Chapter 949

C949

Murakan and his group had originally moved separately from Jin in their search for Visepps.

Before heading to the Artificial Sun, Visepps had sent a reconnaissance team to the Venomous Demon Castle to investigate the movements of Kelliark and Ragal.

Naturally, Murakan asked Valeria to track Visepps’ movements with the aid of Record Magic, and during that process, they had stumbled upon traces of Visepps’ reconnaissance team while pursuing them, eventually arriving at the Venomous Demon Castle.

“[Are your mouths shut, you idiots? Sir Murakan asked what you’re doing!]”

“[It’s quite an unusual situation. Hm, I’m not sure what the best course of action is. Should we just eliminate them?]” Bale asked.

“[Oh, our immortal is coming in strong, isn’t he? So immortal and inevitable, huh?]”

“[Shut up, bastard… I don’t want to become the laughingstock even to our enemies. Ahem! Anyway, Valeria, what do you think? You seem to be the smartest one here; judge,]” said Bale.

Just as Valeria was about to answer, a voice from below reached them.

“Help me!”

It was Beradin.

Beradin was known for his infinite composure and dignity as the patriarch of Zipple, but now he was frantically waving his hands and shamelessly shouting for help, like the boy from the days he hung out with Jin.

Valeria’s eyes widened.

Her surprise wasn’t due to Beradin’s behavior. She was surprised at herself. The moment Beradin had called for help, she found herself thinking, “I should help him.”

Since the disappearance of the Grey Owl Mercenary Corps, the name “Zipple” had always represented an arch-enemy to Valeria, and her unwavering desire for revenge.

But now, Valeria was prioritizing Jin’s feelings over her desire for revenge. Her desire to protect someone Jin cared about was surpassing her thirst for vengeance.

‘Looking back, I somehow got along with that noisy Sandra Zipple… I’ve become quite dull.’

But she didn’t hate that fact.

She still has no plans to give up her revenge against Zipple. However, if there were people among Zipple whom Jin wanted to save, she would be willing to accept them. There was no need to say anything, especially if it was someone Jin cared so much about.

Jin had become so important to Valeria now.

“Did you hear, Murakan?” Valeria asked.

“[Did you hear? Immortal,]” Murakan said.

“[I heard… as well.]”

“[So immortal, you have a simple task. I will kill Kelliark and those scoundrels, and you will protect Beradin and the Histor. It seems Beradin can’t fight properly. And if by any chance Beradin tries to betray us, then simply finish him off,]” Murakan instructed.

“No, don’t kill him, just subdue him. If Beradin dies for any reason, Jin will suffer,” Valeria said.

“[Did you hear that, inevitable?]” Murakan asked.

“[Damn it, I heard it!]” Vale replied.

*Huuuuuung!*

Murakan spread his wings and held his breath. The enormous chains of fire that dyed the sky red shattered and he carved a path in an instant as soon as he exhaled the dragon’s breath.

‘He cut my friend Kelliark’s fire chains so easily?!’

Not only the fire chains, but also the nearby miasma of Ragal were swept away by Murakan’s breath and vanished without a trace.

Since Jin ascended to the Genesis Knight, Murakan could literally use the same power as in his prime. There were still some side effects due to his damaged heart, but it wasn’t a significant concern with Valeria present on the battlefield.

“[Hey, Kelliark Zipple. Come to think of it, it’s the first time we’ve met since the Sword Emperor Castle War. Back then, you dared to threaten a contractor of Solderet,]” Murakan commented.

“Murakan…”

Kelliark’s eyebrow twitched, and it was the first time Ragal saw Kelliark showing emotions.

“[Now the boy you couldn’t finish has entered the domain of giants, and I’ve recovered all my old strength. In other words, you’re finished,]” Murakan declared.

“My son is lucky. It seems you just happened to arrive here by chance… right?”

“[What does it matter?]”

“Well, alright… It can’t be just a coincidence. Is this the influence of someone who has transcended fate?” Kelliark shrugged.

He thought it wasn’t a coincidence that Murakan came to rescue Beradin, who was in a desperate situation.

It may seem like a coincidence, but he’s convinced that the ‘power of existence’ Jin possesses played a significant role in this.

‘Perhaps he himself wasn’t aware of the fact that sometimes the whole world can move to reflect one’s will…’

That idea was unsettling Kelliark.

He was worried about the fact that unpredictable events like this could continue to occur while dealing with Jin in the future.

“Ragal, Layla, you two go after Beradin and the living golem. Even though things have taken a turn, shouldn’t we still strive to fix things?” Kelliark instructed.

“Understood, my friend.”

As Ragal prepared to move, an unexpected darkness formed behind them. Shadow Energy silently spread and created a curtain around them.

“[Wait a minute, wait a minute. I didn’t allow anyone to leave, did I? Well, I guess demons like you might not have a sense of limits.]”

*Sshhh!*

Layla pierced through the Shadow Energy curtain and threw her rapier towards Murakan. However, Layla didn’t intend to follow Kelliark’s orders; she wanted to finish things with Murakan here and now.

“[Come to think of it, you seem to have a particular grudge against me. Are you perhaps Layla Belgasyum? Seeking revenge for your elder brother?]”

*Shwoosh!* Murakan used his head to hit Layla, who lunged at him, and pushed her away with his wings. Layla bounced back towards Kelliark and quickly regained her balance.

“…I can’t follow your opinion this time. I must fight that black dragon. He’s directly involved in my brother’s death.”

“[You’re wrong. I was almost absent from the beginning of the battle with Paellito. I was nearby when Jin took him down. And death was like salvation for Paellito, believe me.]”

“Shut up… If you bastards hadn’t killed my brother, he could have returned anytime.”

“[Well, you’re quite a devoted little sister. Well, it’s none of my business. If you want to follow Paellito so much, I won’t stop you. After all, what else can you do under Kelliark’s command besides wreaking havoc on the world? By the way, don’t you know who the real culprit behind your brother’s transformation is?]”

“Ugh!”

As he spoke, Murakan’s black chains continued to lash out at Layla. She managed to defend against most of them, but it seemed she had no strength to approach Murakan again.

Kelliark was making his calculations.

Was it possible to confront Murakan with the current forces in the Venomous Demon Castle, and could they really kill him?

‘It’s difficult to kill Murakan right now. I haven’t completed my fusion yet, and it would be a waste to fully unleash the powers of Ragal and Layla, who have been weakened by brainwashing at the moment. For now, I should find an opportune moment to knock out Layla.’

For Kelliark’s own safety, the best course of action was to use all the forces of the Venomous Demon Castle as a shield to buy time and escape.

However, considering the future, he needed to injure Murakan somehow right now, even if it meant taking some risks.

Kelliark could see it. The crack in Murakan’s heart felt vivid, as if it wasn’t covered by scales, flesh, and bones. If he could damage that heart even once, Murakan wouldn’t pose a significant threat to him in the future.

*Tsssk…!*

Two streaks of the black chain that had fallen on Kelliark continued to dissipate into fire. Kelliark then created a fire shield around Layla and activated his sight spell.

When the Blue Flame Gaze activated, blue flames fell like rain wherever Kelliark looked.

“[Ho, melting the black chains?]”

“It seems you’ll have to retreat in pain, Murakan. Jin Runcandel is just annoying enough.”

Murakan immediately recognized Kelliark’s gaze and insight.

“[Tsk, tsk, it seems you can see the damage to my heart. Do you think you can take advantage of that just because you know? It seems you inherited Sheenu’s status, so that’s why you’re so confident.]”

In the next moment, Murakan suddenly flung his chest wide open.

The scales on his chest parted, revealing a dark, glittering heart within. The heart, which resembled a precious gem, pulsed vigorously.

“[I reveal my weakness and fight to repay the humiliation of the Sword Emperor Castle War. I won’t be able to recover if you pierce my heart even once.]”

It was a lie.

Unless he suffered damage of the level he endured from Temar a thousand years ago, Murakan could recover anytime. Besides, the reason he showed his heart wasn’t just to humiliate Kelliark.

Murakan was imitating Jin’s behavior.

He’s recreating how Jin often boasted to gain an advantage in a fight. After making Kelliark focus on the heart, he planned to find an opening instead.

This meant that even Murakan, who had recovered his old strength, couldn’t easily discern Kelliark’s true strength.

‘It’s amazing that he has reached divinity. Although he had never touched the Genesis Knight domain as a human, he’s spreading an energy almost identical to his. If there hadn’t been a Histor to control my side effects, I would have had to somehow protect only Beradin and retreat. Perhaps it would have been difficult to even save Beradin.’

Murakan smiled.

“[Go ahead, Kelliark Zipple.]”

Kelliark’s staff once again imbued with fire, and the countless fireballs in the sky transformed into thousands of spears and aimed at Murakan.

Murakan executed the True Manifestation of Shadows at the same time. The battlefield was instantly consumed by darkness and fire, and Ragal and Layla had to endure this oppressive force alone.

The sharp Shadow Energy and fire spears began to crisscross and clash with each other.

As expected, Kelliark aimed most of his spears at Murakan’s heart, and Murakan barely managed to deflect them. And in the process, he annoyed Kelliark.

In a moment, just as a fire spear was about to pierce Murakan’s heart, he dispersed into particles of Shadow Energy to avoid it, and then instantly appeared behind Kelliark and exhaled his dragon’s breath.

“[You are a worthy opponent to fight after I recovered my old strength, Kelliark. Let’s enjoy ourselves to the fullest.]”

***

Meanwhile, while Murakan and Kelliark engaged in their intense battle, Elona prepared to head to Hell.

She had received the signal from Hroti that had been activated by Betty.

“I must go and rescue the patriarch. If any harm has befallen him, I will risk my life to kill that person.”

Elona’s cold voice left the Zipple leaders with no choice but to let her go.