C407 - Why, Hairan (1)
Ron's aura drove away the thunder.
Every time he wielded his sword, Rashid, an aura akin to a tidal wave shot up into the sky.
Even the electrical storm that seemed like it could engulf the Sword Emperor's Castle looked like child's play in front of Ron's aura.
How many people in the world can shield a castle of this size by extending their sword aura like an umbrella?
That was the question that crossed Jin's mind as he witnessed the scene.
It was an achievement only possible for the very best among the 10-star knights.
What was even more astonishing was that Ron showed no signs of exhaustion, even as he continuously unleashed such a powerful aura.
"Ron-nim!"
Ron turned his head as Jin shouted. He checked on Beradin, who was unconscious and tied to Shuri, then vigorously nodded at Jin.
Good job!
That was the expression on his face.
Though Beradin hadn't come out unscathed from it, just Jin's rescue meant they could now handle the enemy's plot more easily.
And Lata, who was still dealing with the monsters and living golems on the front lines, felt a strange sense when he saw Jin return.
It could be described as a form of admiration.
Truly, it was an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time.
Regardless of how their relationship with Jin had been so far, there was no reason not to admire him.
Not even Ron had realized that Beradin was the key.
"He's an impressive guy."
I never thought the day would come when Lata Proch (humanly) fell in love with a man.
Shuri jumped after stepping on the giant monsters and landed beside Ron.
"I don't know why I had forgotten about this guy. Is he severely injured?"
"His life isn't in danger."
"All right. I'll give him a proper compensation when all this is over. Those pieces of ice... I more or less understand it."
Ron had only been cutting the mages into pieces every time they regenerated.
He hadn't used any "sealing" means at all.
That was because he didn't have a mage's way of thinking, and all the mages waiting inside the castle didn't have experience with it either.
Plus, as Ron was able to continuously unleash such tremendous aura without tiring, there was no need to find other means.
"Castle mages, listen! Seal the golems that use lightning attacks."
At Ron's command, the knights behind him cleared the way. The mages emerged from the gaps and released ice-attribute mana.
"But it's strange. Why doesn't the storm abate?"
Although the sealed bodies of the living golems appeared here and there, the lightning striking from the sky showed no signs of calming down.
Could there be other Legends Golems?
Ron-nim's aura is impressive enough to overshadow everything, but this can't be the lightning energy of only about four or five golems.
I didn't have time to think about it while running over here.
At least more than five hundred Legends Golems.
Or something more than Legends Golems. If not, it was an inexplicable storm.
Ron was also thinking the same as Jin.
"It feels completely different from those sealed golems..."
Ron's pupils dilated as he gazed at the sky.
The sky shone wildly due to the mix of shadow energy, sword aura, and lightning.
"I need to take a closer look at what it is."
After his words, Ron retracted the aura he had been emitting.
The lightning was striking as if a dam had burst, but it seemed much weaker than before.
And then, out of nowhere, the sky "opened."
What was revealed through it looked like the underside of a battleship.
What is that?
Everyone present, including Jin, knew that there was only one airship in the world that could float in the sky.
Kozec, Zipple's aerial battle weapon.
However, what emerged after parting the dark clouds was not Kozec.
It was an entirely different flying ship, although its shape was similar.
"... Now that an airship has appeared, it makes me think it might really be Octavia's subordinates."
Ron murmured with a bitter smile and shrugged.
"It's Kinzelo, not Zipple, Ron-nim."
"That's right. But do you really think they are unrelated?" Ron asked as if it didn't matter.
Jin shook his head.
"I don't believe Zipple is completely unconnected to this terrorist attack. Even if they didn't instigate it directly, they must have seen it as a situation that would benefit them, so there might be some tacit agreement following the incident."
"They are despicable bastards."
Craaack...!
Dark clouds charged with lightning gathered near the battleship.
The ship seemed to have a much more complex structure than Kozec on the surface, with spike-like protrusions scattered across its hull, gathering mana to form the clouds.
The battlefield fell silent as the battleship appeared.
Rampaging monsters came to an abrupt halt, and martial artists stared at the ship with vacant eyes.
Most of them felt instinctively overwhelmed.
It was a natural reaction, considering the giant monsters and living golems emerging from the ground, followed by Legends Golems and now a flying battleship.
Jin turned his head and exchanged glances with Murakan and Quikantel.
Their reactions suggested they had never seen a ship like this before.
Ron was the only one who remained undisturbed.
"State your name, intruder."
It was a voice full of profound energy.
Though spoken calmly, Ron's voice resonated and reached the ship.
Finally, familiar faces appeared at the front of the ship.
"He is Berakt Sidricker! The great warrior of the White Wolf Tribe, the Chief of the Sidricker Tribe, the master of the Roskal Great Plains, the absolute ruler of the Antomac Mountains, and..."
The man introducing Berakt was indeed Cold Joe.
"Cut the crap, Joe."
"Well, in that case, let me skip some details... He is the commander-in-chief of our Kinzelo!"
This time, deciphering the plans of these people proved more challenging for Jin.
Not only did they carry out the terrorist attack, but they openly admitted to being responsible, which was unexpected.
However, in the next moment, the most surprising statement came from Joe.
"The reason we brought the Grenille battleship to the Sword Emperor's Castle is to rescue our vice-leader and his little sister."
Crazy bastards...
Jin couldn't help but think the expletive.
Did they carry out the terrorist attack and now claim they came to rescue Bishkel and Margiella?
Jin couldn't easily grasp the motives of these people this time.
It was excessively audacious and simplistic, to the point that one might wonder if they were even doing calculations before taking action.
"Did they orchestrate the terrorist attack, deliberately causing harm to Bishkel and Margiella, and then use it as a pretext to claim they weren't involved in terrorism?"
Naturally, it was incredible.
But, on the other hand, it was plausible.
It was well known that Bishkel cared for his sister more than anyone in the world.
No one would have thought that Bishkel would orchestrate a terrorist attack using the security of his sister as leverage.
Above all, there was no evidence.
Although the Grenille battleship could use lightning attacks through mana, except for conviction, there wasn't a single perfect piece of evidence to prove that the Legends Golems, living golems, and monsters belonged to Kinzelo.
'Or maybe Ron-nim decided to label them as criminals based solely on conviction. They're underestimating Hairan too much.'
Were they planning this from the beginning?
In response to a fleeting question, Jin quickly concluded that it wasn't the case.
They probably intended to do it subtly and withdraw.
'However, as I rescued Beradin, it also caused them trouble.'
If Beradin returned safely to his clan, it would be difficult to establish hostile relations between Hairan and Zipple.
Ironically, as Jin rescued Beradin by Ron's order, it didn't give them a reason for hostility.
Although their plan failed, there was only one reason for them to show up without even thinking about it:
Kinzelo was determined to deal a significant blow to Hairan in one way or another.
'Since they lost the pretext for creating hostile relations with Zipple due to my actions, they might as well trample over Hairan themselves.'
Otherwise, Berakt and Joe wouldn't have appeared and provoked Ron like this.
The actions Berakt and Joe were demonstrating weren't any different from saying, 'Let's have a fight.'
"Hahaha."
Ron burst into laughter.
"Even the Emperor uses his own voice when he wants to speak with me. Besides... I didn't expect someone to belittle me in the Sword Emperor's Castle. Descend, beast-man."
Hearing that, Berakt chuckled.
"What will you do if I refuse, Human Swordsman?"
"I will make you descend."
Ron didn't demand explanations from Berakt and Joe about the current situation.
Why they had attacked the Sword Emperor's Castle, what this whole plot was about...
Those were questions to be asked when there was room for conversation.
Ron had also made a decision.
He was going to wage war against Kinzelo.
They believed they could toy with Hairan at will.
'It's impossible for Ron-nim not to know this.'
Despite that, there was no way to withdraw from this situation.
If Ron were to retreat now when Kinzelo had come out like this, Ron's prestige in Hairan would never recover.
From the moment the Grenille battleship appeared, everyone present began to have the same suspicions about Kinzelo.
Although they hadn't discussed it, they all seemed to be in agreement.
Rashid's sword gleamed.
"I will give you a warning only once. Descend immediately and show some respect."
"I clearly stated my purpose. To deliver Kinzelo's vice-leader and his younger sister."
"Isn't your life precious to you?"
The raised sword aimed at the battleship emanated its aura.
Ron's sword aura instantly bathed the entire area in blinding light.
The Grenille battleship seemed to be completely submerged in the light, as if it had fallen into the sea.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for the light to dissipate.
Although Grenille was a battleship on the same level as Kozec, it didn't seem like it could withstand such an attack.
It was a blow delivered with the utmost sincerity.
It was the sword wielded by the 10-star knight, Ron Hairan's sword aura striking the battleship, and surprisingly...
The Grenille battleship remained unscathed.
Ron Hairan's pupils trembled slightly...
Grenille still floated in the sky just as before.
"If you truly want to fight me, how about both of us find a more suitable place, Human Swordsman, Ron Hairan? If you and I fight here, not a single member of your family will survive."
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