Episode 623
Chapter 160: The 78 of Laprarosa
The final victor of the Great Duel of the Twin Kings was not Jin or Baba, but Baltiloc.
Kaio was unable to participate in the remaining battles due to injuries sustained in the 22nd Duel. Jin and Baba, meanwhile, were both immobilized, their arms buried under debris and undergoing restoration.
For a while, Jin and his brothers grew distant.
Jin felt guilty for pushing his brothers so harshly, regardless of the reasons. The Meiwang clan, on the other hand, felt ashamed—they had acted as if they had already “let go” of Jin far too quickly, no matter their true feelings.
“I know I lashed out in anger… but honestly, I think everyone kept Jin a little more distant than the others. Doubting his right to inherit—that should never have happened.”
“We should have been more generous. If we had shown the same understanding that the 9th Twin King brother did in the end, none of this embarrassment would have occurred.”
“At the time, I was furious to the point of madness, but everyone was too quick to talk about banishing Jin.”
“Well, it was hard to bear even just the words—Jin’s act was something else.”
“I was worried sick that one of the brothers might actually try to kill Jin. Even if Jin betrayed us, we should have made it clear much earlier that we would never abandon a brother.”
“Looking back, we could have realized sooner that Jin was just putting on a show. The 10th Twin King brother even managed to wound him while avoiding his ‘mad heart,’ and when he attacked the 4th Twin King brother from behind, he could have gone deeper.”
“I can’t even face Jin now… How ridiculous we must look.”
What if, before the shocking 22nd Duel, Kaio had defended Jin’s honor instead of cursing Garmund? What if, after the disaster, Kaio had just laughed it off and playfully ruffled Jin’s hair, and the others had dismissed Jin’s intentions as trivial? What if, instead of splitting into factions and fighting, they had all acted like Baba from the start? Then, perhaps, they would have looked better in Jin’s eyes.
These “what ifs” tormented the Meiwang clan.
Whether Jin’s methods were right or wrong no longer mattered.
Though they spoke of killing Jin, the clan’s final stance was the one Baba had shown in the end.
Despite the countless harsh words spoken in anger, that was the only genuine truth they never needed to voice aloud.
No matter how terrible the situation became, the principle of never abandoning Jin remained absolute.
That principle had never wavered.
If there were thousands or tens of thousands of Meiwang left, or if another Duel King ruled, things might have been different. At least a few would have harbored other feelings.
But the 77 Meiwang brothers remaining in Laprarosa were not among them. Their unity had never faltered for a moment—and it never would.
“…How’s your arm?”
Kaio limped over and sat beside Jin.
He had come to Jin’s room an hour ago, pacing without purpose, and had asked the same question five minutes earlier.
“Uh… the 2nd Twin King brother did a good job fixing it.”
Jin’s answer was the same as before.
“And the wound from the 9th Twin King brother’s stab?”
“It’s nothing compared to the injury I caused the 10th Twin King brother. It’s almost healed. He said he can walk a bit now, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Hmm. I was especially harsh on the 10th Twin King brother. Sorry.”
In the end, Kaio was the only one who suffered an injury requiring over a year to fully heal.
Jin and Baba’s arms had been immediately treated with Boras’s special grafting technique.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, Jin. I was the one who lost my mind. After so long, the revival of the Great Duel got to me.”
“My methods were excessive. So I’m the one who should apologize.”
“No, your way wasn’t bad.”
“Looking back, it probably wasn’t the best.”
—“Jin! What are you trying to do? Have you already forgotten what I told you?”
—“I did it on purpose.”
—“What?”
—“I needed to stir up the brothers’ competitive spirit. Seeing the 8th Twin King brother let me win, I realized this was something we needed from the start.”
This was the conversation Jin had with Tantel after their first conflict with Kaio.
When Tantel heard Jin’s plan to play the villain and pressure the brothers, he replied:
—I get the general idea. But Jin, one thing’s certain: no matter how badly you act, the outcome is fixed. No one truly hates you. At least, not the 77 brothers left in Laprarosa. Just like you.
—I know. I’m curious how that’s even possible.
—If you’re going to do it, then be as ruthless as you can, no matter how tense things get. Even if it reveals that you secretly envy and resent the brothers, no one will truly abandon you. They might speak as if you were their worst enemy, but that’s just words.
Tantel was right.
But Jin’s cruelty wasn’t only because of Tantel’s words.
He was confident his brothers would never truly let him go—and that made him feel even more sorry.
Kaio placed his hand on Jin’s shoulder. Seeing that large, steady hand trembling made Jin feel even more apologetic.
“That might be true. But the same goes for the others. We all showed each other our worst sides, not our best. I know it’s not my place to say, but we can’t always show only our best.”
Jin said nothing and carefully adjusted the bandages to ease Kaio’s discomfort.
“Me and the others… as you can see, we’re pretty simple-minded. We often can’t think things through. That’s why we all just shouted curses this time. The Duel King brother seemed to have guessed everything from the start and stayed quiet. I was especially bad—I even threatened you, Jin.”
“That was understandable given the situation.”
“No, even after the sword exploded in my chest, I didn’t carefully consider that your ‘mad heart’ was intact. Most of us just assumed you were lashing out because you held us hostage with the threat of sending us away.”
“That was a reasonable assumption.”
“But in the process, it became clear that we were discriminating against you a little.”
“I don’t think so, 10th Twin King brother. I was the one who provoked the brothers. And even when I pretended to try to kill Baba, the brothers were ready. They were prepared to still treat me as a brother even if I killed Baba. In other words, they let me win.”
“Jin.”
“Yeah?”
“Wait a moment. I can’t stand anymore. Help me sit down. Don’t make that troubled face. It’ll all heal in a year anyway. And from now on, we’ll keep letting you win. That won’t change.”
Kaio finally sat down with a sigh.
“But this time, the meaning has shifted a bit.”
“How so?”
“Not because you’re Jin, but because you’re a brother. Or rather, because you can’t be beaten. You’re not weaker than us. I don’t just mean strength—there’s no one else among us who can endure such hatred and still push their will through like you.”
“Is that really true?”
“So please forgive us.”
“Forgive you?”
“For treating you not as a brother, but as ‘Jin.’”
“What on earth are you talking about…?”
Suddenly, Ban and Lingling entered the room. Ban lightly smacked Lingling’s head, who was sticking out her tongue.
“Ow!”
“That’s why I hit you, Lingling. And I don’t think you’re in a position to complain—you couldn’t kill Jin either.”
“Ban only hates me! Heeheehee.”
Lingling tried to yell at Ban but burst out laughing when Ban stroked her neck.
“Have you come, Duel King brother?”
“No need to stand and be formal, 13th Twin King brother.”
Ban’s gaze landed on Jin. It had been two weeks since the Great Duel ended, but this was the first time Ban had spoken directly.
Outside the door, the rest of the Meiwang clan waited with bowed heads.
“You all fought like children this time.”
“We’re sorry.”
“We’re sorry.”
“It was oddly endearing. There will be more fights ahead, so keep fighting like children. Even if I don’t say it, you will.”
Ban handed the Sigmund sword to Jin.
Jin stared silently at Sigmund for a long moment.
“Jin, no matter what you did or how much the others coveted it, the owner of this sword would never have changed.”
“I know.”
“If that meaning has grown heavier for everyone, then that’s enough.”
Jin accepted Sigmund.
Ban said nothing more about the situation.
Baltiloc, the final winner of the Great Duel, looked disappointed—not because he wanted the sword, but because he couldn’t hand it over himself.
“So, brothers, what do you think we should do now?”
Ban’s question was met with quiet glances exchanged among the Meiwang. They weren’t sure what answer he wanted.
Naturally, their eyes all turned to Jin.
“We should rebuild the shattered main hall.”
Jin’s answer made Ban nod.
“13th Twin King brother knows well. From now on, all brothers will follow the 13th Twin King brother and begin rebuilding the main hall.”
Watching the 77 brothers rush in unison toward the ruins of the main hall, Ban thought to himself.
Maybe, from the very moment Jin arrived, they had already been escaping a world that was, in a sense, dead.
What Ban saw now wasn’t the trapped souls of a forgotten, lifeless realm, but the vibrant scene of living people.
As she slowly followed her brothers’ footsteps, it seemed that all 78 members of Laprarosa were gathering in one place—accompanied by a single loyal chaos spirit.