In that final sword strike against Koshiro, he had blended a lot of things into it.
Armament Haki with emission traits, the momentum of swordsmanship, and Conqueror's Haki, all unleashed at once in the form of a flying slash.
But those powers had not been properly unified. If he ran into a top great swordsman like Mihawk, the man could magnify the gaps between those different forces just from the feel of the sword aura and shatter the whole attack with a simple swing.
So the first thing Ethan had to do now was make those powers more coordinated.
On the first day, from dawn until dark, Ethan did nothing but combine his Armament Haki with his will.
Going all out for an entire day burned through his stamina. That night, when he returned to the castle and wolfed down food, he was despised by the witch and had a test tube tossed at his head.
The name was simple: Stamina Recovery Tonic. The nutrition content was extremely rich, 500,000 Berry per tube. Compared with her usual pricing standards, Ethan actually felt it was pretty cheap.
Day two was the same. By the evening of the third day, Ethan felt that coating his blade with Armament Haki was already very natural, and combining it with his intent was starting to bear fruit.
On the fourth day, Ethan began merging Armament Haki, will, and sword momentum. He continued swinging.
This time the commotion was a bit big. On the mountaintop, gusts of wild wind rose again and again. The snow piled on the peak was blown down toward the foot of the mountain, as if a snowstorm were falling from the sky.
The residents of Drum Island were puzzled. Yes, their island was a winter island, but the snowfall should not be this heavy at this time of year.
On the fifth day, the snowfall lessened. On the sixth day, it stopped entirely. By the seventh day, the mountaintop where Ethan trained was completely calm.
He had already integrated sword momentum into his technique. Now the power of each slash was concentrated entirely in the blade, not leaking even a fraction.
Only the enemies struck by the sword would know what kind of force was contained within.
On the eighth day, he tried Conqueror's Haki infusion. First step, release Conqueror's Haki.
Boom.
An avalanche came down immediately, and the clouds in the sky started to churn.
Some of the animals on the mountain simply fainted on the spot and quietly died beneath the snowslide.
"Uh…"
That was a bit too loud. He worked hard to rein it in, calming his breathing.
Then the same thing as before happened all over again. This was starting to get to Ethan's head.
Clearly, his control over Conqueror's Haki was terrible. Well, he had barely used it back in the Four Seas, and now he was having to make up lessons in a rush. Then he would just keep going.
Release, retract. Release, retract. The mountain rumbled without end.
Down in the town at the foot of the mountain, a new rumor began to spread. The witch had angered the gods, so the gods were punishing her with thunder.
When Ethan came back to the castle after dark, he found Kureha looking at him as if he were mentally ill.
Then she grabbed him by the collar with one hand and lifted him up.
"Are you sick in the head? Planning to tear my castle down, huh?
"So what if you have Conqueror's Haki, you think that makes you special? I have seen plenty of Conqueror's Haki in my time, and no one flaunts it like you.
"Conqueror's Haki flickering on and off, what, are you missing a switch?" she yelled.
Ethan felt a little embarrassed and gestured with both hands.
"Uh, I am practicing Conqueror's Haki infusion, you know, that thing where you wrap Conqueror's Haki around the sword like Armament Haki. I just started, it is a bit hard. Give me a few more days and I will be able to compress it onto the blade," he explained.
Silence.
Then the witch exploded.
"Conqueror's Haki infusion is not about completely compressing it onto the sword, how would spirit and presence be compressed into a physical object, you idiot.
"It is the core of your spiritual pressure being transferred onto the sword, that is all. Moron.
"Ten million Berry in mental damages, or get lost down the mountain," she snapped.
"What the fuck, so that is how it works…"
Ethan was speechless. He really had taken things for granted.
He had assumed it worked just like Armament Haki. Who knew Kureha would even understand this. She had definitely roamed the seas in her younger days and was an old senior in every sense. Truly a monster granny.
But that one sentence really was worth it. Only ten million Berry, and he had already earned back more than he spent.
She threw Ethan down and stormed back into her lab.
From the ninth day onward, Ethan ran to a peak even farther away to practice. Every day, the booming sounds never stopped.
On the fourteenth day, his special training finally came to a temporary end. He had gained some insights into Conqueror's Haki infusion as well.
As long as he was fully prepared, one out of every three slashes could be infused.
Two weeks of bitter training had ended, and the results were excellent.
Physique: 80
Strength: 80
Speed: 89
Skills:
Shave: proficiency 5%
Tempest Kick: proficiency 1%
Conqueror's Haki: 20% → 24%
Swordsmanship, master level: 50%
Observation Haki, master level: 2%
Armament Haki, master level: 1%
He had taken a big step forward in swordsmanship and was steadily moving toward the realm of a top great swordsman.
After so many days of high-intensity practice, his Armament Haki had also advanced into the master level.
And then there was the progress in his Conqueror's Haki. Now Ethan could be said to handle Conqueror's Haki with real proficiency. It had not been easy.
…
"This first page is the improved version of your body-training secret medicine. The effect is tripled, and it also has excellent nourishing properties.
"The following pages are the new process I have designed after refining your original method of making medicine.
"It expands the range of usable ingredients, speeds up the cultivation time of the penicillium mold, and also optimizes the subsequent production steps," Kureha reported.
"Thank you very much," Ethan said.
"No need. There is no reason to thank someone you are paying. Unless you were planning to freeload," she shot back.
Pfft.
"Never. The money will be sent very soon," Ethan replied.
"Mm, if there is nothing else, hurry up and leave. Someone like you staying here will only bring trouble," she said bluntly.
She was practically driving them out.
Ethan had no choice but to pack up the documents and luggage and head down the mountain. On the way, Robin said her goodbyes to the Lapahns. The big rabbits' faces were visibly full of joy when they parted.
Observation Haki combined with the Flower-Flower Fruit was truly terrifying.
After Ethan left, Dr. Kureha watched the two tiny figures going down the mountain and sighed.
As a witch who had lived for over a hundred years, she had indeed seen many heroes in her life, but this was the first time she had seen such an immense spirit of Conqueror's Haki.
It was not about raw strength. In terms of strength, Ethan did not even rank yet.
It was purely the scale of his presence. She had no idea what kind of kingly ideal would give birth to such a spirit. Was he planning to overthrow the World Government or something?
These monster-like brats were the most annoying type. They always managed to stir up disasters. It was best to stay far away from them.
Having obtained what he wanted, Ethan felt very satisfied. This trip to Drum Island had been incredibly rewarding.
The only pity was that he had failed to pass on the torch. It was fine though. Not every named character had to give him face. It was not like he had eaten the Face-Face Fruit.
When he returned to town, he happened to run into Old Cook's sleigh again.
"Yo, youngster, seeing you again. You all healed up?" the old man called out.
"Completely. Uncle, where are you going?" Ethan asked.
"To the harbor to haul goods. There will be a few big merchant ships coming in today," Old Cook answered.
"Oh. Uncle, give us a ride to the port then. We are leaving Drum Island today," Ethan said with a smile.
"Get on," Old Cook said simply.
Once again, the cheerful jingle of bells rang out as the reindeer galloped across the snow.
The silver-white scenery was truly beautiful.
Thinking about how such a beautiful country would be ruined by Wapol in the future, Ethan silently made a note of Wapol in his heart.
Giving the Munch-Munch Fruit to such a brutal king was such a waste. If he had the chance to come back another time, he would be sure to reward him with a sword slash.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]