Outskirts of the city near the border of the kingdom...
A lone man, a handsome figure with a priest like robes walks into the village that is being ravaged and burned by a bunch of bandits. The men's head are impaled on pikes, the women are being abused and the kids are being taken away. The figure stands in the front gate as he witness that humanity enjoys defiling their kind's own work.
"Truly a sad and ugly creatures you lot. I'm not sure why you deserve salvation." The man in priest like robe speaks as he see a crying child walking towards him. The wailing and vile laughter of the bandits still ringing through the night as this being approach and cover the crying child in his arms.
"Are you okay? Where are your parents?" The man ask as the girl is still crying as she can't answer him. He hold the girl's hand as they put some distance from the burning village. The man and the girl watch as the village burn down, and the man later see that the bandits are gathering at the front gate, and the crying girl starts to hold onto the man's sleeve.
"Oh, are you familiar with this song?" The man stands in front of the girl as to protect her about what's to come. The bandits spot the two of them, and the man looks back at them as he starts to clap. "Can you sing with me?" The man ask as he show the girl a happy smile.
"If you're happy and you know it clap your hands."
As the man sing that, the bandits that are charging toward them have been cut in half and got decapitated. This makes the other bandits question what is going on. The girl just follows the man's lyrics and beat.
"If you happy and you know it clap your hands."
Another clap, another bandit got decapitates by a slicing wind. When one of the bandits try to block this by casting spell to make an Earth Wall.
"If you're happy and you know it. Then your face will surely show it. If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."
As the man and the girl sang that, the bandit's blood spill in the Earth Wall he made as a spire just shoots out of the soil and hit his head. His brain matter flies out as his crew lost their will to fight and they flee.
"If you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet."
As the man stomp his foot a couple of times, a gigantic wall sprouts to block the fleeing bandits. The money they steal from the villagers have been drop off as the coins are clinking on the ground. They didn't know how to escape as the remaining bandits slowly accept their fate.
"If you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet."
In an instant, the surviving bandits are stab by a earthen spire. Their bodies hang like a wet cloth in spilling blood and flesh everywhere. The man looks at the girl and she seem to be happy at the very least.
"If you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet."
And the last bandit standing is impaled by a Earth Spire. All of their blood is dripping from it as the girl cheerfully stomps and claps. As the man is also singing the tune, a bunch of adventurers appear from the treeline as they are the response team sent by the Adventurer's Guild to stop the bandit attack. What they come across is a priest like man and a little girl.
"Hey! Hey! What's going on?" The apparently leader of this band of Adventurers ask the man as he turn his gaze to them. They all feel their hearts stop beating from fear as the man just looks at them and seem to be offended that they interrupt his song.
"I apologize if I offend you people." The man responds as the girl grabs his sleeve and she is scared to look at the Adventurers. "Hey, did you do that? What are you doing? Where is the girls parents?" The only woman on the party ask as he doesn't know how to respond to it.
"Where are you from? Its clearly not your daughter or related to that girl!" One of the Adventurer scream at him as he smiles and agrees. "You're right. Little missy you can go with them." The man say to the cowering girl as she loosen up her grip on his sleeve. "I'm scared, can you go with me mister?" The girl ask as he nods. She then completely separate from the man as she goes to the only woman of the party.
Once she goes to the party, the man sighs and face the burning village. "Can you help us? It is possible that there are other survivors in this attack!" The apparent leader ask the man's help as they try to approach the village while the man just looks up at the magnificent light of the spheric moon above.
"This world is pretty and all, but the humanity is filled with this undesirable ugliness. Don't you agree?" The priest-looking man ask as the leader of the party froze as he feels something weird in the air. "I will change humanity for the better. I while cut down this ugliness within." As the man say that he looks at his hand and he extend it.
After he extend his hand the adventurers are paralyzed shock as the orange light from the burning village is gone in a flash. The man left a massive, perfectly shaped crater where the village was standing. There are no explosion or any flash of light erasing the whole place. The man just stand in this moment, basking at the cold rays of moonlight.
"Wha... What... Are you?" The leader of the party ask as the man walks away from them and the man, whose action is like a monster, look back to him to answer. "My name is Soli, pleasure to meet you." And he continue to just walk away, paying them no mind.
This story make rounds several days later as Gran approach the ring and he is facing a intimidating man wielding a greatsword.
"What are you doing? You have no weapon? You broke man?" As Gran's foe say that he bust out laughing. Gran is just keeping his composure as he is yawning in the meantime.
"Hope you make my time worthwhile man. This is gonna get boring quick." Gran answer the man as he angrily holds his big sword to point at the Exorcist. "You' be begging for death after I'm done pummeling you up!" The foe tries to intimidate him, but Gran just take his standard stance as Sylvia and Gina are looking at the sidelines.
"You think he'll be pulling that powers?" Gina ask Sylvia as she just shrugs off and she observes him carefully. "I don't know, but I'm feeling he will not use it in a flashy way or something like that." Sylvia replies as the announcer drop his hand to start the fight.
The man swings his sword horizontally, where Gran just steps back a little and he close the distance in a single step. He gut check the man, where he drops the sword and angrily shouts to Gran. "You little insect!" Gran just looks away due to his saliva flinging to him. "Eew man, learn to speak properly next time, save you some breath as well."
The opponent tries to swing his fists several times to the Exorcist, yet he just dodge every single one and he block the last one with his left hand. Gran twist the hand as hard as he can, which cause the man to also lean where he force his hand. Gran end the fight in a axe kick to the chest. He makes a little crater on the ground as he check if the man is okay.
"I'm not a murderer. Stay still I'll heal you." Gran put his hand on the man's chest and several calculations later the man is healed but unconscious. He left the arena as he see the two ladies cheering his win. The two hang out their hands, and Gran clap it even though he's actually pissed earlier.
The matches continues. A notable black haired man manage to defeat his enemies clean as he dance using his ebony blade. The audience in the bleachers mutter that the man might be the Sword Saint. The man is covered with a bandana and a thick sunglasses. Gran is analyzes how this man moves, and he concludes one thing.
"That man can defeat me... Damn I hope I will not be fighting that man later!"
As he say that, the next match is about to begin in earliest. The fight is about Gina and Sylvia. Gran at the bleachers are just finishing his last snack as he looks at how the fight between the two might end. "I'm not in the know how Sylvia will perform, but based on how Gina fights, this will be a toss up." Gran thinks as Sylvia draws her sword, a blade of elegant features with ornaments screaming expensive but powerful.
Gina cast a pillar of light from her left hand as she calls upon her spear. Gran then hears a bunch of cheers from opposite side of the arena, a screaminh coming feom other Valkyries. "Oh that's the rest of the Valkyries? I wanna know them personally." Gran thinks but he feels the intensity eminating from the arena.
"Gina! This time I'll prove my strength over you!" Sylvia declares as she lift her blade to take her stance.
"Sylvia, my bet will make sure that you're defeat is certain! I'll end it here." Gina points her spear as the golden sun hits tip of their weapons. The announcer raise his right hand and the hearts of everyone witnessing this battle are trembling while the dust is finally setting down as the announcer's hand swiftly drops.
"FIGHT!"
As this rings through everybody's ears Gina and Sylvia dash through the air and their weapons cross and the stinging clash make everybody's ear ring. In a flash the two exchange fast slashes and stabs. Gina gains advantage as she manage to scratch Sylvia's left cheek as Sylvia answer this with a quick jab and a body check, making distance as she swings her blade overhead. Gina manage to lean back and she tries to stab Sylvia again, but Sylvia parry the spear downward, where it produce a large volume of dust and the Holy Knight hit her with the sword's pommel as a punishment.
"You little..." As Gina say that Sylvia aggressively swings her sword upward to make her dodge to her left. Gina spins as she imbue some mana to her spear and swiftly target Sylvia's right leg. Sylvia evades this by moving alongsife her opponent and she lifts her sword to make a downward slash. Gina parry this strike as she push out Sylvia and hit her neck with the butt of her spear. She didn't let up as she also does several small swipes to hit the Holy Knight as the opponent retreats. The Valkyrie smiles as the tides turn on her favor.
"I'll stop holding back then." Sylvia scowls as she also imbue a lot of mana on her sword. She hops couple of paces as Gina does the same. It signals that the two doesn't want to waste anytime as the Announcers and the Mages have seen the rising mana from the two. These two are gonna be engaging their Finishers. "Hey hey!! Finishers aren't allowed in this contest!" The announcer calls out panicking as the two just ignore this.
The barriers for the audience goes up as Gran is asking himself if these two will take each other out. He prepares to go down as he makes a small hole in the barrier set using a pebble with his Repel imbue in it. The energy rises as the whole place starts trembling and the destruction is rising up. Sylvia's sword turns gold as Gina's spear becomes fiery red. Gina prepares to throw her spear as Sylvia raise her sword overhead to fire her Finisher.
"STOOOOOP!"
As the two release their devastating Finishers the crowd roars and the arena are instantly destroyed. The mana clash as it swirls like a tornado and it create a destruction that will eliminate everyone there expcept the ones who fired it. Gran cast his Compression to stop the destructive energy from Sylvia's Finisher as the mysterious swordsman from earlier parry Gina's spear down and have to tank the excess mana for himself. This blown out his sunglasses and the bandana, revealing his identity.
"Woah! Is that the Sword Saint Van?" The Announcer ask as the crowd cheers and roar further as the mysterious fighter earlier is the known hero of the Kingdom, Van.
As Gran and Van intrude to the arena, this disqualified both ladies as they are told that using Finishers are not to be used in this contest. "Huh? You joking?! There's no such thing as that rules from last year!" Gina retort as the announcer shares to her the first rule in the invitation poster. "Oh... Why me? She started it!" Gina ask again as she didn't want to be disqualified.
"I'm sorry Gran if you see that side of me. I am somehow getting unsightly when I'm with Gina." Sylvia says as she is asking Gran his forgiveness about the matter. Gran just tap her shoulder as he just tell her to forget it. "Well it is an explosive display! That's what I'm expecting when I'm attending events such as this." Gran answer as she just bow and turns to leave.
The Announcer stands in the decimated arena to announce that the battles will be postpone for today as they will be fixing the arena itself. The only royalty watching the matches earlier, Princess Lucy, have taken her leave in order to meet with someone. Van approach Gina and Sylvia in order to catch up as Gran have taken his leave in order to return to Arturo's stall.
"It looks like you have fun there young'un. What happen?" Arturo ask as he is attending quite a number of customer buying. Gran quickly help the old man as he tell him what happen earlier. As Arturo and Gran manage to sell the fruits, a man with sunglasses approach the stall and Gran remember him all too well. "Oh, old man, it looks like we have something here. I'll attend to this first." Gran inform Arturo as he just nod.
"You need something?" As Gran ask, Van extend his hand for a handshake. "You must be Gran? I heard too many amazing things from you from the girls. Hope you fight seriously tomorrow." The man states as Gran extend his hand. "Damn, you are sizing me you..." Gran thinks but he can't back down since it would be a shame for everyone that witness them here. As he shake Van's hand he feel how powerful this man is.
"Oh wow, he's like an ocean! Vast and powerful. Always moving, friendly or foe. Too lethal to handle." Gran assess as he feels the Flow within the man.
"Is this... Void? I'm feeling the abyss in him. Better be careful then!" Van assess as he breaks the handshake and he leave with a smile. "This is just the semi finals but this fight is what I've been waiting for!" Van thinks as he just left with quite an impression about Gran.
Gran and Arturo returns to Martha's Inn, where a bunch of people are checking in due to the incoming end of the Week's Festival. "I hope to see Princess Lucy's beauty tomorrow!" One of the patrons remark as he chug his beer. "You sound creepy saying that to an 18 year old princess." The other retort as he growls to him. "I'm not that old you sick..."
Gran shrug off his shoulders as he drop every fruit cart and he notice that the old man manage to sell off his fruits. "Well young'un this is just normal when there's festivities!" Arturo proudly say how as he feels his back cracking out. "I hope you'll be sleeping fine later old man." Gran says as he laughs.
The next day...
As Gran yawns the day to start, he meditates for a short while as he feels the Dimensional Flow surround him. He release his Astral Form for a while to wade in this place. He hold the Flow in his hands as he feels how soothing it is. "Good as always..." Gran returns to his body as he check his hand and stretch his legs. He do some warm ups as he opens the door. He is wearing his shirt and joggers when he see that Gina is standing on door, angrily tapping her left foot as she is waiting for somebody.
"Oh Gina! You manage to find where I am?" Gran casually ask as the leader of Valkyrie approach him and grab his shirt. "What are you thinking? You are getting late for your fight?!" Gina say as he looks at the clock. "Oh yeah... Well let's go!" Gran position himself like a runner and he run through the streets, leaving Gina amazed. "What is that man thinking!"
Gran reach the newly repaired arena as he notice that he is just wearing flip flops and casual clothes. As he enters the arena, Sylvia greets him and she's shocked as to why he is wearing such clothes. "Hah! I just woke up! Gina just calls me first in the morning. You girls are too active."
"And you are too carefree Mr. Gran! You'll be fighting the Sword Saint Van!" As she remarks that he told her that Van visited him yesterday and he knows how this fight will end. "Ugh... Whatever. Just go and enter then." Sylvia answer as he waves goodbye and he sees a man with black hair and a twinkish stature standing and preparing to draw his sword.
"Good morning Mr. Gran! Hope you rest well." Van politely greets Gran as he starts popping his knuckles and he stretch his legs for flexibility. "Night's a good rest, how about you? Hope you sharpen that sword up." Gran answer as he notice the man is having two swords hanging in his waist, something he didn't saw on yesterday's matches.
"You sly one, are you saying you'll be going all out against me?" Gran says as he looks at the dual swords. Van nods as his face change into a more serious expression. "If I need to defeat the abyss, I should know when to look or not." Van answer as he takes his stance.
"Alright this is the start of semi finals! Gran vs the Sword Saint! The one and only, Van!!!!" As the announcer say that the crowd roars and the cheers become louder. The noise are completely block on the fighter's esrs as they feel that this incoming fight is something that they should take seriously or they will be taken out in an instant.
"But before we begin folks I just want to share you the prices for every contestant that made it this far! First is that everyone making to semifinals will win 2000 coins! For the 4th place is an additional 500 coins. For third place the price will be the priced dagger of Princess Lucy!" As soon as the announcer say that, an eye candy girl goes beside the announcer holding a box and as she open the box, Gran's eyes shines through.
"Oh my God! The Flow attuning into it!!" The Exorcist drools over as he wants to snatch the blade for himself, but he control his hand.
"Second place winner will win this emerald jewel that the appraisers give it a worth of 5000 coins! And for the Champion, you'll be re-cei-ving this land title that's worth 20k worth of property and 10k coins!" The announcer excitedly say as the crowd cheers.
All of that doesn't matter to Gran as he only wants the dagger with a great affinity and very attuned to the Flow. "Okay! Let's do this Mr. Sword Saint!" Gran says as he takes his stance.
"Roger that." Van draws two of his sword, one is a straight sword and the other is a short one.