Chapter 407: Why Hairan? (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 407: Why Hairan? (1)
Sword energy repelled the thunder.
It was Ron’s sword energy. Every time he swung Rashid, a tidal wave of power soared into the sky.
The thunder, which had seemed poised to swallow the Sword Emperor Castle whole, looked like a child’s tantrum before Ron’s sword energy.
‘How many people in this world could protect a castle of this size by spreading their sword energy like an umbrella?’
That was the question that immediately sprang to Jin’s mind. It was a feat possible only for a 10-star knight—and even then, only one contending for the absolute peak.
What was even more astonishing was that Ron showed no signs of exhaustion despite incessantly unleashing such a massive amount of energy.
“Lord Ron!”
When Jin shouted, Ron turned his head. After confirming that Veradin was unconscious and secured to Shuri, he gave Jin a firm nod.
Well done!
His expression said it all. Although Veradin wasn't exactly unscathed, the fact that Jin had rescued him meant they would have fewer of the enemy's schemes to worry about.
Meanwhile, Rata, who was still on the front lines fighting monsters and bio-golems, felt a strange emotion as he watched Jin’s return.
It was, for lack of a better word, respect.
It was a feeling he hadn't experienced in a very long time.
Jin had fought him and handled their duel with ease. When the unexpected terror attack began, he had immediately assessed the situation, identified the core problem on his own, and brought Veradin back.
Regardless of their relationship just moments ago, there was no reason not to respect him. Even Ron hadn't realized that Veradin was the key.
‘What a magnificent fellow. To think the day would come when I, Rata, would be so impressed by another man.’
Shuri leaped over the giant monsters and landed beside Ron.
“I don’t know why I forgot about that kid. Are his injuries serious?”
“His life isn’t in danger.”
“I see. I will reward you appropriately once this is over. As for those blocks of ice… I see now.”
Until this point, Ron had simply been obliterating the mages into near-dust every time they regenerated.
He hadn't thought to use the method of ‘sealing’ them. This was partly because he lacked a mage's mindset, and partly because the castle's own mages were in a state of panic.
Furthermore, since Ron wasn't tiring despite unleashing his incredible sword energy, there had been no urgent need to seek other methods.
“Mages of the castle, listen! Seal the golems with ice magic!”
As Ron issued the command, the knights at the rear parted in perfect formation. The mages rushed through the opening and began unleashing their mana.
‘But something is wrong. Why isn't the thunder subsiding?’
Even as the mages appeared and blocks of ice rose to seal the bodies of the Artisan's Masterpieces, the thunder pouring from the sky showed no sign of letting up.
‘Are there more Masterpieces? Lord Ron’s sword energy is so overwhelming that it’s masking the source, but this much lightning is far beyond what three or four Masterpieces could generate. I was in such a rush to get here that I didn't think about it.’
It would take at least five hundred Masterpieces to produce this much power.
Either that, or it was something else entirely. Otherwise, this thunder was inexplicable.
At a glance, it seemed all six Masterpieces that had attacked the Sword Emperor Castle had been sealed.
However, as the lightning grew progressively stronger, Jin became certain. There was something else.
Ron was thinking the same thing.
“The sensation from this is completely different from the ones trapped in the ice…”
Ron’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the sky.
The sky, a chaotic maelstrom of spiritual energy, sword energy, and lightning, roiled with a turbulent array of colors.
“I suppose I’ll have to see for myself.”
As he spoke, Ron withdrew the sword energy he had been projecting. The thunder poured down as if a dam had burst, but it was incomparably weaker than before.
And then, suddenly.
The sky was ‘opening.’
What was revealed through the gap looked like the hull of a ship.
‘What is that…!’
As far as everyone present—including Jin—knew, there was only one ship in the world that could float in the sky.
The Kozec, Zipple’s ultimate aerial weapon.
However, the vessel that pushed aside the blackened clouds was not the Kozec. It was a completely different airship, similar only in its basic form.
“…Now that an airship has appeared, I'm starting to think this really might be Octavia's doing.”
Ron let out a hollow laugh and shrugged.
“It’s likely Kinzelo, Lord Ron, not Zipple.”
“I suppose so. But do you truly believe they are unrelated?”
Jin shook his head.
“At this point, I don't think Zipple is entirely uninvolved. Even if they didn't directly commission this attack, the situation benefits them, so they'll likely turn a blind eye after the fact.”
“Despicable wretches.”
Crackle, zap…!
Dark clouds laden with lightning gathered around the ship. The vessel appeared to have a much more complex structure than the Kozec, and the protrusions covering its hull seemed to be gathering mana to generate the storm clouds.
The battlefield fell silent the moment the ship appeared.
The rampaging monsters froze in place. The warriors caught their breath, their eyes fixed on the ship in a stupor.
Most were instinctively intimidated. It was only natural, given that giant monsters, bio-golems, and Masterpieces had emerged from the ground, only to be followed by an airship appearing from the sky.
Jin turned and met the eyes of Murakan and Quicantel. The two dragons showed no particular reaction, as if this was their first time seeing such a ship as well.
Ron was the only one who remained completely unfazed.
“Identify yourselves, uninvited guests.”
A profound aura laced his voice. Though he spoke in a relaxed, conversational tone, his words resonated powerfully, reaching all the way to the ship.
Soon, familiar faces appeared at the bow.
“Allow me to introduce this man: Verakt Sidriker! Great warrior of the magnificent White Wolf tribe, Chief of the Sidriker tribe, Master of the Rhoskal Great Plains, Absolute Ruler of the Antomack Mountains, and…”
The one introducing Verakt was Cold Jo.
“Shut up. Keep it short, Jo.”
“In that case, skipping a few titles… He is the Commander-in-Chief of our Kinzelo!”
Even for Jin, reading their plan was not easy this time.
He hadn't expected them to openly reveal themselves after committing such an act of terror.
But the highlight was the words that came out of Jo’s mouth next.
“The reason we have come to the Sword Emperor Castle with our ship, the Gruneil, is to rescue our group’s Vice Captain and his younger sister.”
Those crazy bastards…
Curses rose in Jin’s throat.
‘They stage a terror attack themselves, and then claim they’ve come to rescue Vishkel and Margiella?’
The reason Jin hadn't been able to discern their intentions was simple.
It was because they were being so brazenly straightforward—so much so that he wondered if they were even capable of calculation.
‘Did they stage a terror attack, ensure Vishkel and Margiella were harmed, and then use that as a pretext to claim they had nothing to do with it?’
Of course, the story was absurd.
And yet, it was also plausible. It was a fact known to any warrior that Vishkel cherished his sister more than anything.
No one would imagine that Vishkel would go so far as to endanger his own sister to carry out such an attack.
Above all, there was no evidence.
Although the ship Gruneil was manipulating lightning with mana, there was no concrete proof—only suspicion—linking the Masterpieces, bio-golems, and monsters to Kinzelo.
‘Furthermore, their attitude suggests they don't care if Lord Ron declares them the culprits based on suspicion alone. They are utterly looking down on Hairan.’
Had this been the plan from the start?
The sudden thought struck Jin, and he quickly concluded that it wasn't.
‘Originally, they probably intended to pull back after causing a moderate amount of damage. But because I rescued Veradin, their plans were disrupted.’
With Veradin returned safely, it would be difficult for hostility to form between Hairan and Zipple.
In fact, since Jin had rescued Veradin on Ron’s special orders, there was no justification for hostility at all.
There was only one reason they would reveal themselves even though their plan had failed.
‘Kinzelo is determined to deal a devastating blow to Hairan no matter what. Since they’ve lost the pretext to create a conflict with Zipple, it seems they’ve decided to just crush Hairan themselves.’
Otherwise, Verakt and Jo wouldn't have appeared just to provoke Ron like this.
Their actions were no different from a direct challenge.
“Heh, heh, heh.”
Ron let out another hollow chuckle.
“Even the Emperor speaks to me face-to-face. And… I never thought I'd see the day I had to look up at someone inside my own Sword Emperor Castle. Come down, beastman.”
At that, Verakt smirked.
“And if I refuse, human Sword Emperor?”
“Then I’ll have to make you come down.”
Ron didn't ask Verakt or Jo for an explanation. He didn't ask why they attacked the Sword Emperor Castle or what this nonsense was all about.
Such questions were for a time when dialogue was still possible. Ron, too, had made his decision: he would go to war with Kinzelo.
‘He’s playing right into their hands. There’s no way Lord Ron doesn't know that.’
Nevertheless, it was a situation where he couldn't back down. The moment he retreated in the face of Kinzelo's provocation, Hairan would never be able to reclaim its prestige.
After all, from the moment the Gruneil appeared, everyone present had formed the same suspicion regarding Kinzelo.
Rashid’s blade was seething.
“I will give you one warning. Come down this instant and show proper respect.”
“I have stated my purpose clearly. Hand over Kinzelo's Vice Captain and his sister.”
“It seems their lives aren't particularly precious to you.”
The blade, swung upward toward the ship, erupted with aura.
The area was momentarily drenched in the blinding light of Ron's sword energy.
The ship, Gruneil, seemed to be completely submerged in the sword energy, as if it had been plunged into a luminous ocean.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for the light to fade. Even if the Gruneil was an ultimate weapon on par with the Kozec, surely it couldn't remain intact after being hit by such a strike.
It was a blow delivered in earnest.
That strike, unleashed with full force by a 10-star knight—and not just any 10-star knight, but Ron Hairan himself—surprisingly…
Failed to leave so much as a scratch on the Gruneil.
Ron Hairan’s eyes trembled minutely.
The Gruneil continued to float in the sky, looking exactly as it had when it first appeared.
“If you truly wish to fight me, Human Sword Emperor Ron Hairan, why don't we take this elsewhere? If you and I fight here, not a single one of your clansmen will survive.”