Alan calmly sheathed his sword and looked around at the three of them.
Eris and Rudeus had expressions of clear confusion, as if they couldn't understand the meaning behind Alan closing his eyes, drawing his sword, and opening them again. Ghislaine, however, was stunned.
That strike was fast. But it was slightly slower than the Silent Sword. On the surface, it seemed nothing special…
But… the moment he swung the sword, she hadn't felt the slightest trace of killing intent!
It reminded her of that rainy night when Alan had emerged from the downpour with a decapitating strike. That too had been completely devoid of killing intent, perfectly concealing the blade's trace, which had bypassed Jard's danger sense and made him mistake the approaching figure—with his North God Style footwork and lack of killing intent—for his own brother.
And so, Jard's head had been severed before Ghislaine's eyes.
Just like the leaf now.
At the time, Ghislaine had assumed she had been too exhausted to notice the killing intent.
Now, it seemed that wasn't the case…
Because she was extremely close to Alan right now… even the faintest, best-hidden killing intent should have been perceptible to some degree. As long as it was a blade swung with "intention," there would inevitably be a feedback of killing intent.
Unless…
This wasn't a strike swung with "intention"!
Ghislaine's eyes widened.
"This is…"
Alan rubbed the space between his eyebrows, looking slightly weary.
"One of the five ultimate techniques of the Water God Style—Thought Flow."
"It's somewhat similar to the Sword God Style, but the former is primarily based on passively receiving environmental information, with the focus remaining on 'perception.' The latter, however, involves actively choosing a target, with the focus solely on the act of striking itself."
"To be honest, I only began to grasp it after mastering the Silent Sword, because the method of delivering a strike in the Sword God Style and the Water God Style's Thought Flow are somewhat similar in mindset."
"However, the former is about concentrating your consciousness to a single point and 'actively' striking. The latter is about perceiving information and letting your thoughts react to the changes in that information, 'passively' delivering the strike."
Ghislaine's mouth hung open in rare astonishment.
"That description… could it be?"
"That's right. A combination of Flow Perception and Thought Flow," Alan confirmed.
"Perceive all surrounding information, and the instant that information changes, automatically deliver a sword strike to sever anything that 'changes'."
"This… is the Deprivation Sword World."
Ghislaine fell silent, unable to speak for a long moment.
Eris blinked, eager to learn, and asked loudly, "What is the Deprivation Sword World?"
Ghislaine glanced at her.
"The Deprivation Sword World."
"It is the signature technique of the Water God, Reida. No matter if the opponent is in front, behind, to the left, right, above, or below—from any angle—as long as they step into the range of the Deprivation Sword World, she can strike them down from any posture. The moment the opponent moves, she can react to that movement and cut down the one who made it."
"Not even the Sword of Light can beat it?"
"Unless you manage to cut off Reida's wrist with the Sword of Light before she activates the Deprivation Sword World. Otherwise, once she activates it, the very instant you raise your wrist to swing the Sword of Light, your hand will be gone."
Eris glanced at Alan and shouted, "That's amazing! How do you become a Water God?"
"It's the rule of the Water God Style's main dojo. If one can master three of the five ultimate techniques of the Water God Style, they can ascend to the rank of Water God."
"Is the Deprivation Sword World three techniques?"
Ghislaine shook her head.
"The Deprivation Sword World is just what Reida created by combining two of the Water God Style's ultimate techniques, creating a sixth ultimate technique that is nothing short of a dream."
"Huh? But that's still only two techniques! Why is she the Water God?"
"…Those two techniques are the most difficult of the five. Even so, the Water God Style's main dojo has five Water Emperors in total, and they all know three techniques. So why is Reida the Water God, and they are not?"
Eris stared intently at Ghislaine, as if urging her to say the next words.
Ghislaine met her expectation.
"The reason is simple… It's not that Reida can use the Deprivation Sword World because she is the Water God. It's that she is the Water God because she can use the Deprivation Sword World."
"That is the power of the Deprivation Sword World."
"It originates from the five ultimate techniques, but it is superior to them."
Eris's eyes shone with intense light as she looked at Alan.
He was just repeatedly rubbing his temples, not saying a word.
Hilda's 'bedroom' was a massive suite. Upon entering, the first thing one saw was a floor-to-ceiling window. Unlike the exquisite stained glass in the dining room, the glass here was clearly ordinary glass, chosen for better lighting.
Sunlight poured from the window, spilling in front of the fireplace in the living room.
That's right, this was a living room. Sylphie couldn't tell where the actual bedroom was. There were four doors in the living room, leading to different rooms.
The sunlight on the floor shifted.
A shadow 'floated' up from the ground.
Sylphie glanced out the window. The canopy of a lush tree swayed in the spring breeze. The shadow was created by the changing light as the sun began to set, filtered through the tree outside the window. The scene reminded Sylphie of the hillside in Buena Village.
Her steps didn't falter as her gaze moved on.
Hilda led her through the nearest door on the left.
Opening the door, the scene that met Sylphie's eyes made her freeze.
Several tall, exquisite wardrobes lined an entire wall. Beside the wardrobes was a weaving machine, more intricate and complex than the one her mother used at home. On a nearby platform lay beautiful fabrics of various colors.
As she stood there, stunned, her vision went dark. It was Hilda, who had taken the towel from her head and was now using it to gently dry her hair.
A moment later, light returned to her eyes. Hilda's smiling face was close. She rubbed a strand of Sylphie's hair between her fingers.
"There, it will be dry in a little while."
She turned and opened one of the wardrobe doors.
More than a dozen girls' outfits met Sylphie's eyes, causing her to gasp. The sizes of the clothes gradually increased from left to right, clearly arranged by age.
There was a pure white dress with thin straps and a patterned hem; a complex gothic-style lolita dress; an exquisite moon-white long dress with a sash; an off-the-shoulder light blue blouse with a fringed hem; and a black-and-white, elegantly styled knee-length dress, paired with a cute black hat with a long brim and ribbons…
What was even more astonishing…
There was even a low-cut evening gown, with a beautiful silver pendant and necklace specially paired with it on the hanger…
They were incredibly beautiful and stylish.
It made Sylphie think… Of course Eris would refuse to wear these clothes. They're too feminine. Wearing them would only slow down her sword swings…
Then, as she watched, Hilda's fingers swayed over the clothes, her eyes glancing at Sylphie…
Finally, under Sylphie's trembling gaze…
She gracefully placed her hand on the evening gown.
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