C725
Jin headed towards the underground prison of Tikan with Kashimir.
Several comrades, including the siblings Mary and Tona, were guarding Lynn in the underground prison.
Although she was in prison, Lynn was not bound but sitting at a desk, drinking tea.
“Welcome, Twelfth Flagbearer.”
Lynn rose from her seat and greeted Jin.
"Order Guardian Chief, no, I should call you Chief of the Black Sword Association. I’ve heard that Rosa appointed you as Chief of the Black Sword Association."
“No, as Chief of the Black Sword Association, I’m not qualified to hold any position, as I couldn’t uphold the clan’s law or execute the traitors. Just call me by my name.”
Jin didn’t respond and sat down in front of Lynn, looking into her eyes, darkened by chaos.
Though Lynn seemed completely consumed by chaos, she hadn’t lost her sanity at all.A firm determination could be sensed in her.
Jin perceived in Lynn the atmosphere that only those who were willing to endure pain and sacrifice could possess.
"The investigation into the information you provided us yesterday has been concluded."
The information Lynn had passed on to Tikan was about Rosa and the battleship Ram.
According to her, Rosa was currently losing some control over Hufester, and there was a secret about the battleship Ram that Rosa was unaware of.
"I’m relieved."
"Until the announcement of Euria's trial, to be honest, it was hard to believe. I thought Dame's arrival might be part of Rosa’s plan, or maybe the situation on the side of the evil god wasn’t favorable, so she wanted to return to our side. I had those suspicions."
"I understand. There was no other choice."
"Why did you make a contract with the Prophet instead of joining the Resistance from the beginning?"
"If I had chosen the Resistance from the start, you wouldn’t have heard any information about the evil god's weakness. Nor could I have revealed my desire to fight together... That's why it would have been useless."
"So you decided to become an infiltrator in the corrupted Garden of Swords?"
When Mary asked, Lynn nodded.
"I thought by becoming an infiltrator, I might somehow have a chance..."
"I remember very well the day Dyfus Oraboni was captured and you saved me."
"But I’ve lost count of the knights of the Family I’ve killed with my own hands."
Lynn put down her teacup and spoke.
Jin recognized that she felt guilty.
As an individual, it would have been better for Lynn to fight alongside the Resistance and die honorably.
However, Lynn had obeyed Rosa’s orders at times like that.
For the sake of the Family, she was willing to endure personal pain and guilt, even if it meant being recorded as a terrible traitor in history.
"Moreover, just like the Fourth Flagbearer who passed away... I was gradually succumbing to the Prophet's chaos, forgetting my original intentions. If you hadn’t killed the Prophet this time, I would have truly become a traitor." ꞦΑ₦Ô𝐛ÊŠ
There was a moment of silence.
"Has the date for the final battle been decided?"
"Not yet. It will probably be determined at tomorrow's meeting."
"Although it was discussed last night, it would be better to start moving within at least a month. There isn’t much time left for me and the remaining knights. Our lives are fading because of the Prophet’s death."
"Is it because of the contract with the Prophet?"
"Yes. In any case, if we die and then you attack Hufester, we won’t be able to help at all."
Jin nodded.
"Then I should be leaving now. If I leave my post vacant for too long, I’ll raise suspicions from the evil god."
Lynn stood up.
"This might be our last meeting, Twelfth Flagbearer. When you and the temporary alliance begin to attack Hufester, we will focus our efforts on stopping the battleship Ram."
Temporarily halting the operation of the battleship "Ram."
That was the information Lynn had obtained by becoming an infiltrator.
"Moreover, even before 'Ram' comes to a complete stop, that terrible battleship won’t attack the Vamel Alliance."
Rosa believed that only she had control over the battleship Ram.
However, the late Prophet had prepared to take control of Ram away from her, anticipating the day when Rosa would have to face him.
This fact was known to Lynn, who was considered to have finished her "brainwashing."
Lynn extended her hand to Jin for a handshake.
For a few seconds, Jin alternated his gaze between her hand and her eyes.
"Please... defeat Rosa... the evil god, Twelfth Flagbearer. Prevent the ruin of my, our Runcandel."
Jin shook Lynn’s hand.
He felt the firm, calloused palm of the old veteran who had dedicated herself only to the Runcandel Family for decades.
"I will definitely do it."
Jin personally escorted Lynn.
As they left the underground prison through a secret passage leading to the sea, the younger division was waiting for them.
Among them, Mesa stood in front of Lynn, bowing her head.
"Great Aunt."
"Mesa."
Lynn smiled, making eye contact with Mesa.
"You’ve become knights of an excellent ruler, superior to my generation, as the patriarch, Sir Cyron, was once the supreme being of this world, and Rosa is becoming an evil god, plunging the clan and the world into destruction. So you have a lord worthy of your loyalty."
"I will become a knight who brings no shame to my lord and my clan."
"Good... When the Twelfth Flagbearer restores the Family, you’ll have much to do. Can I leave the rest to you and go in peace?"
"Yes, Great Aunt."
"Excellent."
The remaining members of Runcandel didn’t leave their positions until Lynn disappeared beyond the sea.
-------------------
Hufester.
The chaos army gathered in the Garden of Swords.
Eyes tainted by chaos stared intently at Rosa, who was seated on the throne.
Since she had become an evil god, she showed signs of exhaustion for the first time.
She had dark eyes, dry lips, and limp hair.
The chaos she was supposed to absorb from the Rikalton war hadn’t been absorbed correctly, and the fragment of power she had given to Dyfus had completely vanished.
Frenzy.
Rosa gently stroked the beloved sword she had used since her days as a human.
From time to time, the blade would cut her finger, and black drops of blood would ooze out.
Rosa didn’t care.
She merely ran her fingers over the blade absentmindedly, seemingly unaffected by the pain.
The commanding knights watching Rosa felt a slight unease.
Unlike the lower-ranking knights who were completely consumed by the demonic nature, they still retained some human will and reason.
They had never considered the possibility of defeat in the Rikalton war.
On the contrary, they had been planning to achieve a great victory and launch a new invasion before the temporary alliance completed its preparations.
But Dyfus and the Prophet had died, and Rosa was visibly fatigued even with her army at the forefront.
"...The army has gathered, Matriarch-nim."
Finally, Lionel stepped forward and spoke to Rosa.
Rosa didn’t respond and continued to run her fingers absentmindedly over the blade.
A cold wind occasionally stirred her hair.
"Matriarch-nim."
Lionel called out to Rosa once more.
The high-ranking knights observing Rosa with some sanity felt the unease transmitted through their ranks.
Only Padler, with venom coursing through him, seemed indifferent to what was happening.
After thirty minutes, Rosa finally spoke for the first time.
"Former patriarch, Sir Lionel."
"At your service."
"Have you ever loved a child?"
It was an unexpected and incomprehensible question, and Lionel couldn’t understand Rosa’s intentions.
"Why...? Is it because of the death of the Fourth Flagbearer?"
"That child was exceptional compared to the vermin over there, but he didn’t deserve any special affection."
At those words, Joshua, standing below the throne, momentarily flinched.
After the Prophet’s death, Joshua could no longer produce the special despair of the past.
It was because the hope of the prophecy had disappeared.
"Please, answer the question."
"Yes."
"Then, what have you done for such a child?"
"It’s a difficult question to answer... In my case, I passed on the heritage of my Family. This very place, the Garden of Swords."
Upon hearing that, Rosa nodded in satisfaction. Energy spread through her once-dark eyes.
"I also wanted to pass this place on to that child. But I can’t do it anymore... Before forming a bond with my youngest son. As a mother, I think I should give him an appropriate gift. Something like a playground."
"A playground, you say?"
Rosa stood up.
"I will build a fortress from now on."
"At your service, but..."
"It will be the final stage for my youngest son. It must be intricate and beautiful, and there must be figures that fit the myth of his death."
Lionel pondered how he should express this concern, and there was a commotion among the troops.
But the next moment, they couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration as they saw Rosa raise her hand toward the empty space.
Dark pillars suddenly shot up from the left and right of the formation, as if a picture were being drawn on a canvas.
Whenever she gestured, the skeletal structure of the “fortress” emerged.
A creation that could only be the work of a God.
At the same time, a pale aura began to rise like a tidal wave from behind the throne.
It was the sight of new souls escaping from the mausoleum.
Lionel couldn’t help but shudder at the power emanating from them.
"While I build the fortress, your task is simply to fill the void and ensure this place doesn’t look empty. Prepare for the imminent battle in your respective positions. Prepare to welcome my son."
Rosa stopped stroking the sword, and Lionel and the army knelt in unison.
The ancient heroes, who were beginning to take physical form as runes appeared along Rosa’s touch, also paid homage to her.
And Rosa, standing in the center of the formation, looked at the Black Sword Association, specifically at Lynn, as if she knew exactly what she was thinking.
Lynn bowed her head, unaware of Rosa’s gaze.
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