[System Prompt]
[First time completing Swordsmanship Advanced Class: Extra rewards obtained]
[Acquired random trait – Swordheart Clarity]
[Received 10,000 General Ability EXP]
[Random skill proficiency +2 levels]
[Gained 3 disciple binding slots]
The first-time teaching rewards for the Swordsmanship Advanced Class were even better than the bonus he got the first time he taught a regular swordsmanship class.
Once again, Nanatsuki obtained a new trait. He focused his attention on the entry labeled "Swordheart Clarity", and more information immediately appeared:
[Swordheart Clarity: You've grasped the essence of swordsmanship and can always find the optimal way to strike. During combat, Swordsmanship +5. You can easily grasp the basics of new sword techniques when learning them.]
The effects of "Swordheart Clarity" were truly surprising.
The +5 to swordsmanship was additional!
Which meant—
The higher Nanatsuki's swordsmanship level, the more noticeable the bonus this trait would provide!
Moreover, "Swordheart Clarity" would make it much easier for him to get the hang of any new sword techniques.
The sword techniques Nanatsuki had practiced weren't limited to the ones displayed on his Status Interface. Some of them hadn't yet reached the introductory level, which was why they weren't showing.
Now that he had "Swordheart Clarity," his learning speed for sword techniques would greatly increase.
As for the bonus EXP, there was also a whopping 10,000 General Ability EXP. Nanatsuki planned to allocate 9,000 of it to Reiatsu, and the remaining 1,000 to Shunpo.
Every five levels, the EXP requirement increased. His current Reiatsu level was 55, and leveling up now required 3,000 points.
After allocating the EXP, his Reiatsu rose from Lv55 to Lv58.
The 1,000 EXP was just enough to raise Shunpo by two levels—from Lv23 to Lv25.
Nanatsuki glanced at his basic status panel:
[Basic Abilities: Reiatsu Lv58, Swordsmanship Lv54, Kidō Lv20, Hakuda Lv11, Shunpo Lv25]
This reward set also included a bonus of random skill proficiency increase.
This time, the boost landed on Kaido, raising it all the way to Mastery level!
A rush of knowledge about Kaido surged through his mind—like he had spent a hundred or two hundred years constantly healing patients and studying Kaido techniques.
Kaido involved a great deal of medical expertise. Compared to the memories he gained when improving sword techniques, this one was overwhelming in both depth and scope. Nanatsuki remained dazed for quite a while.
With this level of Kaido skill, he could even qualify as the Fourth Division's Vice-Captain.
Of course, there was no hope of becoming the Captain—he still couldn't beat Unohana.
He also gained 3 new disciple binding slots, confirming that there were ways to increase them. That alone was a relief—he no longer had to worry about not having room for new disciples.
Nanatsuki genuinely felt that the rewards from this first lesson of the Advanced Swordsmanship Class were far superior to anything he'd received before.
Normally, only the Swordsmanship Department Head had the qualifications to teach this class.
It just so happened that Asido, the current department head, had to participate in the Hueco Mundo expedition, leaving him too busy to handle the class.
And the other senior instructor, Murata-sensei, had fallen ill due to age.
That's how the task of teaching the Swordsmanship Advanced Class had fallen to Nanatsuki.
Otherwise, before becoming department head, he wouldn't have had the qualifications to teach it.
'Three disciple slots just for teaching one advanced class… Could other advanced classes give the same kind of rewards?' Nanatsuki wondered.
If that was really the case, he could earn more disciple slots by teaching the Kaido, Shunpo, Hakuda, or Kidō advanced classes as well.
Unfortunately, all of those also required department head-level qualifications, just like the Swordsmanship one.
Recalling the flood of Kaido-related memories he'd just received, Nanatsuki wanted to try and find a way to heal Batsu'unsai's damaged Spiritual Pressure Core.
Sadly, after pondering for a long time, he still couldn't come up with a method to repair it.
However, he now fully understood Unohana's treatment plan to stabilize the core's damage.
Comparing it against his own understanding, Nanatsuki realized that his Kaido and medical expertise were now nearly on par with hers.
In terms of technical skill, he and Unohana were probably on the same level—she simply had more experience.
He guessed that a Proficient level in Kaido was average in the Fourth Division, and Expert level corresponded to a seated officer. Now that he had reached Mastery, he was more than qualified to be a Vice-Captain.
'Maybe… once Kaido reaches Transcendence, I'll finally be able to heal the Spiritual Pressure Core damage.' he thought.
"Katori-kun."
A familiar, gentle voice brought him back to reality.
Nanatsuki turned to see a graceful beauty before him and blinked in surprise.
He had just been comparing his Kaido skills to Unohana's—what were the odds of running into her right now?
"Katori-kun?"
"Captain Unohana. I didn't expect to see you here."
"Dean Kotetsu invited me to come give a lecture on Kaido techniques. You're already teaching the Swordsmanship Advanced Class?" Unohana pointed toward the plaque above the sword room door—clearly marked with "Swordsmanship Advanced Class."
She had passed by the room and heard some students still practicing inside. Out of curiosity, she peeked in—only to be surprised to find Nanatsuki there.
The fact that Nanatsuki was substitute teaching hadn't yet been announced at the Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy, since it was an internal decision within the Swordsmanship Department. So Unohana had no idea.
"Captain Asido is away for the Hueco Mundo expedition and couldn't lead the class, so I was asked to fill in." Nanatsuki explained with a calm smile.
"I see… Still, being entrusted with an advanced class means your teaching ability has already been recognized." Unohana sounded genuinely surprised. She had known about the expedition, of course—but didn't expect the responsibility to fall on Nanatsuki, a newly appointed instructor.
"I just happened to be in the right place at the right time," he replied humbly.
"I'm off to my lecture now. It's been quite a while since I last guided you in Kaido. You should come and listen too. I'll be demonstrating an advanced Kaido technique today—if any students can grasp it, they might just become the next seated officer of the Fourth Division." Unohana said warmly.
Nanatsuki had learned Kaido from her, after all.
Back then, he had asked Batsu'unsai if he could study Kaido, and was subsequently brought to the Fourth Division, where he trained under Unohana for a period.
However, because she regarded him as the heir to Katori-ryu, she taught him Kaido without formally taking him as a disciple and refused to let him call her "teacher."
Naturally, Nanatsuki had no reason to refuse her offer and followed her to the Kaido Advanced Class lecture hall.