Limits

From outside my room, I could see soldiers running around and searching the streets. 'The fun begins' I thought and waited. The public knew, so the Royals mobilised their forces rather quickly. A while later, I saw some more imposing soldiers walking around the streets. 'These must be Royal Guards' I thought. The ordinary soldiers ran around and questioned anyone who was still on the street, then reported to those more imposing soldiers.

All they would get was a description of some masked killer, who ran away somewhere. Waiting a bit longer, I saw her. I left the room, and knocked on the doors to Yater's room. He opened them, and asked "Ready?". I nodded, and said "Yes. She is outside. Just lure the Royal Guards and her someplace quiet, then keep the Royal Guards busy, I will take care of the rest". Yater nodded his head, and disappeared.

I walked downstairs, and joined the others who watched the commotion. Soon, three masked men appeared, and attacked the Royal Guards outside. The three masters didn't kill them, they simply injured a few people, just to get their attention. Liana rushed after them as well. Yater and the others, headed south towards some quiet area. I disappeared from the crowd as well, and chased after them.

'Five Royal Guards of at least mid class are with her' I thought. The mid class meant they broke through their Half Steps of the Inner Limits. They ran after the three masters, until they stopped, and stared blankly ahead. This was Yater's doing, he used one of his strongest illusions to trap the Royal Guards. Liana was not affected, but knew something was off and tried to back off. Unfortunately for her, I was behind them. With my mask already placed on my face, I appeared on her path of escape.

Disbelief was evident on her face. She shouted "You!". I walked slowly towards her, and said "Time to die". She took out my sword, and released a plethora of skills at me. "Useless", I said and evaded all of them. When I appeared next to her, she took out some sort of item, and shouted "Die!". But she didn't realise one crucial detail. I already released a dagger, which struck a pressure point on her hand. Whatever the item inside her hand was supposed to do, was no longer there.

When she realised there was nothing in her hand, she tried slashing with the Moon Blade. I caught the sword with my right hand, and said "Bitch, you have no right of swinging that sword at me". I pulled and retrieved my sword from her grasp. With panic clear on her face, she tried grabbing the dropped item. It was a useless struggle. I kicked her face, and she flew backwards. When she picked herself up, She screamed "Help!" and ran in the opposite direction.

I swung the Moon Blade as hard and as fast as I could. There were no skills involved, no Aura attached. The sword released an air blade, that flew through the air, and split her in half. I wasn't only training my skills throughout those five years. My strength also reached the limit. It stopped improving because I reached the Half Step of my Inner Limits. She was somewhere at that stage too, but I was much stronger.

Both halves of her lifeless body, fell to each side with blood spouting left, right and up. This was the end. The end of a bitch who chased me twice, took my arm and almost ended my life. I picked up the item she dropped, and took a look. I had no idea what it was. Some sort of red ball, looked to be made from glass. I chucked it into my bag, and walked towards the south.

Yater appeared not far away, and motioned for me to come over. I had one more thing to take care of, the five Royal Guards that stood motionless. I raised my sword, and chopped their heads off. Only then did I walk up to Yater. He said "Quite ruthless. They lost a good chunk of good soldiers today, especially that princess". I hid my Moon Blade into the storage feather, and said "They deserved it. We are leaving now, there is nothing else I need here". Yater created an illusion, and we left the city in a rush. Good thing we did, because after we left, a powerful Aura enveloped the city.

"The Emperor must've realised something. Let's leave quickly". Yater urged, and we ran back towards Yater's house. Two days passed. We were already in the clear, they wouldn't be able to find us anymore. Emperor himself wouldn't leave the city, it was too risky for him. Of course he could, there were no such restrictions placed upon him. Although he could have a chance at revenge, there was also a possibility of an ambush outside. According to our estimates, he would deem it as not worth the trouble. After another day, I stopped and said "You three can return, I have other things to take care of. I will be leaving the Empire soon as well".

Nathan asked "You are going to the North?". I nodded, and said "Yes. I left some friends over there, so I want to visit them. Besides that, I will visit my family and a friend here". Nathan nodded his head, while Yater protested "But you need to practice. You still have loads to learn!". Irwin stopped him, and said something no one would expect from Irwin. "Give it a rest Yater. Nex already grew up, and he is much more diligent than we were in the past. You don't have to tell him to practice, he will do it himself. Besides, all he has left to do, is to master the Arts. We can't help him with that".

Yater and Nathan were surprised by such wisdom from Irwin, and nodded their heads. I smiled, and said "I will still visit you guys one day. After all, you taught me a lot and I owe you a lot… You three should stay together". Yater replied "They can go back home now! I want some peace and quiet!". Irwin replied "I have things to do. You have no idea what beasts lurk in the deep parts of this continent. Who knows, maybe we will stumble upon each other one day". Nathan said "Farewell kiddo, know that you made us proud".

The two left, while Yater stood there looking at me. After a while, he said "I'm glad we met. Thanks to you, I might be able to witness something unprecedented. You paid whatever you owed me with that alone. Visit me when you have time, the doors will always stay open for you". I nodded, and bid him farewell too. This was a moment our paths separated. I felt sad that we had to go our own separate ways. But at the same time, I felt confident and inspired. Three people poured their Arts into me. Now, I was the one who was supposed to carry their legacy. Perhaps it was a burden, perhaps a blessing. This wouldn't change who I was, it would only make me stronger.