Episode 1061
Chapter 251: The Rivals (11)
June 10, 1804. About a week had passed since Lucy joined the alliance. At first, she struggled to adjust to the new dynamics, but thanks to old comrades like Reut, Murakan, and Veil, she had now settled in quite well.
“It’s because I came here now, to confess to her, strawberry pie!”
“Wow, that’s so cool!”
“To you!”
“Love you!”
“Because!”
“Strawberry pie!”
Hahaha!
Leading the charge with his strange pronunciation was Eltiot, and the Meongwang clan was in full swing teasing Murakan.
Ever since Murakan and Gilly officially became a couple, teasing Murakan had become Eltiot and the Meongwang clan’s greatest source of amusement.
More precisely, it was everyone’s amusement except Murakan’s. But few dared to laugh so openly in front of him like the Meongwang clan did.
“Ha, these bastards again. Hey, hey! Don’t just stand there! Just die already, come here! You think you’re untouchable with Ban protecting you? Keep it up!”
“Kyahaha!”
“Kyahaha, ugh!”
Several of the Two Kings and the frontline warriors who tried to run were soon caught by Murakan, their jaws dislocated. Yet, even as they got hit, the Meongwang clan kept teasing him relentlessly.
“Die already, just drop dead!”
“But hey, Murakan’s friend, that confession was pretty spot on!”
“Jin, your brothers really are warriors through and through. Even after taking punches from Murakan like that, the bruises fade in a few hours.”
“Impressive. I pride myself on having a pretty tough body, but if I got hit like that, I’d be seriously hurt.”
“Still, if you look closely, Murakan knows how to respect his elders. Eltiot always starts it, but he never hits the old man.”
“That’s true.”
Watching this scene were Veradin and Dante. Jin shrugged.
“Yeah. Murakan’s got a subtle sense of hierarchy.”
“By the way, Jin, are you really okay with Gilly and Murakan being a couple now?”
“Okay or not, Veradin, what choice do I have? It feels a bit strange, sure, but this was bound to happen.”
Jin had never seen Gilly laugh this often before. Murakan, too, was always smiling—except when he was beating up the comrades who teased him.
“Seeing them like this makes me want to try dating too.”
At Veradin’s words, Jin and Dante exchanged bitter smiles.
They knew Veradin was forcing himself to say that to shake off his gloom. Since his rescue, he’d always appeared cheerful, but in truth, he suffered every single day, haunted by the terrible things he’d done under mind control.
There was no way he genuinely wanted to be in a relationship. More than anything, he wanted to throw himself into battle as soon as possible, to at least make amends for his past sins.
“Bah, what kind of love life can a sinner like me have? This hollow heart and sorrow… I’ll just replace it all with the fury of crushing Zipl from now on! Speaking of which, is there a spot for me in the Golden Fleet? I was a bad guy, so not a grand position like fleet commander or captain—just a regular crew member will do.”
Veradin gazed out the window as he spoke.
Outside, the freshly completed Golden Fleet ships from last night floated in the waters near the Tikan Palace. Over three hundred Golden Ships were currently anchored in the territorial sea, their gleaming hulls like clouds of molten gold drifting across the sky. All the people of Tikan had come out to witness the spectacle.
Jin pulled a shoulder epaulet from his coat pocket and handed it to Veradin.
“This is the epaulet of the 9th Fleet Commander of the Balmur Alliance’s Tikan Nation. The fleet’s name is Drakka.”
“…What? Drakka!?”
Drakka.
The capital of the Lutero Magical Federation, wiped out by the Jeokmyeong clan a few months ago. Along with the Tower of Stories, Drakka had long symbolized Zipl.
“You want to name a Golden Fleet ship after that?”
“Veradin, the Veradin I know was the most righteous man in Zipl. Among those who weren’t like him, you were the only one who seemed human.”
Before Jin’s regression, Veradin was widely known as a just and strong figure.
And even after regression, the Veradin Jin met was the same—until the mind control turned him into a monster, he was undoubtedly the most righteous man in Zipl.
“Remember during the Holy Kingdom incident? You were outraged when your family tried to starve the Holy Kingdom’s citizens. It was right after Zipl had handed over gold bars under threat. You even set fire to those gold bars yourself. And after that, do you remember what you told us at your villa? That you’d restore Zipl.”
-“Runeandel and Zipl will fight regardless of me.”
-“That may be, Jin. But I have my own responsibilities. If my family is going down the wrong path, I have to fix it. I’ll restore everything to normal. I’ll bring back Zipl as the proud family I once knew.”
It was a memory he never wanted to forget. Except for the time he was a monster under mind control, Veradin always held that day close to his heart.
“In my view, that promise still stands. Of course, our alliance plans to wipe out Zipl, but you’re the exception. When the name Zipl disappears from this world, that’s when you rebuild Drakka. As the most righteous person in Zipl. That’s why I gave you that name.”
Veradin stared at Jin for a long moment before accepting the epaulet.
“…True. Aside from the fact that the rulers were the worst bastards the world has ever seen, Drakka was the best place to live. For the ordinary people who lived there, it’s like their home and hometown vanished. Hmph, alright, I’ll be captain then. Since the boss is asking so seriously.”
“That’s not a request, it’s an order.”
“You guys are so strict with each other. Kind of annoying, don’t you think, Dante?”
“From where I stand, it’s a heartwarming scene.”
“Anyway, as ordered, I’ll rebuild Drakka someday, boss. And it’s not just me—Sandra and Betty are here too. Not bastards like the rest of Zipl. Though neither of them is exactly innocent like me.”
“They’re both assigned to the 9th Fleet.”
“Meticulous as always. What about Mubulmyeol? Is he part of our fleet too?”
“Mubulmyeol belongs to the Runeandel fleet. But he’s one of the Ten Knights, so of course.”
“True, Mubulmyeol might be a fool here, but in the Garden of Swords, he’s practically a living legend.”
The three chuckled lightly. Up ahead, Murakan was still being teased, and Lucy was barely holding back a smile as she watched.
“By the way, Jin, Lucy’s something else. If she’s going to be like that, she might as well just laugh. I heard her situation is somewhat similar to mine. Should I give her some advice? No, maybe not—since I’m from Zipl, it might be awkward. Eh, whatever. She’s just stuck thinking she’s a bad person who shouldn’t be laughing.”
Before Jin could answer, Veradin stepped toward Lucy. The moment he spoke, she instinctively swung a fist, and Veradin went down for about five seconds before getting up.
“S-sorry. I know you’re not a bad person, Sir Veradin, but the moment I heard ‘Zipl,’ I just couldn’t help it.”
“Cough… It’s fine, don’t worry, Lady Lucy. Honestly, if it’s hard to laugh, it’s better to just let me take a beating. It’s better than being crushed by guilt and not fighting properly. Or maybe, since you’re from Zipl and throw punches first, I probably don’t need to worry about you.”
Lucy tried to respond but ended up letting out an awkward laugh. That alone was progress.
Jin and Dante smiled quietly at the sight.
“Let’s make sure she doesn’t overdo it. She’s got a lot to do and needs to survive until the fight’s over.”
“Of course.”
Jin pulled out a pocket watch. Noon was approaching.
“It’s almost noon.”
As Jin stood and started walking, the nearby comrades began to follow him one by one.
Jin headed toward the Tikan Palace’s aerial garden.
As he and the officers ascended, all the Golden Ships floating in the nearby sea began to form ranks simultaneously.
By the time Jin reached the aerial garden, the entire Tikan fleet was lined up before him. Of all the Golden Fleet ships completed so far, only one was missing.
The Two Gods Fleet, captained by Ban.
For the past week, they had been tracking the Tower of Stories with Valeria and had just contacted Jin an hour ago.
They believed they could pinpoint the Tower of Stories’ current location in Zipl and requested that half of the operational Golden Ships be assembled by noon to provide support.
The fleet was already prepared for deployment, just waiting for noon.
Crrr-crack!
Behind the Golden Fleet lined up in the sky, a massive steel gate was opening. Hundreds of flying ships, led by Kinzello’s flagship Grnil, streamed out. Of Kinzello’s roughly three hundred ships, half were regular flying vessels, and the other half were the Abyss Legion’s Black Fleet.
Orgal stood atop Grnil’s bow, grinding his teeth. This was the first time since learning the world’s truth that he would strike at Zipl.
“If you’re late, I was going to leave you behind, Orgal.”
[You’re saying things you don’t mean. But even you have to admit it by now, right? There’s no stronger ally for you than us, Kinzel. By the way, your girlfriend and Ban are impressive. I was surprised when I got the comms—already tracking those guys down.]
In other words, the rivals of Ziphl had all gathered in one place.
Just as the pocket watch struck exactly noon, Jin’s compact communicator vibrated. It was a message from the assault fleet.
{It’s confirmed, Jin. We’re over the center of the Sota Desert. You can jump through space right now.}
After hearing Valeria’s voice, Jin immediately boarded the ship at the very center of the fleet’s front line.
Its hull stretched out sharp and sleek like a sword, holding a power greater than any golden ship produced before.
The flagship of the Runcandel First Fleet: the Sara.