C702
First-class butler Petro, along with the butlers and maids of Runcandel, a group of thirty Colón natives, and Picon Minche's contractor, Vin Branche, were all present.
Led by Mary, the knights successfully infiltrated Hufester and rescued a hundred survivors.
"We thought our allies were in our Elder Sister's territory, but they had fled to the west of Delki. There were no significant issues until we infiltrated back there."
"The knights tainted by chaos and the monsters kept attacking, but we were surprisingly lucky. The butlers who remained in the territory informed us of the situation before we could fully explore, and Mother… No, not just Rosa, but also powerful enemies like the mausoleum knights didn’t appear," Daytona and Haytona said.
The two of them and Jin were sitting outside the recovery room where Yona and Mary were, with worried expressions on their faces.
"Things went well even after arriving in Delki. The unexpected figure, Prince Laika, had hidden the survivors well. But while we were moving the rescued and escaping to the Cosmos warship waiting for us at sea, we saw Elder Brother Dyfus..."
Dyfus Runcandel.
He, who attacked Mary and the knights in the end, had taken on a completely corrupted form, with horns on his head like Rosa.
"Hah. What will become of my Elder Brother Dyfus and his knights now?""They will all be imprisoned in the dungeon. The Fourth Flagbearer… he was coveted by Rosa before. It's likely that he will become Rosa's subordinate with the help of chaos."
The story Mary heard from Lynn Milcano had finally come true.
"When our second brother appeared, we thought the operation was doomed. The mere release of his aura was enough to shake the Cosmos fleet. Even if we all resisted with all our might, it seemed impossible to stand against him."
Mary approached Dyfus as if she had lost her mind as soon as she saw him.
"Ora…boni, is that right? Dyfus oraboni. It’s me, Mary. Don’t you recognize me?"
"Elder Sister Mary, you mustn't go there! Please, stop!"
Mary didn’t seem intent on fighting Dyfus, who had transformed.
Dyfus also didn’t wield his sword against Mary.
Instead, he smiled contentedly and patiently waited for Mary to approach.
"Yes, Mary. Your place is by my side, not with the Tikan. Come, let me help you. As always."
Moreover, Dyfus greeted Mary with those words.
But fortunately.
Mary hadn’t lost her mind upon seeing Dyfus.
"Elder Sister recognized right away that it made no sense to confront Elder Brother directly, and she quickly used her wits. If she hadn’t pretended to be devastated at that moment, none of us would have been able to return…"
Dyfus hadn’t forgotten his past relationship with Mary.
That’s why his actions seemed reasonable to him.
In other words, he had let his guard down.
As soon as Mary approached Dyfus, she calmly released a Light Speed Thrust and launched into battle, opening the Volcano.
Dyfus lost half of his body at the very beginning.
Mary showed a ruthless sword skill like never before, and it was then that the Tona brothers and the knights recognized her intent and hurried to prepare for escape. 𝙍αℕȰВΕS
The battle didn’t last long.
Chaos quickly restored more than half of Dyfus’s lost flesh.
Intuitively, Mary was certain she wouldn’t have another chance to fully recover.
So she used all her strength to escape with the fleet while Dyfus was recovering.
However, she couldn’t avoid some of Dyfus’s attacks just before her arrival.
That’s why Mary was in the recovery room at this moment.
"...Younger one, I’m so worried about Elder Sister."
It wasn’t about the physical wounds she suffered.
It was about her heart.
Even though it was clear that Mary’s display of wits and temporarily overwhelming Dyfus was a calculated move, her agonizing heart was undoubtedly genuine.
"Was Euria’s condition bad because of Elder Brother Dyfus? With Elder Sister Mary’s belongings in Tikan, the power of the Truth might have foreseen such an unfortunate future. I don’t know what to say to Elder Sister Mary…"
As Jin silently patted his brothers on the shoulders, movement was heard inside the recovery room.
"Worried? I’m more concerned that you’re sitting out there getting comfort from Jin, you idiots."
"Elder Sister Mary!"
"Elder Sister, you’ve awakened…!"
The Tona brothers jumped up, their eyes reddening as they looked at Mary.
Mary clicked her tongue at the sight.
"I’ve been awake since earlier. I was very tired and wanted to rest a bit while cuddling with Yona, but I kept hearing voices. I thought it was my duty to put you in your place if you acted like spineless worms."
"I’m sorry, Elder Sister."
"But I didn’t cry. Of course, if you hit me, I’ll hit back."
"Proud and pathetic fools. Jin is your younger brother. I understand that your power or skills may be inferior to his. But at least try to appear as composed as Elder Brothers. How long are you going to depend on Jin? It’s time to become more reliable support."
After scolding the Tona brothers, Mary made eye contact with Jin.
"Don’t make that disgusted expression either. If the leader shows any signs of worry or anxiety, it only frustrates the subordinates more."
"Yes, Elder Sister. I’ll be careful."
"It’s not entirely unexpected that we couldn’t save everyone and that Dyfus oraboni ended up like this… It may seem like a miserable situation, but it’s not completely unforeseen."
Anyone who knew the relationship between Dyfus and Mary could tell.
That Mary was forcing herself to pretend she was fine.
Jin admired Mary.
For her determination not to show a weak side again and to never lose her composure, even when facing a chaos-tainted Dyfus.
Since she arrived in Tikan, she had kept all her promises.
Offering weak comfort to such a Mary would be an insult.
"So what we should be concerned about now is the safety of the remaining survivors and the intentions of Dyfus Oraboni."
"Elder Sister, about Elder Brother Dyfus’s intentions…?"
"No matter how I think about it, Dyfus oraboni let us go on purpose. The Cosmos ships are impressive, but if oraboni had truly intended to pursue us, he could have easily captured us."
"Oh, Elder Sister. Does that mean Elder Brother Dyfus regained his sanity for a moment?"
"Is that what you think? Hey, Haytona. We should completely discard such assumptions from the start. Oraboni is no longer the person we knew. He has crossed the point of no return."
Mary’s exclusion of any glimmer of hope for Dyfus is no small matter.
She was convinced that the moment she harbored hope for Dyfus, Rosa would surely exploit it in some way.
Or it could be the corrupted Dyfus himself who would exploit it.
The best option she could take for Dyfus was to eliminate Rosa and the Garden of Swords as soon as possible, even if it meant facing Dyfus himself.
"In any case, I’ve been lying down and reflecting on why Oraboni let us go. Somehow… I have a feeling it’s out of despair."
Valeria had recorded the information her companions had gathered while Mary was absent and had left it in her recovery room. Mary had reviewed everything.
"Is it possible that Rosa is using Joshua to generate despair? And Dyfus Oraboni might be doing the same. However, unlike Joshua, Oraboni… instead of personally falling into despair, he plays a role in maximizing the despair of others."
"Elder Brother Dyfus considered it more effective to release us once and then capture us again, creating despair, rather than annihilating Elder Sister and the rescue targets in Delki. Are you suggesting this?"
"Yes, because failure after success always has a greater impact. Or it could be that the despair gained from killing us in Delki wasn’t satisfying enough. As I just mentioned, Oraboni didn’t briefly regain sanity amidst the chaos because of me. And it’s even less likely that he simply let us go on a whim. There must be a reason, and it must be related to Rosa’s culmination."
The only thing that can complete Rosa is time and despair.
Jin thought Mary’s intuition might be correct.
"In that case, Elder Brother Dyfus will lure us again."
A hunter usually releases their prey when they want to lure an even bigger one.
"Yes, that’s likely. We should either prepare or strike first… but it’s hard to make a judgment. It’s too risky to make the first move, considering the many options Oraboni has and the dangers that preventive actions entail."
"First, we will deliver information about Elder Brother Dyfus to Kinzelo and Zipple. Orgal is currently searching for Joshua, so I think we should check Elder Brother Dyfus’s location along the way."
Dyfus was no different from Joshua.
As long as they didn’t find and eliminate him completely, Rosa would continue to generate despair through them.
But unlike Joshua, Dyfus’s death would bring despair to Jin and Mary.
While Mary considered that the only task was to get rid of Dyfus, Jin wanted to find another solution.
Perhaps Rosa hopes that we kill Dyfus.
Moreover, Elder Brother has undergone physical transformations, so it’s impossible to treat him with the current purification device.
The best option was to subdue Dyfus and seal him until a means of purification could be found, just as Luntia had been left in the subspace.
In that moment of contemplation, Jin saw Kashimir and Murakan approaching from the other side.
Kashimir had come to Jin immediately after receiving a report from Jet.
"King Kashimir."
"Young Master Jin, I just received some troubling news from Zipple’s side."
"Are they talking about the termination of our temporary alliance?"
"No, on the contrary, they’ve requested support as part of the temporary alliance. It seems that the Lutero Magical Federation has been attacked, and the attacker… they said it was Sir Dyfus."
Jin, Mary, and the Tona brothers instinctively clenched their fists.
Dyfus had already begun to make his move.
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