Chapter 469: Massacre, and the Strange... (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 469: Massacre, and the Strange... (3)
"Keuhuk!"
Sandra spat out a mouthful of blood as she doubled over. Bradamante had pierced straight through her collarbone, the tip of the blade protruding from her back.
For any normal human, it would have been a fatal wound—one impossible to recover from without the healing powers of the Holy King Rani or a legacy from Numerus.
Yet Jin felt an intangible force pushing back against the blade embedded in her collarbone.
It certainly wasn't Aura.
Nor was it mana.
'This is almost like...'
An Authority.
Moreover, it felt remarkably similar to a specific type of Authority Jin knew well.
It was the power Quicantel, the Silver Dragon of Time and Olta's contractor, often displayed. The Authority of Time.
'So I wasn't mistaken. But why is Sandra Zipple using the Authority of Time?'
It was impossible for Sandra to be Olta’s contractor. Enya had held that contract for a long time now. Unlike in Jin’s past life, the Zipples had failed to kill Enya and steal it.
Even without a contract, one could, in rare cases, wield a god's Authority by receiving their blessing, being granted the right to serve them, or through other specialized means.
However, in such cases, one could only wield a 'low-level Authority.'
Shing!
As his blade was pushed out, Jin swung again, this time aiming for Sandra's neck.
But Bradamante never reached her throat. The space around Sandra distorted, and when his sword cut into the distortion, it felt like slicing through water. Ripples formed, but the blade made no impact.
'This is exactly how Quicantel neutralized my attacks when we first met.'
An Authority that could instantly rewind time to heal a fatal wound, all while ensuring her safety during the process.
This was by no means a low-level Authority.
Click, clack, tick—!
The sound of rapidly interlocking gears grew louder. The only difference was that this noise accompanied Sandra's use of the Authority, whereas Quicantel's was silent.
Murakan also recognized the power, his eyes blinking in shock.
Vigo and the Runcandel knights were barely suppressing their own bewilderment.
'More variables keep appearing that weren't in the mission briefing. From the looks of it, Sandra Zipple’s ability is a product of the bio-golem experiments. Did a pure-blooded Zipple personally become a test subject? And Kelliark’s own daughter, at that!'
As the 6th Flagbearer of Runcandel, Vigo was somewhat aware of the Zipples' biological experiments.
To his knowledge, the Zipples had never used their pure-blood members for such experiments. They had only ever used fanatical followers, commoners, or mages from subordinate families as test subjects.
'Does this mean they’ve achieved results stable enough to experiment on pure-bloods? Or is there another reason?'
Regardless, this discovery alone was a significant gain. Though they hadn't secured Amela, he now had a noteworthy detail to include in his report to Rosa.
As Sandra displayed such an extraordinary power, Vigo found himself subtly gauging Jin and Murakan's reactions. He felt that if they remained on this archipelago a little longer, he might uncover even more significant intelligence to report.
"Whew, I'm getting hurt a lot today. I really hate pain, you know. I'll admit, I'm not much of a fighter."
Sandra shrugged as she straightened her clothes.
"That’s a rather unpleasant ability, Sandra Zipple."
"You're much more handsome in person than on the Golden Tsunami Merchant Group's advertisements. I'm starting to think dating would be much more fun than fighting."
"Shouldn't you be activating the Tower Master's Staff by now?"
"Shall we go grab a meal? Or maybe tea?"
Was she this composed because of her confidence, or was she just incapable of normal conversation?
'Even in my past life, the few times we met, she only ever said whatever she wanted.'
Jin found it difficult to get a read on Sandra Zipple.
"Kyahaha! Do you know how I feel right now? Like a prince who has overcome the obstacle of the Black Dragon Murakan to finally meet his princess!"
Sandra prattled on.
There was no point in continuing a conversation with someone who was impossible to communicate with.
'Subdue and capture her, if possible.'
He reached a conclusion. He needed to investigate the nature of the ability she possessed.
However, he added the condition 'if possible' for a simple reason.
Capturing Sandra would mean the Zipples' bio-golem experiments would be fully exposed to the world once again. It also meant another Great Power could seize and adapt the results of those experiments.
The Zipples wouldn't be that careless.
'I’ve been exploiting their weaknesses since my days as a reserve flagbearer, but they won't just stand by and let Sandra be captured.'
It was highly likely that powerful reinforcements were already on standby—negating the need for her to use the Tower Master's Staff—or that she had some other means of preventing information leaks, much like how the Viment demons oxidized and vanished when they reached their limit.
'No matter how fearless she is, she must have something to rely on to be this bold.'
The Ice-type Sealing he had learned from Valeria.
Jin intended to use it to secure Sandra Zipple as 'evidence.' While countering the Authority of Time seemed difficult, there was no harm in trying.
Wooooong!
Bradamante resonated as it was enveloped in spirit energy and aura.
Sandra hurriedly released her mana and deployed a barrier. A fire-attribute barrier blazed to life, but that was its only accomplishment.
It was cleaved in two with a single strike, and the offensive magic forming in Sandra’s hands as she retreated failed to inflict any damage on Jin.
In contrast, Jin inflicted more than three serious wounds on Sandra before ten seconds had even passed. Including the initial piercing of her collarbone, Sandra had essentially been killed by Jin four times already.
It wasn't that Sandra was weak.
It was simply that Jin had become too strong. This was a fact Vigo and the Guardian Knights, who had witnessed the 'Patriarch Declaration' firsthand, had known for some time.
Except for the beastmen still reeling in panic, the members of Viment and Zipple could only groan inwardly as they watched the fight.
Facing Murakan alone was already beyond them, promising nothing but total annihilation. Seeing the martial prowess of the 12th Flagbearer only reaffirmed their bleak prospects.
That wasn't all.
"My Lord!"
Two figures emerged from the shattered core of turbid energy.
It was the Prochi siblings, who had just awakened from the curse.
"Just give the word, and Fey and I will slaughter them all."
The majestic Black Dragon flapping his wings in the sky and the Ghost Captain's Prochi siblings standing below—they were in a completely different weight class from the opposing forces.
Click, clack, click-clack!
For some reason, Sandra’s regeneration grew faster each time she was wounded. In exchange, she was unable to counterattack, focusing entirely on recovery.
Once her regeneration hit its peak speed, Jin couldn't cut her at all. No matter where he struck, the wound closed before his blade could even pull away.
It was a strange battle.
To an uninformed observer, it might have looked like Jin was one-sidedly bullying a weakling.
Jin continued to slash at Sandra with an expressionless gaze.
Infinite power did not exist in this world.
That was Jin’s belief, and he had always shattered the faith of enemies who claimed to possess infinity. Even Amela, whose turbid energy had been amplified, was no exception.
"Haa, I think I’m really falling for you."
"What?"
For the first time, Jin faltered, his sword halting mid-swing.
At this point, even someone like Jin couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.
'I didn't know a human could be this insane without being corrupted by chaos.'
Jin replied with a smirk.
"What a horrific thing to say."
"Shall we get married? I heard there are marriage talks between you and the Young Lady of the Secret Palace. How about me instead?"
"If you tell me the secret of your super-regeneration, I’ll consider it."
"Really? That’s not a very difficult condition. Have you heard of the Demon God Stone? Using that, we’ve become able to mimic the Authorities of certain gods..."
Boom!
Suddenly, an explosion erupted in the air between Jin and Sandra.
Jin instinctively pulled back. Sandra, unable to react in time, momentarily had half her head vanish.
Space Explosion. Kelliark Zipple's Authority, wielded by Midore Elner.
Murderous intent flickered in Jin’s eyes as he turned his head.
"Lady Sandra! What on earth are you saying?!"
"You damn bastard! What do you think you're doing?! Can't you see I’m having a moment with Jin Runcandel? Weren't you supposed to be well-trained?!"
Midore was so flabbergasted he was at a loss for words. He never imagined Sandra would actually mention the 'Demon God Stone.'
Jin was equally surprised.
'Judging by Midore’s reaction, the Demon God Stone is still a top secret within Zipple. It has to be. They must be extremely cautious about even letting the name become known to the outside world.'
Furthermore, Sandra hadn't just mentioned the name.
She had even revealed that they had 'become able to mimic the Authorities of certain gods.' For Jin, it was an unexpected harvest; for Midore and the Zipples, it was a maddening disaster.
"Interfere one more time, and I'll kill you for real! Do you understand? I'll tear you limb from limb, chew you up, spit you out, and stomp on the pieces! Answer me, you low-born bastard!"
Her voice was vicious, worlds apart from the soft nonsense she had been whispering to Jin just moments ago. Even Murakan let out a hollow laugh at her venomous outburst.
'What a crazy woman...! If I leave her be, I can't even fathom how much more she’ll blabber.'
What should he do?
While Midore was weighing his options, Bradamante drew a sharp arc.
"You bastard, how could you do this to me? You won't even answer—ugh!"
Slice!
Bradamante sliced off Sandra's right hand.
A lapse in guard, or perhaps a drop in concentration.
While Sandra was screaming insults at Midore, her concentration had slipped, and with it, the peak speed of her super-regeneration.
Jin wasn't one to miss such an opening. Unlike before, Sandra’s wound did not heal instantly. Consequently, for the first time since the fight began, she suffered an amputation.
Her severed right arm tumbled toward the ground.
Clink!
Before the arm could hit the ground, Jin had already encased it in an Ice-type Sealing.
He then watched as Sandra’s wound began to close. This time, it wasn't rewinding like before; it was healing with ordinary super-regeneration.
Now that he had obtained evidence, there was no reason to hesitate.
"Murakan!"
[Yeah!]
"Sweep them all away!"
As Jin shouted, Murakan broke into a wide grin.