Chapter 340 12

Kalya and the girls lay unconscious on the ground. This time Ziel took knocked all down without exception. Ziel smiled gently, and the wounds on their bodies quickly healed after being enveloped by the gray light.

"Ugh!" The first person to open her eyes was Azalia. When she saw Ziel, she could only lower her head in sorrow after remembering what had happened. Not only Azalia but Kalya and the others also felt the same.

Even though the girls had renewed their resolve to become stronger, they couldn't help but be disappointed when they thought they couldn't land a single hit in the battle.

"How are you feeling now?" Ziel smiled when he saw the expressions on the girls. He knew what they were thinking, and it was natural for them to feel that way after that fight.

"We're fine, but we still couldn't land a single hit on you. We're sorry, Ziel." Kalya spoke for the other girls. She lowered her head, and the others followed suit.

"Did you think it would be easy to land a hit on me? If you can do it, I can confidently say that your strength has already caught up to that of the primeval gods, even though there is still a huge difference. You don't need to be sad or disappointed with the result. Can't you still try it since the training isn't over yet?" Ziel said calmly.

Queen Helena and the girls finally raised their heads and looked at Ziel after hearing those words. Their eyes had become brighter, and the disappointment had disappeared from their faces.

Princess Freya and the others knew that what Ziel said was true. If landing a hit on Ziel was that easy, wouldn't their current existence be on par with the continent's guardians? The girls realized that they had been thinking somewhat irrationally by wanting their attacks to hit Ziel at the start of the third stage of training.

"Alright. I'll give you a break for an hour. You can use it for lunch or restore your condition to its peak. After that, we will continue our training. You do not need to be discouraged by the results of this practice. The most important thing is to show me your fighting spirit and use all the power you have against me." Ziel smiled gently, and his figure disappeared from the girls' sight.

Lilith and the others nodded and no longer thought about the matter. They quickly took out their lunch and enjoyed it. The girls didn't want to waste their free time. After eating, they wanted to restore their condition and mood to their peak for the next battle.

An hour passed, and Ziel reappeared at that place. He smiled when he saw the expressions on the girls' faces. Azalia and the others could quickly come back with even stronger determination whenever they were down. Ziel was happy about that and was sure it wouldn't be long before they could land their attacks on him.

After that, they started their training again, and three hours later, the girls were defeated by Ziel. Some of them lost consciousness, and the rest were just injured. Ziel was satisfied because Kyouka and the others' strength increased greatly, and their fighting skills became more refined. The girls could last longer against Ziel, which showed that they had learned from the previous battle.

The training repeated until the fifth battle, and the moon had replaced the sun in the sky. This time the girls didn't attack Ziel one by one like before.

Ziel was confused by the girls' actions. But then he raised his eyebrows after feeling a multi-layered barrier sealing him in and blocking all his escape routes. The ones who did it were Princess Irene and the four girls who owned the defensive artifacts made by Ziel.

He was curious about the girls' plans. Ziel stood quietly and waited for what they would do next. He wanted to know what attacks the girls would fire at him.

After Princess Irene and the other four created a barrier to block Ziel's movement, the girls released their powers and combined as one. Their actions are similar to what they did to help Ziel become a true god when he fought the Chaos Titan.

The girls' source energy gathered and condensed very densely into a transparent white monstrous ball of light that looked extremely holy.

"Huh?" Ziel raised his eyebrows when he saw the light ball split into two. The first became a large bow, and the second became an arrow. Due to their large size, the girls needed three people to pull the bowstring. Those people were Kalya, Lilith, Azalia, and the rest kept squeezing their source energy and pouring it into the arrows.

Ziel frowned because he felt a slight threat from the girls' combined attacks. But then he smiled and waited for them to shoot him. Ziel wanted to know how much damage the arrow would do to him.

Kalya, Lilith, and Azalia let go of the bowstring, and a compressed arrow of the eleven girls' power shot out at astonishing speed and appeared in front of Ziel instantly.

Ziel stood calmly facing the attack and had no intention of dodging it. He extended his right hand, and a gray fortress covered him.

[Ethereal Blast]

The arrows that had been released changed shape into an energy ball, shining brightly and exploding.

SHINE!

Surprisingly, the explosion didn't make the slightest sound; only the energy ball enlarged and silently engulfed Ziel. Even so, its destructive power was terrifying and could be seen from its impact on the surroundings. Moreover, that attack also destroyed the barrier that covered the forest area.

Shutters!

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The light from the attack was dazzling, and the girls had no idea how Ziel was after being swallowed up by the blast. They didn't think that he would be injured because such an attack wouldn't be able to do much for him. The girls were worried that the energy ball from their combined power couldn't even touch Ziel at all. It showed that their path to becoming strong was still very far away.

Azalia and Kalya suggested the joint attack while resting to recover their condition. Both of them realized that they would never be able to land their attacks on Ziel if their fighting style was monotonous and static.

Because of that, Kalya and Azalia came up with an idea to change their attack, and the other girls agreed. But both of them still didn't know what to do in the next battle and decided to discuss it with the girls.

After they had discussed for a long time and spent most of their time resting, Queen Helena and the others finally came up with the answer for their next battle, and it was one strike at their full power would decide the end of the training.

After the light from the energy ball disappeared, the girls could finally see Ziel's figure. Princess Aishia and the others smiled broadly because their attacks were able to hit Ziel in the end.

The gray barrier protecting Ziel shattered into pieces, and his palms burned slightly from blocking the girls' attacks. On top of that, the entire area around him was destroyed except for the place where he was standing.

Kyouka and the others sighed in relief, and strength left their bodies. The girls gasped and fell to their knees as they didn't have the slightest power to stand up. They used their energy source to the last drop on that attack.

"Congratulations. You did it. I didn't expect you to injure me in just one day." Ziel looked at his injured right hand from the girls' attacks.

Initially, Ziel did feel the danger from the attack, but he thought that it would not be able to break through his defenses. But then he was taken aback when the light ball exploded and could destroy his barrier, even injuring him. The result was far beyond his expectations. Because of that, Ziel was confident that the girls would be able to catch up in strength with the primeval gods if they continued to train like that for the next month.

"We also didn't think our attacks would be able to hurt you, Ken." Azalia smiled weakly.

"We're glad we didn't disappoint you." Kalya added, and the other girls nodded in response to her words.

"You didn't disappoint me and even exceeded my expectations. But you shouldn't be complacent because that attack is your combined strength. During the actual battle, you may be fighting one on one against your enemy. Because of that, I want you to work on your individual strength in the next training." Ziel said.

He didn't want the girls to be lulled by victory because they had managed to land attacks on him. That would only impede their progress. If they were quickly satisfied just because of that, then they wouldn't be able to become any stronger than they were now.

"We understand!" The girls answered in unison and already understood Ziel's meaning without him explaining it in detail.

"Good." Ziel smiled and extended his hands to Princess Cordelia and the others. Gray light enveloped the girls, and their conditions rapidly improved. They felt that Ziel had replenished the energy within their bodies.

"You can return to the cottage for dinner and get some rest." Ziel said and intended to leave the place, but Clara quickly stopped him.

"Wait a minute! Where do you want to go, Ken? Can't you have dinner with us? We've been skipping meals together for the past few days." Clara and the girls looked at Ziel expectantly. Ziel sighed, and he couldn't bear to refuse their request.

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"Alright. But it would be best if you rested early after you ate dinner. You guys will be repeating the first stage of training tomorrow, but the duration won't be as long as usual because we have to attend the academy." Ziel reminded the girls.

Starting tomorrow, the girls, except Queen Helena and Azalia, will return to their regular activities. Kalya has to teach at the academy, Princess Irene and Princess Cordelia supervise the construction of the city guard battle platform, and the rest have to do their duty as a student.

Princess Freya and the others looked at each other and nodded with big smiles. After that, they were enveloped in a gray light and disappeared from that place.

After they finished their dinner, the girls took a shower and went to bed because tomorrow they had to get up early to do their respective activities.

On the other hand, Ziel sat on a chair by the lake and focused on several half-finished women's rings in his hand. It was not just an accessory but also a defensive and offensive artifact that he would give to Azalia and the girls.

Ziel also took artifacts belonging to Clara, Princess Freya, and Princess Ashia to turn them into rings. Of course, he would make the rings differently with shapes and motifs to suit each of the girls' personalities.

Originally Ziel wanted to work on making the artifact in his room. But he suddenly felt bored, and his mood was not good. Ziel decided to do it outside because breathing the night air refreshed his mind.

Ziel worked on ten artifacts, and six of them were completed. He decided to create a ring-shaped artifact because the girls had suggested it. They were jealous because Kalya was the only girl in the cottage with a ring on her finger. Therefore, they also wanted the same jewelry as her.

"Haa..." Ziel sighed and then smiled after remembering the girls' expressions when they complained to him about the ring Kalya was wearing. He felt the girls looked cute and different from their usual appearance.

Ziel shook his head and returned his attention to his work. The sound of crickets and frogs around made Ziel more immersed in the artifact's creation.

While Ziel was focusing on artifact creation, he heard footsteps from the cottage. He knew who it was without even having to see it. The person walked slowly and drew closer to him.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping already?" Ziel asked without distracting him from his work.

The person kept walking towards Ziel with a mug filled with hot tea and stopped beside him.

"I can't sleep. I intend to take a walk for a while until I fall asleep. But I saw you sitting by the lake alone. So I decided to approach you and see what you were doing at this hour." Princess Iris smiled, and her black hair shone beautifully under the moonlight.