C571
In the deepest abyss on the surface, the sound of a cry resonated, illuminating the darkest corners of the human heart.
Ron's transparent tears were infused with light.
"Because... because I was deceived."
Dante repeated the same words with blank eyes.
He was overwhelmed with guilt more than joy for the fact that two people more precious than his own life, his grandfather, and Jin, had come all the way there to save him.
That's why he couldn't stop blaming himself.
While imprisoned in Gliek's unconsciousness, Dante felt everything happening outside.
It wasn't possible to examine the exact details of the entire situation because he was chained to the abyss, but at least it was clear that Gliek had killed Ron, destroyed Hairan, desecrated this land, and tried to devour his friends, and he realized all those terrible things.
Dante thought that all of that was the price for not being able to defeat Gliek.If only he had held on a little longer...
If only he hadn't succumbed at the last moment...
If only he hadn't been so foolish and weak at that instant...
He resented himself.
Everything was his fault, but he was driven mad by resentment for not being able to stand tall on his own, let alone having the power to undo it all.
"Don't say that, Dante. No one could have handled it as well as you. The fact that I and your friend could come this far is all thanks to you," Ron said, wiping Dante's tears.
"So now it's okay to rely on this old man and your friend. If it weren't for you, no one could have survived."
Dante lost consciousness and couldn't respond.
His breathing was labored, his pulse weak, and his body was covered in black marks left by the chaos.
But his life was not in danger.
There might be some traces of chaos invading him like Jin, but there were no fatal internal injuries.
With treatment and rest outside, he could recover as much as he wanted.
However, one thing remained to be done.
To finish off Gliek, the Fifth King of Chaos.
Ron lifted Dante and placed him on Jin's back.
He could feel it...
The final battle of this war would soon begin.
The fact that Ron and Jin reached Gliek's abyss also accelerated its awakening.
Originally, Gliek would have taken control of the unconsciousness naturally as the black sea formed, but it was awakening faster than expected because the two trampled on the abyss.
"The attack will start soon. Take Dante and get out of here somehow."
The end of the abyss began to sway unstably.
An energy greater and fiercer than the chaos storms they had experienced crossing here shook the space they were in.
Although Ron finally reached the Genesis Knight and rescued Dante.
To end the war, he had to face Gliek.
Jin felt pity for Ron and Hairan's fate, who still had to fight after overcoming so much hardship and death.
Kiii-!
In every corner of the abyss, chaos boiled like a plague.
It turned into swords and spears and continued stabbing from below, but it was blocked by Ron's protective shield and couldn't enter.
Ron raised his sword and looked toward the center of the abyss.
The unsealed white stone vibrated.
Ron couldn't take his eyes off the white stone for a moment.
"From now on, I won't treat you as Dante's grandfather, but as the Sword Emperor of Hairan..."
Saying this, Ron slowly wielded Rashid.
Looking at the speed of the sword falling slowly toward the white stone, it seemed like it could cut anything.
Like Cyron's sword, which Jin faced before becoming a Flagbearer, it had the illumination and weight of the Genesis Knight.
Jin seemed to see Gliek's expression, the white stone facing the sword.
A face twisted with anger and fear.
On the other hand, of course, there was no madness in Ron.
He had a unique absolute look in those who reached the Genesis Knight, that is, he had a look that said there was no one he couldn't defeat or who he couldn't defeat.
Crack!
The white stone creaked when Ron's sword touched it.
It began to break apart like cheap jewels.
The sword continued to slowly cut the white stone.
Then, Gliek's distant scream was heard again.
It seemed to express agony, as if the slow cutting process were unbearable.
The more Ron focused on Rashid, the stronger the chaos swords pressing against the shield became.
As a result, the protective shield gradually narrowed, but not a single spear pierced through.
Gliek seemed to be concentrating all his power on the abyss.
Jin felt a nauseating sensation realizing that Gliek still possessed such power.
Gliek also felt the same about Ron.
"Ron-nim!" Jin shouted.
He had seen Ron suddenly cough up blood.
The light of the 1/10 he received just after reaching the Genesis Knight realm and the energy consumed while crossing the abyss were testing his body.
Ron nodded to assure Jin that he was okay.
Body limitations were no obstacle for the Genesis Knight.
Just as Chaos was nothing more than a form of the King of the Black Sea, the body of the Genesis Knight was nothing more than a means to embody his illumination.
Although he spat blood, Ron's sword skill was not disturbed at all.
The spilled blood soon evaporated in his aura and disappeared without a trace.
By then, there was only one step between the protective shield and the chaos sword.
Either the White Stone split in half first, or the shield broke.
Jin was not worried about the latter at all.
With that thought, Rashid's sword finally split the white stone in half.
In the place where the stone had been floating, only the shining trace that Ron drew slowly remained.
For over a thousand years, Hairan had silently protected the world, and now, finally, the time had come.
The White Stone had finally been cut.
And Ron and Jin could feel the world's light tickling their eyes, not the darkness of Chaos.
Finally, they emerged from the abyss to the outside world.
However, the glow of light was not as bright and dazzling as they had expected.
This was because the sky, where the light was supposed to shine, was still shrouded in Chaos.
The light was dim, like the sparse grass sprouting in the wasteland.
The Chaos barrier was also stronger than the one formed when Gliek awakened, and Jin was aware that heat and poison were everywhere.
As expected, the battle also continued outside.
It had been a whole day since Jin and Ron entered Gliek's subspace.
And those fighting outside were unaware of what had happened to the two.
They had no way of knowing if they had been captured or perished.
"Phew, Twelfth Flagbearer, huff, confirmed alive!"
One of the Black Knights breathed heavily and shouted.
Runcandel had not given up on Jin.
However, most of the Knights couldn't help but think of the possibility that Jin was not alive, just like Dante, who had been absorbed by Gliek.
Moreover, if he was alive, he would stay inside Gliek, but there was no one with the power of the Genesis Knight on the outer battlefield, so they couldn't penetrate it.
It was impossible even to get rid of the Chaos barrier protecting Gliek even after stabbing and slashing.
But out of nowhere, the barrier collapsed on its own, and Jin appeared.
Even Rosa opened her eyes wide and sighed in relief.
"[You brat...!]" Murakan shouted as he ran toward Jin.
However, due to the Chaos tendrils rising from the ground, it wasn't easy to get close to Jin, who seemed on the verge of losing control.
Murakan had only one thought now: he had to grab Jin and escape, regardless of the situation that would unfold afterward.
Kelliark had similar thoughts to Murakan.
It seemed that even if Gliek were to resolve things by negotiating with Kinzelo in the future, he would have to secure Jin and leave the battlefield.
Even if the world was in danger of being destroyed.
"Twelfth Flagbearer...!"
Rosa also extended her sword and jumped forward, and Kelliark followed suit.
The corpses of Knights and Magicians were trampled under their feet.
However, Talaris, who was as concerned about Jin as they were, couldn't easily approach Jin.
She could barely stand, as her entire body was covered in blood.
Elona Zipple was the reason her sealing had been suspended until now.
Talaris had been fighting without being able to use most of her power.
The reason Talaris canceled the release of Elona Zipple's seal was no different.
Ron Hairan.
It was because he disappeared with Jin.
If it's Ron, if only that old fool comes to his senses...
It was because of the expectation that another miracle might happen.
Talaris thought that breaking Elona Zipple's seal should be postponed even if there was such a small hope as a grain of rice.
"Younger!" Rosa shouted with a sharp voice, heading toward Jin.
There were about a hundred steps between them, but suddenly, she saw a Chaos like a tsunami attacking Jin.
It was by no means the energy that Jin could handle.
If she couldn't block it, his entire body would shatter, and he would disappear without a trace.
In the midst of the horror and despair of those trying to save Jin...
SLAAAAASH...!
They witnessed a single shining blade cleaving the Chaos, splitting it in two, which attacked Jin.
Then, when the Chaos tsunami dissipated, people could see Jin carrying Dante, and even the appearance of Ron Hairan, standing tall beside him.
At that moment, everyone stopped for a moment and doubted their eyes.
Especially giants like Rosa, Kelliark, and Talaris were startled to see Ron.
To the point that they even forgot their eagerness to reach Jin in an instant.
'Ron Hairan has reached the Genesis Knight Realm!'
'Really, Genesis Knight... Moreover, Dante Hairan is still alive...!'
The giants' heartbeats accelerated as if they were about to burst.
Even if all of human history were combined, there were fewer than 10 beings that had the power of the Genesis Knight.
Even if both ancient and current ones, whose history was erased by Zipple, were included.
Particularly, giants of this era thought that another Genesis Knight couldn't appear because the world already had a Genesis Knight named Cyron.
They were convinced that the difference between Cyron and them was so great that they couldn't surpass it even if they dedicated the rest of their lives to it.
Even Cyron predicted that Ron was more likely to become a monster than to achieve Genesis Knight mastery.
Chaos attacked Jin several times even after being blocked, but it was blocked by Ron's sword and turned back into nothingness.
And looking at the chaos fragments falling like meat, Ron said:
"Gliek... There's nothing more you can take from here. Not even your own life."
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KO-FI
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