Kaiser of the New World

Once he got out of the bath and got dressed, Kai made his way back to the arena where he and Ezekial trained. He had forgotten to ask where the library actually was earlier, so he was just hoping that the blue haired swordsman would be in his usual spot.

And to his luck, he was.

Ezekial was in the centre of the arena, dutifully practicing with his blade. His level of control with the weapon was on a whole nother level compared to someone like Kai.

Each step he took had a purpose, each time he took a breath it was perfectly timed, even his blinks were timed to perfection. Kai wondered to himself how long someone would have to train to achieve that level of control.

Sighing, he made his way down to the arena, not bothering to grab a wooden sword on the way as he assumed they were just going to go to the library.

"Hey Ezekial, I'm here, ready to go?"

Ezekial took a deep breath as he lowered his sword, he then turned to look at Kai and said blankly:

"Go where?"

Kai blinked.

"The library, you said I was allowed."

Ezekial swung his sword softly a few more times before speaking.

"Yes, I said you were allowed, however, I do not believe that you are ready."

Kai's eyes widened.

"Seriously? I'm not doing that bad, am I? Where would I rank on a scale of one to ten based on talent?"

Ezekial remained silent for a few moments before answering.

"If I were to base it off you in general, then about a five. However, if it was based off your swordsmanship then it would be a two."

Kai sighed. He was a little happy that the blue haired swordsman gave him a five, considering that he had basically not revealed any of his skills except for Soul Sense.

However, giving his swordsmanship a two was a little harsh.

"Well, okay then, let's just go get a Sword Style that's based around improving my swordsmanship."

Ezekial shook his head before explaining the way things worked to Kai.

"That will only hinder you in the future.

Imagine there is two houses, one was built on the side of the cliff and had an incredible view, while the other was in a large, empty plain, completely alone.

The house on the cliff would obviously appear more appealing because of the view, however, it's foundations were lacking and all it takes is one unfortunate incident for it to be destroyed completetly.

However, the house in the plain, that has the area around it to be built upon, to strengthen it. That house would have more longevity when compared to the house on the cliff.

So, tell me honoured guest, which house would you rather have?"

Kai felt bitter as he inwardly cursed. He hated it when people made sense in these types of situations.

All Ezekial was saying was that it would be better for Kai to hold off learning a Sword Style in order to get a better grasp of the basics. And while Kai completetly understood where Ezekial was coming from, and he could admit that what the blue haired swordsman was saying was obviously the correct answer... He still wanted to have a look at the sword styles.

But how would he be able to convince Ezekial...?

Kai sighed, there was obviously one answer that was always used in these types of scenarios.

"Alright then, let's make a bet."

Ezekial raised an eyebrow curiously.

"A bet?"

Kai nodded in response.

"Yep, a bet. The terms are simple, if I land a hit on you a single time then you bring me to the library."

Ezekial continued to stare at Kai blankly, not really knowing what to think.

"And what about if I win?"

Kai then sighed again.

"Then I won't ask to see any Sword Styles in the library ever again."

Ezekial frowned slightly at that term, almost as if he thought that it wasn't a good idea.

"I don't mean that you should never learn a Sword Style, I just want you to get a better grip on the fundemental-"

Kai shook his head and cut Ezekial off.

"I'm a man of my word, so a bet is a bet. Are you in?"

Ezekial frowned as he looked at Kai. Throughout all of the hours that they trained together, he had never managed to land a single blow on him, in fact, he never really got close.

His skill with the sword was just that terrible, Ezekial could basically see all of Kai's moves the second he made them.

But still, even with that fact, he couldn't help but feel as if something was off with this bet.

Just where was Kai's confidence coming from?

But in the end, Ezekial couldn't see the harm in a little friendly bet. If it ended up somehow helping Kai then it would probably be worth it.

"Fine then, I agree. Go grab your wooden sword."

Nodding, Kai walked over to the weapon rack and grabbed a wooden sword, giving it a few test swings.

However, Ezekial couldn't help but be confused at the sight. In all their training sessions, Kai had always used the same wooden sword, the second one from the right. But just there, Kai had grabbed the sword that was on the very left of the rack.

"Do you think that switching sword will be able to make you hit me?"

Kai grinned as he turned his head to look at Ezekial.

"I know it will."

Ezekial was stumped. Just what was wrong with this boy, there was bound to be no difference between that blade and the one he normally used, so what was the point in switching.

"You ready then?" Kai asked as he made his way back to the centre of the arena.

Even though Ezekial was confused by Kai's act, he still had confidence in his abilities. While he could admit that it wasn't impossible for Kai to land a hit on him, he knew that it definitely wouldn't be an easy task.

"I suppose. Here, I will be generous and allow you to attack first."

Kai nodded politely, acting grateful for Ezekial's nice gesture.

"I appreciate your kindness. As I am also an extremely humble, benevolent and giving person, I'll give myself a one minute time limit to land that blow on you, anything after a minute doesn't count."

This time, it was Ezekial's turn to nod.

"If that is what you wish, I see no reason to stop you."

Kai grinned as he lifted up his wooden sword.

"Well alright then... Three, two, one go!"

Kai shouted the last part of that sentence quickly, managing to count down from three in less than a second in an effort to catch the blue haired swordsman off guard.

He instantly lunged at Ezekial, aiming for the blue haired man's stomach.

All Kai had said in the rules was that he had to land a blow, it didn't matter how soft it was, it just had to be a blow.

That was the conclusion that Ezekial came to, Kai was just going to try and swing at his arm or something, getting a hit that wouldn't mean anything in a real fight, only it mattered now because of the rules of this bet.

So Ezekial would be a good teacher and block all of Kai's attacks with his own wooden blade, never letting his opponents sword ever get close to him.

As the seconds ticked on, it became increasingly obvious that Kai didn't have a chance. Ezekial always managed to be a step ahead, blocking his attacks before they were even able to invade the blue haired man's personal bubble.

Ezekial would block, dodge, and even just twist his body ever so slightly to avoid Kai's attacks. It was incredibly easy for him, and that only became even more clear when he saw the red haired boy begin to frown.

By now, forty seconds of the minute had passed, and Kai was nowhere closer to landing a hit on Ezekial than he was at the beginning.

Kai knew it, Ezekial knew it, if there was people in the audience then they would have known it.

But Ezekial was still on guard, Kai had so much confidence when making this bet, so surely that confidence wasn't baseless.

Unless Kai was the type of person to make baseless bets, which seemed like a rather idiotic thing to do to Ezekial.

However, just as the minute was about to pass, Ezekial's eyes widened as Kai's entire posture changed. A new type of ferociousness burned in the red haired boy's eyes, mixing in with that strange dot inside his pupils.

Kai quickly thrust the tip of his sword towards Ezekial's face, which only ended up making the swordsman disappointed as it was such an easy attack to do-

Before Ezekial could properly react, Kai's entire body shifted as he roughly pulled back the wooden blade after it had missed the initial attack, now aiming to just land a solid blow against some point of his body.

Before Ezekial even realised what he was doing, he had kicked Kai in the chest and sent him flying across the arena. Kai skidded along the floor for a few seconds before slowly sitting up with a groan.

After realising what he had done, Ezekial quickly made his way over to Kai and apologised.

"Honoured guest, I did not mean to go so hard on you, but you actually managed to surprise me with that last attack.

Still, it's a shame that you were unable to land a hit, it seems that you won't be able to learn a Sword Style for a while."

Kai let out a pained chuckle as he slowly sat up, lifting his head to look up at Ezekial. Then, with a strange grin, Kai tapped his left cheek and said:

"You got a little something there."

Ezekial frowned before lifting a hand up to his own cheek to the same area where Kai had pointed. As soon as his fingers touched his skin, he felt something warm press against it.

Pulling his fingers away, Ezekial glanced down and-

... Was that blood?