Chapter 26: Conquest

In-gong ran like the wind. He became a gale which crossed the space.

Aura and magic power rose from his dragon heart at the same time. The quad-core, created by adding magic power to the auras from the Moonlight Core, pure aura heart and the dragon heart, proved terrifying.

The Famine Knight was confused and missed In-gong’s movement. By the time the Famine Knight recovered his spirit, In-gong was already at his side.

The left side of Gerard’s body hadn’t remained intact. Therefore, his reaction was slow. Using Gerard’s memory, he defended reflexively, but In-gong’s attack was quicker than that.

In-gong’s power exploded outwards. The white aura burst, and the Famine Knight was pushed sideways. Moreover, that wasn’t the end. The Famine Knight saw the white aura flying toward him. It was the Lightning technique of Divine Sura Authority.

Kwakakakang!

It was like a lightning strike. No, it was already lightning. The divine power from the last flame tore into the left side of the Famine Knight. The Famine Knight couldn’t withstand it and screamed. It was an eerie feeling, like his left half was being torn apart!

“Kuaaah!”

The Famine Knight howled like a beast. He tried to spread the power of Famine in every direction and widened the distance between him and In-gong. The divine nature of the power made it even more painful.

In-gong didn’t approach the Famine Knight carelessly. He understood it the moment he hit the Famine Knight with Lightning—

He understood the reason why Silvan was dying, and the feat he had accomplished. The power of Famine was filling the left half of the Famine Knight’s body, meaning it wasn’t a real body. Silvan had used the fairy. It was clear he had used this power against the Famine Knight.

The final boss on the ‘Day of Massacre’ had always been Silvan. He had the fairy. In Knight Saga, he was the child of the demon king with the strongest magic power.

Silvan had protected Felicia. He had lasted until In-gong managed to arrive, and now, Silvan was dying.

In-gong’s anger flared. He remembered the Famine Knight laughing in front of Felicia, then he remembered how happy Silvan was to receive Amita’s sword. In-gong knew without even looking—Silvan had opened the fairy without any hesitation in order to defend Felicia, even though he had known it would lead to his death!

In-gong’s anger exploded, and the white and green aura grew even bigger.

The Famine Knight was unable to move his hands or feet, and it wasn’t just due to embarrassment. He was close to suffering from irreversible injuries.

It was just for a moment, but it was overwhelming. The existence before his eyes was the Conquest Knight! Don’t make him laugh!

The Famine Knight was in denial. He couldn’t admit it at all.

Gerard’s memories helped him regain his posture, then the Famine Knight rushed toward In-gong.

The two attacks collided. There were more than a dozen flashes in an instant. A white and black aura collided as the entire ruin shook.

The Famine Knight was once again confused. The presence before him, the Conquest Knight, had less martial art ability than Silvan. However, he was more difficult to deal with. It wasn’t simply a difference in momentum.

Gerard’s memory knew why, and the reason was simple.

In-gong knew much more about Divine Beast Authority than Silvan. He was used to dealing with Divine Beast Authority.

Divine Beast Authority was the foundation of In-gong’s Divine Sura Authority. He had accumulated battle experience with Divine Beast Authority through sparring with Caitlin.

It would have been a different story if the Famine Knight was in his usual state before Silvan opened the fairy. However, the Famine Knight had now lost their left and right sides. Despite Gerard’s memories as the strongest lycanthrope, it was unreasonable for him to exert his full capabilities.

Kwa kwang!

A howl burst from the chest of the Famine Knight. Once again, there was the power of an explosion, and the Famine Knight groaned in protest. It wasn’t the same Divine Beast Authority. In-gong’s explosion surpassed that of Divine Beast Authority. Gerard remembered that the power of Divine Sura Authority was superior to Divine Beast Authority, but the Famine Knight didn’t understand this fact immediately.

There was a gap. The Famine Knight wasn’t Gerard. He just had Gerard’s memories. The gap between the two of them widened dramatically, causing a huge weakness.

The Famine Knight continued to move his hands and feet. As the slugfest continued, more and more of In-gong’s attacks hit.

The power of Famine couldn’t drain In-gong’s aura. The power of Conquest, surging from the king’s flag, offset the power of Famine. It didn’t stop there and also suppressed the left and right sides which were made up of the power of Famine.

The Famine Knight used Arang. In-gong used Arang like a mirror and blocked it. Just in regards to the perfection of the techniques, Gerard’s memories were still superior, but In-gong filled the gap with a huge amount of aura.

At that moment, the Famine Knight twisted and struck In-gong’s chest. It was a close range attack of Divine Beast Authority.

In-gong’s body shook as something pierced through it like a drill. However, the destruction the Famine Knight had expected didn’t happen. In-gong endured the power, and the result was something that Gerard’s memories couldn’t imagine.

[Greedy Wolf Lv1 has been learnt.]

In-gong struck the Famine Knight’s chest with Greedy Wolf. A hole formed in the black smoke which made up the Famine Knight’s left side. The Famine Knight staggered, and In-gong gritted his teeth. In-gong was someone who had endured a monstrous attack from Vandal. He swallowed back the pain Greedy Wolf caused him and stretched out his fist again. In-gong placed his right hand in the hole in the Famine Knight’s chest and the power of Conquest exploded!

Kwang!

The left half of the Famine Knight was scattered instantly. The black smoke scattered everywhere, and In-gong kicked the Famine Knight. The current passage was moderately wide, but the body of the Famine Knight struck a wall and made a loud noise.

Then In-gong held him up there with Telekinesis. When the Famine Knight was fixed to the wall, White Eagle and Black Eagle, which had been waiting for this moment, rushed to the Famine Knight!

Kwakang!

They were like meteors. Green light emitted from the black and white shields, turning Gerard’s body into a ragdoll. His body was shattered and the limbs cut off.

“Kuaaaak!”

The Famine Knight shrieked with pain. At that moment, the power of Famine exploded. The power of Famine was being forced out because the Famine Knight was giving up on Gerard’s body. The darkness rose like an angry flame and swallowed In-gong!

“Shutra!”

Felicia screamed. At the same time, Famine shouted. He hated In-gong.

“Drain! Destroy him!”

It was a terrible feeling. A terrible affection.

The power of Famine bit at In-gong, then the power of Conquest tried to protect In-gong, and Famine felt hostility.

At that moment, Famine could no longer tolerate it. He poured out his emotions toward Conquest, the white woman with red and blue eyes. Famine was close to screaming.

Why? Why did she block them? Why was she fighting against her own?

Famine didn’t know. He couldn’t understand it.

Why did she betray them and go on the opposite side?

Conquest, War, Death and Famine… The four riders of destruction— They were presences that longed for the end of the world.

However, that wasn’t the case now. Conquest had betrayed the rest. As the ruler, she should be at the forefront of the riders, so the remaining three were hostile toward her. What was the cause? Did the fight 1,000 years ago change her? Did the fight from that time destroy her?

The power of Famine became even stronger, and he used his emotions as fuel. It seemed like he would soon destroy In-gong. However, Conquest didn’t back down. In the midst of the darkness, the white aura shone even brighter.

In-gong finally understood.

The woman with one red and one blue eye…

Conquest—

She didn’t want it anymore. She didn’t want the end of civilization, the extermination of all life. Despite being born for destruction, she longed to maintain the world. It was her dream. It was why she chose a knight who didn’t want destruction like the other riders. Far from conquering In-gong, her desire was for In-gong to conquer her.

[The level of Conquest has risen.]

[The level of Conquest Knight has risen.]

[The level of The King’s Knights has risen.]

[The level of Conquest Knight has risen.]

The voice rang in his ears. From the deep depths of In-gong’s soul, the white woman smiled sadly.

In-gong formed a fist. The armour of the elder dragons, the riders’ enemies, gave strength to In-gong. The power of Conquest which radiated from Earth Quaker, which was growling furiously, destroyed the darkness of Famine.

The power of Famine was scattered…

And the power of Conquest took its place.

In-gong, the person who had been born as a true Conquest Knight, looked down while he was enveloped by a white light. He stepped forward as he gazed at the power of Famine which remained in the caricature of Gerard.

The Famine Knight hurled curses at In-gong. He spewed out from Gerard’s memories of hatred. In-gong received all the hatred and struck the final blow toward the Famine Knight’s chest.

Gerard’s body was completely destroyed. Famine lost its container and was sent away, and the ominous feeling which filled the ruin was washed clean.

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

[Your level has risen.]

In-gong heard the voice three times, but he couldn’t rest yet. He turned and looked at Felicia and Silvan. Felicia was still crying, and tears were flowing endlessly down her cheeks.

“Save him. Save him, Shutra.”

Felicia begged while holding Silvan’s head, but it was just a desperate plea. Even Felicia, a magician, couldn’t think of a way to save Silvan. She was forced to watch Silvan die.

In-gong approached Felicia, then he saw Silvan smiling. He had a really satisfied smile on his face.

Felicia was saved. She had survived. Silvan could rest now. As Felicia was now secured, Silvan tried to let go of his string of life.

However, In-gong didn’t tolerate it. He stretched out his hand toward the fairy inside Silvan.

In-gong used the power of Conquest.

In Knight Saga, Silvan and the fairy hadn’t been on In-gong’s side.

However, the battle with Silvan on the ‘Day of Massacre’ had been so impressive that In-gong remembered the general characteristics. Silvan’s magic power had been exhausted, and he died.

In order to prevent this, In-gong had to stop the fairy from emitting an endless amount of magic power.

The power of Conquest emerged from In-gong’s palm and revolved around the fairy. As expected, In-gong frowned at the result.

The fairy wasn’t like a separate item. It was a part of Silvan and was connected to Silvan’s soul, so it wasn’t possible to conquer it separately.

If so, there was only one way remaining.

“Shutra?”

Felicia wept as she called for him. She gasped as she read In-gong’s expression and poured out,

“Is there a way? Is something wrong?”

Her words were deteriorating. It wasn’t a situation where she could speak properly as per usual. However, her thoughts were still clear. She didn’t miss the fact that there was a way for In-gong to save Silvan. Felicia grasped In-gong’s hand tightly.

“Please. Please, I’ll do anything. I’ll do whatever I have to as long as Silvan will live. Please. Please, Shutra.”

Felicia wept and begged, bowing her head several times while talking.

In-gong closed his eyes. He had no choice now. He had to do it. He couldn’t do anything that would leave an irrevocable wound in Felicia’s heart.

However, that wasn’t the only reason. He didn’t want to lose Silvan either. In-gong wanted to save this silly man.

In-gong settled his heart and opened his eyes. As he pushed Felicia’s hand away gently, In-gong spoke to Silvan,

“Silvan hyung, can you hear my voice? There is only one way to save Hyung. You must accept my rule—become my knight. It is a magic ritual, so you shouldn’t reject it. This way, I can save Hyung.”

He had to make Silvan a member of the King’s Knights. The Conquest Coat of Arms would be carved on Silvan, and he would be under In-gong’s rule. Then it would be possible to influence the fairy without conquering it.

After In-gong accepted Vandal, the King’s Knights were at full capacity. However, the level of Conquest rose in the battle against the Famine Knight, and it was the same for the King’s Knights. The positions in the King’s Knights increased from five to seven people, so he had room to accept Silvan.

The problem was something else. How would he explain to Felicia and Silvan about controlling the fairy? Could it be a gandharva magic or a unique family magic?

While that might work on others, it was no longer the case with Felicia; this was the limit.

However, he couldn’t give up on Silvan. So, In-gong was prepared for whatever happened.

Then something unexpected occurred. Silvan’s expression cracked after hearing In-gong’s explanation. Despite facing death, Silvan was satisfied Felicia was still alive, but there was an expression of fierce rejection on his face.

“No…”

Silvan squeezed out. Felicia stared at Silvan with shock.

“Silvan?!”

Silvan no longer had the power to move his head and simply stared at Felicia with dull eyes. He wanted to reassure her and managed to speak after some difficulty.

“I… Felicia’s… knight… I swore… geis…”

“You fool! You will die! Die!”

Felicia’s shout struck like a thunderbolt, but Silvan didn’t listen and simply smiled. However, the strong feeling of rejection could be felt.

It wasn’t mere stubborness. Silvan had mentioned a geis, a magic oath. Felicia also knew about that. So, thoughts ran through her mind desperately. As a good magician, she found the answer and grabbed In-gong’s hand once again. She poured out her words,

“Shutra, I will be your knight. If I go under you, Silvan, my knight, will become your knight, right?”

There was no contradiction in her logic. In-gong had a blank expression, while Delia couldn’t help feeling shocked.

However, Felicia just stared at In-gong with unwavering eyes and said,

“If you become the demon king, I will be your subordinate anyway. I know there is a magic ritual, but it doesn’t matter. It’s okay. Save him, Shutra.”

There were several magic spells in the Demon World which could bind an oath or relationship and some were worse than In-gong’s spell. There was magic which could give pain every time an order was disobeyed or even magic in which the master held the power of life or death.

It was the reason for Delia’s shock. Felicia’s situation was different from that of Silvan’s, whose life was at stake. Moreover, Felicia and Silvan had completely different positions. Being in a matriarchal society, Felicia was destined to become the next leader of the dark elves; she was going to become queen of the dark elves.

However, Felicia was already determined. Delia opened her mouth to stop Felicia, but in the end, she couldn’t say anything. Her mouth opened and closed a few times before simply she bowed her head.

In-gong also made a decision. If it was Felicia, he didn’t mind giving away the last spot in the King’s Knights. No, he actually wanted to give it to her as she was precious to him.

In-gong nodded and looked back at Silvan. He placed both his hands on Felicia and Silvan’s foreheads.

“Did you hear that, Hyung? I’m starting.”

Silvan couldn’t answer. His time was truly numbered.

Felicia bit her lip to restrain her nervousness. In-gong first cast the King’s Knights on Felicia.

“Felicia Doomblade, I appoint you as my knight.”

The power of Conquest enveloped Felicia, and she accepted In-gong’s rule without rejecting it. Felicia became the sixth King’s Knight. On Felicia’s forehead, the white Conquest Coat of Arms emerged.

Next was Silvan. In-gong activated the King’s Knights once again. There was only a short moment of rejection due to the dark elves’ geis, then Silvan also accepted In-gong’s rule. He became the seventh knight, and the same coat of arms appeared on his forehead.

Then the King’s Knights took effect. The benefits offered to the knights were also shared with Felicia and Silvan.

Felicia’s eyes widened with surprise. It wasn’t just stronger physical ability but magic power as well.

It was also effective on Silvan. His magic power had almost been drained, but there was now a little bit of time before that.

In-gong followed up with the power of Conquest. It acted like reins on a wild horse to pull back the raging fairy. Unlike Felicia and Silvan, the fairy resisted violently, but it was useless. Conquest was much stronger than before and instantly pushed down the fairy’s resistance, subjugating it.

‘Rule.’

The white woman said. In-gong obeyed her voice and controlled the fairy. He closed the hole which was leaking magic power and put the fairy to sleep.

The sight of the white light was truly beautiful and mysterious. As soon as the fairy became quiet, Silvan closed his eyes. His magic power had stopped leaking, and he had a very calm expression on his face.

In-gong let out a breath as the urgent fire was put out. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and saw that Felicia was teary-eyed once again.

Felicia laughed like a fool. She touched Silvan’s forehead and cheek, and cried again. Then she opened her arms toward In-gong, who understood what she meant. Silvan was using her knees as a pillow, so she couldn’t move to hug him.

Felicia was obviously taller than In-gong, but right now, she felt small and slender. Felicia grabbed In-gong tightly and burst into tears again. She cried like a child.

“Shutra, Shutra.”

‘I was so scared. So scared. I thought Silvan would die and leave me forever. Delia almost died, Sepira’s arm was cut off, and the crew members are dead.’

Felicia wasn’t able to speak these words. She then fainted in In-gong’s arms. The tension had been so tight that she collapsed as soon as it was released.

In-gong hugged Felicia tightly once more before handing her over to Delia. He saw Sepira seat herself carefully next to Silvan, then she started weeping.

One wrist had been cut off cleanly. A simple recovery spell stopped it from bleeding. In-gong used recovery magic on Felicia and purified Sepira’s arm. As she was bathed in the magic light, Sepira bowed with a humble expression. There was a deep emotion of appreciation on her face.

It was In-gong who had saved Silvan’s life. So, for Sepira, In-gong was a lifesaver.

In-gong faced Sepira and examined the extent of her wound. This was a world where regeneration magic existed, so she might not always be crippled.

After worrying about Sepira, In-gong got up and looked around.

Black ash was scattered at the place where the Famine Knight had died. It was the trail of the person who had previously been Gerard.

Famine hadn’t died. He had just been expelled from Gerard’s body. However, he wouldn’t be able to intervene for the time being.

This was quite natural because of the true story of the Conquest Knight.

Conquest, the red and blue eyed woman, didn’t want the end of the world. So, she chose to fight against the other riders.

In-gong was able to understand Famine’s and Death’s hatred. He could see why War looked at Conquest with a mixture of dislike and goodwill.

They were Conquest’s brothers and sisters, friends and lovers. From their standpoint, Conquest was the worst traitor.

In-gong closed his eyes and calmed his mind. For now, it was enough that he understood Conquest’s true dream. He would gradually learn more.

‘Then let’s move on.’

It was hard to imagine the Famine Knight showed up because of Felicia and Silvan. Perhaps the ruin itself was his goal.

‘Is there something like the Moonlight Extract?’

This was a ruin which hadn’t appeared in Knight Saga, so In-gong didn’t know what was inside it.

In-gong arranged his thoughts and picked up Amita’s sword from the ground. Then he exclaimed unknowingly with admiration.

As expected from Amita… The sword was infused with the fairy’s magic power, but the blade was still fine.

Silvan had been able to destroy half of the Famine Knight due to Amita’s sword. In Knight Saga, Silvan didn’t have a sword strong enough to endure the fairy’s magic power. So, when he opened the fairy, he couldn’t use his special swordsmanship.

In-gong laughed as he was reminded of Amita slamming their tail against the ground.

Then a voice was heard from right beside him,

“Master, is it over?”

It was Green Wind, who had become solid. In-gong looked at her and nodded.

“Roughly. Now, let’s return to the Black Flame Dragon.”

The Black Flame Dragon was near the entrance to the ruin. In-gong hadn’t been able to look at the situation there because he had been flying so quickly, but he could guess. If the Famine Knight had entered through the entrance, then the crew of the Black Flame Dragon wouldn’t have been safe.

He felt saddened as he remembered the crew members who laughed so happily. As his shoulders sagged without him realising, Green Wind pouted and moved into In-gong’s field of view.

She tilted her head and looked up at In-gong like she had something to say.

“Green Wind?”

As In-gong called her name, Green Wind straightened and spoke in a slightly exaggerated tone,

“I flew an incredibly long distance today. I did plenty of worthwhile work. So far, I have been waiting patiently.”

It was a face that wanted praise. In-gong had the gut feeling that Green Wind wasn’t acting like this simply because she wanted praise. She was trying to change In-gong’s mood, and it was quite charming.

A smile formed on In-gong’s face. He looked at the cute and lovely Green Wind and couldn’t help wanting to praise her.

“Yes, that’s right. As expected of Greenie. You did really well. If it hadn’t been for Greenie, I wouldn’t have been able to save Felicia, Silvan and the others.”

In-gong stroked Green Wind’s head while praising her in an exaggerated manner.

Instead of her usual reaction, Green Wind blushed and puffed out her cheeks like she didn’t know what to do. In-gong asked with confusion,

“Why? Uh, did I pet you wrong?’

Was she sick of too much petting?

Green Wind shook her head at In-gong’s question.

“Ah, no, I just suddenly felt embarrassed. Master, keep praising me. I did something worthy of praise.”

Green Wind said, hitting her chest.

Her appearance was very cute, but In-gong didn’t start praising her again.

“Sorry, let’s do the rest later. Can you help me move Silvan-hyung?”

The size of the shield was quite large when White Eagle and Black Eagle were combined, so it was possible to carry Silvan in a lying down state.

“I am Master’s. I will follow Master’s commands.”

Green Wind returned to White Eagle.

As Delia and Sepira loaded Silvan on White Eagle, In-gong suddenly raised his head and looked up at the sky. The moon, which had been hiding in the clouds, was suddenly revealed.

&

“Noona, I have a confession.”

In-gong returned to the Black Flame Dragon. He had already expected it, but the area surrounding the Black Flame Dragon was calm. The black ash on the ground and the dry, broken body parts made it obvious as to what had happened.

Sepira couldn’t speak. She was doing her best to act as calmly as possible, but she was clearly emotional. She staggered as her eyes were busy looking around, hoping to spot any survivors.

In-gong, who carried Felicia on his back, didn’t try to stop Sepira. It wasn’t easy to say comforting words, so he just boarded the Black Flame Dragon quietly. He also thought it was lucky Felicia and Silvan had lost consciousness.

Having stayed on the Black Flame Dragon before, he knew its structure and headed straight to the captain’s room. However, In-gong checked the mini-map, as was his habit, and his eyes widened.

“There are survivors!”

Sepira rushed up the stairs at In-gong’s cry. Instead of waiting for her, In-gong headed straight to the place where the survivors were. It was the crew room.

There was an awful smell as soon as he opened the door. Delia, who was standing behind In-gong, blinked with confusion.

“The smell of alcohol?”

There were three crew members on the floor. There was one woman and two men. The thing they all had in common was the terrible smell of alcohol. One of them was still holding a big bottle.

After arriving late, Sepira sighed as soon as she saw the three people. Then she turned toward In-gong with a somewhat embarrassed face.

“Today was their day off.”

It seemed like they had drunk alcohol and gone to sleep without noticing the disturbance. They were lucky.

If the mission had been accomplished as usual, Sepira would have told them off for drinking and falling asleep even though it was their day off. However, the survival of the three people cut through her tension, and she started crying.

“There are three more people, so moving the Black Flame Dragon won’t be a problem.”

Sepira dried her tears and told In-gong. In-gong was gladdened by this and headed toward the captain’s room.

In-gong sighed as he watched Silvan and Felicia laying side by side on the big bed. As he watched the two people sleeping peacefully, In-gong’s heart calmed.

‘Carack will be worried.’

He had simply left without explaining properly.

The distance to the fourth base wasn’t that far, so long range communication should be possible. He felt sorry for the worried Carack, but the quickest he could send some news was tomorrow.

‘I saved Call.’

The reason why he hadn’t called Vandal in the fight against the Famine Knight was because Vandal’s current location was too far away.

As the level of the King’s Knights increased, the distance of Call also increased, so it might be possible one day. However, there was no reason to use it.

He accepted Felicia and Silvan as members of his knights, so he wanted to save Call.

In-gong arranged his thoughts and turned his gaze to Delia. She was very tired and wanted to rest, but he needed to know the situation. After leaving Felicia and Silvan to Sepira, he took Delia to an empty room nearby in order to hear her story.

They had been writing down the unknown characters from the indigenous species when the Famine Knight entered suddenly. Based on the story, the purpose of the Famine Knight seemed to be the ruin, like In-gong had surmised, and not Silvan and Felicia.

In-gong then decided to stop here and rest for today. He was curious about the characters carved in the ruin, but he couldn’t leave Felicia and Silvan alone on the Black Flame Dragon.

In-gong sent Delia to take care of Felicia and lay down on a bed. It had been a huge day for In-gong as well. There were no problems with his stamina thanks to the constant level ups, but his nerves were still frayed.

“Protect the perimeter.”

“I will. Goodnight, My Master.”

Green Wind kissed In-gong gently on the forehead before scattering back into wind.

In-gong closed his eyes, and soon, he fell into a deep sleep.

&

“Master, wake up. It is morning.”

Instead of Carack’s rough voice, Green Wind’s soft voice tickled his ears. In-gong opened his eyes slowly and saw Green Wind. She handed In-gong a glass of water and said,

“I saw what the orc did. Here is a cup of cold water to drink. I’ve also prepared water to wash up.”

He turned away from Green Wind’s bright eyes and saw the basin beside the bed. It was filled with cold water.

“How is it, Master? Aren’t you fine without the orc?”

“Yes.”

Green Wind laughed at In-gong’s words. Her face was so beautiful that In-gong refrained from saying Carack would have prepared a towel to clean his face.

Anyhow, In-gong woke up thanks to Green Wind and headed to the captain’s room. He looked at the time displayed on the mini-map and saw that it was already noon.

“You’ve come. Both of them are calm.”

Delia welcomed him as he entered the captain’s room. Sepira had fallen asleep while sitting down. She and Delia had alternated guarding Felicia and Silvan. Delia had dark circles under her eyes, but her expression was bright. In-gong felt sorry toward Delia and made up his mind—one more hand was needed to help.

“So, that is why you called me?”

“Yes, you are a perfect housewife.”

In-gong muttered as he summoned Carack.

“That—I thought it was because there was a crisis.”

“Then would you like to change your position?”

“I will work hard.”

Carack whined playfully, and In-gong just laughed. Another reason was that he wanted to experience the increased distance of Call after the level up.

“How has it been?”

“There was an uproar. Prince left with just the words that 6th Princess was in danger. 8th Princess had just arrived and was talking to me, so she must have been surprised when I disappeared.”

It was a natural story. Moreover, it was a dangerous situation, so it was frustrating not knowing the situation.

‘Caitlin will worry a lot.’

An image of Caitlin stomping her feet came to his mind clearly.

“Anyway, I want to ask you to handle the work. Both Delia and Sepira are too tired.”

“Understood. Leave it to me.”

Carack pounded his chest with a trustworthy face and walked out of the room. As expected, he showed his skills. Thanks to that, Delia and Sepira’s feelings seemed to deepen, but In-gong could understand. It was enough that Nayatra didn’t join them.

Time passed, and it became evening. Silvan was still asleep, but Felicia had woken up. She washed up and had a meal with Delia’s help, then watched In-gong with teary eyes again. She hugged In-gong and thanked him repeatedly.

Thanks to Felicia, In-gong barely managed to ask Carack and Delia to leave the room. He had something that he could discuss only with Felicia. Delia exchanged glances with Felicia before leaving the room, then In-gong put Felicia back on the bed. He sat down in a chair opposite her.

Felicia opened her fan and covered her face because of a simple reason:

“I’m so embarrassed.”

The tips of her long ears were red. She had cried most of yesterday and was doing the same today. In-gong laughed because she looked pretty cute.

“Isn’t it too late now?”

“It is really embarrassing.”

Felicia complained before fanning herself a few times, then she faced In-gong with a well-prepared expression.

“Okay, I am ready. You can speak now.”

“Noona, I have a confession.”

“Wait a minute, wait a minute.”

Felicia hurried to restrain In-gong as she fanned herself and took deep breaths. Her embarrassed gaze peeked at In-gong from behind the fan.

Then after a few minutes, Felicia took a deep breath and told In-gong again,

“Okay, again.”

“I have a confession.”

In-gong and Felicia burst out laughing. Felicia stared at In-gong and said,

“You will tell me now?”

“Yes, I think I can speak if it is Noona.”

It was a secret he kept even from Carack. It was a very important secret that related directly to In-gong. However, it would be okay if the other person was Felicia.

In-gong stared straight into Felicia’s red eyes and said,

“Felicia noona, I am a Conquest Knight.”

They were short and simple words.

In-gong swallowed his saliva while Felicia rolled her eyes. Then she called out to In-gong,

“Shutra.”

“Huh?”

“What is that?”

The serious atmosphere was broken, but this was also good. In-gong nodded and said,

“Let me explain.”

“Uh, that… In summary. There are four beings who yearn for the end of the world, and each of them chose four knights which are referred to as the Four Knights of the Apocalypse. They are Conquest, War, Death and Famine… and you are the Conquest Knight?”

In-gong nodded at Felicia’s question. Then Felicia continued to narrow it down.

“Among the four, Conquest betrayed the rest, and she longs for the maintenance of this world, not its destruction. Therefore, she decided on a knight like Shutra, who wants to protect the world. Apart from her, the other three are still working toward the end of the world. Gerard was the Famine Knight, while the enemies with the violet aura which we dealt with several times are associated with the Death Knight. Whereas, the barbarians were associated with the War Knight.”

“That’s right.”

Felicia quickly understood. She accepted In-gong’s story and sighed.

“It is the first time I’ve heard of this, but… I am convinced. Everything fits.”

With Shutra’s explanation, the questions in her head started to be answered one by one.

Felicia asked In-gong,

“Shutra, have you only recently awakened as a Conquest Knight?”

“That’s right. It happened during the Red Lightning tribe mission.”

Felicia closed her eyes at In-gong’s answer. This time, it really did make sense. The Prince of Scraps, the incompetent 9th Prince had only started to show his greatness during the Red Lightning tribe mission.

“But then… I can’t imagine what it is like to be a knight. In a sense, Conquest is like a divine being, isn’t she? Have you received a revelation?”

“It’s not like that… I just know in the moment. Oh, I’m also a knight, not Conquest. In fact, I only recently came to know about the rest of the beings and their knights. I had to do my own research.”

“Indeed… Anyway, one mystery has been solved. Somehow, even if you were a genius, it was too much. Nevertheless, Shutra is a special person.”

Shutra had become too strong in such a short period of time. This was due to the power of Conquest.

‘There is also Protagonist Correction.’

However, he couldn’t talk about that.

In-gong watched Felicia and said,

“Noona is also special. So, I am confessing this secret.”

His words were flattery, but they were also true. Felicia spread open the fan again and said,

“At any rate, it is good. I really appreciate it. Especially the fact that I am the first to know this secret.”

Caitlin and Chris didn’t know this story. Just like when she found out about the inventory, Felicia was competing with Caitlin and Chris strangely.

“Okay, Shutra. You’ve told me the story, so I will tell you my conclusions.”

Felicia folded her fan with a loud sound and leaned closer to In-gong.

“For now, let’s keep it a secret.”

There was no smile on Felicia’s face. She was currently very serious.

“It is fine to report that the group attacking us consists of the Death Knight and War Knight. Maybe the Demon King’s Palace already knows about the Four Knights of the Apocalypse. They have great knowledge after all.”

Felicia was a ruins expert, but she was only 20 years old. The Demon King’s Palace had a vast collection of knowledge Felicia didn’t know. There might be something about the Four Knights of the Apocalypse in there.

So, they could tell the Demon King’s Palace that the Death and War Knights were attacking. Maybe they already knew about it.

“But we must hide the fact that Shutra is the Conquest Knight.”

Felicia grasped In-gong’s hand tightly. It was a warm hand.

“Shutra, I trust you. I know that you are different from Death, War and Famine. But the Demon King’s Palace may not think this way. Do you know what I mean?”

“I know.”

The Death Knight and War Knight were enemies of the Demon King’s Palace. It was possible the palace would treat In-gong, a Conquest Knight, like them. In the worst case scenario, they would try to remove In-gong.

“Yes, then let’s keep it a secret. I’m sorry for the Demon King’s Palace, but you are much more precious than them.”

Felicia said with a gentle smile, and that smile was so beautiful. In-gong turned his eyes away awkwardly and said,

“Mmm, as expected of Silvan hyung’s twin.”

The words were beautiful but also embarrassing. Felicia immediately released In-gong’s hand after being compared to Silvan. She covered her red face and said,

“Ah, well. Okay. Based on this story, the Famine Knight likely wants something from the ruin. Then it makes sense to check what it is. Isn’t that right?”

“Of course. Let’s go back as soon as the sun rises tomorrow morning.”

The Famine Knight had coveted something in the ruin. By obtaining it, they would gain a huge help and deal a blow to Famine simultaneously.

“By the way, Shutra, I was wondering about one thing.”

‘“What is it?”

“The Four Knights of the Apocalypse? So, is this the apocalypse? Do you know what type of apocalypse?”

It was a reasonable question.

In-gong laughed awkwardly and said,

“I am still investigating.”

&

“As soon as you see it, you can read unknown words. A scam. It is a scam!”

“Caitlin noona would have said that I’m amazing.”

Apocalypse could be associated with words such as prophecy, revelation, and so on.

In other words, if there were Four Knights of the Apocalypse, then there was a possibility of the existence of things such as a book of revelations or a prophecy.

He had heard the title ‘the Four Knights of the Apocalypse’ for the first time from the last flame. However, the last flame hadn’t mentioned anything about the apocalypse. She didn’t know anything except that the knights were desperate for destruction.

For her, the Four Knights of the Apocalypse was just a story.

In-gong only had access to the first floor of the library, which could be called the surface, so he couldn’t obtain such information. However, adding up all his merits from this time, he might be able to find new information.

After finishing the conversation with Felicia, In-gong contacted the transfer facility near Takar. The communication device installed on the Black Flame Dragon had the essence of the dark elves’ power, so the distance for sending and receiving signals was considerable.

By communicating through each base from the transport formation tower, the news would reach the fourth base in a few hours.

‘6th Princess is safe. I’ll be back in a few days.’

It was a short message, but it was better than nothing.

As usual, In-gong trained before falling asleep. Then the next morning, he left with the excited Felicia to explore the ruins.

&

Felicia and Delia were the only ones involved in the ruins exploration.

Silvan was still asleep and after overworking for so long, Sepira finally lay down. Thus, Carack stayed behind on the Black Flame Dragon to take care of the two people. Of course, there were three surviving crew members on the Black Flame Dragon, but it was inevitable that In-gong would trust Carack more. Additionally, the three crew members were busy managing the Black Flame Dragon.

“Delia, isn’t it better for you to take a break?”

In-gong suddenly asked Delia as they were walking toward the entrance of the ruins. Delia’s face was filled with fatigue because like Sepira, she had worked continuously. However, Delia shook her head.

“The greatest rest is seeing that Princess is safe.”

It wasn’t just flattery but true words. They had such a hard time in the ruins that Delia was just happy Felicia was safe.

“But you were attacked as well.”

Felicia frowned and asked with a concerned voice. Unlike Felicia and Sephira, Delia had been struck by a direct attack from the Famine Knight.

Once again, Delia shook her head.

“I’m okay. Amita’s armour protected me. I am alive thanks to that.”

As Delia said, Amita’s armour had protected her. At the time of the attack, a red force field had spread from the chest piece. Thanks to this force field, she was fine despite the attack being so strong that she had been blown away.

“Silvan hyung’s sword is the same… I can see Amita’s craftsmanship.”

“Yes, indeed… It truly isn’t normal.”

In-gong and Delia exchanged glances and laughed. However, Felicia’s face was still full of concern.

“Still, it is better not to just believe in equipment. Understand?”

“I understand.”

Delia answered quickly, but In-gong and Felicia knew. If something dangerous happened again, Delia wouldn’t hesitate to act as a shield. She was just like Carack.

“Okay, then let’s concentrate on exploring the ruins. The unknown characters are found near the entrance.

Felicia clapped to get In-gong and Delia’s attention and started moving confidently.

A while after arriving at the entrance of the ruins, Felicia stomped her feet and shouted,

“As soon as you see the unknown words, you can read them. A scam… It is a scam!”

Her face was full of deprivation and unhappiness. In-gong’s ability was indeed a scam for ruins experts. How many nights had she spent studying the dwarf characters or unknown characters just for him to learn the scripts instantly?

Felicia sighed as she recalled the past.

“Caitlin noona would have said that I’m amazing.”

He missed the eyes which would shine like lanterns. Felicia’s eyes narrowed at In-gong’s remark, while Delia tried not to laugh.

Felicia had shared all the information with Delia, but she didn’t reveal that In-gong was the Conquest Knight. She had just said that In-gong had a powerful and special ability.

Anyway, Felicia’s expression, a mix of jealousy, chagrin and other emotions, was really worth watching. He was watching her face quietly when he heard a voice from beside him,

“Master, Master.”

It was Green Wind who had become solid. Green Wind cleared her throat and smiled happily as In-gong turned toward her.

“Master is amazing.”

Although it was enough to make his heart shake, In-gong shook his head.

“No, there is something lacking.”

Caitlin’s one had something more to it. Indeed, wasn’t she hard to exceed?

After In-gong’s evaluation, Green Wind became sulky and disappeared. He ignored her sulkiness.

“Well, ignoring that nonsense, what does it say?”

Felicia asked with a curious voice. In-gong looked at the characters once again. Unlike the dwarf and dragon characters, the indigenous species language skill was still level one, so his reading comprehension was somewhat slow.

‘Is it similar to a power plant?’

Thanks to the strength of Conquest, In-gong eventually managed to comprehend what he was reading.

According to In-gong, these ruins formed a huge power plant. As they went deeper, the scent of magic power became stronger because the power generator was down there.

In-gong concluded as he turned toward Felicia.

“This is a facility that produces magic power. And…”

“And?”

“It does seem to belong to the extinct indigenous species.”

In fact, the latter was so obvious that In-gong didn’t care, but Felicia was different. Her eyes were shining excitedly like she was Caitlin.

“Oh, my god. It is real. Real! The indigenous species really did have a civilization before us.”

Thunderdoom Fortress was old, but the facility was still built within the records of the dark elves. It couldn’t be compared to the ruins built by the indigenous species before the recorded era.

Felicia hurried forward happily, prompting In-gong every time the unknown characters appeared. She didn’t forget to take notes of In-gong’s answers. Maybe she was creating a translation dictionary.

As Felicia marvelled over the ruins repeatedly, they reached the fifth floor, which was the lowest layer of the ruins.

The fifth floor was similar to the room on the third floor, but the density of magic power was really amazing. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the whole room was full of magic power. The room on the fifth floor was almost 10 meters tall, but the floors, walls and ceilings were full of intricate magic circles. It felt like a giant circuit diagram. In the middle of the room, there was a large chunk of magic power floating on an altar at the center of the circuit. It was almost the size of a basketball.

“A magic power crystal…”

Felicia muttered in a voice full of admiration. In-gong could see why the Famine Knight had visited this ruins.

The body of the Famine Knight, Gerard Moonlight, had been in a state of collapse due to his long imprisonment. During their first encounter, he had appeared for the Moonlight Extract, rather than Caitlin and Chris.

This was for the same reason; the Famine Knight needed to regain strength by absorbing this chunk of magic power.

In his early days, Gerard had been equal to a captain. If he had really absorbed the magic power, a terrible tragedy would have taken place.

“This facility was created to produce the crystallized magic power?”

Felicia muttered as she examined the circuit. In-gong nodded and wondered about what to do with the magic power crystal.

‘If it were a plant like the Moonlight Extract, I could just eat it.’

Unfortunately, it was a mass of pure magic power. So, it was impossible to absorb it by eating.

‘I can try to subdue it with Conquest.’

However, he was quite skeptical. The power of Conquest was different from the power of Famine. The power of Famine was absorption and depletion, while Conquest was domination and control. Unlike Ainkel’s dragon heart, which was a type of magic spell, the crystal was a collection of pure magic power. So, it was doubtful if Conquest would work.

‘Master, you don’t need to conquer it. The magic power before you was made to be absorbed. Master has the dragon heart, so you will be able to absorb it.’

He heard Green Wind’s voice while he was busy worrying. In-gong asked reflexively,

‘Made to be absorbed?’

‘That’s right, I can feel it. Maybe it’s a fragment of knowledge Ainkel left behind. The magic power in before your eyes was made for the purpose of absorption. An ordinary person may not be able to absorb too much magic power, but Master has the dragon heart. It is an opportunity for your incomplete dragon heart to grow.’

Her words sounded plausible. From the outset, this was a power plant which produced energy and sent it elsewhere.

‘An opportunity for my incomplete dragon heart to grow? What does that mean?’

‘Master, do you think that the power of a dragon heart is only that much? The amount of aura is small, so the output of magic power is also small. Master has a piece of dragon heart from Ainkel. Master’s dragon heart is starving, and you need to fill its stomach in order to make it grow.’

In-gong’s eyes widened at Green Wind’s words. This amount of magic power was enough to increase his triple core to a quad-core.

Of course, the quad-core was a hybrid of the triple-core and magic power, making it a little bit weaker than the original quad-core. Even so, the amount of magic power produced was approximately half of his aura. So, it wasn’t a small amount.

‘Hu, okay.’

Anyway, it was possible to absorb the magic power and make his dragon heart grow. In that case, there was no reason to hesitate.

“Felicia noona, stand back for a moment.”

In-gong checked the magic circuit and stood in front of the crystal. Instead of paying attention to Felicia, he brought his hands to the crystal.

“Shutra?”

Felicia sprang back in shock as a huge amount of light emerged from the crystal. At the same time, In-gong’s dragon heart responded. It devoured the magic power which was pushed into In-gong’s palms.

In-gong’s arms started shaking, and the dragon heart seemed like it would burst. In-gong clenched his teeth and persisted. Once he couldn’t tolerate it anymore, he screamed and a clear voice was heard in his head.

[The dragon heart’s level has risen.]

[The dragon heart’s level has risen.]

[The dragon heart has grown.]

In-gong’s hands were thrown away from the crystal, and he gasped for air. Then… he could feel it.

The dragon heart had grown. Just like Green Wind’s words, so far, the dragon heart had been ‘small’. The aura output hadn’t changed, but the output of magic power had increased tremendously. It was almost three—no, five times what it had been before.

In-gong formed a fist. He released his magic power consciously—a green magic power which grew like a flame.

‘If there is this much magic power…’

In-gong cast Fire Arrow. Rather than an arrow, a giant pillar formed above In-gong’s palm, almost like a ballista.

“Fire Spear? No, Fire Ballista?”

The shocked Felicia asked In-gong.

“No, it is just Fire Arrow.”

The basic configuration was the same, but the amount of magic power entered was different. Of course, this was a performance in order to show off his magic power. Rather than pouring more magic power into Fire Arrow, it was better to use Fire Spear or Fire Ballista.

However, it was clearly something not everyone could do.

In-gong made the fire pillar disappear and explained to Felicia,

“I absorbed the magic power from the crystal, and my dragon heart grew. Thanks to that, my magic power is now stronger. How is it? Isn’t this good?”

Would the word ‘amazing’ come out this time?

In response to In-gong’s question, Felicia opened her mouth slowly,

“Shutra is a scammer.”

&

In-gong used the rest of the magic power in the crystal to treat Silvan. As the fairy’s magic power had been exhausted, its absorption rate was enormous. It was like pouring water onto earth which had become cracked from a drought.

The ruins still produced magic power, but the functions were greatly diminished. Everything had already been extracted so he decided to report it to the Demon King’s Palace without any regrets.

After completing the work at the ruins, In-gong’s group headed toward Silvan’s first base in Karamis. From there, he would report what happened to the Demon King’s Palace.

By late afternoon, the Black Flame Dragon was soaring through the sky.

&

Famine had been expelled.

In the first place, it had been too much for Famine to control the Famine Knight, and the backlash from losing the Famine Knight was severe. For a while, Famine would be in a deep sleep.

The Death Knight realized the Famine Knight had vanished. He also didn’t miss the fact that it had been because of the Conquest Knight.

Conquest’s betrayal was now a matter of fact. She had truly chosen to be hostile towards them.

Death felt pained.

However, the Death Knight didn’t feel anything. Unlike Death or Famine, he had known this a long time ago. 1,000 years ago, he had witnessed the end of Conquest during that fight and understood Conquest wouldn’t side with them anymore.

The Death Knight let out a long sigh. As he thought of the distant past, he became convinced once again.

The Conquest Knight was incomplete. Conquest had been destroyed 1,000 years ago, so it was unlikely she even had proper communication with the Conquest Knight.

The Death Knight looked toward the south.

It wasn’t just the Conquest Knight; there were two more beings who attracted his attention.

2nd Prince Zephyr Ragnaros…

The strongest child of the demon king, and a person who had been born with the flesh of a dragon.

…And there was another one—Warrior Locke, born with the spirit of a dragon. He was the sword prepared by Guardian Queian, one of the six elder dragons and an enemy of the beings longing for destruction.

Famine was expelled, and the Famine Knight destroyed. However, there was no big hindrance to the plan.

The Death Knight shifted his gaze from the south towards the sky.

He waited for the promised day to come again.