C718
Outside Rikalton, the battlefield of Jin and Dyfus.
The wasteland was being torn apart.
The energy emanating from Sigmund's Thunder Sword swept the sky and earth like an enormous storm.
A considerable amount of time had passed since both of them had teleported from Rikalton Castle.
Despite the intense battles that had been fought across the wasteland, neither of them had sustained significant injuries.
They were unable to land a decisive blow on the other.
Jin was expending more energy.
This was because Dyfus was easily evading and counterattacking while flying, and Jin had to keep distributing his energy throughout the battlefield to pressure him.
However, although Jin was "wasting" his strength, he wasn't lacking.As time passed, Dyfus marveled at the increasingly concentrated energy that Jin was exerting, even without having received such abilities himself.
["This kind of power without being endowed like I am... I understand why you rebelled against our mother. You wouldn't have felt the need."]
Dyfus spoke as he dodged a Lightning Bolt.
["But not everyone can do what you can."]
Jin didn't respond and focused his gaze on the moment before the Lightning Bolt struck the ground, disappearing somewhere.
It's not the first time.
It's been happening since before...
'My attacks that the Fourth Flagbearer evaded or repelled are vanishing.'
At first, Jin didn't realize it.
The intensity of their clash made it impossible to detect the faint traces of his lost Lightning Bolts.
However, the balance of the battle was shifting.
The tense rope was being slightly pulled toward Jin's side.
And there was only one reason for it.
Even if Dyfus received a portion of Rosa's power, he couldn't surpass Jin in strength.
Even if he had his full power, the situation would be the same.
Dyfus had sustained irreparable damage from the eternal flames and had forcibly used teleportation, further widening the gap.
Where are my vanishing attacks going?
'Are they somehow returning to the Fourth Flagbearer through some method, or...'
["It seems you're worried about those left in Rikalton Castle. You've just started pushing me back, and if your focus keeps wavering like this..."]
Crack!
Dyfus swung his Volgar and spoke.
Jin raised Sigmund, unleashing a Lightning Bolt, but once again, the failed attack vanished before his eyes.
"Focus, will you? It doesn't seem like dealing with failed attacks is a planned action for our fight," Jin said unexpectedly while simultaneously recalling all the dispersed energy from the battlefield.
Dyfus slowly descended, shrugging his shoulders.
["You have a good eye. I didn't expect you to notice so soon."]
"If I were worried about my comrades, I would have found a way to return to Rikalton Castle. I didn't come here to engage in a slow, steady fight with you."
Jin switched sword techniques.
"To be honest, I don't really know why you're following the failed attacks. But it doesn't matter now. The exploration phase is over, and you won't be able to afford to do those things anymore..."
A white aura enveloped Bradamante.
The serene and bright aura emitted a completely different atmosphere from the violent energy that had been trampling the wasteland.
["Do you think it's okay to give up your Lightning Bolt energy and Shadow Energy and rely on a lesser power?"] Dyfus asked.
Jin switched swords to minimize the failed attacks.
The nature of the Lightning Bolt energy was excessively fierce, which inevitably caused numerous attacks to slip through.
Moreover, the reason Jin chose the aura instead of the Shadow Energy was to conserve strength.
'He's certain he can't defeat me. He's already fighting, assuming his own defeat,' Jin realized.
In fact, since the operation began, every move Dyfus made had been meticulously calculated to buy time.
Separating Jin from his allies, unleashing illusion magic towards the Zipple side, and deploying most of his troops towards Kinzelo.
Even now, it was the same.
Dyfus was fighting half-heartedly, dealing with the failed attacks.
Jin concluded that all these actions were meant to assist Rosa's intervention.
Another piece of evidence is Orgal and Syris.
Although considerable time had passed since Jin separated from the group, there was still no news of the teleporters among his allies.
'Currently, no one in the Garden of Swords faction can handle Orgal and Kinzelo except the Evil Goddess. But the reason why those with teleportation abilities can't find me is because Orgal is tied down somewhere.'
If Orgal had been with the allies at Rikalton Castle, he would have already resolved the situation and started looking for Jin.
Specifically, with Orgal's ability, he should have visited Jin several times.
And there was only one entity in the Garden of Swords that could bind Orgal like that.
Evil Goddess, Rosa.
Orgal can't join the battlefield to prevent her from participating.
Jin had to conserve his energy because he needed to support Orgal after dealing with Dyfus.
["Are you sure it's okay? Everything you've done so far... that's not something the Elder Brother Dyfus would say. He was someone who only fought with his sword. Later, he expressed his intention to participate in the return of the magic sword for the sake of the family, but he still revered the sword. Because we are swordsmen."]
["Then, show me the essence of being a swordsman."]
Immediately after Jin finished speaking, Dyfus felt a momentary sensation of pure whiteness obscuring his vision.
What blocked his view was Bradamante's sword.
Accustomed to the speed of Lightning Bolts, his reaction was delayed.
With a speed surpassing thought, Jin deployed Runcandel's final movement.
Sixth Final Movement of Runcandel: Lightning Strike.
The final movement that Dyfus used in the first mission to kill Barton with Jin.
Jin chose the sword technique to begin.
Dyfus hurriedly moved aside and deployed his wings.
However, in the place where he flew, another Final Movement of Runcandel was already descending.
Third Final Movement of Runcandel: Meteor Rain.
There was no escape.
Suddenly, hundreds of sword energies covered the sky, piercing through the clouds and disorienting Dyfus's vision.
The rapid increase in the battle's speed was disorienting, but until that moment, Dyfus was capable enough to fend off the attacks.
He might have easily redirected the failed attacks towards Rikalton Castle.
However, Jin had already anticipated that he wouldn't be able to afford that luxury.
That meant Jin had thoroughly learned all of Dyfus's patterns and responses during the exploration phase.
Dyfus not only couldn't afford to deal with the failed attacks, but he also didn't have the leeway to catch his breath and kept being relentlessly pressured.
As Dyfus blocked the five streams of Meteor Rain and tried to send the deflected attacks towards Rikalton, Jin had already twisted his body along the altered trajectory of the Meteor Rain and deployed a new sword.
Supreme Ruler's Sword, also known as Supreme Sword, the First Final Movement: Meteor Shatter.
This time, unlike the Meteor Rain, the vision of the sword energies rising from the ground continued.
Unlike the true Supreme Ruler's Sword deployed by Ron, the sword energies didn't shine with an ashen light, but Jin had acquired the sword technique by altering what he had seen in the war of the Sword Emperor Castle into the Runcandel style.
He received help from the Goddess of Battle Vahn when he trained in Lafrarosa.
With the clash between the Meteor Rain and the Meteor Shatter centered around Dyfus, one of Dyfus's wings was shattered.
['Regeneration takes 2 seconds.']
As fast as it was, it took 2 seconds.
That was the speed at which Jin had confirmed that Dyfus's wings had torn several times with the movement of the God of Battle.
However, Jin prepared the next sword even faster.
Runcandel's Fifth Secret Technique: Light Speed Thrust.
Due to the constant fluctuation caused by the simultaneous execution of several Final Movements, his center of gravity constantly shifted. However, Jin demonstrated the overwhelming speed of deploying the Light Speed Thrust even faster than 2 seconds.
The Light Speed Thrust pierced through Dyfus's remaining wing.
["Four seconds until the aura's reflux subsides."]
The reflux erupted. Jin closed the distance while calming the reflux, and the fallen Dyfus regained his posture and repelled the remaining sword energies from the Meteor Rain.
Dyfus could no longer follow the failed attacks as he was occupied with defending against Jin's onslaught.
After 4 seconds, the distance between Jin and Dyfus was twenty steps.
And the aura's recoil within Jin had completely ceased, while Dyfus's wings were on the verge of regenerating.
'By now, he must have realized. No matter what he does, my sword is faster than his regeneration.'
As expected, instead of trying to maintain distance, Dyfus approached Jin and swung his Volgar.
An enormous blade soaked in chaos descended on Jin's head.
However, the move Jin had prepared while switching swords was the end of this combat.
'However, he may think that I don't have enough time to ignite the eternal flame.'
It was true.
In such a desperate battle, even Jin couldn't fully deploy the eternal flame.
So he had to accumulate the necessary time to deploy the eternal flame little by little, always staying slightly ahead in the battle.
He had to push Dyfus back step by step until a precipice was behind him.
First Final Movement of Runcandel: Heaven Shatter
Among the legacy left by Jorden, the ultimate Final Movement of the family.
When Bradamante was driven into the ground, Dyfus, who was charging forward, realized too late what that action was for.
["You have good instincts. It must be thanks to the memories of Elder Brother Dyfus."]
But it was already too late.
The aura that had eroded underground was exploding, creating an enormous sword energy that split the earth and sky in half.
Dyfus hurried to move aside, but even from that direction, the sword energy of Heaven Shatter shot forth.
Even the remnants of aura left in the sky by the Meteor Rain and Meteor Shatter were being swept away and pulverized by Heaven Shatter.
["Kraaah...!"]
The shattered fragments of the Meteor Rain lodged into Dyfus's back, and the energy of the Heaven Shatter sword technique pierced the ground more fiercely, raging towards the sky.
Among them, there was a scene where one of them swallowed Dyfus's newly regenerated left wing and left arm.
If it had been his right arm holding the Volgar, the battle would have ended at that moment.
However, the battle continued, but the result had already been decided long ago.
Jin was certain of it.
Dyfus had also entered the battle with the expectation of defeat from the beginning.
Even though he knew he would lose, Dyfus had dragged Jin to the battlefield to provoke a one-on-one duel.
To buy time for Rosa.
And to plunge Jin into despair.
Thinking about his intentions, Jin clenched his teeth once.
["In the end, when I kill you... do you think I'll despair? Don't be deluded, Fourth Flagbearer. Elder Sister Mary and I have already prepared to take care of you, Elder Brother Dyfus."]
With wide eyes, Jin finished shattering Heaven and once again swung his sword at Dyfus.
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