Chapter 545
Episode 145: Omen (14)
As the knights departed, Ziphl’s fleet put distance between themselves and the Sword Emperor’s fortress.
Just as Amela had predicted, the fleet’s cannons—including those on Kozek’s ships—had a far superior range compared to the fortress’s defenses. There was no reason not to keep their distance.
Without Ron, of course, they could have obliterated the fortress in an instant without worrying about efficiency. But things were different now.
While the knights of Hyran withdrew, the fleet also seized the chance to move just beyond Ron’s effective range.
Except for Siron, Ziphl had never faced an enemy stronger than Ron.
Most of the mages aboard the fleet had never encountered Siron firsthand either.
None of the dragons had met Siron, but they all recalled the nightmares Ron evoked—reminders of Murakan in his prime.
To the dragons, nothing in the world was more terrifying than Murakan at his peak.
The problem was that this dreadfully powerful black dragon stood right beside Ron, eyes wide open.
Though Murakan hadn’t yet fully regained his former strength, the dragons—unaware of this—feared him even more than Ron.
The wind dragon, Salion, settled beside Keliak. He was recently bonded as Octavia’s guardian dragon after she became Melzayer’s new contractor.
“It’s like seeing one of the ten knights of old Runkandel standing alongside Murakan… huh?”
Salion paused mid-sentence, tilting his head in confusion.
He found it strange that he had just called the Black Knight one of the “ten knights.”
The other dragons, hearing this, simply assumed Salion had mistaken the Black Knight for one of the ten knights and felt no real disconnect.
Soon, Salion himself forgot he had used that specific title.
Even if someone else mentioned it again, the dragons wouldn’t consciously register it.
“Seems the power of the story has weakened a bit…”
Keliak thought quietly.
“Ron’s presence, nearing the Creation, with the power to defy fate—that’s part of it. But the biggest problem is Jin Runkandel.”
The power of existence.
Keliak clearly recognized the power Jin possessed.
The situation was worse than expected. Ron’s awakening, his growing strength, and the way Jin’s existential power was manifesting more strongly because of him—all of it defied Keliak’s predictions.
He felt a deep unease, a kind of instinctive discomfort.
A feeling that things were bound to go wrong.
“Octavia.”
“Yes, Lord.”
“When the battle begins, you will infiltrate the fortress with the Jin phantoms and secure the White Stone.”
Not long ago, they had lost part of their fleet, blueprints, and machinery in the Sota Desert.
If they failed to obtain the White Stone today, Ziphl would have to return empty-handed despite fighting a nearly Creation-level Ron.
“Yes, I will prepare the Demonstone and infiltrate.”
To seize the White Stone, which was already beginning to open, the Demonstone was essential.
“It will take some time for the Demonstone to fully activate. Until then, I will fight alongside you, Lord.”
“No, I will use the Demonstone myself. You stay inside the fortress and manage the aftermath of the battle to ensure the White Stone remains unharmed. Stand by.”
“You’re concerned Runkandel might ally with Hyran.”
Since Ron had awakened in a new realm, Octavia’s suspicion that Runkandel might side with Hyran wasn’t unfounded.
But Keliak doubted Rosa would make that call. For Runkandel, Ron’s appearance was more of an opportunity to observe.
“No. The Demonstone is necessary just to face Ron Hyran. No one but Siron can defeat the current Ron.”
Octavia’s eyes widened in shock.
Though she had witnessed Ron’s transcendent martial prowess, she hadn’t fully grasped its extent like Keliak had.
Only those on a similar level could truly understand. All of Ziphl’s mages, including Octavia, were far beneath Ron.
“I never imagined not bringing Hedow and Kadun would come back to bite us like this. I didn’t want to reveal the Demonstone’s power unless facing Runkandel.”
—“I heard that only with the power of that fiery dragon can perfect flames be wielded.”
Jin’s earlier taunt echoed in her mind. Now, she could no longer deny it.
“Looks like my pride’s taken quite a hit. I understand how those who’ve faced Jin Runkandel before must have felt.”
Octavia nodded.
“…Understood. Be careful, Lord.”
“You too. The infiltration won’t be easy.”
The phantoms gathered around Octavia. Those thirty gray-robed figures were the real deal—far beyond mere resurrected beings.
Keliak sensed their worries even without looking at the dragons scattered among the fleet.
“Murakan hasn’t regained his strength from a thousand years ago. If he had, the first battle wouldn’t have ended the way it did. Make sure the dragons don’t fall prey to the phantoms’ illusions and make mistakes.”
No sooner had Keliak finished speaking than a new, deeper fear filled the dragons’ eyes.
Not because he was more terrifying than the old Murakan.
A chilling wind howled somewhere in the fleet.
It sounded like the breath of some monstrous creature. The dragons shuddered and bristled their scales the moment it began.
It was the sound of the Demonstone beginning to activate.
The counterfeit “Source Stone” reproduced the power that, when Quikantel first fought Andrei, suppressed dragons with instinctive terror.
Though the current Demonstone was still incomplete, it was far more refined than before. The dragons’ fear was amplified accordingly.
“Ugh…!”
“Quikantel!”
Even Quikantel, far from the Demonstone, staggered as if about to collapse. Murakan supported her as she gasped for breath, rough and unsteady.
“The Ziphl bastards brought the Demonstone… Damn it, I can’t summon any strength.”
“Don’t say that. Just breathe. Kid, this one can’t fight. She can’t even retreat alone in this state. Evacuate her beyond the Demonstone’s influence.”
Quikantel didn’t stubbornly insist on fighting. She accepted that, as things stood, she’d only be a burden.
Among the dragons currently active, only a handful could resist the Demonstone’s power on their own. Of those, only Murakan and Misha were completely immune.
[If Quikantel’s this affected, most of the dragons over there should be foaming at the mouth and crashing down… That glowing thing—necklaces? They must be blocking some of the Demonstone’s power.]
Murakan transformed back to his true form and lifted Quikantel onto his back. All of Ziphl’s dragons wore something glowing around their necks.
[More like shackles than necklaces. They look pretty unstable… Ron, I guess they’re afraid of you. They brought out the Demonstone despite the risk to their own.]
“Hold the line well until I return, everyone.”
Ron felt the Demonstone’s power even more intensely than the dragons. It radiated a chaotic energy similar to the White Stone’s turmoil he had been battling within himself while unconscious.
As Murakan flew toward the rear, most of Ziphl’s dragons mistook his departure as fear of the Demonstone’s power and felt a measure of relief.
“Jin.”
“Yes, Sir Ron.”
“There will be infiltrators entering through the inner defenses. Octavia will likely lead them. I will oversee the entire battlefield, but there will inevitably be gaps. You and the Balmur alliance, together with the Sword Emperors, will stop them. Can I entrust this to you?”
It was tantamount to Ron entrusting his back to Jin.
“It would be an honor.”
“When this fight is over…”
Ron placed a hand on Jin’s shoulder and added softly,
“Let us share a drink with my dear grandson.”
His voice was gentle beyond words, as if speaking to Dante.
Jin felt a warmth he had never known before—the affection of a grandfather. It was an unexpected gift before a war that would decide their fate.
Rashid drew his sword from its sheath.
“Keliak! Let’s get this started.”
Ron’s calm, low voice reverberated once more. At the same time, the flames enveloping Ziphl’s fleet thickened, and the immortal phoenix Bellot let out a roar.
The war had begun again.
The first strike belonged to the Sword Emperor’s fortress.
Ron swung his sword toward the center of the fleet—not with great speed, but with a deliberate, measured pace.
Yet even an ordinary observer could read the arc easily, but it carried the essence of transcendence he had attained.
Before his intangible sword energy finished its motion, it began to strike the fleet.
Invisible sword energy gnawed frantically at the fiery barrier Keliak and Bellot had erected.
But that was not all.
The intangible sword energy that passed through the flames soon became a raging storm, engulfing Ziphl’s fleet and the surrounding fortress grounds.
A shield for allies, a bone-rending, flesh-tearing gale of blades for enemies.
With a single strike, Ron had claimed the entire battlefield as his domain.
When he said he would “oversee the entire battlefield,” it was no mere figure of speech.
From the very start, Bellot was struggling to handle the overwhelming intangible sword energies, while Keliak swung Hroti with fierce, wide-eyed intensity.
Octavia showed no sign of breaking through Ron’s domain; she hadn’t even begun to infiltrate.
Keliak relentlessly triggered spatial explosions in that area, forcing open a path, but squeezing through those unstable rifts was no easy feat.
The true phantoms tried to expand the red abyss, attempting to secure more space, and Keliak began chanting another legacy of Riol Ziphl.
“Luyan!”
But Ron wasn’t the only one on the battlefield. The five Sword Saints of Hyran remained—Ron had a reason for leaving them until the very end.
The Sword Saints could only unleash their full power when Ron was present.
“You are authorized to use the Overlord Sword. Show the enemy the true might of the Hyran Sword Saints.”