NOVEL NEXT Chapter 173: Bone Strengthening
It was all for good reason.
After all, who didn't want to become stronger? Even if Azel couldn't fully master the technique, even if the World Cutting Slash remained beyond his complete grasp, there was still value in learning the basics.
A technique like that wasn't something one stumbled across every day.
If he could take even fragments of its foundation, he could use them to strengthen his own swordsmanship.
There was no rule that said growth had to stop. No rule that said he had reached his limit. And Azel had no intention of staying still.
"Wait," Azariah interrupted suddenly.
His deep voice echoed in the chamber as he extended his hand and gripped Azel's wrist.
His palm was rough and calloused, with countless marks that Azel could see where from swinging his sword too much probably.
The touch sent a small shock up Azel's arm but it didn't feel weird.
Silence stretched between father and son. Azariah's gaze sharpened, and his fingers pressed just hard enough to feel bone through flesh.
After a long pause, the old warrior's lips pulled back into a grin.
"Your bones are strong enough," Azariah said, teeth flashing beneath his beard.
The grin was so wide it almost looked unnatural.
Azel blinked at the sight, half unnerved, half relieved. It was rare to see his father so openly pleased.
Weird or not, it was the sign he needed: his body had passed the first test, whatever that meant.
[Even I agree] Kyone's cheerful voice echoed suddenly in his mind.
She still sounded brimming with happiness. [If you can learn a good technique to help your sword skills, you'll only grow stronger, Esteemed Husband.]
'Someone's still riding the high,' Azel teased inwardly.
She didn't speak again but he could tell that she was flustered. Still, his focus quickly returned to the man in front of him.
Azariah released his wrist at last and folded his hands together.
His expression hardened into something far more serious, his posture shifting into that of a teacher about to lecture his student.
"The technique I used before slashing is called Bone Strengthening," he said, his voice low but Azel could hear him clearly. "It is the foundation of everything. The sword, martial arts, even mana techniques — all of them begin here. The bones."
He raised his arm, flexing it forward.
Muscles tightened, veins bulged, and for a moment Azel saw just how much power was packed into those bones.
"The bones are the base of the body," Azariah continued, his voice taking on a rhythm. "Flesh comes next. Mana after. But the bones are the first step. If they are too fragile, they will break. If they are too weak, even the finest technique will destroy the user before it destroys the enemy."
He closed his fist with a crack of joints, the sound echoing like snapping wood.
"If you can temper your bones until they do not crack or shatter even under a superior technique, then you have truly begun the path. Like that move you used against my late brother."
'Star Strike,' Azel thought with a nod.
He remembered that first time too clearly. The feeling of his arms shattering like glass afterward. That was the price of reaching too far too soon.
It was only with a little bit more training that he had managed to balance the flow of mana and harden his body enough to wield it safely.
"While it was fast, I saw the truth," Azariah said, his hand stroking the beard Lillia was still playing with.
His eyes locked onto Azel's with sharp clarity. "You poured too much mana into it and your bones weren't ready to carry the load."
Azel's jaw tightened, but he nodded. "Yes. That's true."
"But Julius said you can use it properly now," Azariah went on, his voice softening slightly. "That means you've grown. You learned balance, and your bones have grown stronger in turn. That is good."
He leaned forward again, expression grave. "But to want the World Cutting Slash? For that, your bones must not just be strong. They must be like a fortress. A building that won't crumble even under a storm. Strong enough to hold together even when the body is being torn apart by the strain. Only then can you hold that strike. Only then can you survive it. Are you truly certain you want this?"
Azel didn't hesitate. He nodded.
To give up such a chance would be idiotic.
Azariah's grin widened again, satisfied. "Good choice, my son."
He leaned back, shoulders loosening, but his eyes gleamed with anticipation. "Then let us begin with the first stage of bone tempering. Pain."
A shiver ran down Azel's spine at the word.
It wasn't the word itself — it was the way Azariah said it gleefully.
Azariah shifted Lillia gently to his other arm, covering her curious eyes with one large hand. His other hand wrapped firmly around Azel's wrist.
His grip was merciless.
"To temper the bones," Azariah said, laughter already rumbling in his chest, "you must feel pain. No pain, no gain."
And then he twisted.
The sound came firs. Azel's arm bent into a shape it was never meant to take, and his bones shattered under the impossible force.
"FUCK!"
The scream ripped out of him before he could stop it. Agony blazed white-hot through his arm, pain so sharp it drowned out thought.
He felt like his very marrow was being set aflame. His body convulsed against his father's hold, but Azariah didn't release him.
Instead, the man laughed.
"Good! Endure it! This is the beginning!" Azariah bellowed, his voice carrying through the walls of the manor.
The noise traveled, echoing down the corridors, even reaching the lower floors of the household where the women sat together.
"Brother is shouting," Effie said, tilting her head with innocent confusion.
Her small hands ran through Edna's hair, playing with the strands as if the sound above was nothing unusual. "Is he okay?"
Edna stiffened, her lips pressing together tightly. She could feel her chest tighten with worry at the sound.
"He's probably doing something with your father," Diana said flatly. Her tone was dismissive, almost irritated, though not out of cruelty.
That was just how she saw the men of the household. Strange fellows, doing strange, painful things in the name of strength.
Edna's eyes softened with concern as another scream rang faintly from above.
She let out a slow sigh, fingers tightening in her lap.
Azel was okay… right?