Ryota looked into those golden eyes.
Clear, focused, even carrying a hint of... unease.
In that instant, he realized this genius girl, hailed as the Sword Princess, was nervously and carefully asking him for a response.
Ais Wallenstein is worried I might say no?
As soon as that thought surfaced, Ryota felt her steady gaze grow even more intense—like a silent child who didn't know how to speak, forcing her yearning into the other person's heart with her eyes alone.
Just as the mood was starting to get a little awkward, a familiar voice cut in:
"Heehee, you know, it's super rare for our little Ais to ask for a spar herself!"
Loki had somehow snuck up beside them.
"If you dare turn her down, I'll crack open your skull, got it?!"
He'd heard rumors before about how ridiculously doting Loki was toward Ais.
Judging by this reaction, those rumors were clearly the real deal.
Not that Ryota had any intention of refusing anyway. He wasn't stupid enough to pass up a chance to spar with a level 5.
Besides, he was almost certain that if he dared say no, Ais would probably camp outside his door all night with those puppy eyes.
Right as he agreed, he saw Ais's eyes brighten ever so slightly, and she gave a small "Mm."
Then her gaze drifted downward, landing on the Kusanagi Sword at his hip.
"...Are we using that?"
Ryota instinctively wanted to say no.
A real blade, even in a spar, was asking for trouble.
But just as he opened his mouth, Ais tilted her head slightly and continued:
"Could you... show me your sword? So I can choose a similar one."
Ryota's mouth twitched as he looked down at the sword at his waist, suddenly feeling a bit reluctant to draw it.
Was that really a question? Felt more like an order.
"But let me say this up front—the sword's not exactly high-end."
Ryota sighed, then unsheathed the Kusanagi Sword. A crisp clang rang out.
But the instant the blade came completely free—
The Kusanagi Sword broke cleanly in half, clattering to the floor in two pieces.
They both stared at the broken sword. Ryota's face slowly turned blank, but deep down, his heart was bleeding.
Fifteen thousand! That thing cost fifteen thousand valis!!
"What the hell... it wasn't before?!"
Loki leaned over, took one look at the sword now in two parts on the ground, and froze for a second before bursting out laughing.
"Pfft—hahaha! Looks like you got ripped off, Ryota! But hey, that's pretty normal!"
As soon as she finished, Loki spun on her heel and huffed her way upstairs, only to come back down moments later, arms full of weapons, gasping for breath.
"Here we go, here we go! You two pick something from these—I remember these came over from Hephaestus's place!"
She dumped the pile of swords onto the floor with a thunk.
"They're not anything fancy, but the quality's decent enough!"
"These are all standard training weapons from apprentice smiths at Hephaestus's workshop!"
Ryota looked down and saw that among the heap, several swords looked exactly the same as the Kusanagi Sword that had just snapped, identical in appearance and proportions.
As expected of Lady Loki...
He was torn between laughing and crying.
If he'd known he could get freebies here, that fifteen thousand felt like a total waste.
Ais, meanwhile, calmly picked up a practice sword from the pile. She gave it a few swings, tested its balance and weight, then nodded slightly.
"This one... is alright."
Seeing that, Ryota crouched down too, grabbed a random sword from the pile, and gave it a few trial swings—
It broke in half immediately.
Ryota frowned and grabbed a second one.
Fourth one—shattered!
His expression went from calm, to frozen, to a sort of blank disbelief.
By the time every single sword in front of him had "nobly sacrificed themselves," only the one in Ais's hand remained intact, standing alone in the stillness.
Loki stared at the field of broken blades littering the floor, scratching her head.
After a few seconds of awkward silence, she finally spoke up.
"Yeah... I think I see the problem here."
"Ryota, your status is double-S across the board. At that level—"
"Ordinary, mass-produced blacksmith swords just... can't handle you."
She paused, then added,
"Ais had the same issue back in the day. Normal rapiers couldn't take the stress of her sword skills— they'd shatter after a couple of swings."
"In the end, she had to get one personally forged by Goibniu before she got her current blade, the Desperate."
Ryota had heard of that sword before.
Desperate— valued at a staggering ninety-nine million valis, with a rare "Unbreakable" trait.
And more importantly, it was one of Ais's mainstay weapons during expeditions and battles, one of the few that could withstand the insane power of her techniques.
Even so, that famous sword still needed to go back to Goibniu Familia every so often for deep maintenance and reforging.
"So... I'm basically 'too broke to match my own strength'?"
He stared at the graveyard of broken blades and felt a twinge of ridiculousness.
Loki spread her hands.
"Since you're having the same problem Ais had— I'll write you a letter tomorrow. Go pay a visit to Hephaestus Familia, and order a blade that's made just for you."
Ryota nodded and gave a polite thanks.
"That would really help, Lady Loki."
He did genuinely need a proper weapon.
But the next moment, Ryota noticed that Ais, standing off to the side, wore a look of visible disappointment.
Her head hung slightly, fingertips tracing the hilt of her sword, and in those golden eyes was an unmistakable sense of regret.
Clearly— the spar she'd looked forward to was now impossible.
"Once I get my own custom weapon, I'll come spar with you first thing."
Ais blinked, then nodded obediently, giving a sincere "Mm."
Her expression was practically like an honor-student getting praised by her teacher.
Loki, watching this, suddenly had a face full of twitching stress lines.
"Since when was my little Ais this obedient?!"