Chapter: 469
To create, it’s good to reference existing things, but you mustn’t be eaten up by them.
The moment I heard that, I felt a subtle feeling that I couldn’t quite grasp.
As I took one more step forward, a downhill slope seemed to open up, where I could speed up, but that one step felt so difficult that my legs felt stiff, and as I was scrunching my face in frustration, Grandpa yelled out from within me.
_[Nonsense! You think I'm trapped in some notion!? I tossed aside that stubbornness ages ago! And yet you still want to spew that crap!?]_
It was rare for Grandpa’s emotions to be this intense, so I temporarily set aside my thoughts and focused on his voice.
_[Lucy! Ask that jerk! What the hell is this nonsense about the notion you're talking about?!]_
‘Is that okay? If it comes out of my mouth, it’ll probably get all distorted!’
_[Actually, it would be better if it’s distorted! I want to see that guy throw a fit! That pompous fool who doesn’t know a thing about martial arts spouting nonsense like that!]_
‘If anything happens, he’s the one who has to deal with it, you know?’
Well, it seemed like it could be fun, so I’d give it a shot.
“Old man cooped up in the corner, gasping at the magic circle he drew, what does he know?!”
“What do I know!? I know more than you, who just disappeared one day! Even after you kicked the bucket, I remained on the surface for a long time! You useless brat!”
_[So what do you know then! If you're so confident, speak up!]_
“Why is some brainless idiot boasting about things he doesn’t know? Go ahead, flap your lips since you have a mouth. I’ll be here laughing at your pathetic stories.”
“Fine! The most fundamental issue is that you, Ruel, consider yourself the endpoint! I won’t deny that you’re a great holy knight! But your way isn’t the answer for everyone!”
The skeleton pointed out that Grandpa sees the endpoint of holy knights as his own form.
What Grandpa produced is certainly one answer, but it can’t be everyone’s answer. It’s natural that there are stagnations when you change only the intermediate process while leaving that path as the endpoint.
The skeleton clicked its teeth and shouted.
_[You think I’m determined to set the answer!? Have you even been inside my head!? I'm throwing away all the old stuff and looking for movements for Lucy! If you want to deny that, show me the evidence you love so much!]_
“Is it true that the sloppy old man, having found a new taste, threw away his pride? If you want to prove you’re not just a stupid weak old man, then give me proof.”
“Proof?! I have more than enough! The amount of headache I had from cooperating with a temperamental old fool like you is endless!”
As the skeleton was shouting, it took a step back and held out one hand. Suddenly, stones from the ground broke apart and shaped into a blunt weapon that reached his hand.
“Ruel! Your blunt weapon is as hard as your head! It has stood firm against any trial like a guardian statue, so that habit is engraved in your soul! Look! The movement you just displayed! You’re only thinking of standing firm with your arms and legs, right?!”
_[You know nothing about Lucy's fighting style! Just babbling like it means something! It's not just about standing firm! It means you can win by standing firm!]_
“Are you saying it’s ridiculous for a virgin who knows absolutely nothing about women to chatter on like a philanderer? Hmm, that does feel familiar. It is somewhat laughable that a skeleton unable to even approach a woman is confidently shouting out.”
“What does my awkwardness with women have to do with anything! I’m speaking from an objective perspective!”
The debate between Grandpa and the skeleton heated up more and more.
What started with whether each was right or wrong shifted to discussing the correctness of my every movement.
Caught in between, I had to relay Grandpa’s words while becoming a lab rat for the two of them, taking various stances.
“No! This kid’s pursuit should be softer! It must move like a dance!”
_[Is what Lucy desires to become a dancer on stage!? If you let go of strength in that movement, it won’t work for either attack or defense! You idiot!]_
What was interesting was that even though it seemed like the two were at an extreme opposition, their points of view were gradually getting closer.
Initially dismissing the skeleton’s words as something I didn’t even need to listen to, Grandpa now agreed that the endpoint had to be changed, just as the skeleton said.
And the skeleton, who deemed Grandpa as an old fool, also nodded at some point, realizing that completely reversing things wasn’t right.
The two raised their voices, yet they were having quite a healthy discussion.
Well, if they hadn’t been at odds enough to ignore each other’s words, they wouldn’t have survived against the Evil God.
Grandpa’s confidently unfolding miracle would have had no room for Erginius to slip in.
“That’s not it!…”
_[Wrong! It cannot be!…]_
Listening quietly, I suddenly tilted my head at an idea that popped into my mind.
Dance.
Although not in the world of the Soul Academy, I remembered there were many people who used dance as part of their martial arts in other creations I knew.
Like hiding the principle of martial arts within a dance to evade oppression. Pursuing both beauty and strength through martial arts. Or, a martial art that dazzles the opponent.
Why couldn’t I do that?
In fact, it felt like it was precisely something I could do.
Regardless of how I felt inside, on the surface, I was pretty enough to make a perverted crow drool.
Hmm. Let’s give it a try.
Taking a deep breath, I spread divinity throughout my body and straightened my posture.
The starting stance was something I had found a long time ago.
With my aesthetic sense and Grandpa’s help, I’d barely established it through hard work.
The movements that followed were also made in a similar way. Though imperfect, I had at least set a direction. Spending all my free time on this stuff, how could there be no development?
However, I thought it would be hard to use in real combat due to various issues.
I had to let go of strength more and move smoothly than usual.
No, no. This felt too limp. I just wanted to handle martial arts like a dance. At this rate, the order of movements would be reversed.
This is also not quite right. This one feels a bit off too.
Ah, my goodness. I feel like I could understand it with just a little more.
Ah! Right. Additional commentary. Give me some advice! What should I do here!?
_[Remember the fairy’s fluttering wings.]_
Fairy? When I think of fairies, what immediately comes to mind is a chicken coop… no. It can’t be the fairy queen and her rotting fairies that I must remember.
Then, before that.
The dance of the fairies I had seen beyond the monitor.
Perhaps in contrast to the hellish scenes to come in the future, a stunningly crafted cutscene.
I recalled their movements, which had become blurry over the long passage of time.
The fairies hopping and frolicking among the flowers.
And as I moved lightly following that memory, a smile naturally spread across my face.
This is it! This is it! The movement I had been searching for all this time was something like this!
Excited by the feeling that the hardships of the past few months were finally paying off, I focused solely on my movements, forgetting all sounds around me.
Following the fairy in my past memories, I stretched out my arms.
*
The skeleton realized that he was getting uncharacteristically heated.
Sure, the brat’s cocky tone was infuriating, and hearing his friend ramble nonsensically would certainly raise his ire, but it wasn’t enough to shake his sanity.
Before and after becoming a hero. After saving the world. In all the countless stories he had heard among many people, there were very few situations where he was excited enough to lose control of his emotions.
Noticing this, the skeleton was certain that something was rattling his feelings now.
Something he couldn’t even discern, even with his awareness of most phenomena existing in the world.
If it were the past version of himself, he would have set everything aside and analyzed it, but instead, the skeleton simply entrusted himself to his emotions.
What would a fake, created by a great wizard long ago to keep his will alive, do indulging in curiosity?
It was better to slightly help the kid, who would struggle because of our incompetence, rather than overanalyze things.
While the arrogant brat tried to find her way, the girl who was being tossed between Ruel and the skeleton suddenly began to move on her own.
At first, the skeleton thought Ruel must have said something to her, but it took only a little while to realize that wasn’t the case.
The girl’s movements were something Ruel could never conceive of.
The girl moves her arms.
With a strong yet playful motion. If someone were frightened by that, they’d be laughed at as a coward.
The girl moves her feet.
With a lively and bouncy motion. It looked like anyone watching would inevitably want to follow her lead.
Suddenly the girl, who had been gliding in the air, settled back to the ground.
With her shield raised overhead, she looked so fragile that anyone could break her, yet if you asked if anyone could really break her, no one would be able to affirm that.
Playful, beautiful, and splendid, yet her roots were deeply planted in the earth.
The skeleton,
Erginius,
Had seen such a scene in the past.
An unforgettable memory for life and a sin he should never forget.
The dance of the fairies.
The girl’s dance, which seemed ready to come to an end at any moment, abruptly stopped.
Standing still, the girl tilted her head, displeased with something.
Returning to reality after the dance ended, the skeleton forgot what he had just been doing and moved hastily to stand before the girl.
And with his hand, which had nothing but bones left, he placed it on her shoulder.
“What are you doing? Finally giving in to your filthy desires?”
“You. How do you know the dance of the fairies?”
The skeleton’s voice was filled with scorching heat.
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