Chapter 666: To the Enemy's Holy Land (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 666: To the Enemy's Holy Land (4)
'A swordsman…?'
At a glance, Jin noticed that Veradin’s palms were smooth and unblemished, lacking the calluses characteristic of those who had mastered the blade.
* * *
“The Young Master is unavailable, Jin Runcandel.”
“I’d like to know why.”
“That boy is no longer the Veradin Zipple you once knew. Right now… he is in a state akin to a newborn.”
“A… newborn? I’d appreciate it if you explained that in a way I can understand, Captain of the Wraith Squad.”
“It is exactly as it sounds. Currently, Veradin has lost everything—language, accumulated knowledge, mana, habits… and all of his memories.”
That was the conversation he’d had with Octavia during the first meeting of the temporary alliance not long ago.
It was information that Yuria herself had verified. At the time of that meeting, Veradin had truly been little more than an empty shell.
'Has Veradin changed so much in such a short time?'
It was difficult to imagine him in a newborn-like state, given how composed and business-like he was now. There was a certain sharpness in his disciplined stride, and along with it, Jin detected a familiar energy.
'Aura…'
It was incredibly faint, not even reaching 1-star strength, but it was unmistakably Aura. In fact, he sensed even less mana from Veradin than he did Aura.
A magic swordsman.
For years, Jin had suspected that the bio-golem experiments the Zipples were conducting were intended to create magic swordsmen. He just hadn't expected to see the potential results of those experiments in Veradin, of all people, at a time like this.
“Veradin Zipple.”
“What is it?”
“I heard that until recently, you’d lost your memories and were completely helpless. You seem to have recovered remarkably quickly.”
“It’s been about a week since I’ve been able to manage on my own.”
“Have any memories of me or Dante returned?”
Veradin came to a dead stop and looked back at Jin, who was following slowly while carrying the sealed Valeria in his arms.
He couldn’t walk quickly. Throughout the five-day flight, Jin had maintained Valeria’s seal without a single moment of rest, and he was doing the same now. His mana wasn't depleted, but the drain on his mental strength was immense. A cold sweat beaded on his brow.
“Many people have asked me about you and the Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle.”
Veradin stepped beside Jin and placed a hand on Valeria’s seal. Immediately, mana began to seep effortlessly into the complex ward, without any of the visible strain Jin had been showing.
“I remember nothing.”
“I see.”
Thanks to Veradin taking over the maintenance of the seal, Jin could now walk with much more ease. He didn't ask about Veradin’s abilities.
“However, I was curious. Many people tried to help me recover my memories, so why did they only ever speak of you or the Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle, rather than members of my own family?”
Their strides began to fall into sync.
“What were you curious about?”
“Isn’t it strange? Setting aside the Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle, our families have been sworn enemies for a thousand years. We may have formed a temporary alliance out of necessity, but before that, we were ready to destroy each other at any given opportunity.”
“Well, there were strange things. Especially you.”
“I was strange?”
Seeing him react with a jolt, Jin thought he saw a glimpse of the old Veradin. He even briefly wondered if this was all an elaborate prank.
But that was all. Even without Yuria’s verification, the man before him was not the Veradin he once knew.
“Yes. You were strange from the moment we first met.”
“Now I’m even more curious. Can you tell me more?”
“No.”
When Jin refused flatly, Veradin shrugged as if disappointed. After walking for a few more minutes, he subtly pulled his hand away from Valeria’s seal.
“If you won't tell me, then I feel there's no need for me to continue showing you this kindness.”
“You call this kindness? It’ll just be a bit more inconvenient for me; maintaining the seal on my own isn’t a problem.”
“Hmm.”
“Besides, your actions don't align with the Zipples' purpose for opening the Holy Land. I won't fail to maintain the seal, but in this world, there's always a one-in-a-million chance. I wonder how your family would react if that happened.”
“You have an irritating way of speaking, just as I’ve heard…”
Veradin placed his hand back on the seal. Though he had just backed down, his expression remained unchanged.
Beyond the door, the path leading to the Holy Land was a bizarre sight. The ordinary corridor of stone and metal began to blur the deeper they went, the effect just like Orgal’s hazy physical form. It was not a landscape one could find in the human world.
'There wasn't a separate entrance to a subspace, but it feels like the boundaries of the world are starting to blur.'
Like watercolors in the rain, the colors and textures of the space bled into afterimages.
“How much further?”
“I cannot tell you.”
“It’s not hard to keep track of time myself. Is even that a secret?”
“No. It’s because the time it takes to reach the Holy Land varies. It depends on how much the Holy Land welcomes our visit.”
“So it has its mysterious side, fitting for such a grand name.”
“I heard that the last time I visited, it took fifteen days. They say that was before I completely lost my memories.”
“Then there must be a reason you didn't prepare rations, even though it could take that long.”
“Yes. Once the afterimages of the corridor vanish… you no longer feel hunger in the Holy Land. In fact, the more you walk, the lighter your body feels.”
Just as he said, Jin felt his stamina recovering rapidly after crossing the 'boundary.' His mind, which had been dizzy from maintaining the seal, had also become perfectly clear.
Still, Jin tried to calculate the time by counting his steps, but strangely, as his body and mind grew more energized, the very concept of 'time' grew faint. It became difficult to even roughly estimate one second per step. After counting just a few times, he would lose his place and find himself starting over from one again.
'Is it because there's a time discrepancy between the Holy Land and the human world, like in other subspaces? It’s a bizarre sensation.'
Though he couldn't tell how long they had walked, the two soon spotted a single streak of green light in the distance.
'Residual energy.'
It was the very energy he had glimpsed through Orgal’s Steel Gate. In the dark and hazy landscape that felt like being underwater, only that residual energy radiated a vibrant brilliance.
“We’ve arrived.”
Standing before the green energy, they placed their hands on it simultaneously, as if by unspoken agreement. Then, as if a switch had been flipped across the entire world, their surroundings were instantly dyed green.
It was no different from the ‘Holy Land of several hundred years ago’ that Orgal had shown him: a landscape that looked like a sea, or perhaps a desert, glowing with an emerald light.
“Now, release the Hister’s seal. As soon as the Hister is recovered, we will leave the Holy Land.”
Now that he had actually reached the Holy Land and was about to release the seal, a surge of anxiety rose within him. What if the residual energy had no effect on Valeria? What if there was no way to seal her again?
Just as his mind was about to be clouded by such doubts, Jin saw Valeria stir within the seal. Even before it was fully released, she had begun to react to the residual energy of the Holy Land. The pale ward was already being tinged with green.
“You’ve come all this way only to worry about such things,” Veradin said, as if he had read Jin’s thoughts.
“As you said, your family and mine are mortal enemies.”
“There is a reason we went so far as to open the Holy Land to a direct descendant of the Runcandels to save a Hister. You know that better than anyone, don't you?”
“That sounds like you intend to dispose of me as soon as she is recovered.”
“There were quite a few who argued for that.”
“Octavia and Kadun?”
“No. Mostly the elders.”
Jin had come to enemy territory—and to its innermost sanctum—with only the injured Valeria.
* * *
“Since they say only I can face Rosa, the weight on my shoulders feels a bit heavy. Kinzelo at least has the variable of Orgal’s recovery; does Zipple have no trump card at all?”
“…We do.”
“I didn't think hearing that the enemy has hidden strength would make me so happy. Tell me what it is. I believe this is a question that needs an answer, since it’s for the sake of facing a common enemy.”
“History Manipulation. However, it is a means that can never be realized without the survivor of the Hister family, your ally.”
* * *
During the first meeting of the temporary alliance, Ronil had said that the Zipples could face Rosa through 'History Manipulation.'
In truth, Jin coming here now was an act of madness. It was a choice he would never have made if not for Valeria and his comrades. He couldn't even escape from here with the help of the Red Owl or Mort. If the Zipples didn't keep their word, Jin would inevitably fall into a desperate crisis.
“But my father personally opposed it. Aren't you curious why?”
“Because you need to keep using me to deal with Rosa.”
The Zipples, and Kinzelo as well, would not want to lose him—the only one immune to Chaos—at this point. That was why the highest-ranking members of each faction had personally come to support them on the Caldran Snowy Plains.
What Jin trusted as he stepped into the heart of enemy territory was that fact, and his own martial prowess.
“Exactly. And I thought the same. It seems unlikely that we will complete History Manipulation through the Hister before the Evil God fully awakens. At this point, you are certainly a more important pawn to our family than the Hister.”
Whether it was a lie or the truth, Veradin spoke as if there was no longer any reason to hide the matter of History Manipulation.
“Me, the most important pawn to the Zipples… that’s not a pleasant thing to hear. If my guide were anyone but you, they would have been punched at least once by now.”
Jin slowly began to release Valeria’s seal. It wasn't because he believed everything Veradin said. He simply judged it best to recover her according to the plan and leave as quickly as possible.
“And, Jin Runcandel.”
“What?”
“It seems I made a promise to you before I lost my memories.”
“A promise?”
“That even if you were to show up at our family's doorstep unannounced one day, I would save your life once.”
* * *
“Consider yourself lucky this is a banquet hall.”
“Hehe, aren't you being too cold? I know, too. That your father showed mercy to my uncle. Since we're on the subject, I'll make a promise as well. Even if you visit a Zipple banquet unannounced one day, I will not harm you.”
* * *
That was a conversation they had shared at the Single-log Bridge Party, held just before Jin became a reserve flagbearer. Veradin wasn't remembering the conversation; he was recounting a record from one of his few remaining diaries.
“It was even written that I would save you at least once, even if you committed an act of terror against our family. How could I not be curious about our relationship?”
“I told you earlier that the old you was a strange guy, didn't I? We weren't even particularly close when we had that conversation. To be precise, we weren't even friends.”
“Then it seems only the 'me' of that time considered us friends. At any rate, if I say I will keep that promise now, will that lower your guard, even a little?”
Suppressing a trace of bitterness, Jin replied.
“It’s not exactly trustworthy, but it’s not an unpleasant thing to hear.”