Chapter 916
Episode 228: The Fierce Battle at Groshé Castle (12)
A thick surge of demonic energy was leaking from the cracks forming in the crystal orb.
Sakiel struggled desperately to hold back the escaping energy. As Jin struck down again with his sword, Sakiel staggered backward.
Seizing the moment, Dante plunged his blade into Rashid. The sharp gleam of the sword pierced Sakiel’s back, splattering violet blood.
“Kaak!”
Just as Jin wielded the absolute power unique to the Eternal Flame, Dante too carried the true energy left behind by Ron.
So, even with incredible rapid regeneration supporting her, every strike from Dante was lethal. Sakiel’s posture crumpled as her waist bent.
She immediately amplified her demonic energy to raise a protective barrier, but it was doomed to collapse under the next blow.
‘Jin Runcandel must have been exposed directly to Lord Jito’s energy when he struck my crystal orb.’
Sure enough, the true energy of Jito clung to Bradamante’s blade. It was like a leech, sucking in the spiritual energy, aura, and magic embedded in the sword.
There were also effects that weren’t visible on the surface.
‘Moreover, Lord Jito’s presence must be penetrating Jin Runcandel’s mind. So why does it seem like there’s no effect at all…?’
There was no sign of hesitation, no sluggishness in movement. Not even a furrowed brow or a wince.
If anything, her assault grew fiercer. Unlike moments ago, when she attacked mainly with sword energy to avoid direct contact with the demonic energy, she now kept breaking into Sakiel’s guard, swinging her blade relentlessly.
Any ordinary knight—
No, even those who had transcended their limits—would have felt at least some impact from such mental assault, as if their head might explode.
But Jin had already endured far worse mental attacks in the Phantom War. This wasn’t even Jito himself acting, just a demon borrowing some of that power. Such an attack couldn’t truly affect Jin.
“Where’s that confident spirit gone? Is this all you’ve got, Sakiel Groshé?”
Thud!
Sakiel crashed into the inner fortress pillar. Just as the collapsing debris threatened to bury her, Dante’s crescent-shaped sword energy struck first, covering her neck.
“Ugh!”
Reflexively, Sakiel grasped at her throat. If not for Jito’s true energy, her head would have been severed.
A miscalculation.
From the moment her defenses began to crumble faster than expected, Sakiel had been forced to admit her calculations were wrong.
That’s why she chose self-destruction as a last resort—but now, a flood of anxiety surged through her.
What if even the self-destruction through the Field of Loss was a miscalculation?
What if she ended up gaining nothing, dying here by the blades of Jin and Dante?
That fear was rapidly clouding her mind. At a time when she should be fully focused on the fight, distracting thoughts crept in.
No one facing Jin and Dante with such doubts could ever claim victory.
Skak!
As soon as an opening appeared, Bradamante severed Sakiel’s right arm. Though rapid regeneration began to take effect, until the arm fully healed, the flow of magic she could control was inevitably reduced.
‘This can’t happen. I have to… pull myself together. Even when facing countless demon gods and demon lords in the past, I’ve never broken down like this.’
Fear.
The reason Sakiel was faltering now was clear: the overwhelming terror inspired by Jin, her formidable opponent. Fear was shrinking her resolve.
‘Death is something I’ve already accepted. I am the Grand Secretary of the Great Demon Realm, the one guarding the entrance to the True Demon Realm. I cannot die here showing such a pitiful sight to my enemies!’
Sakiel glared fiercely at the two swords advancing toward her.
For a moment, she caught her own reflection in the blades. Her eyes no longer trembled; they burned with resolute will.
In the instant Bradamante’s blade swept beneath her eye, Sakiel heard two voices.
“Yes, once more, you must rise from despair.”
“Sakiel, you must live! You have to live, so we can meet again.”
The voices of Jito and Faelito.
Jito’s voice was from the present; Faelito’s came from a distant past she had long forgotten. Sakiel embraced Jito’s words.
Shing…!
Bradamante’s blade grazed beneath Sakiel’s eye.
‘The atmosphere has changed. Has she truly accepted death now? Or… is she more consumed by Jito’s energy?’
The demonic energy flowing along the blade deepened.
It was still not Sakiel’s power, but Jito’s. Jin pressed forward, driving the sword deeper.
‘No matter how strong Sakiel becomes, she can never match me and Dante. Not unless she suddenly ascends to the realm of the Eternal Flame.’
So what Jin still had to worry about wasn’t Sakiel’s mood or inaction, but the other schemes she had prepared.
Kraaaaash…!
The contracting Wall of Death shook the entire area around Groshé Castle. The deadly barrier had already reached the castle’s outskirts.
Cries of those fleeing inside to avoid the closing wall, the roar of the fleet’s engines pushed to their limits, and the screams of those caught and dragged into the wall’s grasp all echoed.
Jin and Dante felt it all from within the castle.
Fortunately, none of the allied forces had been caught by the Wall of Death. The barrier had begun while the alliance was still at the fifth defensive line, and the other factions had started retreating from the third line onward.
“Jin, if this continues, all enemy forces will soon enter the castle.”
Jin nodded.
‘Sakiel is deliberately gathering all the Inse troops defending the lines…’
Bloodied, Sakiel unleashed a barrage of magic. Her newly regenerated right arm continuously cast curses at Dante, while her left, clutching the crystal orb, formed attack spells and shields to keep Jin at bay. Dozens of dark magic circles spread behind her.
Moreover, Sakiel showed the telltale signs of one wielding power beyond her body’s limits.
Her body was breaking down under the strain. Not just the regenerated right arm, but her entire form sagged, dripping violet ichor.
Jin quickly understood her plan.
‘I thought she was luring us into Groshé Castle to annihilate the Inse forces with demonic energy, but no—she’s planning self-destruction.’
If she weren’t planning to self-destruct, there’d be no reason to fight while damaging her own body. She would have tried to survive somehow, thinking of what comes after.
As if to say, “You only just realized?” Sakiel twisted her face into a grim smile.
“Overconfidence. You underestimated me while facing me. I was already risking my life the moment the defenses began to fall. But what about you? Jin Runcandel, did you come here prepared to die?”
The vibrations and noise from outside the castle grew louder and faster. Beyond the broken walls, Ziphl’s fleet surged into the inner fortress, avoiding the Wall of Death. On the opposite side, allied forces, and on the flanks, Kinzel’s troops and others were all entering the inner fortress.
“You probably thought you wouldn’t lose your life fighting someone like me, not Lord Jito. And maybe that’s true, Jin Runcandel, Dante Hailan. You truly possess power far beyond mine.”
But what about your subordinates out there?
Sakiel’s voice trailed off as she locked eyes with Jin.
“No, they won’t be so lucky. Even if they avoid the Wall of Death, the demonic energy here will kill them all… and you will never be able to save them.”
Meanwhile, Jin unleashed his Flame of Wrath, sweeping away Sakiel’s magic circles. Whatever hidden spells she had, she had to be killed before they were completed.
But Jin sensed that this wouldn’t be as significant as he first thought.
Sakiel was already as good as dead. Her body, unable to withstand Jito’s power, would collapse on its own.
That meant she had already finished all her preparations—along with the Wall of Death, she was ready to unleash the Field of Loss.
Jin still didn’t know about the Field of Loss. Even if he did, the magic circles for it were already complete, leaving him powerless to stop it.
Sakiel gripped the crystal orb tightly.
“You’re talking too much. You must be nervous.”
Crack!
The remaining buildings around them crumbled completely as the Inse forces poured into the castle.
Only then did the Wall of Death stop contracting.
“Commander! Are you alright?”
“Jin! From now on, the knights and I will open a path through the wall. So focus on finishing off that one!”
Voices of Feitel and Luna reached him. The Golden Ship had its main cannon aimed at the Wall of Death, ready to fire, while Luna spread her crimson sword energy.
Flagships and superhumans from other factions were also preparing to break through and escape.
Amid the chaos, Sakiel raised the crystal orb, certain her plan had succeeded.
“Whether you die swept away by demonic energy or become an empty shell forgetting everything, you cannot escape these two fates!”
A sudden blaze lit up the castle interior. The demonic magic, unlike anything from the demon realm’s dark arts, shone with a brilliance like sunlight.
The Field of Loss.
The greatest forbidden magic of the True Demon Realm was now unleashed by Sakiel’s hand.
‘This… is definitely dangerous.’
“Unknown entity detected—my body is on high alert. If exposed to this light even a few seconds longer, something terrible will happen…!”
Jin and Dante, who were closest, instinctively shut their eyes the moment the blinding light hit them, overwhelmed by a sudden ringing in their ears.
Sakiel felt a surge of exhilaration at the sight. These two, who hadn’t even flinched at Zito’s magic all this time, were finally showing a reaction.
Still, amid the chaos, Dante lunged at Sakiel and drove Rashid into her chest. But with her organs already liquefied, the impact felt dull and lifeless.
Meanwhile, Jin raised his hand, casting a spell.
“Sakiel, I admit it’s my fault I couldn’t kill you within the time limit.”
Reverse Heaven, Reverse Flow—the ultimate magic.
A massive orb of magical energy had formed above the castle, now drawing in the pure white magic that was engulfing the entire fortress of Grosh.
“But breaking a spell doesn’t always mean killing the caster.”