The Mech Touch

After a week of recovery, recruitment, procurement and preparation, the Swordmaidens were ready to depart the Heavensword Association.

Though the Swordmaidens desired to stay longer in the state, they could not remain separated from the Larkinson Clan too long.

Fortunately, Ketis and the Swordmaidens gained enough goodwill from the Heavensword Association to receive their full cooperation. Bureaucratic and legal procedures that should have taken days or weeks to complete under normal circumstances no longer became an issue after a few minutes.

Ketis or her representatives only needed to make a few personal calls with some high-level contacts to solve their problems!

Swordmasters were at the top of the hierarchy in the Heavensword Association. Though Ketis had already heard about this when she initially arrived in the state, she never imagined that her new privileges were so massive!

A lot of Heavensworders went out of their way to please her! Whether she wanted to procure a batch of quality combat carriers or complete the emigration paperwork of every new member recruited from the Heavensword Association, no one stopped her from getting what she wanted.

The Swordmaidens didn't even get hindered by other swordmasters and sword schools. Ketis had defeated a lot of strong disciples in her tournament run. The Cloudstrider Sword School should have had a grudge against her, and the Brevis Sword School shouldn't be very happy with her either.

Yet as the preparations continued to go smoothly, the hindrances that she expected never arrived.

"Victory and defeat is normal in tournaments." Angelique Harcourt respectfully answered her doubts. "A single elimination tournament will always cause a lot of promising seeds to drop off early. There is little point in sulking over a loss. It is much better to sharpen your skills and make sure you're able to achieve a better result in the next tournament."

The Heavensword Association hosted lots of tournaments. The Greater Omanderie Festival was just one of many annual events. There were plenty of chances for young and promising swordsmen to secure their own moment of glory as long as they possessed sufficient strength!

"I see. I hope you're right."

After discussing some other matters related to the upcoming departure of the Swordmaidens, the conversation turned into a more personal direction.

"How do you do it? How can you become a swordmaster and Journeyman at the same time? Can you give me a hint? You are the only person I know who has managed to achieve this impossible feat."

Angelique's attitude towards Ketis changed drastically after the latter's breakthrough. Previously, the local Journeyman treated her guest as an equal. While Ketis was just an Apprentice back then, her excellent attainments in swordsmanship made her worthy of respect.

Yet now that Ketis had broken through as both in both of her professions, she completely surpassed every other Journeyman! There was no way that Angelique could treat Ketis as an equal colleague anymore, especially since she had been taught to revere swordmasters above all else!

Ketis felt a bit sad about the unavoidable changes in their relationship. Though she wanted to earn everyone's respect and stand out from the rest, she never fully thought about the downsides of becoming a greater figure until now. It was impossible for her to be as casual and intimate with most anymore.

If she hadn't pushed Sharpie into Bloodsinger, then she wouldn't have even realized how much she missed her past interactions with people!

"As I've explained before, my situation is unique. I can't divulge the details because I will have to betray the trust of my benefactor. I'm sure you don't want me to break one of my promises. The only way you can potentially follow in my footsteps is if you leave the Heavensword Assocation and join the Larkinson Clan."

Though Ketis had made this offer several times, this time Angelique looked awfully tempted! She struggled between her competing desires.

"I… can't. I'm sorry. I truly wish I could go with you and meet this amazing mentor of yours in person, but… the Heavensword Association is where my heart is. Leaving it forever is like cutting it out. Perhaps I'm not making the best choice for my career, but some matters are more important."

"Hey, I understand. I don't think you have made the wrong choice at all." Ketis said as she softly patted Angelique's shoulder. "You can't give up everything you care about in order to pursue greater power. Even if you have all of my abilities, it isn't worth it if you have to leave all of your friends and family behind."

She repeated the same advice that Dise had given to her. Now that she had sobered a little, she fully understood the favor she received.

A few days later, the Swordmaidens and the Annihilator Sword School had completed their preparations. Both organizations had taken in thousands of eager new members. While sorting them out was bound to be a time-consuming process, for now they remained well-behaved as none of them wished to shame themselves in front of a swordmaster!

Ketis and the remaining cadre on the surface of Omanderie III were about to depart from the surface.

Hundreds of shuttles and passenger transports rose into the skies. The Swordmaidens had reserved an entire section of a spaceport in order to organize the transit of so many new people.

Ketis, Dise, Sendra, Fred and a couple of other leaders watched on as all of the vehicles flew up into orbit in an orderly fashion.

Since this was a formal occasion, Ketis dressed at her best. No longer did she wear the ordinary uniform of a Swordmaiden or a mech designer of the LMC.

Instead, she wore a resplendent martial dress uniform in white. Its sky blue embroidery along with the badges and medals representing her identity as a swordmaster, director of the Annihilator Sword School and so on caused her to look like a leader!

The white cape with the emblem of the Annihilator Sword School was a very nice touch to the ensemble. Ketis understood now why Ves liked to wear them during his speeches. It could make anyone who wore them appear larger than life!

As the final Swordmaidens were about to enter an armored shuttle that was surrounded by an honor guard of hundreds of military mechs, a surprising guest arrived to bid her farewell.

"Swordmaster Ketis! Can I have a moment of your time?"

The familiar voice caused the woman in question to freeze.

"Do you want us to send him away?" Commander Sendra already started to crackle her fists.

Ketis shook her head. "None of that, please. You go on ahead. I'll be with you later."

She fearlessly turned around and separated from her companions. She walked back the way she came until she arrived before a familiar sword initiate.

"Mister Ivan Reid. You shouldn't be here."

The man gave her a nervous smile as he felt her strong but tightly-controlled will.

"I'm not your enemy, swordmaster. I never was. Whether in our first bout or second bout, I only treated you as a competitor. There shouldn't be any animosity between us. We are simply swordsmen who happened to be matched against each other in the tournaments. Now that the last competition is over, our swords are back in our sheaths."

Ketis relaxed a bit after she sensed that Ivan was being sincere. "You have a point. That said, we don't have any ties to each other anymore. Why are you here?"

"I just want you to know that I am happy for your breakthrough." Ivan gained some confidence. "It doesn't matter to me whether you are a foreigner who is destined to leave our state. Humanity has gained one more swordmaster, and that is always a cause for celebration."

The Heavensworders were pretty broadminded people from what Ketis had experienced so far. Their swordsmen were particularly noble and honorable in character. Her impression of Ivan improved. She knew that not every defeated opponent would be able to accept his loss as well as the Cloudstrider disciple.

A question popped up in her mind. "During our rematch, did you question my purpose because you wanted to disturb my mental rhythm, or were you trying to do me a favor by pointing out the shortcoming that has kept me from breaking through?"

"I… suppose it's both." Ivan replied. "I never wanted to ruin you or take revenge for my previous loss. I just wanted to win and prove that I'm still a strong swordsman. I just saw an opportunity during our battle. Based on the research collected about you and the lack of direction I've sensed in your will, I tried to mess with your concentration by making you question yourself."

"And you did that knowing that you might achieve the opposite result instead?"

"Hey, it worked out for you, didn't it? I don't see why you should give me a hard time over that. Even if you fell for my scheme, you would have learned something about yourself from your defeat. This is what serious fights between swordsmen often yield. Either you overcome the challenge, or fall short. Either way, you can't enjoy a smooth ride all the time."

Ketis agreed with the sentiment, though she did not entirely like who was telling her this. "I thank you for giving me the opportunity to find my own way. For that, you have my thanks, Mr. Reid. Now if you will excuse me, I have a shuttle to catch up to. Our new fleet is on a tight schedule and any delays will mess up our timetable."

"Wait! Before you go, I have a gift I wish to pass on to your hands!"

Ivan turned around to accept a bouquet of flowers. He carefully presented it to Ketis. "For you."

Ketis slowly reached out and accepted the bouquet. The aromas from the specially-cultivated flowers soothed her mind and softened her attitude. Women always liked flowers, and she was no exception.

"What is this for?" She asked.

Ivan looked hopeful after she accepted his flowers. "I… am infatuated with you. I admire your strength and appreciate your personality. You are quite different and exotic compared to the swordswomen of our state. Would you allow me to accompany you and enter into a relationship with you? I am willing to follow you into the Red Ocean if that is what it takes."

Ketis abruptly froze. She looked intently at the lovely bouquet of flowers.

"If you think my strength is not sufficient yet, then please give me more time!" The man hastily added. "You have already fought against me twice, so you should know how close I am to becoming your equal. In fact, I have already caught a glimpse of how I should proceed after our last match! The help you have given me is another reason why I appreciate you. I think we can continue to stimulate each other's growth if we are together. Think of all of the benefits we can gain from sparring against each other!"

The hand that gripped the bouquet shook. Ketis grew more and more intense until a dark energy escaped from her palm and ran through the delicate flowers!

Right in front of Ivan's face, the beautiful and aromatic flowers that he had spent a fortune to procure from a special boutique darkened and crumbled from existence in a matter of seconds.

Ketis raised her head and pinned Ivan with a stare that could kill a human!

"I already have a boyfriend. He is ten times more worthy than you. Besides, you're too old. Get lost."

She didn't bother to hear his response. She forcefully turned around and strode away, her cape whooshing as she moved.

As her strong form grew smaller in Ivan's eyes, the sword initiate lowered his head and felt utterly defeated.

"What a pity." He softly whispered to himself.

He had a feeling that he had failed the most difficult challenge of his life. If he succeeded, he would have been able to accompany someone who had the potential for greatness for the rest of his life.

His will was firm enough to accept this outcome. He soon regained his composure. He gazed at the shuttle rising upwards in the company of a large formation of mechs and saluted its departure!