Chapter 27: Triple Promotion
Perhaps the message Natsuya sent via the crow was actually heard. Or maybe he was just lucky.
On his way to the next trainer's location, Natsuya accepted three demon-slaying missions intermittently.
Compared to the "Head-Arm" demon from before, these three were significantly stronger. Their Power Levels were all above 60.
One of them even reached 87—a new high score—and possessed a formidable Blood Demon Art. It could inhale massive amounts of air and fire invisible, cannon-like blasts of compressed wind.
High damage, short cooldown, invisible projectiles.
For a normal swordsman, just closing the distance would be a nightmare, let alone landing a killing blow. Demons could regenerate limbs; humans needed months to recover from a single bad injury.
High stats plus a solid skill kit. Even Natsuya had to put in some effort to take it down.
Of course, the rewards were massive. Not only did his savings in the Central Bank grow significantly, but his Wind Breathing proficiency bar finally crossed the 50% mark.
A few days later, a Kasugai Crow brought even better news.
He got a promotion.
At that moment, Natsuya was at the home of the Stone Breathing trainer, swinging a sledgehammer like a madman.
A pitch-black crow dived through the forest canopy and landed precisely on the eaves of the workshop.
It wasn't Shiro, the one Natsuya was familiar with. This crow spoke standard Japanese with perfect diction and powerful projection.
"MIZUNOTO RANK MEMBER, KOKONOE NATSUYA, HEAR THIS ORDER!"
"Verified by the Kakushi Division: In the past months, you have slain twenty-seven demons. This includes assisting in the defeat of a Blood Demon Art user during the Final Selection."
"Five days ago, you solo-killed a powerful demon responsible for the deaths of multiple Corps members."
"Outstanding merit. Extraordinary contribution."
"Therefore, the Master, Ubuyashiki Kagaya-sama, has issued a special decree: Kokonoe Natsuya is hereby promoted from [Mizunoto] directly to [Kanoe]!"
"Continue your diligence and achieve new merits!"
"Your new rank insignia and uniform will be delivered by the Kakushi. End of order!"
The crow gave a very human-like nod to Natsuya before flapping its wings and soaring back into the sky.
My Faction Rank increased?
And I skipped three levels?
Natsuya had learned the promotion rules of the Corps recently. Normally, ranking up required a steady accumulation of confirmed kills, verified by higher-ranking swordsmen to prevent kill-stealing or lying.
Usually, you ranked up one step at a time. Jumping from Rank 10 (Mizunoto) to Rank 7 (Kanoe) was definitely not standard procedure.
"It seems the Master values you even more than I imagined," said a man with a steady, stoic aura.
[Matsuyama Daimon (Power Level: 137)] — Stone Breathing LV.5
He was a user of Stone Breathing—a rarity even among slayers. He was also a retired Kinoe (Rank 1) swordsman who had left the front lines due to disability.
Tall and muscular. Even under his loose robes, the definition of his muscles was visible.
His right leg, however, was a prosthetic made of hardwood and iron parts.
Compared to the kindly old men like Kazami and Urokodaki, Matsuyama was much younger—likely in his thirties or forties, the prime of his life.
Unfortunately, during a battle with a Lower Moon, he was critically injured. Although he survived, the amputation meant he could no longer fight on the front lines. So, he chose to become a Cultivator, continuing his fight against the demons from a different angle.
"Of course," Natsuya replied, not missing a beat. "We are a violent organization dedicated to killing demons. Promoting the capable and demoting the weak is the most basic judgment a leader must make."
"It means the BOSS appreciates my farming efficiency."
Matsuyama nodded. His expression remained as flat as if Natsuya had just said he finished chopping wood.
"Confidence is good. Now, Wind Boy, keep hammering."
He pointed to the hammer in Natsuya's hand and the anvil in front of him. A glowing red iron ingot sat there, radiating heat.
Matsuyama Daimon's training method was unique.
It wasn't traditional Kendo sparring like Kazami's, nor was it "Self-Enlightenment via Guidance" like Urokodaki's.
Instead, he subjected Natsuya to what looked like incredibly boring, repetitive labor.
On the first day, he made Natsuya press his back against a wooden pillar and hold a basic Horse Stance. Then, he had to synchronize his breathing with Matsuyama's.
The goal was to feel the connection between the soles of his feet and the earth. To "converse" with the ground beneath him.
To breathe in a state of "Stillness," letting consciousness and force sink like tree roots—into the waist, into the legs, into the heels.
Imagine yourself growing out of the earth.
It was an abstract teaching method, but simple in practice.
The Horse Stance lasted eight hours.
After fast-forwarding the training animation, Natsuya was stiff and sore all over.
However, he didn't complain. Because the moment he started the stance, Matsuyama stood beside him and did the exact same thing.
The man practiced what he preached.
"Wind bypasses. Water permeates. Only repeated tempering creates the hardness of Rock."
"When you understand this feeling, you will grasp the essence of Stone Breathing."
Since the teacher was doing it too, what could Natsuya say? He could only watch his [Stone Breathing] progress bar crawl upward, day by grueling day.
After mastering the stance, Phase Two began.
Matsuyama called it "Dialogue with the Mountain."
He took Natsuya to a cliff face behind the town. Tapping the sheer rock wall with his wooden leg, he told Natsuya to push it. Using every method available.
Forget Natsuya's sub-100 stats. Even with 1000 Strength, pushing a cliff was impossible. If he could push this, he could push over a mountain.
Skeptical, Natsuya tried anyway. He used every trick, leveraging his stamina and potential to the limit.
Does this cliff have special properties?
Like the Color-Changing Sword, maybe it measures my 'Combat Power' and displays a number?
But the mountain was just a mountain. It didn't move.
Then Matsuyama stood beside him and demonstrated.
Muscles bulging, gravel exploding under his feet. The mountain didn't move.
But unlike Natsuya, whose feet slid backward and left long furrows in the dirt due to the equal-and-opposite reaction force... Matsuyama's feet seemed welded to the ground.
He was exerting massive force against the mountain, yet he maintained a perfect, subtle equilibrium with it.
"What are you pushing?"
"Don't wrestle with the mountain. Breathe. Become part of the mountain."
Natsuya tried to copy him. Maintaining the pushing posture, he mimicked Matsuyama's deep, elongated breathing rhythm.
The progress bar started moving again.
The essence of Stone Breathing slowly but steadily flowed into his System Panel, carried by sweat and tensed muscles.
After fast-forwarding through several days of this "AFK grinding"...
CRACK.
The ground beneath Natsuya's feet finally gave way. Not because he slipped, but because the earth itself cracked under the sheer, downward-and-backward pressure of his stance.
Thus, Stone Breathing training entered Phase Three.
The phase Natsuya was currently in.
Swinging a hammer. Forging iron.