Episode 1021
Chapter 247: The Lafrarosa Liberation War (9)
Swaaaat—!
Simat closed the distance to Jin in an instant, leaving a lingering afterimage behind. The Tetalon blade, now glowing even redder, sliced through the space between Jin and Simat.
Until just moments ago, Jin’s sword had been stained with the desperate struggle of a man cornered by despair. But now, that was no longer the case.
Having broken free from the long shackles of the Sun God and fate, he had become a completely different person—not just in body, but in spirit.
Only those who have shattered such ancient chains can understand the feeling of liberation.
Within him, there was no trace of regret or lingering attachments. Instead, he was facing destruction head-on.
He would pay the price, his life would be cut short.
But those were secondary concerns. What mattered was only this: to never lose the will to fight until the very end.
Not as a follower of the Sun God, nor as a dog of fate, but as a member of the Akmyeong tribe, meeting his final moment on his own terms.
“Kaaah!”
Zheeeeng—!
Simat roared as he parried Sigmund’s strike. Lightning spikes erupted along Sigmund’s trajectory, piercing Simat’s abdomen, but his body’s damage no longer mattered.
Simat’s physical form was now nothing more than a shape molded from enemy brain matter; his true body had already turned to ash, scattered across the battlefield.
That was why Hani had said it: ending a life is easy, but killing the will is not.
He was strong.
So strong, in fact, that even the unique combat style supported by the airborne fortress might have been nothing more than a shackle.
In reality, Simat pressed forward while Jin retreated, parrying his sword strikes.
‘Never imagined I’d see the Jin brothers fighting while retreating after merging their fighting spirits,’ the war kings thought.
‘Has he transcended the laws of physics like those demon tribes? Most of our side is already dealt with, but maybe we should assist Jin before he gets even slightly hurt.’
The war kings—Bakarun, Bekios, and Rakiman—were barely breathing, hiding across the battlefield to avoid Murakan and the Dark Lords.
[You said not to worry about the fighting spirits, but their eyes look anything but calm.]
Murakan immediately read their thoughts.
“Hmph! It’s because the fusion of fighting spirits isn’t perfect yet. If Jin gets seriously cut anywhere, it’ll hurt me too. He’s still a Changsung after all. And it seems like Simat has awakened something.”
Beliz’s words made Murakan shake his head.
[You don’t understand.]
“Why?”
[If you interfere, you’ll get hurt. You’re strong, yes, but this fight is way beyond normal standards. The kid would be in more danger trying to protect you. From what I see, the kid still holds overwhelming advantage—thanks in part to the senses he inherited from that friend. So you’d better save your strength.]
“Save our strength?”
[Those bastards will come swarming soon. The ones who spread this chaos… Veil went to call Luna and Runtia, right? We need to use our power to catch those guys. That’s why I’m not helping the kid. And I’m sure the kid’s reason for holding back the final chapter of that brutal sword is the same.]
True to his words, Murakan deliberately stayed out of Jin and Simat’s fight. Now was the time to prepare for a new threat.
[He must feel invincible. Like nothing in the world can break him, like even me and the fighting spirit brothers could be cut down.]
Jin’s apparent retreat was exactly for that reason. In other words, Jin was ‘moderately’ dealing with Simat.
There was no need to expend too much power to destroy a man whose death was already certain, to break his will.
“What the hell are you playing at, Jin Runkandel? Don’t you enjoy fighting me? You won’t find an opponent like me again in your lifetime. Don’t regret it after today—fight properly.”
[But Simat, your awakening means nothing to me.]
“What did you say?”
[You seem happy to be finally free from fate, but I have no reason to sympathize. Simat, you threatened me and my comrades, you threatened the world, and you stubbornly tried to block my brothers from seeing the light of day again.]
Jin stepped on Simat’s foot and plunged his blade toward his neck. Simat didn’t dodge; he countered directly. The Tetalon blade grazed Jin’s eye.
[As a warrior, I can respect you in some ways, but that’s all. You don’t deserve to see the end of my sword. We are not enemies who can be friends. I cannot respect any part of your savage will or ideology.]
Simat was caught completely off guard.
“Ah, so you care about crits, huh? You’re more cowardly than you look. If you’d had that from the start, things would be different. It would have been harder to break down the walls like I have. But our technology has limits. We can’t break through this chaos to call for Cri-till support. So Cri won’t be coming.”
[That’s what you think.]
Simat’s eyes widened.
What do you want from me?
I haven’t even told you why I came.
I’m here to show you how to disrupt the Balmur Alliance and the descendants of Cheongmyeong. Tell me what you want.
Ah, what I want… nothing in particular.
Suddenly, a conversation with Rokia came to mind.
“Heh heh, yeah. Now that I think about it, that makes sense. The witch, and Rokia Ganesto—they wouldn’t just leave our main base alone.”
The Akmyeong tribe’s strongest war machine: Cri.
Jin was now more concerned about Cri than Simat. After all, the one who unleashed chaos in the Great Desert and set this stage was neither the Balmur Alliance, the Akmyeong tribe, Zipple, nor Kinzel—but Ganesto.
‘Stealing Cri would be easy with the powers and abilities Rokia Ganesto possesses. There’s no one in the Akmyeong main base capable of handling the Ganestos. Especially if Rokia Ganesto moves personally.’
Jin had never directly experienced Rokia Ganesto’s power.
But Rokia had already pushed Simat to use chaos—without ever appearing in the Great Desert even once.
‘Rokia will surely lead Cri here. This was the plan from the start. Simat and the Akmyeong tribe fall, and my comrades and I are trapped in the Great Desert.’
If Jin left the Great Desert now, Simat would naturally fade with time—but Lafrarosa would be lost.
‘Brother Jin, I’ve secured the device you sent. Brother Boras understood how to use it immediately.’
‘Understood, brother.’
For the next twelve hours, Jin had to protect Lafrarosa no matter what came. And now, he had the strength to do so.
[Using chaos was a clear mistake. Don’t expect an honorable death, Simat. You’re just a foolish leader who drove yourself and your people into the jaws of chaos. If you can still die properly, consider yourselves lucky.]
“I get it—you don’t intend to fight me straight. But how long can you keep that up?”
Suddenly, Simat surged past Jin, charging forward.
Jin didn’t miss the moment Simat ran. He stabbed his sword into Simat’s back, but Simat didn’t stop.
He was aiming for Lafrarosa.
[Kid, I’ll handle the main cannon of the airborne fortress. You just deal with that guy!]
[Using such a cheap trick, Simat…]
“You still don’t seem angry enough. If I take out a few more of your brothers with my own hands, that smug look on your face will have to change.”
Just before Simat’s blade reached Lafrarosa, Jin raised his hand, summoning the lightning energy of the Dark Lord’s Reigning Sword positioned nearby.
Following Jin’s will, the lightning spread like a tidal wave, intercepting Simat’s strike. But Simat seized the moment to slash Jin’s right arm, drawing blood.
“No matter how transcendent your power is, you’re still a mortal made of flesh, bone, and blood. One strike to a vital spot, and you die. Meanwhile, I’m practically immortal for now. Instead of swinging wildly to protect your brothers, wouldn’t it be better to just cut me down, Jin Runkandel?”
A despicable, shallow tactic.
But it was executed by an awakened Simat. Even Jin, fused with his fighting spirit, couldn’t easily shrug it off.
And since he had to save strength for the other enemies yet to come, Simat had made the best possible choice.
‘This is tricky. But no problem. He can’t scratch Lafrarosa. We’ve already seen his limits.’
Just as Jin thought this and summoned lightning again to push Simat back—
Kwaaaah…!
All four airborne fortresses fired their main cannons simultaneously. Naturally, Murakan expected the shots to target Lafrarosa and spread his Dark Arrival as a shield to cover the enemy brain cannons.
But the four shots weren’t aimed at Lafrarosa.
They landed exactly where Simat had been knocked down by the blue lightning. Before he could even regain his footing, he was buried under the bombardment from his own comrades.
“Huh?”
Just like when Jin’s sword had pierced and slashed him multiple times, that red shadow-like body didn’t transmit pain to Simat.
But Simat was engulfed by a shock far worse than being torn apart or melted—something so terrible it defied comparison.
“My comrades… what is this…?”
Even though the outer armor was completely torn apart and the interior suffered severe damage, there was no way the main cannon’s aim could have been off. Simat knew this better than anyone.
Clearly, the main cannon of his own people had been aimed directly at him.
‘Betrayal? No, that can’t be… My own people wouldn’t betray me. Then what is this?’
Chaos. It had to be the work of Ganesto.
A dark blade seemed to slash through his mind. Struggling, Simat barely managed to fend off the barrage, then looked up with trembling eyes toward the sky where the airborne fortresses hovered.
He saw the first damaged fortresses, their unfamiliar forms standing out. Above them, the sky darkened and warped as a chaotic dimensional rift opened.
The airborne fortresses were emerging from that rift, converging on a war machine that the enemy Akmyung tribe had always taken the greatest pride in.
The airborne fortress of the warrior god—Kree.