Chapter 338: Debt, Debts, and More Debts (5)
C338 - Debt, Debts, and More Debts (5)
Bang, Kwang! Skung!
Every time Berakt swung his sword, the cave ceiling cut like a piece of paper, revealing the sky above.
The Specters focused solely on defense as soon as his attack began.
Amidst the deafening clashes and roars, Margiella looked at Jin with a smile.
"Surely, you won't pretend not to remember, like last time in the Holy Kingdom? I don't think you're someone without a conscience to that extent."
Even if Jin received help, there would be no moment after today when Jin would be glad to see the group of crazies, Kinzelo.
It was because Jin fundamentally saw them as madmen conducting experiments with living golems and aiming to become the sole ruler of the world like Zipfel.
Of course, Jin also intended to ascend to the throne of Runcandel and become the ruler of the world, but at least he didn't use humans as mere experimental material like they did.
Above all, Kinzelo was ultimately a competitor and an enemy.
"Debt? Since this is your territory, you should have shown up anyway, shouldn't you?"
"Well, how bitter. We came to rescue you. It would be a shame if those cute little beasts died, but if you weren't in danger, we wouldn't have made any move. This place isn't even that important."
"How did you know I was in danger?"
"That's a trade secret!"
Given the abilities possessed by the leader, it wasn't particularly surprising even if Kinzelo was monitoring the entire territory through a crystal ball.
"Anyway, I have no intention of harboring feelings like being in debt, so spare me your nonsense. If you only came to save me, then it should be beneficial for you, so it's the outcome you chose."
"Hmph, you make a valid point. Can't you at least make your words sound nicer? If you stumble, Lord Berakt might even devour you, Sir Jin."
Kraaak! Aaah, cough-!
The Specters' screams continued.
It seemed that they hadn't suffered mortal injuries yet, but Berakt was completely overwhelming them.
Jin chuckled.
"I suppose I should withdraw. And I can't say anything about Kinzelo, but I'll let Iveliano make one or two small mistakes in Runcandel in the future."
"Hey, are you going to save the little beastmen who escaped?"
Joe frowned as he stroked his thin beard and joined the conversation.
"What will you do about it?"
"I recommend leaving if possible. We have no intention of sending people there. It means not recklessly wasting the lives we worked so hard to save."
"But Sir Jin, it wasn't Lord Joe who saved him, it was Lord Berakt, right?"
"Marg... I mean, Mariella, if you put it that way, won't I feel ashamed?"
"Haha, if Lord Berakt heard what you just said, he would get angry again. I worry he might actually kill Lord Joe someday."
Joe scratched his head out of embarrassment.
Among Kinzelo's executives, Joe the Cold, the infamous 9-Star Magician, was almost treated as a joke.
Jin didn't respond to Joe's words and exchanged a glance with Margiella for a moment.
'Who is this woman, even during the Holy Kingdom incident? Not much is known about her in public, but does she possess any special abilities? It seems she holds an important position within Kinzelo.'
Probably not just because she's the beloved younger sister of Bishkel, one of Kinzelo's executives.
Margiella merely smiled knowingly, as if she could see through Jin's thoughts.
"Farewell, Sir Jin. It's been a pleasure seeing you."
Woah!
[Nyaa!]
Jin summoned Shuri by taking a ruby from his pocket.
Margiella found Shuri's appearance adorable and chuckled to herself as Jin abruptly left the place.
"Hey, how rude!"
Joe clicked his tongue and complained, but Margiella shrugged.
"Well, anyway, it's cool. I like that style."
Jin sprinted at full speed, praying that the small beastmen hadn't been devoured by the flames yet.
After running for about ten minutes without any trace of the small beastmen, Jin felt intense anxiety.
"How in the world did they move so fast? I'd dare say there aren't many creatures on the surface that can move faster than Shuri, maybe none."
Although the battle with the Specters didn't last long, he was already getting frustrated not being able to catch up to them after running for ten minutes.
Suddenly, Shuri's tracking of the small beastmen's footprints abruptly stopped.
"They must have moved along the river!"
He was at the riverbank. Jin could see how the small beastmen could move so swiftly.
Splash!
Shuri leaped into the river and started swimming with all her might.
The Watertails could swiftly move along the river as long as they had a few large leaves that grew on beastmen land, effectively using them as boats.
Jin felt relieved. If they followed the river downstream, the Specters wouldn't have many means to pursue them.
After another twenty minutes following the river, Jin finally encountered one of the small beastmen.
It was Darkflame.
"Darkflame!"
"Oh, Jin, it's you."
Darkflame was alone in a boat made of leaves, carrying what looked like fireworks on his back.
"And the rest of the beastmen?"
"They are there, fleeing, hiding."
"Why are you the only one who stayed behind?"
"Something, dangerous, is happening. I, will inform."
As the leader of the Watertail Tribe, Darkflame was sacrificing himself for the sake of the other beastmen.
"The Specters on the cave side have been taken care of."
"Oh, that's a relief."
"But two other Specters are after you, so we shouldn't stay here. We need to regroup quickly."
Hearing this, Darkflame widened his eyes and nodded.
"Understood. Follow me. Come."
Whoosh!
Darkflame took a deep breath, and it was incredible how much air his small body could hold. With his breath fully taken, he looked like a giant barrel about to explode.
Whoosh...! Splash, splash, splash!
Upon exhaling, Darkflame's wind spread out like a shockwave, significantly increasing the speed of the leaf boat.
Furthermore, with the typical thin tail of the Watertails, he created a water jet, making it difficult for Shuri to keep up.
[Mya, mya, mya, mya!]
At such a tremendous speed downstream, they soon spotted the remaining beastmen.
All members of the Golden Snow Tribe were on the Watertail leaf boats.
"Oh! Our comrade! You've returned alive! You've kept your promise!"
Peng vigorously waved his hand, shouting excitedly.
"Wow!"
"Amazing!"
The small beastmen hugged each other tightly, shouting in joy.
Jin felt a moment of pride at the sight, but he knew that things were far from over.
"W-what, what is that?"
"That, what is it?"
A Watertail pointed behind Jin and Darkflame.
"Madmen, they're the Magicians! Everyone, hurry, guys!"
"Human Magicians are chasing us!"
They turned around and saw the Magicians, two of them dressed in gray robes.
They were using wind and ice magic to follow the beastmen to the other side of the river.
Just like Barton launched multiple sword strikes to propel himself in flight, they used magic to catch up to the beastmen.
"Everyone, lean and head for land!"
Jin unsheathed his sword and shouted.
The Specters were already aiming attack spells at them.
In the river, no matter how fast they moved, they couldn't evade the attacks, and there was no way to take cover.
"Uh, aah."
"Oh no, save the members of the Golden Snow Tribe!"
The Watertails quickly changed the direction of their leaf boats.
Members of the Golden Snow Tribe tossed all their bags and gold nuggets into the river.
Ziiing!
As the attack began, Jin leaped into the air and extended his sword.
"Darn it, even though I suppressed the mana reflux during the journey, I'm still not in a condition to fight properly...!"
He needed to use the Black Light Call.
However, there was no room to unleash the Black Light Call right now.
The barrage of mana bolts kept coming relentlessly, leaving him with no energy to use other techniques while facing them.
As long as I buy time for the small beastmen to escape, everything will be fine.
After that, I just have to call the Plutonian brothers, and it'll all be over!
It was another battle against time.
Would the beastmen escape first, or would Jin run out of energy?
"Darkflame!"
"Yes!"
"Listen carefully. Once you reach the land, don't run into the forest. All of you must flee toward the open plains. If you go into the forest, they'll set it on fire completely. Understand?"
"Understood, yes!"
Fortunately, the river was narrow, so the small beastmen quickly got to dry land.
In response, the Specters swiftly crossed the river to reposition themselves toward Jin and the beastmen.
But even during the shift, the bombardment of mana bolts continued unabated.
"They used various spells to cross the river simultaneously, so they haven't been able to unleash their attacks fully yet. However, once they're on land, they won't be able to attack all the beastmen with mana bolts."
Not only that, after they no longer needed mana to move, one wizard would shoot bolts while the other prepared significant magic spells.
Given the circumstances, Jin had no choice but to unleash the Black Light Call, even if it meant some of the small beastmen would die.
How many innocent and kind beastmen would lose their lives?
As he wrestled with these thoughts, a subtle vibration emanated from the direction of the forest where the small beastmen were fleeing.
It felt like a faint earthquake, as if a massive creature was running amok.
"What's happening? It seems these vibrations are created by a giant creature running..."
In that moment of contemplation, Jin realized the source of the vibration.
"We've located the wizards!"
"We've confirmed the presence of the Twelfth Flagbearer!"
The vibration came from the charge of over fifty Runcandel Guardian Knights running at full speed.
They were brimming with energy, causing such a significant vibration.
Led by Jin's brothers, of course.
"Eh, my younger brother? Were you fighting these guys alone to protect the beastmen?"
Runcandel's Seventh Flagbearer and third daughter, Mary Runcandel, spoke.
"All Guardian Knights! Protect the Twelfth Flagbearer and the beastmen. 4th and 5th squads, each take a group of beastmen and lead them to safety."
The Fourth Flagbearer of Runcandel, the second son, Dyfus Runcandel, gave the orders.
They had been waiting at the main Runcandel Family house until they received news of massive mana detected in the Zhan Kingdom.
Upon hearing the news, they hurried to come.
"They seem like the most elite Magicians, but they don't seem to have any shields. Anyway, the youngest, you look pretty impressive in this situation."
The appearance of the new Runcandel Flagbearers made the Specters hesitate and adjust their stance.
"With this, I've repaid the debt from the mission to kill the Black Knight, Jin."
Dyfus positioned himself next to Jin and said.
Dyfus's greatsword, Volgar, and Mary's chain sword, Viper, emitted unique glows, each with its own vibrant aura.
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