The two Blood Shadows rushed in towards him the moment they manifested in the white world. Unfortunately for them, Alnea had already learned his lesson. Instead of rushing towards his enemies, he stayed where he was, waiting for his enemies to come to him. And while he was at it, he also went through the conditions to break the three records in his head.

After his first Trial, he already knew that equalling the records of the Trial would not earn him any extra rewards. And it would certainly not help him much to improve his rank either. At best, if he kept equalling all the records in all the trials, then he might enter the ranks of the top hundred in the Warrior Hall. Maybe even higher.

Still, there was a limit to the heights that just equalling the records could bring him to. To reach the top, to rank first in the entire Warrior Hall, just equalling some records was not enough. And since there was a ranking of Wanderers in the city, he had to reach the top. After all, his aim was to become the greatest Wanderer in the world. If he could not even surpass the Wanderers in the city, then how was he going to surpass all the Wanderers in the world?

In any case, Alnea was not satisfied with just equalling some records. However, breaking the records was not easy. Especially if he considered all of them together… Defeating two Blood Shadows within seven seconds, that too, without any Martial Styles, and in just one move… It was practically impossible. Unless…

Making up his mind, Alnea did not hesitate to jump in action. Or rather, he did not have time to deliberate on his actions. Because the two Blood Shadows were already upon him. Thankfully, practising Martial Styles, experiencing Fortune Springs, and eating Adolescent Stage Oren Beasts every day for more than half a year had tempered his body far beyond the level of his peers from some minor Orthodoxies. Even without his Aspects, he was far faster than the two Blood Shadows.

Predicting the attacks of the two Blood Shadows, Alnea jumped back, before moving towards his right, circling around the Blood Shadows, forcing them to follow his movements. And they did follow his movement, just not as he had expected them to. Instead of coming at him in a straight line, they spread out, and came at him from two different directions, announcing the failure of his first plan.

Alnea did not care much though, and shifted to his second plan. Taking a deep breath, he bent his knees, and raised his heels, gathering all his strength on the balls of his feet. And the moment that the Blood Shadows came at him, he pushed on the ground, and jumped above their head, avoiding their initial blows.

But the Blood Shadows were not some inexperienced Wanderers. They were manifests of the Warrior Hall, there to test his mastery of Martial Styles. The moment they missed their attacks, and saw him jump above their head, they pivoted on their feet, and turned towards him with—

Alnea unsheathed his sword in mid air, and used the weight of the sword to shift his position, before unleashing a Golden Wheel of Death. Without the Aspects, of course. Still, the reach of his sword, his exceptional strength, and gravity, along with his perfect position, and timing, allowed him to slice through the head of both the Blood Shadows, ending his trial. The blood red figures paused, and scattered into the white world, before the white world scattered into the darkness, leaving just him, and the newly manifested blood red curtain of light.

“Congratulations, Blood Soldier N 06 08499, for passing the second level of the Initial Stage Martial Style Trial.”

“You have cleared the Trial perfectly.”

“Time taken to defeat your opponent: Thirteen seconds.”

“Moves made to defeat your opponent: One.”

“Martial Styles used: One.”

“Records broken: One.”

“Perfect clearance of Trials: Two.”

“Blood Soldier N 06 08499, you have been rewarded with forty Blood Coins.”

“Do you wish to continue with the Trials, or do you wish to leave the Trial Space?”

“Reminder: Regardless of how many Trials you challenge, you will have to pay ten Blood Coins every time you enter the Initial Stage Trial Space.”

Finally, Alnea thought with a smile, before sheathing his sword, and breaking out in a laugh.

“How was your trial?”

“At least you know how to learn,” Yuri said in a fake scoff, trying to hide the hint of pleasure in her voice. “The second level Blood Shadows… Not only did they increase in strength, but I think even their fighting skills were better than before.”

“…They were indeed a little more flexible than before. But that did not stop me from breaking a record.”

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“…You broke a record?”

“Impressed?”

“…How did you do it?”

“Want to know? Then smile for me.”

“…Pervert.”

“I just want you to smile. How does that make me a pervert?”

“Since I say that you are a pervert, then you are a pervert.”

“…If you keep calling me a pervert, then I might really end up doing something perverted.”

“I will be waiting for you then, pervert.”

Forget it, Alnea thought. Winning against Yuri was impossible. At least not in arguments.

“I used a Martial Style and took my time to align the Blood Shadows in a line, before defeating them in just one move.”

“…Sacrificing performance in two areas to break the record in one. It does sound plausible. But it also sounds opportunistic. I am not sure if the Trial will allow for such a loophole…”

“…Do you have any other ideas?”

“Just because I do not have any ideas, does not mean that we should try yours. Besides, I do not think that your idea is as good as you think it is. Defeating two Blood Shadows with one move is easy. But as the difficulty of the trial increases, their numbers will also increase. If you stick to defeating them in as few moves as possible, then you will end up sacrificing too much of your time. Are you sure that you want to do this? What if you are wrong, and end up dropping your rank?”

“…This is just the Initial Stage Trial. There are two more Stages of Trials in the Warrior Hall. Even if I end up being wrong, I can make it up with the other Trials. But if I am right, then reaching the top hundred rank would easier than we had initially thought. We might even make it to top ranks.”

“…Fine. But if we are doing it, then we are doing it my way.”

“…You agreed so easily?”

“I cannot let you advance through the ranks all by your own, can I? Now, let’s see. The third record cannot be broken. That leaves us with only the first and second records.”

“…Unless I use more than one Martial Styles, I am not sure of breaking the record of time.”

“Leave that to me then. You focus on defeating the Blood Shadows in as few moves as possible.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am at the Advanced Stage.”

“Many Wanderers are at the Peak Stage when they come to the city.”

“And yet, you still broke their record, did you not?”

“…Maybe they did not think of focussing on just one record.”

“Do not underestimate other Wanderers. Many of them might be dumb enough to not figure out the tricks of the Trials, but after millions of years, there ought to be some clever ones who guessed how to break the records. However, thinking of a solution, and actually committing to it are two different things. The courage needed to leave the already explored path to search for a better path in the unknown is not something anyone can have. So, you do not need to underestimate yourself.”

“…Are you not just praising yourself in disguise?”

“…I was wrong. You are nothing more than a fool.”

“Joke, joke,” Alnea hurriedly said, letting out an awkward laugh. “Of course, I believe in you. None of the Wanderers in the city can compare to you. As long as you focus on completing the battle as soon as possible, breaking some records should not be hard for you. But what about Cecilia? Will she figure out the tricks to breaking the records?”

“…Even if she does figure out the tricks, her fighting style does not allow her to break the record of defeating the Blood Shadows in as few moves as possible. And she is not strong enough to break the record of time without getting hit by the Blood Shadows. Rather than risking it all, it would be better if she sticks to getting a perfect clearance, and equalling as many records as she can.”

“…She is not going to stop complaining.”

“…There is nothing we can do.”

“Fine. Let us break some records then.”

Once again, without any hesitation, Alnea reached towards the curtain of light floating in front of him, and selected the third trial.

“Defeat three third level Initial Stage Blood Shadows.”

“…Perfect clearance condition: Defeating the Blood Shadows without getting injured.”

“Record one: Defeating the Blood Shadows in fifteen seconds.”

“Record two: Defeating the Blood Shadows in three moves.”

“Record three: Defeating the Blood Shadows without using any Martial Style.”

“Your Trial will begin at the count of sixty.”

“…Three.”

“Two.”

“One.”

“Zero.”

The curtain of light shattered, just as the white world manifested itself once again. Or did he enter the white world? It did not matter. Breaking himself away from his thoughts, and suppressing them under the Serenity of his Heart, Alnea looked at the Blood Shadows in front of him.

From the first glance, they did not look any different from the three Blood Shadows he had fought earlier. Yet, the level of danger they were exuding was greater than previous Blood Shadows. It probably had something to do with their greater number, but Alnea could not deny that they were stronger than the Blood Shadows in the previous trials. And this was just the third level Trial. To complete the tenth level Trial…

What about ten Blood Shadows? He had once fought dozens of Oren Beasts, including those in the intermediate phase, all by himself. And that was when he was still at the Initial Stage. Even if he could not use Aspects, or his Arcanas, fighting some Blood Shadows should not be a problem for him. Steeling his resolve, Alnea felt his Serenity return to him, just as the three Blood Shadows pounced upon him.