Chapter 928

## Chapter 928

Bascala blocked even the curse immunity granted by Solderet’s authority. Jin shuddered as he felt a sudden loss of strength in his left arm.

It was already weakened because his fist had been crushed. With aging added to the equation, it seemed he couldn’t use his left arm at all.

Forced aging was a curse that could only be canceled when the God of Time, Olta, intervened directly.

This meant that Paellito had, at least, an authority on par with Olta’s, and also related to time.

“Even though Paellito is a Genesis Knight, he can’t match Olta in terms of authority over time. Perhaps this curse is related to the abilities of the sword he wields…”—

—[…The sword he uses, Bascala, has the ability to block authorities.]—

Orgal explained this to Jin right after being defeated by Paellito, but, in fact, Bascala wasn’t just a sword with the ability to block authorities.

It also possessed the ability to utilize any authority that, having been completely blocked with Bascala at least once, was stored.

“There was a demon god named Bisaro. He helped demons who wished to die by aging, and he also dared to challenge Lord Zito and was sealed in this sword.”

Paellito maintained eye contact with Jin.

“Today, your divine power and yours will also be sealed in Bascala, so it would be wise for you to get used to the feeling of aging. Bisaro’s grudge sealed in the sword might not be kind to you.”

In other words, Paellito, who had reached the level of a Genesis Knight, had the ability to freely use the authorities of many gods and transcendent beings sealed in Bascala throughout his journey.

The first sword of the True Demon Word.

That’s why no one questioned his majesty.

“Kahak!”

Dante blocked Paellito’s attack and staggered back.

Originally, he could have narrowly dodged the attack that was heading at high speed, but due to the aging of his right leg, he had no choice but to block it.

His reactions had slowed down considerably. Thanks to the true energy he had received from Ron, Dante had a strong body, but aging was inevitable.

He moved as if chained, and his ankle bones creaked with every step.

“If it were an ordinary curse, it could be reversed…”

Typically, curses could be undone by killing the caster or canceling the spell. There was also a method to dispel a curse by striking the object that had manifested it.

“But since it has progressed so much, perhaps I’ll have to sacrifice my arm…”

Jin and Dante were determined to fight, even if they lost an arm or a leg. It didn’t matter, as long as they could fight without falling, until their entire bodies were shattered and disappeared.

Paellito deliberately continued his assault at a speed where Dante could only block, unable to dodge. Jin felt the helplessness of not being able to protect his friend, who was dying beside him, and choked on his self-loathing as his extended sword struck empty air.

But Dante didn’t expect Jin to save him. He had never thought that way during today’s battle, not even for a moment.

It had always been that way, since the day Jin saved him in the Sword Emperor Castle. No, since the day they met and became friends in the Cosmos arena.

Dante had always decided that, someday, he might fight and die alongside Jin. That was because Jin was also walking a path where he had to overcome dangerous battles.

“What a pathetic sight, Paellito! Did you think Jin would go crazy trying to save me? Did you expect him to rush forward, shouting my name? Never! We’ve both made peace with death. We either die here today, or we survive.”

Tsuah!

Dante’s Dragon Sword Armor emitted an even more intense light. Paellito widened the distance while unloading sword energy.

“I don’t fear dying together. So, if you really want to see Jin suffer, you should first kill me, the Emperor of Swords of the Empire. No matter how strong you are; if you continue to mock us, you won’t escape our wrath. You know that better than anyone.”

Dante didn’t shout just to increase his fighting spirit and courage.

Jin calmly aimed at Paellito’s blind spots while Dante was being pressured. Paellito was absorbed in “power control” and couldn’t perfectly deflect Jin’s counterattacks, and, occasionally, Bradamante would embed itself in his body somewhere.

Of course, this level of damage couldn’t affect the overall situation.

However, in battles between individuals who had reached this level, every wound the size of a fingernail could become a fatal wound.

No martial artist in the world could fight against two of them as if it were a friendly match.

Even the swords of those who had reached the extreme had become sharper, which meant that Paellito could also lose his life.

Although Jin and Dante hadn’t reached the realm of the Genesis Knight, they still possessed undeniable power.

“Or is your mind so clouded with anger that you can’t even think clearly? Is it because of brainwashing? You’re certainly different from the Genesis I’ve encountered so far. If it were them, they would never show even a moment of carelessness or hesitation against us!”

Tsu, tsu, tsu…

Once again, demonic energy concentrated to cast a curse spell. Along with Bisaro’s Scorn that was aging them both, it was another curse from a demon god named Tsuzak.

Jin and Dante had successfully avoided Bisaro’s Scorn, but the same parts of their bodies were exposed to Tsuzak’s curse.

Tsuzak was known as the most powerful demon god before Zito, and the demons of the True Demon World called him a god of plague.

Bubbling…!

In an instant, Jin and Dante’s bodies began to boil, as if their flesh was melting into lava. Fist-sized blisters swelled and burst, and every time that happened, they had to clench their teeth in pain.

Unlike aging, the plague didn’t just affect the areas it came into direct contact with; it seemed to want to envelop their entire bodies like water seeping in.

Of course, their strong bodies didn’t easily allow the plague to advance. The aura that was running wildly in their bodies blocked the invasion of the plague.

However, that meant their stamina would deplete even faster, and their entire bodies were on the verge of being swallowed by the plague.

“Save those words for when you’ve at least threatened me once, human emperor of swords. Yes, I admit that you two are strong enough. But that’s all. Do you know how many times I’ve defeated beings more powerful than you in my long years? Even they feared me and dared not touch Sakiel.”

The malice contained in Paellito’s two eyes seemed as if it would materialize and swallow them at any moment.

In fact, Jin and Dante saw the illusion: the giant, dark shadow of malice watching them from above.

“You took so much from me…”

Paellito spoke and closed his eyes.

Meanwhile, Jin took a moment to assess what he could do immediately.

First, he reduced the mana consumed by the fire. He didn’t completely release the hellfire, but maintained only the minimum necessary to sustain it.

Then, he applied the ice barrier seal he had learned from Valeria on Dante’s aged right ankle.

When the cold, transparent energy enveloped Dante’s ankle, the advance of the plague slowed down considerably. It seemed to have stopped completely.

“This should allow you to move somewhat more naturally again. If luck is on our side, maybe you can get treatment after we kill him.”

Swish!

Shortly after, Jin used Bradamante to amputate his left arm. His left arm, which had turned black as coal, fell to the ground and crumbled.

“Jin!?”

“I can’t maintain two seals at the same time. And it’s better for me to lose an arm than for you to lose a leg. If you can’t move, it’s really game over.”

The plague that had clung to Jin’s amputated left arm could no longer penetrate his body. After freezing the detached limb, Jin gripped his sword with one hand.

His resolute pupils shone brightly. Dante swallowed the words that were rising from his throat and raised his energy, as he couldn’t afford to fight by letting his emotions take over.

“You look better than before, Jin Runcandel.”

“Is that so?”

“Well, somehow, I guess you could call this the best solution. Eventually, you’ll lose all your limbs that way.”

“If losing an arm weakens me, then I’m not worthy of being called the King of Battle. And if I can’t overcome a limit situation, I’m not qualified to become the patriarch of Runcandel. Moreover, if you’re afraid of losing a leg in a fight, it means you’re not worthy of being called the Emperor of Swords.”

Jin smiled at Paellito.

“So, in fact, this is a better solution, Paellito Belgasyum. You’ve seen it clearly.”

The reduced hellfire ignited a little more.

Paellito felt that Jin and Dante had become even stronger.

“…It seems this crisis is bringing out something that was deeply buried within them.”

That wasn’t surprising. Monsters cornered in a crisis often shed their shells once more. It was something Paellito had frequently encountered when facing strong opponents in the past.

And Paellito had never lost a battle in such circumstances. He had never let a gained advantage slip away, nor had he let his guard down.

“This time I will do the same, Sakiel.”

Paellito pushed Bascala forward. At the same time, he used the Underworld Sword, and the senses of the two rushing towards him blurred.

The sword energies of Bradamante and Rashid scattered diagonally. Both swords headed for Paellito’s heart, but he roared and, with his bare hand, caught the enemy swords.

Then, he scattered the sword energies he had in his grip in all directions and distorted both Dante’s and Jin’s movement. Then, he plunged his sword into Dante’s throat.

Dante, surely, would die.

That was what Paellito anticipated. He had precisely aimed at Dante, and he couldn’t evade it. In fact, Dante didn’t manage to evade Paellito’s slash.

However, Dante not only knocked down Bascala; the moment Rashid and Bascala collided, he dropped his sword and grabbed Bascala with his palms as if clapping.

Paellito didn’t panic and tried to split Dante in two, but Jin’s sword was too close.

In the end, Paellito didn’t manage to cut Dante. Dante released Bascala when Paellito gave up on him and used his Dragon Sword Armor.

A sharp fragment of aura, detached from the Dragon Sword Armor, grazed Paellito’s face. He quickly turned around and made a downward slash to block Jin’s upward horizontal cut.

Jin, crouching so low that it seemed his face would touch the ground, smiled maliciously.

“I owe you one, Paellito. Thanks to you, I’m feeling what it’s like to get stronger after so long…”