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

his first step, the

up a shock, jerking upright as

glanced around spotting his

squinted, dazed, completely confused. It took him a few moments

same dream again...')

to my match?" His eyes widened as he glanced

were both silent for a

critical wound. But the damage you took from her last strike had crossed the threshold, you fell

sighed, closing his

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

a deep breath as

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

what I told you before the preliminary contest. Your Martial Path extends far beyond the Martial Contest, this is merely a checkpoint in your life. Do not let this halt or hinder

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

her era, yet even

She mused.

do not intend to let this failure hold me back." he said solemnly. "Instead, this failure will make me stronger, stronger than I

stared at his hands, as a slight

Martial Contest had shattered and reforged his world view of what was possible and what wasn't. It expanded his view of Martial Art was capable

of all the various techniques

already left the past,

* * *

a chair as she gazed outside the window of her room, as she beheld the lively bustling

magnificent sparkling cup sat atop a table some distance

to be an honour and a matter of boundless prestige, yet she

mood, unsure of what

She wasn't sure

the match ended, she was declared the Martial Champion and given

KNOCK KNOCK

She

"Miss." Her butler bowed.

"What is it?"

summoned you." He said,

nodded, having expected

walked towards the center

where the study of