Chapter 507: The Real and the Fake
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 507: The Real and the Fake
It was a development no one had anticipated.
However, Jin had intended to use Joshua this way from the moment their escape began.
This was a crisis that could only be overcome if someone made a sacrifice. And among the group, the only one whose death wouldn't matter was, of course, Joshua’s clone.
In his heart, Jin desperately wanted to save Jane as well.
But Jane was already in a state where she could not be revived without the legacy of Numerus. Realistically, she stood no chance of buying them enough time against ten members of the Wraith Squad and their incoming reinforcements.
A brief silence followed.
"I was going to, even if you hadn't said anything."
When Joshua answered in a calm voice, even Jane looked back at him, startled.
The one most shocked, however, was Dipus.
"What? Joshua, are you serious?"
"2nd Flagbearer, you won't survive if you stay with me."
"I suppose it's better to risk my life now than when fighting the Tower Keeper."
"Joshua, what are you thinking?"
"It's exactly as it seems, Dipus. I am simply making a choice for the good of the clan. If you have a problem with it, why don't you step up in my place?"
"I couldn't possibly have a problem with it. A nuisance is offering to solve himself. It's just that I know you better than anyone, Brother, and you're not the type to give up your life so easily."
There was no time for a long conversation.
"I'll see you later, 2nd Flagbearer."
Whish!
Joshua unfastened the Black Sword Kiner from his waist and threw it to Jin. He saw no reason for the sword to be lost, even if the clone died.
"I'll retrieve it upon your return."
"I also thought it would be a waste to lose the sword, but if I do this, what will I fight with—"
As Jin spoke, Joshua’s eyes suddenly turned black, even the whites.
—If even this isn't enough, I'll have to consider... using that power.
It was the thought Joshua had kept to himself during his battle with Hedo.
The power he had hesitated to use then was now staining his eyes with a murky black light and forming a new sword in his grip.
‘Joshua, you bastard, what is this?!’
‘What is this power? It looks like the kind that girl with the brambles uses.’
‘…Turbid energy?’
The aura enveloping Joshua was similar to the turbid energy of Amela, whom they had encountered in the Gaifa Archipelago.
However, it felt far denser and more refined; Joshua’s turbid energy was almost the same color as spirit energy.
‘I expected the Prophet to be deeply connected to Chaos… but can she also strengthen others with turbid energy like this?’
The Wraith Squad, having formed their ranks, simultaneously unleashed beams of pure white mana from their staves. It was a concentrated barrage aimed at Joshua, who had just begun to move.
The group was shocked once again as he effortlessly blocked or deflected every single beam with a shield of dark energy.
‘There's no way this is his actual skill. Is this also the Prophet's power?’ Dipus narrowed his eyes.
Joshua was certainly a strong warrior, but he was by no means a superhuman. Furthermore, he had just been through a fierce battle and was nursing internal injuries. It should have been impossible for him to so casually repel the attacks of ten Wraith Squad members.
[I cannot maintain this state for long. I will hold them back as much as I can, so make sure you get the spoils back to the clan.]
Jin and Murakan, who knew he was a clone, remained composed, but Dipus felt a strange sense of unease. He had always wished for Joshua’s death, but he had never imagined the end would come like this.
Of course, he was merely stunned; this was no sentimental realization that his feelings for Joshua were a mix of love and hate rather than pure animosity.
"Well, I don't know what you're really thinking, but I'd better go before you change your mind. If this is the end, Brother, at least make it a good one. You're in front of the enemy. It'll never happen, but if by some miracle you make it back alive, I'll kill you with my own hands then."
Before leaving, Jin and Dipus offered a sword salute to Jane’s back.
She was swinging her sword at the mana beams being fired toward the group.
Slash—!
It was a vertical strike, impossibly fast and precise for someone already standing at death's door.
Jane was burning the last of her life force. Like a fire flaring brilliantly one last time before being extinguished, her sword momentarily surpassed the realm she had spent her life reaching. She took one step beyond, carrying the weight of her duty on her back.
Three members of the Wraith Squad closed in to suppress her. The others seemed intent on striking Jin’s group, who were already moving away.
[Close-quarters combat against a Runcandel? Are you not underestimating us?]
Clang—!
Two of the staves descending on Jane were intercepted by Joshua’s sword. Jane deflected the last, which had morphed into a spear and lunged at her.
[And a Black Knight, at that.]
Slice!
One of the three who had rushed in never heard Joshua’s words.
His head had been severed by a single flash from Jane, who had lunged straight into his guard. Her reckless advance earned her a stab to the shoulder, but the wound could not dull her final resolve.
The Wraith Squad faltered as their comrade’s head tumbled to the ground.
No matter how much they respected the Black Knights of the sword clan, they never imagined that a body so close to being a corpse could achieve such a result in a single strike. They had expected Jane wouldn't even be able to inflict a meaningful wound, let alone decapitate one of them.
‘What was that? Moltan was killed in one hit?’
‘How? It’s a miracle she’s even standing!’
‘This is why those Runcandels are so damn unpleasant. This incomprehensible power they manifest at the very end…’
Jane simply stared at the Wraith Squad members as they backed away, forcibly snapping her dislocated shoulder back into place.
"You shall not pass… Zipple."
Though her body was torn and broken, her eyes shone with a chilling light.
The remaining nine members of the Wraith Squad felt a shiver run down their spines as they met her gaze. Even with a nine-to-two advantage, an indescribable, eerie sensation tightened its grip on their chests.
They could have split their forces—some to stay, others to pursue. Given the difference in strength, it was the logical choice. However, the Wraith Squad was seized by a powerful intuition: if they carelessly left only four or five members behind, they would suffer irreversible losses.
‘It’s not just the Black Knight. Joshua Runcandel’s martial prowess has suddenly surged.’
‘We cannot lose another member so pointlessly. Squads 4, 5, 6, and the main force will arrive soon. We will finish these two here for certain before resuming the pursuit!’
‘Surely Sandra Zipple won't play her crazy game of love to the very end and help them escape. Without Hedo, she can't provide any meaningful help on her own anyway.’
The Wraith Squad reformed their ranks. Those who had intended to chase Jin’s group began to fully release their mana, drawing magic circles in the air.
"It seems you've finally decided to get serious, ghosts."
[It is an honor to fight alongside you in your final battle, Sir Jane.]
Joshua stood back-to-back with her.
"…2nd Flagbearer. It seems the rumors were true."
Jane spoke those words before thanking him for joining the fight.
[Rumors?]
"That you are not one, but many."
Her tone was dry, but Joshua could clearly feel the deep contempt hidden within it. It was the first time he had seen a Black Knight reveal such raw emotion.
[…Is that a crime?]
Jane did not answer.
[No matter what you think, I am upholding the clan's highest values in my own way.]
Although she harbored a desire to serve Jin, it wasn't a lie that Jane had followed Joshua under Rosa’s orders all this time. She had done so because she believed it was the path of loyalty to the clan.
But she was also human. And a human facing her own death.
She couldn't help but feel disappointed.
"The struggle… is that what you mean?"
[It is.]
The sky was turning red from the mana saturating the air. The Wraith Squad’s exclusive chain magic, 'Red Abyss'—which Jin had first witnessed during his initial encounter with them—was unfolding.
Sigh…
Jane took a long, steady breath.
"It is something… you should be utterly ashamed of, Joshua Runcandel."
Like a rain of blood, particles of red mana converged in the sky, transforming into blades and chains that poured down upon them.
Clang, thud—!
Jane’s first move against the Red Abyss was to strike away a scarlet blade hurtling toward Joshua’s back.
Thump!
At that sight, Joshua felt something surge within his chest—a familiar and terrible emotion.
Self-loathing.
A monster that had taken root in the deepest part of his soul and had never once left him.
[What… what do you know that gives you the right to speak so recklessly!]
Joshua shouted, cutting down a chain descending toward Jane’s head. His black-stained eyes trembled.
"The only saving grace is…"
[Despite the harsh contempt from my father, my sister, my brothers, and sometimes even my mother… through thousands of failures, I never once gave up! I was more desperate than anyone!]
"…that I have dedicated my final glory to the real one, not the fake."
Their swords crossed incessantly.
As they struck down the red blades and chains falling into each other's blind spots, an observer might have mistaken them for trying to cut each other down.
[Why won't you acknowledge me…! No one! Not a single person…!]
Amidst the roar of two swords clashing against the mana of nine mages, his cry, which was closer to a scream, scattered into the air.
How much time passed?
Eventually, Jane’s flame flickered out.
Stab!
A blade from the Red Abyss pierced through her back.
Just a moment ago, she had been swinging her sword like a vengeful ghost, but now, she had stopped moving completely. Her body had reached a point where neither will nor any transcendent power could command it.
[Damn it, Jane!]
Joshua reflexively thrust out with his sword, but it was impossible to protect her, and meaningless even if he had succeeded.
Just as her body, impaled by chains and blades, was about to be torn apart, Jane looked clearly at Joshua one last time.
I hope my end serves as a lesson to you.
Thus, Jane, a Black Knight of Runcandel, met her end.
Amidst the Red Abyss where her body disintegrated, the remaining fake continued the battle alone.