Episode 1011
Chapter 246: The Great Mitra Desert Battle for Supremacy (21)
“So you’re saying you didn’t pursue them at all because annihilation was impossible?”
“Exactly, Keliak Ziphl. Above all, the biggest reason was the unpredictable threat lurking beyond the dimensional gate. If we recklessly chased the Barmel Alliance and suddenly the Mingwang tribe appeared, everyone except me could be wiped out.”
At the Tower of Stories.
Keliak met Elona’s gaze.
During this desert battle, Elona had refrained from attacking the Barmel Alliance until they had safely retreated. Instead, as soon as the alliance vanished, she joined forces with the Mingwang tribe and unleashed magic beyond the dimensional rift.
“That makes sense. A rational choice.”
“Shall I be going now?”
“Yes.”
As Elona left, Keliak shrugged his shoulders.
“It’s clear. The Holy Water Pavilion is rapidly losing control. This hurts more than losing Drakka.”
“Gasp! Then what do we do, Keliak? When Elona comes back to her senses, won’t she try to kill us all?”
“Just because she’s not fully controlled doesn’t mean she has complete free will. For Elona Ziphl, it’s actually better to remain bound to the Holy Water Pavilion.”
“In what way?”
“So she doesn’t have to face her corrupted self. Also, the past she’s forgotten… You should keep focusing on injecting the poison.”
“Understood, Keliak.”
Lafrarosa.
“Phew…”
Ban caught his breath and looked around.
The main hall of the Duelist Temple was shattered in places, buried under rubble. The city where the souls of their fallen brothers were enshrined was a ruin, and most of the plain warriors struggled just to stand.
Ten minutes had passed since the bombardment stopped.
‘They’ll probably start attacking again within thirty minutes. It’s always been like this…’
Since the dimensional rift opened in the great desert and the full-scale war began, Lafrarosa had endured over seventeen hours of Mingwang bombardment daily.
On top of that, Elona Ziphl’s magic sometimes extended the attacks by hours, and the spatial distortions kept increasing the pressure, wearing everyone down.
Losing four Duel Kings only made things worse.
“From now on, even if the rift opens, we won’t send the Duel Kings outside.”
At Ban’s words, Oduwang Boras nodded.
“Good call, Duelist brother. If we lose more Duel Kings here, there’s no hope. The enemy beyond the dimension is growing stronger and more relentless.”
It was true.
No matter how powerful the Mingwang tribe was, they couldn’t hold out forever under such harsh conditions.
“But I’m still worried about the outside, Boras brother. The Jin brother must know we’re being attacked, but there’s no sign of the assault stopping.”
“I believe it’s not because Jin brother is losing, but because he has a plan. And now with Bellis, Linpa, Garmund, and Teto brothers joining, whatever that plan is, Jin brother will be able to act more smoothly.”
Boras pulled a small vial of jewel liquor from his pouch and handed it to Ban. As Ban brought it to his lips, Lingling, perched on his shoulder, sniffed and quickly turned her head away.
[Ugh, what’s so good about this stuff? Honestly, I just don’t get Ban and the Mingwang tribe sometimes.]
“You need a soul core to truly appreciate the taste of jewel liquor.”
[Even if I had a soul core, I wouldn’t drink this.]
“Ha ha ha, Lingling, even without a soul core, little ones like you shouldn’t be drinking. By the way, any sign that Jin’s consciousness is trying to connect?”
Boras asked, and Lingling shook her head.
[That’s what’s weird. Other Mingwang can enter Inse, but I can’t hear that idiot’s voice at all. Instead, I feel the will of something else.]
“The will of something else?”
[Yeah, a very dark will, I guess. It’s hard to explain.]
“That’s probably the witch’s will, Lingling. The spatial distortions in Lafrarosa are likely connected to her. And since you were born from the First Chaos, the witch’s power, it makes sense you’d be affected.”
Boras spoke, but Ban answered instead. Lingling frowned at the mention of the witch.
[Hmph, this is my home, Lafrarosa, and my family is Ban, the Mingwang tribe, and that idiot. If that annoying witch feels even a little sorry for me, she should just open the dimensional gate wide.]
“Heh, why would the witch feel sorry for you, Lingling?”
[Boras, she created me, so she’s kind of my creator. That means she’s responsible. If I ever meet her, I’ll ask for one wish.]
“Oh? A wish?”
[Yeah! Since Ban’s health got a bit worse because of me, I’ll ask her to fix that. They say the witch has powers stronger than the gods.]
Ban and Boras briefly imagined Lingling making a wish to Helluram.
“…Lingling, the witch might grant your wish, but not in the way you expect.”
“The Duelist brother’s right. If you make that wish… she might erase you from the world. Then Ban brother can save you with his power.”
[Ugh, what’s that supposed to mean?!]
“But don’t worry, you won’t have to make a wish to the witch. If she ever tries to harm you, I’ll stop her.”
[Hehe, really? So Ban’s stronger than the witch?]
“Hmm… that’s a hard question.”
“Why?”
“For example, if someone asked me who the strongest person in the world is, I’d say it’s me without hesitation. But if they asked if I’m stronger than the sea, the sun, or the wind, that’s harder to answer. It’s like that.”
[Ah… but I can’t imagine Ban ever losing to anyone.]
“Ha ha ha, none of us can.”
“But just for a moment…”
Ban’s expression shifted as if recalling something.
“If I ever fought the witch, there’d be exactly one moment when I’d have absolute superiority. If I could strike her down in that instant, I’d win. If not, I’d lose.”
[So that means, for just that moment, Ban could be stronger than the sun or the sea?]
“Exactly. I could cut through even those with a single strike.”
Ban joked, but Lingling and Boras nodded as if it made sense.
“Well, enough goofing off. It’s time to prepare the herbal medicine for the brothers.”
“Thanks for your hard work, Boras brother.”
Just as Boras was about to leave, they spotted Tanteel running from afar.
“Duelist brother!”
“Tanteel brother? What’s going on?”
Tanteel was one of the plain warriors least affected by the damage. He had been collecting the soul cores of their fallen brothers from the ruined city’s doorways.
He had found a strange fragment and hurried to report it to Ban.
“Take a look at this, Duelist brother. Boras brother is here too.”
“This is…”
“Ancient eternal iron?”
Ancient eternal iron.
Lafrarosa had a fair amount of this ore, but never in this form. All of it was forged into weapons and stored in the armory.
The piece Tanteel brought was torn from something, crushed like a jagged stone. It was definitely an object that shouldn’t be found in an abandoned city.
[Uh… Ban! I can faintly feel that idiot’s energy from this thing!]
Lingling sensed the spiritual energy used in the ancient eternal iron’s protective box for the liberation device. The energy was so faint even Ban couldn’t detect it. Lingling could because she had once been one with Jin.
The Mingwang tribe’s eyes widened. Even Ban’s face brightened as he glanced between Lingling and the iron fragment.
“Jin brother must be trying to send us something…!”
“Oh?”
“Hmm, if you think about it negatively, it could be a torn piece of armor. But judging by the purity of the eternal iron, it’s likely a protective box, Duelist brother.”
“Tanteel brother, how many plain warriors are still able to move quickly?”
“About seven.”
“Then leave two to assist Boras brother’s treatment, and take the rest to search the area where the fragment was found. Bring Kaio brother in case of further attacks, but if the bombardment starts again, don’t hesitate to return to the main hall.”
“Yes, Duelist brother!”
“Duelist brother, I’ll analyze this eternal iron in detail after I finish preparing the medicine. If I’m right, the important thing isn’t the iron itself, but what was inside. They must have used the eternal iron box to protect it from the spatial distortions and bombardment shocks!”
Tanteel and Boras left.
Ban gently petted Lingling. If Lingling hadn’t recognized the spiritual energy, the Mingwang tribe wouldn’t have realized the iron fragment was something Jin sent.
[Hehe, I did well, didn’t I, Ban?]
“Excellent work, Lingling. Now I need to review the last bombardment, so you should go help Boras brother.”
[Okay!]
Ban sat down and began retracing the moments when they had defended against the bombardment. He wanted to check if anything like the ancient eternal iron had been caught in the protective shield covering the entire Duelist Temple.
Soon, he would have his answer.
“My shield has never been pierced by ancient eternal steel. It’s always been the red brain energy and magic of the sub-species. So this object must have been summoned directly inside Laprarosa as it crossed dimensions.”
Still, the chances of something being summoned inside Laprarosa like this every time were slim. After all, only about ten percent of the enemies’ attacks bypassed the shield and struck the interior directly.
“The intense heat and shockwaves emitted by the red brain energy and magic can easily destroy anything wrapped in eternal steel. Since the item sent by Jin and his brother will often pass through alongside those forces, I’ll need to control the shield more precisely from now on. If anything other than red brain energy or magic is detected, I must be ready to respond immediately.”