Chapter 187
Episode 60: Blood Transfusion, Brothers (3)
Not only Baltirok, the One-Touch King who had openly disliked Jin, but also the other Touch Kings—whose thoughts Jin had yet to gauge—unanimously expressed their approval.
‘I never expected all twelve Touch Kings to accept me.’
The time frame was simply too short. Jin had arrived in Laprarosa near the end of last December, so he’d only had about five months.
Winning the favor of every single Meongwang clan member in that span seemed nearly impossible. Not everyone, like Garmund, Boras, Linpa, or Beliz, would be easy to win over or like him from the start.
He planned to win over those harder to sway when he returned to Laprarosa again. After all, he’d have to come back a few more times to fully awaken all the Spirit Swords.
‘It feels like I was accepted as a brother way too easily.’
Unlike Jin, the Meongwang clan didn’t see it that way.
Rumors had already spread that Jin had helped Garmund master the first Spirit Sword technique, Soul Severing. It was common knowledge that Boras had given him a molar, and Linpa had broken through her Golden Word training because of him.
Just from that, the Meongwang clan saw Jin as a “unique and fascinating successor.” And in his sparring with Shaku, he displayed a level of mental fortitude that made one question if he was even human.
Enduring the daily severing and reattachment of limbs for 49 days straight was no easy feat. Jin often downplayed his own efforts, haunted by the horrors of his past life.
‘No harm done. It’s a shame I never got to cut off one of Shaku’s limbs.’
Once the Touch Kings gave their consent, the regular warriors voiced their approval as well.
But it wasn’t because they wanted to please the Touch Kings or the Divine Touch. Nor was it because they were swept up in the mood or flow, accepting Jin as a brother blindly.
Except for the Divine Touch, the Meongwang clan had no hierarchy between Touch Kings and regular warriors. There was no punishment or coercion; every individual had the right to choose freely.
Even if someone opposed, the others wouldn’t give them a hard time.
That was why the Divine Touch had set the condition: “If all brothers agree.”
Shaku raised his voice in approval one last time.
“Brothers, until yesterday, I severed Jin Runkandel’s limbs forty-nine times. But now that he is our brother, such things will not happen again.”
“Come on, shouldn’t I get a chance to take revenge at least once?”
“You impure brother! The Kings of Light don’t keep score of grudges. That’s one rule you must never forget, Jin.”
Shaku grinned and stepped back, and the Divine Touch nodded.
“All brothers have agreed. From now on, Jin Runkandel is our brother. We will accept Brother Tantal’s suggestion—those who wish to spar with Jin, choose your order.”
Immediately, the Meongwang clan began deciding the order among themselves.
“I brought the successor myself, so I should go first! Right, brothers?”
“No, Brother Tantal fought once while bringing the successor, so it’s only fair he goes last.”
“Brothers, stop fighting and settle it with rock-paper-scissors.”
It was just like when they first arrived in Laprarosa and had to decide who would bathe Jin. It sounded like a pack of big dogs barking joyfully.
‘What a bunch of clowns.’
Honestly, becoming brothers wasn’t all that moving.
Jin had never risked life and death with them on the battlefield, nor had he built a deep bond over time.
He was recognized as a brother simply because he was a “successor they liked.” Still, it didn’t feel bad—sometimes, good is good enough.
Beliz, the Seventh Touch King, approached Jin.
“Even if we never shared hardships, never shared blood, looked different, or had a weak connection at first…”
Jin turned sharply and looked up at Beliz.
It felt like Beliz had read his mind out of nowhere.
“Once you become a brother, the others will treat you as if you’d been here in Laprarosa from the start. That’s how the Meongwang clan works.”
“How is that possible, Beliz?”
“If the species that calls Jin ‘brother’ had understood this, we would have killed far fewer of them half a millennium ago.”
It hit him like a blow to the head.
The Meongwang clan wasn’t just a bunch of fools—they were a vast species so alien that even Jin, familiar with humans, couldn’t fully grasp them.
“Come to think of it, it’s not strange at all, brother. Even by mere chance of sharing blood, one becomes a brother, and no one finds that odd. Compared to that, Jin becoming one of us is far more inevitable.”
“How curious. So you’re saying that because we became brothers, a bond that didn’t exist before now forms? That’s why it feels strange—like it hasn’t fully sunk in yet.”
“When river water mixes with the sea, what does it become? Do you think the seawater would discriminate against the river water?”
“You sounded like a strong, hearty aunt when you gave me a piggyback ride, but now you’re speaking like a sage. Unexpected, Brother Beliz.”
The rock-paper-scissors ended.
Despite 64 regular warriors splitting into groups to play, surprisingly, Shaku was chosen as the first sparring partner again.
“Wait, shouldn’t Brother Shaku sit this one out?”
“Didn’t Brother Shaku just step back naturally? Is he trying to pull a fast one again?”
Grumbles erupted here and there, but the sacred rock-paper-scissors couldn’t be overturned.
Shaku faced Jin again amid jeers, and Jin sighed in relief.
“Alright, I guess I have to give you a chance to fight back. You tore me apart forty-nine times already. That was a first for me. Today, I’ll make sure…”
Thwack!
Beliz pressed down firmly on Jin’s shoulder with one hand. His strength was so great Jin couldn’t shake it off.
“Don’t forget, brother Jin, this isn’t a spar between a brother and a successor anymore—it’s a spar between brothers.”
“Well, Brother Beliz, you seem ready to crush my shoulder blade if I don’t nod in agreement.”
Jin had a hunch Beliz was the strongest among the Touch Kings.
“It’s fine to damage non-lethal bones or muscles without weapons. Of course, the key is that there’s no intent to kill.”
“That’s reassuring to hear. Then please hold this.”
Jin drew out Bradamante from his waist and offered it.
“The fiftieth spar will be bare-handed, Brother Shaku.”
“Bare-handed? That’s even worse…”
Shaku shook his head with genuine concern, grinding his teeth. Just yesterday, he wanted to tear Jin apart, but now he’d transformed into someone so irritating Jin felt like he might explode.
“After Shaku, it’s Brother Mouka, then Brother Shul, then Brother Anot, and so on… There are so many fights ahead, so don’t use all your strength, Brother Jin.”
Following the first spar with Shaku, Jin was scheduled to spar with all 64 Meongwang regular warriors until dawn. Today, tomorrow, and the day after.
‘Damn it, that bastard Shaku. To lose so blatantly…!’
Jin had won the first spar with Shaku. At the start, he detonated a flash bomb right in front of Shaku’s nose and mercilessly pummeled the disoriented warrior.
No, he had intended to lose.
Before landing five blows, Shaku suddenly collapsed, shouting, “Oh no, I lost!” If he hadn’t, Jin would have surely broken a few bones.
How infuriatingly sly. Jin was speechless, and before he could protest, the next opponents came rushing in.
What made it worse was that they were utterly crushed.
The Meongwang clan’s bare-handed combat was on a whole different level from human fighters. Jin chuckled bitterly and reached for the clan’s traditional snack, “Kakto.”
Chewing it, his energy quickly recovered, and the swelling gradually subsided. His face was puffed up like a watermelon, and his body was covered in dark bruises, but not a single bone was broken.
‘Monsters…’
Lying on the bed, eating Kakto, Jin kept chuckling. The moonlight streaming through the window felt surprisingly refreshing.
Knock knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
“Brother Jin, may I come in?”
“Who asks permission to come in before even asking who it is?”
It was Tantal, carrying a large sake barrel on his shoulders. He set it down with a thud, filled a cup, and handed it to Jin.
“This is the same sake you drank on the first day. It tasted awful back then.”
“It’s jewel sake. The taste should be different now.”
Jin took a long sip. Indeed, it was sweeter and richer than before.
“Oh.”
“Now that you have the Radiant Heart, it’s changed.”
“Back then, you said humans didn’t know the taste of alcohol.”
“Tell me what’s going on outside. The others seem deliberately uninterested, so I came alone.”
Come to think of it, the Meongwang clan never asked about the outside world.
They never inquired who now owned the lands they once conquered, what had become of their former territories, or what happened to those they fought.
They simply didn’t ask.
“Because after our time stopped, we can never return to that world. This place is a perfect recreation of Laprarosa where we lived, but in truth, it’s a kind of afterlife.”
“Then wouldn’t you be even more curious about the outside world?”
“There’s no point in longing for what we can never have, brother. And even if we reminisce, none of the brothers we loved are there anymore. But—”
Tantel glanced around cautiously. There was no one eavesdropping, yet he lowered his voice as if the matter was too important to treat lightly.
“I once heard something like this from Brother Tushin.”
“What is it?”
“That outside, it’s already been half a millennium. Maybe by now, some magic or device has been developed that could get us out.”
Unfortunately, Jin knew better. Even in the phoenix world—far more familiar to humans than Laprarosa—the realm of firebirds—no one had yet discovered a way to connect properly with the mortal world.
Few researchers even dared to study it. Since the Holy Kingdom’s defense war, magic related to other realms had been strictly forbidden by most guilds and academies, except for phoenix summoning.
Moreover, magic tied to other realms was overwhelmingly dominated by dark magic. And since dark magic itself had long been lost or banned, it was unlikely any new related magic would ever be developed.
“So, here’s the thing. If it’s alright, I want you to look into it for me.”
“Is there really no way for us to get out on our own? You came all the way to the Great Desert to find me, didn’t you?”
“That was only when a successor appeared near the Great Desert. Besides that, there’s exactly one other way to leave, but it’s not very meaningful.”
“Why not?”
“Brother Tushin will tell you that part.”