Chapter 729
Episode 184: Beyond Fate (1)
The Black Sea—an uncharted realm.
Sirion opened his eyes and slowly sat up.
In this space filled only with poison and darkness, he could hear the steady breathing of his eldest daughter, enduring the pain.
“…Father, this time you woke up after four days,” Luna said softly, sensing Sirion’s presence.
Lately, Sirion had been losing consciousness more frequently, and each time it took longer for him to regain awareness.
For decades, Sirion Runcandel had reigned supreme over the mortal realm, a symbol of an unbreakable, insurmountable wall.
But here, in this dark land, even a legendary figure like him had become just another mortal who could die at any moment.
Before facing the kings of the Black Sea, Luna had never even imagined that Sirion could fall in battle.
In other words, Sirion was faltering.
Just like countless ordinary people.
“Sir! You’re awake! This Ozdok has carefully gathered some remnants of chaos that can be used as food and has been waiting for you.”
“Excellent work, Ozdok.”
“Ah… such praise right after waking up! I, Ozdok, will continue to serve you and the knights with all my heart!”
“Bring the remnants here.”
Ozodok wiped his eyes, genuinely moved, and went to collect the chaotic fragments.
Sirion needed to refine those remnants quickly and feed the knights so they could regain some strength.
Luna watched her father for a while with a bittersweet gaze, then a faint smile appeared on her lips.
“You seem in good spirits as soon as you woke up today, Father. Usually, you stay silent for a while.”
Sirion grinned.
At times like this, Luna’s heart ached knowing that her father laughed more here in this hellish place than he ever did back home.
“I saw the youngest.”
“The youngest… Jin!?”
“Yes. He was walking his inner path. Looking quite exhausted…”
“Mother… no, it must be because of the traitor who destroyed the family.”
Sirion nodded.
Since Rosa became a fiend, Sirion had often appeared in her dreams or inner realm to check on the state of the mortal world. Currently, only he and Luna knew of Rosa’s betrayal within the expedition.
They had deliberately kept it from the other knights.
Not because they didn’t trust them.
But the knights were already in a hopeless state.
The overwhelming chaos exposure had withered both their bodies and minds; some were so severely affected they had even lost the ability to speak.
There was no need to add more pain and confusion.
So Sirion only told Luna, who had been relatively spared from the chaos, about Rosa.
“Is the youngest alright?”
“If he had met Rosa instead of me, he wouldn’t be.”
“Then meeting you in the inner realm means… he might have reached the stage of ‘Creation’.”
“That’s not it.”
Ozodok respectfully placed the remnants of chaos before Sirion.
“Hehe, look at this. I really gathered them diligently…”
The energy of Creation and magic began purifying the black masses.
Ozodok watched with satisfaction, then, at Luna’s glance, stepped back.
“Don’t worry too much.”
“Yes, Father. Ozdok has worked hard all this time, and I think I was a bit harsh just now. He deserves to hear about the family’s major affairs now. His mind is the clearest among us.”
“The youngest. I meant you don’t need to worry so much about him. Jin is ready to bear his fate. That’s far more important than reaching the level of a Creation being like a ‘Non-Human’.”
Luna’s eyes widened. The meaning behind Sirion’s words was that astonishing.
“Father, do you know this is the first time?”
“What do you mean?”
“That you speak as if you trust your child. Especially on a matter that concerns the family’s fate, you’ve never done that before. But now… you say Jin is ready.”
It wasn’t that he had no other choice but to trust Jin. Nor was it a weak admission born from endless despair.
Luna recognized that Sirion truly believed the youngest was filling his place.
His gaze landed on Barisada.
If he returned, it might be time to pass the sword to the youngest. If only he could come back, anytime.
“Distribute the refined food to the knights, Luna. We must prepare ourselves as well. Once the meal is over, we’ll set out again. While I’m awake, we need to cover as much ground as possible.”
“Yes, Father.”
Only one day remained until the scheduled decisive battle.
Jin, back in Tikan, no longer looked gaunt as before.
His eyes shone with an untainted light, and his straight posture seemed unbreakable no matter the enemy.
He slowly surveyed his comrades and allies gathered in the conference room.
“This is our final meeting. But honestly, there’s not much left to discuss among our temporary alliance.”
The battle plans had already been coordinated and agreed upon, down to every variable.
“Still, I suppose everyone gathered here in Tikan’s conference room because you wanted to see me with your own eyes. So, how do I look? Satisfactory?”
More than satisfactory—it was frightening.
To see someone who had been dying from mental attacks just days ago now standing strong was both inspiring and terrifying to the alliance members.
If the fiend’s mental assault had shown the world absolute terror, Jin was now proving that an unyielding will could survive even that.
That will was now directed at the fiend, but after the battle, it would press upon the temporary alliance once more.
“…You’ve become stronger than before the fiend’s mental attack.”
Veradin’s words earned a nod from Jin.
“How about the Ziphl side? Kinzel, do you still think we should delay the battle?”
[No, we can start immediately.]
“Good, then…”
Jin stood.
“Let’s step outside for a moment and meet the people.”
[Suddenly?]
“I have something I want to say before tomorrow.”
“Planning a speech?”
“Something like that. It’s unplanned, so if you don’t want to come, that’s fine. As you know, I’ve been busy and couldn’t notify you earlier. But I hope the leaders will join. Being together will better show the unity of our temporary alliance. Feel free to add anything if you want.”
Jin headed straight outside the Tikan palace.
Everyone in the conference room followed without exception.
A crowd naturally formed, creating a procession.
Cheers erupted wherever Jin walked.
He waved and thanked them as he moved along.
Occasionally, he chewed and swallowed the eel jerky distributed by the Dark Flame.
Jin stopped at the central plaza on the first floor of Tikan.
The crowd fell silent.
Though Jin hadn’t spoken yet, tens of thousands held their breath, reading his aura.
“The preliminary battle against the fiend’s mental attack has ended.”
Skipping formal greetings, Jin began his speech slowly.
“When I ventured into the inner battlefield to resist the fiend’s mental assault, I told my comrades I might not return. Those who have experienced such attacks know the feeling—wondering how to overcome it, feeling like giving up is the only option.”
The crowd listened intently, and the temporary alliance members waited to see how the speech would unfold.
“Fortunately, that preliminary battle ended in our victory, and I survived to have this chance to speak to you. It’s thanks to your fighting alongside me. Alone, I could never have won.”
Jin bowed once.
He sincerely believed that the ordinary people’s fierce efforts had greatly contributed to his survival.
When he was walking the inner realm, if their wishes hadn’t reached him like a breeze in his ears, he would have surely lost his way.
“Tomorrow, the temporary alliance and I will finally confront the fiend. We will march to the fiend’s fortress to end this long, dreadful war.”
He would return victorious.
The allies expected such words, but Jin continued with something different.
“Just as on the day I entered the inner battlefield… I want to tell you that we might not come back. The greatest powers of humanity have formed an unprecedented alliance and won several battles, but the fiend remains an overwhelmingly strong and colossal force.”
Before the decisive battle, this was the true message Jin wanted to leave with the countless ordinary people of the world.
“Still, we go to fight. So if I—or we—fail and do not return from the fiend, please do not give up. Keep fighting in whatever way you can. Just as we all did together these past few days.”
Jin paused to catch his breath.
“I believe that then, we will all return. From the fiend’s land back to our own, from lives stained with fear and pain back to peaceful days, beyond fate to a destiny we carve ourselves.”
Silence lingered.
Then, as if on cue, the crowd placed their hands over their hearts, pledging as if making a solemn vow.
Jin looked at them and saluted.
“It is an honor to fight alongside you all. Now, I will go.”