Chapter 58: What Other Choice?

The kick slammed down with enough force to create another violent shockwave, and the back of Declan’s leg struck the dojo floor from above, forcing the chain upward until it hung barely an inch away from his head.

The instructor reacted immediately, shifting his hand backward and tightening his grip around the edge of his dagger.

Then,

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIP!

__________________________

The air was sliced apart as the dagger speared straight toward Declan’s neck.

BAAAAAANG!

At the last possible moment, Declan brought both gauntleted hands up to his face, catching the dagger between the gap in his fists and locking the blade in place before it could reach his throat.

With only one leg still firmly planted beneath him, he gathered whatever strength remained in his body and drove his foot forward.

BAAAAAAANG!

His kick shot toward the instructor’s chest, but the man reacted instantly, shifting his body to the side.

Declan’s attack missed its intended target, but the instructor was unable to evade it completely.

BAAAANG!

The kick slammed into his shoulder instead, and the force behind it was enough to send Declan flying backward, finally carrying him out of the dagger’s range.

He crashed onto the ground, his gauntlet-clad hands scraping violently against the floor as he dragged himself across it, using the friction to slow his momentum until he came to a stop barely a meter away from the wall.

Declan immediately raised his head to locate the instructor, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

’What the!?’

His eyes snapped upward, and his expression changed instantly.

The instructor was already above him, his chained dagger descending with enough force to cleave straight through his head.

’How?’

’How did he move that fast!?

Declan had no time to think about it, and all he could do was raise both hands above his head in a desperate attempt to block the incoming strike.

But it wasn’t enough.

BAAAAAANG!

The dagger collided with his raised fists and immediately tore through the metallic gauntlets, sending fragments of metal flying as blood sprayed into the air.

The blade continued downward, smashing into his hands with such brutal force that the bones beneath the gauntlets shattered.

Pain exploded through his arms, yet Declan used the momentum of the strike to roll away before the dagger could do even more damage.

He slammed into the wall and rolled down its surface before finally collapsing onto both knees, his arms hanging uselessly in front of him as blood began pouring from his shattered hands.

The damaged portions of his gauntlets fell away, clattering against the floor around him.

’That... wasn’t a Newcomer strength level.’

The realization barely formed in his mind before his vision began darkening again.

His body remained kneeling, but his consciousness had already slipped away.

The combat instructor slowly straightened from his slashing position, allowing the chained dagger to sink back beneath his robes before turning toward the remaining students.

"Class is over for today."

He walked toward Declan and grabbed him by the shoulder, dragging the unconscious boy toward the wall at the back of the dojo.

However, just before disappearing through it, he stopped and glanced sideways at the rest of the students.

"You all realize he has surpassed you all by a step... right?"

_______________

FLICCKKERR.

Declan’s eyes slowly fluttered open, and the first thing he saw was the white ceiling above him.

Still groggy from his unconscious state, he sat upright and rubbed his head, trying to clear away the lingering haze before something suddenly occurred to him.

His gaze dropped toward his wrist.

He had expected to find a fresh wound, but there was nothing of the sort.

His body had already healed, although the process had clearly left its mark, as a long blade scar still ran from his wrist toward his elbow.

"Even for an Anomalous Nexian, you healed unnaturally fast."

The voice came from the side, and Declan turned away from his arm to find the Weapon Instructor sitting nearby, his white eyes fixed calmly upon him.

"I lost... again," Declan muttered, clenching his hands into fists.

"No. You actually passed."

Declan’s eyes immediately shifted toward him.

"There are levels to the Weapon Training."

"The first is an assessment designed to determine whether the newcomers can match the skills of a Nexian possessing roughly the average physical strength of their current level."

The instructor paused briefly before continuing.

"That means I had to lower my physical output to the level of a Seedian Nexian."

’So, the system had been right.’

"You didn’t merely match my strength; you surpassed it."

"In the final exchange, I had to break away from the Seedian Nexian power level and increase to Heartian Nexian Power level."

A faint glint appeared within Declan’s eyes.

"That automatically signifies that you passed."

Declan’s attention remained fixed on the instructor, who had now risen from his seat.

"You indeed practiced the Precise Strike Manual I gave you. I could tell from the precision behind your attacks and blocks. Your movements have improved considerably since the last time."

The instructor walked toward the shelves, his fingers slowly trailing across the manuals lined up within them.

"But the Precise Strike Manual alone does not explain everything."

Declan froze.

"I can tell you have only recently fused with a Core, and not just an ordinary one. It was an Anomalous Core."

The instructor stopped before one of the shelves.

"Considering how recently you fused with it, you should only be at around five to ten percent synchronization."

His white eyes shifted toward Declan.

"But the power you displayed today was closer to that of someone with seventy percent synchronization or higher."

"You grew stronger... far too quickly."

Declan remained silent.

"You call upon a power beyond the Core itself, although I have no idea what that power is."

His hand finally reached into the shelf and pulled out a manual considerably larger than the one he had previously given Declan.

"I can’t sense Arcane energy from you, so whatever that power is, you aren’t affiliated with the Ember."

He turned around and extended the manual toward Declan.

"For me, that is enough. I won’t pry any further."

Declan accepted the heavy book with both hands.

"But remember this, Declan Ezra."

The instructor pointed toward his heart.

"Every great power comes with an even greater sacrifice."

His expression remained calm, but his words carried a weight that made Declan’s chest tighten.

"If the power you possess is beyond this world, then the sacrifice waiting for you at the end of that path may be beyond anything you could possibly comprehend."

Declan’s heart thumped harder.

"Know that, and fully accept it, before you walk too far down that path."

With those final words, the instructor returned to his seat and resumed reading, yet his warning had already struck Declan deeply.

He remembered the conversation he had once had with the system, back when he had asked why it was helping him.

Its answer had been simple.

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

║ The true answer has been determined to hold no value for the current power level the Host is in, and therefore, deemed unnecessary to reveal. ║

╚══════════════════════════════════════════╝

Back then, it had seemed like a simple and understandable answer.

Now, however, things no longer seemed so simple.

Declan silently rose to his feet and gave the Weapon Instructor a respectful bow before turning toward the dojo entrance.

As he disappeared through the door, the instructor’s eyes briefly left his book and followed the path the boy had taken.

His brows faintly furrowed, but after a moment, his expression settled again, and he quietly returned his attention to the manual in his hands.

___________________

Class was finally over for the day.

There had only been Weapon Class on the schedule, and it was already 3:30 PM. His challenge would begin at 5:00.

Declan had never visited the arena before, so he decided to head there early and familiarize himself with the place before his fight. Before doing that, however, he returned to his dorm room to put away the manual.

The Weapon Instructor’s words continued lingering in his mind, but every time he thought about them, an uncomfortable feeling settled over his heart, so eventually, Declan forced the thoughts aside.

He was growing too quickly...perhaps that was true.

But who was he without power?

What was he when he was merely an ordinary boy with a dream of becoming a great Mech Designer?

What was he when he had done everything right, earned everyone’s approval, and followed the path that society considered normal?

Had any of that saved him from having his skull sliced open?

No. Now, he was growing.

So what if he was growing too quickly?

He had once moved slowly and had once followed the normal path, and that path had ended with his death.

What other choice did he have besides this anomalous path he had stumbled onto?

If the sacrifice waiting at the end was greater than anything anyone could imagine, then perhaps that was only fair.

His growth was already happening at a pace beyond anything anyone could imagine as well. In the end, everything would be fine. And if it wasn’t, he would force it to be.

Even if he died at the end of this path, at least he would die knowing he had given everything he had.

With that thought settling firmly within him, Declan continued forward, his conviction growing stronger with every step.

He wouldn’t stop, only move faster.

Let the world be alarmed if it wanted to. He wouldn’t hide his power or deliberately slow himself down simply because the world considered his growth abnormal.

He had Boss Morg, a powerful Nexian, standing behind him and shielding him from the attention of people he currently had no hope of defeating.

That protection gave him room to grow, and he intended to use every bit of it.

If he rose high enough and fast enough, perhaps he would eventually reach a point where the world had no choice but to accept his existence, regardless of how anomalous his growth became.