C498
No, why is this falling now?
Jin looked at the key with that thought.
Jin felt his heart sinking.
If the battleship blueprint had already been stolen by someone, then Runcandel had gone through all the trouble for nothing.
Could it be Joshua?
No, considering the timing and the situation, it doesn"t make sense.
"Even when handing over the key, he seemed to have made his own decision."
If that"s the case, the only one left was Kinzelo.
"Only the four Spectres remained in the Second Magic Tower because the rest of the forces went to track the stolen blueprint!"
For now, there was no other plausible deduction.
However, Hedo"s goal remained a mystery.
"If by any chance you have picked up something here, give it to me now. Then I will consider sparing your life for now."
Logically, it wasn"t something one would say to the enemy.
Thud, swing-!
The fallen key was swept away by the hot wind of the h.e.l.lfire flames and disappeared into the fire.
Hedo exhaled a sigh as if he couldn"t believe what had just happened.
It was a moment that could lead to more misunderstandings.
It wasn"t easy for Hedo to quickly realize what the situation was.
Because Jin also had the same key that Sandra had given him.
Why did Jin Runcandel have the vault key?
Until now, Hedo knew that there was only one key.
At least, that was the case until a moment ago.
"Twelfth Flagbearer, I don"t know where you got that key from. But what I just said still stands."
Hedo narrowed his eyes and spoke as if he didn"t want to complicate things too much.
If the key was duplicated, or if there were really extras that he was unaware of, or if Runcandel had stolen it...
Whatever the case, the verdict was simple.
As long as he could retrieve the blueprints and send Jin away alive, it was enough.
Sandra Zipple awaited Jin on the rooftop of the tower, fully adorned. There was even a table set for a dinner for two in the center...
(Hedo prepared it himself just before the group arrived)
And to endure the antic.i.p.ation and excitement, Sandra was sipping on an aperitif while watching the view of the explosions in the secret shipyard of the Sota Desert.
As that unsettling image came to mind, the veins on Hedo"s forehead thickened.
"Miss Sandra."
"What?!"
"You must report it."
"Report what?"
"Jin Runcandel has arrived at the shipyard. You must report this to the patriarch. Since you are currently on duty."
"Hedo, then my husband is dead. Or he won"t be Jin anymore."
"Probably. Well, considering the survival skills the Twelfth Flagbearer has shown so far, you never know."
"So don"t say those things twice."
Considering that conversation, he thought it would be better to keep Jin alive and send him away if possible.
He had set the table to calm her down, but expecting a dinner would not be realistic.
"I don"t have the blueprints."
"You just dropped the key, didn"t you? Don"t make foolish judgments. I don"t want to kill you if it"s not necessary."
"You make me cry. But what do you want me to do if I don"t have it? And it seems you"ve forgotten."
We keep fighting, Tower Guardian.
Jin was able to continue his words, and the h.e.l.lfire became even more ferocious.
The flames clinging to Hedo"s body caused an explosion, and the spreading flames gathered to engulf him.
Sarah Runcandel"s secret technique, renowned as the strongest among the ten great Knights of the ancient Runcandel.
Although the technique was still incomplete, it couldn"t be taken lightly.
With a small groan, Hedo took a step back for the first time.
The h.e.l.lfire had a much greater power than his expectations.
Blocking or avoiding this sword from the beginning would have been the right choice.
"I might have been too complacent, as Jin Runcandel said. This could be a bit exhausting..."
The heat of the h.e.l.lfire penetrated through the protective shield and flesh, reaching his internal organs.
It had been a long time since he felt so much pain.
Even if he emitted energy to push it away, it seemed that it would take some time to diminish this fierce heat.
The problem was that the h.e.l.lfire was not the end.
Other Runcandels had been waiting just for this moment.
"Well done, younger one!"
The first to follow was Dyfus.
The second meteor shower he executed was falling behind Hedo.
Not only that, the destructive power of the meteor shower was undoubtedly one of the highest in the final movements, but it seemed that by itself, it wouldn"t deliver a proper blow to the giant.
Dyfus had prepared another sword movement, the most refined sword he possessed.
Runcandel"s Fifth Secret Technique:
Light Speed Thrust.
A sword he had perfected beyond the limits several times with Mary.
Flash!
A dazzling flash surged towards Hedo"s back before the meteor shower.
It was the Light Speed Thrust, surpa.s.sing Mary and reaching its peak.
Hedo couldn"t dodge Dyfus"s sword.
The Light Speed Thrust distorted s.p.a.ce and pierced through his mountainous back.
Hedo bent forward and vomited blood, but even the Light Speed Thrust couldn"t penetrate his immense body.
The shockwave that spread along with it shook the entire tower.
There were six streaks of those flashes in succession.
Dyfus would inevitably fall into a recoil, but anyway, there was no turning back.
Dyfus realized that this was his last chance to turn the tables.
After finishing the attack, Dyfus spat out a dark puddle of blood.
Kraaaah!
Hedo screamed in agony.
It wasn"t clear if it was a scream or a roar.
However, one thing was certain:
Hedo showed no signs of collapsing even after being struck six times by a Light Speed Thrust along with a meteor shower.
Even in the midst of this, Hedo continued to wield his longsword to restrain Jin and was aware of another sword that would come next.
Monster...!
Next were Joshua and Jane.
Although the six Light Speed Thrusts didn"t deal a significant blow to Hedo, that didn"t mean he was unharmed.
Jane, she, approached amidst the meteor shower, thrusting her sword into the wounds created by the Light Speed Thrust.
The wounds were barely an inch wide.
However, Jane"s sword clearly pierced Hedo"s wounds.
Blood splattered, and flesh tore.
"You!"
Hedo rolled his eyes and pushed Jane away, releasing sword energy.
Jane, she, superficially stabbed Hedo about five times, and Hedo threw Jane against the wall, shattering her wrist and causing significant internal injuries.
However, Jane wasn"t disappointed.
Blood gushed from the depths of her chest, but she finally managed to land a valid blow on that monster, creating a small opening.
A very small opening.
Joshua"s sword pierced through that gap.
"Kaaaah!"
A desperate and venomous scream, an effort from the heart.
No one said Joshua was the best Flagbearer in pure martial skill.
He was always overshadowed by Luna, and among the siblings, the prevailing opinion was that he became the next patriarch not for his sword skills but due to Rosa"s full support.
It wasn"t entirely wrong.
However, he was undoubtedly Runcandel"s Second Flagbearer.
He had challenged and lost against Runcandel"s strongest Flagbearer many times.
In other words, Joshua also had potential.
He gained enlightenment through numerous defeats and humiliations, learning to incorporate it into his sword.
This was the result.
The Black Sword, Kainer, was enveloped in a dark aura.
The energy was similar to shadow strength but not as intense, and it possessed the characteristic glow of the aura.
It wasn"t Joshua"s unique domain, like Luna"s Mind Sword, but rather a unique-colored sword energy one must reach to obtain Runcandel"s ultimate technique.
Runcandel"s Fourth Secret Technique: Black Cross
Joshua"s sword drew a perfect cross.
Bright black sword energy spread through a perfect cross without a single inch of deviation.
The point where the sword energy intersected was Hedo"s shoulder.
Originally, it aimed at the center of his face, but it altered due to his reaction.
However, Black Cross wasn"t a type of sword technique that significantly lost its power if it deviated slightly.
Black Cross wasn"t a cross formed by two lines, as its name suggested.
As soon as the secret technique began, Joshua"s black sword energy expanded into a giant circle, pointing at Hedo from all directions.
Swoosh!
As if snipers who had finished the siege opened fire simultaneously, numerous black sword energies in the form of crosses gathered at the intersection and began to slash at Hedo.
If Joshua had executed the Black Cross alone, it would have been difficult to land a precise blow.
However, the Runcandels" swords that had attacked Hedo before did not do so in vain.
He writhed in agony at last. Though small, he let out more of a groan than a roar.
And he couldn"t deflect at least 1/10 of the countless black sword energies from the Black Cross.
If it were anyone other than Hedo, just that 1/10 would have torn the body into hundreds of pieces, turning into minced flesh.
"Kugh!"
Joshua sat down, breathing heavily.
d.a.m.n it, it wasn"t enough...!
Hedo, who began to shake off the Black Cross, seemed to regain strength with each pa.s.sing moment.
He was covered in blood, but he hadn"t suffered mortal wounds.
"Just as the Black Dragon said that Murakan is Murakan, a Runcandel remains a Runcandel. I was a bit surprised."
Tsk, Hedo spat blood, wiping his face, and spoke.
[I"m tired of this b.a.s.t.a.r.d.]
Murakan was absorbing the remnants of the h.e.l.lfire with a vortex.
At this point, the Spectre Corps was barely standing, having exhausted their strength in constantly protecting against the h.e.l.lfire, Final Movements, and Secret Techniques.
[Hey, brat. It seems it won"t work. It"s a desperate situation. Take care of the others and escape. I"ll deal with him somehow and catch up with you later.]
"Well, it seems like a reasonable plan, but unfortunately, I can"t help you, Murakan-nim. Unless Runcandel returns what they stole, I have no choice but to withdraw."
[What?]
"This means I will request support from the main house. I don"t want to waste my strength unnecessarily anymore. My patience is running out."
[You"re saying two things with one mouth. You"re starting to show your true colors. It"s not that you don"t want to waste your strength unnecessarily, but it seems the battle is starting to weigh on you. You"ve taken more beatings than expected.]
"Feel free to think as you wish. But you know very well that doing so won"t improve the situation, Black Dragon."
[Hmph, and what nonsense is this about us stealing the blueprints? We haven"t raided the vault here yet, have we? You"re making unfounded accusations.]
Murakan and the other Runcandels hadn"t witnessed the moment when the key burned in the h.e.l.lfire.
Nor did they hear the conversation between Jin and Hedo.
Hedo decided to speak with Jin instead of Murakan.
"You have a talent for making difficult problems simple, Twelfth Flagbearer. If you keep insisting, you"ll regret it. Before that happens, let me clarify one thing: I"ll give you the greatest consideration I can offer..."
Just as he finished saying that-
Hedo suddenly turned around and brandished his longsword.
He felt that someone had eluded his senses and was approaching him at close range.
It was an a.s.sa.s.sination attempt.
And the number of people in the world who could attempt an attack on Hedo is so few that they can be counted on one hand...
One of them is a rare a.s.sa.s.sin born in the Garden of Swords.
She was Yona.
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