C486
Cough!
The sound of Dyfus clearing his throat echoed in the barracks.
"What did you say?"
For a moment, he thought his ears were playing tricks on him, but he received an immediate response.
"I said we should kill the Second Flagbearer on this mission."
To kill Joshua.
Dyfus had never heard such words since he was born.
Not even Mary in her prime had said anything like it.
'I've been thinking about it, but he's really crazy, and...'
It's also frightening.
He's not someone who would say things without careful consideration.
Saying 'Let's kill Joshua' means he had already finished planning it.
The newcomer to the headquarters seemed to be planning to kill Joshua.
Dyfus couldn't immediately figure out the basis of that plan, but it sent a shiver down his spine.
"Anyway, you have a knack for surprising people. Why do you want to kill that person? I'm sure it's not because you're angry with him for mocking your new title, Dark Crown Prince."
"Of course, that's not the reason, but it wasn't pleasant."
"Joshua might have genuinely thought your title was cool. When he was young, what he liked the most was his title of 'Black Lion.' He said it felt like he was succeeding our mother."
Jin and Dyfus shared a light laugh.
"I didn't know the Second Flagbearer had such a cute side."
"You would have found him even cuter if you had spent your childhood with him. Anyway, what if I decline your offer?"
Dyfus adjusted his expression and asked, and Jin shrugged.
"Do you have a reason for it?"
"Once the infiltration into the underground shipyard begins, all the Execution Knights of the Sota Desert will return to the Family."
"Is this because withdrawing after the infiltration is impossible if they are not at the level of Black Knights?"
"That's right. So the personnel directly involved in the mission are just you and me, Murakan-nim, the Second Flagbearer you want to kill, and his Black Knights. That means each person is valuable to complete the mission."
Jin let out a sigh upon hearing this.
"You speak as someone who came to this secret shipyard in the Sota Desert without knowing it's a trap set by Zipple, older brother."
Dyfus's eyes narrowed.
"Anyway, this mission can only succeed halfway at best. The best outcome will be to return safely after destroying the facility. The battleship blueprints? Do you think Zipple left something like that intentionally after leaking information? Clearly, there's nothing significant in Sections Four, Eleven, Seventeen, and Nineteen."
The purpose of Zipple leaking the location of the secret shipyard in the Sota Desert.
That was a problem Dyfus had been pondering all along.
He knew it was a trap, but it was too extensive to ignore.
However, it was difficult to understand what Zipple's true purpose was.
Does the younger one have a guess about Zipple's purpose?
Killing Joshua is not an empty statement, but what are his intentions?
While Dyfus contemplated, Jin spoke again.
"Stop thinking and make a decision. Will you join me in killing Joshua, or not? I'll give you five seconds. After that, even if you change your mind, I'll handle it alone. 5, 4."
"Hey, hey, younger one! Wait a moment!"
"3, 2..."
In the end, Dyfus nodded before Jin finished counting.
Though he felt dragged into it, he realized that if he didn't negotiate with Jin now, he would probably be the one suffering in this mission.
Above all, it was an opportunity.
An opportunity to "definitely" kill his older brother, the Second Flagbearer, whom he had wanted to kill all his life.
The younger brother that Dyfus saw was undoubtedly the person who would carry out his words.
"Darn it! Let's do it together."
"A beautiful moment of brotherly solidarity, you won't regret it."
Seeing Jin smirk, Dyfus muttered under his breath that there was no devil like him.
"But, there's a condition."
"Go ahead."
"Share with me all the information you have."
"For example?"
"Information about Joshua's assistant, the figure known as the Prophet, and what you think Zipple's purpose is. Above all, why do you want to kill Joshua now?"
"Is that all?"
"Yes."
"I'll tell you the first one after the mission is over. However, I'll tell you the second and third ones right away. In my opinion, Zipple's purpose is to assess the capabilities of the forces of other major factions."
"Are you saying Zipple is using this shipyard as bait to assess the strength of external forces? Isn't that a bit exaggerated? I can't even estimate the manpower and resources that have been put into this facility."
"You can think of it that way. However, perhaps you've also pondered Zipple's purpose beyond what I just mentioned. Is there a more reasonable explanation than what I mentioned?"
There wasn't.
Dyfus was also more concerned because he was aware of the main premise that "as long as Cyron exists, there is no total war."
"Especially, Zipple would have needed to confirm Joshua's abilities. More specifically, Zipple wants to see if Joshua and our mother have the strength to guard Runcandel instead of our father. Hasn't the time come when we can no longer survive just on the name of the world's best swordmaster?"
Kinzelo had the mysterious power of its leader, the power of Bouvard's Chaos, the Legends Golems, the Empire had the Demon Men, Zipple's living golems, and mass production of battleships, and manipulation of history.
In such a situation, Runcandel had only clung to his sword.
At least, that's what has been revealed so far.
"So, by the time we start the infiltration, Zipple will have already achieved part of his goal. After all, he wouldn't have been able to create such a perfect infiltration tunnel without the power of the Prophet."
"I understand. And what about the third? Leaving aside the method of killing the Second Flagbearer, what is your real goal? What benefits does the death of the Second Flagbearer bring to the Family?"
Dyfus asked this, but he had already drawn his own conclusion.
What effect will Joshua's death have on the Family?
If the younger one and I kill the Second Flagbearer on this mission, it will undoubtedly bring division to the Family.
'Then I'll have to change the tides and rearrange things.'
Remove the rotten Runcandel from Rosa and Joshua.
That was the reorganization Dyfus had in mind.
After Jin made it public through Mary that information about the 'legacy of the first patriarch' existed within the Family.
The siblings, especially Dyfus and Mary, no longer respected Rosa's favoritism.
The premise that "Rosa always makes decisions for the family" had shattered.
From then on, Rosa's favoritism was the biggest culprit for the destruction of the Family in Dyfus's eyes.
'Of course, the utility value of Joshua and mother has not completely disappeared. When the reorganization is over, I will have to confront my mother as well. The Prophet would be under the control of my mother, not Joshua anyway.'
What comes next?
The remaining Flagbearers would continue to fight for the throne, seeking the legacy of the first patriarch of the Family to restore Runcandel's ancient glory.
He needed to break the curse that bound the Family and enter a bright era of Magic Swordsmen that Jin briefly showed.
Although they competed for the throne, Dyfus was in favor of Jin's statement about the return of the Magic Swordsmen.
Jin seemed to see through Dyfus's thoughts.
Dyfus's thoughts seemed to have a shape that wasn't bad.
'The future plans that older brother Dyfus is thinking about are close to the right path. The problem is that there's no way Joshua would have sent his real body to this dangerous place. Older brother Dyfus doesn't know, so he's just thinking that this is a golden opportunity to change the Family, and he accepted my offer as if he were attracted to it.'
Jin hid a bitter smile within himself and made eye contact with Dyfus.
"What benefit does it bring to the Family? It's an opportunity to cut the rotten chain of favoritism and purify the Family. Even if we kill Joshua, the Prophet will be under our mother's control anyway, so we can decide what to do with her abilities at that time."
Dyfus's eyes widened.
He felt a strange sense of kinship knowing that Jin had the same thoughts as himself.
It was disappointing to think that his younger brother wasn't his perfect ally like Mary.
"Older brother, honestly, I didn't plan to make you this proposal. I thought I could kill Joshua on my own. But elder sister Mary asked me to come back with you without getting hurt."
"Mary said something that doesn't suit her. Spooky. But I didn't know that you're one who gets moved by such tepid words."
"It's not that, but I'm also a human being. Sometimes I feel family love, and sometimes I want to repay my relatives' favor. That's why I told you in advance, so that you wouldn't get hurt while I killed Joshua. Incidentally, our goals align."
Jin was sincere.
"Is that explanation enough?"
Dyfus nodded and reached out to Jin.
"Alright, it's a moment of beautiful brotherly solidarity, even if it's temporary."
As they shook hands, Jin couldn't help but feel a twinge of conscience for the first time in a long time.
Well...
Even if it means killing a clone, I'll surely make it beneficial for the Family in the end, so older brother Dyfus will understand.
Even if he doesn't understand, it will only be Dyfus who looks foolish after the incident is over.
That's if everything goes according to Jin's plan.
"Now, let's talk about your plan to kill that older brother. There can be many variables, so until we start the infiltration, let's put our heads together to figure things out."
-----------------------------
February 28, 1800, 2 AM.
Once the execution knights cleared the barracks and withdrew, the operation began.
Jin, Murakan, Dyfus, Joshua, and two Black Knights, a total of six individuals, donned their infiltration gear and ran underground in the Sota Desert.
They were using a tunnel that extended from where the barracks were to the secret shipyard, and it had been formed in advance by Joshua using the power of a prophet.
And as soon as they reached the beginning of the shipyard after running silently for a while.
The group encountered an unexpected sight.
"...Looks like the rats used our tunnel."
Joshua said as he examined a round object placed on the ground, resembling a human head.
He checked its face, and it turned out to be one of the shipyard's overseers.
"It seems to be Kinzelo, Second Flagbearer."
The moment one of the Black Knights made that statement, a loud clash and explosion noise began to come from beyond the tunnel.
"...Seems like the bastard beasts are causing trouble."
Joshua said, looking nonchalantly beyond the tunnel.
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KO-FI
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