Chapter 717
Episode 180: Each One’s Battle (7)

The moment Mon’s sword pressed down on the Mu sisters, shaking the entire outer fortress, Mary paused and glanced back.

At least the aura of a Black Knight-level warrior. Could it be that Lord Mon came to support Tona and the others?

The gunfire increased, and with it, the tremors transmitted through the inner fortress grew more intense.

It was clear: reinforcements from the temporary alliance had arrived.

So Mary decided to halt her infiltration and wait for her allies to join her before moving forward together.

There was no need to risk everything unnecessarily.

Earlier, she had pushed herself to gather intel inside at all costs, but now, if she were to fall alone, she would only become a liability to her comrades.

Prisoners trapped inside the inner fortress, the prophet, the fierce battle of the Tona brothers and their allies, and Jin and Dipus, who were said to have moved elsewhere to fight—all these factors stirred anxiety in her heart, but Mary remained calm and turned toward the inner fortress entrance to wait for her allies.

Yet, she soon wrapped her aura around her like a venomous serpent and swallowed a sigh.

Footsteps echoed—tap, tap—from the corridor behind her, and a figure in a black robe approached.

“So, things never go as planned, do they? Illina… no, Prophet. I see you’ve come to greet me yourself.”

[Of course. When the seven knights of the family come to Rickalton, it’s only proper that I, the lord, come out personally.]

Swish!

The venomous serpent lashed forward like a whip, sweeping toward Illina.

An illusion…? It doesn’t reach.

Illina flickered briefly as if struck by water but took no damage. Repeated attacks met the same result.

“What kind of law says you can play tricks like this and still claim to be polite? Is this some land of chaos?”

Illina waved her hand dismissively, smiling.

[No, I truly have prepared a great many things for you. So don’t be too upset. You’ll be very surprised.]

“Heh heh! Hey, Prophet. Our allies are already positioned outside. We know the fiend can’t move, and the four knights are luring Jin into battle. You pretend to be calm, but I see everything. Afraid things will go wrong, aren’t you?”

[Is that how it looks?]

“Your original plan was probably to prevent the allies from reaching this fortress at all. But they arrived late, and you set up illusions for safety.”

[Unfortunately, you pose no threat to me. So your ‘safety illusions’ are just overconfidence. This isn’t a simple illusion.]

“Are you going to send out more giant beasts? Or activate some trap to kill me? Whatever you’ve prepared, bring it on. Today, you’ll all lose.”

[If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn’t need traps.]

“Then why not come out and fight me yourself?”

[Someone else will kill you.]

“What?”

[The twelfth knight, Jin Runcandel. You’ll die by his hand.]

Mary let out a bitter laugh.

“Jin’s different from the others. No matter what happens, he won’t fall like the Mu sisters outside, or the other chaotic armies, or Rosa, or the four knights… He never corrupts. You can’t even begin to imagine how special and strong he is.”

[You say the same as Lord Dipus. Hmph, it should have been you, the four knights, or the twelfth knight who became one of us—not some trash like Joshua.]

“So even if he’s fallen, he hasn’t lost his edge. The four knights know they can’t beat Jin. The youngest isn’t someone you or the four knights can take down. If you want to catch him, you’ll need to bring the fiend—and even then, you’ll fail!”

[Then why did Lord Dipus lure the twelfth knight separately, knowing he would lose?]

“To buy time until the fiend can move again. Just like you’ve always done.”

[Half the truth. Seven knights, before today’s battle… I’ll tell you what Lord Dipus ordered me.]

Even if I lose, create a battlefield where Runcandel does not.

Illina spoke as she pulled back her hood.

[The twelfth knight doesn’t have to accept chaos to harm you. Lord Dipus never even considered corrupting him. Instead, like this…]

Before she could finish, Mary hurriedly stepped back and swung her serpent aura.

Suddenly, a massive force erupted from the air, crashing down on her.

This is…!

It was lightning energy.

Not just any lightning, but the overwhelming power unique to Jin.

Except for the Myungwang clan, Jin was the only human capable of wielding this kind of lightning energy.

And that was only the beginning.

Lightning crackled all around her.

No matter how many times she checked, it was unmistakably Jin’s aura.

[…Without even realizing it, you’ll be killed. While fighting Lord Dipus, all the wasted energy has been set to strike this very place. Lord Dipus and I arranged it together. You could call it a variation of dimensional transfer.]

“Ugh!”

Mary gritted her teeth as the lightning pushed her back.

[As you said, it’s hard for us to gain the upper hand in firepower when the lord is absent, right? So we prepared carefully. Even if the twelfth knight doesn’t fall, he won’t escape the abyss of despair!]

As Mary said, Jin would never fall to corruption.

Dipus had long recognized this and accepted that he couldn’t defeat Jin while injured by eternalization.

So Dipus took a completely different approach.

And as everyone knew—

Jin was practically the strongest being now, aside from the fiend. Even a warrior like Mary could barely hold out for a few minutes against him.

Jin’s attack was now raining down inside Rickalton’s inner fortress.

Only seconds had passed, but the corridor where Mary stood was already unrecognizable, shattered beyond form.

How was this possible?

There was no time to ponder. Her mind felt like a turbulent storm.

No one among the allies had anticipated this.

She was going to die.

By the power of the youngest.

Even if that happened, Mary wouldn’t blame Jin, but the weight of despair Jin would have to bear was unimaginable.

And it’s not just me who will die. If this continues, others will fall to the youngest’s power too!

For now, Jin’s energy was confined to the inner fortress.

But no one knew how long that would last. If it spread to the outer fortress and beyond the battlefield—

Thousands of prisoners would be slaughtered, and many allies would surely perish.

Jin would hear of it all after the battle.

No matter how strong the youngest is, after such a tragedy…!

He would break.

There was no way a person could survive such an ordeal unscathed.

Those who survived, especially comrades, would say it wasn’t Jin’s fault.

But Jin would never see it that way.

“Huff, ugh…!”

Pzzt!

A strike of lightning energy from the Nine Sword of the Fighting God slammed into Mary.

She barely blocked it, but her collarbone cracked, and hot blood burst from her throat.

Illina licked her lips, clearly pleased.

[So, do you still think you can win? Worried things might go wrong? I am a prophet. What I say always comes true. Today, Jin Runcandel will kill many.]

Mary had no choice but to accept it. There was no clear way out.

All she could do was fend off the lightning.

Yet, somehow—

Mary felt the fear and worry about Jin that had filled her mind suddenly wash away, like a believer hearing the voice of their god in a moment of crisis.

Great beings sometimes grant baseless faith in moments like this.

Mary realized how she truly felt about the youngest. Not just herself, but her family and Tikan’s comrades—Jin was that kind of person to them all.

[You’re quite strong yourself, aren’t you? You’ve already blocked these fierce energies several times. Keep it up—the more scars you leave, the better.]

“Yes, you’re right. This is a real crisis, but ugh!”

Mary rolled on the ground once more, coughing up blood.

“It’s strange… Somehow, I don’t think the youngest will keep falling for these tricks.”

The prophet’s eyes narrowed.

Mary’s pupils, once darkened by despair, began to shine again.

From a prophet’s perspective, there was no reason for Mary to feel hope.

[Ah, so you’ve gone mad facing death? That’s a common weakness of ordinary humans.]

“No, it’s just… I still can’t picture Jin losing to you. And we’re not some pathetic prophecy cult—we’re record keepers. By now, our chronicler must have sensed something foul, and one of our comrades will go warn Jin…”

[Yes, yes. But soon, your body will be torn apart by the twelfth knight’s power. You’ll only last two more rounds at best.]

Mary blocked the lightning and rose to her feet.

Her legs trembled as if she might collapse, but the venomous serpent glowed fiercely in her grasp.

“If you really think that, how about a bet? I’m betting that no one will die from Jin’s energy. Twice? Ten times? Even twenty times—I can stop it every time.”

So if you want to see me die, come at me yourself. There’s no way Jin’s energy will ever finish me off.

With that, Mary glared at Illina, her words hanging in the air like a challenge.