We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
The Theory of Ruiseine’s Unsurpassed Strength.
“Could it be that Ruiseine has finally surpassed Mistral!?”
“Ara ara, my, my, Elnea-kun, you’ve finally woken up. Are you still a little groggy, though?”
Ruiseine smiles a “fufufu,” but I don’t think this is a situation she can just laugh off and dismiss.
After all, even though they’ve always said “Dragon Eyes are the natural enemy of those who wield Dragon Energy,” Mistral had never lost to Ruiseine in a spar before.
And yet…
Mistral collapses as if utterly spent, while Ruiseine stands serenely before the fallen Mistral.
Furthermore, the weapon in her hand is not the naginata that a Battle Priestess should wield, but the Spirit Current Sword.
Even for me, who can barely wield the Spirit Current Sword after much trial and error, Ruiseine seems to be holding it with ease.
No, Ruiiseine is actually handling it so lightly, as if she isn’t experiencing any of its super-excessive weight.
I ask, as if to confirm, “Ruiseine, isn’t the Spirit Current Sword heavy?” and Ruiseine, without the slightest difficulty, brandishes her twin swords.
Ruiseine’s appearance, as she wields the Spirit Current Sword with a seemingly joyful smile, leaves both me and Laira speechless.
It was then that Sleigsta the Elder’s voice rained down upon us from overhead.
“Hmph. Is that what it looks like to your eyes, fresh from teleportation? It’s true that Mistral was still immature, but your eyes are also blind, aren’t they?”
“Grandpa? Ah, good morning!”
“My apologies. Good morning, Sleigsta-sama.”
Laila and I hastily offer Sleigsta the Elder our morning greetings and thanks for the teleportation.
“By the way, Grandpa. What do you mean I’m blind?”
And then, we reconsider Sleigsta the Elder’s words.
Certainly, Laila and I had just teleported. The scene that assailed our eyes was the current devastation…
I wonder what it is that I’m overlooking?
Mistral and the others are lying collapsed.
Ruiseine handles the Spirit Current Sword with ease.
Sleigsta the Elder is, as usual, lying calmly in the center of the Moss Garden. Sunlight filters through the trees onto his black, mountain-like body.
Everything is as usual, except for Mistral and the others’ condition… No, that’s not right!
It’s then that I finally notice the missing person.
“Ruiseine is standing with the Spirit Current Sword, and those who have fallen are Mistral, Yufilia, and Nina, and Sefina. But Madrine is missing? Is Madrine remaining in the Forbidden Territory? No, that’s not it. It’s unlikely that Madrine would be acting separately from everyone else. And then there’s…”
It was then that Laila and I finally recognized another person standing at Sleigsta the Elder’s feet.
“Lord Reed is at the Moss Garden?”
“Ara, ara ara ara, good evening.”
“Hahahaha! Lord Reed, it’s morning, so good morning.”
Laila offers a bitter smile at his immediate absentmindedness.
“If Lord Reed is here, it means everyone was training with the Spirit Current Sword?”
Lord Reed is one of the Four Guardians of Kensei Faruna, so he likely has the qualification to enter the Moss Garden.
Therefore, it’s not strange for Lord Reed to be here.
And the Spirit Current Sword wasn’t lent out solely for my training, so there’s no problem with my wives using it for their own training.
And this leads to a new fact!
“Perhaps Mistral and the others have collapsed because they were weakened by the Spirit Current Sword absorbing all their Dragon Energy?”
Nina doesn’t have Dragon Power, but if she was wielding the dual Spirit Current Swords, she must have been with Yufilia, who does have Dragon Power, so perhaps they both weakened together. And Sefina usually fights with martial arts, but perhaps she tried to wield the Spirit Current Sword to learn the basics of Dragon Veins and ended up having all her Dragon Energy absorbed?
“So, Laila and I teleported right after Mistral and the others collapsed from weakness? And Ruiseine had just retrieved the Spirit Current Sword from them?”
“Elnea-sama. Ruiseine-sama can see Dragon Veins with her Dragon Eyes.”
“So, she was able to overcome the super-excessive weight of the Spirit Current Sword by riding it on the Dragon Veins flowing through the atmosphere, something we struggled with?”
Furthermore, with Ruiseine’s Dragon Eyes, she can freely wield the Spirit Current Sword without going against the flow of the Dragon Veins!
“Master Ruiseine!!”
Ruiseine, who is far ahead of us, appears to us as a grand master!
“My, my, you have no integrity, do you?”
And Sleigsta the Elder offers a bitter smile.
Furthermore, another person appeared, showing anger at my joy.
“Muki! Ruiseine is a Battle Priestess, so she shouldn’t be wielding swords!”
Suddenly, Madrine, whom we hadn’t seen before, ran out from behind Sleigsta the Elder.
And Madrine was carrying Priscilla-chan on her back.
“No, is it possible that Priscilla-chan also fell prey to the Spirit Current Sword!?”
“Your delusions are overreaching again today. Madrine was merely entertaining the little girl so she wouldn’t get bored while Mistral and the others were training.”
“That’s right. Priscilla-chan got tired playing with Lord Reed’s spirits and fell asleep, so we were returning from our walk. And then…”
“We were making a fuss, weren’t we?”
Madrine nods repeatedly.
Since she’s carrying Priscilla-chan, she doesn’t throw a tantrum.
“Fufufu, it gets lively when Elnea-kun wakes up, doesn’t it?”
And Ruiseine, having retrieved the Spirit Current Sword from Mistral’s hand, returns to us while sheathing her twin swords.
“As Madrine-sama said, I am a Battle Priestess, so I cannot wield swords. Therefore, it seems I cannot become Elnea-kun’s master?”
“That’s a shame. But, with the help of Ruiseine’s Dragon Eyes, won’t we be able to master the basics of Dragon Veins faster than we thought?”
Unlike us, who can only feel Dragon Veins and Dragon Energy, Ruiseine can see the power and its flow. This means she can point out our mistakes in movement and perception, can’t she?
As I passionately argue, Madrine and Lord Reed also approach.
And then, Lord Reed says something unexpected.
“Ara, ara ara ara? I recall that among the Eight Star Families, there were lineages that had perfected swordsmanship. If I remember correctly, their surname was Gifarens?”
“Eight Star Families? Gifarens?”
Both I, and Ruiseine, Laila, and even Madrine tilt our heads at the unfamiliar names.
“Uh. Within the Temple Religion, the famous families are the Holy Four Families, right? The Luada Family, the Nordarn Family, the Variety Family, and the Yuranetos Family, wasn’t it? Lord Reed, are you spacing out again?”
Besides, I don’t think a family named Gifarens existed among the Holy Four Families.
As I point this out, Lord Reed frowns with a troubled expression.
And then, an unexpected voice comes from overhead.
“Oh ho, it seems that as the ages pass and people distance themselves from the sanctuary, some legends begin to fade.”
“Sleigsta-sama?”
Madrine, the former Head Miko of the Yorttenitos Kingdom, shows the most bewildered expression at Sleigsta the Elder’s words.
This is a legend unknown even to Madrine, who rose to the position of overseeing the Temple Religion. There is no way she could dismiss Sleigsta the Elder’s words.
“Grandpa, Lord Reed, what is this legend?”
The human race’s religious culture permeates the world.
The Temple Religion preaches unified teachings and traditions to people all over the world.
This is all thanks to Ruiseine, Madrine, Shooting Star Samas, and others residing in the Forbidden Territory, who travel the world and guide people so that there are no discrepancies or incorrect alterations.
However, it is not perfect.
As Madrine once pleaded with Ada, there are spells and anecdotes that are not transmitted in certain regions.
Perhaps the legends of the Eight Star Families and the Gifarens family are part of such lost history.
We are very interested in such secrets!
We press Sleigsta the Elder and Lord Reed with shining eyes!
“Hmm.”
“Ara, ara ara ara.”
However, both Sleigsta the Elder and Lord Reed somehow show displeasure.
Could this be a dark history of the Temple Religion that must be kept secret!?
Or is it a high-level matter concerning the world that we are not yet allowed to touch upon!?
“No, you are overlooking something far more important than that.”
“Something important that we are overlooking? Are you going to call me blind again, Grandpa?”
“Unfortunately, you are indeed blind this morning. I will not be responsible for whatever happens to you.”
“Does that mean if we learn about the legends of the Eight Star Families and the Gifarens family, there’s no turning back?”
Just how deep are the hidden meanings in Lord Reed’s casual remark!?
Swallowing hard, I watch as Sleigsta the Elder closes his golden eyes with a resigned “It cannot be helped” and prepares to convey the “important thing I am overlooking.”
“Listen carefully, my blind disciple. Before you satisfy your curiosity, first worry about your family. Look, Mistral has been glaring at you with a terrifying expression for some time now?”
“Kyaa!”
Our curiosity froze in an instant!
We finally notice Mistral, still lying on the Moss Garden, giving us a resentful look.
Not only that, Yufilia, Nina, and Sefina are also lying down, but they seem conscious and are protesting with their gazes as if they want to complain.
“Everyone, I’m sorry!”
“Hahahaha, this is terrible!”
Laila and I hastily rush to Mistral and the others and begin to tend to them.
Ruiseine, who seemed to have grasped Mistral and the others’ condition from the beginning, helps us with a bitter smile.
Of course, Madrine does too.
“…Elnea, this is cruel?”
“Mistral, I’m sorry.”
“Laila, you’ll be punished later.”
“Laila, you’ll be lectured later.”
“Hahahaha!”
“Well, since we weakened ourselves by using the Spirit Current Sword voluntarily, you two can’t really be blamed, can you?”
“No, Sefina, that’s not it. Cherishing our family is what we must prioritize above all else. So, I am truly sorry!”
We sincerely reflect!
It seems I really was an immature novice, just as Sleigsta the Elder said.
Before relying on Ruiseine’s Dragon Eyes, which can see everything, I need to analyze the situation before me more deeply.
If I go into the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country in this state, I won’t be able to discern the situation correctly, and I might put Listea and Slaton, who kindly offered their cooperation, into a pinch.
“Don’t push yourself too hard. It’s just an unreasonable demand from an old woman. You don’t need to delve too deeply into it.”
“Yes. I will keep that in mind and not misjudge it! Grandpa, Lord Reed, and Ruiseine. Please continue to guide us.”
“Ara ara, my, my, I will be guiding Elnea-kun and the others? That’s a role that makes one tighten their belt.”
Even in mid-winter, the Moss Garden does not become frigid.
After moving Mistral and the others onto the moss where the sunlight reaches, I receive the Spirit Current Sword from Lord Reed once more.
“Now, the real training begins!”
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