The Royal Guards were Royal Guards in the end as they gathered their wits and surrounded the Sword King. To attack a princess in their presence, it was practically an act of war! The last time this happened, the entire Whispering Shadow was wiped from existence. The Royal Family could not be harmed! The rest of the guards followed suit and unsheathed their weapons. The atmosphere grew unbelievably tense; however, they ultimately did not do anything else. The Sword King's reputation truly preceded him. He defied common sense! Before long, Sir Winstin entered the courtyard with a deep frown. He stepped outside for a moment, and this happened. Everything concluded too fast for him to get back in time.
Sir Winstin faced him calmly and asked, "What is the meaning of this, Sword King Sin?"
The man smirked in response. "You're calmer than I thought you would be."
"I can tell you didn't harm Her Highness too badly." While he might have been absent for the sparring, the second he arrived, he used his senses to determine Elizabeth's physical condition. Had it been a serious fight between the two, he doubted she would still be breathing now. That was the only reason he could keep level-headed.
"I was testing them," the Sword King said, leaving Sir Winstin speechless.
Amidst the crumbling walls, Elizabeth and her friends eventually stood up, covered in dust and snow. They coughed violently and felt the iron in their lungs. He might have gone easy on them, but that did not mean he went lightly either. They also pushed themselves too far just now, prompting them to hunch over in pain and gasp for breath. Their old injuries were opening again! Sir Winstin called for soldiers to escort them away while he kept a firm gaze on the Sword King. Depending on the circumstances, he would not hesitate to attack! Despite the obvious threat, the Sword King kept his cavalier attitude and watched them for a while longer, apparently waiting for something. When it became clear it would not happen, he massaged his head in annoyance. A strange blue light formed on his fingertip, split into four, and entered Elizabeth and her friends' bodies. In the blink of an eye, they recovered to how they were before the battle. They were healed!
"Are you okay, Your Highness?" Sir Winstin asked concernedly. "Shall I call the physicians?"
"…No, I'm fine. Thank you," Elizabeth replied in a state of shock.
From what she knew, Arcanists could only accelerate the body's natural healing rate by a minor amount. She should know, since she was treated by Arcanists following the Battle of Liguang, yet her injuries remained. It was not something that could be solved by magic alone. Time was needed too! That was simply the natural order of the world. However, the Sword King could provide a potent and instantaneous healing effect with his Martial Energy… She feared what the consequences might be if news of this spread. It would be unimaginable! Meanwhile, Benedict found the sensation strangely familiar. Did his master treat him like this before? He could not remember.
Elizabeth sorted out her thoughts and addressed the Sword King. "Thank you for healing us… Now, would you care to explain your actions?"
"I was testing your combat system."
"Combat system?" she asked, unfamiliar with the term. She looked around. It looked like no one understood what he was talking about.
"It's a term I use to describe how well you fight. Offense, defense, mobility, perception, and recovery are the five main areas I like to focus on. I tested them with our spar."
Retracing her memory, Elizabeth realized it was true. First, they attacked him with their strongest means possible: Autumn Hawk, Cloud Sea Style: Crashing Waves, Sky Piercer, and Thirty-Six Falling Stars. Second, he disappeared and released his killing intent on them simultaneously. It tested their ability to detect and respond to hostile intent. In the same vein, it tested their ability to maneuver and evade danger. She failed spectacularly in this regard. Third, he tested their defense by attacking them! It was the simplest and most straightforward way. Finally, he tested their recovery ability after the fight. Although he looked casual and carefree, he was surprisingly methodical and efficient. Elizabeth had to renew her opinion of him.
"This is why I said you were squandering your talents," he snorted. "Aside from your offense, there's nothing worth mentioning. You completely failed."
"It's not that bad, is it?" Elizabeth said with a gloomy face.
"I'll start with you then. Your offense is acceptable for Half-Condensed Drop, but you were slow in detecting my hostile intent, slower in responding to it, and even slower in defending against it. If this had been a real fight, you would have died a hundred times over. You need to have specific spells designed for these scenarios that you can rely on at a moment's notice. It could be the difference between life and death. But perhaps the greatest problem was your lack of recovery methods. Without any way to heal your injuries, recover your energy, or maintain your concentration in a prolonged fight, you'll lose no matter how strong you are. That's your greatest weakness."
He continued to his disciple, Benedict, "Your improvised technique is interesting, but it needs more refinement. It uses too much Martial Energy, it leaves yourself too open, and it's too predictable. Any Perception Realm would be able to anticipate and intercept your movements. Not to mention, your senses are too weak since you're relying on your physical body. Using Martial Energy like your friend would improve your senses by a large margin. While your swordsmanship did improve a little since I last saw you, your speed and defensive ability leaves much to be desired. You'll need to review the Hawken Style and the Cloud Sea Style from the beginning. I'm expecting great things from you. Don't let me down."
"And then there's you." He turned his attention to Shirley. "Your instincts and senses are exceptional and it's rare to find someone with as strong battle instincts as you. That said, I can tell you lack proper training, otherwise, you wouldn't have resorted to a cheap imitation of my Cloud Sea Style's Crashing Waves with a halberd. You fight like a wild animal more than a trained warrior. Your blatant abuse of Martial Energy is also unsightly. Martial techniques exist to help regulate and control your Martial Energy. I feel like you're looking down on martial artists. Get a proper foundation or you'll find it hard to stay alive, much less advance to Perception Realm or beyond."
Facing Freon, his mood got a little better. "You're smarter than the others because you seem to understand your weaknesses. You were studying new spells before to compensate for your shortcomings. However, you misunderstand one thing: your body is just as important as your spells. Your awareness, senses, mobility, reaction speed, and battle instincts are all laughable. They're arguably worse than the princess by far. A battle won't always be in your favor, and sooner or later, you'll be dragged into a close combat fight. Without a strong physical foundation, you're begging to be killed. You need to prepare for any and every possibility."
Aside from Benedict, Elizabeth, Shirley, and Freon were thoroughly stunned. The Sword King figured out all that from a single sparring session? Keep in mind, their so-called sparring session lasted less than a minute, maybe forty seconds at best. He was also fighting against the four of them simultaneously! Despite that, he could accurately list out their strengths and weaknesses as though he had fought them a dozen times! His senses were ridiculous! That was not all either, since he went on to casually explain how they could each improve. This level of insight and experience was unheard of! Even Freon had to wonder whether his uncle, Protector Avin, could do this. The Sword King seemed to be on another level!
"In the end, it comes down to developing a robust and complete combat system. Offense, defense, mobility, perception, and recovery are the five main pillars of any combat system, and they're the basis through which I developed my Cloud Sea Style. Figure that out, and your combat potential will truly soar!"