Chapter 71 - Darkness and Sword King Festival [2]
「Sensei, may I ask you a few questions?」
「Aa, go ahead. Don’t be afraid to ask me anything.」
「Thank you very much. What is『spiritual power』?」
When I raised that question,
「Hou… Where did you hear that word?」
Sensei seemed a little surprised and returned a question instead.
「Just a moment ago, when I was fighting my spirit core. That guy blurted it out to me.」
「I see, that’s how it was… Fumu, how do I explain this…」
She scratched her cheek with a troubled expression.
「As for spiritual power, I thought I’d talk about it after you guys hit the『wall』, but… Oh well… Rose and some other students have already hit a slump. Maybe it’s time to explain it…」
Sensei drew that conclusion and clapped loudly.
「Fumu, in things like these, being fair is also important. Yoshi! I’ll explain spiritual power to everyone during the second period! Sorry Allen, but could you just wait a little longer?」
「Yes, I understand.」
As I expected,『spiritual power』seems to be one of the important elements to become stronger.
Then I decided to ask another thing that has been on my mind for a while now.
「Sensei, excuse me. Just one more thing, okay?」
「Aa, of course.」
「How to put this… that is… Ria’s father, His Majesty the King of Vesteria, would be angry, right? 」
We’re talking about His Majesty, who dotes on Ria after all.
If he has learned that she was kidnapped by the Black Organization, then I’m sure he’s in a furious fit of anger right about now.
And then,
「Ah… about that…」
Sensei, with a slightly troubled expression on her face, whispered into my ear.
「About that… Don’t tell anybody else about this, but he hasn’t said anything.」
「…Eh?」
「It was that big of an incident. So naturally, he should’ve gotten information about Ria’s kidnapping, but… he hasn’t come forward with any complaints, that it even gives me the creeps. Seriously, what’s up with that guy?」
「That’s really strange…」
It completely does not match his character.
Judging by his usual character, he should’ve started an all-out war with the Black Organization the moment he received the news of the kidnapping.
(Seriously, just what happened…?)
When I was thinking about it,
「Well, anyway… The current situation surrounding Ria is very quiet. Well, I don’t know what will happen in the future, but… There’s no point in thinking about it now.」
Sensei said while shrugging.
「I suppose…」
Certainly, it was no use worrying about something we will get no answers to.
If『something』does happen, I have to be prepared and make sure to do everything in my power – that’s the best answer.
「Thank you, sensei. Well then, I’ll go and try again!」
「Aa, I’m rooting for you!」
And I entered the world of the soul again. Until the end of the first period, I continued to fight that guy again and again.
■
After that, the first period passed by in the blink of an eye.
The moment the chime rang to announce the start of the second period.
『FWEEEEET』! Leia-sensei’s favorite whistle rang out in the Soul Dress Area.
「-Everyone! I have a small announcement, so please gather over here!」
Everyone gathered around sensei, puzzled by the sudden call-up.
「It’s a bit sudden, but I’m going to have you measure your spiritual power from now on! But before you do that, let me briefly explain what spiritual power is all about in the first place!」
Then, sensei began to explain in a loud voice.
「Spiritual power is, in other words,『mental energy』. We swordsmen consume this and manifest our soul dress. After training in soul dress classes, you all get mentally tired, don’t you? That’s because it consumes a great deal of spiritual power which is mental energy.」
She continued explaining further.
「And spiritual power is not something one is born with, but acquired through the training of soul dress. There is no limit to the amount of spiritual power, theoretically speaking. The more you train, the more it increases little by little. That said, there is no way that human beings can live for hundreds of millions of years. There is no theoretical limit, but by the biological limit of man, there is a『substantial amount limit』in spiritual power. Well, this is just a brief explanation of spiritual power.」
Sensei finished explaining spiritual power and said,
「Let’s go and measure the amount of spiritual power immediately. Come follow me!」
We quickly started walking toward the back of the wide Soul Dress Area.
When we walked for about two minutes, I saw a double-door about two meters tall.
(Was there such a door in the Soul Dress Area?)
Because it was the exact same colour as the wall, I never noticed it.
「Heave-Ho…!」
Sensei opened the door and went in, and we followed.
Then there was something like a magic circle which often appears in fairy tales.
「This is the spiritual power room. As the name suggests, it is a room designed to measure the spiritual power of a swordsman. Well, seeing is believing. So, let me show you an example.」
Sensei said, and moved to the center of the magic circle and began to take a deep breath.
The next moment, dazzling crimson light was emitted from the magic circle.
「「「O-Oh…!?」」」
Several students gasped at the mystical sight.
「The color that the magic circle emits is determined by the amount of spiritual power of the person. In order of low spiritual power to high, the colours are『purple, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, red』. As a guide, let’s see… Considering that this is your first-year, if above『indigo』is emitted, your spiritual power can be considered good enough.」
Sensei finished the demonstration, and left the magic circle.
「The measurement method is very simple. Move to the center of the magic circle, and turn your consciousness towards the depths of your soul. That will start the magic circle automatically and it will measure your spiritual power.」
Sensei concluded the explanation and,
「Now then, whoever is prepared, step to front first.」
Sensei clapped and urged us.
And then,
「Yoshi, I’ll go first!」
Tessa Burmond, the swordsman of Iron Cutting Style, was the first to name himself.
「Yoshi. Go on and give it a try, Tessa. The point is to sink your consciousness into the depths of your soul, the same as when interacting with the spirit core!」
「Yes!」
After a cheerful reply, Tessa stood at the center of the magic circle, exhaled loudly and closed his eyes.
The next moment, a pale light of scarlet leaked out of the magic circle.
「Hou, it’s already scarlet! That’s great, Tessa!」
Sensei widened her eyes and exhaled a breath of admiration.
「Hehe, thank you!」
After that, we measured our spiritual power one by one.
Almost all of the students were purple, and scarlet was seen rarely.
By the way, the Ria’s was green and Rose’s was blue.
Rose, who was defeated by Ria in spiritual strength, seemed to be quite frustrated.
She trembled in small increments and said「N-Not bad…」
After a little while, it was finally my turn.
「Then, the last one is Allen. Give it a try.」
「Yes.」
I moved to the center of the magic circle,
「Suu… Haa…」
I took a few deep breaths and concentrated my mind.
The moment when my consciousness sank deeper and deeper towards my soul.
「……!?」
Black light was emitted from the magic circle, followed by a high-pitched sound. And then the magic circle shattered.
「U-Unmeasurable…!?」
Sensei’s dumbfounded voice resounded greatly in the spiritual power room.