Chapter 732: Beyond Destiny (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 732: Beyond Destiny (4)
As if in answer to Jin’s resolve, the world seemed to let out a great cry.
The fleet unleashed another volley of fire, and the dragons exhaled their Breath. Shockwaves incinerated the corpses of chaos dragons and the wreckage of black ships.
Amidst the dizzying bombardment, Jin kept his eyes fixed on the interior of the castle gate. He could feel the gloomy energy emanating from within rapidly intensifying.
A knight, then. He’s formidable.
The sharp fighting spirit spreading from inside the castle pricked at his skin. He hadn’t expected to fight Rosa the moment he arrived, not when he hadn’t come alone.
“Vail.”
[What?]
“The one inside is taking too long. Go see what he’s up to.”
“A fine suggestion,” Hedo chimed in, causing Vail’s expression to crumple.
[You want me to go into that gate alone?]
“Yes. No one is better suited to scout that darkness than you. Sending the Nameless would take too long. Besides, if a situation arises that requires a special power like a force field, you’ll have a much easier time escaping.”
[Sigh…]
Letting out a long sigh, Vail spread his wings. His irritation toward Jin and Hedo ignited, blazing as a golden authority upon Shakan’s blade.
[Damn it, how did my life come to this!]
Boom!
Kicking up a cloud of dust, Vail charged toward the castle gate. The allies watched with bated breath as his figure disappeared into the darkness of the gateway.
Even after Vail entered, there was no sign of movement from within.
However, after about thirty seconds, most of the allies couldn't help but gasp in horror.
A slender knight had emerged from the castle, dragging Vail by the head with his left hand and scraping him along the ground. In his right hand, he held a longsword at least twice his own height—a form reminiscent of Shakan, Vail’s sword state.
[The Patriarch treasures him so. I was curious to see just how much mettle the lad had.]
Thud. Ptoo!
The knight tossed Vail at his feet and spat on the ground.
Unlike the other chaos knights, a faint indigo light flowed across his entire body, much like Lionel. Only the knights who had emerged from the Mausoleum possessed such an aura.
[How disappointing. I thought he’d at least be someone capable of sweeping our side away if he entered alone. But to send a mere doll like this first… I am disappointed. Utterly let down.]
As the knight spoke, Jin simply shook his head.
“He let his guard down.”
“Indeed, he did,” Hedo agreed at the same time.
The fact that the entire alliance had witnessed Vail’s pathetic display was enough to send a chill down Jin’s spine.
“That ‘super-regeneration’ of his is always the problem, Lord Hedo.”
“Quite so. He suffers such disgrace because he believes he cannot die under normal circumstances. That ruffian is currently chipping away at the morale you worked so hard to raise.”
“I can’t argue with that. The fault is mine for trusting Vail.”
[Hey! Shouldn’t you listen when someone is talking to you?]
“That fellow is also being careless,” Jin continued, ignoring the knight. “The Evil God’s side must have plenty of reports on Vail. I wonder where his arrogance comes from.”
“It is likely his skill… Hm!”
Clang!
Suddenly, a sharp flash of light erupted from the knight’s longsword. The Runcandel 5th Secret Technique, Light Speed Thrust, streaked between Jin and Hedo.
[A brat with no mettle and even worse manners. Though you are currently committing treason, I heard you were Runcandel’s most promising flagbearer until recently. Even if we are to fight, should you not show me the proper etiquette? Surely you are not ignorant of what it means for me to have been interred in the Mausoleum.]
Jin couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh at the absurdity.
“One who devoted themselves to Runcandel in both life and death. One who offered both body and soul for the preservation and prosperity of the clan. One who stood firm to protect the family until the very end, no matter what disaster struck.”
[You know it well. And?]
“Then why are you standing there?”
[What?]
“In life, you likely satisfied most of those conditions. That is why you were buried in the Mausoleum. But where do your loyalties lie now? While the Evil God drives our clan to the brink of destruction, what exactly are you standing there to support?”
The knight did not answer, merely glaring at Jin.
[A brat who has never even been Patriarch dares to lecture me…]
“It matters not whether you were the Patriarch or a common knight. Now that you have awakened from the Mausoleum, the only thing that matters is whether you are upholding your duty beyond death. I will give you one last chance to fulfill that duty. Join me this instant and prove that a Runcandel’s struggle does not break, even against the authority of the Evil God.”
[Such arrogance!]
“Will you answer my call?”
Ptoo! The man spat once more.
[Does that serve as an answer? I am Senga Runcandel! The 11th Patriarch of the Sword Clan, and one who has returned from death for the sake of Runcandel.]
“Senga, I hereby strip you of your right to be re-interred in the Mausoleum and of the name Runcandel.”
The moment Jin finished, he took a deep breath and looked at Vail, who was still sprawled in front of the gate.
“Vail! Stop playing around. Get up and finish him.”
[Tch…]
Vail sluggishly pulled himself up.
Just as Jin and Hedo had said, he had been pathetically dragged out by his hair because he’d let his guard down. The moment he entered the castle, Senga’s longsword had pierced his chest, and the subsequent explosion of aura had nearly blown him apart.
Not that it caused Vail any significant damage. To extinguish the ‘trace of life’ that was Vail, one would need the Realm of Creation or a comparable authority.
Still, Vail had decided to stay down for a while to hide his embarrassment.
Ah, how humiliating. I hope that bastard Padler wasn't watching this from somewhere…
Fortunately, a quick scan of his surroundings revealed no trace of Padler’s energy. He didn’t want to show such a pathetic sight to anyone, but especially not to Padler.
A sneer played on Senga’s lips as he watched Vail.
[I was wondering when you’d finally get up, doll.]
[This bastard was just lecturing Jin about ancestors, but now he’s acting like my equal? Did stabbing me once while I was off-guard make you feel special? Huh? Did you think I was easy prey just because I was lying here sulking?]
Perhaps from spending time with Sandra or simply because of his foul mood, Vail’s language had grown coarse. It might also have been the influence of the Murakan impressions Enya often performed for him.
[Indeed, a low-class doll, just as Lord Padler said. But I have already taken your life once, so I have no interest in you. I shall provide some friends for you and the others, so wait and play nicely with them until the duel between me and the traitor, Jin Runcandel, is concluded.]
As Senga raised his arm, knights and monsters tainted by chaos began to pour out from the open gate—an army too vast to count at a glance. They had been waiting just inside the threshold ever since Senga stepped out.
Before the army could even take their positions, Vail bathed the entire area in a golden authority. The glowing ring floating above his head began to resonate with the vast spread of power, and the forces of the Evil God standing on that ground began to explode one after another.
[You said you were going to settle things with Jin… You? How, exactly? Even if all your subordinates currently exploding before your eyes attacked him at once, they’d barely manage to scratch him. In the first place, I doubt that Evil God fellow ever expected you to be a match for Jin.]
Senga did not lose his composure as he watched the futile deaths of his troops, but a chill ran down his spine as the golden authority cloaking Shakan grew even deeper.
Vail was a being who had become one of the Ten Great Knights during Runcandel’s absolute golden age through overwhelming power alone.
In contrast, Senga was a Patriarch from a period when Runcandel had been at its weakest.
Jin’s comment about him being formidable, and Hedo’s acknowledgment of his skill—those were merely evaluations of his fitness to be the ‘Evil God’s gatekeeper.’
To finally reach this point, Jin and his companions had fought far too many arduous battles. To them, a man like Senga could not even be considered a minor crisis.
As Vail had said, he did not possess the qualifications to trade blows with Jin. Senga was a man who had become Patriarch without ever having lived through an era as desperate as the current one.
Slash!
As Shakan descended toward Senga’s head, their exchange began. Even after the duel started, Vail had the leisure to continue incinerating the troops pouring out of the gate.
Senga thought to himself that no matter how immense Vail’s power was, he wouldn’t be able to handle all the troops in the end. He planned to wait for the fleet’s bombardment to resume, catch his breath in the ensuing chaos, and fight again. A Vail who wasn't caught off-guard was clearly several levels above him.
As time passed, Senga was forced to abandon his calculations of the overall battlefield and focus entirely on Vail.
Vail, however, focused more on single-handedly massacring the chaos army than on Senga.
The battle ended when Senga’s longsword was shattered to pieces and the two arms that held it vanished.
[Huff, huff…!]
Kneeling on one knee, Senga looked around with a dazed expression. During their fight, the fleet hadn't fired a single shot, and not a single chaos soldier remained alive.
Through the mountains of black corpses, Jin was walking toward him.
“Knight Senga, from this moment on, you are no longer a Runcandel. Furthermore, after the war ends, no one in this world will recover your remains.”
[Heh, heh… Do you truly believe you can decide that? Not while the Patriarch still draws breath inside? Your rebellion cannot succeed.]
Jin slowly turned Senga’s head, forcing his gaze toward the darkness within the castle from which he had emerged.
“Those who enter that darkness today to point their swords at Rosa will have their names shine forever. But the names of those who forgot the struggle and failed to leave the Evil God’s embrace will be buried in contempt and forgotten.”
Senga’s face contorted. Jin looked down indifferently at his trembling eyes.
He could feel death approaching. The knights of the Mausoleum could normally be resurrected through the power of the Evil God, but Rosa had no intention of reviving him from the start.
Jin thought it was only natural. Even when she was human, Rosa had never cared for those of Senga’s ilk.
Thud!
Senga collapsed onto the ground.
Jin walked past him, slowly stepping into the darkness of the castle. Hedo, Vail, and the companions who had descended to wait for him were already following close behind.