Golden hair, blue eyes, a sword strapped to her waist.
She had her signature fierce look on her face, yet it felt slightly warmer than last time.
She stopped in front of him, looking Rael up and down before nodding.
âI apologize for the wait. I had to introduce myself to Celestaraâs royal knights,â Evelyn said plainly, and fell silent.
âOkay? Nice to see you again,â Rael said with a tilt of his head.
Soon, a look of understanding appeared on his face. âOh⌠I understand the formalities, but for future reference, you donât need to come out and personally greet me.â
With that, he prepared to leave. However, Evelyn suddenly grabbed his sleeve with her trembling hands.
He turned toward her, meeting her conflicted gaze.
And of course, she soon spoke.
âThat offer of yours⌠is it still valid?â Evelyn asked in a low tone.
âThe offer where Iâll grant you a wish if you were to join me? Sure, why not,â Rael replied with a smirk. âIâm all ears, Evelyn.â
She seemed hesitant, however, she let go of his sleeve and straightened her posture.
âI want you to make me stronger.â
Silence ensued at her dramatic request; however, Rael couldnât help but chuckle.
âEvelyn⌠Iâm the king, not a genie. I canât just magically make you stronger,â Rael said plainly.
And yet, her resolved look didnât falter in the slightest. In fact, it grew even more determined.
âIs there really no way you can grant me strength?â Evelyn asked, practically pleading.
His brows furrowed. âI hate to ask⌠but where is this all coming from? The last time I saw you, you were still wallowing in denial. And now you suddenly got the urge to become stronger?â
Evelyn flinched, looking down. âI want to be the strongest swordswomanââ
âWhy?â Rael interjected. âIf you can give me a genuine reason, then Iâll provide the means to make that possible.â
It wasnât a big ask by any means. He just wanted to figure out whether this was her way of coping, or she was actually serious about gaining strength.
Then again, he couldnât directly give her strength. Instead, he could give her a path to gain strength faster.
A class, maybe a secret quest. Something like that should do the job. Rael nodded to himself.
In the midst of his thoughts, Evelyn finally steadied herself, once again gazing back into his eyes.
âI realized how shallow my outlook used to be⌠I didnât have a purposeâwell, not a long-term one anyway,â Evelyn said. âI didnât know my parents, but despite that, I tried to become someone they would be proud of.â
So she was trying to prove her worth to people she didnât even know existed⌠thatâs sad, Rael thought with a slight frown.
Nonetheless, Evelyn continued. âI realized my growth had stalled right around the time I found out how my parents really⌠died. Itâs been a couple of years since then, and this past week made me realize how stupid I wasâŚâ
Her breath trembledâshe clearly wasnât comfortable sharing her story. However, her determination kept her going.
Even as her voice shook, she continued.
âI always loved the sword, but I always swung it for my parents,â Evelyn said, unsheathing her sword and holding it up in the air. âBut you know what? Iâm sick of it.â
The moment she finished those words, she suddenly infused her sword with mana and swung down, clashing with the ground below.
A dull clang resounded, followed by the blade splitting in two and flying off to the side, narrowly missing Rael.
Then, she held the hilt and, right before him, used all her strength to embed it into the ground.
The ground caved in, forming a small crater where, in the very middle, a small shockwave of her golden mana expanded, sending a warm breeze past his face.
âI want to start againâjust with a better starting point,â Evelyn stated in a serious tone. âThis time, not for my parents, but for myself. I want to wield the sword however I want, and I want to be the best at what I do. So I ask you, can you grant me my foolish wish?â
âHmmâŚâ Raelâs eyes widened as he fell into thought.
He could tell she meant it. In fact, he never expected to see the legendary sword saint so emotional.
Back then, she wasnât the strongestâthere were plenty above her. Still, her ambition to fight for her parents never wavered.
That was likely the reason why she never went beyond being a sword saint.
But now? Not only had Rael given her another path, he also had enough power to make that path the thorniest, most fulfilling path she could ever walk.
A small smirk formed on his face as he opened the premium shop and found one path in particular.
â˘âPremium Shopââ˘
Category: Classes/Special/Pathway/Sword
â˘âBalance: 1,474,972,882 Trellââ˘
⢠Path of the Sword Sovereign (Mythic): 250,000,000 Trell
Hmm⌠thatâs a bit expensive, Rael thought.
There were more expensive variants; however, the Sword Sovereign was basically one tier above the Sword Saint pathway. If she mastered it, her power would be immeasurable.
In the future, if she showed promise, then he could always get her something even better.
Without wasting even a second more, Rael thought of buying itânot for himself, but as a gift.
But he was immediately met with a pop-up.
<Gifting is unavailable!>
<Prerequisite: User must be added to the friend list.>
Fair. Rael nodded at the system and sent Evelyn a friend request.
<Friend Request Sent!>
She seemed a little puzzled, so he quickly explained.
âYou want your wish granted, donât you? Accept, and Iâll give you a path to power.â
Evelynâs brows twitched, and she immediately accepted.
<Friend Request Accepted! New Friend: Evelyn Ardent>
<Total Friends: 5>
And of course, Rael bought the Sword Sovereign pathway.
<Gift sent!>
<Recipient: Evelyn Ardent>
<Waiting for the recipient to acceptâŚ>
âYou shouldâve gotten something,â Rael said.
âThereâs a glowing message, yes. Am I supposed to click on it?â Evelyn asked, her fingers trembling.
She knew the answer, but it seemed like she was only prolonging it.
Therefore, instead of answering, Rael merely smiled and continued staring at her.
Eventually, she caved and brought her finger toward the gift interface.
<Gift Accepted!>
Nice⌠Rael whistled, waiting for some kind of reaction.
However, instead of a reaction, Evelyn suddenly fell limp to the ground.
He caught her just before she hit the ground, though he remained slightly confused.
But his confusion didnât last long, since in the very next moment, a loud voice resounded, followed by a giant interface appearing in front of him.
<World Broadcast!>
<An individual has unlocked the Path of the Heavenly Sword (Transcendent)!>
<Rare Event!>
<Until the end of the Beta Test, all Sword-related skills gain +500% experience boost!>
<Individuals who the new Heavenly Sword accepts as disciples have the opportunity to obtain the Heavenly Saint (Mythic) Unique class!>
âUhhâŚâ Raelâs eyes widened as he stared between the messages and the passed-out Evelyn.
âŚDid I buy the wrong path?
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