Chapter 1093
Episode 256: Morganiel (2)
This was Morganiel’s domain. In that calm, steady voice lay the weight of decades of suffering endured during the Black Sea expedition.
Even Siron and his most loyal knights had felt the relentless cruelty of those harsh years. But now, that brutal era was nearly over—leaving only Morganiel, the last remaining king of the Black Sea.
That was why Siron showed no joy upon seeing the troops and fleet led by his grown children.
“We’re in battle, First Cavalier. Compose yourselves and focus on the enemy.”
Luna immediately straightened up at the cold, chilling tone—so reminiscent of the days when Siron had undergone his demonic transformation.
This was a battlefield. Even if the strongest warriors in the world had gathered here, the Black Sea was a land where one could never afford to let their guard down. Naturally, Siron was no longer just a father here—he was the clan head.
“My apologies, clan head. I will correct my stance.”
“Troops outside the expedition remain under the command of Subclan Lord Jin Runcandel. The energy saturating this domain belongs to Morganiel. Be mindful of how it seeps into your body and mind. Except for Changseong, no one should leave their ships until the snow stops.”
Jin, Ban, and Murakan disembarked from their ships to meet Siron.
‘If not for my sister, I would have been scolded too,’ Jin thought, silently saluting Siron before sharpening his senses. The Changseong who followed Luna took their positions as naturally as if they had been fighting alongside Siron just yesterday.
There would be time enough to relax after Morganiel was defeated.
No other expedition members were in sight. But the Changseong could sense that the others were scattered, tracking Morganiel’s movements.
‘Morganiel has realized we’re coming and has begun to flee. Judging by the expedition’s movements, it can’t have been long…’
Weak.
As the Changseong advanced into Morganiel’s domain, they noticed his energy was faint and barely perceptible.
It was like air—only detectable if you consciously acknowledged it. The white energy falling like snow had to be constantly pushed away with awareness.
Morganiel’s aura was fundamentally different from the other five Black Sea kings the alliance and expedition had faced before.
It was neither massive nor threatening, nor was it dark.
And that made it all the more unsettling.
“This energy Morganiel has… somehow reminds me of the child’s eternal transformation,” Murakan observed.
Ban nodded in agreement. The softly falling white energy vanished quietly upon contact, as if melting or seeping away.
Before the fleet’s arrival, Siron had been meditating to purge the energy of Morganiel that had seeped into his body and mind.
“The fleet will advance with Laprarosa at the forefront, but be careful not to outpace the Changseong. Focus on encirclement and cutting off escape routes rather than attacking. Also, no bombardment until I give the order.”
At Jin’s command, the fleet shifted formation.
For a while, the advance was eerily quiet—moving forward, shaking off Morganiel’s gaze, then moving again.
Gradually, the landscape changed. The once pristine white snowfields turned ashen, and a thick fog descended, drastically reducing visibility.
Even the Changseong couldn’t distinguish someone five steps ahead.
They couldn’t read energy or identify footsteps or breathing. The sensory disruption was sophisticated and natural—though not the first time they’d faced such an ability.
Still, it posed no real threat to the Changseong.
In some ways, it was a predictable trick. The more their senses were scattered and disrupted, the more exposed they became to Morganiel’s energy.
“Morganiel. You’re the last one left anyway. Why not just accept the blade and find peace?”
Whoosh…!
For the first time, Siron slowly sliced through the ashen wind with his sword. Through the fog, Morganiel’s form appeared.
He looked like a figure sculpted from plaster, with cracks spreading across his face and body like a shattered statue.
Those were the marks left by Siron’s sword.
More precisely, every time Siron struck the ‘Black Sea,’ Morganiel’s physical form took damage. This was the first time Siron had seen Morganiel so close.
Morganiel could no longer hide in the mist.
Surrounding her were the alliance’s Changseong, swords drawn. The expedition members, including Khan, appeared where the fog had been cleared, all gaunt and emaciated—victims of Morganiel’s lingering energy.
‘Is this… the last king of the Black Sea?’
The largest fragment of the Origin Stone.
Jin felt as if multiple transcendent beings’ essences were embedded within this adversary.
In fact, Morganiel’s appearance resembled Malugia as if they were siblings, and the sacred energy radiating from him bore similarities to eternal transformation.
From the sword in his hand, Ban sensed something; from Siron’s deep, emotionless eyes before his demonic transformation; and from the only black, glossy nails amidst the gray—there was a hint of the malevolent god.
Even the impressions of past formidable foes like Paelito, Simat, and Jito, as well as Luna and Murakan, seemed faintly present somewhere within Morganiel.
‘Is this an illusion? No. What on earth is this?’
Jin wasn’t the only one unsettled. Everyone except Siron flinched at the disturbing sensation.
Only Siron focused entirely on the wounds etched into Morganiel’s body.
Wounds carved throughout his life, cutting through the Black Sea since his youth. They symbolized Siron’s entire existence.
“I was born into this world to cut you down.”
Siron’s voice trembled slightly.
It was pure ecstasy. He had never before felt such fulfillment before taking an enemy’s life.
Morganiel said nothing, fixing his gaze on Siron. Though the Changseong had him completely surrounded, they held their swords back.
Because the snow had stopped. Despite their constant awareness, the heavy weight of Morganiel’s energy still pressed on their bodies and minds.
Meeting Morganiel at such close range came at a price. The Changseong were the minimum qualification to pay that price.
‘A trap we can’t avoid.’
Long-range combat was impossible due to tracking issues, and close combat meant starting already corroded by Morganiel’s energy.
In that sense, Morganiel had already rendered one of the weapons brought by those who sought him useless. The golden fleet, including the airborne fortress Laprarosa, could not bombard Morganiel in this state.
The Changseong, corrupted, could not exert their usual strength. Aura, magic, psychic power, spiritual energy—Morganiel’s energy blocked most of these forces.
Only a trained body and will remained.
The only weapons the Changseong could wield against Morganiel were those two.
The overwhelming power that could split mountains, earth, sky, and sea.
They had to fight as if such power had never existed in this world. Both the Changseong and Morganiel.
If the fleet unleashed bombardment now, the Changseong would shatter helplessly like ordinary humans.
Siron smiled faintly and stepped closer to Morganiel.
Then, in an instant, Morganiel’s blade flew toward Siron’s neck. Siron parried and countered, aiming to slice Morganiel’s waist, while the Changseong guarding her rear simultaneously lunged.
Morganiel couldn’t dodge all the strikes. Between the intertwined Barisada and ashen blades, Jin, Luna, and Ban’s swords pierced and grazed her back.
New cracks appeared on her stone-like body, and from the fissures, blood—bright red and human-like—spattered.
Within ten seconds, Morganiel had become a bloodstained statue, leaving sticky crimson trails with every movement. If her body had transformed into something as ordinary as the Changseong’s, the fight would have ended by now.
Clang, screech!
Each time the Changseong’s swords and Murakan’s claws struck, blood and stone fragments flew from Morganiel. Siron, holding the front line, bore the brunt of the blood and debris.
[Death comes equally to all, Siron Runcandel.]
Morganiel’s blade pierced Siron’s shoulder. The wound wasn’t deep, and as Morganiel tried to withdraw her blade, Siron sliced her wrist.
Crack, clatter…!
Morganiel’s wrist shattered as if struck by a blunt object, and her sword fell to the ground, breaking like glass into sharp shards.
The battle was over.
Siron wiped the blood and fragments from his face and looked down at her, while the Changseong caught their breath and forced her to her knees.
“Is that all you have to say, Morganiel?”
Suddenly, a tremor began.
Just as Morganiel had been wounded every time Siron cut through the Black Sea, now the entire Black Sea was reacting to Morganiel’s death.
Morganiel slowly lifted her head and met Siron’s gaze. Even as death approached, the Changseong still saw traces of multiple transcendent beings within her. If anything, those features seemed even more pronounced—like a nightmare made flesh.
[The reason I’ve chosen to die by your hand now is simply to honor that truth. I only hope victory awaits you, my old friend.]