F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 317: Pre-Event Meeting

[Congratulations! You’ve leveled up to 67!]

Daru looked at the notification with a smile.

It has been a week and a half since his "busy days" concluded, and he finally got his peace back, though it’s a bit artificial at the moment.

Eyes were observing him from the shadows, but they were from Iron Lotus, so he couldn’t really drive them away.

Plus, they were the ones who secured this peaceful leveling environment for him.

His generation’s connection with the Myriad Sword Realm strengthened two days ago, and while it was still limited, twelve hours — thirteen for Daru — gave him a lot of time to prepare for the upcoming Yggdrasil Race.

Leveling up was naturally the focus.

The higher his physical attributes were, the higher his race’s chances of winning were.

Daru accessed the status window and allocated his points.

===

Bladeborn: Daru Finnley

Level 67 (225,445 to level up)

Titles: Bob’s Sworn Brother [Active(Display)], Strongest Novice [Active (Effect)]

Secondary Titles: [Soul Eater] [Novice Tanner]

Blessings: [???????’s Minor Blessing (???? ????’s ???)]

Curses: [Yama’s Discontent (Soulbound Sword)] [Goddess Fortuna’s Frown] [Baal’s Mark]

Strength: 93 (+80)

Dexterity: 100 (+60)

Agility: 100 (+60)

Stamina: 75(+70)

Vitality: 64 (+120)

Perception: 140 (+38)

Luck: 3 (+45)

Will: ? (+30)

===

Sword Status:

Name: Onimaru Kunitsuna

Type: Tachi

Tier: S

Status: Dormant - 80 / 500 Oni or Demon Essence (First Awakening)

Sword Skills: Somersault Slash (F), Tornado Slash (D), Crescent Dicer (C), Double Strike (C), Swift Tumble (C), Havoc Rush (B), Phantom Lunge (B), Hurricane Sweep (B), Swallow Step (A), Full Moon Assault (A), Seven Glasswind Slash (A), Mountainsplitter (S), Stoic (S), Azure Swordfall (SS), Spectral Thrust (SS)

Passives: [Divine Comprehension (Soulbound Sword)], [Tainted Enforcer (Soulbound Sword)]

===

Thanks to the level sixty S-tier armor set and the 30% experience boost scrolls he obtained in advance from Iron Lotus two days prior, he was able to level up to 67 today, though it was also because of the sudden, explosive physical boosts it provided him that Daru decided to invest a whopping twelve points in Perception and the remaining three points to Stamina.

That was how he spent his three level-ups.

Unfortunately, he would have to stop there for now. Daru sighed, then looked at the skies.

There was a huge timer titled Yggdrasil Race, similar to the ones that appeared during the duel and novice invasion events.

"Less than a day..."

Daru summoned his new steed, a stallion with a coat as dark as a moonless midnight and intelligent, deep blue eyes, and sped off to the city nearest to his levelling zone.

***

**

Inside a small yet luxurious meeting hall, more than a dozen people gathered, a majority of them tense and serious.

Only five remained quite at ease, plainly waiting for the meeting to start.

Daru and the Four Starblades had been summoned to the government headquarters in Northern Noravia once more.

They would be spending their time here, in a prepared private facility, for the duration of the event.

There were only two hours before the Yggdrasil Race started, and while the five representatives had already finished their personal preparations, the government still decided that it would be wise to have one last meeting to finalize everything and brainstorm about what could be deduced from the event’s title.

This, however, was only meant to warm up the youngsters’ minds.

No one knew exactly what to expect about the event except for the potentially disastrous consequences of losing, after all.

"Everyone, let’s begin."

The handlers of the five representatives straightened their postures in their seats upon hearing the high-ranking Government Representative’s words.

Daru and the Four Starblades also paid attention, though to varying degrees.

"The Yggdrasil Race...it has long been confirmed by the documentation of the Sword Trials that most ancient myths and legends are, to a certain extent, true." Olson, the one tasked by Caladbolg to handle things, began, pacing mysteriously in front of the whiteboard. "This means that Yggdrasil, in this context, is highly likely a colossal tree, and the representatives of each race will race each other to whatever destination.

He then took a second to observe the reactions of the five representatives, pleased that he had at least captured the attention of the youngsters, though he caught Chi Xiao’s gaze wandering at the last second.

Still, Olson continued, fully aware that, at the end of the day, the representatives would have to rely on themselves to quickly analyze and adapt.

What he was saying here was merely to give them a few hints of what could be.

He gave the youngsters all the myths and lore he had researched in the previous week, and while there were times they looked bored, there were also times they were quite invested.

Olson had at least achieved his goal of rousing their minds.

By the time he finished, only thirty minutes remained. He changed the topic.

"So, how are you guys feeling? Let’s start with you, Gram."

His flame-like short hair swayed as his head shifted a bit, meeting Olson’s gaze as he responded with a half-sneer: "You think I’ll lose?"

The government representative shifted his attention elsewhere, pleased.

The worry was that the youngsters’ nerves might catch up because of the heavy consequences of losing.

Thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be the case with Gram.

"How about you, Durandal?"

"Confident." The young man with shoulder-length, dark-wine hair and burgundy eyes responded curtly.

Cluster 4’s SSS-ranker seemed quite himself, so Olson asked the others.

The princess was also as self-assured as always.

Chi Xiao, meanwhile...

"W-Well, the stakes are quite high, and the consequences...Will we be blamed if we lose?"

Olson frowned at the stutter, but before he could answer, stifled laughter came out of the young man’s mouth, then a hearty one.

"Pft! Hahaha! I’m joking, I’m joking, calm your stiff behinds down. Even if these four turned out to be dead weight, I’ll hard carry."

His words were naturally met with unfriendly gazes from the other three Starblades.

As for Daru, he didn’t pay much attention to the jab, merely confirming that he, too, was feeling fine.

Heavy silence settled over the meeting room.

A moment later, Olson broke it.

"Alright then, follow me."