
It was true her kin had told her to flee, but Laosa suddenly realized that 'choosing to run' had ultimately been her own decision.
And in the place she had fled to… she realized she had simply been waiting for a savior, someone as strong and magnificent as a god, to appear.
Laosa raised her head and looked up at Jin.
"…So, Priestess Laosa, you must also prepare yourself," Jin continued. "Since I, who received Lady Talaris's help, have put my life on the line, you, who are receiving my help, must show an equal level of desperation."
"Young Master Jin, I…"
Seven hundred steps away, there were people showing that very desperation. The ordinary people of Colon, neither chosen priestesses nor powerful warriors, would not stop the ritual even if their bodies were broken and shattered by the fragments.
"We are going to reach them, even if we die. Do you understand?"
Laosa bit her lower lip hard and nodded.
"Good. Let's go!"
The moment Siris hoisted Laosa onto her back and Jin took his first step forward—
"Now! Fire!"
Rumble—!
The Kozec unleashed the golden mana it had been holding in its muzzles.
The White Night mages had been waiting for this exact moment—for Jin, Siris, and Laosa to move. Their goal was no longer to threaten Talaris, but to kill her clients.
As soon as the sword energy of Ten Thousand Ice and the Kozec’s cannon fire collided once more—
"Ugh!"
As expected, a far denser storm of fragments battered Colon. The shockwave scraping at their eardrums grew even sharper, and blood began to trickle from the ears Jin had injured during Midore’s earlier attack.
His legs shook every time he struck a fragment, but Jin continued to move forward, steadfast.
The distance shrank. Six hundred steps. Five hundred. Four hundred.
Strength was already fading from his grip on his sword.
The only thing Jin relied on was his will—the will to swing his sword thousands more times with the same precision as the first. The desperate will to cross those seven hundred steps.
Watching his back, Siris felt her heart pound with every passing moment. It was the respect of one warrior for another.
"There are only about fifty steps left! Jin, just a little more—!"
Stagger!
"Dammit, Jin!"
The last fragment to strike Bradamante was heavier than Jin had anticipated. He lost his balance, barely managing to parry the next shard. Just as Siris was about to surge forward—
"I will walk the rest of the way myself."
"Priestess, this place is a lava field! How can you walk? You can't even protect your body with aura!"
"Even if my feet burn away… I will go, even if I have to crawl. So please, protect Young Master Jin now. I beg you. At this rate, he will die."
Laosa released her grip on Siris.
The moment she stepped off Siris’s back, her soles touched the ground. Hiss— Her shoes and flesh began to burn away instantly.
And then, step by agonizing step.
Laosa began to move. Gasping for breath through the agony of her flesh burning, she slowly forged ahead.