The Sword Sanctum in the northwest corner, right there in the room.
As the sixth-ranked Sword God among the Seven Great Powers, Gal Farion sat cross-legged in the main seat, his expression growing increasingly grim.
A servant stood beside him, responsible for reading the letter aloud. His voice grew softer and softer, for with each sentence read, the Sword God's face darkened further.
"... Isolte seventeen years old this year and has already earned the title of ' Water King '. She is of good character and appearance, and has a gentle temperament. She and your disciple Luo Ge, a genius Sword King, are a match made in heaven."
"If the two families could form a marriage alliance, the Water God Style and the Sword God Style could advance even further..."
Upon reaching this point, the attendant dared not read any further.
Sword God Gal chuckled.
Without hesitation, he snatched the letter and casually drew the Demon Sword Whistle, from his waist.
With a flash of cold light, the letter was shattered into pieces, and scraps of paper scattered all over the ground.
"You insist on making this marriage happen? That's ridiculous! Do you think I'm a three-year-old?"
How could he not know what that old woman, Water God Reida, was up to?
Having known her for so long, Gal knew her personality all too well; he was practically a cunning old fox.
Although they knew each other, their relationship wasn't particularly good, especially when they were younger. One Sword God Style and the other a Water God Style, so they were essentially competitors.
Especially since the Water God Reida was older than him, he received quite a bit of instruction from her when he was young.
Because they had known each other for so many years and understood each other very well, Gal Farion immediately saw through the thoughts of the Water God Reida.
Stealing their business!
Anyone with eyes can see it.
On the surface, it's a marriage alliance, using marriage as a pretext to promote the relationship between the Water God Style and the Sword God Style, but in reality, it's about poaching people.
It's blatant poaching, the kind that's completely undisguised...
If it were a marriage alliance with someone else, like Gino Britts, he would have readily agreed.
If it were my own daughter, it wouldn't be entirely impossible to consider it.
But what about Luo Ge!
Unless Gal is out of his mind, he wouldn't send such a future power-level genius abroad for a marriage alliance.
If Luo Ge were to join the Water God Style, wouldn't he be needlessly aiding his enemy?
In the coming decades, won't the Sword God Style be completely suppressed?
Completely unable to lift my head?
If he were still around, things would be fine; he was confident that he could lead the Sword God Style to suppress the Water God Style. But what if one day he were no longer around?
In the Sword God Style, how many young talents like Nina and Gino will be able to rival the Water God Style?
More importantly...
Luo Ge was the best successor in his eyes.
For him, there is no distinction of blood ties, only the inheritance of will.
And without a doubt, Luo Ge, this boy who shared the same dream of defeating the Dragon God, perfectly inherited his will in every aspect.
If he is unable to fulfill his dream of defeating the Dragon God in the future, then the only person who can inherit his will is currently Luo Ge.
So the Sword God immediately had someone write a letter on his behalf, harshly rejecting the offer and angrily beating up the Water God Reida.
Then... he still seemed a little uneasy.
If he remembers correctly, the girl who was always by Reida's side was named Isolte.
She was very pretty and had a beautiful face.
If... one day Luo Ge gets lured away, he won't even know where to cry.
After much contemplation, the Sword God Gal suddenly had a flash of inspiration and an idea came to him.
Hahaha... Got it!
Since the Water God Reida wanted a marriage alliance, why couldn't he do the same? Water God Reida had a granddaughter, and he also had a daughter.
and
If Luo Ge were to become his son-in-law, wouldn't that strengthen family ties even further?
He acted immediately, that's the efficiency of the Sword God Style... He directly had Nina brought over as well.
Not long after.
Nina pushed open the door to the main room and saw her father calling her in the middle of the night with a serious expression, which made her nervous as well.
" Sword God, is there anything I can help you with?"
"Sit down, Nina! Let's not talk about serious matters today, just some simple things."
After Nina was seated, Gal turned his sharp gaze to Nina and, unusually somewhat awkwardly, asked, "By the way, Nina... cough cough, um, how old are you this year?"
"???"
Nina looked a little confused.
She assumed that her father had called her over in the middle of the night to inquire about her progress in swordsmanship.
However, to Nina's utter surprise... the Sword God suddenly asked this kind of question out of the blue.
Although she didn't know what had happened, Nina answered honestly, "Father! I'm fifteen years old this year."
"Oh, you're already fifteen."
Gal nodded, then changed the subject, "You're not young anymore, Nina. Do you want a man?"
"Huh?!!"
Nina was immediately taken aback, her mouth also slightly agape.
"Man?"
"What man?"
"Hey Dad, what are you talking about?!"
Normally, Nina would address Gal as "Sword God," but because the situation was so urgent, she even called him "Dad."
The Sword God didn't care.
He disliked beating around the bush and went straight to the point. " Nina, I've already found you a man, the kind that will satisfy you."
"..."
Nina was completely dumbfounded.
In the middle of the night, the Sword God wasn't there to guide his swordsmanship training; instead, he was looking for a man for his daughter.
Is this still the stern father she remembers?
By the time Nina realized what was happening, quite some time had passed, and she noticed the Sword God's fixed gaze.
Nina was immediately flustered and almost jumped up in panic.
"Um, that kind of thing? Dad, I have no idea what you're talking about!"
"Ahem, Nina, don't get excited."
"I was thinking that since you're already fifteen, at that age... to be honest, it's about time you got married."
"Get married?"
"Don't want!"
Nina shook her head in refusal.
However, Gal had no intention of giving up easily. Instead, he adopted an extremely firm stance. " Nina, you need to think this through. Girls will get married sooner or later..."
Nina knew her father wasn't just saying it casually, so she hesitated for a moment before asking, "Dad, can I ask you a question?"
" Nina, speak!"
"Um, do you want me to marry Gino?"
Besides that, Nina couldn't think of anyone else, because in the Sword Sanctum... her closest peer was only her cousin Gino Blitz.
If her father insists on her marrying him, she probably won't object, since she doesn't really have any strong feelings about arranged marriages.
Whether Nina gets married or not is none of her business.
It doesn't matter who you marry.
She didn't have any particular desire to marry anyone; if she did, Nina would rather become the Sword God.
If it's about marriage...
Nina had actually thought about this before, since if she were to marry someone in the future, she would most likely choose Gino, who was close to her.
It's not that she particularly likes Gino, but among all the people she knows, Gino is the most suitable peer to be a marriage partner.
The two were childhood sweethearts, grew up together, and it's perfectly normal for them to get married and have children after growing up.
However, what Sword God Gal said next made Nina frown.
"Hahahaha! How could I possibly let my daughter marry a naive guy like Gino! That kind of unambitious good-for-nothing... is not worthy of you!"
Don't worry, you're marrying someone else.
"Someone else? Who is it?"
Now it was Nina's turn to be puzzled.
"You know that guy too? It's that kid Luo Ge."
"N-Nani?"
"Dad, what did you say?! You've arranged for me to marry Luo Ge?!"
Nina's mouth dropped open.
She considered many people, but the one she never thought of was Luo Ge.
After all, that guy never seemed interested in women.
Like Isolte before, a beautiful and delicate-looking girl from the city, wouldn't anyone be attracted to her?
In terms of looks... she's nowhere near as good-looking as a country bumpkin.
But when faced with such a stunning beauty, Luo Ge showed absolutely no reaction, only dragging Isolte to practice swordsmanship every day.
Nina felt that if things continued like this, a guy like Luo Ge would never be able to find a marriage partner, and it wasn't impossible for him to remain single for the rest of his life.
Nina felt increasingly uneasy.
"Dad, what's going on? Why? Why are you suddenly arranging this marriage for me?!"
Of course, the Sword God Gal would never tell Nina that this was to prevent that old woman Water God, from stealing his wife away.
He then adopted a serious expression.
"Because your father also wants you to be happy. That guy Luo Ge is not only incredibly talented, but he's also the most likely to succeed me after I retire, becoming the new master of the Sword Sanctum and inheriting the title of the next Sword God."
"And you, as my daughter, would be very happy if you married Luo Ge."
"So Dad did this for my sake?"
Nina was also moved by her father's words.
It should be noted that her father neglected to discipline her from a young age, and even when instructing her in swordsmanship, he did not personally teach her, but instead entrusted her to Gino's father, the Sword Emperor.
Her teacher was Gino's father, the Sword Emperor, while Gino's teacher was the Sword God.
This meant that Nina never experienced fatherly love growing up, yet she desperately craved her father's attention.
"... So Nina, I'll ask you one last question... are you willing to accept this marriage?"
Nina took a deep breath. She had thought a lot, but in the end, she nodded solemnly. "If you, Sword God, insist on arranging this marriage, then I agree."
No regrets?
No regrets...
Gal also somewhat surprised, not expecting Nina to be so obedient.
"Speaking of Nina, I originally thought that with your personality, you'd most likely throw a tantrum and refuse!"
"... Anyway, it's just marriage; for that kind of thing, you can just find any man."
"Hmm, truly worthy of being the daughter of my Sword God Gal Farion! Such a straightforward personality... Good! Just my type!"
"That's settled then."
"When Luo Ge comes back, I'll personally arrange a marriage for you."
"Dad! What if Luo Ge doesn't agree?"
"Hahahaha, he dares? I want to marry my daughter to him, that's his honor... Does he dare to disagree?"
Gal grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.
"... If he doesn't agree, then I'll beat him until he submits, break his legs first..."
Nina wanted to say something more, but she hesitated and ultimately kept quiet.
Because Nina knew very well that... given her father's personality, his words were not for discussion, but for command, and all she needed to do was Beginner Rank him unconditionally.
As the daughter of the Sword God, she knew very well that her marriage was never a decision she could easily make herself; Nina could not control her own destiny.
Watching Nina's departing figure, Sword God Gal couldn't help but smile slightly.
For the first time, I felt that having a daughter wasn't so bad; at least the good stuff wouldn't go to outsiders.
Meanwhile,
Nina, who was alone in the dojo, did not go back to her room to rest as usual, but instead prepared to go out for a walk to get some fresh air.
Nina's expression was complicated, and her heart was heavy. Did Nina really have to obey her father's will and agree to this arranged marriage without any foundation of love?
She had always viewed Luo Ge as her rival.
To be honest, she wouldn't say she liked him that much, and in some ways, Nina even disliked him.
after all.
No one can fall in love with a man who beats them up like that right from the start.
Besides, that guy is always so self-important... Whenever you stand next to him, he always steals the spotlight.
Nina still remembers it.
Before Luo Ge came to the Sword Sanctum, she was seen as a genius girl of the Sword God Style, and everyone revolved around her.
Everyone who passes by her, whenever they mention Nina, can't help but give her a thumbs up and praise her... truly worthy of being the daughter of the Sword God.
" Nina, you'll definitely become Sword God someday, won't you?"
This is the sentence Nina heard most often since she was a child.
Therefore, she has been striving towards this goal and became Advanced Swordsman before the age of ten.
She is seen by everyone as a genius girl of the Sword God Style.
But until one day five years ago...
Everything changed.
All her glory... became a joke after that man came to the Sword Sanctum and she was beaten so badly.
That boy was clearly so much younger than her, yet he single-handedly defeated dozens of Sword Saint not long after entering the Sword Sanctum.
final.
She easily earned her father's praise and approval, and also obtained the " Sword King " title that Nina had always dreamed of.
Nina will never forget the look in her father Gal's eyes when he looked at Luo Ge, a look of undisguised approval.
That look in his eyes...
It was her father's approval, the look Nina had dreamed of seeing her all her life, but unfortunately, when her father showed that look, it wasn't to his own daughter.
Not only her father's gaze, but the gaze of everyone in the Sword Sanctum, all fell on that person at once, while Nina could only stand in a corner where no one paid any attention.
Nina went through a very painful period... she even felt a deep sense of powerlessness and thought it would be better to just die.
Why?
The goal I've been pursuing, that person obtained it so easily? With absolutely no effort.
Later... until she saw Luo Ge's daily efforts and sweat.
So this is what kind of person he is.
So there are times when I work this hard.
For the first time, she felt differently about this annoying guy, and her impression of him changed slightly.
While I still wouldn't say I particularly like it, I don't hate it as much as I used to.
From that moment on, Nina secretly vowed in her heart that she would work harder than Luo Ge and catch up with him.
But reality is often cruel...
Her efforts were always left far behind by her opponent. Just when she was feeling smug about becoming Sword Saint, that person soon... actually obtained the title of "Three Kings" at the same time, astonishing everyone.
Nina's face was slapped repeatedly.
On what grounds?
On what basis?
I've clearly tried my best, okay? But instead of narrowing the gap, it's widened!
She was really unwilling to accept it...
But now, as I grow older, I'm becoming more and more mature.
She seemed to understand; this was perhaps the true difference between ordinary people and geniuses.
Is she a genius?
Perhaps.
But even genius... is merely the threshold to meeting that person.