"You! Get away from me. Your breath stinks!" Ketis complained as the old mech pilot who conducted the test.

"No! I have spent over three decades to find a suitable inheritor for my legacy and the legacy of my brother. I will not let you go, not after I am close to fulfilling my late brother's wish!"

​​

"I didn't sign up for this nonsense. I just want to win that old knife of yours."

"Oh, that piece of junk?" A cunning smile appeared on the old man's face. "That's not really a storied weapon. There is no grand owner or story behind it. I just bought it from a flea market a week ago for the price of a restaurant meal. It's an ordinary surplus blade. There's nothing special about it. I just banged it up a bit before polishing it in a way that makes it look like it has a history."

What? The knife was a fake antique?

"You.. you… you scammer!"

"Hey, as long as I can reel you in, it's worth it! Do you know how long I've waited to find a swordsman who can make a cut as smooth as yours?

The Swordmaiden mech designer frowned deeper and deeper as the old man kept harassing her. She was quickly reminded of one of Ves' sayings.

Stubborn old people were extremely troublesome! This was especially the case for those with ambition or those who were looking to pass on their legacies.

Their desperation, their lack of fear towards their looming death and their intense desire to leave a mark of their existence behind turned them into some of the most unscrupulous people in the galaxy!

According to Ves, the best way to handle these people was to either let them talk until they tired themselves out or get away from them as fast as possible!

No matter what benefits they offered, they always came with a lot of strings attached. There was no free lunch!

"I'm not interested. I'm just a visitor here. I already trained in another sword style, and I have no intention of turning my back on it! The fact that you're even suggesting me to change it is a grave insult!"

Ketis tried to brush away the creepy old man who clung to her arms. Though she possessed more than enough strength to push away the stranger, she was afraid of harming someone and getting into trouble.

If she hurt someone and got caught, then she would undoubtedly face sanctions. This was bad because the Heavensword Association adopted a zero tolerance policy for the duration of the Greater Omanderie Festival. If any guest committed a crime that was more severe than littering, then they would lose the qualifications to attend or participate in any of the events, including the tournaments!

Though Ketis already felt that the man who attempted to solicit her was a trained warrior, his wiry, skinny body belied his age.

Even the strongest warriors grew feeble after the ravages of time aged their bodies and worsened their lingering injuries!

Therefore, she dared not to exert too much of her prodigious strength. She tried to be as gentle as possible in pushing the insistent man away, but the problem was that he wasn't taking the hint!

Fortunately, her bodyguards finally stepped in. Two of them strode forward and gently grabbed the old man by the arms before carefully dragging him back.

"No! Don't take me away! Just listen to me! You're a great fit for our sword style! Do you know what kind of opportunity you are missing? As long as you accept my appointment, you will immediately take over my position as the interim director of an officially-recognized sword school! If you're a swordmaster, then that's even better! You can become the head of our sword school and evolve our sword style to suit your own tastes."

Ketis grew confused. She turned to Angelique. "What is this geezer talking about? What's this about sword schools?"

The Journeyman Mech Designer took on a disgusted expression. "It's nothing. You don't need to be concerned about this matter. People like him are merely the remnants of a fallen club. There are many sword schools in the Heavensword Association that have risen and fallen over the years. Some of the latter aren't able to recognize reality and try to do anything to scam random people into taking over their troubled schools. It's a massive burden because you will have to take over all of the debt and other problems associated with these troubled organizations."

"You blasted woman!" The old man cursed at Angelique. "Our Annihilator Sword School may have fallen on hard times, but it can completely return to its glory as long as the young lady next to you takes it over. While the effect of her swordsmanship is admittedly different from that of our Annihilator Sword Style, that is not inherently a bad thing as she can put her own mark on it! With the inheritance and accumulation of our majestic style, she can completely become a swordmaster without comparison!"

Angelique shook her head as the guards continued to drag the old man away. "Let's go. You don't need to get caught up in this kind of business."

The two mech designers sped up and walked far away. While they attempted to go back to admiring the different swords planted in the Sword Graveyard, they weren't in the mood anymore.

Throughout the tour, Ketis couldn't help but grow curious at what the old man was about. Why did he insist on picking a foreigner like her to inherit his legacy?

"I just looked up the Annihilator Sword School on the galactic net." Angelique said. "Don't let the name fool you. This school is just a shadow of its former self. Forty years ago, it may have been respectable, but after its founder and only swordmaster died, it all went downhill from there. The man who solicited you is Fred Walinski, the interim director and only remaining registered member of his school. The last disciples and other personnel removed their names from the registry eight years ago. Once the interim director dies, the Annihilator Sword School will truly become a fallen sword school, which is exactly where it belongs."

Ketis had a feeling that she wasn't comprehending the full story.

"What are sword schools exactly? I understand the meaning of the words, and I've heard people mention it before, but it sounds like their significance is greater than I initially realized."

"You're most probably correct, Ketis. Sword schools are the most respected organizations in the Heavensword Assocation. First, you have to understand what a valid sword style is to Heavensworders like myself. Do you think that any sword style, even ones that date far before the Age of Mechs, is worth obsessing over?"

"Clearly not. Anyone who has practiced swordsmanship can develop a new style. It's usually a bad idea for most since they don't possess the knowledge, experience and feel to develop a set of moves that is better than a style that has been developed over centuries. The best that you can do is to adapt the style to suit your own approach and physical properties."

Angelique slightly shook her head. "While everything that you have said is correct, more or less, it is not what I am driving at. Do you know what makes the seeded competitors in the tournaments better than anyone else? It is not a coincidence that they have dominated the finals since the beginning. What makes them special?"

"Uhm… they're better at sword fighting than anyone else?"

"That's a simple answer, but it's not the entire story. The truth of the matter is that all of the seeded competitors are swordsmen that have touched upon the true essence of a valid sword style. They are called sword initiates because unlike other warriors, they can express the true power of a real and valid sword style!"

"Uhm, what?"

"Let me give you an example." Angelique said and accessed a short clip stored in her comm. "Watch carefully."

The clip showed two seeded competitors matching up against each other in a different tournament. They postured against each other before the person wielding a fencing blade struck out against someone who wielded twin blades.

The twin blade swordsman attempted to parry the incoming stab, but at the moment of contact, a small but forceful explosion erupted that pushed the parrying swords aside!

The tip of the fencing sword continued to snake forward and collided against the energy shield that appeared over the protective suit of the twin blade user!

However, at the moment of contact, yet another explosion took place! Even if the strange detonation failed to break the powerful energy shield, the victim had undoubtedly lost the match!

Ketis tried to figure out what had happened. "Those explosions are weird. I doubt that these swordsmen are allowed to bring bombs to their matches. Is the sword responsible for generating those explosions?"

"No." Angelique shook her head. "The fencing sword is made out of hard and special materials, but none of the exotics used in its forging are able to generate this effect on their own. It's the wielder of the weapon that is responsible for channeling this destructive effect."

"Huh?" Ketis blinked.

Did these swordsmen possess superpowers of their own?

"I know it looks incredulous, but this is what true sword styles can do. Our Heavensword Association wouldn't exist if swordsmanship was merely about technique and nothing else" Angelique stated. "What we care about is the essence of swordsmanship. Every earnest swordsman seeks to attain enlightenment. Practising a strong and remarkable sword style is the best way to do so. While it is a bit complicated to explain, you can basically say that every sword style that can achieve an effect beyond what is possible in reality is enough to support the establishment of a sword school."

"So this Annihilator Sword School teaches a powerful sword style?"

The Journeyman laughed. "There are good sword schools and bad sword schools. Those that are popular and good at making their disciples stronger are the core institutions of our state. All of the seeded competitors come from these top schools. There are only hundreds of good schools in our state. These are the ones that every Heavensworder looks up to. Billions of young and hopeful sword students apply to them every year, but even the biggest schools only accept thousands of them per year. They are extremely selective and only accept the best."

That sounded like a big deal to Ketis.

"What about the other schools?"

"The ones that fall outside this category usually have problems. There are millions of schools like this, many of which have long been forgotten. Perhaps their sword style is weak. Perhaps it is stronger, but difficult to pass on. Perhaps their sole founder and swordmaster has perished without anyone in the school qualified to step up. This happens to be the case for the Annihilator Sword School. From what I've read on the galactic net, the Annihilator Sword Style is the real deal, but it is difficult to master. At its strongest, it can reverse a battle, but only one person truly mastered it in the history of the school."

Those who were capable of developing a sword style with notable effects were usually expert pilots. Their extraordinary powers easily allowed them to form techniques that conform to their strong characteristics.

What was remarkable about these sword styles was that others could learn them as well!

Ketis widened her eyes when she learned of this. "Are you telling the truth? Non-expert pilots can channel powers like these as well?!"

"That's why they are called swordsmasters." Angelique responded with a smile. "A good sword style not only teaches a set of moves, but also passes on the dogma behind them. As long as swordsmen with talent are compatible with the dogma, they can channel the sword style in a way that allows them to perform moves like the one I showed earlier despite not being expert pilots themselves. There are more ways to become a god besides becoming extremely good at piloting mechs. This is a heritage that predates the Age of Mechs. Before humans aspired to become god pilots, they dreamt of becoming sword gods!"

Sword gods! This was the first time that Ketis became exposed for this term. Her heart and sword will shook as she tried to wrap her mind around the concept.