Episode 498
Chapter 138: Keeper of the White Night Tower (4)
Why was it falling now? Jin Do almost lost focus on the key because of that thought.
His heart plummeted.
If the ship’s blueprints had already been stolen by someone else, then all of Runcandel’s efforts until now had been in vain.
“Could it be Joshua? No, considering the timing and circumstances, that’s unlikely. When he handed over the key, he seemed to have made a firm decision.”
Then the only one left was Kinzello.
“Is that why only the four phantoms of the Second Tower remained here? Because the rest of the forces had gone out to track down the stolen blueprints!”
That was the only logical conclusion for now.
But Hedo’s true objective remained a mystery.
“If you have anything you took from here, leave it behind. Then I will spare your life—for now.”
That was hardly something you’d say to an enemy.
Clink, clink, tumble, whoosh!
The dropped key was swept up by the fiery gust of the blazing flames and vanished into the fire. Hedo let out a breath of disbelief, a moment ripe for misunderstanding.
Even Hedo himself struggled to grasp what was happening.
He held the exact same key Sandra had given him.
“Why does Jin Runcandel have the vault key?”
As far as Hedo knew, there was only one key. At least, until just now.
“12th Rider, I don’t know where you got that key, but what you just said still stands.”
Hedo narrowed his eyes, clearly wanting to avoid overcomplicating things.
Whether the key was copied, or there was a spare he didn’t know about, or the Runcandels had stolen it—whatever the case, the priority was to recover the blueprints and send Jin away alive.
On the tower’s rooftop, Sandra Zipple was waiting for Jin, dressed to the nines.
In the center stood a table set for a private dinner—Hedo himself had prepared it just before the others arrived. Sandra sipped her aperitif, trying to calm her nerves and excitement by watching the secret drying yards of the Sota Desert explode in bursts of flame.
The thought of her troubled expression made a vein throb on his forehead.
“Miss Sandra.”
“Ah, what is it?”
“You need to report this.”
“Report what?”
“That Jin Runcandel has arrived at the drying yard. You must inform the Gaju. You’re on duty, after all.”
“Hedo, if I do that, my husband will die. Or he’ll cease to be Jin.”
“Most likely. But considering the survival skills the 12th Rider has shown so far, who knows?”
“Then don’t ever say such nonsense again.”
Even thinking about that conversation made him want to send Jin away alive if possible.
Though the table was set to soothe Sandra, dinner was unlikely.
“I don’t have the blueprints.”
“You just dropped the key. Don’t make foolish decisions. I don’t want to kill you if I can help it.”
“Much appreciated. But what am I supposed to do if I don’t have them? And you seem to have forgotten—we’re still fighting, Keeper of the Tower.”
No sooner had Jin spoken than the flames around Hedo flared even fiercer. The fire clinging to his body exploded, and the surrounding inferno converged to engulf him.
It was the secret technique of Sara Runcandel, the legendary Tenth Knight of the old Runcandel line, hailed as the strongest.
Though still incomplete, it was impossible to simply block or parry that sword.
For the first time, Hedo let out a short groan and stepped back. The blazing flames far exceeded his expectations.
“I should have stopped or avoided this sword from the start. Jin Runcandel was right—I was too complacent. This might get exhausting…”
He felt the heat of the flames piercing through his shield and flesh, seeping into his internal organs.
It had been a long time since he’d felt such pain. Even releasing energy to push it back wouldn’t quell the fierce heat quickly.
But the flames weren’t the whole story.
The other Runcandels had been waiting for this very moment.
“Well done, youngest!”
The first follow-up strike came from Dipus.
His second meteor shower rained down behind Hedo as he retreated.
But that wasn’t all. Though the meteor shower was among the most powerful finishing moves, it alone wouldn’t be enough to seriously wound the giant.
Dipus prepared another of his most perfected sword techniques.
Runcandel’s Fifth Secret Technique:
Light-Speed Thrust
A blade honed beyond limits through countless sessions with Merry.
Flash!
A dazzling streak of light shot toward Hedo’s back, faster than the meteor shower. It was the ultimate form of the Light-Speed Thrust, one step beyond Merry’s level.
Hedo couldn’t dodge Dipus’s blade.
The light-speed thrust distorted space as it pierced his mountain-like back.
Hedo staggered forward, coughing up blood. Though the thrust didn’t fully penetrate his massive body, the shockwave it sent forward shook the entire tower.
Six such flashes followed in quick succession.
Though it would surely backfire, there was no turning back now. Dipus knew this was their last chance to turn the tide.
After the attack, Dipus spat out black clots of blood repeatedly.
“Graaah!”
Hedo roared—a sound impossible to tell if it was a scream or a bellow. But one thing was clear: even after being struck six times by the meteor showers and light-speed thrusts, he showed no sign of falling.
In the midst of it all, Hedo swung his greatsword veil to keep Jin at bay, already wary of the next incoming strike.
“A monster…!”
Next came Joshua and Jane.
Though the six light-speed thrusts hadn’t left Hedo unscathed, Jane closed in amidst the meteor shower and drove her blade into the wound made by the thrust.
Just a finger’s width.
It was a small cut, but Jane’s blade had definitely pierced Hedo’s flesh. Blood splattered, and flesh was sliced.
“You bastard!”
Hedo’s eyes blazed as he shoved Jane back and unleashed a wave of sword energy. Compared to his five shallow wounds, Jane was slammed against the wall, her wrist shattered and seriously injured.
Still, Jane wasn’t discouraged. A fierce bloodlust welled up from deep within her chest. She had finally landed a meaningful blow on the monster, creating a tiny opening.
Joshua’s sword was poised to strike through that gap.
“Kaaah!”
A desperate, venomous rage poured from Joshua, his full strength unleashed.
No one called Joshua the strongest rider by sheer force alone. He was always overshadowed by Luna’s massive presence, and among the brothers, the consensus was that he became the next Gaju thanks to his cunning and Rosa’s unwavering support.
That wasn’t wrong.
But Joshua was undeniably the second rider of the Runcandel line. He had challenged the strongest rider more times than anyone else—and lost.
In other words, Joshua had hidden depths. Through countless defeats and scorn, he gained insight and learned to infuse it into his swordsmanship.
This was the result.
His black sword, Kainer, was enveloped in a dark aura.
It resembled spiritual energy but was less dense, glowing with a unique radiance characteristic of an aura.
Though not as unique as Luna’s Heart Sword, this was a special color of sword energy every Runcandel had to master to attain their secret techniques.
Runcandel’s Fourth Secret Technique:
Black Cross Star
Joshua’s blade traced a perfect cross.
Not a single inch was off as the black sword energy flared.
The intersection of the sword energy targeted Hedo’s shoulder.
Originally, Joshua aimed for the center of his face, but Hedo’s reaction shifted the strike.
Still, the Black Cross Star didn’t lose much power even if slightly off.
It wasn’t just two lines of sword energy, as the name might suggest.
As the technique unfolded, Joshua’s black sword energy spread in a massive circle, surrounding Hedo from all sides.
Swish, sizzle!
Like snipers completing their encirclement, countless black sword energies converged at the cross’s center, beginning to slice into Hedo.
If Joshua had used the Black Cross Star alone, it might have been hard to deal a decisive blow.
But the previous strikes from the other Runcandels were no illusion.
At last, Hedo writhed in pain. Though small, he uttered a groan—not a roar—and failed to deflect about ten percent of the black sword energies.
If not for someone like Hedo, that ten percent alone would have shredded their entire body into hundreds of pieces.
“Huff, huff!”
Joshua sank to his knees, gasping for breath.
“Damn it, wasn’t enough…!”
Hedo began withdrawing the Black Cross Star, regaining strength with each passing second.
Though drenched in blood, he hadn’t suffered a fatal wound.
“As the Black Dragon said, Murakan is Murakan, but Runcandel is still Runcandel. I’m a bit surprised.”
Hedo spat blood and wiped his face.
[What a tiresome bastard.]
Murakan absorbed the lingering embers of the blazing flames into a swirling vortex.
By that point, the wraiths were utterly exhausted, barely able to stand. Throughout the fierce battle filled with karmic flames, decisive strikes, and secret techniques, they had only managed to maintain their protective barriers—and in doing so, had completely drained their magical energy.
[Hey, kid. This isn’t going to work. There’s no way through. Grab the others and get out of here. I’ll hold them off and try to catch up somehow.]
“That might seem like a decent plan, Murakan, but unfortunately, I can’t help you. If Runkandel refuses to hand over what they stole, I have no choice but to reconsider my position.”
[What?]
“I’m saying I’ll be calling for reinforcements from the main house. I’m done wasting energy on this pointless fight. My patience is wearing thin.”
[You talk out of both sides of your mouth. Are you just going to act like a coward? It’s not that you don’t want to waste energy—you’re just getting tired of the fight. You’ve taken more hits than you expected.]
“Believe whatever you want. But even the Black Dragon knows that won’t make things any better.”
[Hmph. And what nonsense is this about us stealing the blueprints? We haven’t even cracked the vault yet. You’re just throwing baseless accusations around.]
Murakan and the others from Runkandel hadn’t seen the moment the key was consumed by the karmic flames, nor had they overheard the conversation between Jin and Hedo.
Hedo had decided to speak with Jin on Murakan’s behalf.
“You have a talent for making simple problems complicated, Twelfth Rider. If you keep stubbornly refusing, you’ll regret it. But before that happens, let me make one thing clear: I have shown you the utmost consideration…”
Before he could finish, Hedo suddenly spun around, swinging his longsword veil behind him. He had sensed someone piercing through his defenses and closing in dangerously close.
An assassination attempt.
And there were only a handful of people in the world capable of attempting to assassinate Hedo… one of them was a legendary assassin born in the Garden of Blades.
Yona.