Chapter 638: Innate Twin Hearts
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 638: Innate Twin Hearts
"It's my turn."
As the bell chimed, Fanny rose from her seat in the lounge, preparing to head toward the arena.
"Good luck!"
The Three Little Ones, who had been chirping away while discussing how to make support props, crowded around Fanny to offer their encouragement.
"I know you can do it!"
"Crush him, Senior Fanny!"
"Take that Seventeenth Prince and grind him into the dirt!"
"You guys..."
Looking at the three girls talking all at once, Fanny felt a surge of warmth in her heart.
Even though these three were boy-crazy, unreliable, and constantly misappropriated club funds to make strange things—like life-sized Muen Campbell body pillows to trick people into joining their "religion"—at a time like this, they were still firmly on her side...
"As long as you crush him, Mr. Muen won't have to step in himself," Emma said, looking indignant.
"Exactly! What's his deal? He thinks he's good enough to compete on the same stage as Mr. Muen?" Amy agreed wholeheartedly.
"Right, right! He's only a tiny bit handsome, not even a fraction as good as one of Mr. Muen's leg hairs! Senior Fanny, go out there and knock him down!" Elma pumped her little fists as if she were the one about to fight the Seventeenth Prince.
Fanny: "..."
Thwack.
After a moment of silence, the iron fist of justice descended upon the heads of the Three Little Ones once more.
"I knew I couldn't expect anything decent to come out of your mouths!"
*
Stepping out of the lounge and looking at the vast arena, Fanny couldn't help but sigh.
It wasn't because she was truly angry at the three girls whose brains were filled with nothing but the handsome Junior Muen, but rather because...
"The Seventeenth Prince... I hope he isn't as terrifying as I imagine."
She adjusted the longsword at her side. Though her heart was pounding, she felt little fear as she stepped calmly onto the stage.
*
"Milne Rhodest, Kingdom of Saint Perod."
"Fanny Sawyer, St. Maria Academy, Leopold Empire."
After the formal greetings, a thunderous roar shook the earth as the All-Manifestation Simulation began to reshape the environment.
The flat arena vanished, replaced by a hazy yellow landscape. A massive sun was half-embedded in the horizon, its remaining half still radiating a terrifying, scorching heat.
Both participants swayed slightly before quickly regaining their balance, their eyes darting to the ground beneath their feet.
"A desert?"
Fine grains of sand piled into a golden sea, with frozen waves forming naturally beautiful dunes. One wrong step could lead to sinking, but other than that, the landscape was barren.
"This is a bit troublesome."
Fanny’s heart sank. Such a relatively simple environment was likely bad news for her, given that she was already at a disadvantage in terms of raw strength.
However, the terrain was randomly generated; she had no grounds for objection.
In contrast to Fanny, Milne appeared much more composed. He didn't seem to care about the terrain at all. To him, a mere change in environment could never halt his march toward victory. He gave the surroundings a cursory glance to confirm the layout before returning his focus to his opponent.
"Fanny Sawyer."
A smirk played on Milne's lips. Facing the opponent who, in his estimation, was the one he should have taken most seriously before Ariel appeared, he remained confident. "I've heard of you. Half a year ago, you were one of the representatives of St. Maria Academy during the Holy City Trial. You're quite well-known among the academy's students."
"To have my name remembered by a Prince of the Kingdom is truly an honor," Fanny said, taking a deep breath as her hand moved silently to the hilt of her sword.
"Unfortunately, I'd rather you hadn't remembered me at all."
"Haha, I'm not one of those fools who walks around with their nose in the air. We collect intelligence on our opponents meticulously, no matter how unremarkable they might seem. After all, we don't believe St. Maria Academy would actually send a bunch of hacks to an exchange event. That Ariel girl from earlier was the best proof of that, wasn't she?"
"Besides, I have my own goals. For the sake of those goals, I cannot allow a single mistake."
Milne looked up toward a certain direction. Unfortunately, just like Ariel, he couldn't see the spectator stands once the All-Manifestation Simulation was active. But it didn't matter; he knew that every eye in the stadium was currently fixed on him.
Whether it was the Empress of this nation or that ridiculous Muen Campbell, he doubted anyone was an exception.
"Though it's not very gentlemanly of me, I won't be holding back."
He opened his hand and gave Fanny a light smile.
"Therefore... please, struggle with all your might."
"Heh..."
Fanny chuckled in response.
"You say you're taking this seriously, yet telling someone to 'struggle' doesn't sound like something a humble person would say."
"Oh? Is that so?" Milne asked, sounding surprised. "I thought my phrasing was quite friendly."
"Perhaps arrogance has seeped so deep into your bones that you don't even... notice it yourself!"
Clang—!
Without warning, Fanny drew her sword.
Her long-accumulated sword intent erupted instantly. A sharp flash of blade-light split the sand dune beneath her feet in a heartbeat.
A terrifying slash-mark surged toward Milne like a storm, leaving him almost no room to dodge.
"A decent strike."
However, Milne didn't dodge. Or rather, he didn't need to. He didn't even draw his sword. Instead, mimicking Ariel's move against Barlow, he clenched his fist. A faint red glow condensed around his knuckles as he punched directly at the sword intent that threatened to tear everything apart.
A sharp, metallic screech pierced the ears, sounding like a stone hammer striking a piece of rusted iron. Fanny’s sword-light deflected and dissipated in an instant, failing to even touch the hem of Milne's clothes.
"Impressive..."
Fanny’s expression grew increasingly grim. Her gaze locked onto Milne's fist, and her eyes narrowed.
With her experience, she quickly realized that the red glow wasn't some powerful martial technique; it was simply condensed Fighting Spirit. But the fact that a mere mass of Fighting Spirit could block her full-strength strike meant that the Seventeenth Prince had refined the energy within his body to a terrifying degree—far beyond her own.
"As expected of the legendary, mysterious Seventeenth Prince. It seems your noble status hasn't hindered your diligence."
Even as his opponent, Fanny had to offer her praise.
From that single exchange of offense and defense, she understood that this prince was on an entirely different level compared to any enemy she had faced before.
"Good eye."
Milne nodded in approval, then offered a graceful suggestion: "Do you wish to forfeit? I have always been quite lenient toward ladies."
"I do not."
"What a pity."
"No... even knowing you are stronger than me, the whole point of fighting is to challenge the strong, isn't it?"
Fanny took a deep breath. Her hair fluttered in the rising tide of her Fighting Spirit like a shrieking demon.
Unlike Barlow, who had been crushed by Ariel, Fanny knew that the more disadvantaged she was, the more she had to seize the rhythm of the attack. If she allowed herself to be suppressed, her fate would surely be the same as Barlow's.
Thus, she would not hold back on this next strike either.
Fanny slowly moved her longsword. Though she wasn't from a Great Noble family, this sword was a treasure she had stumbled upon during an Adventurer's Guild mission. It was crafted from the tooth of a fearsome magical beast and was of exceptional quality.
Furthermore... she hadn't come away from the Holy City Trial empty-handed. The Holy City had later compensated every participant, and her compensation...
Was a sword technique.
The air began to swirl, kicking up the surrounding sand. Fanny’s longsword danced amidst the vast yellow dunes. She moved like a dancer performing a sublime ritual, every motion imbued with a profound, mysterious grace that made it impossible to look away.
Suddenly, the breeze stopped.
The sand that had been drifting with her dance froze in mid-air before falling away like rain.
Under the setting sun, only a single flash of sword-light remained.
"Lament of the... Merciful!"
It sounded like a sigh.
The sword-light didn't cause a single ripple in the sea of sand. Silently, it shot straight toward Milne's vitals.
Everything fell into a deathly silence, but within that silence lurked a staggering killing intent.
"Excellent."
Milne praised her once more.
"Your strength has exceeded my expectations. You have earned the right for me to be... slightly serious."
Hum—!
Unlike the silence of Fanny’s strike, the moment the sword at Milne's waist left its scabbard, the entire desert seemed to tremble.
Countless grains of sand leaped in terror, flowing backward toward the sky. For a moment, the world turned dark amidst the swirling sandstorm.
Even though Milne had struck later than Fanny, his technique reached completion in the blink of an eye. A brilliant radiance replaced the sinking sun, reflecting in Fanny’s widening eyes.
The sigh was drowned out.
A flood swept across the sky and earth.
But Fanny’s terror didn't stem from the sword strike alone.
Given Milne's realm, no matter how brilliant his martial technique was, it shouldn't have been this earth-shattering. Fighting Spirit was never meant to be this flashy.
Therefore...
This move didn't just contain a martial technique fueled by Fighting Spirit. There was also... magic!
There was no chanting!
But a meticulously constructed spell was woven directly into that blinding sword-light!
Milne's martial technique pierced through her Lament, and the flood of magic descended upon her without further obstruction!
*
The sunset was like blood.
The sand was like blood.
Fanny clutched her arm, panting heavily as she struggled to suppress the blood flowing from her wound.
"Why?"
Fanny lowered her gaze, making no effort to hide her confusion.
"How can you use martial techniques and magic at the same time?"
Dual cultivation of magic and martial arts was common knowledge that even a three-year-old knew.
But focusing on one inevitably slowed progress in the other, and it required far more resources. Thus, aside from a few exceptionally talented individuals or those whose progress had stalled, few chose this path.
Even among those geniuses, Fanny had never heard of anyone being able to use both simultaneously.
One could use them alternately.
One could use them in quick succession.
One could even mix them.
But using them at the exact same time was impossible. The reason was simple: a person only has one set of magic circuits and meridians. How could they run two different systems at once?
Unless...
Thump... thump-thump... thump-thump.
As everything went quiet, Fanny heard heartbeats.
Including her own, there were three.
But in this desert created by the All-Manifestation Simulation, there were only her and Milne. Where did the third heartbeat come from?
Unless...
"Innate Twin Hearts."
Fanny’s expression turned grave as she slowly uttered the term she had once seen in an ancient text.
To be precise, it was a terrifyingly rare physical constitution.
If he had that, then using martial techniques and magic simultaneously was no longer a mystery.
In fact... that was merely the most basic application of such a constitution.
"Oh? You actually know about my Innate Twin Hearts? Impressive."
Milne clapped his hands in praise.
"But unfortunately, there's no prize for guessing correctly."
Milne smiled thinly. "Besides, because of that Ariel girl's performance on your side, I can't afford to lose to her. So... the three-minute mark is approaching. Please, leave the stage."
Fanny’s face grew pale as she was met with the sight of the desert sands trembling once more.
*
"To think it's the legendary Innate Twin Hearts."
Dean Hathaway adjusted her glasses, a cold glint reflecting off the lenses. "No wonder the Kingdom kept him hidden like a treasure," she said solemnly. "Two hearts, two sets of meridians. He can cultivate Fighting Spirit and Mana simultaneously. Using martial techniques and magic at the same time is just the tip of the iceberg. The truly terrifying part of this constitution is that the dual cultivation doesn't hinder him; instead, it doubles his efficiency. It's monstrous."
"It is pretty scary," Pink Bear mumbled, stuffing popcorn into his mouth. "Mainly because he has the full support of the Kingdom's resources. For a constitution that grows fast but eats resources like crazy, that's the biggest help. Honestly, I think the only reason this brat is still hovering between the Fourth-Tier and the Sublimation-Tier is because he's intentionally suppressing his level."
"Indeed. Otherwise, he would have stepped up to the next realm long ago."
Hathaway frowned slightly. "This constitution hasn't appeared in a long time. It's incredibly precious. No wonder they're so confident. He's practically a guaranteed powerhouse of the future. If he could be brought over to serve the Empire, he would be a massive asset. Any other monarch would have jumped at the chance if a simple political marriage could secure him."
"But he happened to run into an iceberg," Pink Bear chuckled. "Genius? What's a genius good for? Can a genius's pectorals compare to that blonde bastard's? Our Empress just wants to ride that blonde guy and gallop to her heart's content every day. What can a 'genius' do about that?"
"..."
Hathaway rolled her eyes, refusing to discuss such lewd and potentially treasonous topics with Pink Bear.
Though, it wasn't exactly slander.
"But speaking of which, is it really going to be okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"The subsequent matches. No matter how you look at it, if the Empire loses, it'll be quite embarrassing." Hathaway looked at Pink Bear. "Since you're a senior with a sharp eye, what do you think the outcome will be?"
"The outcome? You shouldn't be asking me that." Pink Bear shook his head.
"Oh? Who should I ask then?"
"You should ask... Them."
Pink Bear looked up toward the sky, a cryptic smile on his face.
"Innate Twin Hearts are rare, sure. But you should ask those Evil Gods lurking outside the world... Since the fall of that brilliant civilization a thousand years ago, how many geniuses like him have they crushed like bugs through various means?"
Pink Bear’s gaze swept over a certain spot.
"And of those... how many are still alive and kicking today?"