The Resolute Ruler’s Challenge Part 1 Chapter 14

As I pass through the Gate he summoned, I instantly found myself in the dark void again. This wasn't a surprise anymore knowing that this happened the same after the Blind Ruler's challenge. It also passed after getting a mark of the Blind Ruler's acknowledgement, so the only thing I needed to do was wait until I get my mark from the Intrepid Ruler.

Not long after, it happened. Instead this time, it was my right hand…and the mark appeared at the back of my hand. It was the same sensation as last time. It felt like I was being pressed with a hot iron on my hand but it soon finished, and what appeared was the symbol of a spear but inside a circle…very different from my mark for the Bow.

I noticed that the marks were placed by wherever my injury took place, like how the Blind Ruler's mark came from my left shoulder because that was where I took the shot of a golden arrow and my right hand where I tried to stop the Spear from piercing through my body. I can imagine where the Sword users mark would place itself, ergo my back but the mark for the Shield user was worrying.

Well anyway After receiving my mark, the dark was instantly replaced with the location of the four statues and I found myself kneeling in front of the Intrepid Ruler's statue. The injuries of my right arm was gone but the injuries of my stomach still remained, back when I was stabbed by the golden sword. I didn't waste time and ran to where the statue that held the sword was. My priority was to come back to the real world without any actual injuries, and since the sword to the back was my biggest issue, there was no doubt it was my next objective.

As I ran as fast as I could, I could tell that my speed was different than before. I could run faster than my previous self when they were coated in Mana and at my full best performance, a position where I don't have injuries in my stomach, I could equally match the Monster's speed back at the Intrepid Ruler's Challenge. Mana and all. This tells that the challenge improved a lot and if I were to compare this to the Protagonist of when he was a first year…I could say that I was faster…Probably stronger and have a better reaction time to battles than he was…but since he's now a second year, I might not be able to compare myself to him, especially since he will attain a new power by the start of the second year arc. But it doesn't matter, I'm not exactly here to surpass the MC, its more like I'm gonna fix every mistake his probably gonna do. Mistakes that would result in taking lives…I'm like a janitor or something.

I now found myself in front of the Statue of the Ruler who held a sword. Just standing in front of it was overwhelming. the Sun's symbol on the Sword's grip was the center point of my attention. As I looked into that Insignia, I noticed that every other Ruler also holds that very symbol.

The Symbol of a Sun with infinite rays of its light reaching to every possible direction.

".…" I stood in front of the statue of this ruler and did every possible thing I could that would accept my audience. I tried touching it, kneeling before it and even prayed for it…nothing happened.

So I sat and waited.

As I waited for something to happen, I wasted my time by looking at the Insignia for every Ruler that had place on themselves. For the Sword user where his insignia was placed in the Sword's grip, as for the Intrepid Ruler, it was found as if tattooed on his face, the Blind Ruler with the insignia marked on her Helmet and for the Shield user where the Insignia was placed on his right shoulder…no matter how I saw it, it was definitely placed on random.

But I can't argue that those markings were more eye catching than the weapons themselves. It felt like it was calling to me, tempting me to touch it…but all of a sudden I could hear something different, it was the sound of two iron objects clashing against one another. It ringed in my ear, never leaving as if there were two swords clashing against each other. I tried looking around but all I see before me was the four statues and the cross-sectioned road…and then I stared into the eyes of the statue that was right in front of me…it was glowing.

'wait.' but before I knew it I was…

[The Resolute Ruler accepts your audience]

Immediately I blacked out and not long after I found myself in what people call a training ground. Bits of sand, dust, dirt and square stones were the stage I stood on. Pillars of stones from what I presumed was from the Greek era stood in every corner of a place I looked upon. And in the horizon was nothing but the dunes of a hot sun, the infinite view of waves of sand and the blue sky…

I was in a desert.

".…okay"

but all of a sudden the blue sky was replaced by a looming dark cloud.

not long after, it rained water…or what I thought it was…

*Thud*

A dagger fell from the sky, landing inches away from my toes.

"What the…"

*Thud*

And then it was a Sabre…just a meter away from my body.

".…"

*Boom!*

A Claymore, just an inch from my back

*Thud*

"..." sweat began forming in my face.

And finally a Rapier, it just landed at the center of my foot…

"!!"

Not long after, it rained even more. Drops of metal blades kept falling from the sky like it was your normal drizzle of rain in london.

It rained with swords non stop and I had no way of defending myself against these blades. so in a futile attempt, I grabbed the Rapier that was stuck to my feet and used it against the falling swords.

"!!...fuck....it hurts." I said as I pulled it out of my foot.

using my improved capabilities, I tried deflecting every sword that came my way. I improved both my Eyesight and Rapier with coated Mana to effectively block against each sword.

*Clink* *Clink* *Clink* *Clink* *Clink*

Although I tried my best, I didn't come out unscathed. Some cuts were took and the variations of swords made it harder for me to defend against it. Some swords were big, some were small and other swords were so weirdly shaped that when I tried deflecting it with a Rapier, its trajectory was completely random when I tried to push it back to a certain direction.

Halfway through this fight against an unknown weather system, the Rapier broke and I had to grab another sword mid fall and attempted to duel wield until the Rapier broke.

*Clink* *Crack* *Snap*

and then it happened. The Rapier broke.

In a futile attempt, I ran over to the next sword over. and it was the Sabre sword. I reached for it and as everything changed, the sword I held by my hand entirely changed the playing field. The Sabre sword had a more rigid and thick blade and had a grip I was more comfortable holding. Deflecting the sword made it easier for me, so I resumed my defense against this rain even with more confidence.

Although it may seem easy at first, I have to remind myself that I was a beginner at using a sword. I didn't have time to practice using this thing. And from what you can see, I was just swinging my sword at every direction, trying to deflect any falling object my way. it wasn't a good thing to look at. My moves weren't flawless, and at some point my arms were starting to sore.

it rained for 5 minutes....but it felt like 30.

at the end of it all, I was surrounded by blades and from the looks of it, it affected almost an area of 5km wide.

All sorts of swords were imbedded into the sand. From a Claymore to a simple dagger, even swords from era like the Egyptian sword called the Khopesh was here. It was a field of all you can pick blades work.

With nothing to do, except glorify on the looks of this place, the exterior of this place reminded me of a certain Fate series where it was an unlimited landscape of swords.

But besides that, I admired how awesome this turned out to be. it looked like a war took place in this desert, because of how everything stood out to be.

As I admired the desert sword crops, out of nowhere, Another thing came falling from the Sky.

~Swoosh~

*BOOM!*

"!!"

It fell just about a kilometer away from me, and the explosion it made was similar to how a rocket ammunition would affect a simple flat landscape.

smoke and sand debris was floating around it.

"!?"

As curious as I was to what fell from the sky, every ounce of my body was telling not to get close to this thing.

it emitted a Dangerous aura that spewed out death even from how far I was. It was Similar to The Intrepid Ruler's aura but it was more full of bloodlust.

and as the Smoke clears, what appears before me was the image of a man who held nothing but a scabbard of a sword on his hand.

I couldn't tell how he looked from afar so I enhanced my sight with my Mana and tried getting a clear view of who it was.

He didn't wore a cape like the Intrepid Ruler, nor was he wearing a helmet ike the Blind Ruler but the facial features he had was similar to the Sword user. His Scraggly Beard and Braided hair was the only thing that resembled the statue. so I was certain he was the Resolute Ruler.

I could see that he was facing my direction. and out of the blue he made a gesture. he raised his hand and tried to tell me to come to him.

"....I guess I should go to him." Despite the Dangerous aura he was emitting, I had no other choice but to do what he says. So I made my way to him.

I dropped the sword in my hand and started running to his direction. I didn't want to make him wait to long so I enhanced the strength in my legs and started running to his direction.

It took me a minute to reach his side. I stopped just about 3 meters away from him and tried showing gratitude by bowing my head. in response to this, he also bowed his head.

"...So what Challenge am I going to do now in your Domain?"

I asked him. I know I was being over familiar with him but I needed to speed up the pace of this Challenge. I already used 600 days, and if I hear another riddling test just like the Intrepid Ruler did, then I'll miss the Terrorist Arc.

"...I only need one thing from you." He said.

"W-what is it?"

"I want you to yearn for my sword."

"...." shit...he's just as confusing as the Spear guy.... Fuck.

"Can you specify by what yearning means?" I asked.

"Prepare."

"....What? prepare for what?"

"...." he turned his back on me and took ten steps forward.

"Rise."

As he said those words, the ground shakes, the sky darkens and pillars started errupting from the sand, and as it did so, it came with creating a small sandstorm.

"!!" the ground shook so strongly that it made me lose balance and I fell on my ass.

As the sand dust starts to dissipate. the view was clear to see.

Thousands of pillars formed right in front of him. the pillars went on and on and on, I couldn't see the end of it.

'Whats he trying to make me do?' I thought to myself.

"These are called the Pillars of the Kingdom" he said with an empowering voice.

"...."

"Each and every one of these pillars had the will of every warrior I have meet and ruled over. their contribution to the Kingdom, the very essence of their souls lie within these Pillars. it acted as the very support that held the Kingdom we once ruled."

"...and they have stayed immortalized by the very figure of these pillars and they continue to stand as such..."

"What do you want me to do..."

"Earn your right to be a Pillar."