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Usually, after aiming a weapon, if you ask someone who they are, then you will wait for an answer.
Pew-!
However, the man before them belonged to the category of individuals who denied such a stereotyped form of intimidation, and instead, he was seen firing a pre-loaded hand cannon.
However, what was even more shocking to Jin than the fact that he was being attacked by a hand cannon, and that it displayed a power far beyond his expectations, was the target the man had aimed at. It wasn't just Jin and Syris, but the cabin that held the memories persistently existing in this remote place, where he had been cooking and eating for over 30 years.
Pew-pew!
Syris reacted first before Jin and stepped forward to deflect the bullets. A wall of ice extending from grasp covered the front of the cabin, blocking the bullets.
Syris clenched her teeth as she watched the powerful explosion beating on the transparent ice wall. Her eyes quickly became dark with killing intent.
"You trash man."
"Um, Lady Syris? You can't kill him. I think he is Qwaul Ganesto. At least he has something to do with him. I haven't heard of a portable hand cannon of this level before."
Bang, bang, bang! The hand cannon continued to fire as Jin spoke. In just a few seconds, the entire scene was obscured by black smoke.
"Then let me cut off both of his arms."
"That sounds more suitable for Elder sister Yona than you, Lady Syris. Whether we make him surrender, kill him, or forgive him, let's subdue him first and decide later."
Jin threw himself outside the ice wall. Creating a sword wind as he swept away the nearby smoke, Jin was faced with an unexpected sight.
'Have these weapons already been installed?'
Unidentified blue rods protruded between the strangely bent trees. In between, there were objects that looked like muzzles and barrels.
The ground, once filled with weeds, had turned into a flat metal surface. The intricate lines on the floor gave off a vibe that hinted it could transform into traps similar to the fortress's defensive equipment.
All of this has changed in less than 10 seconds.
'As surprising as when I first met Lady Amela.'
Back then, Amela's murky energy of chaos was amplified, but the changes caused by the man were solely the result of pure magical engineering.
As expected, the trap was triggered as soon as Jin stepped onto the metal floor. Lines spread, and sharp hooks protruded from within, grabbing onto his ankles.
Of course, it cannot be denied that the engineering was impressive. Probably an ordinary martial artist, no. Even a 7 stars or higher martial artist would not have been able to withstand a few of the man's traps.
But the opponents were Jin and Syris.
The hooks broke without even leaving a scratch on Jin's shadow force armor. It wasn't to the extent that he couldn't avoid it, but he deliberately opened the armor to see the power.
'It's not bad to feel that my ankles are getting heavy. It would be quite effective if installed in Tikan.'
To Jin, who had opened his shadow force armor, it was a substantial level, and it had a cutting force that could easily sever even the ankles of well-trained knights like cutting through butter.
Next, a cannonball grazed Jin's back. Similarly, Jin was satisfied with the slightly sore feeling in his lower back. The shining net that attacked him next was also unavoidable.
'The net is so tough that it's hard to cut even with an 8-star level strike... This would be useful too.'
Rip! Jin smiled as he tore the net with his hands.
In a sense, Jin had already decided to recruit the man.
Whether he was Qwaul or not, regardless of his personality or intentions. There was no need to worry about those things because he had the ability. It was unacceptable for such a person to belong to the enemy. Especially in times like these.
If the man was human trash, he would force him to work, if he was a man with whom he can communicate, he would be generous, and if he was loyal to Zipfel, he would break his spirit.
'He is absolutely not a person to be in Zipfel.'
And all of a sudden, a thought crossed Jin's mind: What if the man could easily mass-produce such items? If so, wouldn't the era of knights have come to an end?
In the next moment, Jin felt that bittersweet feeling even stronger.
'Something is obstructing the concentration of aura...!'
It wasn't at a critical level.
Originally, a hundred aura are gathered even if he uses his energy as naturally as he breathes, but now, it was condensed to about ninety five.
However, this was only when it was based on the general standard of martial artist. Because Jin's aura affinity far exceeds the general standard.
Even this would be fatal to an ordinary martial artist, and if we assume that Jin was also dealing with a person equivalent to a superhuman, it was a sufficiently dangerous phenomenon.
Syris, too, had a stiff expression as if sensing the same thing. There wouldn't be a problem in subduing the man, but as a martial artist, it was inevitable that she would be shocked.
She quickly rolled her eyes to find the suspected element causing this.
The rods emerging through the gaps in the trees were the cause. The strange energy emanating from the rods was disrupting the flow of aura.
The rods affected only the aura. The mana and shadow force that Jin tested, were not hindered by this flow.
For a moment, a chill ran down his spine.
If the man was Qwaul Ganesto, then the reason he was making that rod artifact would be to make it easier for Zipfel to deal with Runcandel. Like the blueprints for the production ship and the teleportation device.
Verification of the man's magical engineering artifacts was complete.
Jin exploded his aura in an instant, deflecting the traps and projectiles that were about to envelop him.
As he rushed forward, the ground he was standing on exploded and sent debris flying. It wasn't the traps that exploded, but the explosion occurred due to the discharge of his aura.
Sigmund's blue lightning energy bounced ferociously against the man's artifacts.
Most of the artifacts were instantly disabled or destroyed, but the rod stood firm, seemingly on a completely different level among his creations.
Jin had no intention of breaking the rods anyway. It was foolish to damage something so precious.
"Tingen Bauer."
Before Tingen could even blink, Jin's voice, which had been in front of him, resonated from behind.
As a matter of course, he was a person with the ability to fortify the entire space in an instant, so the man was also wearing a lot of defensive artifacts to protect himself.
But Jin's figure was visible from the front, his voice was heard from behind, and before the words were even finished, a sword pierced through the left side of the man.
Moreover, as soon as the shield on the left side was broken, the same thing happened on the right side.
The lightning energy that spread like light was knocking on all sides of him before he knew it.
"Who are you! How do you know me and find this place?"
As soon as the man admitted he was Tingen, Jin smiled again inwardly.
The anxious feeling that things were going too well had now completely disappeared. There was only the thought that he had struck gold in the midst of a jackpot, and he must not miss it.
"Some kind of headhunter?"
When the shields exploded all at once, Tingen's body was thrown back.
Usually, with such a shock, the impact would reach the human inside the shield.
'He told me not to kill him, but he is treating him more violently...… Wait, he completely eliminated only the shields?'
However, Jin's attacks surprisingly completely destroyed only the shield, and it was only because of the wind spell that Tingen's body floated and avoided damage.
Jin gently supported Tingen before he hit the hard metal floor.
Syris watched it and inwardly clicked her tongue, because she felt the gap once more.
'Jin Runcandel is always far ahead every time we meet...'
Syris no longer felt resentful about Jin's achievements being significantly faster than hers.
She genuinely cared for Jin, and above all, she knew how he gained this power and what paths he had walked. Somehow, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
"I can't afford to injure your precious body. Tingen Bauer. No, Qwaul Ganesto."
This time, Tingen felt a chill down his spine at the mention of his name.
As far as Tingen knew, there was not a single person in the world, except himself, who knew that name. Not even the patriarch of the Zipfel clan, where he had worked until recently.
"What did you say…?"
"Qwaul Ganesto, a descendant of Lokia Ganesto, one of the ten great knights of the ancient Runcandel. Judging by the reaction, I'm pretty sure it's you."
Pee-!
A flash of light flashed from Qwaul's grip. It was an artifact similar to Chenmi's flash cannon that obscured the opponent's vision.
Jin raised a handful of shadow force and swallowed the light of the artifact entirely. It's already been a long time since he has passed the level where such tricks work against him.
"I am Jin Runcandel, current Runcandel's 12th flagbearer and ancient Runcandel's legitimate heir."
"What kind of bullshit are you talking about all of a sudden?"
"That's what I want to ask. Why is the descendant of the Ten Great Knights working for Zipfel?"
There was no fear on Tingen's face even in the face of overwhelming force that rendered his artifact useless.
He was only surprised that Jin knew his real name.
"I don't think I need to answer."
"Even after a thousand years, the ten great knights are ten great knights, and so will their descendants. It means that you have already committed treason just by working for Zipfel."
Jin honestly didn't think so.
To be honest, if the clan that they originally dedicated themselves to did not protect them or remember them after a thousand years ago, there would be no choice but to betray for survival.
"Hey, do you think that makes sense? Even a passing dog or a blade of grass would laugh at that statement."
"Without delving into events from a thousand years ago, you've made numerous contributions to Zipfel. That alone should be more than enough reason for you to die by Runcandel's sword. Like you said, I'm a headhunter. Whether that becomes a reason for recruitment or a real beheading is up to you."
"Hah, in that case, it's a refusal. Kill me if you can."
"You give up too easily."
"You just attacked me a moment ago. How many skills do you think you need to confirm from me? How interested person do you think I am? You can never kill me. Didn't you just say a moment ago not to harm my precious body?"
"That's right. So I'm thinking about how we can work together a little better. Isn't forced labor always painful? Judging by the way you live, it seems that there is something wrong between you and Zipfel. As the saying goes, all that glitters is not gold."
"Do you want to have a conversation with me?"
Jin nodded.
"Unlike you, who attacked me out of the blue with a mana cannon."
"Let me burn some cigarettes and we'll talk again."
"As much as you want."
After smoking five cigarettes in a row, Tingen said:
"I'll consider leaving this cabin if you answer a few questions and meet the conditions I propose."