The Ogre Strength Fairy and the Eldest 'Son'-Chapter 350 - Former Master Speaks, Former Disciple Listens

Chapter 350: Chapter 350 - Former Master Speaks, Former Disciple Listens

The auxiliary grounds behind the fort’s northern barracks were seldom used this early. Mist still clung to the ground as Elua finally entered the space, carrying a small wooden case of sigilist tools she’d been using. The location was private enough for an honest conversation, but open enough to maintain propriety.

Not that it mattered for her with the illusions she had control of or the sigils she carved, but for the person she was examining... it became important to put them at ease with mundane details like this. She considered just sneaking into whatever room Leysah had been staying in and performing what she needed to do that way-

’But I don’t really like the idea of sneaking in to see some other woman sleep. This would have to be a far more pressing matter...’

When the older female cultivator arrived minutes later, her curved blades tucked at her sides, a set of eyes immediately locked to Elua er Goltbred with that now-familiar emotional pull. The woman stopped several paces away, wariness evident in her stance.

"I was surprised to receive your message."

"Were you? That’s lovely to hear. It is definitely my hope to entertain you and your persistent gaze."

The small teenager kept her voice neither the ’sweet’ usual to her facade nor her natural monotone. Calm but with that edge of mature superiority that had laced most of her responses during the required surgery at the competition grounds. From the wound this woman accidentally caused.

’Or perhaps she was used again, the nobles giving her faulty equipment knowing it would fail. Well, I don’t really care about any of that.’

"I can’t explain that. It’s... involuntary."

"I know."

The cultivator’s eyes widened at Elua’s matter-of-fact response. As she watched the heiress place down the case she brought, Leysah’s thoughts circled around an earlier consideration. That someone’s spirit was intentionally distracting her... yet she couldn’t bring herself to say the young girl was at fault.

Even if she contradictorily believed it was easily possible, without any proof.

"You’re here because my Qat is considering rejecting your application despite your obvious combat qualifications. I’m making a final assessment."

The woman’s expression tightened. She’d thought the training had gone well enough, all things considered. Certainly, after mingling with the other candidates she didn’t think she wouldn’t be picked at all.

"Because of how I look at you."

"Partially. The momentary bouts of distrust toward the existence known as Qatrand er Yecine is the bigger issue. Or should I say, towards the ~*partner on my path*~."

When the emphasized words were spoken in the Old Tongue, the curved-blade wielder’s hand unconsciously rose to her own throat. A gesture that Elua noted with interest.... for in her past life, a certain disciple had often nervously touched a pendant that hung there.

’One I gave her myself, back when she needed some more protection from spiritual interference to grow at a steadier rate.’

Leysah opened her mouth and closed it, not wanting to lie or hide anything. Especially since everything seemed so obvious to the mint eyed girl. And this time, the brunette seemed to actually be willing to talk back rather than avoid her.

"I don’t understand it either. When I saw the mark on his neck, I just... reacted. As if I needed to protect you from him, which makes no sense. I’ve never met either of you before the competition."

"Well, that’s not exactly true. You did pass through and leave an anonymous gift at our wedding. But I will grant that we had no conversations until then. Now, do you submit to my tests?"

A subtle pressure had been building throughout the grounds. Barriers, traps, and all sorts of things activating in secret. Such a manipulating cultivator would never enter anything like a battleground without preparations... and she may have went overboard in pure annoyance at having to cut her sleep next to her husband-wife short.

"You’re not a combat cultivator. Why would a Yecine value your assessment?"

"My expertise lies in other areas. And Qatrand values my judgment. However, if it’s combat you seek... well, lets just handle the rest first."

The last part had oddly turned just a little ’sweet’, which actually made Leysah more uncomfortable. Elua approached slowly while holding an illusion of what should be a ’familiar looking’ pendant between them. Interestingly, the woman didn’t really react to it other than a bit of a head tilt.

"Your Astralism. You called it one-way thought projection?"

"Yes. I can send my thoughts outward, but cannot receive them."

"Then, show me."

The woman closed her eyes - annoying her former master - as her facial expression implied concentration. Moments passed before Elua felt the attempt... not as a voice in her mind, but rather an impression of sound nearby. A mostly wordless sentiment carrying Leysah’s current confusion and frustration.

"Unable to form actual words. A little disappointing, but rather expected. That’s the best you can do?"

A few more tries with some other ’helpful’ statements aided the spiritualist in understanding more of the woman’s situation in this life.

"Well, that’s mildly fascinating. Your Astralism isn’t what I initially thought. It’s not truly Beacon, even though it resembles it."

"Beacon?"

"A fairly rare Astralism, just like Telepathy, that allows cultivators to project their thoughts outward as a signal."

"How do you know-"

"But the true form of Beacon creates spiritual sounds more like auditory hallucinations. It doesn’t let raw emotional impressions leak through. Telepathy does do that, however."

The reincarnator circled the other woman. Probing deeply into the weak spirit of a Second Echelon Enchanter. Locating trigger points the woman may have known and many she had never even considered.

"You, however, sit more in between. Which is laughably impossible. Your spirit flows out not in the shape of a wave emanating from your center... but in the shape of a bridge reaching out to the other side despite that far half being destroyed. Or never intending to be built."

The curved-blade wielder stiffened and finished her sentence more boldly this time.

"How could you possibly know that?"

"Sigilists develop certain sensitivities. And I have always foremost been a spiritualist. When do you think this fracturing of your spirit occurred?"

"I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Mint eyes stopped in front of her, tilting to the side as they glowed with an ancient gleam. One that made disciples new and old tense with the certainty of dealing with their chosen mentor.

"Hmm. Perhaps you don’t."

The girl’s voice softened as she admitted this. For all the bits that were there, making this version of the woman who she is... there was far less than half left of who she was as far as the reborn cultivator could tell.

"Then let me ask a different question. Have you always felt drawn to certain people or objects without explanation? Beyond just me."

Leysah’s breathing quickened slightly.

"Sometimes. There was a curved sword on display when I was young. I couldn’t stop looking at it."

"And how does it feel when you wield one of them?"

"Like they’ve always belonged in my hand." freewёbnoνel.com

Elua nodded, as if confirming something to herself.

"Show me that, too. And hand me one of your weapons."

"Uh?"

⟠ ⟠ ⟠

For the next hour, Elua put Leysah through a series of exercises. None were standard combat drills one might expect; instead, they focused on spiritual awareness, faults in her essence channeling, and inferior movement patterns. Some of the parts that this version of herself had failed to perfect.

"That final sequence. Did you develop that yourself?"

"No. It came to me in a dream. Many of my techniques did. What... about you? Have you always been able to wield a blade?"

A ’giggle’ left the throat of the smaller girl as she flourished the deadly sharp item before tossing it perfectly to be easily caught by the other woman’s free hand.

"Is someone ever capable of doing something so technical as fight *always*? Even true genius has at least a few moments of learning to go through. Now... one last test."

The woman nodded with a frown. She was just a little reluctant for this to be the end, especially considering it felt like she’d learned so much.

"Okay. What is it?"

"I want you to try projecting your thoughts to me again. But this time, focus specifically on why you feel drawn to look at me."

"I... I don’t think I can control it that precisely."

"Try. That’s the point of a test. If I knew you could do it... why would I ask?"

The woman closed her eyes... despite the short rant from earlier that the heiress gave on how unnecessary it was. The impression formed more quickly this time. Not just vague emotion, but fragments of intent shooting across the partial bridge.

Broken pieces of memory, like a sense of ’duty’... ’faith’... ’regret’. And beneath it all, a desperate desire for ’approval’ that had outlasted the end of a life itself. When Leysah opened her eyes, they were moist - and the ones she looked toward were dull.

"Did... did you feel anything?"

"Yes."

Elua had gotten plenty enough - and done enough in those short moments to deal with it permanently for the other reborn woman. After all, she wasn’t the Breacher doing silly little forced experiments meant to ’change’ her lover like she had been in her past life.

But a former Demi-God with spiritual energy as her focus, expertly sealing the harsh edges of something that another Breacher had done to themselves with their dying breaths.

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