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Sota Desert.
The flagbearers and the black knights were not the only ones who performed their mission there.
'Other members... there were more?'
Joshua barely raised his head and looked at Rosa. Her expression was not visible due to the darkness of the dungeon.
"Four Black Knights, the 1st division of the Black Sword Association, and others I personally hired... I was also there in the desert."
"What...!"
Certainly, not just Joshua.
Jin, Diphus, Mon and even Jane had no idea that Rosa and her knights were in the Sota Desert.
They didn't start together. Rosa and her knights entered the desert after the group initiated the operation. And their goal was not only to succeed in the mission to steal the blueprints.
"I watched you."
What choices do the flagbearers make and how do they succeed in their mission?
In particular, what kind of judgment does Joshua make?
Rosa had carefully observed the overall flow of the mission in the desert with the troops she personally led.
-Acting Patriarch, only Mon is left in the underground shipyard. The 2nd flagbearer seems to have decided to monopolize the information. However, since Kinzelo also moved at the same time, it will be revealed soon.
-We confirmed that the 4th flagbearer, 12th flagbearer, Murakan start moving. We decided to withdraw as tracking them further would likely expose us to detection by the crystal balls.
-If it's the youngest, he probably already knows that it's not the shipyard but the 2nd magic tower. Wait near the 2nd magic tower and report back when the youngest and his group overcomes the barrier.
-Reporting!
Even when the barrier of the 2nd magic tower collapsed due to the Shadow sword, and more than a hundred battleships were revealed, Rosa was not shaken at all, unlike Jin and his group.
She already figured out that much a long time ago. The flagbearers who went to the Sota Desert didn't know, but it wasn't the first time in the long history of the cold war that Zipfel attempted to build a flying fleet centered around Kozec.
-How many spies does Zipfel currently have in the Garden of Swords?
-Exactly confirmed: 97 servants, 20 low-level guardian knights, 12 intermediate-level guardian knights, 5 high-level guardian knights, 15 butlers, 2nd-class or higher butlers and scribes, 2 flagbearers, 5 enforcement knights, 7 elders, and one Black Knight. In addition, it is estimated that there are at least twenty more spies capable of fatal-level intelligence.
-Our Spies in Zipfel?
-At Zipfel's main house, there are 40 servants, 10 low-level mages, 5 intermediate-level mages, one elder, and one tower master. That's all.
It was the last meeting of the flagbearers that was personally convened by Chiron just before leaving for the Black Sea.
On that day, the conversation between Chiron and Luntia had a nuance that Runcandel was far behind in information warfare compared to Zipfel.
However, in reality, it was Runcandel who extracted more critical internal information. Barton Vicenna, the Black Knight who was the worst spy, was killed by Jin and Diphus.
-It was Yona who informed Kinzelo of the flagbearers' operation time.
-It seems so. I didn't expect her to take on such a double request, Madame Rosa.
It is no different from the fact that Rosa was able to hide in the desert throughout the Sota Desert mission, avoiding the eyes of Jin, Yona, Zipfel, and Kinzelo.
There is only one person who rules the City of Samil, the nameless king Owal.
It was thanks to hiring him and the best nameless assassins.
-I'll take on this mission.
-No.
-Even if you stop me, I'll go, hehe.
-If you really have to go. There are some conditions.
Rosa found Owal shortly after Yona left.
-I know that when the youngest was a reserve flagbearer, you delayed Yona's return to the clan under the pretext of Thousand-poison antidote, Sir Owal. However, that doesn't mean you can use Yona to betray Runcandel...
-Betrayal? I simply received a request. Madame Rosa, your words seem a bit excessive.
-It ends as just a bit excessive, given that Chiron is absent and I am here in his place.
-Shouldn't Runcandel be grateful to me for sending Yona to the Sota Desert?
-In this turbulent world, if you did it purely out of your will to stand on Runcandel's side, it would be something to be grateful for, sir.
-That's not entirely wrong either.
-You would have let Yona go on one condition. Bring the original or a copy of the blueprint to Samil. You intended to weigh the balance between the great factions, holding that as a negotiation chip. That, too, is not completely wrong, right?
-Hmm.
-Even if Chiron is here, the price of deceiving Runcandel is heavy. But I don't want to turn an ally like Nameless into an enemy over this, sir. Please join me in the Sota Desert.
-That's a story of my generation's Nameless being an ally with Zipfel, Madame Rosa.
-I won't make it too difficult for you. I am not asking you to participate in combat and vault theft. You just need to help with hiding. Can't you conceal others better than Yona can?
Owal did exactly that, only assisting with hiding and observation. He, and the top assassins who came to Sota Desert with him, never drew their swords even once until the incident was over.
-Acting matriarch, the only remaining individuals confirmed inside the 2nd Tower are Sandra Zipfel and 4 members of the Spectre corps. Since the 12th and 4th Flagbearers have also entered the Tower, the battle should be over by now.
-Phenomena of a 1st-level superhuman using force have been detected.
-This vibration is the height of the sword wave. Could it be that he's here...?
-The phenomenon is intensifying. acting matriarch. There's a high probability that the flagbearers and Black Knight Jane will die soon at this rate. Rescue operation, preparations are complete.
-Stand by.
-...Just now, there was a time distortion in the 2nd Tower. The Silver Dragon Claw was used. Yona also participated in the battle. Madame Rosa, are you really okay with this?
-You seem worried about Jonah, Sir Owal.
-2nd Tower is starting to collapse, Drakka's main force will arrive soon. Acting matriarch, now is the last chance to approach.
-Continue to stand by.
If the sole purpose was the success of the mission and the survival of the flagbearers...
Rosa should have entered at that moment.
But Rosa Runcandel wanted to confirm something else.
She was anticipating the moment when Joshua Runcandel would awaken and bloom. If that wasn't possible, she at least wanted to see him make better judgments than Jin.
She believed he would accomplish at least that much.
-1st-level superhuman combat stopped, it is presumed to be influenced by Sandra Zipfel. The battleship Grenil is en route.
-The battle of the 2nd Tower ended. The flagbearers are escaping. Black Knight Jane is confirmed to be critically injured, and Sandra Zipfel has joined them.
Afterwards, the flagbearers met with the Zephyrin, requested an escort, Jin used his wisdom to break through the Romin Forest, and the moment Jane sacrificed herself at the central border.
In the end, Rosa didn't see what she expected. Once again, it was not Joshua but Jin who led the mission to success.
"You made poor judgment throughout the mission, showed that you were trying to save the clone at all costs, and lost the Black Knight of clan in the process."
"Hah... You watched all of that happening."
"Your youngest brother risked his life every moment and successfully completed the mission without my help or the clan's."
"Why didn't you help! If you had stepped in, couldn't you have saved Dame Jane!"
"Oh? That's actually the question I want to ask. Why didn't you use the power the Prophet planted in your clan when fighting with Hedo?"
Joshua only used that power when Jane sacrificed herself.
"Did you want to save the clone? Perhaps it's not just that. You had expectations that you would achieve better results without using the clone if the youngest, Diphus, Murakan and the clan's Black Knight were there! Such disgusting expectations."
"No, I... in the end, the volcano."
"That was because at that time, there was no other choice for you. Weak people like you end up thinking that a forced choice is their own will."
"I did it... for the clan."
"If you had used that power when facing Hedo, Jane wouldn't have died. I was in the desert. Although everyone was constantly preparing for their one and only death, you saved your clone until the end. That was your real choice and will."
Joshua couldn't say anything.
It felt like even if he were stripped bare, exposing his internal organs, he wouldn't feel more pierced than this.
"After that, you led the knights when you returned to the clan,stuttering at my few questions, trembling and apologizing... You couldn't even let out a scream or retaliate when my sword fell just now."
A will beyond right and wrong, a transcendental struggle.
Until the very end, Joshua had only brought disappointment to Rosa.
What made it even more bitterly ironic for her was the fact that she, too, had harbored expectations from Jin. From a certain point on, just like Joshua had focused on how far Jin could go, Rosa had also shifted her focus to what Jin could achieve.
Jin Runcandel, her youngest son.
He always had the power to make everyone expect more. Just like Luna once did.
"It's not just the Sota Desert, Joshua. I have kept my eyes on you throughout the numerous missions you have participated in. And I was never satisfied."
"Kill me... I am not worthy of living. Neither my mother nor the clan members. No one left to expect something from me."
"This is a place where you can't die even if you want to. Your sins are not light enough to be resolved by death. And, as you said, there's nothing left to expect from you. However, you have the prophecy."
...
Chiron Runcandel would once again call the shadows and possess...
...
...
Joshua Runcandel.
Joshua Runcandel would once again invoke the shadows and possess. The shadow would not leave the world again in the glory of Joshua Runcandel.
Finally, your war will end in victory, and eternal blessings will descend upon the land.
Hail the one who called the shadows.
"I think it's still worth looking forward to the absolute language of God."
Joshua involuntarily burst into laughter at that passage.
"Haha... Prophecy? Until just now, you were praising my outstanding siblings and the clan's values, telling me that my place should be in the abyss…. Are you saying that you are looking forward to the prophecy that has not yet come true?"
"You are not dead yet. And I, not only expect the realization of the prophecy but also anticipate the struggle to shatter it. Your youngest brother, Jin. It doesn't seem like his struggle will fail to shatter the prophecy. No matter how absolute it may be."
"Hah."
"Prophecy and struggle. Which one do you think I put more expectations on?"
Rosa turns around.
She added with a hint of bitterness,
"If by any chance, the day comes when your prophecy leads you from this dungeon to the real world of struggle, and if you endure that world. I will bring you back to the surface. Of course... As always, your prophecy will likely disappoint me that time as well. Just as you always have."