Lucia…, Lucia’s surpassed me. She went above and beyond my expectations: unlocking a path with a prefix, becoming a divine warrior, beating me in a fair duel and forcibly holding me down and tying me up and throwing me into a bed. Wait, why’s she doing this? These weren’t the terms we agreed to during the duel! “Lucia!?”

“Hmm?” Lucia sat on the bed and tilted her head to the side.

Don’t act stupid! “Untie me, please.”

“But you’ll run away,” Lucia said and blinked.

“Yes! Which is why you shouldn’t do this in the first place!” I’m a weapon spirit! I’m meant for combat, not … not bed stuff!

“Huh? Do what?” Lucia asked with a smile. Her tail twitched a few times as she sat on her ankles and rested her hands on her knees. Her eyes twinkled. “Say? Aren’t you hot wearing all those clothes after sparring? I can help you with that.”

Desperate times calls for desperate measures. Retreat into mini-DalDal!

“Eh!? Durandal!? Where’d you go?” Lucia grabbed at the fallen ropes on the bed, her head swiveling from side to side. She paused and sniffed the air before frowning. She grabbed my weapon body and held it in front of her face. It was almost as if she could see me inside. “That’s not fair!”

“Uh, Lucia,” Puppers—I mean Gae—said. “Don’t you know anything about weapon spirits? Namely, the weapon part of their name? We’re meant for fighting.”

“But you’re just a sock,” Lucia said. I still find it quite humorous how Gae was turned into a sock spirit. Back then, in the days of the Godking, Gae and I were always compared as the two strongest weapon spirits out there. But Gae’s been reduced to a mere house pet, and I am now weaker than the master I serve. Far, far weaker, but that’s a good thing. A spirit can only grow as strong as their owner. Before, I was limited to the peak of spirit warrior due to Roland failing to surpass the wall to divine warrior. But now, I can pass that wall. It’s a bit sad when I think about it. Even Roland lost to the passing of time.

“Yes, you reduced me to a mere sock spirit, but what I’m about to tell you, you should engrave into your memory,” Pup—Gae said. “Spirits are created from seeds found in nature. We’re grown by our owner’s qi. But seeds have a double meaning—if Durandal gives you his seed, he’ll die.”

“If Durandal gives me his seed…, he’ll die,” Lucia said and furrowed her brow. She gasped. “You can’t be serious!”

He’s not. It’s a complete lie. I never expected my old rival to bail me out of this situation. Is this what it means to be brothers in suffering?

“I’m dead serious,” Gae said. “Unless he breaks through to the legendary realm, he’ll definitely die if he engages in the activities you want to engage him in. I don’t know why he didn’t want to tell you it himself; maybe, he thought you wouldn’t believe him.”

“Gae Bulg is right. I have to break through to the realm of legendary warriors before, uh, yeah. And to do that, you have to break through the legendary realm first. Only then can I grow stronger. My strength increases with yours.” I still have to absorb a lot of her qi to advance to the divine realm and undergo a period of refinement. When Roland first became a warrior, I awakened. When he became a spirit warrior, I unlocked the ability to manipulate my weight. When I become a divine weapon spirit, what will I gain?

“No way,” Lucia said and collapsed onto her knees. “My happiness! It was right there!” She ground her teeth together and made strange chattering noises before standing up. She cupped her hands over her mouth and shouted, “Ilya!”

A few seconds later, that spoiled demon walked into the room. She sighed and asked, “More hot chocolate?”

“Yes, please,” Lucia said, her face returning to normal. A moment later, she stiffened when Ilya handed her a steaming cup. “Wait! That wasn’t what I called you here for. Are there any divine beasts near the Godking’s Brawl? I need to consume their cores. For my future offspring, I have to do everything I can to become a legendary warrior.”

Now probably wouldn’t be a good time to tell her weapon spirits are sterile, huh? And disregarding that, weapon spirits are beings of logic. We have no emotions; our purpose is to defeat the enemy and teach our masters. Strange, why did I recall a time where Lucia was trying to comfort me as I cried? …That didn’t happen. I’m a weapon spirit, dammit, and I’m going to be the best one there is.

“For your future offspring?” Ilya asked and furrowed her brow. “I don’t get it. Why do you have to be—guah!?”

Gae flying tackled Ilya to the ground. “Not one more word out of you,” Gae said with a growl. “I live in Lucia’s socks and she never takes them off. If your question causes me to witness something I never want to witness, then there will be a reckoning involving your head on a pike.”

“Lucia!” Ilya struggled on the ground. “Why are all your spirits so violent!? What happened to Puppers? He was cute and tame before Durandal came along! I knew he was a bad influence; someone that taught you couldn’t have been a good person!”

“Hey. I’m a very good and law-abiding non-citizen of your country,” Lucia said and puffed her chest out. “Oh, didn’t you say you wanted to learn about my past? Once you hear it, you’ll definitely see how good of a person I am.” Lucia reached over and tugged on Puppers, lifting him off Ilya with one hand and tossing him aside like a dirty tissue. “Here.” She patted the spot beside her on the bed. “I’ll tell you all about myself.”

I feel like Lucia’s been sidetracked. What happened to finding out about divine beasts near the Godking’s Brawl? What is the Godking’s Brawl anyway? Well, as long as she’s not trying to tie me to the bed, I’m not complaining. For now, I’ll do my best to breakthrough to a divine spirit.