Chapter 45: Everyone Needs a Place to Belong
"Shishou."
When this word came from Bailong's mouth, the meaning of this battle changed instantly.
Perhaps even Scáthach herself didn't know why she was so sensitive to this word. It was as if a switch had been flipped, bringing out a second personality.
[Serious].
It was an unprecedented seriousness, even more so than when fighting a mortal enemy.
—When fighting a mortal enemy, she relied more on the combat instincts of this body, barely needing to use her brain.
And if it were just an ordinary battle, it could be treated as an elder playing with children, a casual spar where winning or losing didn't matter.
But once it involved "teaching," she automatically transformed into the strictest math teacher and homeroom teacher in a school—not only would she berate you for calculation errors, but she would also scold you loudly for improper writing and force you to correct it.
"Your reaction is too slow! What are you waiting for? Do you think your enemy will stand still and let you hit them?!"
"Weaknesses. You need to know where your own weaknesses are. And you must learn to protect them, never letting the enemy get to them—unless, of course, you're deliberately feigning an opening."
"Think more, use your brain more—failure in an attack is a high probability; success is a low probability. How to use a series of attacks to lure the enemy into making a mistake, that's what you should strive to do!"
"Your tail, where's your tail? Why isn't it attacking? Is it just a pretty ornament?"
"And your attacks, they're too obvious! You need to learn to conceal them, understand? Don't let the enemy realize your offensive intent until the moment the attack is launched!"
"You... forget it, you probably can't change this one!"
Scáthach was a very serious and responsible teacher.
She taught Bailong many things, and Bailong truly learned many combat skills from her.
But the one thing—the "magnificent and open attacks"—seemed to be etched into the very source code of this Blue-Eyes White Dragon's existence. It was simply unchangeable.
Not only could it not be changed, but it also became more and more outrageous as the battle continued. In the end, he would even uncontrollably shout lines that would give even a legendary hero as experienced as Scáthach goosebumps.
"Tenacious, Invincible, Strongest!"
"Crush, Pulverize, Great Applause!"
"Just a mere old woman, how dare you be so arrogant—eat my [Burst Stream of Destruction]!!!"
"Ahahahaha—"
...
The battle between the two gods continued in the Reverse Side of the World for several months.
But neither of the two combatants noticed the passage of time.
Compared to the surface world with its clear day and night, the flow of time in the Reverse Side was inherently indistinct. This was even more true for the Land of Shadows, a country perpetually shrouded in gray fog and completely devoid of life. Here, a second, a year, or even hundreds or thousands of years, made little difference.
"To be honest,"
"Compared to the Land of the Dead, this place feels more like a prison."
"A prison that confines you."
This was a break during the battle. Scáthach and Bailong were summarizing the experience and lessons from their previous fight while idly chatting about various things.
Their topics included, but were not limited to, the secrets between the gods, the war between the two great ancient divine clans, the epic stories of heroes... and of course, Scáthach herself.
"Ah, that's true."
Facing Bailong's assessment, Scáthach nodded without any attempt to hide it.
This place was indeed her "prison."
But it wasn't a person or a faction that had locked her in here—she had chosen this "final resting place" for herself.
"An old hag like me, who has already fulfilled her mission but refuses to die quietly, has to find a place to belong."
"Otherwise, wouldn't I become a homeless old woman?"
Scáthach admitted it frankly.
To mention something slightly counter-intuitive.
Although in his past life, people liked to call this graceful and well-dressed lady a "purple BBA" as a joke... after some time with her, Bailong found that she didn't seem to care about her age at all, and would even occasionally joke about it herself.
Or rather, for her now, the concept of "age" was completely meaningless.
"To die, or to live like the dead."
"That is all."
...
Another period of training passed. About a year had gone by.
Bailong, whose strength had greatly improved under Scáthach's training, estimated that his ahoge-sister had probably finished dealing with the tedious political affairs. He then bid farewell to Scáthach and leisurely returned to the surface world.
—This time, what appeared before him was a brand-new kingdom.
Eight cities, a population of three hundred thousand, ten thousand elite soldiers, and over a hundred knights of both excellent martial skill and character—never in the history of this island had there been such a powerful kingdom.
And the strength of this kingdom was still continuously growing.
It was like a giant monster that had appeared on the island of Britain, which was full of small countries. The siphoning effect of this massive kingdom on the surrounding countries was fatal—especially when the ruler of this country was the well-known [Holy King], and the land was the renowned Eden. Of course, the common people of ordinary countries were unwilling to continue living in the dire straits of this apocalyptic era.
"The might of the god is brilliant, the way of the king is magnificent!"
Every day, new refugees poured into the country's borders, seeking a better living environment; every day, knights came, drawn by fame, just to witness the glory of the savior king.
Although there were inevitably various small problems within the country—there was no doubt that this thriving nation indeed represented the last hope of this island.
"But, don't you find it strange?"
In the kingdom's temporary palace, Morgan, who had finally gotten through that difficult time, finally had a moment to relax and think about a question that had been bothering her for a long time:
"What is that Usurper King doing?"
"Our movements have been so big, and our power has expanded so quickly... but why has he done nothing? It's as if he knows nothing at all."
"What conspiracy is he brewing?"
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