Episode 499
Chapter 138: The Keeper of the White Night Tower (5)
The day Mary arrived at Tikan with the adolescent fleet, Yona had nowhere else to go and returned straight to the nameless city of Samil.
She felt a pang of regret and frustration for not having been able to properly take a walk with her youngest sibling, and her mood stayed sour all day. To clear her mind, she decided to look over her list of missions.
She figured that tackling difficult and complex tasks would be the best way to distract herself, so she focused only on the highest-priority requests or those that had been rejected.
Among them was Kinzello’s request.
Owl had wanted to just tear up the order asking to steal an item from the Second Tower of Ziphl.
“Hee, Owl, why aren’t you taking that one?”
“Because it’s a perfect way to get my back broken.”
“Why’s that?”
Owl explained the tense atmosphere among the great powers, the international political situation, the tangled web of interests, and the position Samil ought to take in all this.
“…That’s why I think it’s better not to accept it. Understand?”
“I don’t really get all that annoying talk. You just don’t want to do it, right?”
“That’s what it sounded like, didn’t it? Still, it’s better than when you used to ignore me completely and disappear without a word.”
“Hehe, anyway, it sounds like a really important mission. Why doesn’t our family get involved?”
“Probably because they want to use you for something even bigger. And there’s Sir Shiron’s orders, too.”
Owl smiled faintly, hiding his thoughts.
“Well, whatever the reason, it’s better not to get involved. Especially in something like this.”
“This request came directly from Commander Kinzello?”
Commander Kinzello.
Since the chaos had been brought under control, Yona had taken a certain interest in him. She knew he understood ‘chaos’ better than most.
“What’s so special about that?”
“I wanted to meet him once.”
“Why?”
“I have a few questions I want to ask.”
Owl shrugged.
Though he’d said it was a risky job, the truth was he wasn’t entirely without interest.
‘An item from the Second Tower…’
Owl was certain the item was a ship blueprint.
He was also aware that Ziphl had deliberately leaked information about a secret shipyard in the Sota Desert recently.
If they could get their hands on the blueprint, it would be an invaluable trump card for the nameless faction. It could become the ultimate bargaining chip among the great powers.
‘If Yona goes alone, acting on her own without my involvement, it would be difficult for the great powers to hold us accountable.’
Especially Runkandel would never dare to blame them.
In fact, if Yona managed to secure the blueprint, the great powers would owe Nameless their protection and gratitude.
Besides, Yona wouldn’t even leave a trace of her infiltration into the Second Tower. Her skills in stealth and assassination had long since surpassed Owl’s.
‘She’s not the type to listen to me anyway… Maybe letting her go this once isn’t such a bad idea.’
Before Owl could ponder further, Yona had already made up her mind.
“I’ll take this mission.”
“No.”
“Even if you stop me, I’m going, hehe.”
“If you insist, then there are conditions.”
After a reluctant agreement, Yona set off for the Second Tower.
Along the way, she learned that Joshua, Dipus, and her youngest sibling were also involved in this mission. From that moment, Yona’s top priority shifted from completing the mission to confirming her youngest sibling’s safety.
It wasn’t just because her youngest looked like a lone child by the water in the heart of Ziphl’s territory.
‘Wow, this isn’t Drakka, but is it really okay for something like that to be in the Second Tower?’
While stealing and then returning the key, she had seen a monster that even her brothers couldn’t handle.
This was why Yona had come to the Second Tower.
From the moment Jin and Murakan first entered the underground shipyard, she had been watching them.
She was waiting for the right moment—one that would let her approach her youngest sibling while avoiding the crystal orb’s surveillance, Hedo’s senses, and Kinzello’s watchful eyes.
In the end, she failed.
Even Yona couldn’t make everything possible.
So what appeared now was a reluctantly chosen second-best option. It wasn’t the perfect moment to assassinate a monster like Hedo, but if she didn’t act now, her youngest might truly lose their life.
Swish!
A sharp clash echoed as Yona’s sword, Death, crossed blades with the longsword Veil.
Except for Hedo, no one else noticed Yona’s sudden appearance. It was another moment that highlighted Hedo’s overwhelming power.
“Yona, sister?”
“Yona!?”
The Runkandels’ eyes widened in shock. Not only was Yona’s sudden arrival startling, but even more so was the fact that she had left a long, deep slash across Hedo’s chest with a single strike.
Ssshhh!
Crimson blood gushed from Hedo’s massive body. The wound was far more vicious than any of the countless decisive moves and secret techniques the group had risked their lives to unleash.
In contrast, Hedo’s counterattack only managed to snip a few strands from the ends of Yona’s hair. She had already slipped in again, driving her blade into his side.
“Ugh…!”
Death pierced a hand’s breadth into Hedo’s ribs before withdrawing.
It was a clear, serious injury. Normally, this would be the moment to finish him off, but Yona didn’t press the attack and instead put some distance between them.
Her limited advantage, gained from the ‘Silver Dragon’s Claw’ Jin had given Nameless long ago, had run out.
Nameless assassins had long regarded the Silver Dragon’s Claw as a sacred relic. When processed in a special way, it could freeze time for a blink, no matter the target.
Yona’s ability to cut and stab Hedo so easily was thanks to this relic, as well as her exceptional assassination skills.
“Little one, ugh!”
“Sis!”
As Yona distanced herself from Hedo and moved toward Jin, her legs suddenly wobbled. A trickle of blood escaped her lips.
Though Veil hadn’t touched her directly, the burst of energy Hedo unleashed at that moment caused internal injuries. The aftereffects of summoning chaos hadn’t fully faded.
“…So it was you!”
The one who stole the blueprint!
Hedo’s eyes blazed as he charged at Yona like a cannonball.
Murakan blocked his path with his breath and spear, followed by the brothers and Jane.
Despite his injuries, Hedo’s monstrous strength remained. Like a wounded beast growing more ferocious, he charged relentlessly, ignoring the direct hits from the brothers’ spiritual spear and breath.
The group was overwhelmed.
But Hedo was still human.
Though he was a ten-star warrior, among the strongest, he was not a Changsung. He was holding up under the accumulated damage by sheer will.
The Runkandels knew this.
‘We have to escape with Yona!’
This was their first and last chance to shake off Hedo.
Everyone thought the same as Jin.
Besides, Yona had the blueprint, so if they escaped safely, this would be a victory for Runkandel.
With the weight of a collapsing mountain, Veil fell above the brothers’ heads.
Kraaaah!
The warriors clashed their swords, letting out fierce battle cries.
The Runkandels’ feet sank into the ground as they blocked Hedo’s strike, and eventually, the sturdy space that had held firm collapsed entirely.
The ceiling shattered too, broken by the shockwaves from the brothers’ sword strikes and Murakan’s spear thrusts.
The entire tower was crumbling.
Runkandel and Hedo fought midair, leaping on debris as they battled.
Every second, dozens of sword energies clashed fiercely, devouring the empty space.
‘The wound is deep. Quite a potent poison has seeped in, and it even opens up when he moves.’
Hedo gritted his teeth.
He hadn’t expected Yona Runkandel to be a factor.
Had he known of her presence, he wouldn’t have fought so carelessly, as Jin had said.
‘Looks like I’ll have to call for reinforcements from the main force after all.’
If the Runkandels kept fighting, Hedo was confident he could still defeat them all.
But they weren’t fools. Escape was inevitable.
So Hedo could no longer tolerate it.
Thud!
Among those falling, Hedo was the first to reach the ground.
At the same time, the thick gold ring on his finger began to glow with strange runes.
The ring was an artifact, a signal magic similar to those engraved on the staffs of the tower lords.
The signal was immediately sent to Drakka, the heart of Ziphl.
Before three seconds passed, a massive alarm magic was already activating in the distance.
‘Sorry, miss. I can only hope the Twelve Riders are truly as lucky as the rumors say. Lucky enough to survive even the pursuit of Drakka’s main force.’
Hedo still didn’t want to kill Jin.
But if he let the Runkandels go now, he would not only arouse suspicion but also risk harm to Sandra. It was a choice he couldn’t avoid.
Now, Hedo had only one task left.
To eliminate the ‘witnesses’ who had seen him promise to spare Jin.
He had planned to either leave them to die as a warning to Octavia or deal with them himself.
The wraiths were either still plummeting, utterly exhausted, or gasping for breath, trapped in the cracks of the shattered tower.
Hedo lifted his head to locate them and fire his sword energy, only to pause in confusion at the sight of the tower’s ceiling—there was a gaping hole.
‘The rooftop definitely wasn’t damaged before. Why is it wide open now?’
Throughout the battle, Hedo had carefully controlled his energy to ensure that even if the tower’s interior was completely destroyed, the rooftop would remain untouched.
In other words, someone had broken through it.
And Hedo had a sinking feeling about who that someone was, pressing his palm to his throbbing forehead.
“Heeedddoooooooot!”
The voice was impossibly loud, sharp, and edgy—it belonged to Sandra Zipple.
She had been waiting for Hedo to bring Jin, and upon detecting the support signal, she had smashed through the floor to throw herself into the battlefield.
“You stupid, useless muscle pig! Are you crazy!? Are you out of your mind!? Calling the main force!? Do you want to get our Jin killed!?”
Sandra shouted fiercely, and moments later, locking eyes with Jin as he landed on the ground, she added,
“Hey, you! I’ve been waiting! Where do you think you’re going without me? Let’s go together, come on!”
Even amid the chaos, hearing Sandra’s words sent a shiver down Jin’s neck.
Yet, instinctively, he felt a strange certainty—that she might just be a huge help in escaping this place.