Chapter 470
Chapter 470
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 470
>Chapter Title: The 31st Horse Overturns the Game Board
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Kang Seol's group was led by the elders to a place where they could converse comfortably with Hekai.
"We're outnumbered."
"......"
"Even if this side defects, we're still at a disadvantage."
Hekai spoke frankly.
Even if the High Hawk Wings joined Kang Seol's group, there was still a significant gap in military strength compared to the council.
"The Sky Dragon Azanic, the mysterious mage Agras, and Gregory have sided with them. I don't know much about Agras myself, but I know Gregory is one of the top powerhouses among you humans."
"...You're right. You know your stuff."
"I've gathered what information I could."
Azanic, Agras, Gregory.
Just thinking of those troublesome names drained his energy.
'And Gregory... it's been a long time since he ascended to the Supreme realm.'
The Sky Dragon had recently intervened in many events, but its power was unknown. The same went for Agras, whose true nature had only recently been grasped.
From Kang Seol's perspective, Gregory was the only one whose strength he could somewhat gauge.
'He's been in the Supreme realm for ages. Factoring in his growth rate, he might have reached the pinnacle of Supremes by now.'
However, he knew well that ascending realms as a Shadow Summoner didn't lead to absurd physical growth.
'The problem... is his summons.'
Kang Seol himself possessed overwhelmingly powerful summons, so he could imagine the danger.
'The one advantage... is the matchup.'
Unusually, Kang Seol kept his summons to a minimum, instead deploying borderline creatures between summoned beasts and creations as needed.
On top of that, his physical abilities and close-quarters combat prowess were Supreme-level on their own.
In other words, Kang Seol himself was akin to a powerful summon.
'Without Jamad, Ur, or Tansia... can I suppress him?'
Once again, the key came down to Gregory's summons.
He couldn't even guess what horrific creatures it might command.
'From what I know... it commands a horde of summons like an army.'
He hoped the rumors were true.
Matchups were a predatory chain. If the opponent fought with masses of summons, Kang Seol held the advantage.
To ease the battle, exploiting his well-known style would fit perfectly.
'On the flip side, Agras... reveals nothing.'
He had peered into Yacha Yulim's dream, but only a fragment of Agras's power was shown. And given the nature of dreams, it might not even be his true strength.
Azanic went without saying.
He had judged him as Ka-zan, but now Kang Seol had no Mactus, and he had to face the council simultaneously.
"What about a small hope?"
"...What?"
"You're searching for the Ring of Aspiration, right?"
It was common knowledge among the council. Kang Seol's group sought the Ring of Aspiration, and so did they.
"Yeah."
"Do you know exactly what the Ring of Aspiration is?"
"...No. We know it's the power that brought down the Three Giants."
"That's impressive enough. Truth be told, even the council doesn't know for sure."
"What?"
Kang Seol furrowed his brow, checking if Hekai was lying to conceal the truth.
"I'm not joking. The council doesn't know its true power. We've only confirmed partial records."
"So..."
"Yeah, we have a surefire way to revive the Three Giants, yet we're chasing something whose existence is uncertain? It's a waste of effort. Speeding up the revival ritual would have been far more reliable. That's probably Agras's judgment."
The reason Kang Seol's group had acquired the Ring of Aspiration relatively easily. The process to obtain it was incredibly arduous.
The first fragment required infiltrating Triem, the ogres' territory. The second had to be taken from Rajin, who already wielded immense power—an inherently flawed plan from the start.
"They dismissed the possibility of anyone completing the Ring of Aspiration. Or they planned to hold the revival ritual sooner."
"Right. It was a reasonable call. Of course..."
Hekai grinned slyly.
Kang Seol knew from his long camaraderie with Jamad that this smile appeared when he was truly delighted.
"...if there wasn't someone like me, suspicious of the council, by their side."
Swish...
Hekai pulled something from his bosom.
A brightly glowing stone fragment.
Whoooong...
"...That's!"
Only the conversants and Konji understood the exchange between the two, but everyone recognized the stone fragment from Hekai's bosom.
"The fragment I obtained. It said 'Sacrifice.'"
"Sacrifice?"
"No idea. That word popped into my head when I held it."
"Where did you get it?"
"You first?"
Kang Seol shared with Hekai the information on the fragments they obtained, their acquisition locations, and how those who put the Three Giants to sleep had divided the Ring of Aspiration into four pieces and scattered them in the north.
"Hmm... Mine was straightforward. We spotted anomalies and sent scouts; they died. We sent a great warrior to check again, and there was a creature that had swallowed the fragment."
"Why didn't you hand the fragment over to the council?"
"...Come on."
Kang Seol and Hekai exchanged smiles.
Whoosh-!
Hekai tossed the fragment to Jian.
Crack-!
"Let's see..."
Jian fitted the fragment into the half-completed ring.
Ziiiiiing...
Soon, the characters from before appeared, completing the ring except for one missing corner.
Chiiiii...
Suddenly, the characters enveloped Jian's body.
"Jian!"
"Krghhhh..."
"Don't touch him! It could cause problems!"
Jian rolled back his eyes and groaned.
"Ugh... ughhh..."
Shiii...
Jian's head briefly glowed, then stopped.
"Hah... hah..."
The characters had already vanished.
"You okay?"
"Y-yeah.... I figured it out."
"Figured it out?"
"I know where the last piece is... The ring told me."
Kang Seol touched the ring, but no reaction like Jian's occurred.
Konji muttered.
"I saw it in the ruins. The ring chooses its own master."
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"No one asked? Ugh...."
Konji got scolded by Sindio.
Kang Seol and Hekai asked.
"Where's the last piece?"
"...The council. In Agras's hands."
Sighs erupted simultaneously.
"Haa..."
"Damn it."
This made a head-on clash inevitable.
"It was predictable enough."
"It might even be for the best. Better than not knowing..."
"The situation's turned really bad."
Kang Seol pressed Hekai on the most urgent matter now.
"Where did Baldur's wyverns disappear to..."
"Ah, your brother asked. I know. Azanic."
"As expected... that guy..."
"He's working hard to turn the wyverns into his own forces. Better that way."
"Why?"
"It's also why Azanic isn't attacking the weakened Baldur."
Kang Seol had wondered about that too. If Azanic had stolen half the wyverns, why not target the thorn-in-side Baldur?
"Because wyverns are sensitive creatures. If their empathy target dies, the wyverns take a huge shock, so Azanic plans to go after Baldur once everything's done."
"Until the brainwashing or corruption is perfectly complete, it's something to avoid."
Kang Seol realized retrieving Baldur's wyverns wouldn't be easy.
"That's the first problem."
"What?"
"There are multiple issues in the fight against the council. This is one. Baldur's wyverns."
"Second?"
"The Immortality Church."
"...The Immortality Church?"
Why was that name coming up now?
Kang Seol glanced at Jian.
"I-I didn't know! The Immortality Church?"
"An envoy from the Immortality Church came to the previous meeting. ...That guy."
Hekai pointed at Karuna.
"There were two, and one looked exactly like him. Not just similar. Identical."
Karuna and Karen's eyes widened simultaneously.
The only being identical to Karuna was Karuna's fragment.
Kang Seol looked at Karuna, who nodded.
- Ugh...
- Filthy and ugly.
- Bull, bullshit...
- ...Get lost.
The memories of the Black Knight, now one with Karuna. The Black Knight had been defeated once before, in the fragment battle.
"...That's the one."
"...We found him."
Hekai asked.
"Hm? The one you were looking for?"
"Yeah. He was with the Immortality Church. Is he the problem?"
"No, the Immortality Church's sorcery itself is the issue. They know a way to revive the Three Giants without using the federation's frozen offerings. The revival ritual is still being prepared... and the council gathers at the Ashen Citadel in a fortnight."
"What?"
"You haven't heard? The Ashen Citadel."
Kang Seol remembered visiting the Ashen Citadel before.
It was in the past, but he had even adventured there.
"Third, the Ring of Aspiration is incomplete. If Agras has the last piece... battle is inevitable. We have to take it."
"Listed all the problems?"
"No, one more. The last one."
Hekai sighed.
"We have to solve all these problems at once."
"......"
"Any objections?"
"None."
Hekai was right.
To reclaim Baldur's wyverns, they had to deal with Azanic's forces and Azanic himself simultaneously.
'No, if battle breaks out, Azanic will slaughter all the wyverns.'
Then Baldur couldn't function properly and wouldn't join such a plan.
Meaning they had to act when Azanic was away—which was the day of the Three Giants' revival.
The second issue, the revival ritual, tied into the third, the Ring of Aspiration, leading to a clash with the council.
"The execution date, huh."
"Yeah, the execution date."
Hekai said.
"Reclaim Baldur's wyverns, check Azanic, block the Three Giants' revival—and for that, seize the Ring of Aspiration. Puahahahaha!"
A process with no time to prepare. If not everything happened simultaneously, at least one would fail. That meant defeat for Kang Seol.
Kang Seol stated his plan.
"We need to split the forces in two."
"Right. Wing Gorge and Ashen Citadel."
However, Hekai had concerns.
"Same thought. But that means targeting enemy weaknesses at the cost of weakening our own forces greatly. We need to ensure we have enough troops capable of fighting."
It wasn't individual duels.
It was armies clashing.
"Can you do it? Mobilize that many forces by execution day?"
Beyond the High Hawk Wings, they needed allies.
"We'll see."
A fortnight was still enough hope to rally scattered forces.
But whether they would all step up was uncertain. Fighting the council offered no guaranteed comfortable future.
Sindio said.
"I-I'll prepare the messengers!"
Hekum stepped forward upon hearing that.
" Messengers? Leave it to us."
"Yes? Magic messengers..."
"No, we're faster. Forgot? Clouds go anywhere."
Kang Seol nodded.
Cloud sorcery lagged in combat but was renowned for its range and speed.
Hekai said.
"Trust us. Unlike magic, no coordinates needed—just know the target, and it's delivered reliably."
"...I'll leave it to you."
"...Gotta put in some effort. Been a while since I deployed grand sorcery."
[Sudden Adventure 'Era's Decisive Battle' has occurred.]
[This adventure is extremely dangerous.]
[Powerful Ally 'Cowardly Hekai' appears in this adventure.]
[Powerful Ally 'Cowardly Hekai' joins this adventure as your ally.]
[Ally 'Great Warrior Hekum' appears in this adventure.]
[Ally 'Great Warrior Hekum' joins this adventure as your ally.]
[Faction: High Hawk Wings joins this adventure as your ally.]
......
Hekai and the elders chuckled as they prepared the cloud grand sorcery. Now Kang Seol's will would fly to the scattered ones.
On the eve of an era's turning point, he needed those who would fight trusting only in him.
* * *
Whoooosh...
Rumble!
Lightning-struck rocky mountain.
Atop this nameless peak somewhere in Pandea lived a dragon.
Rumble-!
"The Era Meteor has begun to shine. The fall is imminent."
A woman with a sorrowful expression gazed at the sky.
She thought of someone.
No, of all who shared her hope.
"Will they be safe...?"
When eras change, only the strong survive. Even the strong can lose their lives futilely in the vortex of power.
Naturally, those out of contact weighed on her mind.
But then,
Cumulonimbus clouds began gathering from afar.
Rain-laden clouds slowly approached, sprinkling water.
Shaaaa...
The woman stared piercingly at the clouds, sensing something unusual.
Rumble-!
With lightning, a form took shape within the clouds.
It was dragon versus human.
Or legions versus legions.
At the same time, information on the form flooded into the woman.
"As expected. Azanic, it was you."
Watching the clouds dissipate, she curled her lips.
"It will be a different future from when you took Mother's breath."
Crackle...
Craaackle...
The woman was a dragon.
"Kang Seol, I'll help."
Whoooong...
A massive green dragon took flight.
[Powerful Ally 'Young Dragon Tantuinu' appears in this adventure.]
[Powerful Ally 'Young Dragon Tantuinu' joins this adventure as your ally.]
......