Chapter 975
Episode 241: Rescue (4)
‘Did he just say “brother”?’
Jin suddenly recalled the day he first met Ameris.
The Red Clan and the Blue Clan—though both were from the same Mingwang tribe, their ideals were completely opposed. The Blue Clan’s command structure resembled that of the current Mingwang tribe, while the Red Clan sought to resurrect the Sun God, a goal the Blue Clan was determined to prevent.
In that sense, Eltiot hadn’t given Jin a bad first impression.
Zzzzaaak!
Sigmund unleashed a golden lightning bolt. The barrage aimed at Eltiot was instantly struck down by the lightning and vanished.
Following that, a rapid series of light-speed thrusts took down the fleet pressing down on Eltiot from above. Debris rained like a storm, but before even a single fragment hit the ground, Jin had already closed the distance to Eltiot.
‘He mistook me for his brother and held on until I arrived.’
Mack was weak, barely breathing. Had Jin been even a moment later, Eltiot would have either died or been captured by the Red Clan, turned into a living blood factory.
Jin ignored the fleet filling the sky and focused on Eltiot’s condition. The bombardment continued, but not a single shot pierced the golden lightning or the protective shield.
‘He’s on the verge of death, yet there’s an unusual surge of magic from within his core. Ameris never mentioned the Blue Clan using magic.’
That meant the magic was external. Looking closer, Jin saw something like a black, insect-like energy writhing inside Eltiot’s core.
He recalled discovering the bodies of Blue Clan victims buried in the Luterro Federation’s uninhabited island hideout.
‘The royal family must have been manipulating him. Judging by the form, it’s a crude but powerful curse.’
A handful of glowing magic appeared in Jin’s palm.
He couldn’t break the curse outright, but he could temporarily halt it. As Jin infused magic into Eltiot’s core, the black energy inside solidified like ice.
[Ugh…!]
Eltiot coughed up blood and opened his eyes.
“Are you conscious?”
[Bro—brother… what happened to me?]
“It’s hard to explain, so just tell me one thing: your name and status.”
[Brother… why do you speak as if you don’t know me?]
“You’re still waking up, it seems.”
[There’s someone over there as strong as you… but he is not our brother.]
He meant Luke.
Jin couldn’t help but smirk. Luke used brain energy more akin to the Blue Clan or the current Mingwang tribe, so he wasn’t considered a brother.
“I am your brother, and I’m curious why you say he isn’t.”
[The Sun God Cult… foolish ones dreaming of the Sun’s resurrection.]
“Ah, I see. Then rest easy now.”
Eltiot closed his eyes again. With the curse halted, his breathing was steadier.
Jin stuck Sigmund into the ground beside Eltiot. The Mingwang Sword’s four-sword erosion technique would protect Eltiot while Jin fought.
Ptzztzzt!
A thunderstorm formed around Sigmund. Thousands of lightning bolts crashed in an instant, blinding the Red Clan from seeing Eltiot any longer.
“This isn’t teleportation, just a powerful shield! Eltiot is still inside—focus your fire and kill him by any means! Pibil will support us!”
The Red Clan had to give up on capturing Eltiot alive. That was fine—they could kill him and absorb his body and remaining blood.
But this wasn’t a practical plan revision; it was a desperate grasp at faint hope.
A monster that had pushed back even Bakarun, who tried to protect Eltiot through Pibil’s main cannon, was guarding him.
Jin deactivated the shield overhead and drew Bradamante. As he struck, a streak of black sword energy sliced horizontally across the sky.
Soul Slash—the “One Slash of Creation” that no ship’s maneuvering could react to. The silent black blade passed through the fleet, followed by delayed explosions as ships were destroyed.
Jin was more focused on Luke than Pibil or the fleet.
‘He’s fighting to protect something too. Seems like remnants of the royal family and the Sun God Cult… I’ll have to check it out myself once my sister arrives.’
Luna was still inside the red lightning storm created by Pibil’s main cannon.
Bakarun’s lieutenant had decided to focus on Luna rather than Jin. Even if Jin reached the “One Slash of Creation,” they figured targeting Luna alone could deal a heavy blow.
“We can only make that call because we don’t yet know how tough she really is.”
Just as Jin said that, one side of the tsunami-like red lightning from Pibil’s cannon distorted, revealing Luna.
She had pushed her energy to the limit, her aura swirling like a storm around her. The force was enough to slightly alter the trajectory of Pibil’s red lightning.
“You really underestimate us… Lower your firepower? Facing the Rune Candell’s Sojoo and a single rider, and you still hold back, thinking about the aftermath?”
Luna’s furious voice thundered across the battlefield. She unleashed a brutal barrage of sword energy into the air, propelling herself toward Pibil.
By then, Bakarun had also escaped the lightning and was regaining his composure. Though he hadn’t suffered much damage, his expression was clearly unsettled.
The fact that his “Duel” ability had been so easily countered, and that Luna had survived Pibil’s concentrated fire with only minor scratches, was shocking.
‘The words of the Drek and Simat clans were right… If we had kept fighting Bamel instead of Luterro, the name of the Red Clan wouldn’t exist in this world.’
Zzraaang!
Krantel slammed down on Bakarun. Though Bakarun responded calmly, he was anxious to return to the bridge.
If he got stuck fighting Luna, the losses would outweigh any gains from Eltiot.
“Huh? What are you doing, Bakarun? You were so confident when you dragged me into that strange subspace earlier, but now you’re retreating?”
“Why are you helping Eltiot, the Blue Clan’s champion? And you’re not even fighting the royal family? Are you on their side?”
“Why does that matter now? And the royal family will deal with you first, so shut your mouth. If you keep babbling about whether we and those vermin are on the same side, it won’t be fun.”
“Then you all take care of yourselves and leave. Seems today’s not our lucky day.”
“You tried to kill us with that horrible weapon, and now you want to part ways? I can’t do that, Bakarun. If you’re scared, I’ll tell the youngest to fight you one-on-one. You can use any fortress or fleet you want.”
Bakarun didn’t answer and continued maneuvering to return to the bridge.
It was a clear blow to Red Clan morale. Their strongest comrades, aside from the champions, were retreating in front of everyone.
Though the high-ranking Red Clan members understood Bakarun’s decision was sound, they had no time to explain it to the lower ranks.
Kaah!
Luna struck Krantel upward, sending Bakarun flying.
As she leapt to land a finishing blow, she noticed Bakarun’s bracelet glowing and gritted her teeth.
“We’ll settle this next time.”
Krantel sliced through the air as Bakarun used the bracelet’s recall ability to teleport back to the bridge.
“I’m giving up on Eltiot. We’ll support Patl and withdraw!”
Back on the bridge, Bakarun quickly revised orders.
Even if morale was shattered, discipline remained. Pibil and the fleet’s pilots immediately began high-speed movement toward Patl.
Luna descended to the ground. Her face was calm, unlike the fierce demon who had just cornered Bakarun.
“They’re retreating. How’s that? I tried following your lead—acting reckless to rush the enemy—and it made the situation easier.”
Luna never intended to finish things with Bakarun or Pibil.
Eltiot was already secured by Jin, and those who had committed unspeakable sacrilege against the first head of the family were comfortably under Luke’s protection. They needed to deal with them properly.
“Watching from here feels so real. If I were Bakarun, I’d be scared to see your face in my dreams tonight.”
“Heh. Let’s head toward that Luke guy now. By the way, Eltiot is the Blue Clan’s champion.”
Jin sheathed Sigmund, ending the erosion.
The shattered remains of ships bound by brain energy scattered in the sky—nothing but ash and particles.
Luna hoisted Eltiot on her back. The siblings began running across the battlefield, while the Sun God Cult’s priestess, Sanna, was in a panic.
Unexpectedly, Pibil’s red lightning wave was closing in, delaying the opening of the dimensional gate.
On top of the red brainwave interference, the magical energy density around them suddenly began to spike, forcing them to reconsider their strategy.
‘Fine, I get why Pibil showed up here, but the magic concentration increasing all of a sudden? Could it be that Jin Runcandel has caught on to something?’
Jin still didn’t know for sure that Sanna was trying to open a dimensional portal.
But judging by Luke’s stalling tactics, Jin guessed they were preparing some kind of teleportation or similar escape method.
Unlike the Red Owl or Mote, this teleportation clearly had time constraints, which meant it was likely vulnerable to environmental factors.
So, Jin decided to spread his magic indiscriminately. If it could disrupt the enemies, great. If not, he could always pull the magic back.
‘No worries. Luke the priest will buy us all the time we need!’
At that moment, Sanna looked up just as a sudden streak of sword energy descended from above.
A fragment of Runcandel’s ultimate move, the Meteor Shower, pierced through Luke’s protective barrier and plunged down into the pit below.