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* * *
Tower of Stories, Zipfel.
The gazes of Kadun, Hedo, and Octavia were fixed on the newsletter on the table.
(The hero of the Sword Emperor castle war, the 12th flagbearer of the Garden of Swords, Jin Runcandel. Returned after finishing closed-door training!)
"It means Jin Runcandel is back...."
Octavia muttered in a low voice.
The 12th flagbearer in question disappeared shortly after the end of the sword emperor castle war.
Hedo, who still had no ill feelings toward Jin, had a calm face, but Octavia and Kadun's eyes were full of bloodlust.
'The attitude of the people, who are top leaders of the world, is always like this towards that child. I can't even control them myself without the patriarch.'
Kelliark Zipfel.
He was currently assisted by chaos control devices and his body is in life support.
It was only natural since he was exposed to the most chaos along with Rosa in the Sword emperor castle war.
Until about a year ago, Kelliark had engaged in some external activities to conceal his shortcomings, but now he really had to 'save' time.
Until Zipfel gets perfect chaos control technology, or until Kinzelo accepts the deal.
'Well, I also underestimated him a bit when I first saw him in the Sota Desert...'
Looking back, that was the problem.
If he had finished off Jin before Sandra made a fuss in the Sota Desert, if he had slashed Jin before she opened the way, or if he had stuck with Sandra and followed her to the Gaifa Island when she fell in love with Jin and cut him then...….
It wouldn't have been such a big concern. Neither for Zipfels nor for Hedo personally.
If it's a good thing. It was the fact that Jin, who had come back stronger now, wasn't such a bad thing for Zipfel.
Hedo opened another newsletter lying beside the table.
(Sir Dante Hairan subdued the Demon of the ghost castle! Sir Dante is the first guardian sword of the empire succeeding the late Sir Ron Hairan, and is evaluated as having entered the 10-star realm after the Sword Emperor Castle war....)
"Smarion Proch of the Ghost Castle was probably subdued by the 12th flagbearer, not Dante."
"Why do you think so, Hedo?"
"Dante Hairan continues to make public appearances. But there is no sign of injury, and none of his knights are dead. No matter how strong the Imperial Guardian Sword has become, it is not strong enough to subdue that amount of chaos unscathed. If he was alone, he would have to risk his life to be able to do it."
"That's right. But isn't that the same case for Jin Runcandel?"
"I don't know. It's a different matter depending on how strong the 12th flagbearer has become."
"No matter how much he has grown in 2 years and 6 months, it's not to that extent, right?"
"He is obviously a different person. Everyone here must have experienced how he always produces results that exceed common sense."
"Even so, if he dealt with Smarion without injury, then it would be the result of Murakan recovering his strength and appearing again."
Hedo nodded his head.
"Either the 12th flagbearer has a power close to genesis knight, or Murakan has regained his former strength. Neither of those things are too bad for us right now."
Runcandel, long-time nemesis of Zipfel, whom everyone thinks is on the decline. Zipfel and Kinzelo had a judgment that was completely different from the public's evaluation.
"Garden of Swords. Right now, there is no better hand than the 12th flagbearer to keep them in check."
Hedo opens another newsletter on the table.
(The Garden of Swords has discovered the legacy of Temar Runcandel, the first patriarch of the clan… Although there is no specific announcement, it shows a strong will to reclaim the forgotten history of the clan.)
"The 12th flagbearer probably doesn't know the exact situation of Runcandel right now. So as soon as he returned, he felt something strange and announced his return to the world before his clan. This is the reaction that Runcandel showed afterwards."
After losing most of its history when Runcandel was defeated by Zipfel a thousand years ago, Runcandel has rarely publicized problems about its ancestors.
Among them, directly mentioning the Temar is the greatest taboo.
But now, the power of Zipfel's stories that suppressed Runcandel had weakened, and they no longer cared about Zipfel's authority.
Runcandel did not say anything about the phenomenon of 'mana affinity' that occurred in pure-blooded Runcandel after the Sword Emperor Castle war.
There can be only one reason for that.
Confidence.
Runcandel now has the confidence and strength not to fear Zipfel's oath...….
"Hmm... Did they find Temar's tomb before Hister's survivor? Through the power of the Prophet?"
"Perhaps. But it doesn't matter if it's true or false. What's important is that the 12th flagbearer has no choice but go to his clan the moment he sees this news."
"To ascertain the survival of the Hister's survivor and the legacy that Runcandel has obtained, right?"
"Not only that, but Jin Runcandel's return to his clan is bound to be a must-make choice. Even if it's to become the patriarch. He will never give up on his clan, even if Runcandel isn't what it used to be. It's not something that he can compromise on."
"It is as the Captain of Spectres and Lord Kadun said. Of course, the 12th flagbearer will not visit his clan without any preparation. It seems that he will use the toad of the master of hidden palace as a way to escape, and will not drag the Vamel alliance with him."
"Then he will surely die on the spot, Sir Hedo. He doesn't know how dangerous Runcandel is right now!"
Octavia was furious that the opportunity for revenge was disappearing.
"No, Octavia. If Murakan regained all his old strength. Besides, as Hedo said, if his battle prowess is at a level of first-class superhuman or higher...… Just the two of them alone could do something akin to war with Runcandel."
"And unless the 12th flagbearer chooses to submit to Runcandel with the Vamel Alliance, it is inevitable that a fight will break out in the Garden of Swords."
"He will never make such a choice."
Indeed, how much damage Runcandel would suffer in that process was uncertain for all three of them.
However, all three of them predicted that the chances of Jin surviving are very low. Even in a situation where Murakan supports him with all his regained strength.
"Then let's confirm the power Runcandel possesses through their battle this time."
Zipfel knew that the Prophet had effectively seized control of the Garden of Swords with Rosa, and deduced that their power was beyond imagination.
But they didn't know exactly to what extent.
Therefore, they were avoiding an all-out war under the pretext of the ceasefire previously agreed upon.
"Of course, it's a good option to keep an eye on movements. But I don't think it would hurt to go further than that."
"Go further...?"
Kadun and Octavia's gaze fell on Hedo.
"If Runcandel is weaker than we expected, then they will take a serious hit in that fight."
Then it would be the perfect time to finish Runcandel once and for all.
That's what Hedo was saying.
"We shouldn't give them time to recover. Don't you all know how quickly the Prophet revived all those knights who died in the Sword Emperor Castle and how she strengthened them?"
It was an intelligence report that they got when Jin was in Laprarosa.
The informant, who was informed about the resurrection and strengthening of the knights that was done by the Prophet, died and 'melted' in front of Kelliark as soon as the report was over.
In other words, the Prophet intentionally displayed his power, even knowing he was being watched by the informant.
Recalling the memory of that time, Kadun and Octavia shuddered as if feeling a chill.
"So Hedo, are you suggesting that we prepare for an all-out war?"
"It means that we need to prepare for a response according to the situation of the battle. Not necessarily an unconditional all-out war."
"If the battle goes when both sides are losing, then it means we'll wrap up both of them... if that's not the case then just withdraw."
There was a moment of silence, and then Kadun made his decision.
"It's definitely the best outcome if it works as you say. But it's not a matter for us to decide. We would better wake Kelliark for a moment and let him decide."
Then they went to the top floor of the Tower of Stories and informed Kelliark about the situation.
Kelliark nodded in the life supporting device, saying that Hedo was right.
* * *
The New Headquarters of Kinzelo.
At the same time, they were also having a meeting on the same topic as Zipfel.
They were also reaching a conclusion similar to that of Zipfel.
It was Bishkel Ivelianos who said let's take the initiative and aim for both sides to defeat.
"Hmm, I think the vice-leader's opinion is good, but...… will he really go to the Garden of Swords alone? Even though he defeated Ranke, it would be crazy to go to the Garden of Swords alone, which even we can't touch. Much more so if it's that shrewd guy, right?"
"Hmph! That Jin Runcandel, he seems to be completely invisible after he turned Ranke into a bloody mess!?"
Bubare and Ainas expressed their doubts.
Ranke was sitting in the corner and muttering to himself in a state of fascination.
Although sometimes, Ranke remembers Jin "beating" him whenever he heard his name, and he looked at Ainas and Bubare as if he wanted to kill them.
"As Lady Ainas said, unless his brain was damaged because he easily trampled on Ranke, I don't think he would go to the Garden of Swords. Lord Ranke and the entire Runcandel are on different levels, right? Ah, of course, I'm not saying Lord Ranke is pathetic. He just lost...…."
"Right, he just lost. So cheer up! Ranke."
Bishkel, as always, was fed up with Bubare's mindless blabbering.
"... Lady Ainas and Bubare. Stop emphasizing Ranke's defeat. It doesn't fit the topic of the meeting, and it's disrespectful."
Crunch.
The two of them didn't even listen to Bishkel and took the sweet potato croquettes out of their pocket and ate it, and Bishkel broke the pen that he was holding.
"Umm, what do you think, leader?"
Margiella said as she patted on Bishkel's shoulder.
[The vice-leader's opinion is correct. Perhaps Zipfel had a similar plan. When Jin and Runcandel both take a big hit, if we and Zipfel attack Runcandel together. I don't think it's going to be easy to handle, no matter how powerful the garden of swords.]
"Well then, leader. Are you saying we should prepare for an all-out attack?"
[I think that would be good for now, Berakt. We'll have to keep an eye on the future situation. Since Jin Runcandel cannot swear allies to the Prophet...… fight is bound to happen. And Ainas, Bubare. Ranke's defeat is not without any reason. Jin Runcandel has become incomparably stronger than before.]
The leader's direct evaluation made the executives' eyes widen.
In particular, Zephyrin had been with Orgal for a long time and remembered a few instances where Orrgal evaluated someone so highly.
"The outcome will depend on how strong the power that Runcandel has kept hidden truly is. If it's weaker than what we think, then it's our chance to wipe them all out. Master, it's been a while since you've made a decision that's to my liking. I'm just getting annoyed at how long I have to keep worrying about that person."
[Zephyrin, do not speak lightly of the Prophet.]
"Hmph, anyway, I am a pitiful dragon who has no memory of receiving favoritism from master."
Again, Margiella patted Zephyrin on the shoulder.
"Then, the Leader's permission has been granted. Shall we prepare too? The Garden of Swords and Sir Jin Runcandel. In the end, it will be a fight that will inevitably hurt both of them, so it should be enjoyable."
Margiella smiled softly. Thinking that this might be the last chance to recruit Jin.
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