Fighting side by side.
Furina had experienced this countless times in opera performances, but this was her first time in a real battle.
"Alright!"
With Sushang joining the fray, the unease that had just gripped her vanished, replaced by a surge of confidence. She adopted a classic fencing stance, ready to counterattack at a moment's notice.
The dungeon lizards were mindless beasts. To them, the only purpose of existence was to bite into every inch of an adventurer's flesh, oblivious to life or death. Even the demise of a companion right before their eyes failed to spark the slightest hint of fear.
After a brief moment of coiled tension, the next lizard lunged toward Sushang, whom they perceived as the greater threat. Meanwhile, the others seized the opportunity—using their comrade to obstruct her line of sight and draw her attention—and scattered to flank her from all sides.
Some moved to her flanks, while others, playing to their racial advantages, scaled the walls for an ambush.
To them, battle was not limited to the ground.
These movements, however, were nothing more than a joke to Sushang.
Having mastered the Edge of Taixuan to its pinnacle, she could perceive the flow of energy around her, taking in every movement within her vicinity. As long as she willed it, there were no blind spots.
But she was here to accompany Furina on an adventure, not to massacre everything in sight.
Quietly, she allowed a few lizards to slip behind her. With a flick of her wrist, Sushang deflected one lizard's claws and followed through with a downward slash, turning the creature into nothing but a wisp of black smoke.
Another lizard tried to ambush her from the side as she relaxed her stance, but Sushang caught it with a kick, sending it flying.
At the same time, the lizard that had circled to the opposite side lashed out with its tongue, aiming to bind her waist.
Sushang hadn't expected the tongue to be so long, nor that they would coordinate so effectively. While they had the shape of a lizard, they were clearly something more complex than mere beasts.
Regardless, such a linear attack was like a baby's punch to a master of the Edge of Taixuan—it posed no difficulty at all.
Moving like a blur, she effortlessly cut down both creatures.
The lizards on the ceiling didn't escape her notice either. Two invisible swords glowing with a golden light materialized from thin air, piercing through every lizard that had dared to target her in a blink.
Though she had used the "Taixuan Eminence" technique on a couple of small-fry monsters, it wasn't like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.
There was a form of the Taixuan Eminence for elephants, and a form for mosquitoes.
Once one truly mastered it, they would understand that while it could certainly be used as an ultimate move, it was never just an ultimate move.
Having tidied up her end, Sushang turned her gaze behind her.
Furina was currently locked in combat with three lizards.
Even though she knew Sushang had let these few slip past intentionally, Furina refused to let them catch her off guard.
Compared to the efficient and profound swordsmanship practiced by true experts, Furina's technique was more theatrical. After all, she hadn't learned the sword for the sake of combat, but for the stage.
Yet, that did not mean her blade was useless.
With her pincers and bubbles, Mademoiselle Crabaletta kept two lizards at bay single-handedly, creating a one-on-one environment for Furina.
Facing a lizard that stood a head taller than her, Furina decided to deconstruct and reorganize her performative movements.
The lizard's claws swiped at her with a gust of wind. Instead of meeting it head-on, she used a side-sliding step—a move meant to demonstrate grace and agility—to evade it, while her blade traced the edge of the beast's claws, leaving a shallow scratch.
The blow wasn't fatal, and if anything, it only made the lizard's eyes glow a deeper shade of red, making its already blunt attacks even more reckless.
Thanks to the blessing she had received, Furina's physical attributes were far from poor.
After a few tentative exchanges, she grasped the weakness in the lizard's clumsy movements.
The spins and leaps originally designed for stage performances were no longer just for show; they had become sharp tools to bewilder her opponent.
As the lizard lunged with its jaws wide open, Furina ducked low, thrusting her sword into the gap beneath its jaw. The motion lacked the exaggerated flair of the stage, replaced by a clean, sharp efficiency forged in real combat.
Her hand trembled on the hilt, but she held firm, driving the blade deep until the creature collapsed with a heavy thud. Only then did she let out a sigh of relief.
It turned out that the swordsmanship practiced for performances could also become a power to protect oneself when it mattered most.
I can do this!
Defeating a hideous, gargantuan opponent in a few exchanges filled Furina with newfound confidence.
Seeing Mademoiselle Crabaletta still locked in a struggle with two others, Furina didn't hesitate to rush in and join the fray.
Sushang's eyes sparkled with appreciation, and a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
Furina was more decisive and courageous than she had imagined.
She had assumed her first lesson would be teaching her the courage to fight, but it turned out Furina never lacked that courage, even if she was, deep down, quite timid.
Watching the young girl's amateurish yet strangely elegant combat style, Sushang already knew what kind of sword forms would suit her best.
The Edge of Taixuan gathered the strengths of a hundred schools.
While it hadn't contained such theatrical, performance-like styles when Amber first began her studies, after their joint efforts over the years, those had become the most expanded branch among the Five.
As Furina panted slightly, having finished off the last two lizards, she heard applause ringing out from nearby.
"Splendid, Fufu!"
Sushang walked over with a light jog, clapping her hands: "These monsters aren't like the goblins from before! To solve them so easily—for your very first real battle, Fufu, you've far exceeded my expectations!"
So, the goblins and the kobolds from before didn't count as 'combat'?
Furina wanted to retort, but upon reflection, it seemed that was exactly the case.
Though she had been more exhausted then, it was mostly because the battles lasted longer and she hadn't had Mademoiselle Crabaletta acting as her vanguard.
When facing these dungeon lizards one-on-one, the pressure was far greater than it had been with the goblins or the lesser monsters.
Viewed in that light, the previous encounters were nothing more than a warm-up.
"Is this... my first battle?"
Furina looked down, dazed, at her own hands and the plain, unremarkable longsword she held.
Can I really fight...?
"That's right!"
Sushang nodded with a grin: "Even though you performed beautifully for a first-timer, you haven't reached your limit yet, have you?"
Her limit? She probably didn't have one.
Thinking of how protagonists in stories often ended up battered, bruised, and bloodied, Furina felt a flicker of fear.
But... every time she felt afraid, she thought of the people of Fontaine.
Just thinking of them, she felt an invisible force pushing her forward. Even the fear didn't seem so insurmountable anymore.
"So, Fufu, do you want to continue familiarizing yourself with your own rhythm, or do you want to... try and see where your limit lies?"
Imagining her clothes torn in battle, her hair in disarray, and wounds appearing across her skin, Furina bit her lip.
But ultimately, she replied: "...Let's keep going deeper."
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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL