Chapter 736: Beyond Destiny (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 736: Beyond Destiny (8)
Hiiiiiiiii—!
An ominous resonance hummed from the activated Demon God Stone, and a massive conflagration swept across the battlefield.
Knights, swarming like bees, were engulfed by the flames, their bodies forming a river of burning corpses.
Veradin incinerated his enemies with a hollow expression, as if he were simply burning trash.
‘In the end, I have to witness my friend using that sinister power myself… Moreover, that appearance—he looks just like Kelliark Zipple!’
Dante suppressed the bitter emotion rising in his chest as he tore through the enemy lines.
He simply could not accept what Veradin had become.
The Demon God Stone, Chaos, and all the other horrific powers defying reason and providence were ruining his family, his land, and his friends, driving everyone toward death.
‘Jin, are you alright…!’
Dante swung his sword violently, as if venting his rage.
Chaos Knights shattered into bloody fragments, scattering in every direction.
Among the trio leading the vanguard, Kadun and Vail's advance had slowed, as they were forced to evade the cannons and magic of their own allies. Dante, however, cut through the enemy ranks without pause.
The pure white radiance enveloping Rashid shone like a ghostly aura.
The first to make Dante falter was Lionel.
Clang—! Skreeee!
Dante blocked a straight downward strike, and the impact carved a massive semi-circle into the ground.
A dull ache throbbed through his waist and legs, and Dante’s eyes widened in surprise.
[You seem filled with rage, young Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle.]
Lionel's aura, honed to the heights of the Sword Tao, left afterimages with every move, inflicting a series of shallow cuts across Dante's body.
“Are you not angry? That the clan you once led has fallen into such corruption?”
Lionel smirked, his gaze fixed on Rashid.
[Corruption for the sake of strength is just another name for struggle. Whether the Patriarch's choice or the 12th Flagbearer's was correct will be proven when this war is over.]
Slash!
This time, a streak of Invisible Sword Energy grazed Lionel’s cheek.
[An invisible blade… Interesting. I heard your grandfather was the first to reach that realm. I truly don't know what has become of this era. To think there are so many who would have been considered absolute masters in my time… What a brilliant age this is!]
Lionel burst into a madman's laughter, enjoying himself to the fullest.
The two men’s swords clashed, scattering that laughter into fine pieces.
However, Dante found it difficult to fully concentrate on the battle.
The separation from Jin and the allied forces, Veradin's broken state, the endless army of chaos, and his own inability to control his emotions at such a critical moment… all of it mixed together, creating a gnawing unease.
‘Is it because I’m worried about Jin? Or because there are too many enemies? I need to focus, so why suddenly…?’
Just moments ago, he had been tearing through the enemy lines like a madman fueled by hatred, yet now, with a powerful foe right in front of him, his mind was wandering.
Since reaching his current realm—no, even before he had become this strong—Dante had never been so unfocused. Especially not in the middle of a battle.
Lionel did not fail to notice.
[You're the first to let your mind wander while facing me. Are you sure that's wise? Young Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle, unlike me, you only have one life!]
Clang, thud!
Dante blocked Lionel's horizontal slash but was sent flying back dozens of paces, rolling across the ground.
His form had shattered, his reaction a beat too slow.
At the same time, another former Patriarch, who had just engaged Vail, was slammed to the ground nearby.
She immediately stood up and swung her twin swords at the charging Vail, while Dante corrected his stance, dodging a follow-up wave of sword energy from Lionel.
[Hey, Dante! Why are you getting pushed back by a guy like that? Fight properly! Why do your eyes look so vacant?]
Even as he shouted, Vail clearly had no room to help.
Dante's attention was drawn again to the former Patriarch fighting Vail.
‘On her face… what are those chains?’
That Patriarch, like Alphen, had chains wrapped around her face.
It was proof that she was resisting Rosa, though the allied forces here had no way of knowing that.
In truth, Vail was struggling to overwhelm his opponent because Rosa herself was controlling the Patriarch.
This was a particularly bad matchup for Vail, who was more accustomed to overwhelming opponents with pure destructive power than with the subtleties of swordsmanship.
However, Dante found himself shouting toward Vail.
[Sir Vail, before you kill her, remove the chains on her face first!]
He didn't know why. He just had a powerful intuition that if Vail broke the Patriarch's chains, the oppressive weight on his own chest would finally vanish.
[What? Why the chains? More importantly, are you in a position to give me orders?]
“Please, you must! It is not an order, but a request.”
[Shut up, I’m just going to kill her.]
Dante then glanced at the former Patriarch that Kadun was handling. There were no chains on him.
Vail and the chained Patriarch moved toward the left side of the battlefield, while Dante parried Lionel's relentless assault, pushing them toward the center.
[Ho, were you unable to concentrate because you knew the effect of the chains? I wonder how you found out.]
Instead of answering, Dante scattered his Invisible Sword Energy.
With his senses dulled, he intended to turn the duel into a chaotic melee, buying time to regain his composure.
[Your intention is obvious. Besides, such tactics don't suit your straightforward sword style.]
Lionel instantly erupted his Soul Energy, erasing the Invisible Sword Energy that filled the air.
The tables turned, forcing Dante to follow Lionel's tempo.
Furthermore, because Lionel had just mentioned the ‘effect of the chains,’ Dante’s mind drifted even further in that direction.
Driven onto the defensive, Dante couldn't stop himself from glancing toward Vail.
He felt he couldn't fight properly until he saw those chains break.
[Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle, I wondered why you’ve been acting like this… It seems you’ve fallen into an Inner Demon.]
Lionel was right; Dante's state was no different from being possessed by an Inner Demon.
He was losing his focus in a battle where a single moment of carelessness meant death.
The shallow wounds accumulating on Dante’s body grew deeper.
Even so, Dante remained more aware of the chains on the Patriarch fighting Vail than of Lionel's blade.
From above, even Veradin, who was raining down magic while surveying the battlefield, looked down at Dante in confusion.
‘Dante Hairan, Lord of the Sword Emperor Castle, what on earth are you doing? With the enemy commander right in front of you.’
‘Please break, hurry…!’
Clink!
At the moment Dante’s desperate wish reached its peak, Vail snapped the former Patriarch’s chains.
Just like Alphen, a strong and clear face untainted by chaos was revealed.
As soon as the chains broke, she withdrew the sword she had aimed at Vail.
[A weak and sinful descendant offers her greetings, Sir Vail of the Ten Great Knights. I am Tasha Runcandel, the 21st Patriarch of the clan. Thanks to you, Ancestor, for breaking my shackles, I can finally hold my sword by my own will, and not that of the Evil God…]
Tasha Runcandel.
She was the daughter of Alphen, the 20th Patriarch, and the 21st Patriarch herself. Like her father, she had been refusing to yield to the power of the Evil God.
Vail looked at Tasha with a bewildered expression.
Her face bore a striking resemblance to Sarah’s.
[Uh… right. So, those chains were a kind of restraint?]
[That is correct, Ancestor. Please forgive the insolence I committed just now under the control of the Evil God. Furthermore, would you allow me to fight alongside the current 12th Flagbearer of Runcandel from this moment forward?]
Even while bound by the Evil God's power, Tasha had been aware enough to grasp the current situation.
[I don’t exactly have the authority for that… but I’m sure that kid would welcome you with open arms.]
[I shall consider it an honor.]
No sooner had she finished speaking than a terrible murderous intent and fighting spirit gathered in Tasha’s eyes.
Her gaze, of course, was not aimed at the temporary alliance, but at the army of chaos.
Ah!
At that moment, Dante finally understood the true source of his Inner Demon.
‘He can come back…! Lord Veradin, too! Just like that, he can return!’
Just as Tasha Runcandel had escaped her curse to once again shine with the will of Runcandel, so too could his friend Veradin. The belief took root: Veradin, who had become a monster using the Demon God Stone without hesitation, could return, no matter what.
As that conviction took root, his scattered mind instantly became clear.
Jin's safety, the endless army of chaos, the pressure to perform as the Empire's greatest sword in this war—none of it mattered.
Dante’s firm belief—that Jin would ultimately win and that the Evil God’s army would disappear from this world forever today—had never wavered from the start.
He had simply been terrified that after the final battle, Veradin would fail to return to his original self and would be lost forever, perhaps even becoming another Evil God.
That was the fear that had shattered Dante's focus while fighting Lionel.
The sight of Tasha emerging from chaos to turn her sword against it was, to Dante, a powerful prophecy.
Lionel’s sword flew toward Dante’s head.
Without even turning to face it, Dante formed a gale of invisible swords.
Unlike before, when it had been easily erased, Lionel could not break through the sword-gale.
“You were right, Lion King. I was briefly lost to an Inner Demon until just now.”
[It seems you’ve finally come to your senses.]
“But you have been falling deeper into the abyss since the day you were resurrected. That is why, despite once being the supreme master of a sword clan, you couldn't land a decisive blow even while I was dazed. And you never even realized that death was creeping up on you.”
[What are you talking about… Gasp!]
Lionel let out a sharp gasp and looked down at his flank.
A blade was buried in his side—Yona's calling card, death itself.
“Hehe.”
Yona vanished into the chaos of the battlefield in an instant, evading Lionel’s violent swipe.
“I warned you, Lion King, that unlike you, I only have one life. It is your sword that has grown dull from repeated resurrections and your faith in the Evil God. How many times have you died since waking in the Mausoleum?”
Dante closed the distance in a single breath.
“I pray that this time is truly your last. I will pray that in death, you might finally escape the Evil God's grasp.”
Swish!
Rashid swept through Lionel’s neck.
A soft thud followed as the head hit the ground.
As Dante turned his head to find the other former Patriarch, his gaze swept past Tasha. An image of Veradin flashed through his mind.
‘Though we are separated, if I keep advancing through the Evil God's castle, we will meet again soon, Jin. I believe seeing her will be a source of strength for you, too.’