Episode 43 – Trial of Blades

The air in the chamber was sharp. Not the still, heavy sharpness of silence—no. This was the razor edge of steel drawn, of blades honed by centuries of killing intent.

The moment they stepped into the trial, the walls themselves shifted, covered with weapons frozen in black stone. Greatswords. Katanas. Spears. Daggers. Each one whispered faintly, not with words—but with the echoes of battles long erased.

Kuro's emberlight eyes swept the chamber. He could feel the weight of the place pressing down on his soul, each whisper trying to brand itself onto him.

[System Alert: Trial of Blades – Commenced]

[Warning: Combat Memory Assimilation Active]

Akira stepped forward first. His katana gleamed faintly under the oppressive light, his stance already shifting into readiness. His jaw was firm, eyes focused—sharper than the countless blades surrounding him.

"This is it," he muttered, a smile curling at his lips. "A battlefield made for me."

---

Elira frowned, frostfire shimmering faintly at her fingertips. "This isn't just a battlefield. It's… a grave. Every weapon here carries the memory of its master's final fight."

Reina's emerald eyes glinted, arms crossed as she leaned into the shadows at the chamber's edge. "Then it's a banquet of ghosts. Fitting, don't you think?"

Akira cast her a glare. "Don't start."

She smirked, tilting her head. "What? Scared the swords of the dead will cut deeper than yours?"

"Tch." He drew his blade fully, the steel ringing in the air. "I'll cut them twice as fast just to shut you up."

---

The chamber pulsed. One by one, the weapons lining the walls quivered, their shadows stretching into form.

From the steel bled figures—warriors of every kind. Samurai with their twin blades. Knights bearing massive shields. Assassins cloaked in veils of shadow. Each one faceless, their features erased, yet their fighting aura intact.

Dozens. Then hundreds. An army of forgotten duelists, each one echoing the prime of their art.

Kuro's grip tightened on his emberblade. "…This trial isn't meant for a group. It's meant to crush a single swordsman under the weight of all those who came before."

The system flickered across his vision again:

[Trial Anchor: Akira Daisuke Selected]

[Rule: Duel to Endure]

The shadows froze, turning toward Akira as one. Their hollow blades gleamed with hunger.

Elira's eyes widened. "It chose him."

Akira exhaled slowly, lowering his stance, his katana angled forward. A grin spread across his face. "Good. Let them come."

---

The first shadow lunged.

Its greatsword swung in a deadly arc, wide enough to cleave the floor. Akira slid forward, blade flashing. His strike split through the shadow's midsection in a perfect iai slash.

The figure split apart—then dissolved into mist.

The second came immediately, a spear thrusting like lightning. Akira twisted aside, his katana dragging across the shaft, deflecting, then striking upward through the figure's chest.

Again, mist.

He didn't stop moving. Each strike flowed into the next, a perfect dance of steel. His every cut was precise, clean, merciless.

Reina's smirk widened as she watched. "Not bad, swordsman. You almost look like you know what you're doing."

Akira barked a laugh mid-swing, cutting down another shadow. "Don't blink. You'll miss me leaving you behind."

---

But the shadows didn't stop.

Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Each one fought with the skill of a lifetime, their techniques seamless, merciless.

Akira's arms began to burn, his breathing growing heavier, but his grin never faltered. The more they pressed, the sharper his eyes grew, each strike faster, more precise.

Still, they surrounded him, pressing from every angle.

Reina's daggers flashed suddenly, intercepting a shadow that slipped past Akira's guard. Her blades spun in arcs of black steel, slitting through its throat before dissolving into shadow.

Akira growled, panting. "I didn't ask for help."

Reina twirled her dagger, smirking. "And yet, you'd already be bleeding if I hadn't."

"Stay out of my fight."

"Make me."

---

Their clash was seamless—not against each other, but beside one another.

Akira's blade carved the path forward, powerful, precise. Reina's daggers darted through the gaps, surgical and swift, cutting down those he missed.

Where Akira's strikes were storms, hers were needles. Together, they tore through the trial's endless waves like a perfect contradiction—chaos and control.

Elira watched, frostfire glowing faintly in her hands, but she did not intervene. Her eyes flicked toward Kuro. "…Do you see it?"

Kuro nodded, emberlight steady. "The labyrinth isn't testing them alone. It's testing their balance."

---

Hours—or what felt like hours—bled into the fight.

The chamber's floor was littered with fading shadows, dissolving into mist as fast as they fell. But Akira's breaths grew ragged, his body screaming from the unending duel. His blade arm trembled, sweat dripping down his jaw.

Still, he stood tall.

The last wave gathered—ten shadow duelists, their weapons gleaming brighter, stronger. Their auras pressed down like crushing storms.

Akira lifted his blade once more, his knees buckling—but his grin returned.

"Come on… I'll cut every last one of you!"

---

Reina stepped forward, daggers drawn, her emerald gaze steady. "…Idiot. Don't carry it all alone."

He glanced at her, eyes widening faintly at the raw resolve in her voice.

She spun her daggers, shadow wrapping her steps. "We finish this together."

For the first time, Akira didn't argue.

"Fine. Try to keep up."

---

They charged.

Steel clashed in a storm of sparks. Akira met the knight's sword head-on, his katana shrieking against the steel. Reina slipped past a spear thrust, her daggers carving clean lines across the shadow's throat.

Together, they flowed as if they had trained for years—covering each other's weaknesses, amplifying each other's strengths.

One by one, the last shadows fell, their final echoes screaming into silence.

And then—only one remained.

A figure cloaked in black, carrying a blade identical to Akira's.

It stepped forward, mirroring his stance perfectly.

Elira gasped. "It's… him."

Kuro's emberlight eyes narrowed. "No. It's every blade he's ever crossed—condensed into one."

---

The duel was brutal.

Akira's blade met its mirror in flawless rhythm. Each strike was countered. Each slash reflected.

For every cut Akira landed, the figure responded with equal force.

Sweat poured from his skin, his arms trembling under the relentless mirror match.

But his eyes… they burned brighter.

With a roar, he pushed forward, his blade flashing in a final, desperate strike.

Steel clashed. Sparks rained.

The figure staggered—then dissolved into mist.

[System Update: Trial of Blades – Cleared]

[Recognition Earned: Sword Resonance – First Gate Unlocked]

Akira dropped to one knee, panting hard, his katana trembling in his hand.

Reina stood above him, daggers twirling once before vanishing. She looked down at him, lips curving into a faint smirk. "…Not bad, swordsman."

He barked a laugh, exhaustion breaking into pride. "Tch. Don't act like you weren't impressed."

Her emerald eyes softened, just slightly. "…Maybe I was."

---

Kuro and Elira stepped forward.

Elira's frostfire shimmered as she knelt briefly, her violet gaze soft. "You endured what no one else could. That strength… it's yours."

Kuro extended his hand, emberlight burning steady. Akira grasped it, pulling himself upright. Their eyes met briefly, warrior to warrior. No words were needed.

The chamber shifted, the pedestal cracking open to reveal another fragment—this one etched with the shape of a blade.

Kuro took it, his hand closing around the shard as it pulsed faintly.

Two fragments now. Two Seals broken.

But the path ahead… grew darker still.

---

[To Be Continued…]

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