Chapter 678: Chasing the Sword (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 678: Chasing the Sword (3)
The sword had been flying for four full days. For four days, it had swept across the entire continent and its waters without a single moment of rest.
It moved with such blistering speed that the group had only managed to stay on its tail for the first ten minutes. Since then, they had been forced to rely on air defense networks and eyewitness reports from their allies and the Barmul Alliance.
[Dammit, where is it even going?] Quicantel growled, her voice laced with irritation.
This sudden, unforeseen emergency had forced her to fly across the world for four days without a second of sleep. Of course, a four-day flight was usually nothing for a dragon, but maintaining this breakneck pace was a grueling task. She had never imagined a day would come when she’d be locked in a high-speed chase with a sword.
"My sword… my sword… will I ever get it back…?"
Like any true warrior, Hedo cherished his longsword. Not only was there no blacksmith in the current era capable of forging such a masterpiece, but it was also a prize he had earned after a life-or-death struggle against a monster of the Black Sea in his youth.
With that very sword now wreaking havoc in the skies, Hedo’s stomach was in knots.
As Hedo sat there, his pale complexion a stark contrast to his muscular frame, Sandra offered her typically unhelpful words of comfort.
"It’s a shame the sword ran away, but on the bright side, we’re on a four-day aerial date with my darling and Hedo! Let’s be positive. This will be an unforgettable memory!"
Everyone else riding on Quicantel’s back felt a surge of respect for Hedo, who somehow managed to refrain from inflicting physical harm on Sandra for her comments.
"The destination is finally coming into focus, Quicantel. Please bear with it a little longer," Jin said. "Tower Keeper, I ask for your patience as well. I have nothing to say but that I am sorry."
Until now, Hedo’s sword, Vail, had been acting like a rabid dog, darting in every direction. It would head north only to pivot south, or race east before veering west, driving its pursuers to the brink of insanity. It almost felt as if the sword were intentionally mocking them.
Naturally, over those four days, the news had spread far beyond the Garden of Swords, the Zipple, and Kinzelo.
"Lord… what in the world is that?"
"Is that some kind of black meteor?"
"Oh no, isn't that a remnant of chaos!? We have to run!"
Fishermen across the seas had seen it.
"Is that… could that be a remnant of chaos!?"
"The Silver Dragon Quicantel is chasing it!"
"Ooh, I see the 12th Flagbearer and the Barmul Alliance too! They must be suppressing the chaos!"
"Jin Runcandel!"
"A toast to the Prince Regent and Jin Runcandel!"
Even people in cities living peaceful lives under the protection of the Barmul Alliance, Dante, and the other great powers had become aware of it. In other words, within four days, more people in the world knew about the situation than those who didn't. Secretly entering Temar’s sixth tomb had become an impossibility.
"Sorry? Does an apology bring Vail back to me?"
"I will take responsibility and find a way to compensate you for the damages."
"It’s already past the point of no return! My lady and I have already been spotted by the family’s ships!"
Just as he said, the group had already encountered pursuit teams from other factions several times while tracking the sword. This meant that Runcandel’s Chaos Dragons, the Zipple’s Black Ships, and the vessels and dragons of Kinzelo had all seen Sandra and Hedo.
—Sir Hedo…?!
—Isn't that Lady Sandra beside him? Why are the two of them, who went on vacation with the 12th Flagbearer…?
—Come to think of it, that flying object looks remarkably similar to Sir Hedo’s sword.
In particular, Hedo’s massive, muscular build was so distinctive that anyone who had seen him once could recognize him from a distance. There was no way to feign ignorance. It wasn't that they hadn't tried; it had simply been useless.
Consequently, Hedo was already dreading the prospect of explaining himself upon his return.
Currently, the Barmul Alliance and the Zipple were in a temporary alliance, and Hedo held a position that afforded him special treatment within the clan. The problem, however, was that he hadn't reported any of this in advance.
"Why is that a problem? The moment you came out with me, it was obvious you were going on a date with Jin."
"It’s a problem because we didn't report that I was helping the 12th Flagbearer examine the sword, My Lady…"
"Tower Keeper, why didn't you report it?"
It was because he didn't want things to get complicated. Hedo had also neglected to inform his family that Vail had played a decisive role when they entered the fifth tomb. Although he had already verified his ancestry, he knew that if the Zipple suspected any connection between him and the Old Runcandel, he would be subjected to a series of annoying procedures.
Furthermore, he was hiding the fact that he had escaped the snowy plains earlier than the other Zipples, all thanks to Jin. For Hedo, the situation was incredibly uncomfortable.
"I didn't know things would get this twisted."
Though he had been taking his temper out on Jin the whole time, Hedo knew this was his own blunder.
Have I become too complacent because of the consideration shown by the Patriarch and the leadership? I was far too negligent.
He wasn't particularly worried about being disciplined for this incident.
The problem was Sandra.
—Is it because you are protecting Sandra Zipple?
—Yes.
—I don't understand. Does the protection you speak of include tolerating a certain level of experimentation on her?
That was the conversation he’d had with Jin right before the sword went wild. As those words implied, the only reason Sandra had avoided "critically fatal" experiments until now was Hedo’s presence.
The Zipple knew exactly what Hedo wanted. He didn't desire more power, a chance to fight stronger opponents, or a position of absolute authority.
He only wanted Sandra to survive.
That was why the Zipple turned a blind eye when Hedo occasionally broke the rules. They didn't launch serious investigations even when something suspicious occurred involving him. In the end, the results of Hedo’s actions always benefited Sandra, and thus, benefited the Zipple.
But this case was different.
If Jin became stronger because of Hedo’s sword, or if a problem arose regarding the historical manipulation surrounding the Old Runcandel, Hedo would have no defense if the Zipple decided to threaten Sandra.
If a full-scale investigation begins, it might even come to light that I killed the Wraith Squad in the Sota Desert and let the 12th Flagbearer’s group escape by pretending Ainas defeated me…
Hedo desperately hoped that this mess would conclude cleanly enough to prevent that from ever happening.
His wish, however, would not be granted.
[Haa… haa… The sword… it stopped!] Quicantel announced, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
They were in the middle of the territorial waters that Huphester called the Sea of Swords and the Lutero Magic Federation called the Sea of Magic.
"We passed this place on the first day, Quicantel. You're saying the destination was here all along?"
"It might just be stopping for a moment… but fortunately, it doesn't seem like it."
As Jin answered, the sword came to a complete halt for the first time since it had taken flight. The blade, which had been rotating slowly like the hand of a clock, soon pointed straight down at the ocean.
As if it were about to strike.
Fwoosh— Shaaaaa!
With a tremendous roar that sounded as if the very air was being torn apart, the sword plunged into the center of the sea.
Then, something incredible happened.
Rumble…!
The sea was literally turned upside down.
As if a giant had scooped up mountains and hurled them like pebbles, an indescribably massive ripple erupted from the point of impact, and the soaring seawater reached for the clouds.
Quicantel and her companions threw up shields to push back the deluge. The force pressing against them was as heavy as a full-powered strike from a high-level master. The entire world seemed to shake for a moment. And all the power Hedo’s sword had just unleashed was the spirit energy it had absorbed from Jin four days ago.
Normally, it would take a long time for such a commotion to subside. The sea would churn violently for ages, sending tsunamis toward the land, and there would be nothing anyone could do but wait for the disaster to end.
However, what the sword had triggered was not a disaster, but a divine discovery.
The spirit energy pouring from the sword moved with a will of its own, touching the raw floor of the sea now exposed below. Like a hand gently brushing dust from a precious, forgotten treasure, the spirit energy continued to seep into the seabed.
"Lord, the spirit energy is pulling something shaped like a building up from the bottom!" Valkas shouted, his eyes wide with shock.
The companions were all witnessing the same sight. Like a legend from a forgotten tale, a civilization hidden beneath the sea was being revealed. Even Hedo, who had been consumed by worry just a moment ago, stared at the scene in a daze.
Everyone was overcome with a sense of awe. It had been shocking when Olmango parted the sea to retrieve a giant clam, but compared to the landscape now unfolding before them, even that felt trivial.
"Wow… Darling, is that your ancestor’s sixth tomb?"
Jin was about to answer when his eyes met Valeria’s.
"Didn't you say it was a subspace inside the sword?"
A small blue window of record magic floated in front of her.
<Jin Runcandel finally opens the subspace of ...... contained within the sword.>
The record window displayed that exact sentence.
"…Yes, the subspace inside the sword has been opened," Jin corrected himself. "It seems that instead of us entering the sword through a dimensional gate, the subspace is manifesting itself externally."
If so, the sword had been flying all this time to find a location where it could manifest that space.
"But it seems this isn't Solderet’s subspace," Valeria noted with a hint of doubt, letting out a low sigh. "If he had created it, his name would have been clearly specified." She knew a more pressing problem lay right before them.
"Found it!"
[The flying object has stopped! Cease fire! Identify that thing and the traitors first!]
Those were the shouts from the pursuit teams of the Zipple and the Garden of Swords. Like the Barmul Alliance, they had been chasing the sword until this very moment, clashing with each other whenever their paths crossed.
"Grand Duke, we found them! The Leader is in critical condition, so please do not use your power!"
It was the same for Kinzelo.
Once again, the three great powers had gathered in the middle of the sea.
Jin’s group couldn't hear their voices clearly over the distance, but they knew the others were nearby. He looked out through the seawater mixed with spirit energy that still poured down like a waterfall in every direction.
The spirit energy had already spread as far as the distant ships and dragons of each faction.
Every area touched by that energy was now part of the sword’s subspace.
In other words, everyone who had been pursuing the sword had already been pulled inside.
A battle within the tomb was now unavoidable.