The Martial Unity

Rui opened his eyes slowly. An clear sky entered his field of vision.

He frowned.

Where was he?

He got up to his feet as he gazed forward, squinting as his eyes adjusted. A beautiful landscape extended as far as the eye could see as he gazed down at the breathtaking sight, appreciating its beauty.

But he was still confused.

He turned around, glancing at what was behind him, yet what he saw shook him to his very core.

He saw a path.

A path with profound depth.

A path he was on.

Yet what shook him wasn't the path itself.

No.

What truly shook him was treacherous calamities the path winded through.

Monsters.

Earthquakes.

Meteorites.

Land-breaks.

A torrent of devastating catastrophes littered his path.

It was a horrifying sight that inspired primal terror.

And yet, it inspired awe.

Through his terror, he could see profound boundless beauty in that path.

path enchanted him, mesmerizing him, whispering to

a path he wanted

he took his first step, the world shattered

woke up a shock, jerking upright as he gasped for

glanced around spotting his

It took him a few

dream again...') He

match?" His eyes widened as he glanced

both silent for

straightforwardly told him impassively. "You managed to get her with the Stinger, inflicting a critical wound. But the damage you took from her last strike had crossed the threshold, you fell unconscious not fifteen seconds

see." Rui sighed, closing his

frustration. He had given that fight his everything, but not even his everything

took a deep breath as he exhaled deeply,

Squire Dylon said. "Your performance surpassed my every expectation. You're not even a two-year-old Martial Apprentice and you went against a monstrous prodigy that has been cultivating techniques for six years. The odds were stacked against you in every way, in every possible parameter, yet you managed to not only push her going all-out but inflicted a critical wound that threatened to lose her the match. Frankly, she also got a little lucky there

the Martial Contest, this is merely a checkpoint

The fact that Rui was already half-way to being a Squire Candidate at the age of fourteen was truly astonishing. Furthermore, he had fulfilled the harder and more important condition of Squire candidacy at his tender

in her era, yet even she couldn't begin to even fathom

Voidbringer...') She mused. ('How

both of you. However, I do not intend to let this failure hold me back." he said solemnly. "Instead, this failure will make me

his hands, as a

and reforged his world view of what was possible and what wasn't. It expanded his view of Martial

various techniques he would master in his next training

left the past, greedily

* * *

window of her room, as she beheld the

sat atop a table some

was supposed to be an honour and a matter of

mood, unsure of what

she felt. She wasn't sure about how she felt of

was declared the Martial Champion and given that cup as the crowd went berserk with cheers

KNOCK KNOCK

in~" She

"Miss." Her butler bowed.

"What is it?"

has summoned you." He said,

nodded, having expected

she walked towards

the center, where the study