"Sorry."
Ghislaine stopped her sword.
She had just felt so much pressure from the fake spiral sword that Shirou released that she instinctively entered a state of intense killing intent.
As a beastman, she couldn't always control her reason very well. If the enemy was too strong, she would lose her reason and be consumed by her own killing instinct.
Fortunately, at the last moment, Ghislaine managed to recover and didn't hurt Shirou.
This undoubtedly proved how powerful Shirou's fake spiral sword technique was, forcing even a Sword King-level fighter to take it seriously.
"Ghislaine won just now, right?"
The Greyrat family members in the distance watched the amazing fight.
Rudeus didn't speak until the fight was completely over. The movements of both sides were so fast that he couldn't even keep up with his eyes. In the end, he could only make a conclusion with a vague understanding.
"Ghislaine won."
Paul nodded, confirming Rudeus' words.
As someone skilled in three sword styles, he understood better than anyone how amazing that fleeting battle was.
Whether it was Shirou's unique arrow technique or Ghislaine's use of the Sword God Style secret, the Light Sword.
Both sides' strength was beyond the level of his former S-rank adventurer.
At least, Paul didn't think he could take Shirou's fake spiral sword or block Ghislaine's Light Sword.
That was a level he couldn't reach.
Now, Paul fully realized that Shirou had surpassed him, but he didn't feel any jealousy or find it unacceptable anymore.
He only felt relief and a little regret for wasting so many years on swordsmanship and not even reaching the Saint level in any style.
If Ghislaine was willing to take Shirou as a disciple, Paul decided to spend more time training and try to become stronger.
Similar to Paul's thoughts, the Greyrat family members were all nervously watching Ghislaine.
No matter how intense the fight was, whether she was willing to take Shirou as a disciple depended on Ghislaine's own thoughts.
"Your name is Shirou, right?"
"Yes."
Facing Ghislaine's sudden question, Shirou quickly replied nervously.
Ghislaine's Light Sword made him fully realize the gap between him and a Sword King-level fighter, and it made him want to advance further in the Sword God Style even more.
If possible, he hoped Ghislaine would take him as a disciple, but he knew it all depended on her.
But Ghislaine didn't answer directly. Instead, she asked a strange question: "How old are you?"
"Twelve, I think."
Shirou didn't know his body's exact age. After all, when he came to this world, he already looked about five years old.
Even his birthday was calculated from the day he arrived.
"You're already an Advanced Sword God Style user at twelve? That's amazing."
Ghislaine praised him. "But do you really want to learn Sword God Style from me? In the fight just now, your arrow skills and magic showed considerable talent. It might be a case of taking shortcuts, but those skills would be even better in the North God Style."
Ghislaine had a similar attitude to Paul's.
They both felt that Shirou's talents were better suited to the North God Style. Whether it was sword magic or archery, the North God Style, which wasn't bound by form, would allow him to develop them even better.
However, Shirou showed a firm attitude. He said without hesitation, "No, my goal isn't the North God Style. It might be more suitable for me, but I don't want to take an easy path. That would just make me rely on my talents and limit my future."
"Oh? You want to go beyond talent?"
"I wouldn't say go beyond talent, but I definitely want to learn Sword God Style. I think I can only become a true strong person by going further in the Sword God Style."
"..."
Hearing Shirou's words, Ghislaine couldn't help but fall silent.
She glanced at Shirou, then at Paul in the distance, as if looking at a prime example of someone who was too individualistic.
Ghislaine finally came back to her senses, looked at the red-haired boy in front of her, and slightly smiled. "I believe you're the one who beat the Red Dragon, Shirou."
"Uh... what?"
Shirou was confused by Ghislaine's words.
Weren't they talking about taking a disciple? Why did she bring up the Red Dragon?
Ghislaine continued, speaking to herself:
"Regarding Paul's letter asking me to take you as a disciple, I was still doubtful. After all, no matter how great someone is said to be, you need to see them in person to confirm what they're really like. So I didn't pay much attention to your situation before and only came to Buena Village after putting it off for half a year."
"On the way here, I heard about your feat of killing the Red Dragon. To be honest, I didn't believe those rumors. Not only because the Red Dragon was obviously strong, but mainly because I found it hard to imagine a twelve-year-old boy having the courage and determination to fight the Red Dragon."
"When facing truly insurmountable enemies, most people are hesitant. At the very least, they wouldn't firmly do something impossible. So even if they have excellent talents and solid skills, their potential limit is still limited. This is evident in some of my fellow disciples. They are all better Sword God Style users than me, but in the end, only I became a Sword King."
"The reason they can't go further, according to my master, the current Sword God, is that they are too aware of their own abilities. Because they recognize their limits, they tie their own hands, afraid to take the next step. Because the opponent can't be beaten, the situation can't be overcome, they simply sit and wait for death. But that's definitely wrong. A true swordsman must dare to face insurmountable dangers and challenge unreachable peaks. Only then can they go further on the path of the sword."
"Shirou, your actions make me believe that you really killed the Red Dragon, and I also believe that you can surpass the limits that people set in so-called extreme situations. To be honest, I'm not even confident in taking someone like you as my disciple, because I might not even have your confidence in terms of will."
Ghislaine's series of words silenced the Greyrat family.
Everyone never expected the great Sword King to give Shirou such high praise.
As for Shirou himself, he was stunned by Ghislaine's words, and then he became excited, his body trembling slightly.
"Miss Ghislaine, do you mean? Are you willing to take me as a disciple?"
"Of course. In the test just now, Shirou, your performance completely met my requirements, and even exceeded my expectations. So I have no objections and am willing to take you as my disciple. And to be honest, I don't think I have the ability to be your teacher. I can only teach you the techniques of the Sword God Style, so you don't need to be too respectful to me. We can just treat each other as equals."
"This..."
Shirou didn't expect Ghislaine's casual attitude.
But in any case, the thought of being able to train in the Sword God Style under a Sword King made him feel incredibly excited.
After all, since mastering the Intermediate Sword God Style Silent Blade, his Sword God Style hadn't improved for a long time.
This was unacceptable to Emiya Shirou, whose goal was to surpass Servant Emiya's limits.
Now that a Sword King was willing to teach him swordsmanship, it was undoubtedly the best outcome. He finally had hope to break through his current bottleneck!
While Shirou was happy, the Greyrat family members showed different complex expressions.
After all, Shirou was going to train swordsmanship with Ghislaine, so he naturally couldn't stay with the Greyrat family. A great Sword King like Ghislaine couldn't be tied down by a small place like the Greyrat family.
Shirou was destined to follow Ghislaine to a broader stage and witness a grander world.
But the Greyrat family couldn't witness all of that.
"Ah, my lovely Shirou is leaving."
Zenith said sadly.
"Madam, this is what young master Shirou wants."
Lilia comforted her.
"Of course, I understand, I understand, Lilia."
Zenith sighed. "Ah... ah... Shirou, it's going to be so hard not to have Shirou's cooking at home anymore."
"So that's what you're worried about..."
Lilia couldn't help but comment.
Zenith shook her head. "Of course I'm worried about Shirou too. But Shirou will definitely be fine. He's such a strong and determined person. No matter what difficulties he encounters, he'll surely be able to overcome them. It's us who..."
Saying that, Zenith looked at Rudeus, who had a lonely expression.
"Don't worry, no matter how far away he is, Shirou is our family member. He will definitely come back one day."
"Yeah, I know."
Rudeus nodded.
He wasn't really sad about Shirou's departure. He was feeling a sense of frustration that Shirou was leaving alone and was clearly going to become stronger.
But because of Paul's request, he had to be over twelve years old before he could leave home. Rudeus had no choice but to accept this condition.
After all, unlike Shirou, Rudeus hadn't even reached the Intermediate level in any sword style. Just accepting Paul's training was already his limit.
Receiving training from a Sword King was undoubtedly something only someone as strong as Shirou could do.
Not only Rudeus, but everyone in the Greyrat family felt complex emotions as they thought about Shirou leaving with Ghislaine, and they couldn't calm down easily.
---
Read 55+ advanced chapters on patreon.com/yeyeqiu
Free member can read up to 4 advanced chapters