Mushoku Impact

Though he was getting his shit kicked in on a near-daily basis, Paul had been enjoying his stay at the Sword Sanctum. He could feel his strength increasing with each passing day, and, due to his talent and increasingly handsome appearance, he was more than a little popular with the ladies.
"Are you going to be okay? I used Healing Magic, but it can't help recover fatigue..."
Instead of responding to Paul's words, the blue-haired girl sharing his bed just stared off into space with an absentminded look on her face. Paul had gone easy on her, but they still went at it for three hours and in more than a dozen different positions.
Shaking his head, Paul allowed the girl to bask in her pleasant daydream as he focused on wiping his body clean using an old towel and some ice-cold water. Getting his shit kicked in by the Sword God every day left him feeling more than a little pent up. Fortunately, most of the girls within the Sword Sanctum were more than happy to help him relieve some stress.
Though it had only been a month or so since his arrival, Paul had made the rounds of nearly the entire female student body. If he had been a complete asshole, he could have even slept with girls who were already in a relationship. Fortunately for their boyfriends, Paul was kept apprised of the relationship status of most of the girls by those he slept with. His actions already caused a lot of people to resent and outright hate him, so he did his best to avoid fucking the brains out of other peoples' lovers.
Once he was finished with himself, Paul brought his most recent 'victim' back to her senses by tossing the cold rag onto her stomach. A startled gasp emanated from her throat as Paul said, "I'm going to head out for training. I'll stop by before sunset, so you can sleep here without having to worry about being late."
Though she nearly threw the rag back at Paul's face, the blue-haired girl, Selena, adopted a smile when she heard his 'considerate' words. She had heard the rumors regarding Paul being an absolute beast in the bed, and, while that turned out to be an understatement, he appeared to be as kind as the other girls had said.
"Thanks...and last night was incredible..."
Adopting a rather brazen smile, Paul sent Selena a wink as he said, "I still have a long way to go. Fortunately, I have a bunch of incredible girls like you to help me out..."
Though Selena was only seventeen-years-old, she had a voluptuous body and features reminiscent of a young woman in her late teens or early twenties. She also had an innately melodic voice, so he had really enjoyed her 'singing' the previous night.
Rewarding Paul's praise with a peal of bell-like laughter, Selena made to clean herself as she said, "Good luck during your training, Paul. We're all rooting for you."
Nodding his head in affirmation, Paul quickly finished donning his black bodysuit and white gi before heading towards the door. Before he could leave, however, Selena called out to him, saying, "Oh, yeah. We're coming up on the ninth month. The Beast Race's mating season generally starts around the third week and continues for a couple of weeks. It's become something of a tradition for all the guys to compete for the girls they like around that time, so you should prepare yourself."
Though he was already well aware of the upcoming mating season, Paul still nodded his head in response to Selena's words, saying, "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." before continuing on his way. Gal didn't have anything better to do, but he hated to be kept waiting. If he showed up even a few minutes late, Paul knew he would pay the price. The first and last time it happened, Gal had literally hurled him down the slope of the mountain...
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"I take it you've prepared yourself...?"
Though Paul wasn't late, the fact he had stayed up having sex meant Gal wasn't going to go easy on him.
Instead of saying anything, Paul adopted a low stance with his sheathed sword in his left hand. He had recently been trying to incorporate the drawing techniques of the Sword God Style into the Flowing Sword Draw taught to him by Reida. Paul had noticed the similarities between them at the start of his training, so he was trying to pursue the 'absolute defense' in the form of an offensive strike that exploited the gap in his opponent's attacks and guard.
Snorting through his nose, Gal began to release his Touki as he charged toward Paul in a manner reminiscent of a tempest. Strong wings followed his every movement as he began trying to slap Paul's head, all while the latter endeavored to dodge and use his sword to deflect Gal's bare hand.
Similar to Armament Haki from One Piece and Reiatsu from Bleach, Touki provided the user with superhuman strength, speed, and defense. If the Touki of one person was demonstrably stronger than another, they could block even full-force sword strikes with their naked skin. Magic could get around this, but Paul didn't want to imagine what Gal would do if he tried to use a Water Ball in the middle of a mock sword fight.
The condition Gal had set for Paul to 'graduate' from his daily beatings was to leave a single mark on his gloved hands. Touki could also protect equipment and shields, so Gal's black leather gloves might as well have been formed from Adamantine with how much Touki he possessed.
Fetting fed up with Paul swatting away his hands, Gal stopped trying to smack him and instead charged him like a bull. More accurately, he used his shoulder to impact Paul's chest and send him crashing into one of the giant boulders people used by Sword Saints to practice cutting through stone.
"I'm starting to get tired of this, kid. You've been receiving my 'guidance' for a month and still haven't awakened your Touki. How did you manage to reach the pinnacle of the Advanced Rank with such mediocre talent?"
Instead of being offended by Gal's remark, Paul adopted a wry smile as he wiped away the traces of blood from his lips and said, "I can be really stubborn..."
"Is that so...?"
Causing alarm bells to sound within Paul's mind, Gal placed his left hand on the hilt of his mythical sword, the Windpipe. While its name sounded a little lame, it was the masterwork of the greatest Blacksmith to have ever lived, Yulian Jalisco, better known as the Forge God. The latter had used the hardest bones of a mountain-sized King Dragon to produce a total of 48 swords. Among those, the Windpipe was ranked 6, a suitable weapon for the sixth-strongest fighter in the entire world.
Before Paul could fully comprehend what had happened, Gal appeared behind him in an instant, the golden blade of his Windpipe fully drawn as he softly muttered, "Don't die, kiddo..."
As if it had been waiting for his words, a tremendous shockwave tore through the area between Gal's previous and present location. At the same time, a literal geyser of blood erupted from a deep cut that ran from the center of Paul's chest to his right shoulder...
Fortunately for Paul, his Lesser Regeneration had been active from the start of the fight. Gal had also made sure his attack didn't hit anything too important, so while Paul invariably collapsed into the snow, he was still alive despite experiencing the legendary Longsword of Light...
Seeing steam rise from Paul's body as he slowly yet visibly regenerated, Gal's expression became solemn as he stabbed the shellshocked youth in the leg. Paul had been rendered senseless by the Longsword of Light, but the added pain of being stabbed in the outer thigh was more than enough to bring him back to blood-curdling reality.
Screaming in pain for the first time in a while, Paul instinctually drew his Black Sword and swung it towards Gal. The latter was more than a little surprised by the appearance of Paul's red and black blade, but the latter might as well have been moving in slow motion in the eyes of the Sword God.
Fortunately for Paul, Gal was nothing if not a man of his words. When he attempted to stop the Black Sword with his hand, the ridiculously sharp blade easily penetrated the back of his glove and hand. This was largely due to the fact the Black Sword increased attack damage by 20% while also providing a reasonable CRIT chance, a phenomenon nearly identical to the effects of Touki.
"Not bad, kid...and that's a pretty good sword you have..."
Though he was momentarily tempted to seize Paul's sword and add it to his collection, Gal didn't believe in 'bullying' or taking from those weaker than himself. He also preferred curved blades over longswords, so there was that as well.
Giving the Black Sword one last glance, Gal sheathed his Windpipe and said, "From now on, you're to spend all your free time in this place. If you can't cut through the smallest boulder here within half a year, you should just give up being a Swordsman. As 'resolute' as you are, your time would be better spent pursuing something you're actually talented in..."
After observing him for a month, Gal had concluded that the only reason Paul had managed to reach the Advanced Rank was because of the time and resources he had put into his training. Sure, he was a prodigy, but his talents appeared to lie elsewhere. Based on the clamor coming from his room each night, it wasn't too hard to imagine where...
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Due to the severity of his injuries, it took Paul nearly twenty minutes to fully recover. When he finally pushed himself to his feet, his complexion had paled considerably due to a combination of blood loss and the frigid temperatures. In spite of this, he manifested the Black Sword in his right hand and swung it, full-force, at one of the larger boulders.
Unlike typical stone boulders, those transported for use within the Sword Sanctum were a composite of granite, quartz, and other extremely hard minerals. It was even possible to find diamonds in some, as, unlike in his previous world, non-magical gemstones weren't considered particularly valuable in the world of Mushoku Tensei. After all, what was the use of a 'normal' rock when Mana Crystals and materials such as Mithril existed?
Despite swinging his sword full force and even triggering a critical attack, Paul was unable to cut through the boulder. He managed to shatter off a rather sizeable chunk, but that had less to do with his Touki and more to do with how broken the weapons empowered by Visions were.
Exhaling a weary sigh, Paul returned the Black Sword to his Vision before picking up the sword his father had acquired for him as a coming of age gift. It couldn't be compared to the weapons from Genshin, but it was a high-quality blade with excellent edge retention.
Swinging his unnamed sword with as much speed and strength as he could manage, Paul had to clench his teeth as the feedback from the impact ran through his hands and up his arms. Weapons empowered by Visions weren't just durable and lightweight; they had excellent shock-absorbent properties. At the very least, Paul hadn't felt any significant feedback during his previous strike.
Instead of swapping back to his preferred weapon, Paul pumped more Mana into his Lesser Regeneration as he began swinging his sword as a man possessed. He was sick and tired of people telling him he either had a talent for someone else or no talent at all. He already knew he wasn't a prodigy, but their 'advice' still pissed him off. Thus, even if it was to spite Gal, Paul was determined to cut through the largest boulder present...he wasn't going to give up just because some asshole with a sick fade told him to...
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Much to the chagrin of the girls that had been enjoying their evenings with Paul, the latter began spending most of his 'free time' practicing within the Boulder-Cutting Pavilion. A few came by to try and entice him for a romp, but he politely refused most of them.&nbsp;
Unfortunately, despite his growing speed and strength, Paul felt like he was making no progress towards cutting even the smallest boulder. He had managed to break one in two, but that was due to a fault within the boulder itself. Had he executed the Boulder-Cutting Technique correctly, both sides would have a near mirror-like polish.
Undaunted by his failure, Paul pressed on for nearly four weeks straight before something changed within his increasingly mundane life: Ghislaine appeared.
Without saying anything, Ghislaine would show up, demonstrate her Longsword of Light, and then spend the better part of an hour shaving off pieces of a medium-sized boulder using her sword. It couldn't be considered much exertion for a Sword Saint, but by the time she was finished, Ghislaine would be completely covered in sweat as she stared at Paul with a feverish look in her eyes and plumes of steam exhaling from her mouth and nose.
Understanding what Ghislaine's condition signified, Paul put even more effort into his training. He did his best to copy her form, but while they helped a surprising amount, he wasn't able to cut through a boulder as the ninth month transitioned into the tenth, eleventh, and eventually the twelfth month.
With the end of the Mating Season, so too came an end to Ghislaine's visits at the Boulder-Cutting Pavilion. This made Paul a little depressed, but he was able to recover quickly by visiting the girls in the Intersection of Fate and practically having an orgy. Even Razor ended up joining in, a hurtle Paul wasn't sure he would ever be able to become with any of his genderbent summons. Fortunately, Razor 'benefitted' from looking a lot like Ghislaine, hair, eyes, and breasts included. Paul also felt a little guilty about leaving her out, so the two of them eventually went at it like wild beasts...
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With only a few weeks remaining until the time limit set by Gal, Paul was spending even the evening hours in the Boulder-Cutting Pavilion. Unless someone came by to tell him he was needed elsewhere, he would swing his sword from sunrise to sunset and beyond. His only breaks occurred whenever he would collapse, faceplanting into the snow until someone came by to pick him up and carry him to his room.
What Paul didn't know was that the person carrying him back to his room was, more often than not, Gal. The Sword God had been keeping a close eye on him ever since the start of his training, curious to see how far Paul could push himself despite his 'lack of talent.'
If anyone were to ask him, Gal would say he wasn't very impressed with Paul's progress. At the same time, however, he had come to respect Paul for his conviction. Most people in Paul's circumstances would have given up a long time ago. Instead, Paul kept pushing himself harder and harder, driven by a sense of purpose that transcended common sense.
On the eve before the deadline he had set, Gal appeared before Paul to ask, "Why? What could possibly compel a boy as young as you to try this hard? What is it you hope to achieve?"
Lowering his severely battered and broken sword, its handle so frayed it needed to be wrapped with bandages just to give it a grip, Paul turned to Gal with ostensibly dead fish eyes and said, "Survival."
"Hmm..."
As he was well aware of Paul's position and circumstances, Gal wasn't too surprised by the former's words. He had even received a letter from the First Prince asking him to arrange an 'accident' for the young, exiled member of House Notos. Gal promptly burned the letter, but there was a fair chance he would be tasked with hunting Paul down if the First Prince managed to secure the throne.
"I see...I get it now. You've quite a bit of foresight, don't you...?"
Though he suspected there was more to it, Gal finally understood what could compel a ten, nearly eleven-year-old boy to such extremes. Even if he had done no wrong, Paul's prodigious talent practically guaranteed he would be viewed as a threat to be eliminated. While others pursued the path of swordsmanship to make a name for themselves, the thing that pushed Paul forward was his understanding that it was only a matter of time before Kings, Emperors, and even Gods began hunting him...
For the third, maybe the fourth time in his entire life, Gal felt genuine pity for another person. He also knew what it was like to be 'oppressed' due to possessing an overwhelming talent. Had he not had a master with the foresight to take him far away from the Asura Kingdom for training, there was a fair chance he would have been eliminated like most of the people who 'threatened the stability of the Kingdom.'
Unfortunately, as much as he could empathize with Paul's plight, Gal had no intention of bearing the youth's burden. Like Reida, he was contracted with the Asura Kingdom. He could ignore orders that asked him to violate the sacred principles that governed the Holy Land of the Swords, but the moment Paul stepped outside, all bets were off. If the King ordered it, he would have no choice but to hunt down and butcher the youth like a pig...
"Tell me something, punk...are you feeling lucky...?"
Though he had no idea what Gal was about to do, Paul managed a smile as he answered, "Every day of my life..."
Snorting in response to Paul's words, Gal muttered an almost inaudible, "Brat..." before adopting a faint yet vicious smile as he instructed, "Turn around and take your stance."
Doing as Gal said, Paul took a two-handed stance with his feet spaced apart in a way that allowed him to shift his center of balance in virtually any direction in an instant.
Catching Paul by surprise, Gal walked over to him and made a few minor adjustments to his stance as he said, "You're a pretty scholarly brat. Tell me, do you know the difference between Mana and Touki...?"
Though alarm bells were beginning to sound in his mind, Paul answered, "There is none...the only difference is in how they're-"
"Wrong."
After adjusting Paul's position, Gal stood behind him with his right hand raised like a knife hand as he explained, "While they draw from the same source, one is driven by imagination, while the other is driven by will. The two can complement one another, but there is a reason most people can only be a Mage or a Swordsmen. Those with strong imaginations get lost in thoughts of how they can change the world. Those with stronger wills get lost in trying to..."
Punctuating his words, Gal promptly stabbed his fingers into Paul's back, each digit sinking between the gaps in his ribs as he said, "Strike...!" in a commanding tone.
Though he wanted little more than to scream out in pain, Paul ignored the searing sensation spreading through his back and body as he swung his sword with all his might. To his tremendous surprise, the edge of his blade appeared to become superheated as he sliced through one of the smaller boulders without so much as a hint of resistance.&nbsp;
Just as a smile developed across Paul's face, the searing pain in his body became even more intense as Gal retracted his fingers and revealed, "I injected my Touki into your heart and body. I would tell you to memorize how it feels, but there's about a 70-80% chance you're going to suffer an excruciating death within the next couple of minutes. That is unless you can expel it from your body..."
Following his words, Gal unsheathed his Windpipe and slashed it toward Paul at a speed he knew the latter could react. One of the best methods to exhaust Touki was fighting to survive, so, with the intent of giving Paul marginally better chances, he sent the heavily bleeding youth careening back several meters before quickly following suit.
Though his feet left trails in the dirt and snow, Paul's expression became frenzied, almost feral as he issued a guttural war cry and charged at Gal. The foreign Touki in his body caused him to feel like he was overheating and on the verge of exploding. It also disrupted the flow of his Mana, so, despite trying to activate it numerous times, Paul was unable to use his Lesser Regeneration. The only thing he could do was fight and survive, so, with his Black Sword in hand, he charged towards Gal with unbridled killing intent. His death would mean the end of two worlds, so there was no way he was dying here.
He couldn't...
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Not yet...
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Not ever...
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"Why does this never...get any fucking easier...!?"
Influenced by Paul's speech habits, Reida had a look like she was about to kill everyone present as she strained every muscle in her lower body in an attempt to force out the obstinate infant inside of her. She had been in labor for nearly eleven hours, so even with her monstrous strength and stamina, she was nearing her limit.
"Please...just come out already..."
As if answering her prayers, Reida felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as the agonizing pressure threatening to drive her crazy was suddenly discharged. Tears of relief began to build in the corners of her eyes, but before she could relax, the maroon-haired woman helping to deliver her child reluctantly informed her, "There is another..."
Before Reida could make sense of what the woman had said, an even more intense pressure than before began to build in her lower body. The tears in her eyes quickly transitioned from those of relief to extreme pain as she shouted, "Paul Notos Greyrat! The next time I see you, I'm going to bite your fucking head off...!"
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Though things weren't going as well as she would have liked, Ningguang was making slow and steady progress in her takeover of the Strife Zone. She was a little worried about the fact that Kaeya had gone missing, but Ningguang trusted that the former wouldn't allow herself to be captured or detained without purpose.
On a more positive note, Beidou, Childe, and Thoma had managed to infiltrate the Shirone Kingdom and spread their influence through some of its larger ports. Beidou had even managed to secure herself a rather large ship and was slowly building a reputation as the Pirate Princess of Pax Harbor. The only thing preventing her from becoming a full-fledged Pirate Queen was her apparent age.
Fortunately, the people of Mushoku Tensei really did appear to mature at a much faster rate than usual. Ningguang was only eleven-years-old, but her appearance matched that of her previous self's fifteen or sixteen. If anything, her breasts were a little larger, a side-effect Zhongli attributed to the Intersection of Fate altering them to appeal more closely to Paul's sensibilities.
Since the Intersection of Fate had changed numerous people's genders, Ningguang didn't bother questioning it. She was just happy knowing she would reach full maturity around the age of fifteen. Being trapped in the form of a pubescent child despite being in her early thirties hadn't been the most pleasant experience. Sure, she looked cute, but there was only so much you could leverage cuteness to attain. Beauty, however, was a key that opened many doors...
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After waiting around an hour to make sure he was well and truly alone, Paul walked over to his closet and placed his palm atop the sliding door. He had never actually tried summoning the Intersection of Fate using a sliding door, but he doubted such a restriction would exist.
Fortunately, it didn't even take a second before Paul was proven correct as the cracks around the door gained a vibrant blue hue. When the runes had fully formed, he opened the door to find a frozen world with Ei, Jean, Eula, Barbara, Xiangling, and Razor waiting for him.
Taking a deep breath, Paul prepared himself for a tongue lashing before stepping into the IOF. The moment he did so, the world around him came to life as Barbara was the first to shout, "Paul!" in a cheerful tone.
Smiling wryly, Paul made his way over to the platform before pointing to his face and saying, "Thine Heawing."
Though she was briefly confused due to Paul's prominent lisp, Barbara quickly realized what he was asking for when she noticed a 'void' where his teeth had previously been...
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"Thank you, Barbara. You have no idea how grateful I am to have you around at times like this."
Though she felt extremely gratified by Paul's words, Barbara's expression was a severe pout as she questioned, "Who did this to you? Was it that Reida woman?"
Shaking his head, Paul gave the group of girls an explanation of his life over the last half a year. He also described the conditions of the Sword Sanctum and explained that there was a good possibility he wouldn't be able to let them out any time soon.
Fortunately, while people like Barbara were understandably disgruntled, one of the perks of the IOF was that Paul could access it on any moonlit night. He might not be able to let them out, but he could still come and visit them every night. The best part about that was that absolutely no time would pass from their perspective while he was gone.
What Paul didn't expect was for even Barbara to insist that he focus on his training rather than worrying about them. The entire reason he had gone to the Sword Sanctum was to get more powerful, clear his mind, and, to a lesser extent, age himself up a bit so he wouldn't have to feel guilty about going to town on girls whose physical appearances didn't match their ages.
Though he had initially planned to stay for two years, back when he still intended to become a Lord, Paul had discussed the matter with most of the girls and decided to stay at the Sword Sanctum until he was 15. That was the standard for a 'fully matured' adult within the world of Mushoku Tensei, so Paul figured it was an excellent age to set out on his journey...
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After staying within the IOF until he got a distinct impression he should leave, Paul returned to his room in the Sword Sanctum, intending to go to bed. What he didn't expect was to find Ghislaine sitting pensively at the side of his 'bed,' a thin futon and single blanket lying on the ground.
Tilting her head to the side, Ghislaine asked, "You were in the closet? I could not smell you."
Instead of answering the raspy-voiced woman's question, Paul made his way over, sat down in his bed, and asked, "What are you doing here...?" in a legitimately confused tone.
Seeing that Paul suddenly had all his teeth, Ghislaine briefly spaced out before adopting a faint smile and stating, "It's good that your teeth grew back. If I had to chew food for you, I might have eaten it."
Exhaling a light chuckle, Paul noticed the pail of water at Ghislaine's side, asking, "Did you come to bring me water?"
Nodding her head, Ghislaine picked up the bucket and curtly explained, "It's water mixed with salt and sugar. You've lost a lot of blood. This will help."
"Right..."
Though he felt completely fine at this point, Paul humored Ghislaine by downing a few large gulps of the rudimentary saline solution. When he was finished, he passed the bucket back to her, saying, "Thanks." with a friendly smile on his face.
"Mmm..."
"..."
With Ghislaine just staring at him with a blank expression on her face, Paul waited for a couple of seconds before asking, "Is there something you wanted to ask me...?"
Without any hesitation, Ghislaine stated, "You have several new scents on you. Females. Girls I don't recognize."
Though he was a little surprised by the sensitivity of Ghislaine's nose, Paul nodded his head and said, "Yeah, they're my friends and lovers. I can't tell you any more than that, at least not right now."
Tilting her head to the opposite side, an action her inordinately large cat ears to flop, Ghislaine said, "You're a strange boy. Young, but powerful and mysterious..."&nbsp;
Adopting a somewhat brazen smile, Paul playfully retorted, "You're pretty incredible yourself. Tall, bronzed skin, long and free-flowing hair, big tits, and carmine eyes. Come Fall, I imagine I'll be contending with the other guys to try and woo you."
Though her expression didn't change, Paul noticed the tip of Ghislaine's thick, cat-like tail curling slightly as she asked, "Do you desire my body?"
Despite getting the impression he could sleep with the buxom cat girl right then and there, Paul nodded his head but said, "Sure, but I'll claim it on my own terms. I'm kind of tired of my women being stronger than me, so I intend to catch up and defeat you at least once or twice. When I do, I'll take you all the way to the Great Forest so that the entire Beast Race knows who you belong to."
Understanding how important such actions were after spending time with Minne, Paul wasn't too surprised when Ghislaine's tail began to curl and sway with a hint of excitement. They weren't an overtly possessive race, but when it came to choosing a mate, they liked things to be made clear. They also respected the strong and preferred direct action, so, as sus as it sounded, Paul had spent a considerable amount of time thinking about how he would speak and act around Ghislaine.
Causing Paul to feel a little vindicated, Ghislaine nodded her head and said, "Okay. I won't go easy on you, so if you manage to defeat me, I'll become your mate. Hurry up and get stronger."
Seemingly finished with the discussion, Ghislaine rose to her feet and promptly departed without another word. Paul was tempted to stop her, but he didn't really know what they would talk about if she stuck around. Instead, though it was obscured due to her white gi, he just stared at her incredibly toned ass and tail, distinctly aware of the subtle and alluring sway to her hips...
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Despite a somewhat restless night, Paul was still among the first people in the Sword Sanctum to rise. His training with Jean had conditioned him to wake up around 2-3 AM every morning, roughly four hours before the earliest lessons within the Sanctum.
Fortunately, while lessons only occurred at specific times, students of the Sword Sanctum were encouraged to train 24/7 if they could. To this end, there were numerous outdoor training facilities, a rudimentary but fully stocked gym, hundreds of durable wooden mannequins to practice on, and even hot springs to soak your body in once you had worked up a sweat.
Since accessing the hot spring mandated at least four hours of training beforehand, Paul figured he might as well get an early start to the day so he could soak his body before breakfast. What Paul didn't expect, though he really should have, was for Gal to appear like a ghost just as he began practicing his footwork, asking, "You gonna keep training the Water God Style despite being at the Sword Sanctum?"
Shrugging his shoulders in an ostensibly helpless manner, Paul asked, "What else am I going to do? Other than the stuff I've learned watching others, I've never received any lessons in the Sword God Style. I just try to swing my sword as fast as possible while incorporating it into my other techniques."
"Mmm..."
Half-expecting Gal to offer him advice, Paul's pupils shrank to the size of pinholes as the Sword God unexpectedly unleashed his Touki, the force of which slammed into him like a semi-truck. While this might sound like a metaphor, it really wasn't. Gal's Touki was like an explosion that ripped apart the ground and destroyed a part of the dojo as it sent Paul sliding and tumbling backward nearly sixty meters through ice and snow.
Appearing next to Paul's beaten and bruised body, Gal ordered, "Heal up. You said one of the things you were lacking to become a Saint was Touki, right? Time for your baptism."
Without waiting for Paul to recover, Gal began to gradually unleash his Touki. As he did, the world around Paul seemed to vibrate as the ice and snow encircling Gal's body began to compact, almost like gravity within the region was increasing.
Gritting his teeth, Paul used what he and Barbara had collectively named the Spell of Lesser Regeneration. When he did, his minor injuries healed almost instantaneously while his more extensive wounds began to mend themselves at a rate visible to the naked eye.
"Hooo....that's a pretty interesting technique. It kind of reminds me of that pale bastard, Kalman. Did your mother sleep with a member of the Immortal Demon Race...?"
Without waiting for Paul to respond, Gal sent him flying backward with a casual yet devastating kick. Touki added an explosive force behind pretty much any attack and, when infused into a blade, allowed Swordsmen to cut through massive boulders and dragon scales as if they were made of soft tofu. Back when the Sword Sanctum was first formed, the mountain upon which it was built was rumored to have been cut away by the first generation Sword God in a single swipe.
"Touki is harnessed instinct. A lot of people think it's something you can obtain by training hard, but they're wrong. Unless you train as if your life is on the line, forcibly overcoming your limits, Touki will continue to elude you. Yesterday, you used Touki to preserve your life when Ghislaine beat the shit out of you. You've obviously got the talent, so I'm going to keep hitting you over and over again until you either get strong enough to stop me, run away, or awaken your Battle Aura(Touki). Now, if you don't want to die, you had better start fighting back."
Not needing to be told twice, Paul charged towards Gal with a fierce look in his eyes. He was wielding an actual sword at the present moment, but he doubted Gal saw any difference between it and a stick. This proved to be true when the Sword God casually swatted away Paul's blade before kicking him in the ribs with more than enough force to shatter a few...
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Seeing Paul receiving treatment similar to her past self, Ghislaine's ears and tail twitched with frustration as she viewed the 'carnage' from atop the Sanctum's snow-covered roof. While this made it appear as though she was concerned for Paul, the truth of the matter was that she was a little annoyed that he was receiving even worse treatment than her.
Though she despised Gal to the very core of her being, Ghislaine also held a considerable amount of respect for the man known as the Sword God. She understood that Gal was only rough on Paul because the latter could handle it. In other words, at least within Ghislaine's mind, Paul had even greater potential than herself.
As much as she was looking forward to Paul training to both overcome and claim her, Ghislaine simultaneously hated the notion. She was a very prideful woman and had worked hard to get more powerful. Her progress had stagnated once she reached the Rank of Sword Saint a few months ago, but now that Paul was here, Ghislaine was determined to get much stronger. If Paul couldn't claim her by the time he was 15, she would be the one to claim him...
With such thoughts on her mind, Ghislaine descended from her perch with the intention to go and train in the harsher regions of the mountain. When she did, Gal briefly sent a glance her way, a naturally vicious smile developing across his face before he sent Paul flying for the umpteenth time...
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Chapter 57: MI57: Frustration