Chapter 30

Luo En set her down.

Neither of them could speak.

The warehouse fell silent for a moment.

"Th-thank you for saving me."

Kuina was the first to break the silence, her tone full of lingering fear.

It was her first time being so close to death.

"..."

Luo En didn't know what to say either at this moment.

"I-I'll head back first."

Kuina set down the whetstone and hurriedly left the warehouse.

After she left, Luo En gazed at the whetstone that had been taken down nearby and thought to himself:

"Did my suggestion bring forward the accident she would have encountered, changing her fate? Or did my suggestion cause her to encounter this accident? In truth, her fate was never changed?"

"I'll have to observe for a while longer."

The next two months.

While honing his swordsmanship and training his body, Luo En kept an eye on Kuina's movements.

After that brush with danger, it seemed she hadn't encountered any more peril.

Moreover, because of that incident, her swordsmanship seemed to have gained new insight — she appeared to have found where the 'momentum' lay, just one step away from reaching the Sword Momentum realm.

That day.

Luo En was passing by.

Kuina happened to be having a real-blade duel with Zoro.

After defeating Zoro.

Kuina grinned at him and said: "Wielding two swords must be heavy, right? That makes it my 2002nd win."

"Damn it!"

Zoro was extremely unwilling to accept it.

Luo En left without changing expression, his steps a touch lighter.

Night.

Luo En sat cross-legged in the dark warehouse, with the named blade Lei Qie and a whetstone placed before him.

In the darkness, his eyes appeared all the brighter.

"System, list my current attributes."

【Okay】

【Host: Luo En.

Age: 9.

Qi and Blood Value: 195.

Sun Breathing mastery: 24%.

Sword Dao: Momentum Realm (Minor Accomplishment)

Weapon: Great Grade Twenty-One Works — Lei Qie.】

"It's been almost half a year since I came to the dojo. My Sword Dao probably won't see much improvement in the short term — I'm lacking real combat tempering. Once I've grasped and familiarized myself with the companion sword arts of the other Breathing styles and the Isshin-ryu Slash taught by the headmaster, it'll be time for me to consider heading to the next place."

Luo En thought silently.

Having obtained the sign-in system, he was destined to be a wanderer of this world, never staying in one place for long………

22, A swordsman must keep something in his heart to hold fast to — Zoro's Resolve (2/5)

"You plan to leave?"

Koshiro looked at the black-haired boy seated before him with slight surprise, but quickly calmed down. Stroking his chin, he nodded: "That's true too — there's nothing more this dojo can teach you. Going out to fight the strong might be the right path for you."

"When do you plan to leave?"

"Early winter."

Luo En replied. There were still roughly three months until early winter.

"Early winter, huh..."

Koshiro looked at him with a smile: "I remember you came to our dojo last winter too. In the blink of an eye, almost a year has passed."

"The guidance and teaching I received at the dojo this year, Luo En will never forget."

Luo En said earnestly.

Koshiro also smiled with satisfaction: "I'm also very glad to have a disciple like you. Perhaps in not too long, I'll be able to hear your name echoing across the seas."

Koshiro's expression grew slightly solemn as he said:

"Luo En, I don't know what kind of person you want to become in the future — whether you'll be a pirate or a marine. I won't concern myself with that."

"But I want to tell you this, Luo En: since you are a swordsman, you must have something to hold fast to in your heart. Only when your heart is firm and clear, and what you do never goes against your heart, can the boundless heroic spirit of a swordsman surge within your chest. With a will as steady as a boulder, the slashes you deliver will cut through anything, sever anything!"

"Something to hold fast to..."

Luo En murmured blankly.

Koshiro's expression returned to its usual gentleness, and he said with a kindly smile:

"What you hold fast to in your heart isn't so easy to find. I myself spent a great deal of effort and was lost for a long time before I found what I truly wanted to hold fast to. You're still young — no need to rush. After you've seen the vastness of the sea and all kinds of people, you'll understand naturally."

Luo En nodded, half-understanding, and kept his words in his heart.

The two walked out of the house.

Koshiro suddenly thought of something, turned his head to look at him and said, "Right, if you leave in winter, there probably won't be many ships moving around this island. How about you wait until early spring? By then I should have friends coming to this island to resupply, and I'll have them take you away then. How does that sound?"

Luo En thought for a moment, then nodded at him:

"Okay."

………

Very quickly.

Time flew by.

Several months passed, winter gave way to spring.

Another year of early spring.

Luo En was ten years old.

Before he left.

The news of his departure had somehow spread throughout the dojo at some unknown point.

Zoro heard it and was immediately shocked, immediately running off to find Luo En.

In the back courtyard full of blooming cherry blossoms, he found Luo En swinging a giant stone bell.

He had grown quite a bit taller than before, but still looked like a tiny little thing.

His build was perfectly proportioned; the muscles under his thin white training clothes weren't very pronounced, but the lines were extremely beautiful, brimming with life and vitality.

Only his enemies could know what terrifying power was contained within that little body.

"Luo En, are you leaving?"

Zoro stared fixedly at Luo En and asked directly.

"Mm."

Luo En didn't even turn his head. "Leaving tomorrow."

Zoro clenched his teeth and tightened his fists.

"Wh-why? Why do you have to leave in such a hurry?!"

Luo En said nothing.

"Before you go, with me…"

Zoro's whole body trembled as he clenched his fists and shouted at Luo En, who had his back to him: "Spar with me once!!"

He knew that after this parting, if they were to meet again on the vast sea, he had no idea how long it would take.

Luo En's hand swinging the giant stone bell stopped.

He turned his head, looked at Zoro and smiled: