Chapter 96: Divine Art of the Eternal Void [1]

Chapter 95

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Episode 21 - Divine Art of the Eternal Void [1]

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"The First Form uses the emotion of Despair. Every time you wound someone, that person is flooded by a wave of despair, leaving them paralyzed, confused, and mentally unstable. And keep in mind that each Mastery does not have a subsidiary chamber like other Sword Arts; the only ability is the Form itself."

Charlotte nodded repeatedly.

"Then, how exactly do you begin?"

Luminus took a deep breath, grabbed her sword, and then said:

"I’ll give you an example. Use what you learned an hour ago to ’see’ how I do it."

Charlotte nodded and focused her mind. Using her Will, she gathered the Negative Emotion of Despair and concentrated it into her eyes.

It was a way of using negative emotions as if they were mana.

Then, before Charlotte, her entire vision changed.

She looked at Luminus and noticed a dark blue mist forming within her mind.

Suddenly, that mist moved throughout her entire body and finally concentrated itself on her sword.

At first glance, Luminus’s expression had not changed, but now that Charlotte could see only negative emotions...

She realized that Luminus had flooded herself with Despair, but in a way that did not affect her at all.

Then, after channeling and manifesting the emotion of Despair, Luminus moved her sword.

The movement was slow.

It lacked the explosive speed of a common offensive technique or the savage ferocity of a swordsman seeking to destroy an enemy.

Luminus’s sword descended with an unnatural calmness, as though it carried the weight of countless defeats accumulated over the years.

The dark blue mist surrounding the blade silently expanded into the air.

It did not look like energy.

It looked like a feeling taking physical form.

Charlotte felt a chill run through her body instantly.

Every inch of the movement was saturated with the emotion of someone who had lost all desire to resist.

As if, at some point in her life, Luminus had experienced such profound despair that she eventually turned it into power.

It was not simply a technique.

It was the memory of a woman falling into the void over and over again... until she learned how to walk within it.

The air around the sword began to grow heavy. Even breathing felt difficult.

Charlotte could sense the emotion of Despair slowly seeping into the surroundings, trying to drag anyone’s mind into a silent abyss where struggling no longer had any meaning.

Then, Luminus stopped.

She breathed calmly and looked at Charlotte.

"So, you understood how to do it, right?"

Charlotte nodded unconsciously. Then Luminus smiled and said:

"Remember that using each Form of the Eternal Void Divine Art too many times will drown you in a sea of negative emotions. For now, you can only use the First Form five times. Without prior training and without improving your Mastery, you won’t be able to use it more than five times."

Charlotte then asked:

"Master, then how many times can you use the Eternal Void Divine Art without your Unique Trait?"

Charlotte asked that because she was curious. If she, as a complete novice, could only use that Sword Art five times...

Then how many times could Luminus use it, when she had already completely mastered the Sword Art?

Luminus answered her question:

"At least more than a hundred times. Each Mastery increases the total number of uses eighteenfold. But if you had a Will even stronger, at least 10% of your boyfriend’s Will, then you would easily start with a total of two hundred uses."

"...?"

Charlotte’s mouth fell nearly to the floor.

’More than two hundred times... what the hell?’

If she could only use it five times at the beginning, and Adel, with merely 10% of his Will, reached two hundred uses...

Then how many times could he use it in total?

Charlotte felt slightly dizzy for a moment before shaking her head and saying:

"I said he’s not my boyfriend... Ugh, anyway, I’ll start training."

Luminus smiled and said:

"Remember that you can only use the First Form five times per hour. Otherwise, you’ll be in serious danger."

Charlotte let out a faint sigh and then focused on using her Will. Afterward, she grasped the emotion of Despair and manifested it throughout her entire body and sword alongside her mana.

Slowly, the dark blue mist covered every part of her body.

Her expression changed several times, reflecting Despair, but she gritted her teeth and kept her mind calm.

To channel her emotions, she had to keep her mind clear and tranquil.

That had been one of Luminus’s earlier explanations. It helped prevent Despair from taking control of Charlotte.

Then Charlotte began to move, swinging her sword while following the exact same stance Luminus had shown.

It was the first time Charlotte had moved her body in that way, so she had to adapt to every movement of her feet, arms, breathing, and mana.

Then she moved the sword fluidly, as if she were dancing.

The Divine Art of the Eternal Void had movements similar to a dance.

’Ha, ha... this feels amazing.’

Minutes passed, then an hour, and finally Charlotte stopped.

Her breathing was uneven and ragged, and sweat covered her entire body, constantly dripping down.

She turned toward Luminus while keeping a smile on her face and asked:

"How did I do?"

Luminus, who had been watching Charlotte the entire time, smiled, applauded, and said:

"You copied everything I showed you as an example very well. Congratulations."

Charlotte smiled gracefully as Luminus showered her with praise.

It was the first time Charlotte had accomplished something important and had someone praise her for it.

That new feeling was comforting and addictive, yet at the same time, Charlotte wanted more.

Then she turned toward Adel, but noticed that he was still meditating.

’Tsk, you’re seriously still doing that...’

But before Charlotte could even finish her thoughts, Adel’s lips parted and he said:

"Not bad, although to me it looked more like a dance with a sword in hand. But what impressed me more was that the emotion of Despair covered your entire body. What was that?"

"..."

Charlotte’s expression of disbelief was clearly visible as she asked:

"You can also see negative emotions?"

"Positive and negative ones, although the concept of ’seeing’ doesn’t really fit in my case, you know?"

Charlotte closed her mouth, and soon frowned.

"Wait a second, does that mean you always see the emotions of every person?"

Adel, while standing up from the ground and gripping his sword, shrugged and said:

"Yes and no. I can choose not to ’see’ emotions if I want to."

"...!"

Luminus, slightly surprised, said:

"I thought I was the first one capable of seeing emotions, even if only the negative ones."

Adel smiled and said:

"Well, compared to you two, it seems like you can actually manipulate emotions, but I can only ’see’ them, and that’s all."

"Even so, it’s still incredible."

Luminus praised her. Meanwhile, Charlotte grew irritated internally.

’Seriously, those compliments were meant for me and only me.’

She felt annoyed, but nothing would change anyway, so she sighed and tried to relax.

---

The days passed slowly. Charlotte and Adel had already entered Chapter One a week ago, and throughout all that time, they became more familiar with Luminus and gradually grew closer to her.

Compared to the Luminus from the Prologue, the current one was more expressive and talkative.

Not long after, the snowstorm had finally calmed down enough for them to go outside without any problems.

Charlotte was the first to step outside and look around.

Now she could see farther compared to before, at least fifteen or twenty meters into the distance.

Snowflakes continued to fall steadily, like an icy breeze.

Her head was soon covered in snow, and after observing the surroundings for a moment, she went back inside.

"I don’t see any monsters or demons at first glance."

Then she looked at Adel and asked:

"Can you scout the area?"

Adel, seated in front of the campfire, said nothing at first, and after a few seconds, he spoke:

"There’s nothing within a thousand-meter radius, neither in the sky nor on the ground."

Charlotte nodded and then looked at Luminus. Although surprised, Luminus asked nothing and then said:

"Good, in that case, we can go outside to test your training. What do you think?"

Charlotte frowned and asked:

"And what about attacking the villains’ base?"

On the first day, Luminus had told both of them that once the storm stopped, they would go directly to destroy the villains’ base.

So Charlotte felt confused and voiced her confusion.

"Mhm, it’s true that I said that, but as you can see, the storm has only calmed down for now."

"That means it’ll start snowing heavily again later."

Luminus acknowledged Charlotte’s words. Charlotte then shrugged and said:

"Well, alright then. Let’s go."

"Of course, besides, I want to spend more time with my disciple."

Charlotte scratched her head awkwardly while smiling.

"Ah, right, master."

She still wasn’t used to Luminus’ affectionate way of speaking.

It had all started three days ago, and ever since then, Luminus had been speaking that way.

Luminus then looked at Adel and asked:

"Don’t you want to come with us?"

Adel shook his head and waved his hand dismissively.

"No. I can’t see anyway, so there’s nothing interesting for me."

At the same time, Adel had remained the same as always. In truth, the relationship between Charlotte and Adel had not changed much.

’Ugh, seriously, this guy can’t give a single compliment.’

Charlotte shook her head.

’No, forget it. In the first place, I don’t even know why I expect him to praise me. It’s not like we’re close.’

Snapping out of her thoughts, she looked at Luminus and said:

"Then we’re heading out, master."

Luminus nodded.

"Good, let’s go."

Both women left the cave while Adel remained in front of the campfire. In his mind, he was speaking with Alice.

’Master, exactly how much time has passed in the real world?’

Alice responded after thinking for a few seconds.

〖Around seven hours, I think. Almost eight if we include the time you spent in the Prologue.〗

Adel nodded inwardly. Then he sensed Luminus and Charlotte moving farther and farther away.

’I still can’t believe she learned the Fallen Maiden Sword Art.’

A wry smile appeared on his face.