CHAPTER 693

[T.L: punisher87]

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The group continued to move forward, following traces of chaos.

"If it weren't for you... we would have been fooled, unable to distinguish the real Yona from the fake. Ah, now I'm not sure that the first thing we found in this forest was the real Yona."

The two types of chaos energy.

Jin couldn't be sure which one belonged to the real Yona. Regardless of how many people he encountered, as long as it wasn't a joint attack, Jin was confident that he could subdue them all.

Even if it was a joint attack, from the moment he could perfectly distinguish between the real and the fake, it would no longer be a problem.

'If there are numerous fakes in the forest, it's probably to capture or eliminate elder sister Yona.'

In that case, Jin's task was not only to secure Yona but also to protect her.

Owal was blaming himself for that very reason.

Throughout their mission, Nameless had never considered the existence of a fake Yona.

"It's natural to find it difficult to anticipate the presence of fakes in the forest. Elder sister Yona's location in Akin was unique, making it even more so."

 Jin recognized his thoughts and said.

"I made this mistake even after hearing clearly that fakes are being made with the traces of chaos that Yona leaves after meeting you in the second castle of Hairan. I have no right to see that child."

"Lord Owal, don't overcomplicate things. In any case, there are two types of chaos, and the owners of those have yet to leave the forest. We can solve it from now on."

At least three, possibly five or more.

That's roughly the amount of traces of Yona's chaos that nameless had missed so far.

Jin assumed the worst-case scenario of having more than ten fakes in the forest.

Even so, with their current power, it seemed like they could resolve it sufficiently.

"We need to pick up the pace. I have a feeling that the fakes are targeting elder sister Yona. Um... let's start with a simple approach. It would be better if both of you cover your ears."

Inhale...!

Jin took a deep breath.

Elder Sister Yona-!

As soon as Jin let out a powerful shout, the trees in front of them broke and were uprooted by the force of the sound.

Echoes resounded through the entire forest as if an earthquake had occurred. 

If it had been ordinary civilians standing instead of Hedo and Owal, their eardrums would have burst, causing them to faint.

"Your voice is remarkable. If your sister is in the forest, she must have heard it."

"Thank you, Sir Hedo. Lord Owal, if you are currently somewhere in the front forest and you hear my voice, how would you come? If you need to confirm my location, with the purpose of attempting an assassination or monitoring my movements."

Owal understood that immediately.

"You want to see Yona's movement path. Follow me."

The group, instead of cautiously and slowly pursuing traces of chaos, ran at full speed following Owal.

Owal truly lived up to his title as the Nameless King, moving through the trees at a speed comparable to Jin and Hedo running in a straight line.

Above all, Owal made almost no sound while moving. It was as if the wind was blowing, not a person.

"He is surely the Nameless King. Is your sister, god of death, more exceptional than him?"

"Maybe. I've heard that elder sister Yona has surpassed even lord Owal in terms of assassination ability a long time ago. I've never heard the sound of her footsteps."

As they were running energetically, Owal suddenly came to a stop.

This time, he was the first to sense a certain energy that others couldn't perceive.

"Bloodlust."

In his words, Jin and Heddo also faintly sensed the presence of bloodlust.

Whether real or fake, one of them had become noticeably closer through their recent movements.

Jin once again read the remaining traces of chaos nearby.

"The level of chaos is much stronger than before. There are still two types, which means both the real elder sister Yona and the fakes reacted to my voice."

Boom!

As if to conclude his words, a red flare shot up from the other side of the forest. Yona had appeared from one side of the encirclement.

Jin also fired a flare. It was yellow, indicating a special circumstance.

At the same time, a golden aura burst into the sky. It was Bale's flight. In an instant, he flew towards the location where the red flare had exploded and returned shortly afterward, his face filled with frustration.

"Bale, did you see elder sister Yona where the red flare was shot?"

[No, I didn't see her. She only launched a surprise attack and then disappeared. I was about to search the area, why did you call?]

"A surprise attack? Are there any casualties?"

[A guy named Kell was injured, but not severely, similar to a small cut.]

"That's a relief. There are fake Yonas mixed in the forest."

[What? Not just one?]

"Inform the rest of the team about this and if you encounter the real or fake Yona, subdue them and bring them to me. Remember, under no circumstances should you kill or seriously harm them. Capture them in good condition. If you determine that you can't handle it alone, track them while firing flares to ensure the encircling team is unharmed."

[Then I'll start chasing the one who attacked Kell... Ah, what is that!]

Boom, Boom!

Unfortunately, Bale didn't have time for that.

From that moment on, flares started shooting from all directions.

"Go and investigate everything, then report the situation to Jin, Bale."

[Uh... Understood!]

He excellently carried out the real-time communication network using his transcendent flying abilities.

[Your sister was discovered over there. Ranke chased her away.]

[Two people came out from over there at the same time. Bianca engaged in combat, but they immediately fled...]

[Just now, I encountered one of them and injured them during the pursuit. Ah, it wasn't a fatal wound! Just a slight bend in the arm, enough to distinguish them from the other Yonas.]

In this way, Bale performed the role of a real-time communicator throughout the area. Without him, the entire search team would have been in great confusion.

Ranke and Bianca were also playing significant roles as expected. If Jin hadn't brought them all together, there would have already been casualties, even deaths.

Owal marked the locations of all the Yonas on the map and pondered their anticipated movements with the help of Bale's exceptional flying abilities. Jin, on the other hand, remained focused on distinguishing between the two types of chaos.

With Hedo's presence, the two of them could occasionally immerse themselves completely in their tasks.

In no time, Owal deduced the most likely anticipated routes of the Yonas, while Jin successfully distinguished the chaos patterns.

"I'm sure, Lord Owal. The real elder sister Yona has a single distinct energy, while the energies of the fakes overlap with identical patterns. There are three overlapping patterns among the fakes in this vicinity."

The reason Jin had focused on differentiating the chaos was to determine which of the two types of energies were unique and to infer the number of fake Yonas based on the overlapping patterns.

"Moreover, the energy of elder sister Yona is becoming increasingly stronger, indicating that all the Yonas discovered by other encirclement teams are likely to be fakes."

In other words, the real Yona was currently in the closest proximity to their group, along with three fake Yonas.

"That means the possible routes are narrowing down to one or two, 12th flagbearer."

Owal's speculated routes of the Yonas were nothing else but that.

Whether the fakes were closing in on the real Yona to kill her or vice versa, Owal was now confident that the Yonas would soon cross paths.

This was because every time Bale reported, the Yonas on the encirclement side were gradually moving further into the forest. It was as if they were narrowing their ambush net towards their prey.

"The fakes must be trying to gather in the center of the forest after disturbing us. However, there's something strange."

"What's wrong?"

"The real Yona undoubtedly possesses abilities superior to the fakes. She could have already taken down at least one alone, but there is no trace of such a struggle."

"You mean elder sister Yona is just evading."

"Either Yona is unable to demonstrate her normal abilities in this situation, or there are other interfering factors."

"For now, it's best to head towards the center of the forest, Nameless King."

Even when they reached the center of the forest, there were no signs of a battle. Instead, the group began to be ambushed.

Suddenly, a chilling sensation would creep up from behind, and when they turned around, a blade would come flying at them, disappearing in front of their eyes as they tried to block it.

After defending against the first, second, and third ambushes, Jin came to a conclusion.

"...The real elder sister Yona is the one currently ambushing us. Her energy does not overlap with the other chaos."

It took three instances of evading the ambush to confirm it.

"Furthermore, the other fakes are nearby. Their chaos continues to intertwine as they move... It's one of the differences between them and the real elder sister Yona."

"They are nearby?"

"Yes, and the ones who showed us their killing intent earlier were also the fakes. Judging from the attacks we've experienced, the real elder sister Yona... doesn't even leave behind such faint traces of bloodlust. Even the remaining chaos, which is unavoidable, is something that no one besides me can recognize."

Jin looked around with a puzzled expression.

In other words, Jin and Owal's expectations were incorrect.

The fakes weren't moving to eliminate Yona, and the real Yona wasn't fleeing from them.

What they were targeting, the real and fake Yonas, from the beginning was Jin's group. Moreover, they had been moving together ever since Nameless confirmed Yona's whereabouts in Akin.

Since then, the real and fake Yonas deliberately alternated their movements to make Nameless perceive them as "one person." It was natural that Owal couldn't anticipate the fakes.

"It's not that Yona couldn't defeat the fakes, but that they were cooperating from the beginning..."

The moment Owal said that, the scenery of the forest that the group was observing distorted at a rapid pace.

The traps set by the Yonas had been activated.

Thick curtains shot up from all directions, and Jin immediately recognized them as a subspace of chaos.

The three of them drew their swords while their backs facing each other.

Then, from within the darkness, an entirely unexpected voice echoed.

[Jin... it's been a while.]

Joshua Runcandel.

It was his voice.

[T/L:- Ha, cockroach is back.]

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