F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 258: Highly Confidential Meeting (3)

Daru still has a few questions, though.

"I understand, but why are you telling me this? I’m not a part of the government."

At least not yet, so the fact that Hailey was entrusting him with such information was strange, given how meticulous and competent she was.

"Simply put, I trust your character, Daru Finnley, and I want to win your loyalty through sincerity. We, the government, might be weak right now, and laughable as it may seem, we want to turn things around and ensure competence, not complacency in the frontlines. We still have time. With you two holding up the next generation, we at least have a fighting chance, and from there, we’ll have a few more options we can explore. We’ll slowly wrestle control back."

Daru fell silent. He would be lying if he said he didn’t like what Hailey said, especially her lofty goals and ambitions.

It was highly likely that she was telling the truth, too.

Still, Daru didn’t bite immediately this time, reminding himself time and again to be more mindful.

"I see. I appreciate that. However, what if I don’t agree? What would happen?"

Caleb could not believe what he was hearing.

But at the same time, he somehow could. The younger bladeborn was a fast learner, after all, and he learned that much about Daru from their time together in Limbo, at least.

He was still clumsy in his attempts, and his words weren’t serving his interests yet, but he’s definitely trying.

Hailey was inwardly taken aback as well. She was sure that her previous words would’ve won the simple and straightforward Daru Finnley over.

Still, this was but a little insignificant pebble on the road to a mastertongue like her.

She remained impassive at the probe.

"Well, there’s really no other way around it...A top-ranker like you would have to choose between one of the Seven Sword Guilds or the government to serve. Valmaris...the entire continent is under their rule, you see, split into territories that are disputed through Territory Wars. Those leveling zones...if you enter them without being a direct member or that of a vassal guild’s, you will have a red sword mark manifestation above your head and will stick out like a sore thumb. I’m sure you know what happens next."

Daru blinked in disbelief.

"They’d actually kill people for merely trying to level up?" he asked.

"Well, not them. The vassals who want to please their masters. While the Seven Sword Guilds never specifically mentioned and even "welcomed" unaffiliated bladeborns to come and level in their territories, the actions of their subordinate guilds say otherwise."

"What about the government, then? Do you have zones under your control?"

"Naturally. We’ve secured a decent number of public leveling zones, but those are very suboptimal. The opportunities and drops are quite appalling in relation to the prowess of the Swordspawns dwelling there. However, those from the World Government Guild are allowed in most of the regions in Valmaris. While there are a few dozen that the Seven Sword Guilds strictly kept to themselves, the rest are available to those from the government. "

"Oh?" Daru’s brows rose. "I struggle to understand how the government was able to get them to agree...Aren’t they more powerful and rich?"

Hailey grinned.

"Well, you could say that in overall faction power. But in terms of THE strongest?"

Caleb sneered, enthusiastically chiming in.

"The bastards can only dream of defeating Sir Caladbolg!"

Daru fell silent.

Sword Saint Caladbolg. He had come across the illustrious name quite a number of times while reading online articles to enrich his knowledge about the Myriad Sword Realm.

They said he was the undisputed strongest of the human race, and based on how confident the siblings were when talking about him, Daru’s interest in the second-generation Sword Saint only grew.

There were many talented, younger Sword Saints who were currently in their prime.

Physical prowess is a huge factor in combat, so he struggled to wrap his head around the fact that the old Saint could hold those younger ones off.

’How?’

"Let’s just say that being allowed in most leveling zones is an unexpected gift of sorts from Lord Caladbolg a decade or so ago. This was among the few things he wasn’t lenient on, and the Seven Sword Guilds are quite reluctant to face his blade again."

Daru nodded, impressed.

"So, I guess this is also one of the benefits of joining the government, huh?"

"Correct. Of course, there are more aside from this. For one, we can secure your physical body in one of our facilities while you’re leveling up...at least until you reach Vigrheim, you’ll need someone to protect your husk."

His brows rose again. Despite being quite studious before he got trapped in Limbo, Daru hadn’t heard most of the things Hailey was telling him.

Being privy to more confidential information was quite sweet.

"Oh? And why is that?"

"There are Soulstations there, one you can tether your soul to. You will be able to choose whether to leave your husk and enter the standard way or bring your body with you. Everyone prefers the latter, though. There is no notable proof, yet many claim that they move better on their own body."

Daru’s eyes widened. He understood what Hailey was implying and just had to confirm it:

"T-Then, you mean to say our real bodies will be superhuman?"

"Well, half, to be exact. Only once your souls’ connections with the realm strengthen more will your husk in the Myriad Sword Realm merge with your real bodies completely. The time it takes for this to happen varies, though. More than half of the population of Bladeborns would get stuck in the Half-State until they retire. Still, such a state was already dangerous — at least in terms of world order. Bullets don’t work on those people anymore."

"What about grenades, sis? Explosive shells? What about a Nuclear bomb?" Caleb chimed in with curiosity.

This was the first time he had heard of this, too.

Hailey chuckled at her younger brother’s question, though she acknowledged that it was a valid one.

"Grenades have varying levels of effectiveness on each person. The higher the vitality, the lesser the damage. But one thing’s for sure: a handful of them might be able to injure a Half-State Bladeborn, but not kill them. Explosive shells can. As for Nuclear Bombs, well, they’d be eradicated. Only Full-States of level two-hundred-fifty and above will be able to survive with superior regeneration."

Daru drifted into his thoughts.

He had been wondering why the government wouldn’t use firearms against the Seven Sword Guilds earlier.

After all, if you can’t beat them with swords, threaten them with guns in the real world, and they’ll most likely submit.

So this was the answer...

Firearms, at some point, would be ineffective. But this led him to another question: why would the Sword Trials give them this option?

Because it would be more entertaining that way?

The more he thought about it, however, the more this "State" thing made sense. After all, wouldn’t it be unfair that the gods and goddesses rewarded them with unique items that could be brought back to their worlds for free?

’There’s probably more to this...’

Daru planned to learn more in the future. But for now, he shall focus on the present. He wouldn’t be touching upon those topics in the near future, anyway.

"So, in exchange for my loyalty, the government would offer me safety, access to most leveling zones except for a few, and a bonus slightly less than the ones the Seven Sword Guilds can offer? Did I understand correctly?"

Hailey’s smile grew less natural.

"W-Well, you got most of it correct. As for the bonus, there’s a correction. Not "slightly" less, but significantly less. We...simply can’t compare, I’m afraid."

To her surprise, Daru didn’t react much.

"That’s fine. I do believe I can’t remain neutral forever, anyway, so might as well make my side clear right now. You said I need to disclose my identity, correct? Why?" he clarified.

"Because we’d be drawing blades too early if not. Even if Lord Caladbolg survived, the government wouldn’t, though the Seven Sword Guilds would pay a huge price if they opted for an early mayhem. This is why they’d rather wait for the second-generation Sword Saint to wilt of natural causes, which, in turn, would give us time."

"I see, then what do you need me to do? Would appear in a news program, or something? I’d...rather not..."

"No...all you need to do is make a wave in Cluster 4, Noravia’s Southern Bladeborn Academy by achieving a high placement in the Inter-class Competition. At least second-place is fine. Then, we will give the emissaries of the Seven Sword Guilds their long-awaited chance to meet you. I...pray that you can keep your word after seeing their offers..."