C710
Volgar and Bradamante clashed in the air, leaving a black crescent in the void.
Shockwaves spread from the two, causing the cracked ground to erupt with a black mist, similar to lava.
Jin clenched his teeth and looked at Dyfus.
Sharp horns, black eyes that couldn’t be considered human, and even a sinister smile, as if enjoying that horrific situation.
Nowhere could he find the appearance of his older brother, whom he had once known.
Even though he had been the same when they met before in the Empire, now that fact tormented him even more.
Today, he had to end it, no matter what.
"Fourth Flagbearer… your sword seems lighter than I expected."
Jin’s gaze landed on Dyfus’s left wing and chest, which were covered by his clothes.Although hidden by his attire, Jin could still feel the persistent fire within.
[It’s the result of underestimating you in the Empire last time. That’s why I prepared a lot...]
Behind Dyfus, on the other side, the fruits containing captured prisoners fell continuously without rest.
Each fruit contained fifty people trapped inside.
Every time a fruit hit the ground, it meant at least dozens of people died or were injured.
[Let’s enjoy this slowly, my younger brother.]
There might still be some Dyfus left inside that monster.
However, Jin decided to discard such thoughts.
As Mary had said, if he approached the situation with a half-hearted mind, he would only make it more horrifying.
Even though he was wounded by the Eternal Flame, the Fourth Flagbearer was still a transcendent force.
‘I have to fight calmly, even for my brother’s sake.’
Determination filled Jin’s eyes.
"Let’s see if you can maintain that composure even after the battle ends, Fourth Flagbearer. No... monster who devoured my older brother."
[You’ve been hiding the torment you’ve endured all this time, but it seems you’re capable of saying such terrifying words.]
Clang!
The two crossed swords, which had remained still, began to move again.
Jin pushed Dyfus back and unleashed a lightning-fast thrust, while Dyfus flew backward and wielded Volgar.
In an instant, a massive black aura enveloped the ground, threatening to swallow everything in sight.
Jin cut through Dyfus’s aura and charged forward, preventing him from creating more distance between them.
He couldn’t afford to pull his companions out of the subspace.
However, even though it wasn’t a Shadow Blade, people like Hedo could cut through subspaces, so they would eventually escape.
‘When my companions escape from the subspace, I need to completely contain Dyfus so they can focus on rescuing the prisoners.’
To do so, he first had to deal with Dyfus’s mobility.
He needed to disable his wings to deliver a fatal blow with the Eternal Flame.
Since the Eternal Flames couldn’t be unleashed in sword form, the battle had to be taken to close combat by any means necessary.
"You keep fighting as if you’re running away. Don’t you have the confidence to face me head-on, despite receiving the authority of the Evil God?"
[I told you to enjoy it slowly. Don’t worry; one of us will definitely find our end today.]
While Jin pursued Dyfus, he kept catching glimpses of the prisoners.
Some fruits were already filled with corpses, while others contained survivors screaming for help.
If Dyfus took them as hostages and began to threaten them, Jin would have no way to stop it.
The Fourth Flagbearer cannot simply take hostages.
‘He must be aware that once he starts killing the prisoners, there will be no restrictions for me or our alliance. If his plan from the beginning was to consume the prisoners this way, he would have done it from the start.’
If that’s the case, then why is Dyfus leaving the prisoners in such an abandoned state?
He wasn’t hiding them somewhere, and he wasn’t maintaining a state that made them easier to use as hostages.
Instead, the fruits containing the prisoners were scattered randomly near the vicinity of Rikalton Castle, as if beckoning someone to pick them up.
Thinking that, Jin got the sense that Dyfus wasn’t abandoning the prisoners but rather “deploying” them.
For what purpose are they being deployed?
Woosh!
Dyfus’s sword grazed Jin’s cheek.
His sword had a power capable of transmitting chaos like Rosa, which made Jin’s Light Heart tremble, but he repelled its energy.
At the same time, Dyfus detonated one of the nearby fruits, making eye contact with Jin.
The people trapped inside the fruit were shattered along with the fragments of the fruit, scattering in all directions.
[You shouldn’t keep diverting your attention elsewhere when I’m right in front of you. If you’re waiting for all the prisoners to explode and die like this, then feel free to continue...]
Dyfus couldn’t finish the sentence.
Suddenly, Jin lunged forward and sliced off his left wing.
Dyfus couldn’t dodge Jin’s sword, which was much faster than he had anticipated during their chase.
[Kuu!]
If they were engaging in close combat on the ground, Dyfus wouldn’t have fallen victim to such an attack. His sword would have reacted before his head.
However, despite the speed of flight, there were many movement limitations, and it hadn’t been long since Dyfus had acquired the ability to fly.
Jin deliberately adjusted his speed to be dangerously close, as if barely reaching him.
Of course, it wasn’t a situation where he could instantly close the distance when he wanted.
He had simply used one of his reserved movements.
"You’re the one who should stop your useless tricks. Threatening me with hostages? Go ahead, try it, let’s see who dies first. Do you think we came to Rikalton unprepared for that?"
The final agreement among their allies in the operation was that even in the worst-case scenario where all the hostages died, Dyfus had to be eliminated.
[Hmph, I see. You truly are skilled at lying and deception. But to think you’d resort to your hidden move just for a group of hostages.]
Dyfus’s left wing began to regenerate.
It wasn’t fully intact.
Just before the blade made contact, the Eternal Flames briefly seeped into Bradamante.
However, unlike when it was cut by the Empire, the Eternal Flames’ energy didn’t penetrate deeply this time. It was hastily unleashed, and the cut was less deep than before.
[It’s been revealed that you need some time to fully utilize that flame of yours. I’ll respond more cautiously. So, step it up, little brother, if you want to win. With those human-like feelings, you won’t be able to finish both me and Mother.]
"We’ll see about that. But everyone who spoke to me like that is in the afterlife, Fourth Flagbearer. Do you think you and the Evil God expect a different outcome?"
Dyfus was creating distance between them once again.
He flew slower than before due to the Eternal Flame clinging to his left wing.
However, the pressure on Jin was also greater, so the pursuit was still not easy.
As the pursuit continued, for some reason, the two gradually moved away from Rikalton Castle.
When they reached the vicinity of the dark forest engulfed in chaos, Jin noticed that there weren’t many fruits containing prisoners in the surroundings.
‘Now is the right time to rescue the prisoners. It seems my companions have escaped from the subspace, but what about the allied fleet?’
At that moment, a tremendous energy was felt from the direction of Rikalton Castle.
It was Hedo and his companions.
They had finally broken through the subspace and escaped towards Rikalton Castle.
As soon as Jin confirmed their energy, he detonated an orange signal flare.
It was a signaling flare that meant he was safe and had rescued the prisoners first.
Dyfus immediately understood the meaning of the signal.
Despite briefly tinting the sky orange, he couldn’t perceive anyone approaching from that direction.
[It seems you’ve disregarded my advice to step it up. Wouldn’t it be better for you to abandon the prisoners and join forces with your companions against me?]
"That’s not your judgment to make."
The main reason Dyfus deliberately drew Jin away from Rikalton Castle was Hedo and his companions.
In his current state, Dyfus believed he couldn’t withstand Jin and all of them attacking him together.
Although Jin vaguely understood Dyfus’s intentions, moving away from Rikalton wasn’t entirely a bad option for him either. He could avoid a situation where Dyfus used the lives of the prisoners as leverage.
Above all, Jin was confident that even if he faced Dyfus in a one-on-one battle, he wouldn’t lose.
Even if Dyfus was hiding a great amount of power.
[I expected that response. After all, you fell into this trap knowingly. Anyway, this should be enough.]
Suddenly, Dyfus stopped flying.
Tall black trees rose between Jin and Dyfus like pillars.
[There’s one last thing I want to ask you. The youngest,... among the companions you brought and the prisoners, which side do you hope will survive and return safely to Tikan?]
-[It’s frustrating at this point. No wonder you and Joshua were always defeated by the youngest. This is a greater crisis than ever. Mother can’t intervene, and the fire clinging to me is likely to remain until the youngest arrives. If a battle ensues, it means I might be overwhelmed by the youngest.]
-[You... could be defeated?]
-[Yes, so we need a strategy. Even if I lose, Runcandel won’t.]
A conversation between Ilina and Dyfus before the operation began.
The plan Dyfus devised at that time was now complete.
Whoa!
The black trees scattered into particles, and in an instant, the surroundings were enveloped in a black mist. Even when Jin stirred the wind, the mist didn’t dissipate.
I don’t think it’s a subspace.
What is this?
Although Jin couldn’t visually confirm Dyfus’s presence, he aimed his sword in his direction without losing his energy.
After a moment, the mist suddenly dissipated.
And when Jin observed his surroundings, he realized that the place where he was now was not the center of Rikalton.
Even when he looked back, he couldn’t see Rikalton Castle or the trees trapping the prisoners.
‘...Teleportation? Could it be that the mist was a dimensional portal?’
It was correct.
Just now, Dyfus irrationally used the Evil God’s Authority to open the dimensional portal and teleport.
He had his feet on the ground, not in the air.
The left wing, which was cut by Jin and regenerated earlier, was seen falling to the ground.
[It seems you’re finding it difficult to respond. However, regardless of which side you want to save more, you can’t go and rescue them right now. This place is quite far from Rikalton Castle...]
Dyfus spoke like this while wielding his great sword Volgar.
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