After finishing his afternoon exercise, Chi-Woo looked for Ru Amuh like he had promised. He found a two-story house surrounded by stone walls and carefully entered. He wanted to knock, but the house’s stone gate had been removed a long time ago. He was going to knock on the relatively intact door to the house instead when he felt a presence and heard the sound of wind cutting. Chi-Woo followed the sound around the house and saw Ru Amuh training in the backyard. With sweat pouring down his body, Ru Amuh was swinging his two swords.
Chi-Woo didn’t want to bother Ru Amuh when he was training, so he quietly watched. He had seen Ru Amuh training multiple times now, and it was nothing special each time: all he did was slice, swing, and pierce.
—Is he the friend you talked to me about?
Philip asked as he floated above Chi-Woo’s head and watched with his arms crossed. He looked serious unlike his usually mischievous self.
—Ah…
‘What do you mean, Ah?’
—He’s a genius. Not an idiot.
Philip said. Chi-Woo glanced up at him, surprised that Philip had read Ru Amuh’s skills just by looking at him.
—I’m not joking. He’s clearly my kind.
Basically, Philip was saying that he was also a genius.
—A genius usually recognizes another genius.
‘That wasn’t what you said a moment ago,’ Chi-Woo thought, and Philip waved his hand dismissively.
—Of course. He’s someone who already uses his sword as an extension of his body. I don’t need to look anymore. Regardless of his outstanding talent, he’s already reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
Philip smirked at Chi-Woo while looking down at him.
—If you were at his level, we could’ve had a fun time discussing sword fighting.
It was clear that Philip was telling Chi-Woo to know his place. Now he had reverted to a mocking jokester again, and instead of getting angry, Chi-Woo quietly took out a talisman.
—I’m sorry…
Philip immediately apologized, and Chi-Woo sighed.
‘Besides that, it seems you can see quite a bit at a glance.’
—Huh? Ah, of course.
Philip nodded.
—By the way, did you know that guy never swung his sword the same way twice since we started watching him?
‘What are you saying? He’s only been slicing, swinging, and piercing since the beginning.’
—That’s probably how it looks in your eyes, but that’s not how I see it.
Philip looked at Ru Amuh again and expressed his admiration.
—Wow…his swings are super clean. It’s really natural but also delicate. His slices make me think I’m looking at a piece of art. The universe sure is vast. If you only consider talent, he might have exceeded me.
Chi-Woo looked up at Philip in surprise. He thought Philip only knew how to boast.
—These are just facts that I have to admit.
Philip shrugged and continued.
—It’s clear that he has formed only a standard contract with his god. And I wasn’t as good as him at that age.
Then, as if his fighting spirit began to stir up inside him, Philip looked at Chi-Woo anxiously.
—Hey, can I make a request?
‘Like what?’
—Let me borrow your body.
‘No,’ Chi-Woo instantly refused. Philip didn’t push further, probably because he had experienced the feeling of almost getting expelled to the other world. He simply muttered.
—Ah. What a pity. I feel like I could win in his current state.
‘Win? Are you talking about beating Ru Amuh? You?’
—So, his name is Ru Amuh? Also, I didn’t say I would win, but I feel like I can.
Philip licked his lips.
—Should I say…a weakness, no. That’s not it. Um, but if I go into your body right now and fight him, I would probably win or lose with the same method.
Chi-Woo’s ears perked up hearing the possibility of beating Ru Amuh.
—Why? Are you interested?
‘No thank you,’ Chi-Woo finally said. What was the point of using somebody else to beat Ru Amuh? Only when he beat his opponent by his own strength would his victory have any meaning and give him satisfaction. But it did make him curious about something.
‘What’s the method you may beat him with?’
—It’s simple. Ru Amuh’s sword is free just like the wind.
Chi-Woo agreed with this point; he had gotten the impression from Ru Amuh’s movements before.
—Sometimes it’s strong as a storm; other times, gentle as a breeze. But it swings too much to the extremes for his attacks to be versatile.
‘Are you saying that he is too upright?’
—Hm. I suppose you’ve heard something like that somewhere. No, that’s not what I mean. He focuses on efficiency so much that there’s a limit in the number of directions where he could exert his strength.
Chi-Woo blinked.
—Besides, he knows how to rebound well and is flexible, but he has a tendency to fixate on a direction once he goes in a specific way. You know how a storm doesn’t have only wind? Like how it can combine with lightning or rain, he can also use other factors. It seems this Ru Amuh fellow is really confident about his speed, so he could make up with that… Still, it’s a wasted opportunity. There you have it: my analysis of him.
Chi-Woo began to feel the steam rising in his head; he understood less than half of what Philip said.
“Huh? Senior!” It was then he heard Ru Hiana’s voice.
—Oh my. Who is this lady?
Philip’s attention quickly jumped to Ru Hiana.
“Ah, Teacher!” It seemed Ru Amuh had also heard her voice, and he stopped training to look over at Chi-Woo in surprise.
“I didn’t even know you came, Teacher…”
“It’s fine. You seemed focused on training, so I purposefully didn’t bother you. Hello to you as well, Ms. Ru Hiana.”
—Goodness. A blue-eyed lady with blonde hair in a high ponytail… She’s a beauty. Why are you so pretty, lady~
The sight of Philip smirking close by Ru Hiana’s side bothered Chi-Woo, but he simply paid his greeting.
“No, I apologize. I had purposefully blocked my senses while training, so I didn’t notice.” Ru Amuh smiled awkwardly and scratched his head. Chi-Woo looked curiously at him and asked, “Why?”
“I have begun to feel restricted while swinging my sword at some point. It feels as if I’m trapped in a space with limited perimeters. So, I was trying different ways to find a breakthrough.
Chi-Woo was reminded of what Philip had told him. He began to wonder if he should tell Ru Amuh what he had heard or not. In the end, he decided to tell him. After all, Ru Amuh was his first star, and he had helped Chi-Woo multiple times before.
“Hm… If it doesn’t offend you, could I give you some pointers?”
“From you, Teacher…!”
“It’s nothing amazing. They are just personal observations I made.”
Ru Amuh looked at Chi-Woo like he was all ears, and Chi-Woo started talking. Of course, he didn’t forget to put up a soundproof curtain around him.
“Mr. Ru Amuh, your sword is…”
—Is this guy kidding with me?
Philip chuckled at the absurdity of the situation as Chi-Woo relayed exactly what Philip had said to Ru Amuh.
“You tend to fixate on a single direction…” Chi-Woo said, and Ru Amuh listened to him seriously before responding.
“But Teacher. Isn’t it best to maintain the direction my force is applied once I get started? Of course, I could pause or tilt the focus of my swings midway, but considering the side-effects of the repelling force…”
Ru Amuh seemed to understand what Chi-Woo was telling him and posed a fairly high-level question in return. Taken aback, Chi-Woo glanced at the spirit grinning next to Ru Hiana for help. Philip chuckled, but he did tell Chi-Woo what to say rather than leaving him high and dry. After a stretch of silence, Chi-Woo relayed Philip’s answer to Ru Amuh word for word.
“When I say that you fixate on one direction to apply your force, think of it in a wider sense,” Chi-Woo said, “Yes, a storm is rough, and a breeze is soft. But that’s simply a phenomenon of nature and not your swordsmanship. You can think of a sword as a killing tool, but that’s simply the meaning you have attached to it rather than nature’s way. Even if you move like a storm, you can slice your opponents like a soft breeze. And likewise, even if you move softly as a breeze, you could sweep past your enemies like a storm. At least in your world, Mr. Ru Amuh.”
When Chi-Woo finished speaking, Ru Amuh’s eyes opened wide. His lips opened slightly and closed again. It seemed he had received quite the shock.
“Use of force…fixation…ah!” Ru Amuh exclaimed, and after excusing himself, he closed his eyes, gripping his sword with both hands without moving.
“Mr. Ru Amuh?”
—Let him be. It seems he got enlightened. He probably wants to engrave the feeling into his mind and body.
And thus, Ru Amuh’s body began to twitch slightly. It appeared he was swinging his sword inside his mind and was a moment away from moving like the wind.
“Wow…” Soon, a small exclamation of admiration followed. Ru Hiana looked at Chi-Woo and stood awkwardly. “I didn’t get what you meant at all, but…” She smiled with embarrassment when meeting Chi-Woo’s eyes.
‘Me neither,’ Chi-Woo wholeheartedly agreed with Ru Hiana inside his mind.
After hesitating a bit, Ru Hiana suddenly asked, “Um… Senior, could you take a look at me too? Of course, I’m not confident that I would be able to understand what you say, but if you could check my swordsmanship once…”
—If our lady wishes it, of course, we have to take a look.
Philip immediately stepped forward, thinking that the way Ru Hiana kept twisting around to make the request was adorable.
—Hey! What are you doing? Quickly tell her that you will! I’m going to finally focus after a long time.
If Philip was a dog, he would be wagging his tail right now, so Chi-Woo agreed to give Ru Hiana feedback in the end. Ru Hiana looked very nervous, but she took out her sword and swung it around.
—Oh my, is that so? Goodness, that’s a nice swing. Wow, that’s great!
Even though he said he’d focus, Philip watched Ru Hiana swing her sword while laughing, unlike the serious way in which he observed Ru Amuh’s training. He spoke up after Ru Hiana stopped swinging her sword.
—It’s great that she’s swinging her sword smoothly like water, but…
“It doesn’t flow like a river.” Chi-Woo reiterated Philip’s words so Ru Hiana could hear them. “Your swings are soft, but weak. There’s a saying that softness can beat strength, but this principle isn’t always true. Softness and strength both come from the same source after all. There’s also a saying that strength subdues softness. If you get hit by a strength that goes over a certain limit, your softness will eventually break. When there’s action, there’s naturally a reaction. Rather than forcefully putting power into your swing, I think it’ll be better if you blend these two principles naturally into your sword.”
As soon as Chi-Woo finished talking, Ru Hiana slightly gaped in surprise. Then she bit her lower lip and made a bitter expression. “Is that so? Senior, you say the same thing as Ruahu.”
“Mr. Ru Amuh said the same thing?”
“Yep. I don’t know how to say it, but I’m a bit dumb… Honestly, I don’t really get it. Even if I listen to it, I don’t really understand…” Ru Hiana made a bitter smile in embarrassment.
—Hey. Can’t you let me borrow your body? Just for a moment. For real.
Philip began pestering Chi-Woo like a donkey in heat.
‘Ah come on, again? I don’t want to.’
—You punk. Okay, fine. Then you do it.
‘What do you mean by “do it”?’
—Whatever, it’s fine. Just ask that beautiful girl to show her swordsmanship one more time if it’s okay with her, but tell her to move slowly while barely putting any strength behind her swings.
Chi-Woo obliged for now. Ru Hiana looked a bit confused but did as he asked.
—Good. Then stand behind her and softly~ grab her wrist.
‘What?’
—If you can’t get through to her with words, you can give her direct guidance. Try pulling her along as I tell you to do.
‘But.’
—It’s training, just training. You already told her to do this. Are you going to stop now? Don’t you see how sad she looks?
True to his words, Ru Hiana looked dejected. Chi-Woo clenched his teeth and stood behind Ru Hiana, and he felt her flinch. When Chi-Woo stretched out his hand and placed it on her wrist, Ru Hiana whipped around to look at him, clearly startled.
“S-senior?”
—Don’t worry~ Please don’t be surprised~ I’m not going to eat you~
Philip spoke in a sleazy way.
Chi-Woo replied, “…I’m not going to harm you, so please try following where my hand leads you and remember this sensation.”
“U-uh, yeah…” Ru Hiana looked taken aback, but soon looked to the front.
—Good. Swing your sword as if you’re cutting through water. Slice, withdraw, hit, withdraw…
And while Ru Hiana swung her sword, Chi-Woo slowly pushed his exorcism mana into Ru Hiana’s body as Philip had instructed him to, like he was connecting a line. Ru Hiana didn’t say anything, but she clearly felt his mana. Even though it was embarrassing since it felt as if their body was connected, she calmly accepted his mana.
—Try increasing your speed by a little bit.
When A applied force on B, A would be hit with the same force in return. In other words, force A and counterforce B were equal, but in opposite directions. But what if Ru Hiana could synchronize the flow of A and B whenever she wanted? It was with the same principle that Ru Hiana’s sword hit the air.
—Grab and pull!
Chi-Woo grabbed Ru Hiana’s hand and pulled.
—Pierce now!
Chi-Woo guided the force of the sword as they pulled it back, and then, he pushed as hard as possible as they thrust the sword forward.
Swish!
“Uh!?” Ru Hiana almost fell forward to the ground. She managed to regain her balance as Chi-Woo held onto her, but she looked visibly dazed. Her gaze landed on the sword she had thrusted forward. “Just now…?”
Chi-Woo was also surprised because all he had done was follow Philip’s instructions.
—Really, you’re unbelievable.
Philip also couldn’t contain his admiration.
—It’s a high-level skill, but you were able to follow it right away by just listening to me.
Philip made a satisfied smile while saying that it’d be fun to teach Chi-Woo.
“Se…nior.” Ru Hiana let out a groan. Chi-Woo finally regained focus and pulled away, dropping Ru Hiana’s hand. Ru Hiana’s neck and ears were bright red; judging by her rough breathing, she also seemed slightly excited. “I…I…just…”
—You felt it, right? Really felt it?
Was it just him, or did Philip’s words sound a bit strange?
—Hey, I was just talking about learning the sword technique. What kind of lewd imagination do you have?
When Chi-Woo glared at him, Philip smirked and pretended to act solemn.
Then Ru Hiana struggled to say, “One…one more time…” She looked extremely embarrassed as she shyly asked, “Could you…do it like that…one more time…?”
—Whaat? One more time?
Philip began to excitedly shout while Ru Hiana continued, “I think I’ll get it… I think if we do it a bit more, I’ll get the feel for it…”
—Of course! Anytime! It’s a definite yes from me! Fuck yeah!
“Please…just a bit more…”
—Fufu. Please don’t worry. I’ll use all my techniques to make sure you feel it for sure. Ah, of course, I’m talking about swordsmanship. Hehehehheh!
Chi-Woo closed his eyes.
* * *
Ru Amuh awakened from his thoughts. His head felt clear, and he felt a strange satisfying sense of accomplishment that he hadn’t felt in a long time. As soon as his focus was back on his surroundings, he heard people’s voices.
—Senior, do I do it like this?
—Yes, that’s right.
He heard Ru Hiana and Chi-Woo. He felt warm air reach his face.
—What about this? This?
—Yes, that’s great. You’re doing extremely well.
Huff! Huff! He heard Ru Hiana’s rough breathing as if she was doing intense exercises. Ru Amuh was a bit startled to hear all that with his eyes closed. Of course, Ru Hiana was merely swinging her sword so hard that her whole body was covered in sweat, and Chi-Woo was just nodding and complimenting her. Philip acted frivolously, but when Ru Hiana officially began training, he gave her serious feedback.
—Compliment her a lot.
Philip felt pity towards Ru Hiana as she kept wanting reassurance that she was doing a good job.
—This lady’s talent is actually not bad. She’s actually pretty good in general. I would say she’s gifted.
As Philip said, Ru Hiana had talent and could be considered gifted. It was just that…
—There’s a genius with overwhelming talent by her side.
Moreover, Ru Amuh was not just an ordinary genius, but a once-in-a-lifetime genius that stood out even in this whole universe. For that reason, Ru Hiana always felt slightly intimidated. She had a tendency to adopt a self-defeating mentality, thinking that no matter how hard she worked, she wouldn’t be able to do it.
—If she does well, compliment her a lot, and even if she doesn’t do a good job, encourage and console her instead of scolding her. It’s more important for this lady to recover her confidence. How can she improve her skills if she always doubts herself first?
While Philip seriously gave his suggestions, Chi-Woo thought that even Philip was an okay person when he acted normal.
—How about it, you trust me a bit more?
Philip rubbed his nose and laughed.
“How am I doing, Senior? Am I doing well?”
Philip seemed to be right, as Ru Hiana kept glancing at Chi-Woo while swinging her sword.
“Yes, you’re doing very well. It’s really great.” Chi-Woo gave a lot of compliments like Philip had told him to do.
“Really? Are you being serious?”
“Of course. You’re the best.”
Ru Hiana’s expression brightened. “Senior! What about this!” Swish! Ru Hiana pierced the air with a lot of confidence.
—Ah, it would be better if she strongly shook her sword while extending it, so that the power from the edge of the sword could spread to its surroundings.
“Hmm. Why don’t you try strongly shaking it this time?”
“Shake? Like this?”
“No. Just the edge of your sword…?” Chi-Woo stopped mid-sentence when he felt a gaze on him. He turned to see Ru Amuh blinking hard at him with a look of shock on his face. He didn’t know why, but Ru Amuh’s face was a little flushed.
“Mr. Ru Amuh? Are you done?” Chi-Woo asked, tilting his head.
Excited, Ru Hiana shouted, “Ruahu! Look at me! How am I doing!?”
“Ah, yes… Um, uh, yeah.” Ru Amuh awkwardly got up in a strange posture. For some reason, he had his hip slightly pushed back.
–Hmm….
Philip, who was quick to catch on to things, looked at Ru Amuh and scratched his head.
–Did he get the wrong idea?