"Fix ur posture Adrian!!" Arthur yelled
"Yes master!" Adrian was hanging precariously on a slippy rock near the waterfall
"Not good enough, retry from the beginning and explain the rules regarding ki, now!" Arthur commanded like a true King
"Yes master!" Adrian took a deep breath and began to do fierce sword movements similar to a mountain lion pouncing on its prey
"Number one Ki's origin is the same as magic!! The main difference being the application method! While magicians study theory and apply said theory into external threats Ki concentrates on the inner body"
Adrian slipped but caught himself before losing total balance
A sword then missed Adrian by a hair's length making a splash in the water
"Start the movements from the beginning and continue the explanation"
Adrian's hair stood up
"Sir yes sir!" as he repeated the movements he continued explaining
"However, the methods of application that can be used aren't just limited to the human body as ki can expand towards weaponry which is called sword aura!"
"Your stance isn't satisfactory Repeat the movements"
"Yes master!"
"In terms of sword aura there exists an internationally recognized system to acknowledge each individual's skills. them being in ascending order starting from 4th rate, up to first rate"
"Is that all?" Arthur asked as he retrieved his sword using his sword aura
"No master! There also exists a special tier that only a select few in the entire continent have ever reached, Star rate!"
"And what rank am I?" Arthur asked while scratching his beard
"Master, you're one of the select few who have reached star rate!" blood started flowing down Adrian's mouth
"That's correct" Arthur laughed
"Well you can have a break you rascal here" he threw a health potion towards Adrian who then came to sit next to him
"..Why did you do it?" Adrian said to Arthur while chugging his 80th health potion
"Do what?" Arthur took another sip from his canister
"Give up."
Arthur looked across the landscape of the forest in front of him, the area where Arthur had been training Adrian for the past 6 days, all in the hope of curing his daughter
"Second imperial prince, have you ever lost all hope?" Arthur looked as if he was recalling old precious memories
Adrian remained quiet
"My wife hah.. She was the sweetest thing, and the kid we had together was the proof of our love"
"..." Arthur took another sip from the canister before throwing it away
"She died, not long after my daughter was born, from the same disease my daughter has now"
"Lily of the valley.." Adrian muttered
"I couldn't care less about my title, nor could I care about my achievements, what i cared about the most in my life were those two, and i don't think i can handle taking on that pain ever again"
"Master.." Adrian didn't know how to react, whether he should relate with his own situation, or give his condolences, in the end he chose to do none of that and just stay silent, next to his master
"..."
"But then you came along, and a fire of hope, one that i threw a long time ago, started kindling again"
Arthur took a deep breath "so, thanks for that– you're not that bad of a disciple, Adrian"
Adrian smiled "and you're not that bad of a master, arthur"
Arthur picked his sword from the ground "now get ready, there is only one day left afterall by the end of this day ill make sure your bones are screaming"
Adrian laughed nervously "aren't I supposed to rest on the last day?"
"Pick. it. Up." a dangerous aura emitted from Arthur
"Yes master!" Adrian picked his sword in a heartbeat
—-------------------------------------------------------
In the distance Aria can be seen wearing a cloak that has an ambiguousness spell on it
"Woah the kingdom is packed this time of year" she was taking her breath from the sheer amount of she had to get past
"Well that makes sense i guess, i mean the once every 10 year event the kingdom is known for is today afterall" she giggled
"Ooo whats that over there", "oh and whats this" "ahh there are so many things i want to look at"
Aria slapped her face to gain her concentration back "no, no Aria this is no time for such things i need to go pre register in the competition"
"But.. half an hour couldn't hurt anyone.. Could it?"
She ended up giving into temptations and registering for the competition last second.
"Attention! Attention! We are closing registration in 2 minutes!"
"Waaait!!" Aria ran into the colosseum and towards the registration booth
On the way towards the booth she ended up accidentally bumping into someone, making her lose her balance and almost fall, however the mysterious cloaked person caught her last second
"I am so sorry…?" she gasped after noticing a notification window appear in the corner of her eye
[system user found! Synchronization resuming]
"You really need to fix your bad habit of bumping into people you know?"
Aria's eyes widened 'you're joking… how is his status like that? And this too quickly?'
Adrian laughed, his green hair shining through the cloak and his sharp features materializing after being caught
"Ah!? Let go of me right this instant before I freeze you, you bastard!"
A mischievous smile arose on Adrian's face "if that's what you want"
He let go of her making her fall onto the ground with a
Thump
"Ow!! You fool? You know i didnt mean it like that..?" but before she could complain to adrian he disappeared
"Ma'am are you trying to.. Register?"
—------------------------------------------------
"Hello everyone!! And welcome to the decennial event for the "saintess tears!" this event is meant to honor the day the saintess tears ended up curing the largest poisonous ocean of the continent" the announcer spoke energetically
"Usually it would be a one on one colosseum fight, and the winner would take a vial of the saint's tears however due to the amount of participants the rules have changed!!"
large applause came from the crowd
"Now it is a battle royal, where using magic graciously given to us by the magic tower we will simulate a different area where all the 1000 contestants will fight and the last one lasting will become the sole winner of the saintess tears!"
"Before we begin we would like to introduce the supporters of this event, starting from the pope of the holy kingdom st. Evaristus!
The sounds of trumpets played out as the pope gave his warm greetings to everyone through the magic camera
"My children, we are eternally grateful for you cherishing such an important day, i hope the event is to your liking, may god bless you all" his expression warm and kind in every way
"And on the opposite side, the king of the flamehand kingdom, the revered swordmaster, Arthur von flamehand!" the announcer extended his hand dramatically
Twenty guards in golden armor walked in rhythm and stationed themselves on the side.
Arthur entered his fiery red hair and golden lion armor shining every brightly.
"I have high expectations for this event, may it be a fruitful battle "
"And the ruler of the continent gracing us with his presence, his imperial majesty emperor Marian"
As Marian was entering the magic lights started flickering in the entire colosseum and an intense pressure started getting exerted on everyone
The emperor, the strongest person in the entire continent, that's who Marian is.
His very presence was able to make some in the audience faint
He sat down on his golden throne and rested his head on his arms
"At ease."
The announcer nervously looked everywhere but at the emperor and stated
"Well folks! Let the game begin!"
—----------------------------------------------------
'Darkness, comfortable darkness…' Adrian thought to himself
'What was I supposed to be doing again?'
'I could just stay like this.. I mean it isn't so bad.. I don't die like the author wants and i can finally rest'
"Wake up Adrian, or you're going to die at this rate" said a cryptic voice
'Something is wrong.' Adrian thought to himself
'This isn't where I want my story to end"
"This.. isn't my conclusion"
And then the world opened in front of Adrian the first sight being a man with a devilish grin on his face and a bloody rapier heading towards his heart
"What the?!" Adrian yelled out as he reflexively unsheathed his tournament approved weapon, and deflected the incoming rapier attack
"Hahaha!!.... Oh? You woke up?"