Chapter 409. The Four Became Three in the End (4)
This was what happened right after Chi-Woo left the last gate for Shalyh. Yunael returned to the tent after her conversation with Chi-Woo, and the notable figures among the Cassiubia League and humanity sat back down after getting up to leave.
“Give me a moment, please. The meeting isn’t over yet.” Yunael told them she had a very important announcement to make. Once the Last Dragon returned, she began her speech.
Though she mostly spat out whatever came to her mind instead of minding each word, the core message was simple: they couldn’t sit still, waiting for their enemies to act first, and they needed to eliminate the possibility of unexpected events happening before they did. Thus, they had to target the Sky Castle, which had the greatest possibility of bringing about unexpected happenings.
“To nullify the Sernitas’ Sky Castle…” the Last Dragon repeated Yunael’s words in a low voice. If they could accomplish that, they wouldn’t just change the direction of this war, but put an end to it by countering their enemy’s plan. The problem was that their enemies weren’t stupid enough to just let them approach the Sky Castle. It was clear they fully intended to protect it; the archers stationed at its rear were enough proof.
“How?” The Last Dragon agreed with Yunael’s points, but thought there was no way to carry them out in action. In a sarcastic tone, she asked, “Do we have to also form a detachment unit and send them?”
Yet Yunael immediately replied, “We’ll have to, but that won’t be enough. If we only do that, we’ll just be wasting precious forces.”
“I’m glad and relieved that you pointed that out first. Then, what else?”
“We need to create an opening for the detachment force to approach the Sky Castle.”
“And that’s the part I’m asking about. Care to share your plan with us?”
“It’s simple. Our main force has to get out of the last gate and fight. Then, our enemies will have no choice but to face us head-on, and the defense line around the Sky Castle will naturally thin.”
“That’s impossible,” the Last Dragon cut her off. She had heard Yunael out because she was supposedly close to Chi-Woo.
“I admit that the imbalance of power between us and our enemy has tilted significantly in our favor thanks to the leader of Seven Stars. And I know the situation makes things easier for us now.” Yet that all hinged on one condition. “But that is as long as we put our focus on defense.”
Everyone knew that the side on defense was much more advantageous than the side on the offense. There was a saying that when an army was attempting a siege, it needed to have three times the number of troops than the side on defense; and if the defense was well-prepared, the offense would have to be even five or ten times stronger.
“Of course, if we go along with what you said, we could create a momentary opening. But it won’t last long, and the detachment team will soon face our enemy’s main forces and meet a dreadful end.”
Why would they throw away the advantage of being in the defensive position and make the situation more disadvantageous for themselves? At this point, it wouldn’t be strange for people to doubt if Yunael was a spy from their enemy instead of an ally. If they really carried out the plan she suggested, perhaps even the enemy would despair, lamenting the fact that they had fought so hard against such simpletons. That was how nonsensical the plan she proposed was. Thus, the Last Dragon couldn’t give her permission.
“What if accomplishing this mission would result in benefits that surpass the damages we’ll suffer from it?” Yunael asked.
“What?”
“And with those benefits, what if we can fix this war permanently to our favor?”
The Last Dragon stared blankly at Yunael. She soon understood what Yunael was saying and asked, “Are you saying all this while knowing how large the Sky Castle is?” It was called a ‘castle’, but it was so enormous that it was more like an island.
“Even if we make an opening somehow, it would be very short. At most, the detachment force would only be able to approach the Sky Castle and nothing more.”
The mission wouldn’t be over just because the detachment force reached the Sky Castle, they would need more time to destroy it. After all, the Sky Castle wasn’t a sand castle that would break from a kick. How long would they last after trespassing into its territory? They would have a hard time surviving a couple of minutes, much less hours. It seemed impossible that they would be able to thoroughly nullify the Sky Castle in such a short time; at least that was what everyone thought.
“What if it’s possible? And that momentary opening is enough?”
The Last Dragon stared at Yunael. In fact, all the members of humanity and the League were staring piercingly at Yunael.
“…It doesn’t sound like you are joking around,” the Last Dragon said. Considering the situation, it seemed Yunael was serious and had some kind of method in mind.
“Even if that’s the case,” the Last Dragon’s eyes turned cold as she glanced at Yunael. “Why should we listen to you? Not just us, why should all our forces that are protecting this place at the risk of their lives agree to face such danger?”
The Last Dragon wasn’t wrong. Depending on who said it, words carried different weights. Even though Yunael was a nameworthy hero in the Celestial Realm, that wasn’t the case at all on Liber. Among the Cassiubia League members, no one knew about the Tania family or was interested in it. She didn’t have any big accomplishment under her belt that would make her name known far and wide since she came to this planet, and she hadn’t made any noticeable achievements in this war either. If one ranked all the existences on Liber in the form of a pyramid, Yunael was very far down in comparison to the Last Dragon—so low that one wouldn’t be able to see her if they looked down from where the Last Dragon stood.
In short, the Last Dragon was basically saying in a roundabout way that Yunael was acting out of line, yet her sharp glare faltered a bit when she saw Yunael snort.
“I get what you are saying…so let me say this first.” Yunael cleared her throat. “This isn’t my idea.”
“What?”
“I’m just relaying the message I have been told to give you all. He’s the one who told me to do this and informed me of the way to go about it.”
“And who is this person you’re talking about?”
“Who else could it be?” Yunael replied. “The guy heading to Shalyh right now.”
Loud gasps poured out from everywhere. Even the Last Dragon was surprised to hear this.
“When?”
“While you were gone.” Yunael shrugged. “He suddenly dragged me someplace else and told me to feel pressured because there’s something I must do…if he hadn’t told me to do that, I wouldn’t have made the suggestion I just made. Do you think I’m crazy enough to do something that could kill us all if there’s a single mishap?”
The Last Dragon quickly read Yunael’s thoughts. Once she confirmed that Yunael wasn’t lying, she said, “In other words, you’re nothing more than a messenger, and everything you said until now comes directly from the leader of Seven Stars? Not a word is from your own mind? Is that right?”
“Yes, that’s true. But is there a need to word it like that?” Yunael grumbled.
The Last Dragon slapped her knees hard. “Oh, damn it. You should’ve told us that from the very beginning!”
“…Ah, yeah.” Yunael was a bit taken aback to hear the Last Dragon speak in a completely different tone. Besides her, everyone was looking at her differently now. The disapproving look they had shot her only a moment ago turned hopeful and expectant as they waited for Yunael to continue. It was only expected. In this war, Chi-Woo had extinguished many great demons, blocked the Sky Castle’s attack, and even defeated Bael in a one-on-one battle. Thus, currently, Chi-Woo had a great influence on the members of humanity and the Cassiubia League, and each of his words held significant weight.
“So, what is the method?” The Last Dragon rubbed both hands together and leaned forward.
Yunael let out a short sigh and smacked her lips. She had only mentioned Chi-Woo’s name, but their treatment of her changed so dramatically that it made her head spin.
***
As the Abyss King watched humanity and the Cassiubia League’s troops rushed toward them with a loud roar, he noticed a large shadow cast over him.
“…No matter how hard I think about it, I don’t understand,” the Abyss King murmured while slowly raising his head. “I’m sure you didn’t find it a bad idea to keep on waiting for the situation to unfold.” The Abyss King looked up at the dragon flying above him. The two exchanged glances.
“If you plan to retreat now, I won’t chase after you all,” the Abyss King declared.
“It’s us who’ll think about letting you all go if you decide to return to your respective territories,” the Last Dragon retorted.
Under the helmet, the Abyss King’s face turned solemn. Of course, the Last Dragon also noticed the change, because she felt the strong darkness around the Abyss King fluctuate wildly.
“Blame your folly, you foolish Last Dragon.”
The Last Dragon simply smirked at the Abyss King’s growling and opened her mouth. It was time for her to announce the start of the finale of this great festival. Not long afterward, giant pillars of fire shot out from her mouth and struck the ground.
***
Meanwhile, Chi-Woo and Bael’s second round of fighting began. Once Bael rushed toward him, Chi-Woo found it difficult to follow what he was seeing. It looked as if Bael’s body was wavering left and right. As lightning flashed, the left side seemed to spark. Then the moment he lost track of her movements, Chi-Woo quickly bent backward and felt something sweep past his chest.
Chi-Woo straightened his back and saw Bael with her left arm twisted backward. There was a loud bang, and his activated AI Armor shook relentlessly. Chi-Woo’s lips slightly parted. All he did was block her punch, but he felt a great amount of exorcism mana seep out of him. It was shocking how much mana he had lost from blocking just one attack.
Bael continued to move past him and raised her fist with her head tilted. Her body shuddered once, and she nodded with a smile. Soon, she turned around and kicked off the ground. Her body flew like a butterfly while her fist stung like a bee. Chi-Woo tried to counterattack while using the AI Armor as his defense, but he soon lost his balance from the shockwaves spreading through his entire body.
Chi-Woo was flustered. Even while he was backing away instinctively, he couldn’t hide his confusion. He managed to stop the blow, but couldn’t offset all the damage. Furthermore, parts of his AI Armor were broken through.
“I told you,” Bael said in delight while seeing Chi-Woo back away. “I’m stronger than you now!”
Chi-Woo regained his balance and collected his breath. He didn’t know how, but Bael was evolving continuously just like the king candidates at the Hala Forest. A possibility came to his mind then, but he couldn't dwell on it with Bael rushing at him.
‘A spear?’
Bael’s hands were empty, but she held herself as if she was holding a weapon and was planning to pierce him once she got in range. Thus, Chi-Woo assumed that Bael had something like a spear, and he was right. Bael rushed forward and reached out, and her arm extended the way Ismile’s body parts had done. Like rubber, her arm twisted into the shape of a sharp awl and thrust at him.
Chi-Woo was ready for a long-range attack, so he immediately slammed his ghost-busting club down to propel himself; and the awl-like arm struck the ground meaninglessly. Chi-Woo wanted to jump up and kick Bael’s chin as he had done in the last fight, but he could no longer do that. Because in the next moment, Bael’s arms returned to their original size, and her hand changed back to an awl form and swung at him again. Because of that, Chi-Woo couldn’t back away.
What followed was a loud cracking noise—it sounded like glass breaking. Chi-Woo was startled by what he saw. A good portion of his AI Armor was broken. Chi-Woo turned away to minimize the damage as much as possible and gritted his teeth. He instantly twisted his waist in the opposite direction and swung his club fiercely. Since it was a sudden attack, and they were close to one another, Chi-Woo thought his attack would surely land on Bael. Yet the ghost-busting club hit only air when Bael bent down by more than 90 degrees, her upper body sinking so low that it was eerie.
Then, she bounced back and swung her arms down with great force. Her arms flew out like two whips, and Chi-Woo quickly jumped off the ground. The ground shook tremendously with just one crack of the whip, and Chi-Woo groaned. Since he had the Armed with the Sixth Element within his possession, there was no reason for him to fight with his club alone. Chi-Woo landed on the shaking ground and extended his arms while running in a particular direction.
Light shot out straight ahead at Bael’s face, but Bael raised one arm and easily deflected the attack. Simultaneously, she used her other arm to aim for Chi-Woo. After taking a step back, Chi-Woo blocked the attack with his left arm, and from his right ear, he heard something flying across the air.
Whoosh. Before he realized it, Bael had approached from the right and was swinging her deathly fist at him. Chi-Woo hastily bent down and felt sharp winds sweep past him. He quickly moved away and straightened up; but as soon as he did, he had to turn around with full force as another whirlwind brushed past his cheeks.
Bael stopped moving for a moment and fixed her posture because while Chi-Woo was getting pushed back, he was enduring better than she expected him to. Then, she resumed the fight.
‘Damn it, damn it!’ Chi-Woo felt the whirling sharp wind around him and cursed under his breath. It felt as if he was being one-sidedly beaten up.
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