268 Rio Vs. Lia, The Battle for Acknowledgement... Part-1.
<Status>
[Name: Lia Silver]
[Class: Swordsman]
[Rank: A-] [Max Rank Potential: SS+]
[HP: 7200/7200] [MP: 6200/6200]
[STR: 71/100] [SPE: 82/100] [AGI: 81/ 100] [DEF: 77/100] [INT: 79/100]
[Talent: Sword Aptitude (S+), Divine Spirit Affinity (SS+), Absolute Precognition (SS++)]
[Techniques: Advanced Swordsmanship (A-), Silver Lion Swordsmanship (A-)]
[Skills: Body Strengthening (A-), Divine Spirit's Blessing (A-)] (Daily life skills aren't mentioned here…)
[Passive Skills: Conqueror of Darkness, Spiritual Ascension]
[Evaluation: You have braved through the darkness that was corrupting your destiny; your 'path' is difficult! But you have the courage to brave through it!]
[Items: Ambient Silver]
Lia's sword aptitude was only S rank, and thus her progress was originally much slower when compared to the likes of Link and Rio.
But once she awakened Kai, her other talent, 'Divine Spirit's Blessing', finally awakened, and her maximum talent potential was also upgraded to SS+.
In this world, improving your talent is an extremely difficult job. There are only a few methods to achieve something like this.
You can enhance your talent by achieving 'enlightenment', as Jin did, or by discovering rare phenomena, as Rio did.
But the most feasible method is to awaken a new and strong talent.
As long as you can awaken a new talent that is higher than your rank, your maximum rank potential can improve.
Awakening a new talent is no small matter; it's extremely rare and difficult.
Lia was able to do it twice because she already had those talents; it's just that her own 'will' was subconsciously suppressing them.
It's extremely difficult to awaken new talents out of nowhere.
'I can walk further with more talents…'
Lia was happy to have more talents, as they were necessary for her to stand side by side with Rio.
What surprised Lia the most were the two passive skills that she got after her ascension.
'Conqueror of Darkness' significantly suppresses demons and other creatures or objects associated with darkness.
Lia now has insanely high resistance to miasma and corruption.
It won't be wrong to say that her resistance to Miasma and corruption is much higher than that of Link and Rio combined.
And lastly, the passive skill 'Spiritual Ascension', was born from the 'Path' that Lia chose.
Lia chose to accept her true self and finally accepted the divine spirit's blessing.
Thus, her soul was strengthened, and she achieved the state of spiritual ascension.
This skill represents that state now.
Moreover, just like how Rio's 'Sword Intent' doesn't have any proper rank of its own as it depends entirely on Rio's 'will', 'int', and spirit,
… Lia's 'Spiritual Ascension' skill also doesn't have any ranks, as its power depends fully on her own 'spirit' and 'soul'.
[Skill Name: Spiritual Ascension]
[Skill Type: Passive]
[Skill Description: A power born from achieving the perfect state of spiritual ascension, only those who have figured out their true selves are worthy to possess this skill.
A strong mind is the foundation for all things, and the 'will' to rival the world itself is the cause of all destinies.]
[Skill Effect:
Your 'soul' and 'spirit' will reach 'perfection' and will make all your skills significantly stronger… User's soul is condensed into the 'Promised Soul of Endless Possibilities'.
]
Lia didn't know what that 'Promised Soul of Endless Possibilities' actually meant, but she had a subtle feeling that she would be able to figure it out eventually.
A smile appeared on Lia's face when she noticed how much she had improved in the past year.
Now that she has the confidence to stand beside Rio, she has the power to assist him, and she is sure that she won't drag Rio down with her.
Lia clenched her fist, and an excited look appeared on her beautiful face.
At that moment, Lia had finally accepted herself, and now she doesn't need to compare herself to others because she has the talent to be proud of herself.
'Mother, I have achieved my dreams, but worry not, I will keep progressing.'
…
"You created quite the chaos out of nowhere…"
Just when Lia was smiling from ear to ear due to her amazing progress, Rio's voice sounded from the side.
Lia was taken aback for a moment when he appeared out of nowhere, so suddenly.
'W-what the!? Aren't we at the same rank? He is still able to sneak around under my detection!?'
Although Lia was a bit surprised, she didn't think too much of it.
She has long been used to Rio's strange ability to completely disappear while standing in plain sight, as if he had no presence at all.
Lia shook her head and replied in a calm voice.
"Well, I didn't expect I would breakthrough so suddenly…"
Lia glanced at the flowers and plants that were destroyed by the commotion she created, and a look of guilt appeared on her face.
"Ugh, the staff members are going to give me angry stares in the next few days…"
Rio also nodded his head at Lia's words.
"Well, of course they will; elves like plants a lot, and you destroyed so many plants in one go…"
When Lia heard that, a look of panic appeared on her face.
"W-what do we do now!?"
Rio smiled slightly and replied in a quiet voice.
"Let's run away! No one will know if we slip away!"
Rio held Lia's hand and dragged her away with him in an instant.
When the two of them disappeared, the staff members came running to the garden, and some of them even cried when they saw that hopeless situation.
But the two culprits who did all this had already sneaked away from the crime scene, so there was nothing they could do.
…
Waiting Area, Rooftop.
"Phew~ we made it here without being caught!"
With a smile on her face, Lia sat down on the ground and glanced at the setting sun on the horizon.
Rio nodded his head at Lia's words,
"Yeah, you need to compensate me properly for saving you from this crime…"
Seeing that familiar mischievous look on Rio's face, Lia rolled her eyes.
"How about a special large lunch box filled with my hand-
made food..."
Rio immediately nodded his head at Lia's words,
"Deal!! You gotta make it when we go back to the academy!"
Rio sat beside Lia and stared at the setting sun along with her.
A peaceful scene appeared as the two of them went silent for a moment.
Lia then glanced at Rio and said,
"You know, I awakened an amazing talent just now; it can-"
Before Lia could continue, Rio placed his index finger on her lips and made her stop talking.
He gave a slight smile before speaking.
"Don't forget that we are in a tournament right now; we might have to face each other eventually… Hiding your Trump cards is more beneficial…"
Lia wasn't going to be outdone by him; she immediately bit his finger in return, and he had to hurriedly retract it.
"Hmph! Forget it! I will beat you up with my new talent! And then I will make you beg for forgiveness!"
Rio shrugged his shoulders at those words,
"Haha, if you can, that is… Who knows, maybe I will end up beating you in one move…"
Lia booed at those arrogant words.
"Hmph! Just you wait! I will make you acknowledge the strength of my sword!"
Rio just shook his head and didn't continue to argue with her.
'It's unfair… How am I supposed to go all out against you if you keep talking so happily with me…'
He glanced at Lia and shook his head.
Meanwhile, Lia mistook it for a sign that Rio was underestimating her.
She pouted her cheeks and said,
"Hmph! Just to be sure, I would rather want you to go all out even if the opponent is me!"
Rio nodded his head at those words and took them seriously.
He was originally quite conflicted in his mind and didn't really want to raise his sword against Lia.
But now that she has become stronger, she has confidence in herself.
Even if Rio defeats her, her mentality isn't weak anymore, and she will be able to keep herself together.
Lia glanced at the setting sun and smiled.
"Well, I want you to treat me as an equal when in battle; don't hold back on me…"
A look of determination appeared on Lia's face as she continued,
"I want to figure out how I will fare against you with my current strength… I want to see the gap between us… If you held back, that would be an insult to my pride as an awakener…"
When Rio saw those determined eyes, he couldn't help but give in.
He didn't want to injure her, but she was dead serious in her pursuit of strength.
'I should honor her words; it would be rude to not unsheathe my sword when fighting with an excellent sword master like her…'
Rio grabbed Lia's soft hand and then said it in a calm voice.
"Don't blame me if you end up getting injured then…"
Lia tightened her grasp on his hand and replied with a proud look on her face.
"Hmph! You think you can injure me? I think it's the opposite~ Don't blame me if you lose a limb or two when my sword attacks rain on you…"
Rio smiled and replied almost immediately in a teasing voice.
"I won't mind it, actually… If I lose my right hand, I will ask for your help to do the work of my right hand…"
Hearing those words, Lia's face turned red in an instant.
"Perv! Idiot!"
And with that said, she immediately ran away with a blush on her face.
Rio smiled a bit at her cute and panicked face,
'Sigh~ maybe I teased her too much today…'
…
…
Author's Note.
Yo! It's your beloved author here!
Rio really has a knack for it, and when it comes to teasing Lia, I wonder if she will ever be able to win this teasing competition against him.
Question of the day.
How empty do you feel after reading all of this diabetic stuff?
1. High (D*mn you author! Stop rubbing salt on the wounds!!)
2. Infinite (Author purposely wrote this sweet stuff; this is his evil scheme!!)
By the way, don't forget to use those power stones and also leave a review if you like the story. Comment your opinion about the chapter. Your support is my motivation.