NOVEL WEB chapter 129
Chapter 54, The Meeting Gift
“Hey there, young man, you’ve arrived.”
In the vibrant sea of flowers, a white-haired, red-eyed midget girl seemed to have just woken up, still dressed in the pink pajamas Mu En first saw her in.
She held a small, cute pink watering can, tending to the flowers, and as she watched Mu En approach, a hint of satisfaction flickered in her amber-like, crystal-clear red eyes.
“You did very well.”
She said, “Far better than I imagined. This achievement is quite rare in my long years.”
“Teacher Melara…”
Looking at her, Mu En found himself at a loss for words, even his hands and feet felt awkwardly misplaced, and he could only dryly say:
“Long time no see.”
Then, Melara smiled:
“No need to be nervous. Now you are my disciple, Meladomir. At any time, in front of anyone, you have the right to hold your head high.”
“Is that so?”
As the tension eased slightly, Mu En scratched his head and asked:
“Does this mean I’m officially your disciple? Do I need to prepare anything? A gift for my master? Or is there a specific ceremony? Should I change how I address you?”
“Let’s skip those formalities.”
Melara thought for a moment, “As for how to address me, just call me Teacher Melara. I prefer that.”
—
“Well…”
Mu En still solemnly bowed, “Please take care of me from now on, Teacher Meila.”
“Mm, I will.”
Meila accepted Mu En’s bow calmly, then snapped her fingers. Accompanied by a flash of light, a silver-white box appeared before Mu En.
“Take this. It’s a gift from me, as a token for our first meeting.”
“A gift?”
Mu En couldn’t help but widen his eyes, not expecting Teacher Meila to be so kind to him, giving him a gift right after becoming her disciple.
But since it was right in front of him, there was no reason not to accept it.
Mu En happily picked up the box, looking at it from left to right, even reaching out to knock on it, curiously asking:
“What’s inside?”
“You’ll know when you open it.”
Meila smiled:
“I think you will like it.”
With Teacher Meila saying this, Mu En became even more excited.
He quickly found the switch on the box, pressed it hard, and with the sound of machinery operating, the silver-white box suddenly popped open with a creak.
A sharp aura and sacred light immediately rushed toward him, causing Mu En’s breath to momentarily halt.
A knife.
A short knife.
Two pure white short knives, engraved with golden patterns, lay quietly in the box, seemingly alive, gently humming the moment the box opened.
Mu En could even hear his own heartbeat.
His own heartbeat.
Because at the instant he saw the two short knives, he couldn’t help but feel his heart race.
As if he sensed a resonance with the short knives.
“This is…”
Mu En felt a bit dry in his mouth, looking at Teacher Meila.
“I haven’t had the chance to name them yet. I thought it would be better if you named them.”
Teacher Meila said softly:
“I saw your fighting scenes before and noticed you seemed to lack a suitable weapon, so I helped you craft these.”
“Teacher Meila…”
Not just liking them, Mu En was almost moved to tears.
Although Teacher Meila casually claimed to have crafted these two short swords on a whim, just looking at their exquisite design and the profound aura they inadvertently exuded, one couldn’t help but think they were at least legendary-grade weapons.
Truly impressive; even a casual throw from a big shot could knock someone out.
But…
Mu En blinked, curiosity getting the better of him as he asked:
“After all, with such an obscure weapon, isn’t Teacher Meila afraid that I might fail the exam and it would all be for nothing?”
“Unlike that brat Prang, I have unwavering faith in my judgment.”
Meila glanced at Mu En casually:
“If I thought you couldn’t do it, I wouldn’t waste my time looking for you.”
“I see…”
Mu En said, somewhat dazed:
“I can’t shake the feeling that I’ve unknowingly become the subject of great expectations.”
“Since you know, why not work hard right away?”
Meila said:
“Want to try the sword?”
“Mm!”
Mu En reached out and grasped the hilts of the two short swords.
In an instant, he felt a sharp pain in his palm, as if some blade had sliced through his hand.
Warm blood quickly spread along the patterns on the short swords.
Gold transformed into dark red, and the once-pure aura now seemed somewhat eerie.
But this only lasted a brief moment.
The next second, the short swords emitted a piercing hum, and golden light suddenly burst forth.
Mu En felt the short swords, which had felt as light as paper, suddenly gain substance, and the weight was just right, as if they were an extension of his own arms.
In a daze, he seemed to hear the joyful emotions radiating from the swords.
“Looks like she really likes you.”
Meila stroked her smooth chin and said:
“The swords have a spirit; now that she acknowledges you, it means that until your death, no one else can wield this weapon.”
“That’s amazing…”
Mu En exclaimed sincerely.
Having read the original book, he naturally knew how rare it was in this world to possess a weapon with a spirit.
He never expected Teacher Meila would casually toss one to him.
Mu En’s joy was hard to contain as he suddenly swung the blade.
In an instant, it was as if a bolt of lightning had struck, and a faint, inky black afterimage appeared in the void.
“According to your fighting style, the greatest characteristic I’ve given these two blades is their sharpness.”
Meila said, “Extremely sharp, with few defenses in the world able to withstand it. For someone like you who relies on agility to win, I think this will be more helpful than any flashy functions.
In addition, when these two blades collide, they can also trigger a powerful alchemical domain.”
“Alchemical domain?”
Mu En’s eyes brightened, and without any hesitation, he directly brought the blades together.
Clang—
The blades sang.
Silver-white arcs of electricity spread along the golden patterns, forming a special area like molten metal within a few meters around Mu En.
“The effect of the alchemical domain is… to reject all foreign objects.”
Meila casually picked a flower and tossed it toward the domain surrounding Mu En. The pure white flower, upon touching the edge of the domain, instantly turned to ashes as if consumed by a great fire.
“But in reality, this effect isn’t very strong.”
Meila extended her delicate, fair hand into the domain, and the silver-white arcs swirled like water waves, following that hand’s movement.
“Anyone with a bit more physical strength can force their way into this domain, and weapons are no exception. But this domain itself isn’t meant for defense; after all, if it were specifically to apply a defensive function to a short blade, why wouldn’t I just give you a shield?
So compared to tangible things like enemies or weapons, this domain targets those invisible, intangible things.
Curses, toxic gas, negative effects, mental attacks, and the like.
And most importantly, it can isolate the inside from the outside.
In other words…”
Meila looked into Mu En’s eyes, speaking each word clearly:
“When the domain is activated, you can use the flames of the Withering King without any hesitation.”