章節 81: CHAPTER 240
The intense fire spread with more ferocity than ever before.
'I feel filthy.'
The Living Golems engulfed in flames were civilians not long ago. The Illustrious Legend Tribe, his brethren, were being insulted.
Those facts had been making Jin uncomfortable.
"Did you think I wouldn't see through your plan of using them as shields to buy time? As someone with the title of archmage, do you not feel shame? Get over here, Joe! My desire to capture you alive is starting to decrease."
"Stop, stop! I will follow you, so just stop!"
When Joe raised his staff with both hands to show his surrender, Chukon's and Susan's eyes widened.
They were desperately fending off Murakan, but their leader, Joe, suddenly declared his surrender.
Ironically, it was Joe that first provoked Murakan by calling him just a dragon of shadows.
They couldn't believe their ears when Joe's attitude shifted as easily as flipping one's palm.
"Lord Joe, what on earth…? Are you saying you'll surrender?"
In response to Susan's question, Joe actually scolded her.
"Ha! You fool, can you not tell even after seeing the black dragon being idle?! They're opponents we can't handle. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before we're annihilated. Surrendering is our only choice!"
"However…"
"However what! Hurry up and announce your surrender before he changes his mind!"
If one looked at the situation after putting aside their dignity, pride, and respect, then Joe wasn't wrong. Chukon and Susan were also certainly aware that they had no answer to these monsters.
It was a feeling that all three of them hadn't experienced for a long time, ever since they reached the level of 9-star.
"Stop talking nonsense, Lord Joe! What happened to your head? Surrender? Is that really what the so-called leader should be saying? Do you think that devil will save us if we surrender?"
"You fool!"
Chukon suddenly turned his head and shouted.
"Lord Chukon, what did you say just now?"
"What we can't handle is the black dragon, not that brat. If we capture him as a hostage, we can force the black dragon to retreat. There's no guardian dragon that leaves their contractor to die!"
Chukon was the only one among them who had ever met Jin, so when he first appeared, only Chukon felt a strange sense of crisis.
Of course, Jin's skills were incredible for his age. Putting that aside though, he still felt a strong ominous intuition that he would again be pushed back in a 'fight of numbers' like last time and that things would only go as Jin wanted.
When he faced Jin at the island in the Bellard Empire, he thought Jin was just a magic swordsman. He never dreamed that Jin would be related to Solderet or the black dragon.
He had at least 7-star magic, beyond 8-star swordsmanship, that horrifying lightning, and even spiritual energy.
Even being a 9-star mage, Jin was not an opponent Chukon wanted to fight.
'If Lord Joe surrenders now, then we have no hope. We must catch that brat and make a deal with the black dragon…!'
As soon as Chukon realized that Jin was a contractor, his thoughts continued down that line. If they can just catch that fraudulent brat, this fight would end in their victory.
"Lord Joe, don't give up. Just capture him!"
"Lord Chukon is right, Lord Joe. Even though he's impressive, he's still just a newborn monster that's yet to fully grow. If we join forces, no… even Lord Joe alone is enough to subdue him, is that not so?"
When Susan joined in, Joe felt a flash of shame and couldn't say anything in response for a moment.
Because what they said was right in every way.
'What a disgrace. I couldn't think of such a simple way of overcoming this situation and only thought of relying on the leader!'
It wasn't because Joe was stupid.
'As Chukon said, he's dangerous. My body was gripped with fear because of that brat's spirit.'
This was just a shameful incident that only happened because Joe was more reliant on his instinctive fear than Chukon or Susan.
"I lost my composure for a moment. You're right. Regardless of whether the black dragon flies or crawls, he won't be able to do anything if we just catch his contractor."
"We will tie the black dragon up as much as possible. We won't be able to last long, so please capture him quickly."
Keuaah!
Keaaugh!
The screams of Living Golems, beastmen, and mages resounded throughout the entire battlefield.
Because of the surrounding noise, Jin and Murakan couldn't overhear the conversation between the 9-star mages.
However, Jin was able to see that some conversation took place between them, and as a result, Joe's attitude, previously showing the intention to surrender, had once again changed.
Joe's staff became imbued with mana.
Although it was masked by his characteristically nasty, cruel, and ill-tempered personality, he was still an archmage who was renowned as Andrei Zipfel's nemesis for a long time.
"Get out of the way! You useless junk!"
The remaining Living Golems began to scatter to both sides following Joe's orders.
As soon as the path opened, Tess breathed out fire at Joe.
And Joe was performing magic befitting his title of 'Cold'.
Kiriririk!
In the wake of Tess's fire breath, the ground beneath Joe exploded with erupting pillars of ice.
Unlike normal ice magic, this ice was glowing an ominous purple.
Creeek!
It looked like a pillar, but it was a muzzle made of ice.
The muzzle of another golem he created himself.
The gaping muzzle bit into Tess's raging breath, and soon the ground split once more, revealing the true nature of the golem.
Geueuk-!
A size slightly smaller than Murakan.
If there were an elephant with ten tusks and made of purple ice, it would look like this.
What looked like ivory was the muzzle that bit off Tess's fire breath.
It was gnawing Tess's flame breath into pieces, like a beast eating a snake, and then screaming with a nasty, low-pitched tone.
"Huh."
It was difficult to hide his bewilderment as a golem rose up from the ground out of nowhere.
Even Jin had no choice but to hesitate for a moment, as the creature appeared while chewing on Tess's flame.
'What on earth is that? There was something absurd like that beneath the ground?'
Not just Jin but even Murakan looked surprised.
"Poluk, put out Tess's flames and protect me!"
Unlike the 'Master', an unfinished living logical golem that had recently begun to be created by borrowing the leader's wisdom and memories, this golem named Poluk was a finished product.
An ice golem resistant to fire.
To create Poluk, he searched ancient glaciers to find a white elephant, kidnapped young demons, and used the hearts and wings of five phoenixes.
From the time when he had the vain dream of surpassing Andrei and defeating Kelliark, it took nearly twenty years to complete.
In other words, Archmage Cold Joe's magnum opus, his masterpiece.
It was the reason why even though Chukon and Susan were also 9-star mages like Joe, they still viewed him as one step above them.
As soon as Poluk appeared, the blue flames that spread across the battlefield began to fade away.
At the same time, Joe was multicasting his self-created exclusive magic, 'Cold Limit'.
Purple ice fragments spread out from his staff and instantly surrounded Jin.
It was as if hundreds of archers were aiming to pierce Jin's entire body.
'I guess he wasn't Anderi Zipfel's rival for nothing.'
Jin calmly took his stance and prepared to strike the ice.
He then looked in the direction where Chukon and Susan were, in a way that Joe wouldn't notice.
It'd be too risky to face such a monster alone if the flames of Tess didn't work.
Moreover, while Joe had been able to conserve most of his mana by using the golem as a shield, Jin was under a much greater physical burden due to the use of the divine energy and the summoning of Tess.
'He doesn't have that title for nothing. His defense is incredible.'
Two 9-star mages, one of whom had a reputation as a master of defense. Even Murakan, who had regained 40% of his strength, could not easily break through the shield.
This was also because Murakan could not attack with all his might on the side where Jin was.
'I'll have to wait until Murakan clears them out. I don't know much about Joe's exclusive magic.'
The moment Jin decided it was time to fight more strategically…
[Tsk, even if you're crazy, this is too much. He probably did this because he didn't know what he was doing, but this bastard…]
Murakan shook his head with his eyes wide open.
Everyone on the battlefield was closely listening to the majestic voice that was characteristic of dragons.
[You brought out a golem that was made using phoenix bodies in front of the master of the fire dimension? It's the same with trying to bring back the Illustrious Legend Tribe, but you guys have a real knack for bringing about disaster…]
Swoop!
Murakan stopped attacking and descended toward Jin.
He transformed into his human form and used spiritual energy to spread a protective shield, surrounding himself and Jin.
'They've royally pissed Tess off. It's a situation where you shouldn't be hasty to stop her, and from now on, she'll ignore the contract and forcibly use all your power. No matter how much she cares for you, this is something she can't hold back on.'
It was a very quiet voice.
"Huh?"
Thump.
Jin stumbled, falling to one knee. As soon as Murakan's explanation was finished, he felt all his strength leaving his body.
'Since she cares for you so much, she won't use your lifespan but… well, she probably won't? She won't. Shit, I'll give you a better explanation later.'
Jin's eyes slowly closed. A huge wave of drowsiness that he couldn't shake off was consuming Jin's entire body.
Murakan pinched his forehead in annoyance.
In the next moment, Tess roared and the surrounding area turned into a blue hell.
Keahak—!
The blue fire was spreading at exactly the same speed as the sound of the roar.
It took less than thirty seconds for the hundreds of remaining Living Golems to completely turn to ash and disappear. The beastmen and the mid- and low-rank mages also met the same fate.
The entire Dark Magic Association perished, leaving behind the three 9-star mages.
"Wh-What on earth is this?"
Joe, who barely escaped the fire, ran toward Chukon's shield. He glanced over his shoulder, and…
He saw Poluk, his masterpiece, being consumed by the flames of Tess.
Rather than catching fire or being bathed in flames, it was literally being 'eaten'.
Just like the first time Poluk chewed and swallowed Tess's fire breath.
Joe, Chukon, and Susan were terror-struck and had no choice but to step back.
They knew that Tess was one of the greatest phoenixes, but this was a phenomenon that they could not explain with their knowledge.
On the other hand, Murakan was relieved as he watched this scene unfold.
'You were able to control that temper of yours. I was wondering what I would do if you took the kid's lifespan and completely destroyed this area, but you were quite rational, weren't you?'
Poluk disappeared without a trace. Not even a single footprint was left behind. The only remnant was scattered blue ash.
Naturally, Tess seemed as though she wasn't satisfied with just the golem and targeted the 9-star mages. Murakan was worried Tess wouldn't be able to control her anger and would cause an incident.
"Well, wouldn't it be better if you turned back now? Look here, the kid passed out. At this rate, things could get bad. I'll make sure those bastards suffer, so take a deep breath and… Hm? Hang on, what's that...?"
The place Murakan pointed to was the collapsed outer wall.
A ghostly, pale, human-like figure was on the remains of the outer wall.
"Before you go, could you check out what that is? Or do you know what it is? It feels strangely unpleasant."
...…
"Huh? You don't know what it is, you're going to go, and you're leaving the kid to me now? Fine, fine, I get it. Good choice, so trust me and go back."
章節 82: CHAPTER 241
Crackle…
As Tess returned to the Fire Dimension, Jin regained his consciousness. However, it wasn't easy for him to control his body due to the immense fatigue.
"Are you up, kid?"
"…What a big mess. Is Tess responsible?"
Jin asked after he reactivated Myulta's Rune and took a look around.
During the few minutes he had been unconscious, the unidentified elephant-shaped golem, hundreds of people, beastmen, and Living Golems had all been burned to ashes.
Tess had left, but the blue flames which engulfed the battlefield had not yet been extinguished, radiating a strong heat throughout the area.
The three 9-star magicians looked distraught, having completely lost their will to fight.
"Well, you could say it was your doing since she basically borrowed your powers. She just used her divine knowledge and experience to utilize that power more explosively and… No, that's not important right now. Take a look at this."
Jin raised his head and looked toward the outer wall.
A human-like figure was there, slowly descending to the ground.
"What's that supposed to be?"
As Jin tilted his head, the 9-star magicians followed his gaze.
Upon seeing the hazy figure, they immediately bowed their heads, wearing an expression that seemed to say 'We're saved'.
"Greetings to our leader!"
"Greetings to our leader!"
The magicians exclaimed in unison as they knelt down on one knee.
Jin and Murakan couldn't help but be shocked.
"That's… the leader of Kinzelo?"
Encountering this mysterious figure was completely unexpected.
Jin had never spent much time imagining what they would look like, but this was not it. For a terrorist group like Kinzelo, it didn't seem to fit.
After all, he was glowing with a bright light.
As if a god had descended down to earth, the leader's hazy figure was enveloped in a magnificent glow.
"What's with that blurry glow? It's like looking at a giant firefly."
Murakan expressed his lukewarm take as Jin shrugged.
"It does seem that way, doesn't it?"
Despite how they reacted, they were both tense. If it was the leader of a terrorist group that even the Zipfel Clan avoided an all-out war with, then that person would definitely have the skills to back their reputation.
"I couldn't detect his presence at all… Hm, I'm certain he's a dangerous individual, but somehow he just doesn't feel real to me. Like a spirit or a ghost, he has no actual presence."
The leader landed in the center of the confrontation and remained motionless for a while. He didn't spare a glance toward the magicians, instead directing his gaze at Jin.
Roughly thirty steps separated them. A skilled individual would be able to easily cover that distance and launch an attack in just a blink of the eye.
Fwooshhh—
Murakan positioned himself in front of Jin and released his Spiritual energy so that he could immediately counterattack in the case of an attack.
[At last, I'm meeting the big name that Zipfel and Vermont have been desperately searching for. Nice to meet you, Vamel.]
The voice sounded deep.
[And as for you, Murakan, long time no see. I heard you awoke from your slumber. Oh, seeing as he's under your protection, Vamel must be a Runcandel? I was curious as to why such a well-known figure suddenly appeared out of thin air.]
"What's wrong with you? Do you know me?"
[I know you well. After all, I'm the one who saved your life.]
"Kuhahaha, this is a first. My savior? Who do you think you are? Have you come from a group of comedians? Absolutely ludicrous!"
[When Temar tried to kill you when you lost control, the one who stopped him was none other than me. Murakan, don't you remember me?]
Temar Runcandel.
As soon as that name was mentioned, Murakan's eyes were tinged with a murderous rage.
He fiercely gathered his Spiritual Energy as if he was readying an attack, but promptly canceled it while scoffing.
"You dare bring up his name, you bastard. You may seem like quite an old demon, but Temar would never join hands with the likes of you. Also, me losing control? It looks like you've overheard quite a lot from somewhere, huh? But the one who actually went out of control that day was…"
[It was Temar, and not you? Is that what you're trying to say?]
The leader calmly smiled.
To be precise, it couldn't be called a smile. Rather, the hazy area where a mouth should be opened in the shape of a crescent moon.
[Putting aside the fact you've lost all memory of me, to think you remember that day to be Temar's fault. If he were to hear about this, I can't even imagine how unfair he would think that was.]
"…Say his name again, I dare you. I'll kill you and send the rest of you bastards from Kinzelo straight to hell."
The only thing that stopped Murakan from attacking was Jin. Had Jin not been in such a state, he would've attacked without a second thought.
[Even at your prime, that would be impossible. I'm dying with curiosity, though. Do you really have a problem with your memories? Do you truly think it was Temar that went out of control and not you?]
"It seems you want to die."
[Or perhaps you reconstructed your own memories to what is most convenient for you?]
"Shut your mouth…!"
[Judging by your reaction, it seems to be the latter.]
Just as Murakan was about to transform into his true form…
"Murakan."
Jin grabbed his shoulder.
From listening to the conversion, Jin was convinced that the leader knew Murakan 'very well'.
'He is someone with full knowledge of all of Murakan's weakest points.'
Murakan's immense anger made his breathing rough and coarse.
Jin could feel Murakan's body trembling with fury and judged that he had fallen for the leader's provocation.
"He's just provoking you. You can't give in."
"How dare he, the bastard… What on earth is he saying…"
Murakan exclaimed, losing his focus as if he had been possessed.
"Calm down. This guy's the leader of Kinzelo. If we charge in without preparation, there's a high possibility that we'll lose, especially when you're as emotionally unstable as you are now."
The usual Murakan wasn't particularly rational or cool-headed, but Jin had never seen him break down this much over a mere couple of words.
[I understand. Everyone has at least one thing that they don't want to admit or acknowledge. Whether your memories were reconstructed or not, your grief at losing your friend, Temar, would be genuine. So, on one hand, I pity you.]
"Kaaahhh!"
"Murakan!"
Twack!
Jin hit the back of Murakan's head with all of his power. Although just about every ounce of his strength had been drained from his body, his blow was still as powerful as a hammer strike.
Murakan flinched in pain and looked back at Jin.
"Kid? Why did you hit me? Are you crazy?"
"To get you back to your senses."
"What? What are you talking about all of a… Oh!"
Murakan shook his head.
"Damn it, I was played by that snake-like bastard for a second. How disgraceful."
The leader of Kinzelo did not use hypnosis or mind control magic. Confusing Murakan's already unstable memories proved to be more effective.
[Oh, look at that. If only you were able to stop your rampage back then as well.]
Before Murakan's anger could resurface, Jin spoke first.
"Look here, the sight of you with your constant blabbering ever since you got here isn't all that pleasant. Murakan and I killed all of your men. Seeing as you're their leader, I think that should be your main concern. Enough about Temar. How about you start worrying about those subordinates of yours we reduced to ashes, alright?"
[Yes, you're right. I behaved too impudently since I was just overjoyed to be meeting my old friend after such a long time.]
"If you've realized it, why don't you come over and avenge your dead subordinates? Instead of moving that tongue of yours."
'Kid, didn't you tell me that fighting should be avoided?'
…That's what Murakan's eyes seemed to say as he looked at Jin. Of course Jin ignored him and just spat at the leader.
He also made some rather rude hand gestures, goading him to attack.
"What are you waiting for? If you could stop Temar, the first patriarch of Runcandel, you must be quite the fighter. If that isn't a lie, you could get rid of everybody here with a single blow, right?"
[What an interesting character.]
"You're the interesting one, sitting still doing absolutely nothing. Just as Murakan said, it makes me wonder if you're from a comedian troupe or something. Have you ever met Temar? Well, I have. He's not someone you could take on. You were full of bravado earlier, but now what's wrong? Are you too scared to fight?"
Jin's childish provocations were a gamble.
'The truly powerful don't spare any words. If they have something to say, they do it after subduing their opponents.'
All of the transcendently strong beings Jin had encountered had been like that.
Cyron, Talaris, Luna, Owal, Misha, and so on. For them, conversation was a procedure that only took place after half-killing their opponents or completely bringing them into submission through intimidation.
'On the other hand, provocation is also used when you don't have enough power, or when you need to resort to cheap tricks.'
In that sense, the method used by the leader of Kinzelo was nothing like that of the truly strong.
He acted like he would only fight if Murakan made the first move. As if he had prepared a trap.
"Right, seeing as you've been deciding what Murakan's memories were as you pleased all this time, it looks like this is some shitty psychology session. This time, I'll try to guess what's going on in your head. You came here to save those three and set up some kind of hidden trap, but since it doesn't look like we'll fall for it, you're starting to get a bit frustrated."
[Hahaha…]
"You bastard, what's so funny? Am I wrong? How dare you try and trick us without having any strength of your own. Answer me."
He provoked him this much, but the leader didn't launch any attacks.
He just stood still and stared at Jin. Naturally, Jin felt as though he was getting more and more of an initiative on him.
The leader's blurry face made his expression unreadable, though. He looked as if he was ashamed, but it also looked like he was enjoying this.
[You've got me. It's as you say, Jin Runcandel. You got almost everything right. I'm not in any condition to take you on right now. As you can see, this body doesn't even have any bones.]
"Wait a couple more minutes, then. Let me finish thinking about what sort of trap you set and then I'll destroy you myself."
[Didn't I say you only got almost everything right?]
Click clack click!
Suddenly, pieces of metal joined together right in front of the leader. They appeared out of thin air and soon formed a sword.
'It's not an aura sword… but an actual sword?'
Fwoosh!
The place the leader's sword headed for was none other than straight for the mages.
"L-Leader… Ack!"
Slice!
The sword closed the distance instantly and severed Susan Rilistar's head from her body.
Her head fell to the ground, unable to utter any words while looking up at the leader with resentful eyes.
He then stabbed the sword right into Chukon's chest and twisted it. Even as a master of defense, he was unable to block the attack from his master in this situation.
[Sorry, I can't save you guys as well]
Chukon fell forward as he died.
Just like before, metal pieces appeared out of nowhere. Instead of a sword, this time they formed a 'door'.
The door opened to reveal a dark space, through which the leader intended to escape with Joe.
Joe was someone the leader couldn't afford to lose yet. Joe knew this well, so he believed that if he could survive, the leader would come to save him.
[I look forward to a more pleasant encounter next time.]
The door closed behind the leader as he entered, and the metal pieces which formed the door instantly vanished into like dispersing smoke.
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