Chapter 386 - Smash

"While we are away, all authority concerning Homura International will be handed to Arima Shiro," Kazehaya Gin announced.

The young CEO sat at the head of the long table in the conference room. All the executives and board members of the company were present. Why? It's because aside from the Young Master Gin, the Koutaishidenka was also present. Each and every one in the room was very much aware of the lone man sitting at the corner of the room, looking at them solemnly with his blue gaze.

Today, they had announced that the CEO and the Koutaishidenka would be going abroad with Kazehaya Sora and their wives on a family retreat that would take a while. It was not unusual for the family to go into seclusion, but this would be the first time that this would be happening in this generation. Still, there was no problem.

All of the board members were connected with the Homura House. They were all aware of who and what the people of the Cedar Palace were even if they themselves didn't have much deity blood within them.  These people had adapted well into the new world and cultivated talents that were needed for the clan to have a stable standing in the mortal world.

Arima Shiro who stood in the middle – someone who did his job well as a Fuuma as well as the president of the company had all their respect. The temporary transfer of power wouldn't cause anything major.

With three Returners to Ancestry, and all of them were the top three celestials in heaven, who among them would dare cause trouble in their temporary absence? Besides, Arima Shiro's strength was also not to mess with.

"Yes sir," they all answered in unison, and just like that, the board meeting was concluded.

Homura International as it had been doing for the past centuries would continue to prevail.

====

"Ali, go! Go!"

The girls sat at the wooden balcony cheering for Alinea as she practiced sword-fighting with Ivan. In spite of the seal, the sounds in the barrier where they practiced still could be heard. Perun arranged it so that only divine power and force could be blocked.

Alinea twisted her body and swung her heavy sword towards Ivan like a ballet dancer. Since she had an unusual strength, she preferred huge swords as her weapon and was good at it – well at least she was when she was in Ged. Now, however…

"Ali, hold the hilt properly. Don't put the weight in one swing or you're never going to recover in time. If your enemy is fast you'll be in trouble," Ivan scolded her as he easily met her attack with his own blade and countered to make her lose hold of her sword and it flew to the side.

Urgh…

Alinea ġrȯȧnėd. She angrily looked at her hands – at her palms that were devoid of callouses. She gritted her teeth. She totally forgot that this was Ara's body and was not used to handling a sword. Although she knew how to do it, her body was not used to gripping the weapon yet.

She felt very frustrated. Back in Ritz, she was known as one of its swordmasters. Due to her strength, she could easily wield the huge sword as if she was just holding a feather duster. But this time, swinging the sword she'd been using all her life back in Ged felt unfamiliar and even tiring.

"It's fine. Don't be frustrated. Let's try again," Ivan said as he picked up Ali's sword and handed it to her. "It seems there's a disparity in your strength now and back in Ritz. I thought it's because this body is not used to handling swords so you need to get used to it,"he continued thoughtfully.

Ivan was the one who trained her sometimes in Ritz so he had an idea of her prowess. He would definitely realize her decreased power. "Oh! I think I know what's wrong. But don't worry, your father can fix that. The reason why your body's not really doing what you're supposed to do is because we burned your body in Ged."

Oh.

Alinea totally forgot about that. Normally broken souls combined after meeting. The body would vanish and absorbed by the main one. Technically Alinea's body in Ged should have absorbed Ara's body and soul piece, but she died so it was the other way around. Then her body was burned so Ara's body was not able to absorb it. This was why even after regaining the seal on her body, she was still a lot weaker compared to when she was in Ged.

After giving Ali her weapon, Ivan turned to Perun and called out. "Ritz!"

Perun who sat quietly at the edge of the barrier suddenly disappeared only to reappear again in front of his child. He lifted his hand and pressed the middle of Alinea's forehead with his index finger. A light appeared at the tip and Ali felt a sensation akin to being put back together.

She blinked several times as she looked up at her father. Perun fixed her shirt and patted her head as if she was a good girl.

"You're all fixed now little one, go and smash," he said followed by a wink.

She smiled then at the familiar coaxing. Her father did the very same thing and said the same words when she scraped her knee one time a long, long time ago. She gave him a grin and winked back and her father teleported to his original place at the edge of the barrier.

Aside from being put back together, Alinea found herself feeling very, very light. This was a familiar feeling – something she'd never felt again after coming here on Earth. She's back!

The realization that she's finally restored to her strength gave her a thrill, and a huge urge to stretch and expend her energy – the thirst for adventure erupted within her.

Ivan must have sensed her thoughts and he grinned. "It looks like our little Ali is ready to smash," he teased.

That's right. SMASH. Because Alinea's sword-fighting style never really depended on the sharpness of her blade. It's in her brute strength.

"Why just slash when you can also smash?" she murmured her fighting motto as she released her demigod energy and began to attack.