C499
On the day Mary led the fleet and p.u.b.erty Ship to Tikan, Yona had nowhere specific to go, so she immediately returned to the Nameless City of Samil.
She had been in a bad mood all day, feeling sad and disappointed for not being able to take a proper stroll with her younger brother, Jin. So, she looked at her mission list.
It was about erasing distracting thoughts by doing something.
The more difficult and complicated the mission, the more effective it would be, so she only looked at requests cla.s.sified as higher grade or ones she decided to reject.
One of them was Kinzelo"s request.
Owal was only going to tear up the request letter, as it asked to steal an object from Zipple"s second magic tower.
"Heh, Owal-nim. Why don"t you accept it?"
"Because it"s a perfect job if you want to die."
"Why?"
Considering the recent unusual trends among the major factions, the international situation, the complicated relationship of interests, and the position Samil should take in this flow, etc.
"...So I thought it would be better not to accept it. Understand?"
"Even if I hear such bothersome stories, I don"t really know what you"re talking about. You just don"t want to do it, right?"
That"s how it might sound. But still, you listened to me, so it"s much better than the days when you wouldn"t even listen to what I said and suddenly disappeared."
"Hehe, anyway, it seems like a very important matter. Why isn"t my clan looking for me?"
Perhaps they are planning to use you for an even greater purpose than this, and there are orders from Cyron-nim.
Owal concealed those words behind a sly smile.
"Well, whatever the reason, it"s better not to look for you. Especially in cases like this."
"Did Leader Kinzelo make the request personally?"
Leader Kinzelo.
Since Yona was able to control Chaos, she was a bit interested in him.
It was because she knew that he understood "Chaos" well.
"Why do you ask?"
"I just wanted to meet him once."
"Why?"
"I wanted to ask him some questions."
Owal shrugged.
Although he complained about the difficulty of the mission, Owal was not completely lacking in ambition.
"It"s an object from Zipple"s Second Magic Tower."
Owal was convinced that the object was the blueprints of a battleship.
He also knew that Zipple had recently leaked information about a secret shipyard in the Sota Desert.
Obtaining the blueprint was an excellent business from the Nameless perspective.
This had a high potential to become the best means to proactively negotiate among the major factions.
"Regardless of the request, if Yona, and not me, acts unilaterally, it will be difficult for the major factions to hold us accountable."
Especially, Runcandel would never demand accountability.
No, beyond that, if Yona got the blueprints, it would actually be about protecting and thanking the Nameless.
Moreover, in the first place, Yona would leave no trace of having entered the Second Magic Tower. Her infiltration and a.s.sa.s.sination skills far surpa.s.sed those of Owal.
"She"s not the type of person who will listen to me even if I try to stop her anyway... Maybe it"s not a bad idea to let her go at once."
Without the need for further considerations by Owal, Yona had already made a decision.
"I will accept this request."
"No, you can"t."
"Even if you stop me, I"ll go, hehe."
"If you really have to go, I have some conditions you have to follow."
In the end, after reaching a non-negotiable agreement with Owal, Yona headed towards the Second Magic Tower.
And in the process, she learned that Joshua, Dyfus, and the youngest would also partic.i.p.ate in this mission.
From that moment on, Yona"s top priority became not completing the request, but confirming the life or death of her younger brother.
Not only because her younger brother seemed to be alone in the middle of Zipple"s territory.
"Wow, can there really be something like this in the Second Magic Tower, it"s not even Drakka? Seriously?"
While they were stealing and returning the key in the Second Magic Tower, the siblings witnessed a monster that was far beyond what they could handle.
----------------------------
These were the background details of Yona"s arrival at the Second Magic Tower.
She had been watching Jin and Murakan from the moment they entered the underground shipyard.
And she sought the right moment, a moment when she could approach her younger brother avoiding the surveillance of the crystal ball, Hedo"s senses, and Kinzelo"s eyes.
In the end, she didn"t succeed.
Even Yona had her limits, and not everything was possible for her.
Therefore, what had just appeared was inevitably a compromise she had chosen.
The optimal moment to a.s.sa.s.sinate the monster called Hedo was far from ideal, but if she didn"t step forward now, her younger brother might really lose his life.
Swing!
Yona"s sword, "Death," and the longsword, Bale, clashed, leaving sharp traces.
Except for one person, Hedo, who was the target of the a.s.sa.s.sination, no one else realized that Yona had appeared.
It was a moment when the transcendent power of Hedo"s strength became even more evident.
"Elder Sister Yona?"
Yona?
All the Runcandels widened their eyes.
Yona"s sudden appearance was shocking, but even more surprising was the fact that Yona had left a long and deep wound on Hedo"s chest with a single sword movement.
Slaaash!
A fresh spurt of blood gushed from Hedo"s robust body.
The wound inflicted by Yona was far more severe than all the Final Movements and Secret Techniques the group had used to stake their lives.
On the other hand, Hedo"s counterattack only sliced the tips of Yona"s hair, who had once again stabbed him in the side.
"Ugh...!"
Death had momentarily pierced Hedo"s side before reemerging.
It was a clearly grave injury.
Normally, Yona should have seized this opportunity to finish the target, but she refrained from continuing the a.s.sault and distanced herself.
The extremely limited advantage she had gained using the "Silver Dragon Claw" that Jin had given to Sin Nombre had ended.
Sin Nombre"s a.s.sa.s.sins had always regarded the Silver Dragon Claw as a divine artifact.
If processed in their unique way, it could freeze any target in the blink of an eye.
The reason Yona could easily cut and stab Hedo"s body was thanks to the divine power of Sin Nombre"s weapon.
Of course, her a.s.sa.s.sination skills were exceptional as well.
"Younger one, ugh!"
"Elder sister!"
As Yona withdrew from Hedo, her legs wavered, and she suddenly swayed towards Jin.
A thin stream of blood flowed between her lips.
When she slashed and stabbed Hedo with Death, the longsword, Bale, did not directly touch Yona, but she still suffered internal injuries from the energy explosively released by Hedo.
This was due to the aftermath of having used Chaos not long ago, and Yona"s chaos had not completely calmed yet.
"...It was you!"
The one who stole the plans!
Hedo, with flaming eyes, charged towards her, Yona, like a bullet.
Murakan blocked his path with his breath and punch, and then, the siblings and Jane stood in front of Hedo.
Despite being severely injured, Hedo"s formidable strength persisted.
Like a wounded beast becoming even more ferocious.
The group was amazed by his relentless charge, even after being hit directly by the Shadow Energy punch and breath.
But Hedo was still human.
He could be close to the strongest among the Ten-Star Warriors, but he was not a Genesis Knight.
He endured the acc.u.mulated blows with sheer willpower.
The Runcandels were well aware of this fact.
"We must escape with Elder Sister Yona!"
This was the first and last chance to get rid of Hedo.
The entire group was thinking the same as Jin.
Moreover, as Yona had the plans, if they managed to escape unharmed, this situation would be a victory for the Runcandels.
The long veil of the sword fell upon the gathered siblings" heads, with the feel of a collapsing mountain.
Kaaah!
The warriors" shouts echoed as their swords clashed.
The Runcandels defending against Hedo"s strike had their ankles embedded in the ground, and finally, the st.u.r.dy s.p.a.ce that had not collapsed even amid the battle crumbled completely.
The roof was completely destroyed as well.
The shockwaves created by the swords wielded by the Runcandels to stop the longsword and Murakan"s punches were responsible for this destruction.
The entire tower was collapsing. While the Runcandel and Hedo fell, they stepped on debris, engaging in a battle in mid-air.
Every second, dozens of sword energies clashed fiercely, intertwining and devouring the airs.p.a.ce.
The wound is deep.
I"ve been hit by a rather extreme poison, which even spreads every time I move.
Hedo gritted his teeth and a.n.a.lyzed the situation.
Not even Hedo expected the variable Yona Runcandel.
If he had known of her existence, he would never have casually involved himself in the fight, as Jin had suggested.
"In the end, I need to request reinforcements from the main house."
As long as the Runcandels kept fighting, Hedo was confident he could defeat them all.
However, the Runcandels were not fools.
Escaping was the only natural course of action.
Therefore, Hedo could no longer tolerate this.
Among those falling, Hedo was the first to reach the ground.
At the same time, the thick gold ring on his index finger, engraved with mysterious runic characters, began to emit light.
The ring was an artifact, a type of signaling magic similar to the inscriptions on each tower master"s staff.
The signal was immediately transmitted to Drakka, Zipple"s main house.
Even before three seconds pa.s.sed since the ring emitted light, a large-scale alarm magic was activated from afar.
I"m sorry, miss.
I can only hope that the Twelfth Flagbearer has celestial luck beyond rumors.
Hopefully, he"ll be able to survive even the pursuit by Drakka"s main force.
Hedo still had no intention of killing Jin.
However, in this situation, if he let the Runcandels go, not only would it raise suspicions about himself, but it could also bring disadvantages to Sandra.
This was an unavoidable choice.
Now Hedo had only one thing to do.
Eliminate the "witnesses" who had seen him offer to spare Jin"s life.
The Specters were exhausted and continued to fall, or gasped caught in the cracks of the broken tower.
Hedo raised his head to confirm their positions and prepare to shoot sword energy, but he was surprised to see that the tower"s roof was completely open.
"Certainly, didn"t the roof collapse? Why is it open like this?
Throughout the battle, Hedo controlled his energy to ensure that even if the inside of the tower was destroyed, the rooftop would not suffer major damage.
In other words, someone had damaged it.
Hedo had a feeling he knew who the culprit was, and that thought gave him a throbbing headache.
Hedooo-!
The owner of that incredibly loud, sharp, and irritable voice was none other than Sandra Zipple.
She had been waiting all this time for Hedo to bring Jin, and upon realizing the activation of the support signal, she pierced through the floor and leaped into the battlefield.
"You useless, muscle-brained idiot! Are you crazy? Are you insane!? Why did you call the main force!? Do you plan to kill my Jin?"
While she shouted vehemently, Sandra, who had just landed on the ground, made eye contact with Jin.
Then, she spoke in a different tone.
"My love! I was waiting for you. Where do you think you"re going? Let"s go together."
Even in the midst of urgency, Jin felt a chill hearing Sandra"s words.
But, at the same time, he had the intuition that she might be of great help in escaping from that place.
-
KO-FI
"Ko-Fi" for Adv4nc3 Ch4pt3r(Up to "120" more ch4pt3rs)Publication of up to 6 w33kly ch4pters, thanks.
-