C402 - Emperor Sword Banquet (7)

It was the first time Jin had seen a demonic creature emerging from the ground.

This is insane.

Is it a demonic creature?

Where did this thing suddenly come from?

The creature had a massive body, almost unbelievable unless someone saw it with their own eyes. Jin and Lata were caught by the monster's fangs and thrown into the air; meanwhile...

Ron brought it down with a single blow.

'Rashid,' the sword that only the Hairan patriarch could wield, gleamed with dazzling light.

Slash...!

As if he had struck a wave, the space rippled following Rashid's movement. Although it didn't reach the level of completely disintegrating objects like Cyron, it was still an attack from a knight who was close to being the strongest.

The colossal monster, which had just revealed itself as a mountain, split in half as if it were a lie. Black blood poured out like a torrent, and before that blood could stain the ground, a series of consecutive strikes tore the demonic creature into hundreds of pieces.

"Hairan's swords prioritize the protection of guests. Gather all the Knights waiting inside the castle. Execute a level 1 counter-terrorism response."

When Dante gave the order, the Knights immediately assessed the situation. Panic-stricken screams resounded from various places among the ordinary guests.

The pleasant tension that had been building up during Jin and Lata's duel was set aside, and real danger had arrived.

Naturally, most of the guests had never experienced such an act of terrorism. The same was true for the Warriors. Who would have imagined a terrorist attack in the Emperor Sword Castle, and even more so, at a banquet hosted by Ron Hairan after 22 years?

THUD!

It wasn't just one. Enormous demonic creatures were continually emerging throughout the vast arena. Due to the monsters bursting from the ground, an earthquake occurred. The roof seemed as if it could collapse at any moment. The massive pillars standing like giants were breaking, worsening the chaos along with the screams of the ordinary guests.

Fortunately, over 30% of those sitting among the audience were Warriors who had come to the Emperor Sword Castle as honored guests.

"We'll help too!"

"We'll clear the way so Hairan's Knights can evacuate the guests!"

"The Black King Mercenaries will protect the guests. We'll sort out compensation later!"

The Warriors drew their weapons and shouted. Under normal circumstances, Hairan would have refused the help. Relying on external power in his own stronghold was something his pride could never accept.

However, the situation was calamitous, with too many guests in imminent danger, and the fact that the terrorist attack had already "progressed" was a disgrace in itself. If the event attendees ended up as corpses, it would leave an irreversible scar on Hairan's reputation as one of the top swordsmanship clans.

"Damn it, what's happening...!"

Lata, who had landed on the ground, looked at the demonic creatures. Ron had already torn one of them to unrecognizable shreds, but there were still ten more in sight. And it didn't end there. A continuous and intense vibration could be felt from the ground. It meant that more creatures of that magnitude were relentlessly attacking Hairan one after another.

"Dante!"

While breaking a second demonic creature to pieces, Ron called his grandson.

"Yes, Grandfather!"

"The Knights can't gather in one place. These bastards have already spread outside as well."

"!"

"As the future lord of the Emperor Sword Castle, take responsibility and evacuate the guests."

Among those present in the arena, only Ron was aware that demonic creatures were also spreading outside Emperor Sword Castle.

Just as Jin and Lata were like beings from different worlds, he was an entity entirely different from all the Warriors here.

Dante nodded heavily.

Is the outside being attacked too?

The moment Ron mentioned the outside, everyone present in the arena thought of one thing:

War.

Someone had declared war on Hairan, or perhaps on Vermont, with this surprise attack. It was a scale that no one could simply dismiss as a terrorist attack. And the force capable of deploying such demonic creatures... did not exist.

As far as they knew, no one among those present knew of any current faction capable of using demonic creatures. In the first place, humans were incapable of controlling demonic creatures. If there was any possibility, it might have been Zipple. However, they had never used demonic creatures in war, and there was no apparent reason for them to suddenly attack Hairan.

"It looks somewhat like a demonic dragon... Could it be demons?" Quikantel said, raising her protective shield.

Both she and the dragons present in the arena, including Murakan, remembered the demons. Unlike the Warriors, the dragons had memories of witnessing demons controlling demonic creatures at least once.

"Quikantel, don't you think these monsters are too crude?"

"Although they possess an aura more powerful than even most high-level monsters, do you find them crude?"

"It's not a matter of strong or weak, but the flow of energy feels strangely unnatural. As if someone forcibly created them. It's also the first time I've seen demonic creatures like these."

"I have that feeling. It's rare for you to make such a plausible deduction, Murakan. Anyway, it's not a normal situation. You should also prepare yourself and protect your Contractor."

Jin was already using the Sword of Legends while facing the demonic creatures. Although he couldn't turn the giant monsters into minced meat like Ron, thanks to Jin and Lata guarding the center, damage to the audience was minimized.

[Very well]

Murakan transformed into his true form and soared into the sky. By then, the roof had already collapsed, and debris was falling in all directions.

"Murakan! The demonic creatures keep coming! Help Dante!"

[I am Murakan, Jin Runcandel's Guardian Dragon. I will protect you as per my Contractor's will, so do not fear.]

Murakan's deep and ominous voice echoed as the sky darkened. The protective shield of shadowy energy extended behind his two wings covered the entire sky. From the banquet held in Vermont, numerous contracted mages of the Empire attended. Their guardian dragons also soared into the sky following Murakan. Murakan naturally became the center of the dragons. The dragons of other Contractors were in awe of the awakening of this black dragon after a thousand years and dared not display their majesty.

[Roar!]

The giant monsters extended their jaws toward the dragons. Mana accumulated in those jaws. It looked like a mana cannon, but the orbs gathered in the monsters' jaws had the same effect. However, the problem was that the power contained in those orbs was different from typical mana cannons. It wasn't comparable to Kozec's mana cannons, but it possessed firepower that could be considered a calamity. A dozen giant demonic creatures were gathering mana in this way. As soon as they fired, the blinding white light almost blinded everyone. It seemed powerful enough to turn a small castle to dust without a trace.

[These insignificant flies have no idea who they're dealing with.]

Murakan easily blocked the mana cannons. The protective shield of Shadow Energy he unleashed created a whirlpool that swallowed the projectiles. However, the attacks from the arena were not the only ones. The demonic creatures outside were also firing mana cannons at the outer walls of Emperor Sword Castle. The shockwaves from the crumbling walls spread inside, and from that moment, it became truly inevitable. Unless one was an omnipotent being who could control everything, there was no way to avoid casualties. Outside, there were many more demonic creatures firing cannons than inside the arena. Even if it were Cyron instead of Ron, it would still be impossible to completely avoid all damage. But the surprise attack had only just begun. Suddenly, the monsters torn apart by Ron and the Warriors underwent a strange mutation.

The flesh stuck together like wet clay, forming new shapes.

It was unclear what they were transforming into.

Before the transformation could be completed, Jin continued to fire lightning bolts and slashes with Sigmund.

It was an impossible task to completely eliminate tens of thousands of chunks of flesh.

Human...!?

The lazy flesh slowly took on a more human-like form.

Living golems using demonic creatures.

The masses of flesh that filled the Warriors' view were precisely that.

At that moment, even veterans who had been through all kinds of battlefields showed expressions of bewilderment.

Even if someone said the gates of hell had opened in Emperor Sword Castle, it seemed believable.

Dante, Lata, the other Warriors, and the mages fought to defeat the advancing living golems while displaying disgusted expressions.

Whether it was a Warrior or not, they were all shocked by this unknown and horrifying situation.

Among them, Jin had the calmest expression.

This was not his first encounter with these detestable living golems. He even had a sense of dj vu.

Kinzelo, Zipple, Vermont. These gigantic factions are creating living golems.

Jin had personally confirmed the development of living golems by these three factions.

At this moment, it was impossible to know which faction was behind this or what the reason was for attacking Hairan.

One thing was certain.

Regardless of which of the three factions was responsible, Hairan would suffer a severe blow.

Jin felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

Of all times, the attack had to happen while he was sparring with Lata.

The once beautiful and pristine central arena of Hairan was no longer recognizable.

It was now filled with twisted living golems and gigantic demonic creatures.

Crunch...!

Finally, the entire wall on the other side collapsed, revealing the outside.

What lay beyond was a battlefield even more chaotic than the arena.

Knights and Dragons stood firm, but human corpses were scattered everywhere.

They were the corpses of servants and regular soldiers. The casualties were also increasing within the training field.

On reflex, Jin turned his head and scanned the area to locate Beradin.

Jin had not yet seen Beradin's magic.

It worried him.

He couldn't help but wonder if Beradin, whose mind might have been manipulated, was orchestrating this attack.

If it was the Beradin he knew, then he should be tirelessly working to save people in a situation like this. But it wasn't a situation where Jin could confirm Beradin's whereabouts calmly.

The number of living golems continued to increase, and Jin had been continuously breaking through their encirclement.

Every time Sigmund released lightning, the living golems were swept away in piles.

Jin continued to slash and cut them.

But there was a moment when he came to a sudden stop.

Among the remains of living golems and the bodies of demonic creatures, he spotted some familiar figures dressed in plain gray robes.

A group of people wearing gray robes without a faction.

As soon as he saw them, Jin felt a chill down his spine because those gray robes belonged to the 'Specter Corps.'