<b>C436</b><b> - </b><b>Raiders, Brothers (4)</b>


    The coldness spread like a spider''s web and quickly enveloped the assassin.


    He tried to escape but found himself powerless in his desperate attempts to avoid Tris''s sword with his feet bound.


    "Kuk...!"


    In just a few seconds, the assassin was trapped in Full Ice crystal, unable to move.


    He could barely move his eyeballs within the ice after a while.


    The reason he effortlessly dominated a 9-star Knight was that he was Tris Endorma.


    "Ung, you''ve frozen quite well. Wait there quietly until everything is sorted out. Don''t even think aboutmitting suicide or self-destructing. It''s not like you can lift a finger."


    Tris left the assassin behind and entered the interior of Tikan.


    Once again, she reflected on where she had seen him before.


    ''Oh, yes, it was about thirty years ago. It was the day I went to see Cyron.''


    About thirty years ago, there was a time when Tris had visited Cyron''s secret residence.


    The only reason Tris sought out Cyron at that time was for a duel.


    She couldn''t even remember how many times she had challenged Cyron, but she had been defeated by him over a hundred times.


    That day, her frustration was more intense than usual, even after losing.


    As a result, she continued causing a ruckus even after the duel ended and was determined to settle things once and for all.


    She barged into Cyron''s secret hideout, insulted him, and insisted on fighting him to the death.


    Well...


    It was a quite dark chapter when I think about it now.


    Back then, I felt like I might go crazy if I didn''t do something like that.


    In thest thousand years, the hidden pce had surpassed the power of Runcandel, but it wasn''t umon for the master of the hidden pce to possess powers superior to those of the patriarch of Runcandel.


    Tris also aspired to that goal and challenged Cyron every day. However, she never seeded.


    In any case, Cyron had tolerated the unruly Tris.


    <b>-Tris. Instead of aspiring to defeat me, it would be better to dream of surpassing Runcandel.</b>


    For Cyron, Tris was almost his only friend and someone who could provide him with the greatest help if he was ever consumed by "Chaos."


    There was no reason to kill her.


    However, for some of the Execution Knights who had witnessed everything, Tris was a thorn in their side at that time.


    Her disrespectful attitude towards Cyron was just the tip of the iceberg, and rumors about them spreading like a gue were also a problem.


    There were rumors that Cyron spared Tris''s life because he felt sympathy for her and was unable to harm her.


    I remember now...


    Luton Ferman, that was definitely his name.


    Luton Ferman.


    He was the assassin who had just been trapped in the ice crystal by Tris and had been the leader of the First Division of the Execution Knights about thirty years ago.


    Luton, along with the Execution Knights of that time, believed they had to confront Tris.


    They considered it a way to increase Cyron and the Family''s prestige.


    Of course, Cyron had never ordered them to attack Tris, but he hadn''t forbidden it either.


    This led Luton''s division members tounch an assault against Tris.


    ''They broke into the Hidden Pce uninvited, and I beat them to death.''


    Although Luton and hisrades were mostly 9-star knights, they couldn''t match Tris, especially within the Hidden Pce.


    Tris defeated and subdued the knights.


    She found their excessive loyalty adorable.


    It was fortunate that someone as cold and ruthless as Cyron had such devoted subordinates.


    So, although she didn''t appreciate Luton''s roughness and his team, she didn''t dislike them either.


    Tris never reported the knights'' insubordination to Cyron, and they continued to challenge her repeatedly (although they all conspired against her) and kept losing.


    It was somewhat simr to how Tris had acted with Cyron.


    She saw Luton and hisrades as passionate, pure, and beastly guys.


    In fact, she had developed a brief romantic rtionship with some of them, and Luton had been one of them.


    Tris couldn''t help butugh as vivid memories began to resurface.


    However, her expression immediately hardened afterward as she couldn''t help but think.


    Seeing how he speaks now, he seems like someone who has lived as a wanderer, but why did such a loyal guy end up like this?


    Maybe the others who attacked Tikan with him are also exiles.


    I don''t think Cyron did this to them.


    If Cyron really wanted to eliminate them, he would have done it cleanly, but disfiguring their faces to that extent wasn''t Cyron''s style.


    ''Whatever happened is Runcandel''s business, and I shouldn''t interfere. However, if possible, I would like my son-inw to absorb those disgraced beasts.''


    If Jin bes the patriarch of Runcandel, in Tris''s eyes, they would be a significant force if Jin could absorb those exiles.


    Even if they weren''t absorbed as a force, these exiles could be an important pretext when dealing with the Elder Council in the future.


    At first nce, the interior of Tikan seemed like a battlefield.


    The sky was darkened by the Full Ice curtain and Murakan''s shadow force, and below, a mixture of mana and aura caused explosions on every level (the Tikan Free City has a tower-shaped structure).


    But contrary to appearances, the interior remained unharmed.


    This was thanks to the reinforcement from the Hidden Pce and the fact that the territory was small, making it easy for dragons to quickly inspect it from the air.


    Murakan and Quikantel flew between levels, rescuing civilians who hadn''t managed to evade the chaos.


    Jin, Siris, the Seven Swords of the Hidden Pce, the Tona brothers, and Tikan''srades contained the assassins.


    Tris rode Full Ice and quickly inspected all levels.


    She lent her power to those who seemed to need it.


    "Son-inw, I''ve discovered who these intruders are..."


    Tris approached Jin and began to speak but stopped mid-sentence because she had never seen Jin in that state before.


    The Jin who was killing the assassins had an almost demonic face.


    The depth of his anger and bloodlust was so astonishing that even Tris felt taken aback.


    He looks a lot like his father in this state.


    She had seen something simr in her youth when Cyron filled with hatred after losing hisrades.


    Perhaps what she saw in Jin was even more intense.


    After all, there was still no confirmation of any casualties among hisrades.


    Although the assassins were not all former Execution Knights, they were all highly skilled individuals.


    However, Jin effortlessly mowed them down as if they were dead leaves.


    "You wretches dare to attack here...!"


    Jin quickly turned his head to look at Tris. He had btedly sensed her presence and managed to regainposure. He pushed back the emotions that had overwhelmed his senses.


    "I apologize, Lady Tris. I didn''t hear you well. Please repeat what you said."


    "I mentioned that I had discovered the identity of these intruders. They are exiles from Runcandel."


    "I suspected as much. There are only a limited number of organizations capable of mobilizing mercenaries of this caliber..."


    "Hmm. Some of them, including the one I just faced outside, may have a past as former Execution Knights. Before considering annihting them all, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to have a conversation with them if Tikan''s losses are not too great. Some of them weren''t so bad from what I recall."


    Jin nodded.


    "I will do that, Tris-nim."


    "It seemed like you had turned into a furious demon a moment ago, but you recoveredposure very quickly."


    Jin awkwardly smiled at Tris''s words.


    "It was a mistake. I had been prepared for the possibility of something like this happening, but it wasn''t easy to control my anger when facing it directly."


    What if Tris had been absent?


    What if Mort couldn''t use dimensional jump in the current situation?


    What if he was in a ce where he couldn''t receive updates from Kashimir and Petro?


    These assumptions had fueled Jin''s anger.


    "Fortunately, there doesn''t seem to be significant damage, from what I observed whileing here. There hasn''t been a single visible casualty so far."


    "Even among civilians?"


    "Yes. Although there is considerable damage to buildings and facilities. Once you have subdued them, you can assess the exact extent of the damage yourself. Also, keep in mind that the assassins may be your allies, given their status as exiles. Show them a little mercy."


    "Thank you, Tris-nim."


    "If you''re grateful, marry my daughter as soon as possible."


    Jin didn''t respond to that statement and just nodded.


    On the night they discussed in the Hidden Pce, Jin and Siris had agreed to ignore Tris''s frequent mentions of their marriage.


    <b>[Jin.]</b>


    While flying, Quikantel spotted Jin and descended to the ground.


    "Quikantel-nim! Is everyone safe?"


    <b>[The mansion has suffered no damage. It''s thanks to your swift arrival with Murakan and the Hidden Pce group.]</b>


    Jin sighed in relief upon hearing that, and Quikantel and Tris exchanged greetings with a nod of the head.


    <b>[You have my gratitude, Fifty-First Master of the Hidden Pce.]</b>


    "Don''t mention it. I''ve heard you often had connections with my predecessors. I look forward to your kind cooperation."


    The terrorist attack waspletely suppressed within 30 minutes after Jin, Murakan, and the Hidden Pce group arrived at Tikan.


    The assassins who attacked Tikan numbered seventy in total.


    In addition to the twenty encountered by the Tona brothers, fifty assassins had entered from the opposite direction.


    Once Tris confirmed the magnitude of the attack, she judged that Tikan would have been safe even if they hadn''t arrived.


    "It seems that the elders of your Family thought Quikantel-nim wasn''t here and sent only this number."


    If Quikantel hadn''t been there, and if Jin''s reinforcements hadn''t arrived promptly, these attackers would have been more than capable ofpletely destroying Tikan.


    Jin looked at the assassins who had been captured and brought to the mansion.


    There was Lutan Ferman, who was bound with ice crystal, another former execution knight in exile, and three normal assassins.


    All the others had been killed by Jin and hisrades.


    Jin addressed the three ordinary assassins.


    "Are you exiles from Runcandel too?"


    "No."


    "You could have done the same if the roles were reversed. Don''t assume that I''m unjustly judging you."


    sh!


    Jin ended the lives of those three without hesitation.


    He didn''t wield the sword with rage, as before.


    After all, they had to pay for attacking his territory without sufficient reason.


    Now there were two exiled former Execution Knights left.


    Jin''s cold gaze settled on them.


    "How dare you touch this ce despite being exiles? I can''t understand what promises the Elder Council made to you. Or perhaps, did the elders take your families as hostages?"


    "All members of our family were killed a long time ago. It happened on the same day we were exiled. Did you ask why we attacked under the orders of the Elder Council despite being exiles, Twelfth gbearer?"


    Lutan spoke in a low and cold voice.


    "For revenge."


    <b>-</b>


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