C677
An uninhabited island in the waters of Tikan.
Jin chose this location to open the sixth grave, the subspace of the sword.
Prepared for an emergency, Jin and the powerful warriors of Tikan, along with the sword's owner, Hedo, and Sandra, sat in the middle of an uninhabited island.
"Are you going to open the subspace by spreading Shadow Energy like last time?"
"Maybe. To be precise, I’m going to inject it into the sword."
"Hmm."
Hedo adjusted his glasses, looking displeased.
"Didn't you say in the Kaldran Snowfield that the location conditions had to be met to open Temar’s grave, the Twelfth Flagbearer? I don't think this uninhabited island meets those conditions."
"Not all graves are the same. I only speculated about the situation back then due to unexpected circumstances."Hedo shrugged and handed Jin his sword. Jin smirked as he received the sword from Hedo.
"Doesn't it seem like a coincidence that you acquired this sword after a thousand years, Tower Guardian?"
"What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
"Suddenly, I wondered if it’s a coincidence that you acquired this sword after a thousand years of history. The combination of one of the ten great knights and a Zipple butler is not just a coincidence."
"That's a useless belief in destiny."
"I just want to pacify you by mentioning useless destiny theories. What if you are a descendant of the ten great knights called Bale? That’s why the sword chose you, not by coincidence."
"That's a romantic story, dear."
"My lady, it’s not romantic at all."
"Why does our stupid butler think that again?"
"When the patriarch first accepted me into the clan, he checked all my personal information. You remember, right?"
"Ah, those stingy people who abandoned Hedo. I remember, I never saw their faces because they were already dead."
"Did you hear that, Twelfth Flagbearer? My parents were poor criminals. They abandoned their children because they couldn’t afford to raise them, and when they couldn’t bear the guilt, they came looking for me at an orphanage, but never took me back. They were criminals who disappeared when their guilt became unbearable."
Hedo didn’t seem affected by what he was saying.
In fact, he felt no special emotion about being abandoned by his parents since birth.
He didn’t miss them, nor did he hate them.
"Moreover, the clan checked their roots, and it turned out to be a family of merchants from the fallen Urot Kingdom. Whatever is inside the sword, it cannot be my ancestor."
"That’s a bummer."
"It seems that you, not just the lady, need to learn the mysterious art of push and pull. If you come to me saying you want to recruit me, your heart will be even more unsettled, right?"
"I'll keep that in mind," Jin replied, pretending to be disappointed while smiling contentedly.
Hedo felt a pang of dislike at his performance and thought he should have hit him more in the Sota Desert.
Soon, Jin looked at the people and spoke: "Now, I will infuse the sword with Shadow Energy. It would be good if the grave opens without incident, but I don't know what variables may arise, so everyone should remain vigilant."
"Yes, sir!"
"Understood, sir."
When Jin released the Shadow Energy, the area around them instantly darkened.
Although it was daytime, it seemed as if night had descended in an instant, and the bright sunlight was blocked by the black veil.
As expected, this time too, a large amount of Shadow Energy was needed.
Jin thought, feeling tense due to the memory of the previous grave, where he had struggled to fight Luntia while running out of Shadow Energy.
He could also face a formidable opponent without Shadow Energy.
Most importantly, there was a high probability that a living member of the ancient Runcandel existed inside the sword.
That person could attack Jin like the guardians of the previous graves, and if it were one of the ten great knights, they couldn't be weaker than Luntia.
A living member of the ancient Runcandel...
It was possible because the subspace is a 'dead world,' or because they are beings like dragons or demons with a lifespan of thousands of years.
Because Jin didn't know that all the Ten Great Knights are humans.
'Or they could be sealed. Like Elona Zipple.'
The Shadow Energy continued to spread ceaselessly, sometimes pouring into the sword and being absorbed.
Those watching couldn't even imagine the size of the Shadow Energy Jin was handling.
It feels like the release of Murakan's Shadow Energy in his prime.
That idiot must have finally found his strength, but he couldn't even help Jin because he was doing Misha's job...
We would be more at ease if he were here at times like this.
Except for Jin, the other members of the group were rejected by the grave in the Kaldran Snowfield.
Although they had fought together against the guardian Sarah in the past, Quikantel hoped that this time they could join Jin.
Time passed like this.
'Shadow Energy is being injected like crazy, but I don’t feel any sign of change in the sword...'
Like before in the Kaldran Snowfield, Hedo's sword remained motionless, neither emitting any glow nor forming any gate.
"Jin, do you notice anything different from last time? Could the redhead have brought incorrect information?"
Sandra looked at Valeria suspiciously.
Valeria remained silent, watching Jin and the sword.
"If we fail like this, do we have to investigate how to open the sword gate again through record magic? Like the location conditions."
"I think the redhead is a complete fake, Hedo. It’s strange that the old Runcandel is still alive inside the sword in the first place."
"I also suspect."
"Uh, but if everything the redhead said is true and the gate suddenly opens. What if that old Runcandel attacks Jin? Just like in the Kaldran Snowfield."
"The issue that should concern the lady is not whether the old Runcandel becomes an ally of the Twelfth Flagbearer."
"I hope that happens, Hedo. It would be something good for Jin. How could I be worried about that?"
"I lost my roots and family because of you, and I've been chased for a long time."
Valeria spoke quietly, without even looking at Sandra.
"What did the redhead say?"
"She means you should shut up and focus on your work because I feel like smashing your face in. Anyway, we all gathered here to work."
Valeria still didn't look at Sandra, but the slight bloodlust in her quiet voice made Sandra blink.
And then, just as Sandra was about to scream, Hedo's sword suddenly started vibrating and unleashed its first change.
"Is the subspace about to open?"
"Fortunately, it doesn’t seem like any problem is going to occur...", Quikantel interrupted.
It was because of Jin's expression.
"Jin, are you okay?"
"Dear?"
Jin's face, which had been expressionless, was now filled with confusion.
The reason was simple.
'It seems like the Tower Guardian’s sword is about to break free...
As someone who was directly injecting the Shadow Energy, Jin was more aware than anyone of the changes happening in the sword.
And, based on his intuition, it seemed like Hedo's sword had chosen to "move" instead of opening a gate, like before.
Before three seconds had passed, Jin was sure the sword was about to be launched somewhere.
Although he tried to stop the flow of Shadow Energy into the sword, it had already gained enough momentum to move.
Zzzzap! Swoosh!
Like the shot of a mana cannon.
Suddenly, the sword shot up into the sky, tearing through the black veil covering it and shooting upwards like the thrust at the speed of light from Runcandel.
The speed at which the sword shot up distorted the space, making everyone on the island look up at the sky.
"Oh, Hedo’s sword just shot up like a firework...!"
Hedo jumped, unable to hold his own sword, and landed on the ground with a bewildered expression.
Meanwhile, the sword had already changed direction and was flying into the distance.
"Catch it!", shouted Quikantel.
However, the sword that had risen in a straight line had already turned and was flying somewhere.
The Shadow Energy from Jin absorbed by the sword left long trails in the sky, like the tail of a comet.
In the blink of an eye, the sword was more than five hundred meters away from them.
Intuitively, Jin supposed the sword was flying in search of a space to open its subspace.
If so, the opening of the grave had been successful, but it wasn’t a very good situation.
It means there are no means to pursue that sword immediately.
The red owl was on standby at the unnamed place, while Mort was injured, and even if both were present, it would be difficult to chase the sword in that state.
The sword wasn’t moving through space but was pure high-speed flight, faster than anyone had ever seen.
"Quikantel-nim!" Jin called out.
"Understood!"
Quikantel quickly manifested the power of time and transformed into her true form. But the sword had already flown into the distance, barely avoiding the effects of her temporal powers.
The group that had gathered in perfect order climbed onto Quikantel’s back.
Quikantel immediately began to fly at full speed, but it was impossible to catch up with the sword.
[I will follow the traces of Shadow Energy left by the sword!]
Fortunately, Hedo’s sword advanced, leaving a long trail of shadow force in the sky.
It had already flown so far that it was no longer visible, but if they followed the trails, they might still reach the sword's destination.
The problem was that the destination was unknown, and the flight of the sword was prolonged.
‘The situation has completely exceeded our expectations. We thought that if there was any problem in opening the grave, it would be a battle against the guardian of the grave, not chasing a flying sword like this!’ Quikantel thought.
Moreover, the sword had flown through the sky for a long time, leaving many traces of its shadow force.
This meant that any other force could easily discover what was happening, not just Tikan.
If all the forces like the Garden of Swords, Zipple, Kinzelo, and the Vermont Imperial Family gathered at the sword's destination, it could create a big problem.
The temporary alliance might hesitate to act, but not the Garden of Swords...!’
There could be a situation where all the great forces gathered at Temar’s sixth grave.
Hedo’s killing intent fell upon Jin's back.
"It seems that for you, too, this is a totally unexpected problem. If I lose my sword because of this situation, it won’t be very amusing. Twelfth Flagbearer..."
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