'Hah!'
'So he's got his eye on my Moon-Slaying Form.'
'Trying to get it for free?'
"So Master has taken a liking to your disciple's Eight Forms of God-Slaying?", Ethan said bluntly, "This sword art was created by the Sword God during the Mythic War to protect humanity. It's a sword technique made specifically to slay gods."
"I don't think there's much room left to improve it, but I do happen to have a copy. If Master likes it, I'd be happy to present it to you."
"After all, ever since I became your disciple, I haven't given you anything worthwhile."
"I haven't been a very filial disciple. That's my fault."
With that, Ethan took out a [Skill Book: Eight Forms of God-Slaying (Fake)] from his storage tail ring and respectfully offered it with both hands.
Sure enough, the Saint of Formation found himself in an awkward position.
Whether he accepted it or not, neither felt right.
After all... Ethan had already made it perfectly clear that this sword art had been created by the Sword God.
He specialized in formations, not swordsmanship. There was no way he could understand sword techniques better than the Sword God himself.
What if he accepted it, studied it for a long time, and found nothing he could improve?
Wouldn't that be embarrassing?
"Master, why aren't you taking it?", Ethan secretly chuckled.
The way to deal with a tsundere like this wasn't through tricks.
You had to play it straight, offer it openly, and offer it for free.
The Saint of Formation hated taking advantage of others, especially if they noticed it. So even if he wanted Ethan's sword manual, he couldn't bring himself to accept it without giving something in return.
And Ethan couldn't be the one to name a price.
He had to wait for the Saint of Formation to ask.
Because a tsundere would never accept something for nothing.
It was an open move.
Even if the Saint of Formation saw through it, there was nothing he could do.
"You little rascal," The Saint of Formation naturally saw right through Ethan's intentions.
Still, he could only play along, "Fine. Tell me, what do you want?"
"Don't feed me all that nonsense. What are you trying to trade this sword manual for?"
"As long as your request isn't excessive, I'll agree. After all, I am interested in this sword technique."
"Hehe! That's my Master."
Even after being exposed, Ethan wasn't embarrassed in the slightest.
As the saying went, as long as you weren't embarrassed, the embarrassed one would be someone else.
"Cut the nonsense!"
"What I want isn't much," Ethan stuffed the skill book directly into the diviner's hands, leaving them no chance to change their minds, "I just want to borrow Master's chess pieces whenever I run into trouble."
"Hmph! I knew you were after my chess pieces," The Saint of Formation snorted, "Very well. They were born of heaven and earth anyway, and they're immortal. If you want to use them, then use them."
"Thank you, Master!"
Ethan was happy.
Only then did the Saint of Formation accept the skill book. With a wave of his hand, he brought the diviner back into the chessboard world.
———
[Inside the Chessboard World]
"My lord."
The diviner said unwillingly, "You knew that kid was setting you up. Why did you still agree to such an unreasonable request?"
"It's true that we chess pieces are immortal."
"But once we leave the chessboard, it consumes a tremendous amount of your power."
"For the sake of a single sword manual..."
"Isn't that too great a loss for you?"
"Back then, she asked me to learn the sword with her, but I refused. I chose to study formations instead," The Saint of Formation sighed with regret, "Because of that, there were many secret realms I couldn't accompany her into, and she missed out on many sword manuals. It remained one of her lifelong regrets."
"When I married her, I promised that I would find the greatest sword manual in the world and give it to her."
"But in the blink of an eye, hundreds of years have passed."
"And I still haven't fulfilled that promise."
"Now..."
"I've finally had the chance to witness a sword art capable of cutting through space. Tell me, how could I not obtain it for her?"
"My lord is truly loyal and devoted," The diviner immediately bowed, "We are all ashamed by comparison. If Madam ever learns of your sincere intentions one day, she will surely be deeply moved."
"I owed her this from the beginning," The Saint of Formation waved his hand, "Besides, who knows when we'll ever meet again?"
———
After the Saint of Formation agreed to his request, Ethan naturally didn't stand on ceremony.
"Black Horse!"
He had wanted to try out the Black Horse he'd fished up long ago.
Those chess pieces had already been ridiculously powerful inside the chessboard. He wondered what they'd be like outside.
At his command, the chess piece leaped from his palm and instantly transformed into a gigantic stone horse.
A real black horse made entirely of stone.
"Can this thing actually run?"
Ethan had been looking forward to it, but now that he actually saw it become a stone horse, he couldn't help having doubts.
"Neigh!"
The Black Horse let out an annoyed whinny.
It seemed unhappy that Ethan doubted whether it could be ridden.
"Alright, alright, you can be ridden," Ethan helplessly swung himself onto its back, "I'll ride you now, okay?"
"Neigh!"
The Black Horse lifted its head proudly.
Like master, like horse. Even the horse was this arrogant.
"Hyah!"
Once mounted, Ethan flicked the reins.
Fortunately, although the reins were also made of stone, they had been crafted like linked chains, so they could still move.
The only downside was that every flick made the reins strike the Black Horse's body with the sound of metal against stone.
Clop! Clop-clop!
Unexpectedly, when the Black Horse ran, it didn't feel heavy at all.
Not only that, it moved with astonishing speed. Even when it encountered huge puddles over five or six meters across, it simply leaped over them with ease.
It wasn't inferior in the slightest to the finest thoroughbreds at a racetrack.
A journey that took the Bone Horse about an hour was completed by the Black Horse in less than half an hour.
Ethan could already see the manor's walls, along with the Strangling Vines growing over them.
'They should be producing seeds by now, right?'
"My Lord!"
"It's the Lord! The Lord has returned!"
"Hurry and tell everyone! The Lord is back!"
Ethan had only just appeared on the road outside the manor when people inside began calling out to one another.
By the time he reached the entrance, everyone had already dropped what they were doing and gathered there to welcome his return.
"How are things at home?"
Ethan jumped down from the Black Horse and handed the reins to Cook Four.
The moment Cook Four's fingers brushed against Ethan's, her face immediately turned red with excitement, and she stammered for quite a while without managing a complete sentence.
"At... at home... every..."
"My Lord, we've run into some problems at home."
Attendant Five quickly took the bundle Ethan handed over. Inside were a statue and a chessboard that couldn't be stored in his storage space.
"What happened?"
Ethan immediately asked.
The thing he dreaded hearing the most now was that something had gone wrong at home.