Who were the top 10 strongest people of all time? This was an age-old question.
Ever since the emergence of mana, humans had begun evolving.
Things like splitting rocks apart with bare hands or casting fireballs and spells were no longer the fruits of pure imagination.
Decades have passed ever since humans were able to gain superpowers and slowly they began to adapt to mana.
A more organized system began to emerge and humans with tremendous powers began to appear all over the world.
Grandmaster Keiki was one such person.
'The one-man-army' was what they called him.
With his deadly one-hit-kill style that no one could see through, Grandmaster Keiki killed countless demons without even moving or lifting a finger.
For those who witnessed this sight, they could only look back at it as if it was a beautiful memory.
Amongst historians, there was a general consensus.
The consensus was that...
Grandmaster Keiki, the wielder of the Keiki style, alongside nine other few, was one of the ten strongest humans to have ever lived in this age where mana existed.
This was an undisputed fact that even the current heads of the union did not disagree with.
Whoever had witnessed Grandmaster Keiki's prowess in the past could tell just how much of a fearsome figure he was.
Especially his sword art.
A five-star sword art that made Grandmaster Keiki known throughout the world.
Unfortunately, around three decades ago, Grandmaster Keiki disappeared from the world and so did his legacy and sword art.
With Grandmaster Keiki gone, the sword art was lost with no hopes of ever appearing again.
This was common knowledge. It was what everyone learned in history class.
The Keiki style would never appear again.
This was what everyone said.
Yet...
'Click!
With a subtle clicking sound, a magnificent arc drew in the air as the sharp tip of a sword split the air apart.
Not even half a second flew by before the sword was back into the scabbard. So fast yet so deadly.
Inside of the expansive training ground, deftly science descended.
"This..."
Standing by the side, Donna's mouth hung open.
'How is this possible?!'
Without a doubt that was the Keiki style. Right before her eyes, Donna witnessed the once-forgotten art style.
How could she not be shocked?
"K-keiki style"
The first one to break the silence was Monica whose breathing quickened.
As if teleporting, her figure appeared right before Ren. Grabbing him by the shoulder she asked him an endless amount questions.
"Was that the Keiki Style? Do you know Grandmaster Keiki? Is he still alive? Where did you learn it? How much of it have you mastered? How l..."
"Monica, calm down!"
Snapping out of it, Donna raised her voice. Letting go of Ren, Monica also snapped out of it.
"Ah, sorry. I was just too excited"
"It's okay"
Bitterly shaking his head, Ren waved it off.
From the moment he performed the sword art before Donna and Monica, he had been prepared for this.
"Ren is Grandmaster Keiki still alive"
By the side, Donna asked.
She wanted to know if such a legendary figure was still alive.
If so it would be something worth celebrating.
Although the world looked peaceful, Donna knew that it was only a matter of time before the balance that the humans created would break.
Humanity needed another powerhouse to bring more stability.
"Ah, no, he's dead"
At Donna's question, Ren shook his head.
Grandmaster Keiki was without a doubt dead. As the author, he knew best.
"I see..."
Donna was a bit disappointed with the answer, but she didn't have much hope to begin with.
It was already good enough that the Keiki style was not lost.
"Monica, you must keep this a secret, understood?"
Turning her head and looking at Monica, Donna's voice became serious. Monica nodded her head in response.
"I know, Donna. Although I work for the union, you know that I can keep a secret okay. Especially on these kinds of matters"
"I know, but just in case. We can't let others know about his sword art"
"Yeah, I agree"
If the world found out that Ren practiced the Keiki style, he would without a doubt become the prime target of the demons and humans.
Donna could not let anyone know about his sword art.
If the sword art landed in the wrong person's hands, it could prove fatal.
Humanity could not afford such a situation. Not at this moment. Therefore, it was her duty as a teacher and hero to help Ren keep his sword art a secret.
'At least not until he is strong enough...'
Only once Ren was strong enough to stand on his own would she be okay with the world knowing about the fact that he practiced the Keiki style.
Till then, she did not want anyone to know about this.
"Alright, I'm already starting to get itchy. Now that I know what art you are practicing let's start training shall we?"
Snapping Donna out of her thoughts was Monica's bright voice.
Checking her watch, Monica smiled from ear to ear.
'Sha! 'Sha!
Swinging her sword around, Monica looked at Ren provocatively.
"We've got three more hours to go. Show me what you've got. I really want to see the extent of your abilities"
...
'Clank!
"haa...I'm finally free!"
Stretching my arms, I exited section B. I was more exhausted than I had imagined.
After revealing my sword art, I was subjected to endless amounts of questions by Monica and Donna.
After that, I was put under their gruesome Spartan-like training.
Although I somehow knew this beforehand, Monica's style of training was even rougher than Donna's. My whole body was bruised.
'I should've expected this...'
Bitterly smiling, I shook my head.
The Keiki style was just that iconic.
Despite there being a lot of famous five-star martial manuals, the Keiki style was one of the most easily recognizable ones.
The quick draw style that could kill an opponent before they could even figure out what was going on was not something that other swords art could do.
The number of arts out there that had as much of an impact as the Keiki style were very limited.
Donna's and Monica's reactions were understandable.
"Still, it's not like the situation turned out bad..."
I had now gained two valuable allies.
With Donna and Monica trying to keep my secret a secret, I could now breathe more easily.
In a way, this turned out for the best.
"Right, I need to tell Kevin about the practice sessions"
I suddenly recalled something. Taking out my phone I quickly sent Kevin a message.
[Kevin, I've got some news to share with you on behalf of Donna]
During my training session, Donna had asked me to tell Kevin about the training sessions.
"...and sent"
Whilst waiting for Kevin to reply, I put my phone away and headed back to my dorm.
I needed to take a quick shower before going to class.
...
Inside of a white world.
An old man with a sturdy body stood in the middle of the white world. Gripping tightly onto a large broadsword, the old man lifted the broadsword up with one hand.
Shhh!
He slashed down.
Shhhu!
After the first slash, lifting the broadsword up, the old man once again swung the sword down.
Shaa!
Swish!
He repeated the process eight times.
With each slash, a different sound resounded across the white space.
The first slash was nothing particularly special. It was a simple fast and heavy sword swing.
However...
Swoosh!
With each and every slash, the sword became faster, heavier, and sturdier. The back muscles of the old man tensed even more with each passing slash. Alongside his back muscles, his other muscles became more prominent with each swing.
Kracka!
It was the fifteenth slash.
This time as the old man swung his sword, the air split apart and the ground shook.
Without a doubt, this sword slash was incomparable to the previous ones.
It was much stronger.
Without taking a breather, the old man once again lifted the broadsword up. As he lift the sword up, the old man's biceps bulged. The veins around them wiggled.
"huuu..."
Turbid air escaped from the old man's mouth as put both hands on the grip of the broadsword and prepared to slash down once more.
Ever since the first swing, this was the first time the old man put both hands on the broadsword.
It was evident that the next wing was going to be even more powerful.
'Ring! 'Ring!
Right before the old man could slash down the white world slowly started to crumble as an annoying chime repeatedly rang.
"Hmm? It's that dream again?"
Kevin murmured as he opened his eyes.
Ever since he had learned the Levisha style, every once in a while he would get strange dreams inside of his head.
In it was Grandmaster Levisha performing his sword art.
As Kevin's proficiency with the sword art increased, he found out that the dreams became more vivid as a result, and from the dreams, Kevin was able to gain a better understanding of the Levisha style.
From the breathing technique to the muscle movements. Slowly but surely, as Kevin mimicked the old man's movements, he was learning more and more about the Levisha style with each passing dream.
However, Kevin knew that the dreams were not as simple as that.
As the dreams became more vivid, Kevin was able to pick up more details.
Rage and despair.
For whatever reason, whenever Kevin looked at Grandmaster Levisha swing his sword he was able to see and feel incomparable rage and despair mixed within his eyes.
Directed towards the endless white world, Grandmaster Levisha poured his boiling emotions with each swing.
Every time Kevin tried to look in the direction Grandmaster Levisha was looking at, he was only able to see a black obscure figure.
No matter how much he tried to see the identity of the obscure figure, Kevin could only see a black mass. Nothing else.
It became apparent to him that he was still too weak.
Only once his mastery increased would he be able to figure out the entity that Grandmaster Levisha was trying to fight.
"Huaam...what time is it?"
Yawning, Kevin lethargically lifted his body up from his bed and checked his watch.
[Friday, 12:13 P.M]
"Oh crap! I'm going to be late"
Kevin was immediately startled awake.
Jumping off his bed revealing his shirtless figure that was only wearing a pair of grey boxers, Kevin quickly dashed towards his wardrobe and took out his school uniform.
Quickly dressing up, he dashed towards his bedside drawer where his phone was.
'Ring!
At the exact moment Kevin picked up his phone, his phone vibrated.
"What is it?"
With his brows furrowed, Kevin looked at who messaged him. It was Ren.
[Kevin, I've got some news to share with you on behalf of Donna]
[What is it?]
Tapping on the notification, Kevin sent a quick reply.
[Basically, every Wednesday and Friday from 6 A.M. to 12 A.M. you are to come to section B for private training]
"Private training?"
Looking at the message, Kevin's brows knit even further. He quickly sent a reply back.
[Private training? What are you talking about?]
[It's Donna's orders, she wants to personally teach you alongside Monica]
[Monica? Why her?]
[I don't know how to break it to you but Monica figured out your sword art]
"What!?
Startled, Kevin's voice raised.
[Quickly tell me the details]
He quickly sent another message.
[Don't worry, she only found out the grade]
"Just?"
Reading the message, Kevin massaged his forehead.
That just pretty much meant that she knew that he practiced a five-star sword art. Something that was highly rare and coveted by many.
How could Ren talk about it so lightly?
[Not that I don't trust you, but did she find out herself or did you tell her?]
Calming himself down, Kevin sent another message.
[No, I would never sell you out like that. Monica figured it out by herself. I only revealed to them what sword art you practiced]
'So this is why she was staring at me so much in class...'
Reading the first half of the message, Kevin nodded his head in understanding.
Kevin already had a hunch about this. Ever since the last class with Monica, she would always glance in his direction.
Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have thought much about it since he was used to the stares, but under Monica's eyes, Kevin felt as though his secrets were completely laid bare before her eyes.
Her behavior made much more sense now.
"Hm?"
Kevin's brows suddenly knit.
Putting his phone closer to his face, Kevin once again read the message. More specifically, a certain section.
[Monica figured it out by herself. I only revealed to them what sword art you practiced]
'I only revealed to them what sword are you practiced...'
"Ren, you!"
Clenching his phone, Kevin cursed out loud.
'What part of 'I didn't sell you out' did you actually mean?'
Reading the message, Kevin knew that Ren had without a doubt sold him out.
