Chapter 472: Massacre, and the Strange... (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 472: Massacre, and the Strange... (6)
‘Ah…’
‘What… what is happening?’
Myuron and Midore felt a strange, hollowing sensation, as if something were being drained from the very depths of their bodies.
It was their souls, or perhaps their very spirits.
The situation felt utterly surreal.
Just now, with a single breath, it had been completely destroyed. No, “completely destroyed” was an understatement. What kind of ship could be reduced to mere powder?
It was a mass-produced version of the Kozec, the Zipple Clan’s ultimate weapon, known by the epithet “The Power that Destroys the World.”
Even as a mass-produced model, the developers of the original Kozec had guaranteed it possessed over fifty percent of the original's maximum performance. It wasn't the kind of thing that could be churned out easily just because it was a mass-produced item.
In other words, it was a ship that should never have been destroyed so completely. The Kozec 2 Myuron was a vessel built to rule the world.
Patter, clatter, thud…!
That very ship was now falling from the sky like rain.
Earlier, it had been a rain of black ice spikes; now, it was a rain of fragments from a colossal vessel. Tens, hundreds of thousands of jagged pieces stained the air black like a swarm of insects.
In truth, if Myuron and the passengers had been fully prepared from the start, activating their shields the moment they appeared, they wouldn't have been defeated so pathetically.
‘My… my ship…! My Kozec 2 Myuron!’
It had been smashed into smithereens.
Bloodshot veins bulged in Myuron’s sickly, pale blue eyes.
Was it only the ship that had been destroyed?
No. Mixed in with the raining debris were not just ship materials, but human flesh and bone.
The hundreds of mages on board had been annihilated as well.
To make matters worse, today was supposed to be the debut for the Kozec 2 Myuron and those mages since their "revival." Their opponents for this debut were none other than Jin and Murakan—the very ones who had killed Myuron in the first place.
There couldn't have been a better stage for a debut, yet the result was this wretched.
[What’s this? Is he crying? Crying? Is that bastard actually crying right now?]
Murakan raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes.
Though the distance was considerable and the debris obscured his view, it seemed as if tears were glistening in the corners of Myuron’s eyes.
“B-Brother! Brother Myuron!”
Midore’s voice, desperately calling out to Myuron, was parched and cracked.
It only made their shattered dignity—and the entire situation—all the more absurd, but this was no time for embarrassment.
“Brother, you must keep your wits about you! Brother Myuron!”
[Ah.]
[Hey, show me something before you completely lose your minds. Especially you! You went through all the trouble of coming back from the dead; the least you could do is provide some decent entertainment for the great Murakan.]
Murakan snorted, finding the brothers’ despondent state absurd.
Meanwhile, Vigo and the Runcandel knights were falling into a different kind of misunderstanding. They didn't know that the Kozec 2 Myuron was inferior to the original.
It was only natural. The Kozec 2 Myuron and the Cube that summoned it had only just been revealed to the world for the first time.
‘He… he destroyed a Kozec with a single breath?’
‘A Kozec?’
‘No, that ship was even larger than a Kozec. The only person in the world who could destroy a Kozec like that… is Father.’
The Viment members were thinking the exact same thing as the Runcandels.
Within their realm of common sense, destroying a Kozec-class vessel with a single breath was impossible—unless one was the world's only 10-star Knight, Cyron Runcandel.
The rumors surrounding Murakan's power were about to spiral even further into myth.
[Ha, look at that. I don't remember him being the type to blubber like that back in the day. Don't you agree, kid?]
Jin didn't answer. His gaze was fixed on Myuron, Midore, and the Cube Midore was holding.
To be precise, he couldn't answer. Like everyone else present—and unlike Murakan—Jin was utterly speechless.
However, unlike the others, his shock wasn't due to Murakan’s power.
There were facts that everyone else was forgetting, preoccupied as they were with the shocking sight of a ship being pulverized by a single breath.
First, the resurrection.
Myuron had been resurrected in a way that clearly didn't involve Numerus’s Tears.
‘Myuron’s resurrection must be the power of a Demon God Stone, much like Sandra’s regenerative abilities. I knew something was wrong when the Zipple main force intervened, preventing us from securing Myuron’s corpse at Colon.’
Myuron’s resurrection had occurred after a "new Demon God Stone" had been created.
When his body was first recovered by the Zipple, Luna had already destroyed their first Demon God Stone—the one Andrei Zipple had possessed.
—The Zipple must have promised you eternal life, supreme power, or something similar. And you likely witnessed clear evidence of this with your own eyes.
—It was probably a Demon God Stone. I’ve personally seen the dead resurrected and granted immense power by that strange object. It was a mysterious power that anyone would be tempted by.
—But Barton, do you know? I have already experienced a Demon God Stone being shattered by a Runcandel sword. Even my father is aware of that object's existence. So, do not dream of anything. The death you face today is final. Resurrection, eternal life—such vain things will not happen.
Suddenly, the words he had spoken to Barton Vichena during the Black Knight assassination mission came back to him.
In truth, resurrection itself wasn't that surprising. He had already witnessed the Demon God Stone save Buretta during his battle with Andrei as a reserve flagbearer.
What truly surprised Jin was the existence of the "Cube" rather than the resurrection.
‘What on earth is that Cube?’
He didn't think it was a Demon God Stone. He doubted Midore would be holding such a vital object so carelessly at a moment like this. It also looked completely different from the one Andrei had.
‘One could argue the shape changed through refinement, but it lacks that characteristic, skin-crawling sensation. Above all, Murakan isn't reacting to it.’
Demon God Stones triggered an instinctive fear in dragons. While Murakan had shown some immunity when fighting Andrei, Quicantel had been rendered practically combat-ineffective the moment she saw one.
If so, the answer was simple.
‘New technology. A new means of warfare.’
He didn't know the Cube's operating principle, but its use was very clear.
Summoning.
‘That is a type of teleport gate. One that is incomparably smaller than current gates and possesses far superior performance. It might even be something far more incredible than I can possibly imagine.’
None of the currently used teleport gates could move this many people at once. Moving a massive flying ship was entirely out of the question.
Thump, thump!
Suddenly, his heart began to pound like a drum.
Before his eyes was a specimen representing the "never-before-leaked ultimate technology" of the world's greatest family and Runcandel’s greatest nemesis.
‘Perhaps the reason Joshua and the top flagbearers of other factions went somewhere other than the Gaifa Archipelago is related to that technology.’
If he could obtain it, it would be an even greater prize than Amela becoming a tentative ally.
[He’s still blubbering. Ugh, I can't stand the sight of it. Just die already, you're annoying me.]
Fwoooo—!
Murakan gathered his breath again to kill Myuron, Midore, and the remaining survivors.
“Stop, Murakan!”
[Gah, cough!]
Murakan, who had been about to unleash his breath, hastily choked it back and coughed.
[Ah, why all of a sudden?]
Jin was already charging toward Midore, a fierce glint in his eyes.
“Kuh, damn it!”
Boom! Bang!
Midore screamed and unleashed Space Explosions to keep Jin from approaching.
However, Space Explosions could not easily pierce through the Rune of Mul-ta and the Spirit Energy Armor. The Jin Midore had faced at Colon and the Jin of today were on completely different levels.
Midore had also put in extreme effort, grinding his teeth to become stronger for the sake of revenge, but their fundamental capacities and resolve were different from the start.
It was an insurmountable gap.
“I have never forgotten the trouble you gave me at Colon, Midore Elner.”
Swish!
Bradamante drew a diagonal line.
It was a strike so swift that even a 10-star warrior would struggle to react, let alone a mage like Midore. All he could do was flinch.
His mana was depleted from trying to block Murakan’s attacks earlier. He could no longer properly deploy shields, nor could he muster the strength for a counterattack.
His trusted brother was lost in a panic, muttering to himself even as their mortal enemy passed him by to strike at his younger sibling. He had completely lost his mind.
Spurt—!
A fountain of blood erupted as Midore’s right arm was severed and his chest was slashed open. Through the crimson droplets, the Cube, emitting a gloomy blue light, rose into the air.
Mana with the attribute of ice enveloped the Cube.
‘There’s bound to be a device to prevent security leaks.’
As expected, there was. Just as the Viment demons had self-destructed to leave no trace.
In the Cube's case, it was an explosion. Sensing the threat, it was about to detonate.
Hmph!
Jin momentarily thrust Bradamante into the ground and cupped the Cube with both hands, deploying an Ice-type Sealing.
The explosion was unavoidable, but by pulling it to his chest, he could contain the blast and preserve as much of its original form as possible.
A thunderous roar erupted within his hands and against his chest. It was an intense explosion that felt as if it would shatter his fingers and ribs despite his blessed Steel Body and Spirit Energy Armor.
When he finally opened his hands, the Cube was a mangled mess, but most of its components appeared intact.
‘With this much damage, it can definitely be analyzed. By world-class researchers, at least.’
A smile of satisfaction naturally formed on his face.
On the other hand, Midore, his hair standing on end and his eyes bloodshot, screamed.
“Myuron, you pathetic fool! You call yourself a Zipple? How could you disappoint me like this?! The years I spent coughing up blood just to live for your revenge… I regret them bitterly!”
Snap!
Midore pointed the staff in his left hand at Jin.
It was a Tower Master’s staff, and the rune characters for summoning the main force were glowing.
“You wanted to kill me? Fine, Jin Runcandel. Kill me. But my revenge will not end today.”
Midore believed Jin had made a mistake.
He thought that in Jin's eagerness to obtain the Cube specimen, he had failed to account for the Tower Master’s staff.
However, the only reason Midore had been able to activate the staff was that Jin had intentionally left his left arm intact.
“With super-regeneration and resurrection, it seems death has become quite cheap for the Zipple. But Midore Elner, don't you think you've done something foolish?” Jin said as he strode toward Midore.
“If you had more of those Cubes, it might be different, but calling the main force with that staff is far too slow, isn't it? By the time those bastards arrive here, I’ll probably be back home, taking a warm bath and eating dinner.”
“If it hadn't been for Talaris that day, you…!”
“Should you ever appear before me again, I'll take it as proof that the Zipple can resurrect someone even without a corpse. So let's make sure we never see each other again, Midore Elner.”
Squelch!
Jin spoke as he severed Midore’s head.