Just as I reached the villa entrance, I saw Eris and Ghislaine practicing their swordsmanship.
Eris could now use the Light Katana and could be considered a Sword Saint.
I watched their practice for a while, and a playful mood suddenly struck me.
"Eris, do you want to have a duel between swordsmen with me?"
Hearing my proposal, Eris was also very happy and quickly agreed.
She tossed me a wooden sword, but instead of attacking me like when we were little, she took a stance and waited for me to accept the sword before bowing.
Eris has truly changed.
After I took the wooden sword, I said to Eris:
"Eris, you need to distinguish between a duel and a life-or-death fight.
Your previous method of attacking directly, regardless of whether I parried the sword, was a natural talent you possessed for combat.
You shouldn't extinguish that talent; people who only engage in conventional duels will lack the mindset of using any means necessary to defeat their opponent in a real fight.
Those who always pursue justice, who insist on never ambushing their opponents, those 'gentlemen,' will never get far. Truly strong individuals defeat their adversaries using every available method.
They wouldn't hesitate to use quicklime or poison.
I heard from Ghislaine that the first time you learned the Sword God Style from her, you tried to stab her with a sword while she was sleeping. You truly had the talent for combat back then."
After I recounted so many of her embarrassing past deeds, Eris felt a bit flustered.
She shouted: "Stop rambling! Aren't we supposed to duel? Hurry up and start!"
"Heh, still a bit off. Didn't you realize the duel has already started?"
I then bowed to her.
Eris hadn't fully grasped the meaning of my words and obediently bowed back.
Ghislaine counted down from beside them: 3, 2, 1.
As soon as she said 1, Eris transformed into a streak of light and slashed toward me.
I formed an air barrier in front of me, allowing me to react normally to Eris's Light Katana attack.
Then, I swung my wooden sword, using the advanced Water God Style sword technique, 'Flow,' following the momentum of her sword, directly deflecting her wooden sword from its trajectory toward me.
I then followed up by moving forward and using my self-created sword technique,'Sky-Shattering Flash,' stabbing just in front of her stomach, and finally using 'Wind Roar Burst' (Wind Bored) on the tip of the sword to blast her away.
"Hmph, Cousin, you're cheating! Isn't this supposed to be a duel between swordsmen?"
"Yes, this is my way of the sword. I cannot use Battle Aura, so I use my magical power to simulate sword techniques. All the techniques I used against you were countered with my self-created sword techniques. Theoretically, the magical power I added to my sword techniques no longer counts as magic, because this set of magic is integrated into my sword techniques, just like the principle of you using Battle Aura within your sword techniques.
Moreover, you didn't even notice that you were being led from the very beginning; my words influenced your thinking, making you more impulsive and less likely to analyze the actual situation.
The fact that I used an air barrier in mid-air was something I used once when dueling Ghislaine when I was little, but you still fell for it. If you could use the perfect Light Katana, I definitely wouldn't have been able to block it."
Eris somewhat understood the meaning behind my words.
"Furthermore, swordsmanship is not static. Swordsmen of the Sword God Style cannot avoid learning about other schools of swordsmanship; they must at least understand the weaknesses in their opponent's style to improve their own techniques."
I turned to Ghislaine and said:
"Ghislaine, you studied at the Holy Land of the Sword before, right?"
"Yes, I was a disciple of the contemporary Sword God, Al Farion. I studied at the Holy Land of the Sword for a long time."
"Then can you take Eris to the Holy Land of the Sword for advanced training? Let her spar with more swordsmen of the same level; it will greatly improve her swordsmanship. Also, aren't there swordsmen from other styles who visit the Sword God Style headquarters? She can learn from them then too."
When Ghislaine heard about going to the Holy Land of the Sword, her tail twitched slightly; she seemed to miss that place too. However, she replied:
"I still need to protect Lord Philip and Lady Hilda's safety. Would it be alright if I took Eris there?"
"You don't need to worry about that. They are very safe in this city. Ariel is also here. I will introduce Philip to Princess Ariel tomorrow so he can start working for her. Then, the guards around Ariel can also protect him. I will also communicate this to Philip in advance. Don't worry."
Ghislaine nodded slightly. Eris seemed a bit excited to hear she could go study at the Holy Land of the Sword, showing no reluctance.
That's truly Eris's personality.
After entering the house, Philip and I discussed going to see Ariel together tomorrow and having Eris go to the Holy Land of the Sword to study the Sword God Style.
If this were back when we were in Ranoa, he and Hilda might have been a bit uneasy. But now that Eris has demonstrated her talent for sword practice, Philip readily agreed to the matter.
He even comforted Eris, telling her not to worry about their safety.
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