Chapter 404
Episode 119: The Banquet at Sword Emperor Castle (9)
The red jade in Jin’s hand began to glow.
“Meow!”
As Shuri leapt onto Jin’s back, Ron cleared the way ahead.
Swoosh!
Ron’s massive sword aura swept through the monsters in front of them in an instant. Blood and flesh sprayed like a fountain, and Shuri dashed through the chaos.
Seeing this, Murakan swiftly descended and transformed into his human form. A black wind seemed to surge toward Jin.
“Kid, where are you headed?”
“I have to find Veradin.”
“Why?”
“Kinzelro is behind the terrorists. Their goal is to stir up hostility between Hyran and Ziphl.”
Murakan tilted his head briefly, then nodded in understanding.
“Hmm, I get the gist.”
“Did you see Veradin from above?”
“No, I don’t think so.”
“Go back up and check again. If you see him, report immediately. If not, keep watch over the skies.”
“You’re going to look for him alone? Who knows what kind of monsters might jump out.”
“There can’t be anyone like Berakt around; we can’t leave any evidence. If I get into trouble, I’ll send a signal.”
“Understood.”
Murakan reverted to his true form and soared into the sky.
After watching for a moment, no other signals came from Murakan. Veradin had already left the battlefield.
‘So the terrorists were inside the audience as well. Veradin was moving to avoid them.’
Who were the ones sitting near Veradin?
The masked nobles were the closest. Since Veradin was the next head of Ziphl, it made sense he could stand shoulder to shoulder with the nobles in Bimant.
It was most logical to assume Veradin was fleeing after being attacked by them.
At the front of the battlefield, where the outer wall had crumbled, Jin, Lata, and Ron stood. Aside from the internal passage, that was the only escape route, so Veradin couldn’t have gotten out that way.
‘Kinzelro’s men exploited the fact that nobles always wear masks.’
Jin changed direction toward Shuri.
He was certain they needed to check inside the castle first, not the outer walls.
But the normal passages were unusable. The warriors were still overwhelmed, evacuating the guests, and the corridors were completely jammed.
Without hesitation, Jin cloaked his sword in aura.
Screech!
With a single slash, the thick wall was cut down like paper.
The warriors behind were too busy fending off monsters and protecting the guests, and the pressure of damaging Sword Emperor Castle kept them from breaking through.
Thud!
The chunk of wall fell with a heavy crash.
“Move through the passage!”
Leaving those words behind, Jin was the first to exit the central training ground.
The castle interior was just as chaotic. Servants ran frantically, and one by one, bio-golems from the outer walls appeared.
Just as a group of bio-golems was about to attack some servants, Shuri leapt forward, swinging her front paws.
The monsters’ heads exploded, and the servants screamed, their faces pale as death.
“Thank you…!”
“Has anyone seen Veradin?”
“W-who’s asking?”
“Veradin Ziphl. Long white hair, wearing a white coat.”
“No, I haven’t seen him.”
“But, Lord Jin, although we haven’t seen Lord Veradin, there’s chaos near the porcelain warehouse inside the castle.”
They were the warehouse attendants.
“Tell me more.”
“We heard the news that the terror started in the central training ground and tried to spread the word. Suddenly, there was an explosion in the warehouse, and we were escaping.”
“We don’t know exactly, but it seemed like magic caused the explosion. The guards went in to check, but we haven’t heard anything since.”
Jin felt like he’d found a clue as soon as he entered.
“Which way is the warehouse?”
“I’ll take you there myself.”
“I can’t guarantee your safety if I go with you. Draw me a map.”
The servant hurriedly pulled out paper and pen and sketched a map.
“Here it is.”
“More warriors will come soon. Don’t move—wait here.”
Following the map, they headed straight for the porcelain warehouse.
It was one of the largest warehouses in Sword Emperor Castle, holding over 90% of the porcelain collected over a hundred years by Ron and previous heads.
The entrance was completely destroyed.
Sparks of fire flickered here and there.
‘This isn’t ordinary fire—it’s traces of flame magic. At least ninth rank.’
Veradin’s main specialty was fire magic.
Inside, porcelain shards crunched under Shuri’s steps.
There were also traces of other magic besides fire.
Earth, ice, lightning.
And darkness.
Black orbs of dark magic rolled across the floor. Jin hadn’t seen much dark magic before, but nothing else could explain those strange, shadowy spheres.
‘The dark magic guild was completely wiped out. Where did Kinzelro find mages like these?’
It was unlikely that renowned archmages who had attacked Hyran were involved. Chukon Toldrer, Susan Lilista, and Kidard Hall were all dead.
Either Kinzelro had unknown mages hidden inside, or they had accomplices.
For now, finding Veradin was the priority. There had clearly been fierce fighting, so time was critical.
Only broken porcelain and debris remained. It seemed Veradin and the terrorists had already moved elsewhere.
‘There were no signs of battle beyond the entrance. There must be another passage inside the warehouse.’
The map showed a long, dark corridor inside the warehouse.
Riding Shuri, they ran for a long time, the passage stretching endlessly.
Jin stopped Shuri when he spotted something—a corpse.
Three bodies lay there: Veradin’s bodyguards from the banquet.
They weren’t all of them, but it was easy to guess Veradin was in a desperate situation.
Exiting the passage, they immediately saw a drainage channel. The warehouse’s passage was one of the emergency escape routes.
Behind Jin, the sky was dark and tinged with spiritual energy. The distant booms and shockwaves from the battlefield confirmed the fierce fighting was still ongoing.
Which way to go?
There were no footprints. Too many obstacles made it impossible to track the path using earth or wind magic.
While pondering, a streak of crimson light appeared far ahead.
The familiar glow that appeared when a flame jade exploded—Veradin’s magic.
Seeing that magic, Jin was certain Veradin was already injured.
The magic felt unstable and weak for someone who had reached ninth rank.
“Let’s go, Shuri!”
“Meow!”
They finally found Veradin on a plain.
He was fighting alongside two remaining bodyguards against gray-robed mages and their bio-golems.
“Veradin!”
Veradin turned his head at Jin’s voice.
“…Jin!?”
Crash!
Lightning struck down, shattering the bio-golems surrounding Veradin.
Jin pushed through and checked Veradin’s condition.
Blood trickled from his lips, and his body was covered in wounds. Fortunately, none were fatal, but the bleeding was severe. If the fight had continued, he might have died.
“I knew you’d come.”
Veradin gave a faint smile.
His words carried a strangely meaningful weight.
“What do you know? You’re just some idiot who got beaten by those guys.”
“They’re pretty strong. I wondered if there was a mage I didn’t know about. At first, I thought they were really my aunt’s men.”
At that moment, a question flashed through Jin’s mind.
‘Is Veradin really in full control?’
Even if not, saving him was still the priority. But one odd thing came to mind.
Why hadn’t Veradin sent a distress signal once since he arrived?
Even if he didn’t carry signal flares because he was just attending the banquet, he could have sent a magical signal.
Even if he was overwhelmed by the masked nobles attacking him, he could have shouted for help. There were plenty of warriors nearby who could have helped.
‘If his mind is being manipulated, then this was deliberate. It would benefit Ziphl in many ways if Hyran fell into trouble.’
The traces of magic left in the porcelain warehouse also seemed somewhat contrived on second thought.
Especially the obvious signs of dark magic.
It was as if Veradin had been left to fight alone against dark mages, evidence left behind on purpose. Inside Sword Emperor Castle, where warriors were as common as dirt.
But Veradin sighed in relief when he saw Jin, unmistakably the familiar white-haired fool.
‘I can’t be sure. Just like at the banquet.’
Jin turned and looked at the gray-robed mages.
They paused their attack at Jin’s arrival, their faces hidden beneath hoods but clearly showing signs of surprise.
“Veradin Ziphl.”
“Yes, Jin.”
“Why didn’t you send a distress signal?”
“There was no time. We were ambushed from the audience, and I was too busy escaping.”
The answer was expected.
Jin concluded that Veradin’s mind was at least not entirely intact.
“Rune Candell’s 12th Cavalry, Jin Rune Candell, has come under the special orders of Lord Ron Hylan, the Sword Emperor, to rescue you. Make sure you never forget that. Understand?”
“…Understood. I’m indebted to Lord Ron.”
“Get yourself patched up with the bodyguards. I’ll handle these guys.”
As Jin summoned his energy, small stones scattered across the plain began to levitate into the air. The gray-robed figures were once again releasing their magical power.
‘Still, they’re definitely no match for the Phantom Legion.’
But there were four mages here capable of mimicking the Phantom Legion’s magic to some extent.
‘If they truly intended to kill Veradin, the gray robes from the Sword Emperor’s faction would have targeted him too. They only sent enough to force Veradin to fight alone and barely escape—deliberately.’
If these four mages were only enough to make Veradin flee in battle…
Then they were no match for Jin.
That is, as long as he stayed wary of the dark realm magic, which was still uncharted territory for him.
“Don’t let a single one of them return alive.”
As Sigmund emitted a radiant light, magical energy swirled and gathered in Jin’s palm.
The legacy of Archmage Kidad Hall.
The mana needed to unleash the Reverse Heaven technique.