Chapter 98: Divine Art of the Eternal Void [3]

Chapter 97

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Episode 21 - Divine Art of the Eternal Void [3]

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The hours had passed quite quickly. Luminus showed her an example; just like with the Eighth Form, she taught Charlotte all the other Forms of the Divine Art of the Eternal Void.

Charlotte had to memorize everything she had seen until even her head started to ache.

It felt as though dozens of iron rods melted in lava were being driven into her head.

She lay down on the snow, feeling the cold seep into her head and relax her for a moment. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Then, a smile appeared on her face.

"I see you’re very happy."

Luminus asked while sitting on the same rock as before, her legs crossed.

Charlotte slightly turned her head toward Luminus and said:

"Of course I am. I’m learning my first sword art, and not just any sword art, but my master’s."

Charlotte was obviously genuinely happy about it and could not hide her excitement.

Luminus pursed her lips.

"I’m glad you think so highly of it."

Then, Charlotte stood up and sat on the snow. Luminus moved in front of her and extended her fingers toward Charlotte’s forehead.

"Now I’ll give you some memories. It may feel uncomfortable, but there won’t be any problems."

Nodding, Charlotte made it clear that she had no issue with it, so Luminus used one of her traits, and in the next second, Charlotte felt a flood of memories forcefully entering her mind.

From the First Form to the Eighth Form, every training method of the Divine Art of the Eternal Void entered her memories.

It felt so natural, as though Charlotte herself had been the creator of that Sword Art.

Luminus then sat back down on the rock behind Charlotte and crossed her legs once more while watching her.

"From now on, you won’t need my help. You are your own master, in simple terms."

And Luminus was right.

The memories within Charlotte’s mind clearly showed her exactly how she needed to train every Form of the Divine Art of the Eternal Void.

It felt natural, foreign memories artificially implanted as though they had always belonged to her.

’It feels like muscle memory. I feel like I could train any of the eight Forms right now.’

Charlotte moved her hands and then clenched them. Although she wanted to try immediately, she first needed to rest for at least an hour.

After that, she could try practicing the training of one of the other Forms.

"No, I’m not my own master. My master is right in front of my eyes."

Charlotte’s eyes locked onto Luminus’s eyes.

The two of them looked at each other and then burst into laughter.

Then, as if remembering something, Charlotte asked:

"Now that I think about it, isn’t there supposed to be a villain base nearby? Shouldn’t they have heard all that noise when you used the Eighth Form?"

At her question, Luminus replied:

"Oh, that. Don’t worry, we’re far enough from their base that they wouldn’t hear any noise. Besides, the roars, the fighting, and the sounds of the wind and monsters erase most of the noise I made here."

Charlotte understood, but then she asked:

"And what about the monsters and demons?"

"I created a barrier around us. It would be troublesome if we were interrupted, right?"

"..."

Charlotte did not know what to say to that, so she simply nodded without saying anything.

’Well, she really is amazing, isn’t she?’

The thought crossed her mind before she pushed it away.

"Well, we should head back. Your boyfriend might be worried about you."

"Master, I already told you we do not have that kind of relationship. Honestly, we barely know each other, so we are basically strangers. We are not even friends."

Luminus’s mouth formed an "o," clearly amused.

"Really? But my eyes do not deceive me. He usually teases you, and you get angry so easily. Honestly, that is cute. And when a boy keeps teasing you, or a girl does the same, it is because..."

Charlotte quickly waved her hands as her breathing hastened for a moment.

"That is not it, definitely not what you are thinking."

"Mhm, and why do you think that?"

"Well, that is because we literally do not know each other well enough, and besides, we do not even get along. Yes, he may annoy me, but that is all, and there are no hidden intentions."

Luminus smiled.

"Really? But that could change in the future, could it not? Besides, why are you trying to deny it? To me, Adel seems like a good person. He always has that characteristic smile, and if you removed the bandages covering his eyes, he would probably look like a cheerful or happy person most of the time."

Hearing those words, Charlotte could not truly deny it.

She did not know Adel well, but during the past week, they had grown a little closer, enough for Charlotte to understand him better.

And when Luminus explained everything about the Will...

Back then, Luminus’s words about how Adel seemed as if he had lived dozens or even hundreds of lives kept lingering in Charlotte’s mind.

Charlotte could not deny either of the possibilities she had considered at that time.

’Well, forget it. I do not want to think too much about that.’

Pulling herself out of her thoughts, Charlotte looked at Luminus and said:

"Well, maybe that is true, but why does it matter right now?"

Luminus remained silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"If I were you, I would like someone like Adel. In particular, I like people like him, and somehow, he reminds me of Kyle. And you remind me of my younger self from back when I first met Kyle."

Charlotte’s expression froze.

"Master, your story is different. Both of you were engaged, but that guy and I have nothing like that. And anyway, why are we still talking about this?"

Luminus burst into laughter for a few seconds before wiping away a tear caused by laughing.

"Alright, alright, let us head back. It seems the storm will return soon."

She looked around, noticing that the wind was growing stronger and that the snow was piling up more quickly.

Charlotte had noticed it as well, so she nodded, and both women began making their way back to the cave.

***

"Phew, this is harder than I thought."

I said as I came out of my trance-like state, or enlightenment, so to speak.

Then I used my senses on the surroundings, noticing that neither woman had returned yet.

’Looks like the storm is already coming back, and they still haven’t returned. Maybe they’re already on their way.’

I felt mentally exhausted; even so, I couldn’t help but smile.

’I’m no longer far from reaching Expert Mastery of the Second Form of Inverted Heaven.’

I was almost done completing Intermediate Mastery and advancing to Expert.

’In a few more days, I’ll reach Expert.’

Because time inside a Memory Gate was different from the real world, I could train here without worrying about classes and other objectives.

One month here would be equivalent to around thirty hours in the real world, from what I understood.

’I’m even more eager to unlock the Soul Sea my master talked about.’

Anyway, aside from my training with Inverted Heaven, I had also been training my mana.

My Mana stat increased by a total of 8%, bringing me closer and closer to the peak of 4 Stars.

Overall, my progress had been improving quite quickly.

I would probably reach 5 Stars by the second semester.

Shortly afterward, several minutes passed, and then Luminus and Charlotte returned.

Both women approached the campfire. Then I cleared my throat and said:

"So, you finished."

Luminus nodded.

"Yes, now we can wait for the storm to end and then destroy the villains’ base to obtain the materials needed to create a Teleportation Matrix for the two of you."

Nodding, I asked:

"How long do snowstorms normally last?"

It had been snowing for an entire week, and the storm kept growing stronger.

Even someone at 7 Stars would probably freeze to death within two days if they did not seek shelter.

Although Luminus could wander around for a long period of time, it really was not convenient for her to do so.

And anyway, Charlotte and I would only be a burden to Luminus if we went out in the middle of the storm.

I could only hope the storm would not take too long to disappear.

Luminus pursed her lips and answered my question.

"Between one and two weeks. And according to reports from other people, from what I heard, it could even take an entire month."

"...?"

Well, I definitely had not expected that.

Instantly, frustration overwhelmed me. This really was frustrating in its own way.

I did not have all the time in the world to remain inside this Memory Gate.

Although outside, in the real world, my body could go without food for several months and remain dehydrated for around two more months or so, that was not the problem.

’Missing classes deducts a hundred damn points. I barely have around five hundred points that I earned after so much effort.’

Working with Professor Ashly, paying attention to every occasion when the professors gave points for doing or answering something, and so on.

’And the amount of time Professor Ashly gave all the cadets to remain inside the Memory Gates was a maximum of two days.’

I could only hope the snowstorm would disappear as soon as possible.

’For now, I’ll take advantage of this time to train.’

I had my concerns and other matters to think about, but it was also important to train whenever I could.

And since time here was different, I would make the most of it.

However, I never imagined that the snowstorm literally would not stop for the following twenty-three days.