Chapter 285: A Brutal Battle
Before the age of eighteen, entering the Tower was forbidden. But that was a government law, not something enforced by the Tower itself. The Tower didn't care at all.
However, there were ways to bypass this law. One example was through the major guilds. They could use certain special items to bring individuals who hadn't even cleared the first floor into the Celestial Domain.
Of course, this method had its own restrictions. These individuals couldn't leave the registered areas.
For instance, if he asked the Everlight Moon Guild to bring Alice and Tiana into the Celestial Domain, the two of them would be able to enter, but they wouldn't be allowed to leave the zone controlled by the guild.
This was one of the methods the large guilds used to raise the ranks of their prodigies even before they officially entered the Tower.
Like Aron and his group—when they entered the first floor of the Tower, they already held an E-Rank.
Still, this wasn't a method commonly used, nor was it something considered worthwhile. In fact, he had recently heard that even other major guilds had stopped using this approach.
"Well, maybe I should just forget about it. After all, they can officially enter the Tower next year. It's better to just correct their flaws and mistakes for now. I can also find a way to strengthen their physical and spiritual bodies," he muttered to himself.
To grow stronger in spirit and body, it wasn't necessary to raise their rank. He could simply find them a technique that would allow them to enhance their bodies and souls with proper training.
He already had a body cultivation technique himself. He could hand it to them and see whether they could practice it or if it would be too difficult for them.
"Brother!" Alice and Tiana, realizing Daniel had arrived, immediately ran toward him.
"Training going well?" He glanced at them with a slight smile.
"Greetings, my Lord." His Fallen also approached and bowed.
He gestured for them to relax, then turned his attention back to the two girls.
"It's going well, but…" Tiana murmured, frowning slightly, her tone holding a trace of frustration.
"But?"
"But we can feel we've hit our limit. Our progress is barely noticeable now, almost as if it doesn't even exist anymore," Alice finished the sentence with a sigh.
"Makes sense. You need to understand that you're only F-Rank. Until you reach the next ranks, your progress will naturally become limited or even stop," Daniel explained to them.
Both of them exchanged a glance and sighed. They wanted to grow stronger badly, but they knew there were natural limitations holding them back.
"But, there is one way."
"What is it?" The discouragement on their faces immediately vanished, replaced by eagerness as they stared at their brother.
"Well, you can use body and soul cultivation techniques. I have one—see if it's suitable for you." Daniel pulled a book from his inventory and handed it to them.
"This? Indestructible Star Body?" they both read the name at the same time.
"That's right. It's a very good technique, and it should help you."
"Thank you so much!" Alice and Tiana said together. Then, standing on their toes, they each kissed one of Daniel's cheeks.
He simply smiled and patted their heads lightly.
"Brother, do you want to see how much we've improved?" one of his sisters suddenly asked.
"Well, I've got some time. Why not?" Daniel nodded.
"How about fighting us again instead?" Tiana added.
"That's a great idea!" Alice's eyes lit up.
"Oh, oh. Looks like you're really confident in yourselves. Do you think you can actually beat me?"
"Who knows? As long as you limit your power to our level, we might just be able to defeat you," Alice shrugged with confidence.
After all, she was certain that at F-Rank, there was no one stronger than them—not even their brother.
Tiana didn't say anything, but she shared the exact same thoughts as Alice. She also didn't believe anyone could match them at F-Rank.
"Look at these two… Fine, fine. I'll fight you, and I'll limit my strength to F-Rank. I won't even use any Law power or skills—just pure swordsmanship. Sound good?" Daniel chuckled.
He could tell the two girls had gotten a bit too full of themselves, so he didn't mind teaching them a little lesson.
The three of them stood in the middle of the training field, facing each other. On one side was Daniel, and on the other side were the two sisters.
Daniel held a wooden sword, while Alice had her own sword, and Tiana, naturally, wielded a magic staff.
He told them they could attack with their full strength—even with the intent to kill—and they didn't need to hold back.
If they won, Daniel promised to grant them one request of their choice.
The battle began with a laugh from Daniel. He twirled his wooden sword playfully and said,
"So, who's coming first? Or do I need to invite you myself?"
"Don't underestimate me, Daniel!" Alice shouted, leaping at him with [Leap Strike], her eyes gleaming with pride.
Her real sword glowed with a silver light as she swung it down toward Daniel's shoulder in a sharp arc.
Daniel simply sidestepped, and because Alice's balance was poor, she slipped on the tiles and fell face-first onto the floor.
Her cheek scraped against the ground, and her snow-white hair got covered in dust. "Ow!" she groaned, standing up awkwardly, her face flushed.
"One of your weaknesses is being an idiot," Daniel sighed.
Tiana, standing a bit farther back, raised her staff and hesitantly fired [Small Flame]. A trembling fireball drifted toward Daniel, but it was so weak it started flickering out halfway there.
Daniel blew it out with a playful puff and chuckled. "Tiana, this wouldn't even light a candle!" Tiana blushed deeply and stepped back.
In truth, it wasn't a bad attack, but for him, it was far too weak. Even with his power restricted, his physical strength and soul strength were still far above theirs.
Alice charged again, this time with [Silver Strike]. Her sword spun quickly as she aimed for Daniel's waist.
Daniel calmly deflected the strike with his wooden sword, and Alice's excessive force caused her to lose her balance again, stumbling back several steps. Frustrated, she activated [Light Barrier].
A faint, flickering halo of light formed around her, but it was unstable and weak.
Daniel lightly tapped it with his wooden sword, and the halo shattered like glass.
Alice's eyes widened as she stumbled back, and Daniel laughed. "This barrier is more like a soap bubble!"
Tiana finally mustered her courage and activated [Dust Gust]. A weak swirl of dust rose around Daniel, but it was so faint that it only made him sneeze.
"Achoo! Tiana, this is just going to give me a cold!" he said, laughing.