"Argh, damn it. You little shit!"
Thwack!
The staff Nigel held dug into Zekeʼs stomach.
"Guh!"
He immediately clutched his belly and collapsed to the floor.
She glared at Zeke, grinding her teeth.
"This butcher bastard still canʼt shake off his assassin habits... I told you to infuse your will into the sword, not killing intent!"
Zeke crawled to grab his sword, panting as he glared back at Nigel. "Will... This is my will."
Nigel pressed her forehead, frowning.
"Ha, you trash-talking punk."
She tapped her palm with the staff before approaching the fallen Zeke.
"It seems pulling out that deeply embedded killing intent from your body will take a lot of effort."
Zeke flinched at the menacing aura emanating from the approaching Nigel.
As a top hitman for the McCain Cartel, he had feared nothing. Or so he thought.
But now, he did.
"...Master. On second thought, that might not have been my true will. Can we try again?" "Too late, you punk!"
Nigelʼs beating began.
The staff infused with Full Power Technique energy battered Zekeʼs body evenly.
"Grrgh! Master! M-mercy...!"
"Shut up! You little shit! Today, Iʼll grind that killing intent in your body to dust!"
Zeke endured Nigelʼs relentless thrashing and managed to erase the killing intent from his hitman days.
Moreover, getting repeatedly struck by the staff infused with Full Power Technique allowed his body to adapt, and surprisingly, he opened his Middle Dantian, gaining the ability to handle mana.
Her philosophy that things would work out if you just kept at it had been proven.
And now, standing before her again after transcending time and space, Zeke unwittingly broke into a cold sweat.
Nigel eyed him with a strange look.
"What? Why are you staring at me like that?"
"No, itʼs nothing. Just... old memories."
"Focus, or youʼre dead. I never thought Iʼd teach Full Power Technique to a human. Is the end of the world near?"
She shook her head and looked at Zeke.
"Try activating Solo Spell again."
Zeke steadied his breathing and summoned the Will of Strength once more.
Rumble!
A powerful energy settled into his body, but it felt distinctly different from Nigelʼs Full Power Technique.
Watching him, Nigel tilted her head.
"Hmm, whatʼs this? It doesnʼt feel right. Why is it like this?"
She could tell Zekeʼs method of invoking Solo Spell was no different from hers.
Yet his Full Power Technique felt strangely empty, lacking substance.
Nigel nodded.
"Thereʼs only one answer for this."
She walked aside and cut a thick wooden stick.
Then, infusing it with Full Power Technique will, she smoothly shaved the branches with her sword.
Soon, a sleek staff that fit her hand perfectly was complete.
Zeke broke into a cold sweat at the sight of the staff.
'That... that thing...ʼ
It looked just like the one from his previous life that had thoroughly beaten him.
Nigel turned to Zeke, holding the finished staff.
"Letʼs go. Itʼll work eventually if we keep at it."
The staff, brimming with teaching intent, flew toward Zeke.
*
For a full week, Zeke had to relearn the basics of Full Power Technique while getting beaten by Nigel.
"Again! You little shit!"
Along with her rough curses, the staff flew unerringly.
Nigelʼs Full Power Technique inflicted excruciating pain even on Zekeʼs Immortal Body constitution.
Thud!
"Gah!"
Zeke endured the pain seeping into his bones and quickly stood up.
Once she learned his wounds healed automatically via Healing Factor, Nigel beat him without restraint.
At some point, she focused purely on the beating, pondering how and where to strike for maximum pain.
And the staff infused with her will hurt even more.
The frustrating part was that, through the endless beatings, his Full Power Technique energy truly began to flow properly.
But it wasnʼt due to Nigelʼs beatings—it was the result of Zeke desperately pondering and analyzing to avoid her merciless violence.
Still, that final sliver of difference refused to close.
'Why is Masterʼs Full Power Technique different from mine?ʼ
After much contemplation, Zeke finally guessed the reason.
When he first met Kaisir, he had unleashed Full Power Technique and been called out for mimicking Word Magic with a fake technique.
After that, he had sealed Full Power Technique until acquiring the Word Magic skill, then resumed using it.
"It seems the difference comes from the Dragon Race Skill, Word Magic, that I use." Nigel scowled at Zekeʼs words.
"Whatʼs Word Magic?"
"Since Iʼm human, I canʼt draw out the true power of Full Power Technique. So I based it on the Dragon Race Skill Word Magic, adding the power of words to my will." Nigel nodded, finally understanding.
"Hmm, so thatʼs why it felt off."
After a momentʼs thought, she looked at Zeke.
"Show me that Word Magic or whatever."
At her words, Zeke demonstrated pure Word Magic, without Full Power Technique.
"Burn."
With Zekeʼs words, a fallen branch on the ground ignited.
Seeing this, Nigel stared at him in disbelief.
"What the hell? Isnʼt this Draconic Tongue Magic?"
"I heard Word Magic is whatʼs needed to cast Draconic Tongue Magic."
Nigel nodded.
"I get the problem now. Word Magic expresses your will through words to make it happen. But in Full Power Technique, words donʼt matter much. Whatʼs crucial is concretizing the image within."
"Concretizing the image?"
"Thatʼs the basics of Full Power Technique, and you didnʼt know?"
Nigel had assumed, since Zeke used Full Power Technique often, she had taught him the fundamentals. Thus, she skipped the most basic parts.
She drew her sword and unleashed the Will of Strength.
"How does my energy look now?"
As before, he felt a solid, steel-like will.
"Like unyielding steel."
"Good. And now?"
Suddenly, Nigelʼs energy shifted.
'Huh?ʼ
Zeke sensed a massive, steadfast rock-like energy from the sword-wielding Nigel, one that had long occupied its place.
"A rock...?"
Nigel nodded and released her energy.
"Do you see the difference? Both the steel and rock energies are manifestations of the Will of Strength. But how you image them changes the power of the Full Power Technique you unleash."
Zeke understood her words immediately.
'Manifesting a concrete image... Double Spell must be imagining it even deeper and expressing it through will.ʼ
Seeing Zeke quickly absorb the core of Full Power Technique, Nigel somewhat understood why her past self had taken a human as a disciple.
Swinging the staff idly, Nigel shouted.
"Yeah, now hurry up and try it! If you canʼt, youʼll get beaten again!" Zeke gripped Bahamut and drew up his energy.
Unlike before, he moved the power using his soulʼs strength, without Word Magic. Ssssh—
Full Power Technique energy rippled from Zekeʼs body.
It was rougher than when using Word Magic, but controllable through his own will.
Zeke infused the power with a concrete image while sustaining it.
'An impregnable fortress wall no one could breach.ʼ
He envisioned a sturdy fortress wall and poured in the Will of Strength.
Rumble—
Nigel, watching Zeke, suddenly felt a massive fortress wall unfold where he stood, startling her.
'A human could truly unleash Full Power Technique.ʼ
Until moments ago, she hadnʼt believed Zeke could fully master it.
She thought the Dragon Heart in his Middle Dantian only let him mimic an incomplete version via Word Magic.
But seeing his energy now, she had to admit it.
"Whew."
Releasing the Will of Strength, Zeke felt this method consumed far more mental energy than using Word Magic, but his will truly infused it.
'This was true Full Power Technique.ʼ
Moreover, previously, using it caused backlash, but now, vastly stronger than in his past life, he felt no headaches or side effects.
Zeke approached Nigel, who stared at him blankly.
"Master, how was it? Did I do it right?"
Snapping out of it at his words, Nigel yelled in flustered denial.
"Donʼt get cocky just for nailing the basics!"
Zeke was momentarily surprised by her words.
'I finally got praise from Master.ʼ
In his past life, heʼd never accomplished anything properly, only earning curses and beatings. But now, he could show results.
Zeke felt his past-life trauma toward her slowly healing.
Seeing Zeke look pleased, Nigelʼs blood boiled.
She tossed the staff aside and drew her sword again.
An ordinary arming sword brimmed with Full Power Technique energy, manifesting the aura of a massive cleaver.
Looking at Zeke, she said.
"Iʼll etch todayʼs lesson into your body completely."
"Huh? Master, letʼs rest a bit first..."
"Shut up! Rest isnʼt in my dictionary!"
Forced into endless sparring with Nigel, Zeke hit his limit.
But thanks to Limit Break, he broke through the wall blocking him and mastered true Full Power Technique.
A week later, Zeke had learned all the remaining parts of Full Power Technique that he hadnʼt in his past life.
*
Rumble!
As Nigel blocked Zekeʼs sword infused with Full Power Technique, a massive shockwave erupted around them.
Deflecting his strike, Nigel unleashed the Will of Concealment, completely hiding her presence and slipping into his blind spot stealthily.
Zeke countered by deploying a defensive domain with the Will of Defense, guarding against her assault.
Clang!
After clashing once, they separated, swords raised, steadying their breaths.
Soon, Nigel lowered her sword first.
"Thatʼs enough. Continuing would be pointless."
Zeke had now reached the level where he could unleash Full Power Technique comparable to Nigelʼs using Solo Spell.
Pleased at her implicit approval, Zeke smiled unwittingly.
Nigel clicked her tongue at him.
"You idiot, Full Power Techniqueʼs real power starts with Double Spell! Donʼt forget youʼre still far from matching me, having just grasped Solo!" Zeke grinned at her needless scolding.
Having overcome some of his past-life trauma toward his master, he could now face her without fear.
"Thank you for the lesson, Master."
At Zekeʼs thanks, Nigel turned away sharply and sat at the table in one corner of the wooden house.
Zeke immediately pulled out various tools from his inventory and began preparing the meal.
In his past life too, he had always taken care of meals for his master Nigel.
She never ate on her own when alone, to the point where it was impossible to tell what she subsisted on.
As Zeke set various dishes on the table, Nigel dug in with an excited expression.
Zeke handed her water as she stuffed her cheeks full and ate voraciously.
"Eat slowly, Master."
Once a terrifying figure, Nigel was still the one who had saved him in his past life and taught him much to survive.
Zeke had always regretted not seeking her forgiveness back then.
Seeming to read his heart, Nigel spoke while tearing into bread.
"Donʼt make that face."
"Huh?"
"At first, I couldnʼt fathom why past me took you as a disciple and released you from the oath... But now, I think I get it a bit." Looking at Zeke, she continued.
"Taking you in and freeing you from the oath was my will. So no need to feel sorry or indebted to past me."
Her words hit exactly what Zeke had wanted to hear, as if peering into his soul.
Zeke scratched his head, embarrassed.
"...I really canʼt win against you, Master."
"Hmph, a punk like you would need centuries more to catch up to a great master like me." As she chuckled and resumed eating heartily, Zeke looked at her and said.
"Master, I have something Iʼd like to ask."
Nigel frowned at Zekeʼs sudden shift in tone but soon spoke in her usual bold manner.
"What is it? Hmph. Ask away. The foodʼs good today, so Iʼll answer." Zeke slowly opened his mouth, gazing at her.
"Master... are you, by any chance... a dragon?"