Her right foot was firmly planted, her left heel slightly off the ground, with her center of gravity positioned between her feet. The tip of the sword pointed at my eyes, and the pommel rested at the center of her abdomen, not exceeding that height. It was perfectly standard; this posture was strong in both offense and defense. If I advanced and chopped down from above, she would naturally block with a horizontal guard and, upon rebounding, thrust directly at my throat.
Of course, I hadn't been idle all these years either. I also adopted the Middle Stance. Although it was equally balanced for offense and defense, I was the one initiating the attack. Even though it was disadvantageous for me, it didn't matter; I had my own method.
Although we were indoors, a sudden gust of wind blew in. I took advantage of it to slash forward, aiming directly at her left shoulder. As she guarded horizontally, I quickly drew my sword back and thrust straight for her face, hitting her once and knocking her clean out of the way.
This sequence was fluid; two strikes ended the fight. Although her head was protected by headgear, her back of the head was not. After falling, the back of her head hit the ground, resulting in a truly miserable fall. I felt pain for her head. In modern terms, it would probably be at least a Grade 9 concussion.
The move I just used was something I invented myself. By accelerating the airflow around the sword's cutting edge, I created lower air pressure, causing the wind to'suck' the sword forward during the swing. Then, when the sword tip struck her face, I generated a wind burst—similar to the sonic boom produced when a fighter jet suddenly accelerates—relying on the impact force to blast the opponent away.
If this move were used with a real sword, and the weapon pierced the opponent's body, the resulting internal explosion would likely be extremely gruesome.
This was also the first time I used this move in actual combat. I named it'Sky-Rending Flash.' It sounds a bit chuunibyou, but it's definitely effective.
This time, the girl seemed stunned by my attack, lying motionless on the ground. I felt a little guilty because after she managed to strike my leg with her bamboo sword earlier, I hadn't held back this time. Although she had protective gear, the back of her head definitely hit the ground. I hoped she hadn't been concussed into idiocy.
I walked up to the girl and cast an Intermediate Healing Spell on the back of her head: 'Holy power is rich grain, grant the strength to rise again to those who have lost their vigor - [Healing].'
I hope there are no after-effects.
Teacher Urie finally reacted. He seemed even more nervous than when I was injured and immediately rushed over to check the girl's condition.
'What school of swordsmanship is that? Why was your swing so fast? And what was that explosion when your tip finally struck her?'
This was the voice of an old woman. Hearing it, my body tensed because I instinctively felt that the person speaking was formidable, as if she carried an aura. I had the feeling that she could cut me down from any direction at any time. Although it sounds strange, it was true: from the moment she spoke, every hair on my body stood on end.
I respectfully replied, 'It is a swordsmanship technique I created. I named it "Sky-Rending Flash," meaning to cleave through the air. The final explosion at the tip was a small-scale wind magic spell. The damage is not significant; it only causes harm when cast close to a person's body.'
'Hmph, little brat, don't be so modest. Can't I see? If this were a real sword, once your blade pierced someone's body, that explosion could directly blow them apart. If it struck a hand, that hand would be severed; if it struck a foot, that foot would be severed; if it struck the chest, even a King-level Healing Spell would struggle to save them.'
'Hehe, Senior is too modest. This junior is dull-witted and doesn't possess such great ability.'
'I am the current Head of the Water God Style Main Dojo, the contemporary Water God, Leda Lia. Boy, are you willing to become my disciple?'
I immediately bowed in panic, 'This disciple is willing to become your master. Master above, please accept this disciple's bow.'
'Spare me the formalities; I don't care for that. As long as you study hard in the future and inherit the sword intent of the Water God Style, I will be satisfied. The one lying on the ground is your Senior Sister, Izoruti Kerel. From now on, you two must practice together, improve together, and strive to develop our Water God Style.'
'Yes.'
The girl immediately scrambled up and said to the old woman, 'Yes.'
'Alright, you can go home for today. Formal instruction begins tomorrow.'
'Yes,' I replied sincerely. I glanced at the blue-haired girl beside me and saw that her forehead was bright red from the wind blast, and there were tears in her eyes. Perhaps, as a disciple of the Water God, being defeated by a boy younger than her was a bit hard to swallow.
That's not my concern. Since she is Izoruti, you will still be beaten severely by Nina in the Holy Land of the Sword later. Feeling the sting of defeat early is no bad thing.
When I returned home, I saw Grandfather and told him everything that happened today.
'Oh, you were taken as a disciple by the Water God? That's great news. If we can win the Water God over to our side, our family's power in Asura can reach a higher level.'
Shouldn't he be happy about my growth? Alas, he truly is a scumbag, only caring about power.
Then he encouraged me for a while, and I felt a chill when I saw his gaze become kinder. No, for now, I still need to play along with him. Besides, the Water God might have only taken me as a disciple because I am Darius's grandson, given that her secret crush is apparently my grandfather.