Chapter 658: Temar’s Fifth Tomb (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 658: Temar’s Fifth Tomb (2)
Jin’s eyes widened.
“Luntia… Sister?”
He hadn’t imagined, even in his wildest dreams, that he would encounter Luntia here instead of Valeria. The thrill that had pulsed through him at finally finding a trace of Valeria curdled into a foul anxiety, like rancid oil.
“Why are you here, Sister?”
Luntia’s cherished rapier, Charles, gleamed with the black sheen of Chaos. For a few seconds, Jin could only stare at his older sister, feeling as though his soul had left his body.
Luntia watched Jin in silence for a time. It was difficult to read the emotions swirling within her eyes, now stained pitch-black.
She, on the other hand, could see Jin’s emotions with perfect clarity.
[You don’t seem pleased to see me.]
Jin repeated her words to himself, his head dropping involuntarily.
A strange and terrible pain, one he had rarely experienced in all his lifetimes, clawed at his insides.
The sorrow of losing family.
That was exactly what this was.
He had already considered that Luntia might have been tainted by Chaos. Still, Jin had hoped the corruption wasn’t yet complete.
Raising his head again, Jin looked at the black horn protruding from his sister’s forehead. She had already crossed the point of no return.
“I believed in you, Sister.”
[Did that much trust truly exist between us?]
Luntia had never been close to any of her siblings.
She had always believed that only Luna gave her life meaning. Her sole desire was to surpass her eldest sister—or, failing that, to simply chase after her for the rest of her life.
Thus, from the moment Luna stepped down from her position as the next patriarch at nineteen, Luntia’s world had become a series of meaningless, colorless days.
The fire in her heart was rekindled in the year 1799.
It was the very day Jin declared his candidacy for the patriarchy.
The incident between Jin and Luntia back then was far from an act of sibling affection. They had simply fought with their lives on the line until one of them fell.
They hadn’t even shared any long conversations after that.
—I, too, shall become the Patriarch.
—I thought there were only fools here, but it seems there’s a real one after all. Let us do our best, Sister.
That was all, but in that moment, Jin had felt a deep bond form between them.
Though they had lived like strangers their entire lives, he felt that through that single fight, they had finally become siblings sharing the same dream.
He thought Luntia had felt the same.
That was why, before his third trip to Laprarosa, Jin had trusted Luntia to be the one to keep the Prophet in check.
“Did Rosa and the Prophet find some weakness to hold over you?”
There was no way Luntia would have accepted Chaos of her own free will. Jin was certain that the schemes of Rosa and the Prophet must have broken her.
At his words, Luntia touched her horn, a sharp smile spreading across her face like a crescent moon.
[What would change if I said yes?]
“There might be a way I can help you.”
[Haha… I wonder if you’re truly the 12th Flagbearer I knew. You’re spouting sentimental nonsense. Wake up, Jin Runcandel. My youngest brother. I stand before you now as your enemy.]
Luntia slowly raised her rapier, Charles, and pointed it at Jin.
[That means the only thing left for you to do is fight. I, too, have waited for this moment for a long time. The moment I can settle the score with you once again.]
Luntia’s black eyes, which had been unreadable until now, flashed with a shimmering murderous intent.
The madness of an Inner Demon.
Though she could converse as if she possessed reason, Luntia was perfectly consumed by Chaos. A deep, fierce bloodlust was already pricking at Jin from the tip of Charles.
Jin forced himself to steady his heart. This was not an opponent he could fight while swayed by sorrow, distress, or guilt.
This battle was unavoidable. If so, it was only right to end it as quickly as possible—for Luntia’s sake, and to save Valeria, who must have been attacked by her.
Gradually, Jin’s eyes hardened. Luntia nodded as if satisfied by his transformation.
[Yes, that’s how it should be. But youngest… you look quite exhausted.]
Clang—!
Luntia suddenly thrust her sword, and Jin dodged to the side.
It was the same thrust that had put him in mortal danger during his patriarch declaration. Luntia’s swordsmanship had reached a much higher level since then.
[And yet, you’ve become mysteriously stronger. Thanks to that, my tedious fate will be a bit more enjoyable. When we first fought, I was also under many restrictions. I’ll consider the fact that you reached me in an exhausted state as payment for that.]
Even stained by Chaos, Luntia had not lost the dignity of a warrior who had reached transcendence, just like Stam, Padler, or Rosa.
The battle began with Luntia pressing Jin. Her Sword Energy left cracks and sharp afterimages throughout the dark subspace, surrounding him.
‘She’s strong. Even more so than Lionel Runcandel.’
In some ways, she felt even more troublesome than when Lionel and Stam had double-teamed him.
Beyond the magnitude of her power, it was because she was ‘dominating’ this subspace.
Charles’s attack trajectory was not a straight line. Every time the rapier moved, the subspace distorted, causing the blade’s path to change randomly according to Luntia’s will.
Jin quickly realized he wasn't just fighting Luntia; he was fighting the entire subspace.
‘Is that why I didn’t feel the Spirit Energy guiding me when I first entered, like in the other tombs? Because Sister Luntia has seized control of the entire tomb?’
Drops of blood trickled from four or five minor wounds. That he had escaped with only that much injury while deciphering the nature of Luntia and the subspace was a testament to his skill.
Crackle!
A bolt of blue lightning flared from Sigmund, tearing through the swarming Sword Energy of Chaos. Then, the two of them simultaneously unleashed the clan’s Secret Technique.
The 5th Secret Technique: Light Speed Thrust, enhanced by their respective abilities—Lightning Energy and Chaos. The two streaks of Sword Energy shot toward each other, aimed to pierce their chests.
However, both had already predicted the other’s attack and were sidestepping in opposite directions.
In an instant, the entire subspace was split in half. The two streaks of Sword Energy that had flown past each other struck the far wall of the subspace in vain.
Luntia stared at that wall for a moment. Jin did not.
[Do you remember? The day I first encountered your Lightning Energy, I protected many knights from you. Even now, I have taken on the role of protecting the clan from you.]
“…How did you get in here?”
[Isn’t the answer obvious?]
“I understand that the Prophet used some kind of trick. But this space was originally prepared for me. I find it difficult to understand why Solderet’s subspace is treating you as if you were its master.”
[The same goes for me. But I suspect what you’re truly curious about is something else.]
“I’ll find the Hister on my own after I defeat you, Sister.”
[You assume that red-haired woman is still alive.]
“It seems you don’t have perfect control over the space, Sister Luntia. Were you unaware that the Hister’s magic still lingers within this subspace?”
Luntia narrowed her eyes.
[Ho. If that’s true, it’s quite interesting. If the magic remains, it means the caster is still alive. I knew that woman had hidden somewhere in here. I was simply certain she would have died by now.]
“Is that because you inflicted a grievous injury on her?”
Luntia nodded.
[I did. If that woman is alive, it’s likely the result of accepting Chaos. She wouldn't have been able to survive without that level of regenerative power.]
Jin didn’t react to her words.
“That won’t be the case, Sister. If it were, the magic I saw would have already been tainted by the energy of Chaos. Regardless, thank you. Thanks to you, I’m even more certain that the Hister survived.”
[Now all that’s left is to defeat me and save that woman?]
As she spoke, Luntia showed signs of displeasure for the first time.
[You and Sister Luna are always like that. You labor under the delusion that you can naturally defeat your opponent and seize what you want in any situation.]
“In reality, that has always been the case. This time will be no different.”
The subspace began to vibrate in response to Luntia’s anger. Jin couldn't tell if her sudden rage was simply due to her madness or if there was another reason.
Ever since he had regained his composure, Luntia’s words no longer wounded him. None of them were being spoken by the ‘real Luntia Runcandel.’
Even Ron Hairan had resented Jin from within Gliek’s Abyss.
“I will soon put a stop to the madness that has consumed you, Sister.”
Aura gathered in Jin’s Heart of Light.
‘Dragging this battle out is a disadvantage.’
He had started the fight heavily exhausted, whereas Luntia was in perfect condition. Furthermore, she was using the entire subspace as her own energy and showed signs of instantly recovering from any injury through Chaos.
If possible, he had to end it in one blow.
‘I also have to consider the combat situation after I leave… but for that, it’s better to trust the Zipple and Kinzelo sides.’
If he tried to conserve his strength, he wouldn't be able to avoid a serious injury.
[You intend to unleash the sword from the day of your patriarch declaration…]
“Unlike then, you have nothing to protect now, Sister.”
But just like then, you will not be able to withstand this sword.
As Jin followed up with those unspoken words and began to unleash Pluto’s Sovereign Sword, Luntia broke into a wide grin.