CHAPTER 737

[T.L: punisher87]

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***

2nd floor, below the ground.

As soon as Jin and the other four people finished descending, they felt the air becoming stifling.

The energy that interfered with aura and mana generation was much stronger on the underground 2nd floor.

"It's even… worse than… what Alpen said."

Bianca said while forming and dissipating aura on her greatsword. The aura on the sword was only at about 70% of its usual level.

The rest of the group was in a similar situation.

Even Alpen, who was unaffected until the chains were broken, was now experiencing the same effects.

"I feel like my senses have dulled."

"It's not just a feeling, it has actually dulled, Spectre's Captain. Although it's subtle."

Octavia sighed inwardly at Hedo's response.

Not only were they separated from their allies, but they were also facing problems with their own abilities. It was inevitable that they would feel burdened.

[The interference has definitely intensified more than I anticipated.]

"Perhaps the reason for the increased interference is that Sir Alpen was released from the control of the evil god."

[Now that evil god has more leverage as it is not losing energy to control me, so it strengthened the interference?]

"That's possible."

[It's a plausible theory.]

Although the group had no way to confirm it themselves, Jin's speculation was accurate.

However, if there was one overlooked aspect, it was Tasha's presence.

Not only Alpen, but Tasha was also released from her restraints on the side of the allied forces, so it was natural for the interference to become so severe.

Regardless of what happened, they had no choice but to move forward. Jin reminded the group of that fact once again.

Once again, they found themselves in an endlessly vast and dark space.

The group walked silently as if they were walking on a desert.

They began to see something. A few silhouettes of people were visible in the

distance.

'This time, there are five....'

As the distance closed, the exact number of heads became clear.

The fact that their numbers matched exactly, as if it had been intentionally arranged, made the group feel uneasy for a moment.

[Please come forward.]

The knight standing in the middle spoke.

Jin immediately recognized him when he saw the twin swords hanging from the knight's waist.

'It's the 16th patriarch, Lyon Runcandel. The person with the greatsword is the 29th patriarch, Tucker Runcandel, and the person with the chain sword is the 35th patriarch, Neph Runcandel.'

On the other hand, the other two, who were carrying ordinary longswords, were unrecognizable.

If their faces were visible, Jin might have been able to recognize them by comparing them to past portraits and memories, but the chains covered their faces.

In other words, there were only two people whom Jin needed to show respect.

"I, the inadequate descendant, greet the two ancestors. Please bear with me a little longer. I will soon release your restraints."

[Just like the 20th patriarch standing there, do you think you can save these two as well?]

"That's correct, Lyon."

Swish!

Suddenly, Lyon's sword struck the left arm of the former patriarch next to him.

It was the former patriarch bound by chains. With a thud, the severed arm of the former patriarch fell without any response.

Jin narrowed his eyes and glared at Lyon.

[The patriarch is absolute. That has been the law of the clan since its inception. Those who violate that law, like you, are not needed in the clan. No matter how outstanding you are, you only cloud the water. You are undermining the authority of the current matriarch, Rosa Runcandel. Stop it now.]

Chewing!

A beam of light flew towards Lyon's chest. It was a sword energy shot by Alpen.

Lyon blocked the sword energy with his hand and glared at Alpen.

[In my youth, my heart used to race while listening to the tales of our clan's ancestors. But today, I realized that it was all a lie... Authority? What authority does the monster who brought our clan to this state have!]

[The 20th patriarch, you were hailed as the Knight of Light and led a great war to victory, breaking all precedents. It would have been admirable if you had upheld the will of the matriarch.]

[Silence! You must pay the price for tainting my memories today. Those without chains will be annihilated.]

Jin confirmed that Lyon did not continue attacking the restrained former patriarch.

'He left the right arm with the sword intact. Cutting off the left arm was just a provocation towards us, he had no intention to seriously lose power by killing the former patriarch.'

That meant Jin could save both former patriarchs bound by chains.

One against one.

It was natural for each person to fight one opponent at a time.

Since the moment Lyon severed the left arm of the former patriarch next to him, Jin had already chosen his opponent.

'I will face the former patriarch whose arm wasn't cut off and rescue them in the best possible condition. Sir Alpen will take care of Lyon.'

While Jin was thinking, Bianca kept her eyes on Tucker's greatsword.

"Jin... I want to face the Greatsword… over there..."

"In that case, Sir Hedo, please face the 35th patriarch who wields the Chain Sword. Octavia, take care of the ancestor who lost his left arm."

Among the five, Jin believed that Octavia was currently the weakest.

If she were accompanied by the Spectre Squad members or in a state enhanced by the Demon's God's Orb, it might be different, but at present, she had to face the opponent who posed the least threat.

"However, under no circumstances should you kill the ancestor. Once the chains are released, he will become an ally."

"I will try my best."

"Don't just try, you must do it."

Otherwise, I will kill you.

Jin didn't say those words out loud, but Octavia felt a chill run down her spine for a moment and clenched her teeth.

The roles were set.

There was no need for lengthy discussions. As long as no one got entangled with someone else, the fight would end when one side fell.

The beginning of the battle was announced by Jin's 3rd Decisive Killing Move of Runcandel, "Meteor Shower." White sword energies rained down, tearing through the dark space.

The former patriarchs of the Runcandel scattered left and right to avoid the meteor shower.

With each strike of the sword energies hitting the ground, earthquakes occurred, and powerful shockwaves spread.

Before the meteor shower unfolded even halfway through, the surrounding was filled with the clan's decisive killing moves.

It was only natural, considering there were six generations of the Runcandel clan present here.

If this were a normal castle, most of the buildings would have been destroyed without a trace before a minute passed.

From a distance, their fight seemed no different from a natural disaster.

The magnitude of power seemed to favor the former patriarchs.

Jin and his group were constrained in generating aura and mana, so it couldn't be helped.

The former patriarchs freely used both aura and magic.

A black storm relentlessly attacked them.

Only Jin's group was affected by the chaos. In order to fully bind their respective opponents and protect themselves, they couldn't avoid the chaos.

The group unleashed their full power without prior inspection.

They had to defeat their assigned opponents as quickly as possible and then switch to supporting others.

'It seems that the 12th flagbearer made the wrong judgment by engaging me in close combat with this former patriarch, expecting his power to diminish due to the loss of his left arm. What a miscalculation.'

Octavia thought as she parried the attacks of the former patriarch with her own.

Even though he was right-handed, not being able to use both hands was undoubtedly a critical limitation.

However, her opponent wielded a fierce and flawless sword, surpassing the other former patriarch in skill.

It was clear enough for Octavia, a mage, to see the significant difference in their abilities.

Within moments, Octavia could understand the reason.

'...It's not about fighting with his own skills. The puppeteer, the martial arts of the evil god has reached such a level. Even without one arm, it doesn't matter. Whether such a thing is possible or not…'

A chillingly sharp strike pierced through her body.

Perhaps due to a deeper level of inner world, Rosa was controlling the former patriarch with even greater delicacy than Alpen.

Jin was aware of that fact.

He, too, was sensing it as he clashed his sword with his opponent's.

'I should have put Sir Hedo instead of Octavia over there. If it continues like this, it's only a matter of time before Octavia is defeated. I have no choice but to defeat the ancestor as quickly as possible and help her.'

Just as Jin had thought that, Hedo's voice came through.

"Jin! Don't worry about the Spectre Captain, I'll provide support!"

"I... will do my... best to help!"

Fortunately, there was still a gap between Hedo and the 35th patriarch, as well as between Bianca and the 29th patriarch.

Alpen and Lyon were equally matched where Jin couldn't guess which side would win.

Soon, Jin fixed his gaze on his opponent.

Under the evil god's chains, Jin could see the unbeaten Runcandel's gleaming eyes.

"Evil god, what is the reason for constantly disgracing the ancestors like this? Even if you bind them with chains and forcibly control them, eventually, just like Sir Alpen, they will all turn their swords against you. You may be able to take their bodies, but you cannot corrupt their souls."

Ssak!

Blood spurted from both Jin's and his opponent's hands simultaneously. Their swords had grazed each other.

Both of them rotated their bodies to the right, shooting sword energy.

"Even if you don't have the soul, then the flesh will do. Do you want the real Runcandel so badly?"

Fwoosh...!

A faint mana enveloped Bradamante, igniting blue flames.

Eternal Flame, a fire that cannot be extinguished by anything.

"Your Runcandel is not legitimate. That's why you can't move real Runcandels without binding them with chains. In my view, the chains that control the ancestors are the manifestation of such deficiency and self-loathing. You pretend to be a god, but in reality, you are nothing but a weak and despicable human."

Seizing power with dirty means, oppressing people with fear, building a gigantic castle, and showcasing the power to destroy the world at any time.

No matter how much you try to hide your true form...

Your essence cannot be concealed.

With each continuation of Jin's words, his opponent's swordsmanship revealed flaws.

The swordsmanship that could remain flawless, was gradually crumbling.

Conversely, Jin's sword harbored deeper and clearer flames.

Inch by inch, the Eternal Flame approached the chains.

With a flawed sword, it was impossible to prevent the flame from getting closer. All Jin could do was endure and delay the moment the sword would touch the chains.

The exchange of attacks between Jin and his opponent continued until the resounding noise on the battlefield subsided.

Jin was so absorbed in his fight that he didn't know how much time had passed.

However, one thing was clear: Bradamante, now enveloped in the Eternal Flame, had reached his opponent's entangled chains.

Clang...!

With the sound of the chains breaking, Jin looked into his opponent's eyes.

It was not the face of the old Runcandel that was revealed when the chains were broken.

"Ro... sa!?"

Evil god, Rosa.

What the chains had concealed was her, in the form of a human.

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