Episode 1001
Chapter 246: The Battle for the Mitra Great Desert (11)
Tikan Palace.
As soon as Jin and his comrades returned, they quickly shared the new information and updates they had gathered. Bellis and Linpa listened intently as the current situation in Inse was relayed, sighing deeply more than once.
“…It hasn’t even been a year and a half since Jin left Lafrarosa for the last time, and yet so much has happened. From the Fierce God War to the Demon Realm, the Demon King Jito, and now the Red-Eyed Tribe regaining their prime. Hoo, I can’t believe you endured all that alone, brother. I’m ashamed to even look you in the eye.”
Behind all those events lay the pain of losing family, the heartbreak of severed blood ties, the corruption of comrades, the weight of farewells, the helplessness of witnessing innocent deaths, and the heavy burden of protecting the world.
Danger was always lurking unexpectedly, and death was never far away.
Bellis and Linpa stood tall, having overcome all that, and gazed at their brother who had finally reached the heavens, tears streaming down their faces.
“Bellis… but Jin, you weren’t alone. Your comrades were with you… even the Fierce God… and the half-brother too. Our Jin brother… was never truly alone.”
“Oh, that’s true. That eases my heart a bit. Well said, Linpa.”
They skillfully kept the mood from growing too heavy. The others already treated the two as if they had known them for ages, comfortable and familiar.
“As I said earlier, Lafrarosa has been living a far calmer life compared to what Jin and his comrades endured. Thanks to Lingling, time flowed normally even when Jin wasn’t around. It was so peaceful, I almost felt sorry for Jin.”
“By the way, Lingling is doing well. The half-brother… Lingling adores him a lot… and Jin talks to Lingling a lot too. Lingling’s a bit prickly, but it seems… she really likes Jin.”
“Ugh! So frustrating. Linpa, you and that Misol guy would be quite the pair if you ever met.”
“Misol…? Ah… you mean that fast-talking demon?”
“Funny, our dragons have been secluded for over twenty years, rarely speaking. But you say your slow speech is because of your silent training?”
“Yeah… that’s right… Murakan.”
“You’re not doing it on purpose, right?”
“I want to… speak… faster too.”
The comrades chuckled imagining Linpa and Misol’s conversations.
“Haha, Murakan, don’t tease Linpa too much. He gets scary when he’s mad. Anyway! The main hall of the Fierce God Temple is almost rebuilt, and Boras is working on restoring the lost fortifications. The half-brother apparently shared some secrets about the main hall with Boras. We heard bits and pieces, but it was too complicated to understand. Originally, the Fierce God Temple’s main hall was the flagship of the Golden Fleet, or so they say.”
That had been expected ever since the moment the Fierce God Temple’s main hall rose into the sky during the Great Battle of the Fierce Gods.
Everything about Lafrarosa was a string of good news—enough to turn the tide of the war in an instant.
But turning all that into reality wouldn’t be so easy.
“Valeria, when did Dr. Kwaul say the liberation device would be ready?”
“Within five days at the latest. And even after that, they’ll keep making more to prepare for any damage.”
Kwaul was certain the device would inevitably suffer damage while operating in the Great Desert.
It had to run for twelve hours straight without any shocks—no small feat.
“Twelve hours… can that be shortened?”
“Unfortunately, that’s the best we can do for now. The doctor says no matter how much they improve it, cutting the time drastically is nearly impossible.”
“But if we can secure those twelve hours, the passage between Lafrarosa and Inse will be fully open. Not just the airborne fortress of the Fierce God Temple, but the entire city of Lafrarosa could be summoned to Inse.”
“Oh, the whole city! Then we could bring back the homes and belongings of our fallen brothers, even those radiant hearts, and continue honoring them here!”
“Hey! Bellis, I’m definitely your distant ancestor, but how can you speak to me so casually?”
“How can I help it? Let’s just be friends, Eltiot.”
“Hah, our Cheongmyeong tribe was always free-spirited and egalitarian, but I never imagined it would evolve into such a culture with no hierarchy at all.”
“Free… spirited…? Eltiot, you’re acting… weird.”
“If you don’t want to be friends, then be brothers. Since I’m your ancestor, it should be possible without any special rituals or tests. Of course, we’ll need the half-brother’s permission, so let’s find a way to get Lafrarosa out.”
“Eh! It’s not that simple. Right now, it’s almost impossible to keep the device running safely for even an hour, let alone twelve.”
That was true.
No one could even guess how many people it would take to maintain the device for just one hour in the Great Desert.
“That’s right. Even if the alliance sends their full strength to the desert to push back the Red-Eyed Tribe, there are demons. They’re immune to any attack and can’t be restrained, so no matter how many guards there are, they can just walk in and destroy the device.”
“Demons are summoned beings, right? Won’t they eventually disappear naturally?”
“Even if they vanish, maintaining the device is still difficult. The Red-Eyed Tribe’s superior mobility and firepower mean that even long-range bombardment could destroy it. No matter how many layers of shields the alliance’s superhumans put up, they can’t keep blocking the airborne fortresses’ maximum output fire forever.”
“What about hiding it?”
“That’s impossible too, Bellis. The Lafrarosa liberation device uses wavelength tracking technology, so it’s always detected by the enemy’s brainwave signals. Operating the device outside the Great Desert is pointless.”
Jin and his comrades fell into deep thought.
No matter how they looked at it, they couldn’t come up with a way to keep the device running.
“…For now, there seem to be three possible options.”
“What are they, Jin?”
“First, more brothers could emerge from within Lafrarosa itself, like Bellis and Linpa. But that depends purely on luck, and now that the Red-Eyed Tribe has started directly attacking the passage, the chances are even slimmer.”
“Right. Unlike before, the half-brother now has to fend off bombardments constantly.”
“Besides, the Jiple guys will soon find out about this too. They won’t just stand by; they’ll try to break in and destroy Lafrarosa. Isn’t that right, kid?”
“Surprisingly, our Black Dragon is using his sharp mind properly. Yes, Jiple will definitely join the fight. The half-brother will have to deal with the Red-Eyed Tribe’s assault and Lady Elona’s magic as well…”
“Oh, don’t worry about the half-brother.”
Jin gave an awkward smile at Bellis’s words.
In truth, Jin and the Mingwang brothers had known for a long time that the half’s body wasn’t quite normal. But he was so overwhelmingly strong that it wasn’t noticeable.
“The second option is the Great Seal of the Secret Bow. Some of you have seen Talalis’s Great Seal during the Sword Emperor War, when it suppressed Gliek for eleven hours.”
Jin thought that perhaps the Great Seal ritual of the Great Ice Garden, Talalis, could bind the airborne fortresses for a while.
“That sounds promising, Jin. I haven’t seen that seal myself, but I’ve heard plenty about it. If I lend my true power, the Secret Bow Master could create an even stronger seal than before.”
Ameris spoke.
“Hmph! A great serpent and a great seal. Not the best memories. But it’s more realistic than the first option, and something we can actively do. Still, even if we seal the airborne fortresses, the demons remain a problem.”
“The three demon lords… honestly, there’s no solution. We can only ask Shuri to negotiate like this time, or hope the summons naturally end and they disappear, as I said earlier.”
“Then what’s the third option?”
“The third is the worst-case scenario. The forces fighting in the Great Desert suffer heavy losses, making long-term mutual containment impossible. Then, one of us who survives would somehow bring the device into the desert. But honestly, we should rule that out. It’s too dangerous for us and the civilian casualties would be unimaginable.”
“In other words, a catastrophe on the scale of world destruction.”
“For now, the best plan is to trust the Secret Bow Master and the great serpent, and prepare the second option.”
The comrades continued to brainstorm, but no breakthrough came.
“Jin, we’ll keep thinking. You should go rest for a bit. We don’t know when the next battle will come, so you need to rest whenever you can.”
Valeria placed a hand on Jin’s shoulder. Since the Great Desert battle began, Jin hadn’t stopped fighting, moving, or holding meetings.
“Got it.”
Jin left the conference room and headed toward his room.
As he passed down the corridor, he happened to glance out the window and saw children playing catch. Yuria, Finte, and Kou stood side by side, tossing a ball through a small hole in the center of the garden.
‘Those kids… the princess of Tikan, Enya’s little sister, and Jet’s son—they’ve grown so much already.’
The game was simple: whoever got the ball through the hole first won.
‘Wait…!?’
The moment Kou threw the ball through the hole, Jin’s mind snapped awake as if struck.
“How could I have been so stupid not to think of this?”
With a sudden burst of energy, Jin turned back and flung open the conference room door.
“Kid, I told you to rest, so why are you back already?”
“Let’s just send it inside the passage to Lafrarosa!”
“What?”
“Jin?”
“What are you talking about? The historian was right to tell the kid to take a break. I think the kid’s eyes are a bit off.”
“Let’s throw the completed Lafrarosa liberation device—or at least the blueprints and materials—into the passage. That way, if we use the liberation device directly in Lafrarosa, it should definitely keep working properly for about twelve hours!”