Chapter 352
Episode 108: The Final Stage of Bradamante’s Enhancement (Part 1)
Gilly couldn’t quite understand herself.
“It’s true that they disgusted me. But I wasn’t so out of control that I couldn’t manage my emotions…”
It was clearly something she could have just let slide. Yet, an unusual surge of anger welled up inside her, and before she knew it, she almost struck down the Ivliano siblings.
“If you had attacked them, it probably wouldn’t have been a big deal.”
Jin shrugged casually as Gilly recounted the whole hallway incident, as if it were nothing serious.
“I’m sorry. I almost put you in an awkward position, sir.”
“No, it’s fine. It might have been a bit troublesome, but it wouldn’t have been a fatal blow to me.”
Jin wasn’t just trying to comfort Gilly—he genuinely believed it.
First, because of Vishkel.
“There’s no way he wouldn’t have reacted to your attack.”
Even if Mu hadn’t seen what happened and Gilly had struck, Vishkel would have easily blocked her blow.
Gilly’s current martial rank was 7 stars.
She was exceptional even among that tier and still held immense potential, but Vishkel was several steps ahead of her.
Second, because this was the Garden of Swords.
Even if Vishkel hadn’t blocked Gilly’s strike, as long as the excuse was that someone had insulted the “Rider of Runcandel,” it could be smoothed over somehow.
After all, they were uninvited guests who showed up without any notice.
“But that part where Gilly said she suddenly felt uncontrollable rage—that’s strange. Was it something sensitive related to me? Maybe she’s been under stress lately without realizing it.”
If that were the case, she’d have been even more cautious. Whenever someone threatened Jin, Gilly would fly into a rage, but she always stayed calm when her actions might end up harming Jin.
“Or maybe it’s the chaotic energy that Margiela is presumed to possess…”
Either way, Jin thought Gilly had no reason to feel down. It was true that Margiela had some strange power.
“If I had been there, I would have done the same. So don’t worry about it.”
“Yeah, Strawberry Pie. Humans have always spouted nonsense like that since ancient times. They could just admit they want to follow their desires, but instead, they attach grand ideals about a better world.”
“It’s always the same—cults rising by exploiting those words. It amazes me sometimes, Murakan.”
“Because humans are such weak creatures. That’s why some crazy dragons in the past kept insisting on wiping out all but the useful humans. I think they wanted to kill eighty percent of the population.”
“That’s just insane.”
“So I wiped them out. Not really for the humans’ sake, but because their antics were just ridiculous and annoying.”
“You’re something else. Anyway, Gilly, did Mary-nim say she wants to set a date for the duel?”
“Yes, sir.”
“We agreed to duel every three months, but it’s a headache. Fighting with Mary-nim takes a toll on the body.”
Gilly recalled the time Mary unleashed a volcanic transformation during the battle to save the small beastmen.
“If she gets excited and uses that during a sparring match… just thinking about it makes me shudder.”
Cold sweat trickled down her spine.
“She also suggested deciding on the event. Maybe you should find something other than sparring?”
“That sounds like a good idea. Murakan, did you hear anything special in the reception room?”
“I just saw that Berakt was kind of deceiving your mother. He only told her that Ziphl was searching for Temar’s tomb. After that, it was just small talk.”
Berakt hadn’t told Rosa about the “Bimant Royal Family.”
“Your mother didn’t seem to doubt that information much. Berakt apparently fought fiercely with that guy in the past. It seemed like they shared a strange sense of camaraderie as rivals.”
“Anyway, the family will officially start investigating the tomb soon, so Mom will find out about Bimant’s involvement eventually. But for now, I guess I have the upper hand on information about the tomb.”
Even after Kinzel and the others left, Rosa hadn’t called Jin separately. Even though she’d heard that the “tomb” Berakt mentioned was Temar’s.
There was only one reason for that.
“Mother already knew the tomb existed. Maybe she even knew Ziphl was searching for it.”
Jin had suspected as much.
“Mother was probably waiting for the right time to find Temar’s tomb, even if it meant breaking her pact with Ziphl. Or maybe she thought it wasn’t necessary to find it at all.”
Either way, the situation was likely to change now. Kinzel had mentioned the tomb’s existence, and Jin’s search was known, so Rosa taking some action was only natural.
“Temar… that bastard can’t find peace even in death. Why do those Bimants want his corpse? It’s pathetic that these huge powers are doing the same thing as mere grave robbers.”
Murakan said bitterly. Jin couldn’t shake the unease about why Bimant was after Temar’s remains.
“I need to meet Misha first. I also have to tell her about Aria Hister.”
“Ah, you have to see her again?”
“You think I don’t have to?”
Murakan rubbed his forehead. The information Kinzel had given was definitely something to share with Misha.
“And you held back well. You could’ve been furious at your mother.”
“I didn’t hold back.”
“What?”
“I told her off. Asked if she knew where that tomb was. She tried to dodge it, probably didn’t want to fight. Even if she says she didn’t know now, I don’t believe her.”
Jin had thrown in a few harsh words, but Rosa just played along and sent him off.
“If it were the old days, it wouldn’t have ended with words. I almost turned the whole family upside down. I held back because I saw your face.”
“Yeah, yeah. Good job. Gilly, any news from Tikan?”
The message from Tikan meant news about the Beastmen and the “Demon Clan Rontelgius Family.”
Two months had passed since their last meeting, but Valeria still hadn’t found the Beastmen’s whereabouts. Quikantel also hadn’t learned anything about Rontelgius.
Even with record magic, finding the Beastmen wasn’t easy, and Quikantel was still a secret wanted person in the empire, limiting his ability to gather information. It would take time.
Jin just hoped the Beastmen were safe and unharmed.
“Yes, sir. The Seven-Colored Bird seems to be having a hard time moving lately.”
“With more eyes watching, it’s inevitable. It’s frustrating. I can’t go myself.”
Creak.
Butler Petro came to Jin’s room.
“Sir, a letter has arrived from the lord of Volta.”
“Lord Jin Runcandel, thanks to you, the Volta territory has been…”
The letter from the lord of Volta began with polite, everyday pleasantries and flattery.
But despite its lack of substance, the letter carried great significance.
Bradamante’s enhancement.
Picon Mintze had arranged for the lord of Volta to send the letter through Vin Blanche to deliver news about it.
“Just in case, I’ll wait until tomorrow for Mother to summon me. If not, I’ll go immediately.”
Even by the next afternoon, Rosa hadn’t called Jin.
A few routine tasks were assigned as usual, but Jin disguised Bellop and sent him out in his place, then went in search of the “Veil” in the Kingdom of Mila.
“The master is not here.”
But he couldn’t meet Misha.
She had been absent for over a month without telling the staff when she would return.
“It happens often. We’ll send a letter as soon as she comes back.”
Since Misha was handling all of Solderet’s duties, it was natural she was busy every day.
“They say even dog dung is useless as medicine. What a wasted trip.”
Though he said that, Murakan seemed relieved not to have to see Misha.
The two headed straight to Volta, to Vin Blanche’s house.
“Lord Jin Runcandel! Welcome—ugh!”
Before Vin could finish greeting him, she convulsed, her eyes rolling back white as she suffered Picon’s incarnation.
[You’ve come?]
“How have you been, Lord Picon?”
“Enough with the pleasantries, Picon. Since I summoned you, you must have the item ready. Is Bradamante’s enhancement complete?”
[I never told you to come, Murakan.]
“Oh, really?”
Jin chuckled softly as the two bickered for a moment.
[Huff, huff. Strength alone doesn’t make you smart, now or then. Alright, alright! I surrender!]
Picon caught his breath and brought out a sword from the underground forge.
It was Bradamante.
At first glance, it looked unchanged, but Jin could tell immediately.
His beloved sword had become stronger and sharper.
As Jin carefully ran his fingers along Bradamante, a satisfied smile spread across his face. Picon spoke proudly.
[Impressive, isn’t it?]
“I’m itching to swing it right now.”
[But it’s not finished yet.]
“You mean it can get even better?”
[There’s still one more function I haven’t added.]
-[…However, Bradamante’s one and only flaw is that it can’t protect its user.]
“Protect? It’s not even armor.”
-[In my lifetime, I’ve crafted countless suits of armor, but I’ve never seen anything better than armor formed from spiritual energy. That’s why, when I made the Barisada, I designed it so that when infused with spiritual energy, it would form a protective armor.]
I remembered the conversation I had when I first met Picon.
“So you mean it has the ability to form a spiritual energy armor?”
[Exactly. Thanks to you gathering materials from the ancient eternal steel and the tombs of Temar, the work is nearly complete. But there’s one more thing I need.]
“What is it?”
“The innards of a demon beast.”
At that, Murakan suddenly shouted.
“What? The innards of a demon beast? Why on earth would you need that to make a sword?”
“It’s necessary. To activate that function, you need the innards of a demon beast that’s at least a thousand years old. Otherwise, you’d need multiple dragon hearts, and you can’t exactly use those.”
“Where can we find that?”
Just as Murakan was about to argue further, Jin spoke up.