Beneath the scorching, mid-morn skies of the Myriad Sword Realm, a cacophony of clashing swords and rustling dry grass filled the air in a certain part of a certain savannah biome.
Daru observed with a smile, appreciating Havoc the Honey Badger's fearlessness.
The Field Boss was significantly smaller than the elite and was also of a lower level.
Yet, not only was he holding his own, but Havoc was even winning.
Both Swordspawns were already bleeding, the only difference being that one of the Lurker Leopard's balls had already been taken, in contrast to the relatively light skin and flesh injuries of the badger.
This Field Boss was certainly the most vicious one Daru had encountered to date.
And then it happened again—for the third time in this battle:
Havoc, with a menacing gaze, rushed at the wounded elite, suddenly splitting into two and attacking from two different directions.
The Lurker Leopard still hadn't figured out how to deal with the attack, simply backpedaling in panic.
By instinct, it defended the "left Havoc", since that was the direction the true attack previously came from.
But the real Havoc this time was the one on the right.
With a vicious slash, the Field Boss cut deeply into the elite's neck, further worsening its condition.
The Lurker Leopard didn't have a chance to showcase its sword skill from start to finish, as Havoc the Honey Badger kept on going for the offensive, only retreating from time to time to change the pace of its attacks.
Unfortunately, just when the swordspawn duel was reaching its peak, Daru's world suddenly warped to a white void, then the blurred ceiling of his classroom.
He couldn't be around to witness the end, causing a slight, dissatisfied frown to appear on his face.
Nonetheless, while he watched, Daru didn't waste a single second, keenly observing Havoc's footwork whenever the badger used the skill.
He now had a rough idea how to practice it.
As for whether the method would work, he could only hope it would.
Daru fancied the skill very much.
He shall do whatever he can to learn the impressive opener. But for now, he shall have a hearty lunch of appropriate portions and nutrition.
Daru always felt eager after not training for a day.
Had rest not been mandatory for the proper development and recovery of one's body, he would train on Sundays, too.
He had always been rather uneasy and extra bored on the said day of the week, after all.
After having lunch at the academy cafeteria, he headed to the sixth training field, arriving as one of the early birds as per usual.
The afternoon swordsmanship classes that day were pretty normal, except for the fact that they now trained using the personalized regimen promised and delivered by Talon.
It was a curious thing that they weren't immediately dismissed after the sparring sessions.
What could their instructor's announcement be about?
Scanning his eyes over the messy formation of his students, Talon began:
"Alright, starting next week, the official ranking matches will begin. I'm delighted to announce that there will be some changes. From this day forth, a vice-representative would also be chosen, and those who will be able to secure the said positions will receive rewards in the Myriad Sword Realm. Of course, the class rep would obtain more benefits compared to the vice-rep."
He then paused for a moment to give his students time to digest the information before continuing:
"The condition remains: only the class representative would be able to join the inter-class representative competition. Don't worry, as everyone will get equal chances. The ranking matches will be in the format of spars in Neo-Earth instead of duels in the Myriad Sword Realm. This way, everyone uses a training sword, and no one would be at a disadvantage."
Talon's words filled the hearts of those with lower-tiered swords with hope.
They, too, had at least a fair shot at the position.
As for False Witness and the like, they only sneered and snorted inwardly.
One's prowess in swordsmanship was deeply connected to the tier of sword one awakened.
Although it seemed like everyone had equal chances, Sylphina and the others knew that the actual results wouldn't differ much from the expected.
She would be the class representative, and the vice-representative would likely be False Witness.
And so, they didn't take the "disadvantage" to heart, extremely confident of their abilities.
Talon dismissed them after the announcement.
Daru stayed to train a bit longer this time, despite his plans to research ways to learn sword skills in the Myriad Sword Realm.
Perhaps information about this topic would help him in his next agenda of learning Havoc the Honey Badger's effective and unpredictable opening attack.
After returning to his dormitory room, he immediately opened his laptop and began diligently studying.
He unfortunately found nothing that could help.
Based on the online articles and forums, one could only learn sword skills if one was lucky enough to obtain a sword skill talisman or scroll, which had very low chances of being dropped by slain Swordspawns.
This meant that if he wanted to learn Havoc's sword skill, then he would have to either hunt the Field Boss over and over again—if that was even possible—to try and obtain a sword skill from him, or he could utilize [Divine Comprehension], though it seemed that only he was capable of having the latter as an option, thanks to his Soulbound Sword.
He would be the pioneer if he wanted to take the sword passive route.
No one would be able to help him.
Come morning the next day, Daru went and attended his lecture classes, passing his second short quiz without any problems, then entered the Myriad Sword Realm again with a plan.