Chapter 19: Celestial Blade

A great beast lay on the cold, stone floor. Beautiful, white fur matted down with red blood. Eyes slowly turning glossy.

For decades, the white ape had guarded this room, keeping the dagger safe. And making sure that the dagger’s seal never weakened. And now, decades of guarding were coming to an end.

The white ape had been simply overpowered. A demon had wandered into his room. With a wave of the demon’s hand, the ape fell to the ground, blood pouring from an open wound in his chest.

The demon looked around for a bit. Probably finding nothing of interest, he left the room, leaving the ape to die. The ape kept the dagger close, hiding it from the demon the entire time. It felt immeasurable relief when the demon left. But despair quickly returned as the ape realized it wouldn't be able to recover. It had received a fatal wound.

With its death, the seal on the dagger would weaken. The ape couldn't let that happen.

“Feeling a little under the weather?” A gleeful voice emanated from the dagger. The ape emitted a low growl.

“Shut up Luxuria. I won't let you roam free.”

“You stupid gorilla. When you die, nothing can stop me from leaving this musty cave.”

The ape groaned as it tried to get up, but it was in vain. The ape’s life was coming to an end. A strong flow of mana began to leak from the dagger.

Frustrated, the ape knew it couldn't stop the seal from breaking. It was a Blood Seal. The strongest form of seal and also forbidden. It required the dealer to sacrifice some of his lifeblood. Even someone as powerful as Luxuria normally wouldn’t be able to break it. But it was breaking anyway. The ape had a creeping suspicion of why, but it hardly mattered. It could do nothing to stop it.

As the ape’s breathing slowed down, its grip on the dagger loosened. With its final breath, it muttered its last regret.

“Kokai. I’ve failed you.”

* * *

“No.” The old man said.

Cerien didn’t leave.

“Please. Take me as your disciple.” He pleaded once more.

“Why the hell do you want to learn from me? If you’re looking to swing a stick around, find someone else.” An annoyed expression appeared on the old man’s face.

“I saw Dian Shawu fight. And I've never seen anything like it before.”

“Wait. What? You saw him fight?” A strange expression appeared on the man’s face.

“Yes. And you can't tell me the Transcendent Sword Style is just an ordinary sword style. A child faced three grown men. Yet the child won without a scratch on him.

And I saw how that child fought. A flying projectile. A blinding light. How can that even be called a sword style? Kjorn told me that you weren't a great swordsman. But you would never lose in a swordfight. I understand what he meant now. Dian Shasi. You are no swordsman. You're a winner. A killer.”

Dian Shasi’s expression was cold. He glared at Cerien silently before turning to Dian Shawu.

“Are you daft, boy? Don't leave any witnesses. That is the first rule.” He growled.

Dian Shawu nervously bowed his head.

“I'm sorry father, it won't happen again.”

“You're right. It won't. From now on, you are banned from bringing your sword into town.”

“Father, please it won’t happen again!”

“Enough. Leave us.” He barked at Dian Shawu. He quickly scampered off, leaving Cerien and Dian Shasi alone.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air as they stared at each other.

Dian Shasi broke the silence first.

“You know, a Transcendent Sword practitioner never leaves any witnesses behind. Do you understand why?”

Cerien thought for a moment and shook his head.

“You said it yourself. This is not a sword style. It’s a simply a way to kill my opponents.

I will never lose a swordfight because no one knows this. They expect an ordinary swordfight. But my techniques are far from ordinary. My opponents never expect it, thus they are easily defeated. So, now you understand the importance of no witnesses?”

Realization dawned on Cerien.

“Yes. Because if there are witnesses, then people will learn about your techniques. The element of surprise is lost and your opponents will expect your techniques. And thus, a swordsman would be able to defeat you.”

Dian Shasi nodded.

“So you understand then your own circumstances? You are a witness. And thus, you must be killed.”

Cerien suddenly became very aware of the sword laying by Dian Shasi’s side.

“But then again, Kjorn would be upset if I killed you. And he is the only blacksmith I trust. I don’t wish to risk losing his work. So, there are other options.” He sighed.

“I could let you leave, but then you could tell other people what you saw. There would be nothing to stop or deter you. So there is one other option.

You will become my disciple and I will let you live.”

Cerien felt relieved to hear the good news but he still had doubts.

“How does that stop me from telling other people?” He questioned.

“You don't understand? You wanted to learn my sword style right? Well, let’s say that I teach you. After, if you go blabbering to other people, then the sword style you worked so hard to learn will become obsolete.”

Cerien understood now.

“However. Before I teach you, I want you to understand. A Transcendent Sword practitioner only takes one student. That has been the precedent for over two centuries. If there are more students, the chances of the sword style leaking to the public greatly increase.

I don't want to break this rule. So I won't teach you the Transcendent Sword Style.” Dian Shasi grinned while Cerien stared in confusion.

“Instead, the sword style that you will learn will be called…hmmm...what should I call it...how about...Celestial Blade Style. Yeah I like that.”

Dian Shasi looked at Cerien.

“If anyone asks you what sword style you learned, tell them you learned the Celestial Blade Style, all right? This way no one will know you were my disciple.”

“Very well then. I hope to learn much from you, Master Dian Shasi.” Cerien bowed his head.

“Your name, boy?”

“It is Cerien.”

Dian Shasi grunted and got up. He picked up his sword and walked out the door, Cerien following close behind him.

* * *

A lone girl ran through the forest. She wore comfortable clothes made for the outside. A rapier hung on her hip. Two black wolves chased after her. They were quickly gaining on her. As they got closer, the fur on the wolves rippled as their muscles readied to pounce. While running, the wolves leapt through the air towards their prey.

The girl suddenly stopped and turned around. She drew her rapier.

“[Ventus Celero].” Two words were chanted. The wind roared as it gathered around her. The wolves leaping through the air were about to fall on her. However, when they landed, the girl was gone. The wolves looked around in confusion.

Then the girl pounced. She had jumped into the air right above the wolves. She fell on one of the wolves, piercing its head cleanly. It quickly whimpered as it dropped to the ground. The other wolf was sent flying backwards by the impact caused by the rushing wind around the girl.

The wolf quickly got up and growled at the girl, half in anger and half in fear. The girl’s eyes were cold and piercing, lacking any emotion at all. Suddenly, red veins began to glow on the wolf. Its eyes glowed red too. The wolf looked up at the sky and let out a howl.

The girl suddenly dropped her rapier. She fell to her knees and held her hands to her ears. She shut her eyes tightly in pain. Blood began to drip from her ears. The wolf stopped howling and looked back at the girl. Snarling, it pounced towards the girl once more. The girl, disoriented, watched the wolf charging at her. She snatched her rapier back up and managed to bring it up just in time to defend herself. The wolf’s mouth bit down on her rapier. She was forced onto her back, desperately stopping the wolf from taking a bite out of her. Saliva and spittle dripped down from its mouth. The rapier bended flimsily, as the wolf shook around.

Her eyes narrowed as she struggled to get the wolf off her. With great effort, she managed to kick the wolf away. Catching her breath, she got up to her feet. The wolf glared angrily. Red veins glowed once more. It opened its mouth to howl again.

“[Ventus Gradior].” The wind roared as the girl took a single step forward. The wolf had no time to react when the girl suddenly appeared right in front of her. Its howl was stopped prematurely as the girl’s rapier pierced its throat. Blood gurgling from its mouth, the wolf fell to the ground as the girl drew her blade back.

Stepping back, the girl fell back on the ground, taking a moment to breathe.

Sloppy. That was her assessment. She had nearly lost to those wolves.

Melodi had been visiting Grimwoods every day after classes. Her excuse was combat experience. She had bought a teleportation rune to visit Grimwoods. Runes were expensive, but reusable. And Melodi’s family was not afraid to spend money for their little girl.

She had been improving constantly. Few students from the Academy would be brave or strong enough to go alone into Grimwoods. But she did. Cutting down everything she met. The magic beasts that she encountered all fell to her sword.

As she fought, she thought about the man who had stopped her during the King’s ceremony. She was about to end the fight with the boy who killed Rai, when a new man had appeared and saved him. The man had blond hair and wore bandages covering part of his face. He had easily beat Melodi in a swordfight. He had practically made a joke out of her. How embarrassing.

She came to Grimwoods partly to get better with her rapier. Partly because it was where Kuren had first disappeared. And partly because she just wanted to cut something up.

Too bad cutting up mindless animals in the forest didn’t even come close to the euphoric feeling when she fought the boy who had killed Rai. Melodi sighed as she cleaned the blood on her blade and sheathed it. She trudged back towards the Grimwoods rune outside the forest that would teleport her back to Lombania.

Unbeknownst to her, a hooded stranger watched Melodi as she left.

A faint, unintelligible muttering could be heard.

The forest of Grimwoods seemed to be darker than ever.

* * *

“Here you go.”

Dian Shasi handed Cerien a sheathed sword. Cerien took it and drew it.

It was a simple sword. A one-edged blade. Slightly curved. A small guard protected the sword’s hilt. A gray jewel was attached to the sword’s guard. There were no other notable features.

“This is the most important tool that you will ever use. Obviously.

It seems quite normal, right?” Dian Shasi said dryly. Cerien nodded.

“Well, it’s supposed to look like that. Just an ordinary sword. But of course there are many hidden weapons hidden inside this sword. The first technique I am going to teach you is going to involve one such hidden weapon. See that dummy?” Dian Shasi pointed at a straw dummy standing up a distance away.

Dian Shasi grabbed the sword from Cerien’s hands and sheathed it.

“The first technique is called [Shooting Star]. It can be used from many positions. The most common starting position is when the sword is still sheathed on your hip.”

Dian Shasi held the sheathed sword with his left hand by his hip.

“Watch the sword.”

Dian Shasi’s left thumb moved quickly and a click could be heard. Suddenly, something shot out of the hilt of the sword, heading straight for the dummy. When it landed, a small metal spike stuck out of the dummy’s head. Cerien realized that Dian Shawu had used this technique against the bandits.

“There’s a mechanism inside the sword’s hilt that lets loose a small projectile. It’s especially useful because your opponent will not expect an attack while your sword is sheathed. Come closer.” Dian Shasi beckoned Cerien over.

“See this notch on the guard? If you press down, the projectile is released. The sword only has room for three projectiles. And you can’t fire them one after another. You have to reset the firing mechanism.”

Dian Shasi pulled out a long metal stick. Using the stick, he pushed down on the bottom of the sword’s hilt. The bottom gave way, and Dian Shasi kept on pushing until another click could be heard.

“There. And now it’s rearmed.” He pointed the hilt at the dummy again and let loose another projectile. Cerien watched in earnest, understanding the effectiveness of the sneak attack.

“Here you go.” Dian Shasi handed Cerien back the sword and then pointed towards a row of dummies. “You’re going to practice using this technique against those dummies now. Use these spikes when you run out. You are not allowed to stop until you can hit a dummy’s head 100 times in a row.”

“Wait. What?” Cerien said in shock.

Dian Shasi nastily grinned. “Come on, my son Shawu can hit a dummy’s head 1000 times in a row. If you can’t even match up to 10% of his ability, then I’m not going to bother teaching you. Now get practicing.”

Cerien groaned and got his sword ready by his hip. He aimed the hilt at the dummy’s head.

Steady…steady now…and fire!

…

The projectile completely missed and flew right past the dummy. He pushed back the hilt and tried to fire another one. Empty.

Cerien realized he only had three spikes to fire. He gritted his teeth and went to recollect the spikes. Dian Shasi walked away chuckling to himself.

* * *

Savunt walked out of the underground into the forest of Grimwoods. The woods were deathly silent. He felt rather dejected. Helpless. Powerless to do anything.

Perhaps he would visit Amesprit, the island of the spirits. The spirits were always good with magic concerning the soul. Perhaps they would be able to strengthen the connection between his soul and this body. Amesprit lies in the middle of Heaven’s Mirror, a large lake to the west of Grimwoods. It was a short trip, so he might as well start heading there now. He marched ahead, cursing his own weakness silently.