"Sword King Salvatore Doni?"
Yusei, who had been exploring his eye's ability, stopped and looked at Erica in confusion, "Why does he want to fight me?"
Erica was momentarily stunned. She then realized her King knew nothing about the other Campiones. Giving a slight bitter smile, she explained:
"The Sword King is a sword fanatic. He's not interested in anything besides battle. This time, Yusei-sama, your reputation for fighting two Heretic Gods alone on Sardinia and slaying them has spread. Almost all the Kings and mystical organizations know about you now. Besides that, there's also..."
Here, Erica paused slightly, her eyes unconsciously looking down at the ground, like a child who had done something wrong.
"Besides that... almost all the magical associations in Southern Europe pledge allegiance to the Sword King. However, this Sword King's personality is too carefree, completely acting on whim."
Yusei glanced at her sideways, "Because he can't be controlled, you plan to find another Campione who can be controlled by you?"
"We would never dare!"
Erica immediately knelt, lowering her head as she spoke.
She realized her words might have caused a misunderstanding and hurriedly wanted to explain.
But Yusei waved his hand, cutting her off.
"Alright, just a joke. So, you're saying the Sword King is coming to fight me out of revenge?"
"Uh... Actually, I think the Sword King simply wants to fight you, Yusei-sama." Because of the earlier scare, Erica's voice was somewhat timid.
This demeanor was completely different from her usual cheerful self. It seemed Yusei's joke had genuinely frightened her.
After waiting a long time without hearing a response, she cautiously raised her head a little and discovered Yusei had already left the room.
"Huh? Where is Yusei-sama?"
…
In the small forest behind the detached residence.
Yusei stood before three large boulders, his right eye closed, his left eye displaying the transformed Mangekyo.
He had gained some understanding of his eye's ability, but the specifics still required practical experimentation, which was why he had come outside.
Before this, when his eye suddenly unleashed Verethragna's Authority, [The Boar], he had a guess.
'Could it be because of the woman in the dream, granting my eye the power of the Heretic Gods I had slain?'
But he soon discovered that wasn't the case. He couldn't use other Authorities of Verethragna, like the Phoenix or the White Stallion.
Yet he indeed found his left eye had gained some indescribable power. And based on the earlier Boar incident, he had roughly guessed something.
Yusei stood before the boulders, closed his eyes, and recalled the details of the previous battle, finally freezing the image on the scene where Verethragna used the [White Stallion] against him.
"White Stallion."
The already clear sky brightened even more. Accompanied by the neighing of a white horse, it was as if the sun was falling from the sky.
"Neigh!"
The white steed, formed from the sun's blazing flames, descended, heavily crashing onto the boulder before him. The boulder instantly turned to powder... The scorching heat spread outwards, vaporizing the surrounding trees.
The massive noise and the resulting commotion immediately made Erica, inside the nearby residence, come out to check the situation.
Erica immediately saw the area that seemed steamed by high temperatures... and the large crater in the middle. Her expression alert, she instantly positioned herself protectively in front of Yusei.
"Yusei-sama! Where is the enemy?"
Yusei deactivated the Mangekyo in his left eye, feeling the memory of that scene dissipate. He also roughly guessed what was going on with his left eye.
Looking at Erica guarding him, Yusei said calmly, "Step back. This was me experimenting with an Authority."
Erica's movements halted, then she breathed a sigh of relief, "You scared me. I thought the Sword King had suddenly attacked."
"Are you very afraid of that Sword King?" Yusei looked strangely at Erica.
"That Sword King... is a young King, but four years ago, he was a strong individual who could seize a Heretic God as prey from Marquis Voban," Erica explained.
"I see... Isn't he also a Campione? And in terms of seniority, he became a Campione earlier than me. His power should be what you seek, right?"
"Erica, if I were you, I would choose to observe the battle, see which King emerges victorious, and then decide whom to pledge allegiance to."
"This one absolutely does not have such thoughts! Please see clearly, Yusei-sama!" Erica hurriedly said.
"You previously pledged allegiance to that Sword King, didn't you? And now you've switched your allegiance to me?" Yusei said indifferently.
Although he said this, Yusei actually didn't care too much. After all, he wasn't from this world and couldn't stay here for long. He would leave once he achieved his goal.
Saying this now was just due to mischievousness. Seeing Erica's fearful expression was indeed somewhat amusing.
Why do people like high positions and power? Now Yusei understood. It's because they enjoy the respect and fear from their subordinates.
After teasing Erica a bit, Yusei planned to head back. He had roughly figured out his left eye's new ability.
If he had to give it a suitable name, it could be called [Memory Materialization].
Simply put, it materializes moves or abilities that left a deep impression in his memory. It was somewhat similar to a certain princess's [Materialization of Fantasies].
But each had its own pros and cons. [Memory Materialization] cannot materialize items or weapons, while [Materialization of Fantasies] cannot materialize energy and techniques.
Moreover, [Memory Materialization] had another drawback: once a specific move or ability is materialized, the memory of that ability becomes unusable.
For example, the White Stallion just now was Yusei materializing the memory of the White Stallion from his clash with Verethragna.
After materializing it once, it could not be materialized again.
If he wanted to materialize the White Stallion again, he would have to use his left eye to record the White Stallion's usage again.
The earlier Boar was the same, it was the memory from his fight with Kusanagi Godou. Now, after materialization, he could no longer use the Boar.
Although he lost two good Authorities, Yusei was still very excited.
He didn't fully understand why his left eye had changed. But without a doubt, the strength of his left eye had increased again!