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Allen raised a hand to his chin, quietly observing the royal capital that felt "long unseen." As he wrote, he seemed to completely ignore the system panel floating beside him—yet the panel lingered, silently "watching" his thoughts and anticipating his next move.
This time, there were no mocking remarks about "playing saint."
There was no need.
The true purpose of those "words" had never been to pressure Allen into abandoning the Boreas family members. Rather, they were rooted in the system's mission: to deepen his "integration into this world and self-identity."
That goal had already been achieved this morning.
On his path of Mushoku Tensei...
Allen had never once "paused."
The dust before him flowed, reshaped, and condensed.
Maintaining its "observation."
Yet—
This time, the system "saw" nothing.
In Allen's mind, only three words surged across the surface of his mental waters, blazing like fire:
Ars.
Sharp. Relentless.
They burned across the lake of his thoughts, as if all impurities had been scorched away.
Utterly pure.
Or perhaps...
Carrying a hint of that "intellectually dimmed" aesthetic unique to the Sword Sanctum's illiterates.
What was "desire"?
I want. I act. I obtain.
So simple it bordered on absurdity.
[How fascinating. The Sword God Style's "Desire" path—a shortcut created by Sword God Gal Farion—truly is remarkable. No wonder you've been fixated on it since arriving in the capital, obsessed with that so-called "perfect Light Reversal." After cleaving your mind with that technique, your "desire" seems to have been scoured clean. Your thoughts are now... alarmingly "pure." Is this why the Sword Sanctum is full of illiterates? Too single-minded to hold complex ideas?...]
The text flickered. Allen glanced at the system, the corners of his eyes crinkling with an ambiguous smile.
The panel froze.
After a long pause, new words emerged:
[No... That's not it. James... Darius...]
[...Only names?? No—not just names. These are... information fragments??]
Under Allen's amused gaze, the mental barrier he'd maintained for so long finally dissolved.
Every time he'd previously contemplated the Sword God Style, he'd forced himself to focus solely on "strength," deliberately avoiding deeper implications. Now, submerged clues floated to the surface of his consciousness—collected, sorted, and clarified into coherent thoughts.
Yet the system could only capture the blazing "torch" of Allen's current focus, too bright and overwhelming.
The fleeting associations beneath—the sparks around the flame, the shadows beneath the light—remained just beyond its grasp.
'My "desire" for the Sword God Style—or rather, its唯心 (idealistic) approach to power—fascinated me from the very beginning. You know this. In Buena Village, I spent most of my time debating Light Reversal and progression with Paul. Sadly, all he could offer was "the sword moves faster than thought." He hadn't even mastered the mainstream "Desire" path. I didn't overthink it then; I simply stayed curious, fixated on strength. Fitting, no?'
'&…Paul…useless…^%'
'In Roa, I finally encountered high-level Sword God practitioners. But even Ghislaine's steel-trap mind couldn't explain the philosophy. I had to experiment myself.'
'&…Ghislaine…Eris…illiterate??…&^'
'In the original story, Eris mastered literacy during her tutor period—even boasted decent math skills. So why, after years at the Sword Sanctum and learning Light Reversal, did she forget everything? It's as if certain thoughts monopolized her mind, crowding out the rest until they faded. And Ghislaine? Was she born obtuse? Unlikely. How else could she have learned magic and reading?'
'…Knowledge…toxic?…&^'
Allen leaned toward the "silent" system, grinning.
'The answer's simple. They weren't born stupid. Gal Farion's "Desire" path makes you stupid. Its practitioners share one trait: single-minded focus. Their clarity fuels rapid growth. The cost? Other thoughts get shelved—ignored until forgotten. Hence, "illiteracy."'
'Take Eris. Her fastest growth phase? When she obsessed over protecting Rudeus. So she "lost" irrelevant skills like math. Or Kinap—who surpassed Gal to become Sword God. What consumed his mind? Sleeping with Nina. I'd bet he refuses to leave the Sanctum now because he's too busy bedding his wife nightly. Pathetic.'
'…Legend…lol…&^'
'"Follow your heart, align action with thought"—this path faced huge obstacles. Why cling to it? Why obsess over a "perfect" Light Reversal?'
'…Hilda…Roxy…Sylphie…warmth…'*
'It wasn't just about gaining what I lacked or fixing the original story's regrets. Subconsciously, I sought—'
'…possibility…'
'—a possibility: If I mastered "Desire," could I choose which thoughts to discard? Could I simplify my mind, focusing only on what mattered?'
'…Confirmed…feasible…'*
'Last night hinted at it. This morning, upon reaching Sword King with a clarified heart, I had my answer: Yes.'
'…Easy…game…'*
'System, why so quiet? Don't believe me? Then look. What am I thinking now?'
Allen blinked, smile radiant.
The system expanded and contracted—like someone steadying their breathing before an outburst.
Then it "saw."
Allen's current thought:
'Guess.'
'What's on my mind?'
Nothing else.
Twelve years.
The hidden "possibility" beneath his obsession with the Sword God Style's "Desire"—
Fruit borne at last.
For the first time, the system's infallible mind-reading...
Failed.
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