Episode 1091
Chapter 255: The Death of Keliak Ziphl, and Then… (8)
Rokia’s negotiation had failed.
Lucy, having rejected the offer, immediately launched an attack on Rokia’s projection. In the end, she couldn’t even save the projection itself.
That night, Murakan found Lucy standing alone in the Tikan Palace’s aerial garden.
“Lucy.”
“Murakan.”
Murakan cracked open a bottle of liquor he’d brought and gave a bitter smile.
“Damn… I don’t even know how to say this. I’m terrible at offering comfort. Asking if you’re okay feels strange, and I’m sorry.”
“There’s nothing for you to apologize for, Murakan. I’m not the only one who’s lost a child in this cruel world.”
The two of them raised their glasses, gazing up at the dark night sky.
“…Anyway, Rokia won’t be able to kill Haylin. Even if this negotiation failed, they’ll see she still has some use.”
“Hoo.”
“Even if she dies… if Araksion’s power separates and she can just die as an ordinary human, that would be a kind of liberation for her.”
“The times are harsh. A thousand years ago, and now.”
“That’s true. Then and now, if you’re not strong, you can’t protect anything.”
For a while, the only sound was the quiet swallowing of their drinks.
“Has the Sogaju made a decision?”
“Yes… they’re heading to the Black Sea.”
“Because they’re certain that Solderet, Temar’s left hand, is stationed there.”
Murakan nodded.
“That sounds like a wise choice. You can’t just be dragged around by enemies while defending your base. That’s a fact proven a thousand years ago, especially against Ziphl.”
The Black Sea.
Jin had decided that the alliance must first rendezvous with Siron’s expedition. They could no longer just wait passively for their return.
Of course, due to the nature of the Black Sea region, they wouldn’t be able to join forces in a day or two. But the alliance was now equipped with far stronger forces and special abilities than when Siron first set out for the Black Sea. Even the Sun God’s Church had once created a dimensional gate encompassing the Black Sea.
“The burden on the Sogaju is nothing compared to mine, who’s had a daughter taken hostage. Every moment, they have to bear the weight of all lives except the enemy and make decisions.”
Lucy drained her last glass and turned away.
“Let’s go, Murakan. We are Runkandel. If we were going to collapse under pain and sorrow from fighting, we would have fallen a thousand years ago.”
A day passed.
There were still no significant leads on the whereabouts of Keliak and Malugia. Meanwhile, the alliance was preparing to depart for the Black Sea.
All of Changseong was heading there.
The alliance wasn’t sending just a select few key troops this time. The entire Changseong force, the flagship Sara, the Golden Fleet of the Pluto race, and the airborne fortress of the Warrior Hall, ‘Raprarosa’—all were mobilized.
They had assembled a force capable of breaking through the Black Sea in the shortest possible time to find Siron.
There was no fallback plan. Without joining Siron and securing Solderet’s arrangement, there was no future.
“Thanks to Focal and Silkia. Without them, we couldn’t have moved this fast.”
Jin said, looking at the two. Focal and Silkia were playing decisive roles in this Black Sea operation.
Beltian, the embodiment of destruction, had received no benefit from Malugia in this battle. Instead, he was bound by Focal’s power, becoming the very power source of the airborne fortress Raprarosa.
Silkia was scheduled to form a dimensional gate directly connecting to the depths of the Black Sea alongside Focal. Depending on the situation after arrival, they might even extend the gate beyond the depths.
“My father must be aware that something’s wrong with Inse. Even if not in detail, he surely knows that enormous enemies beyond his control have awakened.”
Luna’s words made Jin nod.
“As a father, it must feel like a sudden thunderbolt. He might believe his destiny was fulfilled by subduing the Five Kings of the Black Sea.”
“That’s right. Before overcoming the demonic corruption during the expedition, my father seemed ready to die alongside the Five Kings of the Black Sea. It feels strange to have such thoughts while people are dying worldwide, but honestly, it gives me a bit of hope.”
Siron Runkandel.
In Runkandel, that name was still the family’s last bastion and a symbol of invincibility. Now that Keliak and Malugia had appeared, it was no longer truly invincible, but the influence of that one person remained as strong as ever.
“He’ll be a great reassurance when he returns. But he won’t come back just to meet and explain the situation. As the Jin brothers said, he already has a destiny.”
The last remaining Black Sea King, Morganiel. Ban was certain Siron wouldn’t return unless Morganiel was killed.
“But I don’t think he’ll refuse our help in fulfilling that destiny.”
“That’s right, Lord Ban. Father has changed.”
They would go to the Black Sea, find Siron, defeat Morganiel together, and then return to Inse.
That was the best outcome the alliance could hope for. Morganiel was undoubtedly the strongest among the Five Kings of the Black Sea, but the alliance didn’t consider him on par with Keliak or Malugia.
“With the entire Changseong gathered, we’ll capture Morganiel with minimal losses and find Solderet’s final arrangement.”
“Jin brothers, when do we depart?”
“If there are no critical updates in Valeria’s midnight report, we’ll leave immediately.”
“Understood.”
Outside the conference room, all alliance members were bustling with activity.
Even though they were gambling on joining Siron, they weren’t abandoning Inse entirely during that time.
Migration.
The Bamal Alliance had begun relocating ordinary Inse citizens to the underground world. There was no truly safe place left in the world, but underground was still better than the surface.
Even as the empire fell amid the fierce battle between Malugia and Keliak, the underground world remained unharmed. Of course, since the underground was still being rebuilt, living standards there were inevitably lower than Inse’s, but most people accepted that and applied for migration.
Some refused, wanting to die in their hometown. The alliance respected those choices—not to reduce their workload, but because everyone has the right to choose their life, especially in times like these.
Jin meditated, waiting for midnight.
Countless possible outcomes of the upcoming war swirled violently in his mind. Every moment, he had to grasp the brightest possibility.
As midnight approached, Orgal arrived before Valeria.
[Jin.]
“Orgal, did the witch respond?”
[Damn it, no. I relayed your message through the three demons, but no one can meet the witch right now. Not me, nor even the abyss dwellers. It seems the recent battle between Malugia and Keliak affected something.]
“Understood.”
[I’ll inform you of any news. You’re heading to the Black Sea soon, right?]
“Yes. Since our most critical forces will be absent for a while, you’ll have a lot to handle.”
[Don’t worry. Even if they suddenly attack us, I’ll survive until you return. We’ve always been good at running away. Even in other dimensions, that’s been my pattern—running to seize an opportunity, getting cornered, then fighting fiercely until the end. Compared to that, there’s still hope now.]
Orgal grinned and extended his fist. For the first time, Jin lightly bumped his fist against Orgal’s and smiled.
“I’ll return as soon as I can.”
[Good. Travel safely.]
As Orgal left, the hallway outside the conference room grew noisy. Valeria had returned.
“Jin.”
“Thanks for your hard work, Valeria. Any records on Malugia and Keliak?”
“Nothing yet on Malugia, but I found one record about Keliak. Just as Veradin said, he’s conscious of Octavia Ziphl.”
<June 16, 1804 — Keliak Ziphl protects Octavia Ziphl from Malugia.>
Valeria immediately showed the record to Jin and the others. Though it wasn’t a detailed account revealing the full situation or psychology, it was significant enough.
“…He deliberately protected Octavia in the midst of that fierce battle. No, the fact that Octavia was alive until the 16th means he fought while continuously protecting her. Does that monster still have some family love left? Whatever his feelings, it gives us one more hope.”
That hope wasn’t just because of Keliak and Octavia’s relationship. This record was proof that ‘Elona Ziphl’ remained inside Malugia.
She was still fighting. Despite being used like a puppet by Ziphl and Malugia for so long, Elona’s true heart had never been corrupted.
Jin stood up, and his comrades followed suit.
It was time to head to the Black Sea.
Passage 1, Demon God Headquarters.
The headquarters was in disarray after Malugia’s assault. Most of the dimensional gates leading to other worlds were shattered, radiating a dreadful aura. Keliak Ziphl sat in the ruined infirmary, transparent tubes inserted all over his body.
“Octavia.”
At Keliak’s hoarse voice, Octavia lifted her head.
When she first arrived here, her injuries were far worse than Keliak’s. He had applied the healing devices to her first, and she had recovered as if she had inherited the blood of Numerus.
“Now you can believe everything I told you. The multiverse, the endless wars across all dimensions…”
“…Yes.”
“Then, survive in this world.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve seen countless dimensions wiped out and conquered. And sometimes, there are things that never change. It’s strange, really. One of those things is you, Octavia. In every world I’ve known, you’ve never once managed to survive.”