White Feather Dove’s first battle ended in an easy victory, earning her the spoils: a pair of One-Eyed Bear Palms and a large amount of bear bones.
As mentioned before, the gemstone hamburgers they brought were not enough; they had to find food inside the Devil Tree Sea.
The bones of magical beasts were a great tonic for the Rose mother and daughter duo because bones are a type of forging material.
After all, weapon demons feed on forging materials.
This time, they could go back and make bone soup, which would both fill their stomachs and restore their Rationality Value—a perfect two-in-one benefit.
“Slurp slurp slurp~” Feini was happily gnawing on a bone, her entire body relaxed and soft, except for her teeth which were as sharp as ever.
“Classmate Bai, let’s spar a bit. A little exercise after the meal helps with digestion,” Qingshamu said as she slowly got up after eating, tentatively suggesting.
“Alright.” White Feather Dove swallowed her bear bone in one bite, eager to stand up and follow the Evil Father to the clearing in front of the camp.
Qingshamu put on an air of seriousness, walking slowly to project the aura of a master, but inside she was bursting with excitement.
Feini didn’t object but watched Qingshamu coldly, though in her heart she was quite happy as well.
Because her goal wasn’t just to use Qingshamu as a bodyguard but also to have White Feather Dove steal all of Qingshamu’s skills.
But since White Feather Dove was unwilling to learn the Evil Father’s techniques, she would have to witness the harshness of the outside world and her own incompetence firsthand—forcing her to learn on her own.
White Feather Dove’s magic had shown some progress, but her combat skills, close-quarter fighting, battle experience, and swordsmanship were still a complete mess.
The two stood opposite each other—one showing fierce intent, the other hiding sharpness beneath a calm demeanor.
In terms of momentum, White Feather Dove was already outmatched by the Evil Father.
Although Qingshamu was young, she had fought in many brutal Human-Demon Wars and was a ruthless veteran of the human-demon borderline.
“Ha!” White Feather Dove shouted angrily and swung her sword in a fierce charge.
However, Qingshamu effortlessly dodged with a flash of movement, not even needing to draw her sword—just using the hilt to block White Feather Dove’s blade, easily deflecting the force and playfully maneuvering around her.
It was clear she had held back the last time White Feather Dove slashed her several times on the rooftop.
If the Hero had been even slightly serious, White Feather Dove wouldn’t have been able to touch even her sleeve.
No choice; after all, Daba was only two months old.
“Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!”
Throughout the night, White Feather Dove took dozens of heavy blows from the sword hilt, and while she had looked so heroic slaying the One-Eyed Magic Bear in the morning, she was utterly bedraggled by nightfall.
Yet every time she was knocked to the ground, she would get back up and continue fighting.
Because White Feather Dove inherited her mother’s iron body, no matter how much she was tortured, it didn’t matter. It didn’t hurt—literally didn’t hurt.
“Do you know why swords need sheaths?” Qingshamu continued teaching as she moved and dodged.
She wasn’t teaching swordsmanship or footwork, but some strange principles instead.
Actually, Qingshamu herself had never undergone systematic sword training.
She came from a commoner background—a village girl summoned suddenly by the Church to become a destined chosen Hero.
All the techniques of the Sword of the Bright Moon were self-taught from practical experience—the Demon-Slaying Sword Technique.
Her sword style focused on blocking and counterattacking, deflecting with force, and counterattacking after dodging.
So there was no need to verbally teach Daba anything.
She only needed to demonstrate her sword skills, allowing Daba to comprehend and absorb them herself for a deeper understanding.
“The sheath is to hide your sharpness. Remember when you first came to class, all sharp and fierce, chasing down other students? That behavior only makes true experts look down on you, thinking you’re a reckless fool full of openings,” Qingshamu lectured in an annoyingly nagging tone.
“…” White Feather Dove’s ears almost went numb from hearing it.
But no one had believed Qingshamu’s theories so far; her hunting theories had all been shot down by Feini too.
No wonder the Faceless Witch insisted on signing Contracts when teaching magic—finding a talented apprentice in another world was a tremendous blessing, let alone if that apprentice was her own child.
By the second day of training, White Feather Dove had developed a set of tactics to counter Qingshamu’s sheath-hiding theory.
“Ha!” She seemed to have made no progress, still swinging her sword wildly and yelling loudly.
But just as Qingshamu raised her sword to block and counter,
“Whoosh~” White Feather Dove suddenly changed her move, her sword speed surging sharply.
“Clang!” A loud clang rang out as Qingshamu failed to deflect and was forced to draw her sword to block, staggering back half a step with a shocked expression.
“You drew your sword.”
White Feather Dove seized the advantage and pressed on, though these small tricks no longer worked on Qingshamu, she was no longer being thoroughly beaten as the day before and could exchange a few moves with the Hero.
“Is this the legendary Fast-Slow Blade?” Feini, watching nearby, exclaimed.
This was a common design in video games for bosses—the boss’s windup move looks huge and slow, but the next moment it suddenly accelerates, instantly crushing the player’s mind.
It’s called Fast-Slow Blade, a very infuriating move design.
Daba must have heard the Evil Father’s sheath-hiding theory the previous day and, while meditating to absorb the magical energy of heaven and earth at night, had invented this unique sword technique.
“Daba…”
And Qingshamu only needed one night to see White Feather Dove’s true nature.
White Feather Dove was not a normal life form. Her learning ability was beyond any biological description.
She absorbed all useful things, synthesized and unified them, turning everything into her own strength.
Qingshamu also felt afraid.
Her child was neither human nor demon but born a king, just like herself as the chosen Hero.
Looking at her expression, White Feather Dove was filled with fierce determination.
It seemed that between this father and daughter, a death match was destined.
She had hoped to cultivate a Grandmaster, but in reality, it was like nurturing a newborn demon king.
Reason told Qingshamu that wiping out White Feather Dove and Feini would be best for the whole world.
But…
But the Hero’s heart was already filled with guilt and remorse; even if she could calculate the outcome, she couldn’t bring herself to act.
“Not bad, but still too inexperienced.”
By the third and fourth days, Qingshamu continued to teach White Feather Dove as usual.
Trials and credits no longer seemed important—nothing compared to the inheritance of skills.
No wonder the Faceless Witch requires contracts when teaching magic.
Finding an excellent apprentice in another world was an incomparable happiness, especially when that apprentice was your own child.
A week later, White Feather Dove’s close-combat strength had improved by dozens of levels, no longer a swordsmanship rookie.
Though still certainly no match for the Sword of the Bright Moon, she should have no trouble dealing with ordinary foes.
“We’ve fallen behind schedule. Can we start hunting Giant Magic Beasts now?” Qingshamu asked Feini’s opinion.
“I’ll follow your lead.” Feini nodded, her demeanor softened.
After all, I’m not an unreasonable woman.