Arthur smiled and shook his head at my shamelessness. "Now that you are officially a dual path awakener, the most awesome part comes now… choosing a weapon."
He looked at me and asked, "You said you wanted to wield the sword, but have you already thought about what type of sword you want to use?"
I nodded. "Yes, I have, but I don't think that what I personally like matters much. What matters more is what will fit me best because, for example, I may like the katana, but I might not be able to wield it properly or bring out its full potential."
Arthur smiled again. "Good thinking. That is true. Many martial artists have made the mistake of choosing the wrong weapon simply because they liked it. In the end, that mistake prevented them from advancing further in their martial arts, locking away the real potential they could have had with another weapon that didn't appeal to them at first. It is just like in life, what you want is sometimes not what is meant for you."
That was true. In this world of magic, there were many people with great potential who wasted it all away by choosing the wrong weapon, the wrong martial art, or even the wrong spell. Compatibility was extremely important when it came to matters like these.
"Your weapon is just like a friend, or perhaps more accurately, a companion," Arthur continued. "You need a good companion throughout your life, especially in times like these, where one cannot trust easily. You must trust it with your life, because it is an extension of yourself. Remember this well, those who do not share a bond with their weapon do not go far." He spoke the last sentence with a hint of seriousness.
I nodded in understanding.
I really did understand, mostly from the books and movies I had read and watched back in my previous world. Some characters had incredibly deep relationships with their weapons, relationships that boosted their power immensely.
What did they call it again back in my world? I pondered for a moment before remembering. They called it "Extensions of the Spirit," or even better in my case, "Body-Sword Unity."
Extensions of the spirit, or sometimes called "Extensions of the arm," referred to viewing a weapon as an extension of one's own self. There was no mental gap between the user's intent, whether it was to cut, parry, block, or slice, and the weapon's movement. This state was a primary goal of mastery that many aspired to and attempted to achieve. Once one truly became one with their weapon, they could perform spontaneous and fluid attacks. These strikes were free of hesitation, doubt, or ego, allowing them to react perfectly to any situation.
Not only that, but in order to develop sword aura, one didn't even need to be completely one with the sword. A deeper understanding of one's weapon was enough, something that could be achieved upon reaching the 3rd Star, or so I thought.
Seeing that I had sunk deep into my thoughts, Arthur spoke again. "I only told you all this so you keep it in mind from now on. The sooner you learn about it, the better. This mostly concerns those at the 6th Star and above, so don't overthink it for now."
"I understand."
Even so, I had already decided to study Body-Sword Unity whenever I could. Even if I didn't need it yet, the more I learned about it now, the easier it would be for me later.
"Now, it's time to choose your weapon," Arthur said. "The weapon you choose will determine what I can teach you."
"What do you mean it will depend on the weapon I choose?" I asked.
"Just choose."
With a single wave of Arthur's hand, a wooden sword rack filled with many different types of swords materialized in midair before landing softly on the ground.
Watching the rack appear, I couldn't help but ask, "Where did you get that sword rack from? Do you just carry it inside your spatial ring?"
I mean, he probably does. Who could blame him? After all, spatial rings could carry an absurd number of items depending on their quality.
"Nope. I just have authority over the armament storage of the papacy," Arthur said flatly.
Seeing my confusion, he explained more thoroughly. "I have access to the armament storage because my mana signature is imprinted on one of the runes within the spell that protects it. That allows me to summon, or rather teleport, almost anything from the armament storage with just a thought."
That was both amazing and complex. Whoever created such a spell was definitely no rookie in magic. As Arthur explained it, he could summon items from the armament no matter how far he was from it, as long as he remained within the palace. I doubted he could summon anything from outside the palace, especially if the spell had a limited range. And even if it were possible, it would probably consume an absurd amount of mana.
This kind of magic would be incredibly useful in combat, especially when one needed a specific weapon, a healing artifact, or some tool that wasn't stored inside their spatial ring. Hell, it would be amazing in wars as well, constantly supplying weapons to soldiers on the battlefield.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Arthur asked with a smile.
"Yes, it really is. But do you spend a lot of mana doing it? And can you summon weapons from outside the palace?" I asked with interest.
Arthur nodded. "The mana expenditure depends on the distance. If I'm close to the armory, I spend very little mana. If I'm farther away, I spend more, but it hardly matters for someone at my rank. And no, you can't summon weapons from outside the palace. The spell doesn't allow it, and even if it did, it would be a waste of mana when you could simply carry items inside your spatial ring."
"I see…" I nodded in understanding.
I was about to step forward and choose a weapon when I suddenly remembered something. Earlier, when he had dragged me down from the window, and even before that when I threw a stone at him…
"What kind of magic did you use to block the stone? Was it a barrier spell?"
"Nope." Arthur shook his head. "It was simply my aura."
His aura?
"I can block any attack from someone of a lower rank using just my aura," he continued. "Especially from you, who ranks more than five levels below me. If I couldn't, I'd be killing myself."
"Damn, that's crazy," I said honestly, astonished.
"I know, right?" Arthur puffed out his chest with pride.
Blocking attacks simply by releasing one's aura was an incredible feat. Only high-ranking individuals could do it so casually. From what Arthur said, I now had a rough idea of his rank. If I was more than five ranks below him, then he was likely at the 7th or even the 8th rank.
That was no joke. Arthur was one of the strongest people on this continent, someone who could slaughter thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands, if he truly tried. I wondered when I would reach such a level myself one day, but I would get there. Either that, or I would die trying.
"What about the platform that stopped our fall earlier? That definitely wasn't your aura."
He is quite perceptive and asks the right questions, Arthur mused inwardly.
"Yes. That wasn't my aura, but it is related to my second ability, or rather my second affinity, but the distinction doesn't matter much."
My eyes widened.
A second affinity. That was insane. I knew many people possessed dual affinities, so that alone wasn't shocking. What truly surprised me was that his second affinity seemed related to constructs from what I had seen.
"Heh, you're not the only one with dual affinities," Arthur chuckled. "Though you can't really call it a second affinity. It works together with my lightning affinity, but it's still considered an affinity."
He looked at me and explained, "My second affinity is related to constructs. I can create anything I wish and imbue it with my golden lightning. An example would be the constructs I created earlier to show you how the mana circle and mana core function."
My guess had been right. It really was Construct Creation. It was an absurdly broken affinity. The ability to create anything one desired was something anyone would dream of, though it undoubtedly had its limits. After all, everything in this world had to be balanced.
This was my first time seeing an affinity that wasn't purely elemental. I had heard of such things before but never witnessed one firsthand. I couldn't even imagine what other affinities might exist. Soul-based affinities, mind manipulation, reality distortion… just thinking about them sent chills down my spine, yet it filled me with excitement at the same time.
"Now," Arthur clapped his hands, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Enough about me. Let's focus on your training. Choose a sword and see which one you're most comfortable with."
Nodding, I walked toward the rack and examined each sword carefully. They were all normal training swords, nothing flashy or overly decorated. The first one I tried was a claymore, a type of greatsword. I didn't particularly like it, nor did I think I could wield it well, but as Arthur said, it wasn't about liking it. It was about compatibility.
I picked it up and tried lifting it. I managed, but with great difficulty. I had some muscle and a lean build, but the sword was far too heavy. The hilt was long, and it was clearly meant to be wielded with two hands. I wanted something I could use with one hand if needed, but ideally something that allowed both. After a few test swings, it felt clumsy and unwieldy, so I placed it back on the rack.
Next, I tried a longsword. It felt too long. I swung it several times, but I struggled to find a proper balance, so I discarded it as well. After that, I picked up an estoc. It was a long thrusting sword with a narrow, stiff blade, no cutting edges, a sharply pointed tip, and a long grip. From what I knew, it was designed specifically to pierce plate armor. It could be used with one or two hands, but even so, it didn't feel right in my grasp.
Even though it didn't suit me, it truly was a beautiful sword.
Then my eyes landed on a sword I was very familiar with. After all, countless characters in anime and reincarnation stories wielded it.
A katana.