Chapter 417: Why Hairan (11)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 417: Why Hairan (11)
The shattered wreckage of the Gruneil didn't even have a chance to fall.
The sword energy filling the black sky was the reason. Debris caught in the storm of blades was ground to dust and scattered, and the Kinzelo Leader could no longer maintain his form, flickering like dissipating smoke.
‘It’s over.’
Now that the Dragon Knights had arrived, there was no way for the tide of battle to turn again.
That was Jin’s judgment. Unless Zipple suddenly sent reinforcements to Kinzelo or the Viment Imperial Family committed an act of betrayal, a reversal was absolutely impossible.
The alliance between Zipple and Kinzelo had shattered long ago, so the former was out of the question, and the same applied to the latter. Although the Dragon Knights belonged to Hairan, the authority to command them rested with the Emperor.
This was the result of the Imperial Family’s generations-long effort to keep Hairan in check. The Dragon Knights had come to protect the main estate under the Emperor’s direct command.
‘Before they escape, we must inflict as much damage as possible.’
Even with the Dragon Knights joining the fray, completely eradicating Kinzelo here today was impossible. They wouldn't have attacked Hairan without securing a means of retreat.
Creeeeeak—!
The fiercely rotating Flame Orb was slowing to a stop. A massive semi-circle had been carved into the bow of the Gruneil where the Flame Orb had been, as if a giant had taken a bite out of it.
Once the flames finally subsided, Jin wiped the blood from his mouth.
He no longer needed to worry about the spell’s backlash. From here on, all Jin had to do was watch the fight unfold.
On the ground, Linpa and the Dragon Knights continued to pressure Verakt. His massive body, which had been perfectly healed just moments ago, was once again being covered in wounds.
However, proving he was one of the world’s strongest, Verakt was not easily dealt a finishing blow.
The Dragon Knights were penetrating the bow of the broken ship, the Gruneil. Their advance was slowed by the resistance of the Kinzelo members inside and the ship's damaged structure, but it seemed only a matter of time before they broke through.
A moment later, Jin saw the Leader—whose body had been torn apart—suddenly reappear at the bow of the Gruneil.
The scattered, hazy energy coalesced into a solid form at the front of the ship. It was clearly an action taken to stop the Dragon Knights from entering.
The process seemed grueling; the Leader’s newly formed body trembled like a leaf.
‘Is he overexerting himself? Just to protect the Gruneil?’
It wasn't just Jin; everyone who saw the sight felt the same.
‘To be precise, he’s not protecting the ship, but its passengers.’
Those aboard the Gruneil were all core members of Kinzelo.
Bubar Gaston the Sculptor of Chaos, Vice Captain Vishkel, Jo—the one responsible for developing the Artisan’s Masterpiece—and Margiella.
While the exact nature of Margiella’s abilities remained unknown, considering how she was treated, it wasn't likely just because she was Vishkel’s sister. She, too, was connected to chaos.
“All Dragon Knights in the air, strike the ship!”
At Ron’s command, the Dragon Knights immediately tightened their formation. As the Ancestor Dragons lined up in a breakthrough wedge and charged, a sharp sonic boom pierced the air.
Since Jin had already half-destroyed it with his grand magic, it seemed the Dragon Knights would be able to pulverize the Gruneil in an instant.
But at that moment…
Everyone on the battlefield was forced to realize that the power the Kinzelo Leader had shown so far was not his limit.
The Leader’s body, which had been nothing but a haze, suddenly grew dense.
His blood-red eyes flashed with a brilliant light. The gaze held no particular killing intent or energy, yet it was indescribably ominous.
The Leader’s steel sword unleashed a single flash in midair, and as Jin watched the sword energy extending from that blade…
He couldn't help but gasp.
‘Luna-nuna’s… Heart Sword!?’
Red sword energy.
It was the sword energy Jin had seen only once before—when Luna cut down Andrei Zipple, who had used a Demon God Stone.
While it wasn't the exact same form as the Heart Sword: Red Moon Luna had displayed back then, the red sword energy unleashed by the Leader certainly resembled her sword. It was so similar that one could believe it had been unleashed by the same person.
“Watch out!”
“Block it!”
Ron and the Dragon Knight Leader shouted simultaneously.
The charging Ancestor Dragons twisted their bodies violently, and the Dragon Knights deployed sword barriers instead of attacking.
The Leader’s sword energy displayed monstrous power, tearing through the sword barriers of Hairan’s finest knights as if they were made of paper. The similarity to Luna’s sword wasn't just visual.
Fortunately, no Dragon Knight lost their life or suffered a fatal wound from the red energy. However, that red sword energy only stopped its advance after passing the Dragon Knights and clashing with Rashid’s radiance.
‘When we were retrieving Orgal’s Pendant, they said Luna-nuna cut down a demon. Could the Kinzelo Leader be a demon related to that?’
There was no way to confirm it right now.
The Dragon Knights, who had been on the verge of entering the ship, were being pushed back again. Those who were too close had the wings of their Ancestor Dragons torn by the successive waves of red sword energy the Leader unleashed.
Skreeeeeee—!
Other Dragon Knights descended to rescue their falling comrades.
At that point, Jin unconsciously clenched his fists. An opening had appeared that a warrior of the Leader’s caliber would never miss.
‘The Dragon Knights’ formation is going to crack.’
Breaking formation even once in such a chaotic battle would be a devastating blow. In particular, losing the Ancestor Dragons meant losing the ability to conduct aerial combat.
However, the Leader failed to drive his sword energy into that opening.
Stagger—!
Instead, the Leader showed signs of having overexerted his power. He exposed a weakness that should never be shown to an enemy.
As Jin had predicted from the start, the Leader was clearly not at full strength.
But was that really good news for Jin, his allies, and everyone who had to fight Kinzelo?
It was a question that could be answered with a definitive "no."
‘If he can show this kind of monstrous power even now, while barely maintaining his body through his unique authority… then once he’s fully recovered…'
It was difficult to even imagine just how strong he would be.
‘He might be someone who wouldn't fall short even when compared to Father.’
Excluding Fighting God Ban and Temar, no one had ever made such an impression on Jin. The power the Leader was displaying was that shocking.
Whoosh—!
Murakan charged toward the Leader with Ron on his back. The Leader was staggering in midair, having missed the opening among the Dragon Knights.
Of course, even that was but a fleeting moment.
But when the ones charging through that gap were the Black Dragon Murakan and the Sword Emperor Ron, the story had to change.
[Crush him, Ron Hairan!]
Murakan wrapped himself in a protective shield of spirit energy.
It was a shield to protect himself from Ron’s own sword. Furthermore, the shield acted as a veil, obscuring the Leader’s vision.
Ron’s entire body was bathed in radiance.
As he leaped off Murakan’s back, a blinding light brilliantly illuminated the area.
Imperial Sword Secret Technique
Sun
The secret technique Dante had used against the masked assailant within the castle.
However, while Ron’s Sun and Dante’s Sun shared the same name, they were naturally on entirely different levels.
Flash—!
The light of the aura spreading from Ron formed a literal sun-like sphere. Both the Leader and the ship Gruneil were swallowed by that sphere.
The Dragon Knights who had rescued their falling comrades rejoined the formation. Their role was to form a safety zone to prevent the power of the secret technique, Sun, from spreading to the allies on the ground.
Even with the Dragon Knights filtering it, deep and massive craters formed all over the ground. The shockwaves alone caused the entire earth to vibrate, and the ruined Sword Emperor Castle shook precariously, as if it would collapse completely at any moment.
A deafening noise, a light that stung the eyes like a flash from a well-honed blade.
It seemed impossible for any living creature to emerge alive from the Sun Ron had unleashed. Tens of thousands of blades of light fired from within that sphere, shredding the Gruneil and the Leader.
“Leader!”
Verakt cast a worried glance toward the sky. But before he could even properly examine Ron’s Sun, Linpa’s descending greatsword filled his vision.
The greatsword slashed across Verakt’s chest. The following attack cut off an ear, and just before he could widen the distance again, two of his toes were severed.
On the other hand, Linpa remained completely uninjured.
“Now… die.”
Just as Linpa was about to swing her sword to end Verakt’s life…
Graaaaaah…!
K-K-K-K-Crack!
A man's roar and the sharp, screeching sound of the Sun being torn apart echoed from the sky.
It was the roar of the Kinzelo Leader.
Through the cracks spreading across the Sun, which he had clearly created, a crimson light was bleeding out. It was the light of the red sword energy.
The Sun had been shattered.
Ron’s secret technique, unleashed with all his might, was being broken by another’s sword beneath the sky of the Sword Emperor Castle.
Like a receding tide, the light of the Sun and the red sword energy that had filled the sky faded away. Even Murakan’s spirit energy, which had dyed the entire sky black, could not withstand the impact.
The sky rapidly regained its original color.
And in the center, the half-destroyed Gruneil obscured the dawn moon, with the Leader standing at its bow.
He was no longer the hazy figure he had been. He was a demon in a form very close to a human, but…
[Cough…!]
His entire body was torn and ruptured, leaving him in a state that was hard to recognize. He was shredded so badly that it seemed half his body had vanished, and he was coughing up blood.
Even his head, which was spitting blood, was half-gone, leaving him in a hideously gruesome shape.
Floating in front of the Leader was Murakan, his wings curled inward.
Flap—!
As Murakan spread his wings, Ron Hairan, who had been hidden, was revealed. Unlike the Leader, who was now little more than a mangled piece of flesh, Ron appeared to have no new visible injuries.
However, Jin, the Dragon Knights, and Murakan all knew.
Ron had suffered internal injuries so severe that it would be dangerous for him to continue the battle any further.
On the other hand, despite his body being torn apart and spitting blood, the Leader possessed an air of inexplicable composure. And the ship he sought to protect, the Gruneil, remained in the same half-destroyed state it was in after Jin's grand magic.
Huff, huff…
The Leader exhaled raggedly and raised his steel sword with his one remaining arm.
Then, a Steel Gate larger than the ship Gruneil filled the sky. The Dragon Knights tried to fly out to prevent the Gruneil from reaching the gate, but…
Ron restrained them with a look. He knew there was no telling what might happen if the fight continued any longer.
The Leader nodded as if Ron’s judgment was correct, and as the Gruneil passed through the Steel Gate, he looked down at Jin.
Then, he curled the remaining half of his lips into a smile and leisurely exited through the gate.