Back at the Troupe's hideout, Auren, Neffi, and Vanessa encounter Chrollo, seated on the couch with yet another book in hand.
"Back already?" Chrollo asks without looking up.
"Since I haven't received a call, I assume you didn't slaughter the Elders. I'm grateful for that," he adds calmly, his tone serious.
Is he serious? As much as I hate them, I wouldn't do it so openly. Even I don't want to make an enemy of every Meteor City citizen. That sounds like suicide... at least for now.
"The opposite happened. I made a deal with them—exactly like I intended," Auren replies with a smile, not giving away his true intentions.
At least that's what I say...
"Is that so?" Chrollo murmurs before returning his attention to the pages.
"I don't want to interrupt your reading, but have you seen Nobunaga? Once I exchange a few moves with him, I plan to leave—if there's nothing else going on," Auren says, glancing at the door.
"There isn't. I don't have any missions that require your help," Chrollo answers, lifting a single finger and pointing toward the exit leading to the warehouse. "He is outside...."
That's where I fought Uvogin.
"Thank you," Auren says and heads out, together with the girls.
"And goodbye..." he mutters silently.
Outside, just as Chrollo said, he finds Nobunaga alone—sitting cross-legged, silently meditating.
With a quick glance, Auren notices he's using En. The radius is small, barely four meters—just enough to match his extended reach with his blade.
By sheer numbers, it's still at a beginner level, not even reaching 5 meters, which Auren considers the first small achievement on the path to mastering En.
From over fifty meters away, Auren activates his own En, effortlessly enveloping Nobunaga with his Aura and extending it far behind him. His Aura spreads through a large portion of the warehouse as well, allowing him to sense a few other Troupe members still in their rooms.
Thanks to his constant training, maintaining this level of En comes easily to him. His radius surpasses seventy meters—even in its standard textbook form.
I'd better keep it a secret that I can alter the shape and properties of my En. No need to reveal it just for fun. Instead, I'll make him think I am bragging when in fact I am holding back. Nobody would suspect me of being capable of more than triple that range... at least if I focus all my Aura on a single direction.
Nobunaga's eyes snap open. He stares at Auren, then glances around, immediately realizing what's happening.
Seeing that he has his opponent's attention, Auren drops his En to conserve Aura.
Nobunaga rises to his feet and walks toward him with an amused expression.
"If I were Uvogin, I'd have taken that as the greatest insult—and as a challenge. He would've probably stormed over and fought you right here, to the death," he says, with a faint grin.
"I, on the other hand, have no need for that kind of childish behavior," he continues, voice calm. "Surely you don't think the difference between our versions of En reflects our actual Nen or sword skills."
"No," Auren answers honestly. "Your En is interesting. You're using so little Aura that you could probably sustain it for half a day. Not just that—because it's so small, you can switch between En and Ren much more fluidly and faster. I can see that your En fulfills a single purpose, not the one most En users try to achieve, but something directly related to your swordsmanship. I can respect that."
Nobunaga's eyes brighten as he nods. "Indeed, I'm surprised you immediately understood... but to tell you the truth, I'm simply not very talented at it. So, I gave up rather early. After that, I just accepted my limitations and made the most of them. Your analysis gives me a bit too much credit."
He chuckles softly.
"If I could trade, I'd take your En over mine in a heartbeat. You've clearly surpassed the rumoured 50-meter mark—meaning you're already way past the Master level. That's a surprising choice of focus. I wouldn't have guessed someone your age would be drawn to that kind of skill. It demands deep meditation... and a great deal of patience."
"Well... we're not here to compete with En. Are you interested in a little spar... right here, right now?" Auren asks him, now completely serious.
Nobunaga draws his sword with a grin. "As I said... show me your swordsmanship."
Auren nods, staring at Nobunaga's katana. Its edge is completely clean and undamaged. "I'm guessing you're fine with using real swords? Mine's particularly robust and more importantly... sharp. So yours might take some damage. It would be a shame to ruin such a precious blade. If you have a spare, I'm willing to use that to make it a little more fair."
"Who do you think I am?!" Nobunaga snaps back at Auren, his voice rising. "I'll tell you outright—I'm an Enhancer, and I'm also highly skilled in Transmutation. That gives me an ideal path toward swordsmanship. I've cut steel swords with katanas carved out of cardboard. Days, weeks, years—countless hours spent on nothing but refining my Aura, constantly training how to strengthen my blade. I told you I can cut steel with cardboard. There is nothing I can't cut with my blade! If my sword gets damaged, I have no one to blame but myself. That would be a disgrace."
"Okay then," Auren says, presenting Eternity, the light reflecting on its mysterious black color.
"I've heard rumours about this weapon... allow me to test if there is a hint of truth in them!"
With that, he swiftly resheathes his blade. "Are you ready? My blade won't hold back. If you don't pay attention... you'll get cut in two, before your brain even realizes what happened."
"Sure, I guess I'll say the same thing to you," Auren says confidently as he walks forward and resheathes Eternity.
"Just like that?! That's just insane! Way too dangerous... I love it!" Vanessa yells from behind. "Guess we better back off... Auren, be careful!"
"I believe in you, but remember—this is just a spar," Neffi adds, her expression torn as she reluctantly backs off with Vanessa.
"Isn't that sweet?" Nobunaga jokes.
"It is... am I hearing jealousy?" Auren retorts, resting his hand on Eternity's handle, before gripping it tightly.
I've got to remember to keep Eternity in check. I can control the Aura drain to an extent. As long as I'm willing, it'll only drain Aura if I cut into him. If possible, I don't want this technique to be exposed. However... if I make direct contact with his blade, it will slowly but surely drain his Aura. I won't pretend otherwise—this gives me a huge advantage. I just hope I can learn more about his technique.
"Let's start..." Nobunaga says, his face twitching just a little. "First to land a decisive cut wins. Like in a real battle, a single cut is often enough."
With practiced precision, he rolls a small stone backward with his foot, catching it smoothly with his foot, before kicking it high into the air.
Then, he walks right up to Auren, stopping a few steps short—just out of arm's reach, but still close enough to land a slash.
As the stone begins its slow descent, Nobunaga settles into his stance, one hand resting on the grip of his katana, readying to draw it the moment the stone hits the ground.
"Show me Lidor's legacy... the one he inherited from his ancestors!"
"I'll show you mine instead! Forget that pathetic child-murderer, I'll show you more than you want to see." Auren yells.
Auren mirrors Nobunaga's stance, continuing to grip Eternity but keeping it sheathed. "Let's see what you can do," he counters with a smile.
This guy likes using Iai techniques. I'm not backing away from that challenge. I have practiced those techniques thousands, if not tens of thousands times. I'm not holding back!
As the stone is about to strike the earth, both fighters suddenly activate Ren. Auren, however, goes a step further—he uses Limitless Waters. His Aura shifts, taking on the fluid properties of water, wrapping itself around Eternity in smooth, rippling coils, significantly strengthening it, and giving it additional properties, making it far more malleable and versatile.
Then, with the sound of the stone landing onto the ground, both draw their respective blades and slash forward, both focusing a majority of their Aura into their blades.
The two swords slash forward with lightning speed, creating a shrill screech through force and friction as they clash against each other.
He's fast... but...
Auren steps forward, refusing to yield, forcing Eternity against Nobunaga's blade, driving him back bit by bit.
He's not too strong. I am stronger!
Finally, Nobunaga begrudgingly relents and jumps backward. He immediately resheats his blade, preparing his next attack.
Auren doesn't give him space to recover and reset the battle. He follows up with a flurry of ranged slashes, using Emission. In one smooth, fluid motion, he unleashes four sharp Water slashes—then spins, releasing a final fifth slash, hidden by In, all while resheathing Eternity in a single fluid motion.
Nobunaga counters instinctively, swinging his katana toward each of the four visible slashes. For a moment, he relaxes—only for his eyes to widen in alarm as he senses the hidden, fifth slash.
Get cut!!
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