Ryou's desire to become stronger was admirable, but he had forgotten one important thing:
Scathach's teaching style was pure Spartan-style education.
Want to learn [Shave]? No problem. I'll teach you, and you'll master it, guaranteed—15-day crash course!
And then, without any chance to resist, he was thrown into a world of torment.
"Your stomping speed is too slow! Are you just marching in place?!"
With a sharp reprimand, a scarlet bolt of lightning shot toward him.
He instantly felt a tremendous sense of danger. If he failed to execute Shave, he would die!
Driven by survival instinct, his feet moved so fast they became a blur, stomping on the ground repeatedly at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
Whoosh!
Just as the red bolt of lightning closed in, Ryou's entire body turned into a blur, appearing ten meters ahead.
Scathach's method of teaching was simple: after explaining the basics, she would immediately attack him, aiming for vital points with no mercy.
If you can't learn, you die! If you can't do it, you die!
Scathach's actions made it very clear.
Each cold glint of the spear left his hair standing on end as if death was waiting for him at any moment.
There is great fear in the face of death, but at the same time, the body's potential is forced out under the pressure of survival.
Under Scathach's teaching method, in just three days, he was almost mastering [Shave].
When he finally succeeded in using [Shave], even with his strong recovery abilities, he couldn't take it and collapsed on the floor, gasping for breath.
"Not bad."
A seductive figure appeared in his field of vision.
He gave a bitter smile.
"But I don't think you'll be satisfied with just this, right?"
Scathach smirked, pointing at Ais, who was practicing nearby.
"Your Kouhai mastered the basics of [Shave] in just one day. As her senpai, you can't fall too far behind, can you?"
Scathach spoke casually, raising her crimson magic spear slowly.
Ryou bet that if he stayed lying down, she would stab the spear into his head in less than 0.1 seconds.
Dragging his sore body, Ryou forced himself to stand up.
"You've only learned how to execute [Shave]," Scathach began.
"Now you need to master how to control your speed and distance by adjusting your stomping frequency, force, and number of steps. If you can't control these precisely, you'll just end up as a fool running into someone else's weapon in battle."
After listening to her explanation, Ryou nodded.
Just a moment ago, when he successfully used [Shave] for the first time, the system notification had rung in his head.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, host, you've mastered Shave (E-rank), current proficiency 1%.]
But as Scathach said, being able to use [Shave] didn't mean he could use it well.
How to move precisely in front of the opponent, without falling short or crashing into them, and how to turn or chain [Shave] movements together—those were the real challenges.
As Scathach pointed out, simple fast movement over a short distance was far from enough for real combat.
Not to mention, reaching her level—where she had innovated and turned a physical skill into something that resembled a magical ability—Ryou still had a long way to go.
"Alright, you've rested long enough. Let's continue."
Scathach smiled faintly, her expression cold and proud.
Ryou, however, felt like he was being stared down by a demon god, his whole body shivering.
Whoosh!
Without wasting any time, Scathach thrust her spear at him. The magic spear tore through the air, leaving a crimson trail that seemed to slice the very atmosphere, its deadly point aimed directly at his throat.
His hair stood on end, and his pupils contracted to the extreme.
His brain barely had time to react, but his body, driven by survival instinct, moved on its own. His feet blurred, and in an instant, he vanished from where he had been standing.
...
Fifteen days passed in the blink of an eye.
Under Scathach's Spartan training, Ryou was in constant torment. He had been pierced through the heart, brain, and other vital areas a total of 1,087 times, struck in the head by the spear shaft 421 times and kicked in the waist and kidneys 216 times.
Even though he knew he couldn't die in the training ground, Scathach's killing intent was so terrifying that he couldn't distinguish between reality and illusion. Every day, he had to endure the pain of dying a hundred times over.
But under such brutal training, his progress was astonishing.
[Shave] had reached D-rank at an incredible speed, putting him on par with Ais.
Upon seeing his rapid improvement, his straightforward kouhai even requested that Scathach train her the same way.
Finally, Scathach gave him a small break.
In her words:
"You can barely use it in battle now. At least you won't be stupid enough to crash into someone's weapon."
As for the finer techniques, Scathach, being a combat pragmatist, preferred that he learn them through real combat with enemies.
Freed from the hellish training, he collapsed into bed, sleeping for an entire day before he could get up.
Though Chaldea didn't restrict how long he could stay, he had an unsettling feeling that the longer he delayed, the more trouble would come.
Not to mention, it seemed he had finally passed the beginner stage. The nebula of the corrupted dimensional world had at last revealed its true form.
The corruption of the dimensional world had exceeded 60%, and it was still increasing at a terrifying rate of 0.1% per day.
Ryou could only reduce the corruption rate by 2-3% each time he saved a dimension. He couldn't handle it alone.
He would have to send his contracted Heroic Spirits in groups to different worlds.
After consulting the system, the next missions were the Fourth Holy Grail War in the Typemoon World, the open world of One Piece, and A Certain Magical Index.
Naturally, the A Certain Magical Index world was the most dangerous, with its various unscientific and irrational elements, and the so-called hidden Magic Gods lurking in the background.
For safety's sake, after discussing with Scathach, they decided to send her and Jeanne to that world.
Scathach could fight Magic Gods head-on, and Jeanne, with the dual support of idol worship theory and Christianity in the A Certain Magical Index world, would become one of the top powers, second only to the Magic Gods themselves.
The One Piece world and the Holy Grail War were equally dangerous.
In reality, the Fate world was far more dangerous than the One Piece world, but since only the Holy Grail War was involved this time and not the full Fate universe, Ryou estimated that its difficulty would be on par with the open world of One Piece.
As for the One Piece world, he had found the perfect allies in the Kabaneri world.
In a world dominated by the sea and flourishing maritime activities, who could be better suited for the task than two shipgirls?
To be safe, he decided to send Ais along with them to the One Piece world as well.
As for himself, he would naturally head to the Holy Grail War mission.
However, it seemed that going alone might not be safe enough.
After some thought, Ryou sent a message to summon Medea Lily back from the Danmachi world.
But before entering the instance world, Ryou had something very important to do.
He had to first challenge the [Transcendence Trial Instance].
The [Transcendence Trial Instance]—just from the name, you could tell it was similar to the Noble Phantasm strengthening quests in Fate/Grand Order. Once completed, a Noble Phantasm would be greatly enhanced.
This time, the summon card was Sasaki Kojiro, and naturally, the Noble Phantasm to be enhanced was [Tsubame Gaeshi].
Facing increasingly powerful enemies, he wouldn't miss any opportunity to grow stronger.
[Would you like to enter the Descent card Sasaki Kojiro and begin the Transcendence Trial Instance?]
"Confirm!"
The moment he confirmed, the [Descent Card] automatically popped out of his inventory.
Then a massive black vortex formed from the card.
Caught off guard, he was sucked into the vortex.
Swoosh!
...
When Ryou regained consciousness, he heard the sound of waves crashing not far away. The occasional cry of seagulls echoed in the air.
Bright sunlight poured down from above, causing him to squint.
After letting his eyes adjust to the sudden brightness, he quickly began to survey this unfamiliar environment, heightening his vigilance.
An endless ocean stretched out before him, with a fine sandy beach at his feet. A crab scuttled out of the water, but upon noticing him, it hurriedly scurried back into the sea in a panic.
The surrounding scenery made one thing clear: he was on an island.
In one direction, he could see the coastline.
This was an island not far from land.
Just then, the system's notification belatedly arrived.
[Ding!]
[Host has entered the trial story The Duel at Ganryu Island.]
[Mission Objective: Defeat Miyamoto Musashi.]
[(Note: All of the host's attributes, skills, and Noble Phantasms have been replaced by the Sasaki Kojiro template.)]
[Success Reward: The Noble Phantasm Tsubame Gaeshi will be enhanced according to the host's combat style and habits.]
So, this was a Noble Phantasm strengthening quest, and a custom one at that.
The Duel at Ganryu Island—one of the most famous duels in Japanese history.
The two participants were none other than Sasaki Kojiro and Miyamoto Musashi.
Since no one but the participants witnessed the duel firsthand, many versions of the story have been passed down through the ages.
However, one thing all versions agree upon: Miyamoto Musashi was a master of dirty tricks.
Whether it was deliberately arriving late to upset his opponent's mental state, switching weapons mid-fight, trash-talking, or using the sun's position to blind his foe—these are all part of Musashi's glorious dark history.
Tricksters often fall victim to tricks themselves.
Since I'm up against a master of dirty tricks, don't blame me for using some underhanded tactics myself to ensure victory.
If he were using his attribute template, he would've liked to face off against this legendary trickster head-on.
But now that he was using Sasaki Kojiro's template, he definitely couldn't wield it as skillfully as Kojiro himself.
In a sword duel, where victory or defeat is decided in an instant, that slight delay could be fatal.
What's more, even without his dirty tricks, Musashi was still a top-tier swordsman. Even Sasaki Kojiro himself wasn't guaranteed to win, which meant Ryou's odds were even lower.
He checked the position of the sun and estimated the time.
It was already past 9 AM. If he remembered correctly, the duel was scheduled for 8 AM. The trickster had already started playing his games.
"So, you're trying to mess with my mental state by being late? Don't regret it later."
Ryou's face twisted into a sinister grin.
Without another word, he began digging shallow pits into the sand, sharpening tree branches, and burying them in the holes, marking them with barely noticeable signs.
Since he had the body of a Heroic Spirit, this work was quick and easy, taking less than 10 minutes.
Of course, these traps wouldn't hurt Miyamoto Musashi, who was also in the body of a Heroic Spirit.
But in a sword duel, a single misstep—even a twisted ankle—could spell death.
Next, Ryou crafted a fishing rod, dug up some worms from the ground to use as bait, and leisurely began fishing by the seaside.
Fishing is an activity that requires immense patience.
But for him, patience was no issue at all.
Time flew by, and soon it was around 9:30 AM.
At that moment, a small boat appeared on the distant horizon, slowly approaching the island. A figure could be faintly seen on board.
They're here.
Ryou thought to himself, though his hands and facial expression showed no change.
The boat soon reached the shore, and a figure jumped down from it.
"Yo! You must be Sasaki Kojiro?"
A loud, carefree voice called out.
Ryou was shocked.
Where was the scheming trickster? Where was the scruffy, bearded brute? Why was it a woman?
And a very beautiful woman at that!
She wore a red and blue samurai outfit that clung tightly to her curvaceous figure. Her exquisite face exuded a heroic spirit that rivaled any man's, and her cherry-colored hair was tied up with a strange hair ornament resembling a fan blade.
This was unmistakably the Miyamoto Musashi from Fate/Grand Order!
But Ryou didn't dare underestimate her for a second.
He could sense the terrifying strength hidden within her seemingly slender and delicate body, like a she-leopard—beautiful yet deadly.
Especially the four swords she wore at her waist.
Ryou did not doubt that those swords were not just for show.
Seeing that he wasn't responding, Miyamoto Musashi chuckled.
"Sorry about that. I, uh, drank a bit too much last night and overslept this morning. I swear I didn't mean to be late."
If she hadn't said anything, it would've been fine. But hearing her excuse almost made him throw his fishing rod into the sea.
Not only had the notorious trickster turned into a bold and slightly ditzy young woman, but it seemed he had been playing mind games with the air this whole time.
Ryou felt that if he wanted to, not only could he win this duel, but he might even be able to trick her into coming back with him and becoming his contracted spirit.
"Hey~ Why aren't you saying anything?"
Seeing that Ryou remained silent, Miyamoto Musashi pouted and crossed her arms behind her back, looking a bit miffed.
"Shut up! Can't you see I'm fishing?"
"Oh~"
After he snapped at her, Miyamoto Musashi looked a bit dejected but obediently stood off to the side, quietly watching him fish.
Soon, Ryou began to reel in his catch: a codfish, saury, a salmon, one Ise lobster, three crabs, and several oysters, sea cucumbers, and shrimp.
Before long, the makeshift fish pond he had built from sand and rocks was full.