Episode 492
Chapter 137: Everyone Had Good Plans (3)
Jin’s eyes widened as he turned to look at the sky a beat too late.
“Damn it…”
The curse slipped out reflexively. Anyone not under Ziphl’s banner would have reacted the same way.
The massive fleet—over a hundred ships—loomed in the dark, vast dawn sky like a malignant tumor.
The ships blocked out the stars, erasing the gentle softness unique to a clear night sky, leaving only a heavy, oppressive darkness.
There were, at least, two small consolations.
First, thanks to the illusionary barrier, the fleet only appeared close; in reality, the distance between their group and the fleet was considerable.
Second, not a single ship had its lights on. They were all docked in the sky, engines off.
For several seconds, the three of them stood, mesmerized, unable to tear their eyes away from the sky.
‘The Mirror.’
Jin immediately thought of the artifact from Colon.
‘To power that many ships, you’d need tens of thousands of mages of at least seventh or eighth rank. Even more to maximize the ships’ power.’
If they had the Mirror, an artifact that provides infinite magical energy, they wouldn’t need nearly as many mages.
Back when he was a trainee rider, if they hadn’t secured the Mirror in Colon, seeing this fleet now would have filled him with far greater despair.
But even without the Mirror, there were other means—biological golems and demon stones. They had already seen in the Gaipa Archipelago how the dead could be resurrected to operate mass-produced ships.
Of course, Ziphl’s demon stones weren’t yet perfected.
But how long would that last?
‘Once the demon stones are complete and mass-produced ships are fully operational… if they also use the cube-shaped devices…’
Runcandel—or rather, the world—would be finished.
No one could predict when the demon stones would be perfected. But one thing was certain: the most crucial ingredient for the demon stones was himself.
‘I need to focus more on escape. And… I must secure the ship blueprints.’
Having the blueprints was essential to effectively counter the mass-produced ships. They needed to know the ships’ weaknesses and the most critical resources required for their construction.
‘Also, Sandra Ziphl’s right hand and the space-time devices will likely share design elements with the blueprints. Since they all use the power of the demon stones, studying them will help our research.’
Remembering that he was the key to the demon stones made Jin’s body and mind sharpen with the tension of being in Ziphl’s stronghold.
Murakan spat roughly.
“Ugh! Those crazy Ziphl bastards… when did they make and stash something like this? Over a hundred ships, huh? Well, a hundred breaths, one per ship… that’s something.”
Despite his words, his face betrayed his shock. Even Murakan was genuinely shaken this time.
“Damn it.”
Dipus spat out the words bitterly.
The moment he saw the fleet, he couldn’t help but think something he’d never thought before.
‘Is it even possible for our family to win the war against Ziphl?’
He had never doubted it before. He believed that one day, Runcandel would surpass Ziphl and become the true victor of the world.
But facing the sky filled with this flying fleet, it felt like that would never happen.
And this might not even be the whole fleet. They could be hiding more somewhere other than the Sota Desert.
Born in Runcandel, only now seeing the enemy’s true form, Dipus felt dizzy.
Still, he quickly pushed aside the despair and steadied himself. One fact came to mind.
‘Even with a fleet like that, Ziphl couldn’t strike Runcandel. My father’s Runcandel.’
Jin knew this firsthand from Siron, and Dipus had also vaguely sensed it for some time—that his father, Siron Runcandel, didn’t have much time left.
‘Father will disappear from the family in the near future, one way or another… Before that happens, we have to prepare for the void by any means. That’s probably why Mother favors Joshua, even if I can’t accept it.’
Dipus’s gaze landed on Jin. Standing quietly, Jin’s image overlapped with the day he had turned the Garden of Swords into a battlefield.
The Demon Sword.
The legacy of old Runcandel.
To counter Ziphl’s power, they had to reclaim that power.
‘I desperately need the youngest brother’s strength and abilities.’
Not just the Demon Sword—just now, using Solderet’s power, Jin had instantly destroyed the barrier and defensive magic of the two towers, and there was also the Pluto Sword.
They had to purify the family as soon as possible.
With resolve, Dipus turned away.
“Alright, just as you said, youngest brother… risking my life for the family isn’t just about the barrier.”
“Oh, Dipus. Are you planning to throw yourself into the fire and destroy all those ships right now?”
“If destroying those flying ships and dying in the process would deal a fundamental blow, I would. Damaging their resources isn’t meaningless, but securing the blueprints comes first. We have to either replicate them or find their weaknesses—one of those is necessary if we want to stand a chance in the fight ahead.”
After pushing aside despair, Dipus’s characteristic grit stirred fiercely in his heart. It was no longer about fighting his brothers, but about gritting his teeth and battling Ziphl.
That didn’t mean he was giving up his position as family head, but it seemed wise to minimize unnecessary fights.
‘Replicate them…’
Jin mulled over that phrase from Dipus’s words.
It wasn’t a new idea. Even if biological golems were out of reach, space-time devices and flying ships were definitely worth producing if possible.
All of it was based on magical engineering and research, and Runcandel and Hupester had never been able to keep up with the Lutero Magic Federation, so they hadn’t had high hopes.
But suddenly—
Jin recalled a conversation with his brother Tantal just before leaving Laprarosa.
“Since our time stopped, we can never return to that world. This place is a perfect reproduction of Laprarosa where we lived, but it’s actually a kind of afterlife.”
“Then wouldn’t you be more curious about the outside world?”
“What’s the point of longing for something we can’t have, brother? Besides, none of the brothers we loved are there anymore. But! I once heard from the warrior brother that—”
“What is it?”
“It’s been half a millennium outside, so maybe some magic or device has been developed that can get us out. So, if it’s okay, I want you to look into it.”
The reason that conversation came to mind was this:
That was what King Boras of Otu said when he implanted a new ‘molar’ in Jin.
At the time, Jin had experienced a ‘memory transfer magic’ through the molar and was deeply shocked. The magical civilization the Pluto race had built was impressive even by today’s standards.
He placed his hand on his chest.
Beneath his stealth suit, he could feel the solid Light Heart. Though formed from the blood of the warrior Ban, it might be possible to create it in other forms if not implanted in a human body.
Like an artist suddenly immersed in a sea of intense inspiration.
These thoughts flooded Jin’s mind.
‘If we could build flying ships powered by the Light Heart using Pluto race technology…’
It might be a fanciful dream, but he wouldn’t know until he tried.
‘I have to meet my brothers in person. I need to prepare for a third journey to Laprarosa. And find a way to bring them back to this world…’
Not the shadowy guardians summoned by the Black Call, but the real brothers, alive again.
Since his first trip to Laprarosa, this had been one of Jin’s most important goals. It was the only way to repay what he owed his brothers and, naturally, to be with them as brothers.
‘Though I don’t yet understand the cube’s principles, it can summon even resurrected dead. If I study and analyze it properly, it might help bring my brothers back.’
Seeing Ziphl’s advanced technology and the fleet of over a hundred ships, Jin felt a sudden gratitude for the strong hope he still carried.
“Let’s follow Joshua again. Just as there was a way to bypass the barrier, he probably knows exactly where the blueprints are. We wouldn’t have expected the barrier to be breached like this, so the sooner we arrive, the more we can catch him off guard.”
Swift and stealthy, they began running toward the Tower of White Night.
Unlike the fleet looming behind, the Tower of White Night emitted a soft glow.
A tower perfectly fitting its name.
Even after running for a while and getting quite close, the group realized something strange: there were no additional defensive spells or barriers near the tower.
Jin had naturally expected extra traps and magic around the tower.
He thought some of them would be the kind that even the Spirit Sword couldn’t easily dispel, but even within a few hundred steps of the tower, nothing triggered.
“This can’t be. Was that barrier really all there was?”
“It seems someone deliberately blocked all other barriers and defensive magic from activating. There were no mages on guard, not even a single patrol.”
“Ever since that brat lifted the barrier, it’s felt strangely lax. Hmm.”
“…Could it be a trap?”
At Dipus’s words, Jin’s eyes narrowed. Then, suddenly—
Rumble, crackle, crash!
The ground beneath them trembled, shaking unsteadily, as if an earthquake had struck.
It wasn’t a trap triggered beneath their feet, nor the start of a barrier. The entire area around the Tower of White Night was trembling.
And the group immediately understood what was causing the vibration.
“Aura…!?”
This was a phenomenon that occurred during massive battles, or when transcendent warriors unleashed their energy in a violent surge.
The epicenter was the Tower of White Night.