C616
The Legend that roared was the Tenth Battle King, Kaio.
"Brother Kaio?"
Everyone turned to look at Kaio. Seeing how enraged he was, Kaio's clenched fists trembled.
"B-Brother Tenth Battle King, what's wrong?"
"Did you bet on brother Garmund?"
Kaio did not respond to the words of several ordinary warriors who did not read the atmosphere well. Tantel, who had a good sense of humor, covered their mouths and coughed.
Instantly, a heavy silence filled the air.
Jin had never seen any of his brothers express so much anger since he arrived in Lafrarosa.
"...It seems you are not satisfied with me, Tenth Battle King."Garmund narrowed his eyes and looked at Kaio. His pupils contained a much deeper and darker fighting spirit than he had shown while facing Jin just moments ago.
"Yes, now you show a look ready for combat in earnest."
"Don't beat around the bush and say it plainly."
"You should have shown that look when you were fighting Brother Jin, not against me."
"What?"
"If you're going to treat Brother Jin like a child, why not change his diapers too?"
"Your words are harsh... Tenth Battle King. You're crossing the line."
"You crossed the line first, Eighth Battle King. Do you think the other brothers won't notice that you just deliberately lost to Brother Jin?"
"Deliberately losing?! The accumulated fatigue from the morning battle was greater than I thought, and again! It just means Brother Jin was stronger than expected."
"Such things are usually called unspoken intentions. Eighth Battle King, you secretly hoped for Brother Jin to win. So, even during the fight, you deliberately did not use your moves correctly."
"I've already said, it's not like that but you keep talking nonsense...!"
"If it really isn't true then."
Kaio stepped toward Garmund.
"Put the honor of the Goddess of Battle and all the brothers at stake. Did you fight with all your heart, Eighth Battle King? If you say yes, then I will cut off my right arm."
Looking at Kaio's determined face right in front of him, Garmund involuntarily took a step back.
It wasn't because he felt overwhelmed by Kaio's spirit, nor because he feared confrontation.
It was because there was something stabbing at him. Indeed, every word from Kaio hit home with Garmund.
"Why can't you answer, Eighth Battle King?"
"Hmm, hmmm! Well... Actually no, since you would cut off your right arm, Tenth Battle King."
"It's shameful that you, the Twelfth Battle King, and I are the same Battle Kings."
"Uh... It's true that I fought properly and lost. Do I have to endure this criticism like this? Tenth Battle King?"
When Teto spoke with a seemingly unfair voice, and Lumora roughly wrapped her arm around his neck.
"Shut up, Twelfth Battle King. It's an important matter."
"No, the way Tenth Battle King is speaking doesn't seem pleasant at all. Don't stop me! Why is he yelling at me if I haven't done anything wrong? Am I really so weak that I seem like a coward?"
"Do you want to fight Brother Kaio? Will you fight him, Twelfth Battle King, eh, will you!? Listen to this sister. And anyway, since you were also defeated by Brother Jin, it's true that it hurt the pride of the Battle Kings."
Teto seemed to be struggling against Lumora's strength.
Kaio doesn't even seem to care about Teto.
"Are you going to endure such a humiliating situation and still refuse to answer? Eighth Battle King."
"Tenth Battle King, it seems you're confusing with the Goddess of Battle. Why should I follow your words, Tenth Battle King..."
In the next moment, all members of the Tribe of Legends had no choice but to be frightened.
Bang-!
Suddenly, Kaio struck Garmund's jaw with his fist. It was such a powerful blow that a shockwave spread throughout the main hall.
"Oh, oh. That must really hurt. Looks like his jaw broke."
Garmund, swaying as if he were about to collapse, blinked.
"Kaio, you bastard!"
Then, as Garmund tried to counterattack.
"Enough."
Vahn spoke for the first time. And Vahn looked at everyone for a while from atop Lingling and said nothing more.
"The Seventh Match has ended. The winner is Brother Jin. The next match will be held after an hour of rest."
After announcing the results of the match in a calm voice, she disappeared.
There is no hierarchy among all the Legends, except the Goddess of Battle. To put it bluntly, Jin, the Successor of the Goddess of Battle and heir of Sigmund, had a nominal position only surpassed by Vahn, but the real recognition was another matter.
That's why an event like this occurred.
Certainly, Jin had risen to the ranks of the strong even among the Legends, and had become the heir of the Shadow Blade and the Successor of the Goddess of Battle. But his strength was still not recognized by everyone.
Being recognized as a brother and being recognized as a Battle King or successor were clearly different things.
"The Sister Goddess of Battle left without intervening in the fight..."
"Does this mean that the Battle Kings should not stop fighting? It's the first time something like this has happened since the battle with the Gods."
"It almost never happened before the war... It's unsettling."
"By the way, is it true that the Twelfth Battle King and the Eighth Battle King lost intentionally?"
Is that why they're fighting?
What does it matter if Brother Jin is doing well?
Honestly, it seems like the Tenth Battle King holds some resentment.
"Brother Jin is our only hope anyway."
"Exactly. Without Brother Jin, we can't get out. Plus, Brother Jin has never believed in the favor of Sister Goddess of Battle and he turned wild like lightning, right? He has always proved his worth. That's why he became our brother!"
"That's true, but considering the significance of the Great War... I can understand the feelings of the Tenth Battle King. Honestly, it hasn't been long since Brother Jin became our brother."
"And Brother Jin achieved everything that the Battle Kings desired so much in a short period of time. Although he was chosen by the Sister Goddess of Battle. In any other era, all this would have been nearly impossible."
"Above all, the Tenth Battle King worked harder than anyone to become the successor of the Sister Goddess of Battle before our destruction. No one can deny that."
Ordinary warriors whispered and exchanged opinions.
They had no idea why Vahn had left. So they did not intervene hastily in the fight.
For Jin it was equally confusing. The brothers he knew never showed their fangs to each other. Moreover, from the moment he was recognized as a brother, Jin had never experienced discrimination or prejudice, always receiving unconditional support.
This was the nature and characteristic of the race called Tribe of Legends.
Sometimes, Jin thought there was no group with a more ideal society than the Legends'.
An absolute leader, equality, trust, and people who never betrayed each other.
However, as Tantel had said before. The Legends were also living beings.
"We don't always care for each other with the same sincerity as now, Brother Jin. Even in the history of the Legends there were many betrayals, murders, conspiracies, and schemes. Just fewer than in other races."
"The era of the current Goddess of Battle, Sister Vahn, was truly an era of peace and prosperity for us. That's why there was never a murder in the Great Battle Kings Tournament, which was held before the destruction, but it wasn't like that before. There were factional fights, and some deliberately killed others for political ends."
Jin suddenly remembered what Boras had said.
"The peaceful era of Sister Goddess of Battle... In the end, she defied the Gods and faced destruction."
Perhaps the ideal aspect of the brothers that Jin had witnessed so far was possible because Lafrarosa was a "dead world".
Time for the Legends stood still. When Temar found Lafrarosa, as the first heir, even when Jin arrived a thousand years later, Lafrarosa was a society without a future.
All the members of the Legends, who had only received visits from two people for a long time, could do was give everything they had to the heir.
So, they no longer needed to compete among themselves. There was no need to fight for the Succession of the God of Battle, and there was no reason to consecrate themselves.
But now that Jin had declared that he would return them to the human world, their time had regained meaning.
They had a reason to live, desires revived, and the spark of dreams ignited.
In other words, it wasn't just a ghost who wanted to become a successor, but now it was possible to face tomorrow as a living being.
That's why some brothers were convinced that this fight among the Battle Kings had to be brutally fair.
Regardless of the outcome, Jin would inevitably be the Heir of the Shadow Blade, but they believed that the Successor of the God of Battle could change.
To remove the rust and moss attached to the stagnant history of the Tribe of Legends, inevitably, there had to be struggles and battles."
The Great Battle Kings Tournament was the final test and purification stage that Vahn and all the other members of the tribe gave to Jin.
For history to flow again, everything had to be laid bare.
To achieve that, Jin came to the conclusion of what he had to do.
"Tenth Battle King."
Jin looked at Kaio with Garmund in the background.
"If you don't like the actions of the Eighth Battle King, when it's your turn, you can trample me with all your might."
"That's what I plan to do, Brother Jin."
"And no matter how sincere the Eighth Battle King may have been, the fact is that the outcome would be my victory. This isn't a match, it's a bout. Now, it doesn't matter if the Eighth Battle King did his best or not."
"True, that's a valid point."
"So it's better to stop this shameful scene now. As the Eighth Battle King said, you're acting like the Sister Goddess of Battle, Tenth Battle King. There's no hierarchy among brothers. You can't order us or force us. It means only the Sister Goddess of Battle can do that."
The Tribe of Legends split between those who nodded in agreement with Jin's opinion and those who remained silent.
Jin decided to become the antagonist who would incite their fights.
In the end, he would have to win and be recognized as the antagonist.
"In my opinion, it seems like you're convinced that you're stronger than the Eighth Battle King. If not, you couldn't humiliate him like this in front of all the brothers."
Kaio's behavior turned even fiercer.
"...Is that so? What an interesting story. Does that mean you're now pressuring me in the same context? Is it because you're sure you're stronger than me, Brother Jin?"
At that, Jin smiled.
"Exactly. Tenth Battle King, you won't be able to defeat me."
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