Chapter 685
Episode 175: The Golden Seal (Part 1)
Since Veil’s awakening, the underwater realm had become something like an air raid shelter.
“Hedo! At this rate, it’s going to drag on for over three days. What if Jin gets hurt?” Sandra stomped her foot anxiously, her voice trembling. Hedo remained silent, gazing upward as he watched the mysterious divine being Veil clash with Jin.
Today was April 24, 1803.
The battle between Jin and Veil had already stretched beyond two and a half days with no end in sight. No one had expected the fight to last this long.
Surprisingly, Jin and Veil had chosen the ocean’s surface—not the seabed—as their battleground. Those who came along assumed Veil would have the upper hand due to spatial constraints, but Jin, leveraging his skills as a magic swordsman, was prolonging the fight.
“If I’d known it would be like this, I wouldn’t have agreed to help Jin. And that Veil—he’s not even listening to my orders anymore! I’ve told him to stop so many times.”
“…It’s not that he’s ignoring you. He simply can’t hear you. The Grave Giants have set up such a thick protective barrier. Why don’t you go wash up or get some rest? Your eyes are so bloodshot they look like they might burst.”
At Hedo’s words, the others nodded in agreement.
Most of the structures formed underwater were altars dedicated to Veil, but like any religious facility, there were also restrooms and washrooms. Thanks to that, those remaining underwater were able to watch the battle without too much discomfort.
Of course, while their bodies were relatively comfortable, their minds were anything but. The Balmel Alliance was on edge, worried sick about Jin’s safety, and Hedo felt sick to his stomach just imagining what would happen once the fight ended.
Yet, despite the tension, those underwater often found themselves lost in the moment. The battle between Jin and Veil was so captivating that it drew them in without their realizing it.
Hedo, especially, was in awe as a martial artist.
“Is it because of the power of the Twelve Riders? Veil’s divine power, which once shattered chaos dragons in midair, hasn’t manifested even once… Veil fights fiercely, but the Twelve Riders focus on breaking their own limits rather than just defeating the opponent.”
Hedo wondered if such a fight was even possible, but to his eyes, Jin seemed less like he was fighting and more like he was training.
Crash!
The frozen seawater beneath Jin shattered, sending up a spray. Jin’s magic had been freezing the water all along, creating solid ground for him to stand on as he fought.
This was a stark contrast to the Paddler group, who had quickly fallen back due to spatial limitations.
The ever-changing natural scenery made the battle look less like a fight between a human and a divine being, and more like a duel between two divine entities.
[Persistent, aren’t you? But now you can see the end, right? When you fall, Sarah and I will leave far behind…]
“Crazy bastard.”
Jin stood on the newly formed ice and spoke.
Unlike before, he no longer showed Veil any respect. Having exchanged words with the sword during the fight, Jin had come to see Veil as unworthy of respect.
Veil was nothing more than a former Tenth Knight, consumed by a fanatical obsession with Sarah.
After Sarah’s death, he had gone berserk, destroying the world and was expelled from the Tenth Knights. That was likely why he had been sealed here underwater—a disgraceful existence.
Even after awakening after a thousand years, he still refused to accept reality, mistaking Sandra for Sarah. Jin’s feelings toward Veil had shifted from disdain to outright disgust.
[Fine, I’ll admit you’re stubborn. That’s probably why Sarah liked you. She’s always been drawn to people like you. But what will you do now, with your exhausted body?]
Jin had fought as efficiently as possible, but after such a long battle, minor injuries and fatigue were inevitable.
Veil, on the other hand, showed no signs of wear. Like the Runeia of the Aether Space, Veil wielded near-limitless power.
Most wounds healed instantly, and even injuries that would be fatal to a normal person were restored within minutes.
Unlike Runeia, Veil’s power didn’t come from the Aether Space—it was entirely his own.
[Looks like you’re running low on the magic to freeze the seawater. You can barely stand on two feet now. After all that noisy fighting… You must have some final moves left. I suggest you bring them out and just burn out already.]
Indeed, the frozen seawater beneath Jin was narrow and unstable, hardly solid enough to move on like solid ground.
Yet Jin remained strangely composed. His breathing was heavy, blood trickled from the many wounds across his body, and his stamina was clearly nearing its limit.
Even Jin hadn’t expected to maintain such composure.
Through this long, fierce battle, he had come to a realization.
“Just two days ago, I felt like I could never defeat him… but now, I’m certain I can.”
Ranke Halobice, Smarion Prochi, the Garden of Swords’ full assault, Runeia Runkandel, the fake Yona—through all these battles since returning to Insero from Laprarosa, Jin had fought relentlessly.
All that experience was now blossoming at once in his fight with Veil, awakening something within him.
“At first, I hoped that by fighting me, you’d snap out of it. Accept Lady Sarah’s death, calmly remember her last moments, and carry on her will. If you truly loved her, that would have been inevitable.”
[Sarah waits for me down there.]
“What is this, then? You just babbled nonsense again. You’re afraid to accept Lady Sarah’s death, so you’re acting like a fool. She loved Runkandel and lived like an unquenchable flame to save the world.”
[Shut up!]
“There’s only one Lady Sarah, and no one can replace her. So stop insulting her. You never loved her—you only used her for your own selfish desires. You scream like you’ll die without her, but when you realize she’s truly gone, you choose denial over mourning or carrying on her legacy.”
Veil swung his sword and wings at Jin. The sword’s energy and golden aura violently churned the sea, but Jin stood firm, seemingly unaffected.
He was deflecting the blows.
Veil paid no mind. Jin had been dodging attacks like this all along to buy time, so there was nothing special about it.
Still, for some reason, Veil felt a chill run down his spine.
“Is he finally about to reveal his hidden trump card? The Flame of Vengeance? Or the Sword of the Underworld?”
Whatever it was, Veil was confident he could handle it.
He could clearly see how much strength Jin had left. Unless Jin had prepared a final move from the start, there was no way he could pose a real threat now.
Fwoosh…!
A faint blue flame began to envelop Bradamante.
Magic was the resource Jin had exhausted the most—he had to keep freezing the sea.
Veil couldn’t understand why Jin would try to unleash his final move through magic rather than spiritual energy or lightning.
[Two days ago, you showed a pretty convincing Flame of Vengeance that Sarah herself passed on to you. But that… isn’t even an imitation of her fire.]
Veil continued to unleash sword energy and divine power, but Jin didn’t waver.
“This isn’t Lady Sarah’s Flame of Vengeance, Veil.”
Jin’s calm voice was met with a roar from Veil as he exploded his power.
Like a wild beast barking at a torch it fears to touch, Veil stuck to ranged attacks.
Jin should have fallen by now, but he hadn’t.
That was exactly how Veil felt. Just as Jin refused to fall, the faint flames around Bradamante refused to die out.
As Veil wondered why, Jin met his gaze and smiled. Watching from underwater, Hedo knew this was the moment Jin broke through his limits. Only Hedo recognized it.
“You don’t understand why this exhausted me doesn’t fall, or why this weak flame won’t go out. Your instincts are telling you not to get close to me.”
Veil’s face, which had never lost composure, quickly grew anxious.
[…What is that flame?]
Veil believed he had absolute superiority in every way. Jin’s energy was nearly depleted, while he remained as strong as ever.
But now, his thoughts were rapidly changing.
The certainty that touching that flame meant defeat pressed down on Veil’s entire body.
“The flame that began with Lady Sarah and has finally become truly mine.”
The flame clinging to Bradamante remained faint.
Because it was already complete, it would not transform into a more intimidating form. That meant it was the same whether Jin was exhausted or full of energy.
A new magic sword without a name.
In other words, during his fight with Veil, Jin had created an original ultimate technique.
With that sword revealed for the first time, Jin slowly began to approach Veil. The frozen seawater beneath his feet formed a stair-like path.
“This flame will either become your new milestone or the weapon that binds you. That choice is yours.”
Veil screamed in rage and charged at Jin.
But just before the sword could make contact, he flinched and stopped. He had charged forward in a frenzy, but once the blade came into play, it seemed that strange flame would quickly overwhelm him.
“I’m giving you one last chance. From now on, answer my questions carefully, Veil.”
Who is the person down there right now?
At that question, Veil remained silent for a long moment, eyes closed. His tightly shut, cross-shaped pupils trembled.
[…Jiple.]
“Yes. Lady Sarah died a thousand years ago. The person you believed to be Sarah is actually a descendant of Jiple—her enemy—and one of my comrades.”
[Why did you wake me? Why reveal such a terrible truth? What wrong have I done to you? In this cruel world, I can’t even die on my own terms… It’s so cruel.]
Jin felt a pang of guilt at Veil’s reaction.
For the first time, in what felt like a real conversation, Veil appeared like a young, defenseless animal—without even the barest shell to protect himself.
The immense sorrow Veil had finally accepted over Sarah’s death seemed to wash over Jin as well.
But setting aside the grief, Jin knew he had to keep pressing him.
[Sarah! If she’s dead, I will destroy the entire world!]
Veil might lash out and carry out that threat the moment he woke. According to Quikantel, he had already gone on a rampage a thousand years ago, destroying the world—because of Sarah’s death.
“So, now you’re going to destroy everything in your path?”
At those words, Veil let out a hollow laugh.
[If that Sandra Jiple wants it, then I suppose I must.]
“Hah. Even after realizing it’s not Lady Sarah but Sandra Jiple, you won’t stop this madness… Wait, Veil. Could it be…?”
Suddenly, a dark memory of a conversation between Veil and Sandra from two days ago rose in Jin’s mind like a sinister smoke.
[Anyway, it’s all going to be fine, Sarah. You’ve changed from the one I remember—you lost your right arm and weakened—but now, I’ll protect you. Just like you protected me.]
“You’ll protect me?”
[Yes, Sarah Runcandel. My life, my soul, and my power exist solely for you.]
“A vow… You’ve already sworn yourself to Sandra and bound yourself with a vow?”
Veil nodded weakly.