Chapter 873

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Huphester Alliance calls it the Sea of Swords, and the Lutero Magic Federation calls it the Sea of Magic. In the midst of that, the strongholds of the True Demon World were gathered. It was as if the True Demon World had taken over the region that had practically been treated as neutral waters.

"Lord Jin, isn't it too dangerous for just the two of you to go?"

When Kashmir spoke, Luna, who was standing beside him, shook her head instead.

"It's not dangerous, Your Majesty. Even if the formidable forces of the True Demon World suddenly emerge, the youngest and Lord Murakan can easily escape."

"That's right. You don't have to worry too much because the Golden Ship will be waiting nearby anyway."

"Sometimes things can get messy if too many people go. Small creature, make sure you're receiving reports in the situation room."

"Murakan, even though Sir Kashmir is the king of a nation and possibly a future emperor of an empire, is it really appropriate to keep calling him 'Small creature' like that?"

When Ameris spoke up, Kashmir responded with a wry smile.

"It's just a nickname, so let's not forget that, Ms. Ameris. Let's go, kid!"

"Everyone, the mission begins. The King, if any unusual circumstances arise during your missions, please contact me immediately."

Jin said as he took out an iron plate the size of his palm from the inside pocket of his coat. This iron plate was the 'portable' communication device that Qw had finally completed.

It had been distributed to key members of the alliance, and it was scheduled to be distributed to all commanding officers in various locations within the next week.

"Understood, Lord. Please take care."

The people gathered in the meeting room quickly dispersed.

This time, Jin didn't use the Red Owl. Since there were many mission areas, the Red Owl had to be used by others in rotation.

[Kukhaha, indeed, a dragon must fly and appear before enemies to fully savor the experience.]

"I was worried you might vomit in front of the demons."

[Hng, hold on tight. We're going at maximum speed.]

"It's been a while since I rode you for long-distance travel."

Murakan fluttered his wings once, and a shockwave was created, making a huge hole in the clouds. In an instant, Murakan had soared through the sky at a speed far faster than that of wind dragons.

At this rate, it would take about three hours to reach the True Demon World's stronghold area.

For a regular dragon or flying ship, it would have taken over six hours. That meant that the moment the defensive wall was breached, the enemies could strike Tikan at any time.

But even if the enemies breached the defensive wall, Tikan always had the highest-ranked Choin and defensive equipment ready and waiting.

'The enemies have settled nearby, yet it's not too concerning.'

It was because the results of the preparations he had made since his time as a reserve flagbearer were now shining.

The war hadn't properly started yet, but Jin had a strong conviction that he wouldn't be defeated.

'Both the Red Plutonian tribe and the True Demon World. The nether factions have started to play their roles more prominently, but ultimately, the biggest enemy for my clan and the alliance is still Zipfel.'

The cold wind was cooling Jin's head.

When two hours had passed since the flight began, Jin received his first call from Kashmir.

{Lord, do you hear me clearly?}

"I hear you clearly."

{I just received reports from 1st and 3r flagbearers. They've eliminated all great fractures in the southern Delki region, leaving seven small to medium-sized fractures. However, they judged that it's more efficient to suppress the small fractures after the transfer is complete rather than eliminate them.}

"Yes, that sounds good. The elder sisters have limits on how many times they can use their abilities, so it would be wasteful to eliminate the small fractures. The civilian evacuations were probably completed a while ago. How are the other mission areas?"

{The great fractures on the Schutzeron Kingdom's side seem to be well under control by Sir Tuben and Sir Heijin, but 7th, 10th, and 11th flagbearers are having a bit of trouble. There are no significant issues in other areas for now.}

"Understood."

Another hour passed.

Jin and Murakan were observing the True Demon World's strongholds that had started to come into view in the distance.

[Oh... Look at this kid. It is probably the size of some small nations, right? It might even be larger than the capital of an empire.]

As Murakan said, the strongholds of the True Demon World that had been summoned over the sea were on a scale that could easily be called a 'nation.'

The alliance had already destroyed dozens of castles that had transferred through several battles, and they had defeated tens of thousands of troops and numerous demon commanders. However, considering the overall size of the True Demon World, their achievements were nothing more than a scratch. The central stronghold that the two were currently looking at was just a fraction of the entire True Demon World that had been summoned.

The entire stronghold was overflowing with purple demonic energy like a barrier. To those not properly trained, it was toxic energy in itself. Therefore, it was impossible for combat personnel below the 6-star level to even enter the stronghold.

"The minimum requirement for engaging in combat while being exposed to demonic energy seems to be around the 7-star. To truly use your power without being affected, they would need to be around the 9-star level."

[Later, when we engage in a full-scale battle, we'll only be sending the elite of the elites anyway, so that won't be a problem. Of course, the demonic energy might be even denser by then, but our side will likely have produced things like the Golden Ship by that time. We can just use artillery from a long range.]

"You do think about strategy, Murakan."

[Well, it's no longer a world where being strong alone is enough. Well, it was the same a thousand years ago... Even back then, I was at the peak of my power, but I couldn't protect my comrades. Ah, let's set aside the painful stories. It seems like the welcome ceremony is about to begin.]

Naturally, the welcome ceremony referred to the activation of various magical traps and defensive equipment set up in the stronghold.

As Murakan approached the stronghold, the dispersed demonic energy in the area began to move like a living being, forming a massive magic circle.

It was a form of dark magic that Jin had never seen before.

However, it wasn't difficult to understand what the magic circles implied.

"Usually, spells with complex forms like this take a long time to cast, and such magic spells are often curse type."

[And you're immune.]

As soon as Murakan answered, the condensed demonic energy within the magic circles transformed into hundreds of thin tendrils and surged toward Jin.

They could have avoided it if they wanted, but Jin and Murakan deliberately allowed themselves to be hit by the curse. The tendrils were about to pierce Jin, but suddenly they bent and withered, as if wilting flowers.

At that moment, the magic circles transformed into a new form. This time, it was attack-type magic, but Jin didn't need to draw his sword. Murakan's breath was enough to neutralize the entire attack.

The defensive magic circles continued to appear incessantly, but they couldn't exert any pressure on Jin and Murakan, who were near the Genesis Knight level.

So, as annoyance began to surge and Jin was about to draw his sword, a huge magic covering his field of vision suddenly disappeared, revealing the true appearance of the stronghold.

'Zito and the True Demon World bastards. Their tastes are quite certain.'

The stronghold's structure was not much different from a typical city.

The only difference was that every building was entwined with thorns, and despite being quite high in the sky, Jin and Murakan could hear constant horrifying screams rising from below.

Those were the screams of the deceased, who were trapped in hell without ascending the path of reincarnation. When Jin focused, he could see the souls hanging on the streets and squares throughout the stronghold. They appeared in the forms of resurrected heroes in the past with a faint bluish glow, much like how they looked in life.

The demons summoned to the stronghold were spending their days torturing human souls.

Of course, they were once living humans as well, so Jin felt sorry for them for a moment, but according to Ameris and Tess, those who fell into hell had committed sins deserving of such punishment.

In particular, Tess had advised Jin that there was no need to feel sorry for them.Only those who committed unimaginably heinous sins ended up in hell.

The fact that there were so many sinners was frustrating.

[Kid, it seems someone in charge is coming out.]

The vanished demonic energy had been concentrated in a dimensional portal that had just formed in the center of the stronghold's sky. From within the portal, a demon emerged, walking in the sky as if it were solid ground, revealing its form.

"Hello, Sir Jin Runcandel. I am Sakiel Grosch."

[A nobody like you is of no use. Bring someone like Paellito Belgasyum or whoever."

In response to Murakan's provocation, Sakiel slowly raised her head.

"I certainly didn't expect the two of you would visit our True Demon World so suddenly. So, I haven't had time to properly prepare a welcome ceremony. You must be quite busy cleaning up the inland right now..."

[We will take care of our affairs. Just bring the strongest one, not you. Let's have a fight right now.]

Murakan's words were sincere.

While he was at it, Jin intended to fight with the person known as the True Demon World's First Sword. Even if he didn't win, there was a need to gauge the combat strength of his enemy beforehand.

"I can't allow that. I, too, hold the heavy duty of being the Chief Strategist of the True Demon World, so it would be better if you were satisfied with meeting me. However, you two... wouldn't it be better to return as soon as possible? If you value your comrades, that is."

As Sakiel spoke, the communication device began to vibrate.

{Lord Jin, 7th, 10th, and 11th flagbearers have requested support. Right after they subdued the demons that came out of the fracture, a new great fracture suddenly formed on the battlefield, and stronger demons and troops emerged from there...!}

Until the moment Jin and Murakan arrived, Sakiel had been directly monitoring the battle situations in all the fractures.

Originally, the fractures that the True Demon World had formed on the inland were just the "first phase." The True Demon World had planned to exert pressure on the dispersed superhumans by forming the "second phase" fractures once the elite members of the alliance were engaged in subduing the initial fractures.

"Ah, the dimensional fractures formed on the inland this time were designed so that stronger foes emerge after you defeat the initial ones. So this is..."

When Jin sighed and spoke, Sakiel smiled.

"There are still many prepared fractures. Don't waste your precious time here; it's better to go back. There will be plenty more days like this ahead for you to face."

In response to that, Jin offered a sly smile.

"Is that so?"

Before Sakiel could answer, Jin picked up the communication device.

"Elder sister Luna, elder sister Luntia. Did you hear?"

The two of them had eliminated the great fractures before Jin and Murakan arrived at the True Demon World's stronghold, as well as clearing out the remnants of the smaller fractures.

And they had just dealt with the new great fracture that had opened under Sakiel's orders, wiping it out with a single blow.

Sakiel had been observing the real-time situation through her crystal ball as well.

'...What? The new fracture I just sent out, taken down in a single strike?'

{This is the 1st flagbearer. Yes, I heard you, young patriarch. We'll immediately coordinate with the acting master of the hidden palace and move to Delki.}

Shortly, Jin nodded and looked at Sakiel.

"What should we do, Sakiel? We also have a system where we send someone stronger after a defeat."

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