"You win." The Watcher smiled as he stood up and regenerated his body.
"You have truly enlightened me today my princess." He said with a bow.
Shiro frowned a little but decided to shrug it off.
"Now I believe you owe me my reward." Shiro said as she returned her swords back to their necklace form.
"Of course."
Standing up, The Watcher summoned the items and handed them over to her.
"Since princess was able to easily defeat me in a one on one, your grade is naturally S rank. However, as you are not the chosen one for some heinous reason, I cannot let you peer into the secrets of the sword myth springs." He sighed with regret.
"Well it's fine. It's not like I'm a warrior anyways." Shiro shrugged.
"Eh? Princess isn't a sword cultivator?!" He widened his eyes in shock.
If she was this talented with the sword, logic would have it that she's a sword cultivator no?
"Nope. This princess is a mage." Shiro chuckled while storing the items away. Looking back at the door, she wondered what else she could gain from this.
"Ah no wonder. But even then, it doesn't make sense. Why isn't princess the chosen one?" The Watcher frowned.
Even if she was a mage, her class could be changed over to suit the final secret of the Sword Myth Springs.
"Aiya, don't burden me with some crap like the chosen one or whatnot. I had enough of that sh*t before." Shiro rolled her eyes.
In her past life, her capabilities as the Nanomancer were highly valued. While the hero did help resolve some of the calamities that would befall a city, she was what the people had expectations for.
The burden of needing to look after humanity was an annoying one. If you saved them, they'll expect more and eventually, it becomes your natural responsibility. They would expect you to do it without rewards.
And yet, when you fail once, they would blame everything on you and forget about all that you have done for them.
She had enough of that already.
"But princess-"
"Hush. Forget about that for now. Tell me what rewards I get from the spring since I got an S rank." Shiro asked.
"Since princess was able to get the S rank, I'll naturally help you get into the highest possible reward from the door." The Watcher bowed as he gestured his hand at the door.
*CRRRR
Dust and foliage started to fall off the door.
"This door hadn't been opened since the creation of the Springs. Even the previous examinee's that had passed never received an S rank. You are the first my princess." The Watcher bowed.
"Interesting." Shiro smiled.
Walking towards the door, she could see a portal on the other side.
"Before I go, I want to ask a question." Shiro said, turning back just before entering.
"Ask away my princess."
"Were the previous chosen ones all human or half human?"
"Indeed they were."
"Then maybe it's because this princess is not human that I am not chosen. In which case, a boon for me." Shiro smiled and stepped into the door.
The Watcher paused in shock hearing her response.
"Princess…Isn't a human?" He muttered in confusion.
While The Watcher was digesting this new information, Shiro found herself inside a semi illuminated cave.
Looking around, she could see red plants that looked like a mix between lotus flows and fire.
"Flaming Lotus Grass huh? Interesting." She muttered with a smile.
Flaming Lotus Grass helped boost up one's resistance and power with the Fire Element. It was also a key component to precious fire type medicine.
However, she only had one use for it and that was to make the Fire Burst Bullets.
Fire Burst Bullets was one of the best bullets at lower levels. That was primarily due to the fact that it would spontaneously combust inside a victim's body.
Against a boss, this was perfect since it would guarantee a critical hit.
Crouching near the plant, Shiro dug them out carefully and stored them in her inventory.
'I'll start making the bullets once I get out of here.' Shiro thought to herself before continuing through the cave.
On the way, she found more Flaming Lotus Grass and stored them all inside her inventory.
Reaching the end of the cave, Shiro saw a statue of a woman clad in armour with swords surrounding her.
As Shiro walked closer, something beckoned her to place a hand on the statue.
[S rank rewards distributed.]
[+300 in STR, AGI and DEX]
[Sword Skill: Refraction]
[Berserk Skill: Soul Sword]
Looking at her three rewards, Shiro smiled in excitement.
She didn't know about the berserk skill but the refraction skill was well known.
[Sword Skill: Refraction]
When striking an enemy, your sword will create several illusions mid swing. Location of the sword can be controlled.
Cost: 2,000MP
Duration: A full sword swing/upon contact with a physical object
Cool Down: 15 seconds
With a skill like this, it would make it hard for her enemy to defend against her sword. If they parry too early, she can adjust her swing slightly and attack them. If they parry too late, they'll have to take the full brunt of her attack.
"Lucky~" Shiro grinned happily.
Tapping her necklace, she activated the skill and swung all four swords and at the same time.
Upon swinging the swords, they gave off a soft golden light before splitting into three swords. With a total of 12 swords swinging in sync, even Shiro would struggle a little to try parry it accurately.
"That only leaves Soul Sword." She muttered before checking its description.
[Berserk Skill: Soul Sword]
A sword that represents your nature/soul. By fusing the soul sword with the currently equipped sword, you can amplify its power.
+soul sword buff
+15% increase to all stats
Cost: 30,000MP (Increases as you grow stronger)
Duration: 5 minutes
Cool Down: 5 days
Backlash: -25% overall stats for 5 days.
"Hou… A sword that represents my soul huh? I wonder what that's like." Shiro mused to herself.
Shaking her head, she wasn't about to test it out since it would weaken her for 5 days. That kind of penalty wasn't something she enjoyed.
[Player: Madison and Silvia have exited the trial.]
'Seems like they've finished up.' Shiro thought to herself. That only left Lyrica but she might take a while since she still had one more trial to take as she is the 'chosen one'.
Shrugging her shoulders, Shiro left the chamber and appeared back at the area just in front of the door. She couldn't find The Watcher so instead, she called out his name.
"You called Princess?" He responded almost immediately with a bow.
"When my friend finishes her trial, tell her that the rest of us are waiting outside for her." Shiro instructed.
"Understood princess." He nodded.
Shiro was about to leave when The Watcher opened his mouth once more.
"Princess, may this one ask for a favour?" He asked.
"Depends."
"Can you sign a contract with me so that I become your familiar?" He asked respectfully.
"What kind of contract?" Shiro narrowed her eyes.
"Naturally a life and death contract for me. If you die, so shall I. If I die, you'll be completely unharmed." He bowed.
"And why would you want to sign this contract?"
"Because I wish to see the heights that you'll reach in your life. Through all my years of protecting the springs, I have never seen a talent as bright as you nor do I think I'll be able to see one again."
"Hou, I don't see why not." Shiro smiled.
Biting her finger, she let a droplet of blood float in front of him.
The Watcher kneeled down and received the droplet as if it was a sacred object. Drawing a rune on his own forehead, he waited for the contract to establish itself.
However, his eyes widened in shock when a black and purple flame burst around him and erase the rune.
"Rejection?!" He widened his eyes in surprise. He didn't understand why it had rejected his contract since one didn't have a limit on the amount of life and death contracts.
But when he saw the flame, he realised what could have happened.
"Princess, could it be that you've already contracted with a beast?" He asked.
"You talking about Little Yin? She's my first contract."
"What kind of beast is she?"
"A kind of bird. I don't know since her name was just a bunch of question marks." Shiro shrugged.
"What kind of contract was it?"
"Hmm… I think it was called a Life Blood Contract?" Shiro tilted her head as she searched through her memories.
"Life Blood Contract!!!" The Watcher was shocked as that kind of contract was more brutal than the Life and Death contract. Not only is the person's life in her hands, but their power is also funnelled into them.
'The Life Blood Contract is a very rare contract that can't be invoked intentionally. Only a few selected beasts can have access to this contract?' He wondered to himself.
Unlike the Life and Death contract, once someone accepted a Life Blood Contract, they can only take Life Blood Contracts from then on. That meant the rejection of a life and death contract.
"It's a shame but it seems like I cannot follow princess." He sighed in regret.
"Oh well, I'm sure you'll find someone talented in the future." Shiro shrugged.
"I hope so." The Watcher smiled sadly since he knew this was probably the last time he'll see Shiro.
"Before you go, I have one last question."
"Shoot." Since he couldn't sign a contract, Shiro thought she might as well hear him out.
"Princess said that she wasn't human. Then what are you?" He asked.
"This princess is a snow girl. A monster that controls the cold elements." Shiro smiled.
"Ah, by the way, keep this a secret from Lyrica ok?" Shiro chuckled before leaving the realm.
"A snow girl…" The Watcher muttered.
"What kind of soul sword will she get? One that yearns for the destruction of mankind or will it be one that seeks to rule over everything?" He mused whilst looking up into the sky.
A monster with her kind of personality was rare.
"No… Perhaps her soul will bring salvation instead?"
Seeing her attitude towards her friends, he understood that she wasn't evil as a whole. She will reach out to those that may need help. However, at the same time, he still remembers the shivers her gaze gave him.
"Why am I even guessing? My princess isn't someone that can be predicted. Her gaze showed absolute mercilessness and yet she has the compassion to reach out to people. She even gave this old man pity seeing that I cannot follow her hahaha." The Watcher laughed mockingly at himself. While he cursed the fact that he was stuck here, he was also grateful at the fact that he could meet her.
Sure, he could form a contract with someone else, but as a man who was feared by all, he wouldn't kneel before anyone else except his princess. She was the only one in his life to have bested him with ease. Not to mention, she wasn't even a warrior!
Shaking his head, he sat himself down and waited for the 'chosen one' to exit her trial.
Meanwhile, Shiro had just left the trial and met up with Madison and Silvia.
"What did you girls get?" She asked.
"I got a new weapon." Madison smiled and showed her a greatsword. The sword itself was black in colour with deep red highlights. A simple swing of the sword caused the runes to light up. The more momentum in the sword, the brighter the runes shone.
"Hou~ So I'm guessing the sword has an additional momentum multiplier." Shiro said whilst examining the sword.
"Yup. This bad boy will hit harder the more momentum I have. If I jumped off the building, I'll be able to display power much higher than my level." Madison grinned.
"That's only if you survive. Otherwise, what use is momentum power when you're a meat paste on the ground." Silvia chuckled.
"True." Madison agreed since that is indeed a worry of her's. While the momentum multiplier was good, she needed to make sure that her body could take it.
"What did you get Silvi?" Shiro asked.
"Me? I just got a defensive tool that can ward against high level attacks 2 times." Silvia smiled lightly and took out a small shield emblem.
While the reward was a little disappointing, she was happy that she got something. After all, she couldn't do much in the trial.
"Heh~ that's not too bad. As a healer, you'll be targeted more if we ever go against other humans. So the fact that you can have something to protect you is good." Shiro said, trying to encourage Silvia.
Because for one, if she had to go through the trouble Silvia did just to get a protective ward, she'll be pissed to the point that she'll just rob the rewards giver for more items.
"You know what Silvi? You can get a free outfit from this woman I know. All her clothes are made from monster fabric so you don't have to worry about them breaking." Shiro offered. She was going to send Aarim a text since she did offer her 'entire' party an outfit. Technically Silvia was a member so she could get one. Even if she couldn't she'll just forfeit her own since she had one already.
"Sure, that sounds good." Silvia nodded.
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