[T.L: punisher87]
[My ko-fi link:- https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 ]
Runcandel's 4th secret technique, the Black Cross.
Rosa unleashed the sword as the meteor shower shattered.
Frenzy's blade, marked with a black cross, emitted a black energy.
The black cross-shaped energy poured towards Talaris in a circle around the intersection point of the cross.
Rosa was not a pure-blooded Runcandel, but she perfectly executed the decisive killing moves and secret techniques even without a blessed body due to accepting chaos. Her power was comparable to Chiron.
There was no way Talaris and Mort could escape from the countless black cross-shaped blades.
Originally, Jin and Kaio were supposed to risk their lives to pass through Rosa and dive into the energy.
However, it was uncertain whether their exhausted bodies could withstand Rosa's secret technique.
Perhaps they wouldn't just fail to save Talaris but face death themselves.
If Murakan had not appeared now, it would have most likely ended that way.
As the black cross-shaped energy attacked Talaris and Mort, Murakan's huge body suddenly appeared behind them like a black mountain.
At first glance, his body was much larger than Jin's memory.
His wings, spread like a wall, blocked the Black Cross, leaving enough room even for Mort to fit within them.
The sword energy extended from the frenzy was constantly causing cracks in the wings.
It seemed as if the wings would tear apart in an instant, but it was just an optical illusion caused by the flickering shadow force.
[And you too, master of the hidden palace. How did you become so weak? It seems like Mr. Mort is also injured quite a bit.]
Talaris raises her head.
She gave a sly smile because of the relief of being surrounded by Murakan's protective shield.
Although she had just doubted death, now she felt that this dark and gigantic dragon's embrace was the safest place in the world.
"You came at the perfect moment. How did you become so strong, Black dragon oppa?"
[I've just recovered what I lost a little more. And thanks to that, I think neither kid nor I will lose you today.]
"Uhhh, I'm going to fall in love with you."
Murakan possessed 50% of his old strength during the sword emperor castle war when he fought with his comrades.
Not only Jin but also Talaris, who could not feel shadow force as sensitively, could easily recognize the fact that Murakan's current power level was close to his prime.
Jin's shadow force, which had finally reached 10-star, and the crises that Murakan had overcome on behalf of Solderet were returning his old strength.
Murakan spread his wings again. Talaris and Mort took no damage from the Black Cross, and Rosa's expression was distorted.
[The clan's ancient guardian dragon...… I didn't feel any sign of your coming.]
That was why Rosa was angry.
She could feel all the battles that were taking place in the Garden of Swords and the entire Kalon area as if it were her own body.
However, she didn't feel the presence of Murakan at all. It means that Murakan didn't come from outside the Garden of Swords, but suddenly appeared from within.
[It seems your enlightenment is still lacking, Rosa Runcandel.]
Rosa turned around and looked at Jin.
[You and your comrades are truly lucky, the youngest. Whenever you're in a crisis like this, someone always comes to rescue you.]
Rosa didn't know all the details of Jin and his companions' adventures.
But she knew that they had always managed to overcome difficulties with the help of others or each other.
There had never been such a thing in her Runcandel.
No matter how long she waited, there was no hope that returned, and Rosa didn't bother to hide the bitterness that stemmed from that fact.
[This mother... will break that cycle.]
The blade of chaos that stopped in the air began to whirl again. The blades pushed the party even more ferociously than before, as if they were fueled by Rosa's anger.
At the same time, part of Murakan's body scattered into shadow force and caught Talaris and Mort. He quickly moved like a hawk, and instantly appeared next to Jin.
Rosa dispersed blades in all directions from her position. Parts of Murakan's body, transformed into smoke-like forms, were swept away, but it didn't deal him a significant blow.
Despite Murakan's arrival, the situation is still overwhelmingly in Rosa's favor.
Jin, Talaris, and Kaio were not in any condition to fight properly.
And that wasn't all.
Jin could sense Murakan's urgency without the chance for proper greetings.
"Don't tell me you're not in a condition to fight either?"
[It's not that, but my time is running out.]
After the end of the Sword Emperor Castle war, Murakan had been acting as a substitute for Solderet in place of Misha.
Even Misha, who had been in charge of Solderet's affairs before, didn't fully understand the details. As it was beyond the understanding of mortals, Misha and Murakan's roles were simply to maintain their "existence" in Solderet's realm. And leaving that position poses a great threat to the world.
In particular, Murakan is not as skilled as Misha, so his absence could only be brief, especially when using such immense power.
This was why Rosa hadn't sensed Murakan's presence. Murakan had manifested here without any physical movement, directly from the realm of the gods.
There was no time to explain in detail.
[So we need to escape quickly. You can't keep fighting in your current state anyway.]
Furthermore, Elona Zipfel's seal was also a problem. As Talaris's internal injuries became serious, Misha had to bear extra burden for sealing. Talaris had been worried about the seal ever since Rosa attacked her.
Jin nodded. If it's a good thing. In Murakan's view, there were still some limitations to Rosa's power.
[Don't underestimate me, Murakan. Do you think you can escape?]
[Don't be pretentious, Rosa Runcandel. I'm not the only one who's short on time. Right now, I can see things that mortals can't.]
[You're talking arrogantly when your only option is running away...]
Swish!
Rosa dashed forward and split Murakan's breath in half, which he had just exhaled.
The shadow force awls from all directions blocked her path, but the frenzy only stopped when it collided with Bradamante.
"I can feel your anger."
Rosa continued her attack, but Murakan's shadow force and Kaio's arrows limited her movement.
While Frenzy parried Kaio's attack, the shadow force awl grazed Rosa's forehead and cut the horn on her forehead about half a finger and black blood splattered.
Rosa's chaos, which had previously been stable enough to resemble shadow force, began to fluctuate from the moment the Black Cross was intercepted by Murakan, her chaos was in disorder. The color and power became inconsistent.
'As expected, Murakan was right. There are limitations to this infinite power. It doesn't seem to be due to an injury to the horn. Is the medium lacking? Or... there might be some psychological reason.'
Unlike Ron and Smarion before they went against their fate, she remained perfectly rational.
Jin thought that might be the key. It reminded him of what Rosa herself had said: "I have not yet succumbed to chaos."
Regardless, the priority now was escape. Even if her chaos became unstable, it had no effect on her transcendent strength.
Suaak-!
Rosa's sword was relentlessly aiming at Talaris. Every time the frenzy and shadow force collided, the sky opened up.
Murakan used all his strength to prevent the impact from reaching Talaris. He had to worry about the life of Talaris and the seal of Elona, so his nerves were on edge as each second passed.
The battle was at a stalemate. It meant Jin's group was still at a disadvantage.
Even if Rosa had limitations, Murakan's forced return would be faster.
"The escape point is in the forest about 75 km away, black dragon oppa. Can you break through there? There is a teleportation flying ship."
Talaris pointed her finger at the location where the red owl is hidden.
[It's going to be a bit risky, but which way?]
If he amplifies the shadow force to break through, his forced return will be faster.
Murakan raised his shadow force without hesitation. It was better to try to escape than to continue the stalemate, even if his energy would be depleted before reaching the escape point.
"I'll buy you some time, Black Dragon Murakan. Escape with Brother Jin."
The moment Kaio said that. Suddenly, a voice echoed from the sky.
[Murakan! I will cover you!]
It was Orgal's voice. The first flagship of Kinzelo, Grenil, was floating in the air, loaded with an immense amount of lightning energy.
The other battleships were still far away. Orgal had read the situation and opened a dimensional portal to the battlefield where Murakan and the others were.
Of course, due to the chaos, his dimensional movement ability was affected. However, since all of Kalon's chaos was concentrated on Rosa, the constraints were weaker than before.
Murakan recognized that he was Orgal without Jin's explanation.
The lightning bolts were raining down on Rosa.
At that moment, Murakan flew into the sky with Jin and Kaio on his back. Rosa's sword energy pierced Grenil's lightning and surged after Murakan.
It was the 5th secret technique, the light-speed thrust. Although it left deep wounds on Murakan's tail, back, and left wing, he pressed forward without hesitation.
"Are you okay, Murakan!?"
[Of course I am fine, it just hurts. But it's a cheap price for saving you and the master of the hidden palace.]
Thanks to Grenil, Murakan didn't have to amplify his power, so he had some time.
But there was one element that Murakan didn't take into account. Ram, the fact that the huge black ship of Runcandel was approaching. And Rosa was no longer visible in the place where Grenil's lightning disappeared.
She stood in front of Ram, watching the direction in which Murakan was moving. Ram and she were practically one body.
Ram reloaded the main cannon incomparably faster than before. The chaos energy that darkened the sky was becoming more unstable.
"Madame Rosa, how about stopping here?"
At the prophet's question, Rosa burst out laughing.
[Don't you always want my sanity to crumble?]
"Honestly, it's a bit dangerous right now."
Rosa silently accelerated the amplification of chaos, and Ilina watched her with anxious eyes.
[T/L: You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87 ]