Yukari Yakumo was in an exceptionally foul mood.
She glared at Izumi with a face full of resentment.
"You're such a jerk."
"I knew you didn't give me that spiritual power out of pure kindness."
Earlier, the reason Izumi had been able to suppress her so easily was because of the power he had previously shared with her.
The moment he sealed that power, her own abilities were affected as well.
Without it, restraining her would have been far more difficult.
Hearing her complaint, Izumi simply shrugged.
"And without it, do you think you would've become this strong in the first place?"
Yukari clicked her tongue.
Unfortunately, she couldn't refute that argument.
Izumi stretched lazily before continuing.
"Still, I have to admit, you've improved quite a bit."
"You actually managed to fight me for a while this time."
"Not bad."
"I'm impressed."
A teasing smile appeared on his face.
"It seems experience really does make a difference."
The moment those words left his mouth, Yukari's expression darkened.
A vein popped on her forehead.
By now, the seal on her power had already been released.
Without another word, she opened a gap beside her.
"You idiot!"
"Pervert!"
"Baka!"
After unleashing a barrage of insults, Yukari disappeared into the gap.
The dimensional tear snapped shut behind her.
Watching her leave, Izumi merely clicked his tongue.
"What a troublesome personality."
"She's clearly impossible to be honest with."
Despite his complaints, he didn't pay it much mind.
There were more important matters to deal with.
The incident involving Est's evolution had caused a tremendous commotion throughout Dimension City and several neighboring worlds.
For three straight days, the overwhelming sword aura had terrified countless people.
Many had become convinced that some catastrophic event was about to occur.
Naturally, someone needed to explain what had happened.
Thinking of that, Izumi headed off to find Kayo.
Not long afterward, he located her.
The moment Kayo saw him, her eyes lit up.
"Izumi-oniichan!"
"You're finally done?"
Then her expression became curious.
"What exactly happened these past few days?"
"And where's Est?"
As she spoke, she looked around.
However, she couldn't find the silver-haired Sword Spirit anywhere.
Seeing her reaction, Izumi smiled and patted her head.
Then he explained everything that had happened over the past several days.
From obtaining the mysterious sword to helping Est absorb its power.
He told her the entire story.
After listening to the explanation, Kayo finally understood.
"So that's what happened."
She nodded thoughtfully.
"Then I'll handle the aftermath."
"There have definitely been fewer visitors in Dimension City recently."
"The aura Est released scared a lot of people away."
A helpless expression appeared on her face.
Izumi had made another huge move without warning anyone.
As a result, countless people had been frightened.
Many visitors had avoided Dimension City entirely.
After all, who would willingly approach a place where a terrifying sword aura capable of shaking entire worlds was constantly hanging overhead?
Not only Dimension City had been affected.
The surrounding worlds had experienced similar reactions.
Everyone who sensed the pressure became nervous.
Some even believed a powerful enemy had appeared and was targeting them.
The misunderstanding had spread surprisingly far.
As such, an official explanation was necessary.
Otherwise, many people would remain uneasy.
Izumi nodded.
"Then I'll leave it to you."
"Go explain things to everyone."
"Tell them they were worrying for nothing."
Kayo immediately rolled her eyes.
Worrying for nothing?
Anyone would have been terrified.
Even she had been nervous during those three days.
Still, she didn't bother arguing.
Instead, she accepted the task and quickly got to work.
Before long, notices were being sent throughout Dimension City.
The true reason behind the phenomenon was gradually revealed to the public.
With Kayo handling the situation, Izumi felt completely at ease.
After watching her leave, he stopped worrying about the matter altogether.
As far as he was concerned, the incident was already over.
Now all that remained was waiting for Est to finish digesting her newfound power.
And when she finally awakened—
The strongest Sword Spirit in existence would reveal herself to the world.