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The coldness spread like a spider's web and swiftly enveloped assassin. He tried to escape, but he found himself helpless in his desperate attempts to avoid Talaris's sword with his feet bound.
"Kuk...!"
In just a few seconds, the assassin was trapped in the ice crystal of Myriad ice and unable to move. He could barely move his eyeballs within the ice after a while.
The reason she effortlessly overpower a 9-star knight was because she is Talaris Endorma.
"Heung, you've frozen quite nicely. Just wait quietly in there until things sorted out. Don't even think about doing anything like suicide or self-destruction. It is not like you could even lift a finger."
Talaris left the assassin behind, and entered inside Tikan. She once again pondered where she had seen him before.
'Oh yes, it was about thirty years ago. It was the day I went to meet Chiron.'
Around thirty years ago, there was a time when Talaris had visited Chiron's secret residence.
The only reason Talaris sought out Chiron at that time was for a duel.
She couldn't even remember how many times she had challenged Chiron by then, but she had experienced defeat at his hands over a hundred times.
That day, her frustration was more intense than usual even after losing.
As a result, she continued causing a ruckus even after the duel ended, and was determined to finish things once and for all.
She had broken into Chiron's secret hideout, hurled insults at him, and insisted on fighting him to the death.
'Well... it was quite a dark chapter when I think about it now. Back then, I felt like I might go insane if I didn't do something like that.'
In the past thousand years, the hidden palace had surpassed the power of Runcandel, but it was not uncommon for the master of Hidden Palace to possess higher martial arts than the patriarch of Runcandel.
Talaris also aimed for that goal and challenged Chiron every day. Yet, she had never succeeded.
In any case, Chiron had tolerated the riotous Talaris.
-Talaris. Rather than aiming to defeat me, it would be better to dream of surpassing Runcandel.
To Chiron, Talaris was almost his only friend and someone who could provide the most help if he were ever consumed by 'Chaos.' There was no reason to kill her.
However, to some of the enforcement knights who had witnessed it all, Talaris was a thorn in their side at that time.
Her disrespectful attitude towards Chiron was just the tip of the iceberg, and the rumors about them spreading like a plague were also a problem. It was a rumor that Chiron spared Talaris because he felt sympathy for her, and he was unable to bring himself to harm her.
'Oh, I finally remember. Luton Ferman, that was definitely his name."
Luton Ferman.
He was the assassin who had just been trapped in the ice crystal by Talaris and had been the leader of the 1st Division of the enforcement knights about thirty years ago.
Luton, along with the enforcement knights of that time, believed that they had to deal with Talaris. They considered that it was the way to raise the prestige of Chiron and the clan.
Of course, Chiron had never ordered them to attack Talaris, but he had also never forbidden it.
This led to the members of Luton's division launching an assault on Talaris.
'They barged into the Hidden Palace without invitation, and I beat them to death.'
Even though Luton and his comrades were mostly 9-star knights, they couldn't possibly be a match for Talaris, especially within the Hidden Palace.
Talaris defeated and subdued the knights. She found their excessive loyalty adorable.
It was fortunate that someone as cold-hearted and ruthless as Chiron had such devoted subordinates.
So, while she didn't appreciate Luton and his team's rudeness, she didn't dislike them either. Talaris never reported the knights' insubordination to Chiron, and they continued challenging her repeatedly (even though they all ganged up on her) and kept losing.
It was somewhat like how Talaris had acted towards Chiron.
She viewed Luton and his comrades as passionate, pure, beast-like fellows. In fact, she had developed a short romantic relationship with a few of them, and Luton had been one of them.
Talaris couldn't help but burst into laughter as vivid memories started to resurface.
However, her expression hardened immediately afterward as she couldn't help but think.
'Seeing how he talks now, he seems like someone who has lived like a ronin, but why did such a loyal guy end up like that? Perhaps the others who attacked Tikan with him are also exiles. I don't think Chiron had done this to them.'
If Chiron really wanted to eliminate them, he would have eliminated them cleanly, but disfiguring their faces to that extent was not Chiron's style.
'Whatever happened, it's Runcandel's business, and I shouldn't interfere. However, if possible, I'd like my son-in-law to absorb those dishonored beasts.'
Whether Jin becomes the patriarch of Runcandel or the hostess of the Hidden Palace, in Talaris' eyes, they would become a significant force if Jin could absorb these exiles.
Even if they weren't absorbed as a force, these exiles could be a significant pretext when dealing with the Elders Council in the future.
The inside of Tikan seemed like a battlefield at first glance.
The sky was darkened by the ice curtain of Myriad Ice and the shadow force of Murakan, and beneath it, a mixture of mana and aura caused explosions on each level (Tikan Free City has a tower-like structure).
But contrary to appearances, the inside remained unharmed.
This was thanks to the addition of the Hidden Palace's reinforcement and the fact that the territory was small, making it easy for the dragons to quickly survey it from the air.
Murakan and Cuicantelle flew between the levels, rescuing civilians who hadn't managed to evade the chaos.
The rampaging assassins were being held back by Jin, Syris, the Seven Swords of Hidden Palace, the Tona brothers, and Tikan's comrades.
Talaris rode on Myriad Ice and quickly surveyed all the levels. She lent her power to those who seemed to need it.
"Son-in-law, I've figured out who these intruders are..."
Talaris approached Jin and started to speak, but she stopped mid-sentence because she had never seen Jin in such a state before.
The Jin who was killing the assassins had a face almost like a devil. The depth of his rage and bloodlust was so astonishing that even Talaris was taken aback.
'He looks so much like his father in this state.'
She had seen something similar in her youth when Chiron was filled with hatred after losing his comrades.
Perhaps what she saw in Jin was even more intense. After all, there was no confirmation yet of any casualties among his comrades.
While the assassins were not all former enforcement knights, they were all highly skilled individuals. However, Jin was effortlessly mowing them down as if they were dead leaves.
"You wretched things dare to attack here...!"
Startle!
Jin quickly turned his head to look at Talaris.
He had belatedly sensed her presence and managed to regain his composure. He pushed back the emotions that had overwhelmed his senses.
"I apologize, Madame Talaris. I didn't hear you clearly. Please, repeat what you said."
"I mentioned that I had figured out the identity of these intruders. They are exiles from Runcandel."
"I had suspected as much. There are only a limited number of organizations capable of mobilizing mercenaries of this caliber..."
"Hmm. Some of them, including the one I just faced outside, may have a background as former enforcement knights. Before considering wiping them all out, it might not be a bad idea to engage in a conversation with them if Tikan's losses aren't too great. Some of them were not so bad according to my memories."
Jin nodded his head.
"I will do that, Madame Talaris."
"It seemed like you turned into a raging devil a moment ago, but you've regained your composure so quickly."
Jin smiled awkwardly at Talaris' words.
"It was a mistake. I had been prepared for the possibility of something like this happening, but it wasn't easy to control my anger when confronted with it directly."
What if Talaris had been absent? What if Mort couldn't use dimensional jump in the current situation? What if he was in a location where he couldn't receive updates from Kashmir and Petro?
These assumptions had fueled Jin's anger.
"Fortunately, there doesn't seem to be significant damage as I observed while coming here. There wasn't a single visible casualty for now."
"Even among civilians?"
"Yes. Although there is considerable damage to buildings and facilities. Once you've subdued them, you can assess the exact extent of the damage yourself. Also, keep in mind that the assassins may become your allies, given their status as exiles. Show them a bit of mercy."
"Thank you, Madame Talaris."
"If you're thankful, then get married to my daughter as soon as possible."
Jin didn't respond to that statement and merely nodded.
On the night when they had their discussions within the Hidden Palace within the Hidden Palace, Jin and Syris had agreed to ignore Talaris' frequent mentions of their marriage.
[Jin.]
While flying, Cuicantelle spotted Jin and descended to the ground.
"Ms. Cuicantelle! Is everyone safe?"
[The mansion is completely undamaged. It is thanks to your swift arrival with Murakan and the Hidden palace.]
Jin sighed in relief upon hearing that, and Cuicantelle and Talaris exchanged greetings with a nod.
[You have my gratitude, 51st master of the Hidden Palace.]
"Don't mention it. I've heard that you often had connections with my predecessors. I'm looking forward to your kind cooperation."
The terrorist attack was completely suppressed within 30 minutes after Jin, Murakan, and the hidden palace party arrived at Tikan.
The assassins who attacked Tikan numbered seventy in total. In addition to the twenty that Tona brothers had encountered, fifty assassins had entered from the opposite direction.
Once Talaris confirmed the scale of the attack, she judged that Tikan would have been safe even if they hadn't arrived.
"It seems the elders of your clan thought Ms. Cuicantelle wasn't here and sent only this many."
If Cuicantelle hadn't been there, and if Jin's reinforcements hadn't arrived promptly, these attackers would have been more than capable of completely destroying Tikan.
Jin looked down at the assassins who had been captured and brought to the mansion.
It was Lutan Ferman, who was bound in ice crystal, another former enforcement knight in exile, as well as three regular assassins.
The rest had all been killed by Jin and his comrades.
Jin addressed the three regular assassins.
"Are you also exiles from Runcandel?"
"No."
"You might have done the same if the roles had been reversed. Don't assume I'm unfairly judging you."
Squelch!
Jin unhesitatingly ended the lives of those three. He didn't swing his sword in anger unlike before. After all, they had to pay for attacking his territory without sufficient reason.
Now, there were two former enforcement knights in exile left.
Jin's cold gaze landed upon them.
"How could you dare to touch this place even though you are exiles? I can't fathom what promises were made to you by the elder council. Or perhaps, did the old men take your families hostage?"
"All our family members were killed a long time ago. It happened on the very day we were exiled. You asked why we attacked this under the elder council's orders even though we are exiled, 12th flagbearer?"
Lutan spoke in a low and cold voice.
"For revenge."