Episode 647
Chapter 165: After the Shock (Part 1)
The Red Owl couldn’t jump directly to the preset return coordinates, Tikan.
Normally, neither the Red Owl nor Mote would be affected by chaos particles, but the chaotic energy emanating from Rosa, who had engulfed Karon, was so dense it exceeded all thresholds.
They crash-landed several times on unknown forests, seas, and islands.
Chaos particles clung like rust to the Red Owl’s hull, and every time they attempted another spatial jump, the power source emitted unsettling noises.
“The manual says that unless the core of the power source and the boarding section of the hull are completely destroyed, there’s a high chance of eventually reaching the set coordinates… but still…”
The real problem was Thalaris.
Her unconscious body radiated a fiery heat.
Her energy was unstable, and severe backlash caused her aura to flare uncontrollably.
She needed treatment immediately.
Ideally, Jin wanted to put her on the Shuri and send her to the healers first.
But from their current location, even Shuri would have to wander aimlessly for a long time to find the way.
They had no choice but to keep attempting spatial jumps, hoping to land near the Holy Empire or arrive at Tikan by luck.
Five jumps in total, all failures. The Red Owl kept landing on random, unfamiliar lands.
At least, they were definitely moving away from Huepester.
Also, with each jump, the chaos particles clinging to the hull fell away, and the power source’s noises gradually stabilized.
At this rate, it felt like they’d reach Tikan soon.
Just as Jin was about to press the button in the center of the cabin again, he suddenly heard a familiar voice.
(Huh? Jin!?)
It was Lingling’s voice. It sounded distant but unmistakably hers.
“…Lingling!?”
Jin looked around as if possessed, but of course, Lingling wasn’t visible.
And it wasn’t just her voice.
(Who the hell are you, suddenly invading my head like this!? Wait, am I hearing my own voice?)
“I hear you. Can you hear me too?”
(Ugh, this is creepy!)
(What? Jin brother!?)
(Jin brother!? Didn’t Kaio just get summoned?)
(Where is Jin!? Lingling, are you really talking to Jin right now?)
(How do I explain this? Suddenly, that idiot’s face popped into my head, and I heard his voice. He was grumbling while pressing some kind of button. Next to him, a white-haired human was collapsed.)
(Button? Grumbling? Collapsed human? Jin brother isn’t in danger, right!?)
“Brothers! Can you hear my voice?”
(You guys don’t hear that voice?)
(What is this noise you keep hearing? Lingling, are you messing with us?)
(Ah, it’s frustrating! I’m serious! Jin is hearing your voices.)
For a few seconds, confused chatter bounced between Jin, Lingling, and the Meiwang clan.
Jin could hear everyone, but it seemed the others couldn’t hear the voices from Laprarosa’s side.
(Brothers, Lingling isn’t joking. She really is hearing Jin’s voice.)
(Oh! What’s going on, warrior brothers!)
Half of them were connected internally with Lingling, so they quickly grasped the situation.
(It seems some kind of resonance point has formed between Jin and Lingling for some reason. Lingling, relay Jin’s words to us. Jin, what’s the situation outside? You summoned the Tenth King brothers—was it overwhelming?)
Jin summarized what he had experienced in the Sword Garden as briefly as possible.
(Insé is turning into hell. It’d be great if we could go outside immediately to help the brothers.)
“You’ve already been a great help, warrior brother.”
(Still, seeing Laprarosa and Insé connected like this makes me think the day we can go outside isn’t far off.)
The spatial jump synchronized by wave tracking.
Jin suspected this sudden ‘connection’ was related to that.
“It’s probably because of the flying ship my comrade made. It seems the ship accidentally caught Laprarosa’s wave.”
His guess was correct. The Red Owl’s catching of Laprarosa’s wave was a kind of error.
(I heard your comrade’s condition is critical. White hair means it’s probably Thalaris Endorma, the one who saved many brothers.)
“Yes. Her internal injuries are severe.”
(Close your eyes and focus your mind. Maybe I can help her through Lingling and the brothers.)
Ban’s words meant he was attempting warrior unification. Jin closed his eyes and concentrated on the resonance point with Lingling.
Just like in Laprarosa, his radiant heart glowed, and he slowly felt Ban’s senses and energy flowing through.
‘It’s weaker than when we did it in Laprarosa… but the warrior unification is definitely happening…!’
Because of the dimensional distance between Insé and Laprarosa, Ban’s senses weren’t fully transmitted.
Still, it was enough to assess Thalaris’s condition.
(Her dantian and meridians are damaged. The cold attribute of her power is preventing the worst, but at this rate, she’ll reach her limit within an hour or two.)
“If that happens…”
(She won’t die, but she’ll never regain her previous strength.)
Before the warrior unification, Jin could only guess, but now he could clearly perceive what Ban felt.
(Use my senses to infuse strength into her body. Erase the cold that’s about to snap and replace it with brain energy.)
Following Ban’s instructions, Jin placed his hand on Thalaris’s back.
Passing through the tangled meridians, Jin’s brain energy slowly penetrated her internal injuries.
Even though it was brief, Jin broke into a sweat. Though unconscious, Thalaris coughed up black clots, and Jin felt like he was walking a tightrope over her life.
But he trusted Ban. Unlike his own anxiety, Ban’s inner self showed no trace of worry.
“Hah…”
Gradually, the burning heat of her internal injuries cooled, and Thalaris exhaled a warm breath.
She still hadn’t regained consciousness but now seemed to be in a peaceful sleep.
(It’s done. But Jin brother, this is a temporary fix. You must start proper treatment within three days.)
“Understood, warrior brother!”
Jin wanted to spend more time with the brothers, but the situation didn’t allow it.
They had to try spatial jumps again. Though they’d gotten past Thalaris’s critical moment, they couldn’t say they were safe until they returned to Tikan.
Even after returning, problems remained.
The power of Rosa’s Runkandel they’d witnessed firsthand was overwhelming all other great forces.
They had to inform their comrades quickly and prepare for what was to come.
They might even have to consider relocating the entire Tikan.
If the current Runkandel immediately launched a full-scale pursuit and attacked Tikan, Jin and his comrades wouldn’t have the strength to stop it.
This wasn’t just about Tikan; it applied to all other forces. No matter how great their hidden powers were, none seemed likely to surpass Rosa’s Runkandel.
They had already brought a near full-strength fleet but were defeated.
Jin hadn’t watched the battle to the end, but there was no way Rosa had lost.
“Brothers, Lingling. I’m heading out now. Once we return, let’s investigate this coincidence immediately. As the warrior brother said, this coincidence might be a big clue for us to go outside.”
The warrior unification was fading. Ban was withdrawing his power before Jin could release it.
(Hurry and go, Jin brother. We’ll wait for the day we can contact you again.)
(Hmph, just go! Don’t get beaten up somewhere again.)
After exchanging farewells with the brothers, Jin pressed the Red Owl’s button once more.
February 27, 1803.
It took Jin two more days to finally reach Tikan.
After calming Thalaris’s internal injuries, they made over ten spatial jumps, but none connected to Laprarosa again.
Thalaris was immediately transported to the Holy Empire upon arrival, and Jin received information gathered by other comrades in the meantime.
Fortunately,
Since that day, Runkandel hadn’t sent out any troops.
“We still need to confirm whether they’re not sending them or simply can’t.”
“I think it’s the latter. Runkandel probably needs time to recover its strength, and above all, using such power must have come with a terrible cost.”
“I agree, Your Highness. But reports say that over half of the Huepester Alliance, including the Sword Garden and Karon city, have already been consumed by chaos. This happened in just two days since Your Highness escaped. Only two days…”
It was no exaggeration to say the entire Huepester continent was being swallowed by chaos. Such widespread corruption had occurred in just two days.
The internal situation was impossible to verify. Even lands not yet consumed were off-limits.
“Maybe the Sword Garden plans to consume the entire world like this. If the whole world is swallowed by chaos, they won’t need to chase us or other forces anymore…”
Zipple and Kinzello.
After Jin’s escape, they had launched a full-scale offensive but decided to retreat, both suffering heavy losses.
“According to a report received at noon today, only three of Zipple’s fleets appeared over the Luterro Magic Federation’s territorial waters.”
“If that’s true, they lost half of their six fleets. Any news on Kinzello?”
“Yes, but no retreat was spotted along any expected routes. We assume they retreated using Orgal’s ability. If so, their situation might be better than Zipple’s.”
Unlike Jin, the others understood the situation solely from the reports brought back by Chilsaekjo after the battle.
Every single report was shocking. No one had expected Runkandel to achieve victory against all the other factions, including Jin’s.
And now, Rosa Runkandel was no longer just the acting head of the family.
The moment the enemies retreated, she announced to the entire world that she had become the true head of the Runkandel clan.
First, it was necessary to meet with the leaders of the Zipple and Kinzello factions.
“Both major factions will be contacting us soon. They’re probably thinking the same as I am. Inform me immediately when you hear from them.”
“Understood, Your Highness.”
“And what about the knights who escaped…? Any news yet?”
Those knights had resisted Rosa until the very end.
Just as the uncertainty about their fate was gnawing at them, Jet burst into the conference room, out of breath.
“My lord! The survival of the knights you saved has been confirmed…! Lord Quikantel himself has gone out to escort them back!”
Jin exhaled deeply and closed his eyes.
If they had all died, there would be very few left in the world who could truly be called Runkandel.