Chapter 7111: Rogere Sulie Andraste’s participation in one of the arena tournaments could be considered her unofficial debut to the public. It was the first time she earnestly fought and showcased all of her combat skills that she had developed up to this point. She did her Larkinson heritage proud. There had been plenty of people who assumed that Andraste would not be able to amount to much as a fighter due to the fact that both of her parents were mech designers. How could a pair of nerds possibly understand how to nurture their child into a warrior? It turned out that those expectations were completely inaccurate. Sure, Ves and Gloriana might not be true warriors, but their clan was filled with skilled and honorable soldiers! Each of them had imparted their skills and instilled them with their martial values and principles. Ketis and the Swordmaidens had especially shaped her views towards combat and her place in society. This became evident in how Andraste carried herself and presented herself towards a growing number of viewers. Andraste possessed the typical confident bearing of a Swordmaiden. Her blade fell into her hand as if it was an extension of her body. Whenever she fought, her movements were fast, purposeful and unpredictable. She did not maneuver around the arena ground as if she was flowing through water. She was too impatient and did not possess a methodical mindset. Instead, she surged forward like lightning and struck with thunder. Her blows were fast, discordant and difficult to defend against at the best of times. Such erratic and powerful movements should have strained her young body and drained her stamina in an instant. Yet her unnatural physique was so remarkable that she was able to keep this up for a long time, easily outlasting all of her dueling opponents as if she was the only adult in the room. None of the children in her age bracket stood a chance. Many of them had received at least rudimentary training, but the intensity was often disappointing. They were still children, after all. How could they possibly turn into warriors in just a handful of years? Even Andraste did not train her martial skills most of the time, but she still managed to crush every kid that was assigned to fight against her next. With each victory on her record, Andraste gained more and more courage. Her grin turned increasingly maniacal as the young girl relished in the glory and honor that she was earning with every thrust of her blade or the pull of trigger. None of the kids stood a chance. A few even cried when Andraste dismantled their proud fighting skills within seconds. While Andraste clearly favored her sword, she did not insist on defeating all of her opponents in a sword duel. She used her laser pistol whenever it was convenient. Even if the protective suits worn by the duelists were able to resist a lot of damage, Andraste’s aim was impeccable. No matter how well the kids tried to dodge out of the way, she was able to land repeated laser beams onto the same spot or protective zone. If her opponent did not try to close the distance or eliminate her directly, then she would definitely be able to finish the fight by focusing her ranged attacks and landing all of her shots on the same armor sections. If this fight took place between adults, then her opponents may be able to whip up a technical or non-technical solution. That was not the case. The other children that participated in the competition needed twice as much training to even have a chance of winning a fight. [And the winner is Andraste Larkinson! The young lioness of the Larkinson Clan has once again disabled another challenger. Who remains that shall be able to stall her momentum?] Even the commentators started to hype up Andraste as if she was already ordained for greatness. Andraste grinned as she basked in all of the attention she received. She understood to a much better degree why soldiers fought for glory recognition. "This is too addicting!" In the end, Andraste easily managed to win her tournament. She even earned the qualifications to join a tournament that pitted teenagers from each other. These children were considerably older and more difficult to outfight. They were taller and possessed genuine skills. Their augmentations were also more extensive and powerful. All in all, these kids finally managed to give Andraste the pressure she needed to excel under pressure. Her opposition was much greater this time. Perhaps they were taken aback when told to fight against a younger and shorter child, but they did not hold back out of respect and out of a desire to win against a woman who was bound to become a hero in the future. "You fight well, young girl." A man spoke as he held a plasma rapier in his grasp. "Yet do not dismiss the rest of us so quickly. We have our own pride." Andraste looked frustrated as she laid helplessly on the ground. Her suit of armor worked against her and froze in place when it registered that her opponent’s plasma rapier had expertly dismantled her limbs in rapid succession! She felt she would have been able to win this bout if she had been on guard against his speed. He moved too quickly. The teenage boy who should be at least 5 years older possessed a lithe but athletic build that was clearly geared towards speed. He maneuvered like a ghost and evaded most of her ranged attacks as if he was able to react several times faster than herself. This was also the first time that she had met her match in swordplay. While her own superdimensional sword was able to resist the damage inflicted by the plasma rapier, the latter’s much lighter mass meant that it was easier for the boy to outmaneuver her own blade and land her hits! He had taught Andraste a good lesson about fighting while being overmatched in the physical department to such a considerable degree. The young lady gazed at the boy with a more speculative expression. Now that she went over what she had initially seen, the boy had deep attainments in training, augmentations and also auxiliary qi cultivation. He was able to unite all of these strengths into a cohesive package that was ready to tackle the future as red humanity’s latest champion! "Who... are you?" She asked. "Did you not recall my name when it was announced?" The boy looked half-offended but also amused. "My name is Rogere Sulie. I am one of many descendants of the Sulie Ancient Clan of the newly independent Terran Alliance." The mention of the Sulie Ancient Clan struck a chord inside the combat-obsessed girl. "Your ancient clan is in charge of SKL Mech Industries, one of the largest mainstream mech manufacturers!" Rogere smiled as if he had heard this reaction far too many times. "You have heard of us. That is good. We are indeed one of the controlling interests in SKL. While its business has suffered due to all of the economic shocks our society has suffered in the past few years, we hope this decline will end this year. Our company will recover in time and supply our customers with mechs that shall eradicate our enemies with our updated product lines." "I see." Andraste said, not at all interested in the business side of mechs. "You fought well even when compared to other boys of your age. Are you a mech cadet?" "No. Not a formal one, at least." He responded. "I am a norm, originally destined to become a civilian or a staff officer or whatever. Your father has changed that. He has enabled people like us to gain the chance to pilot a mech. A real mech, even if it comes with many strings attached. Not everyone in my ancient clan believes I am making a wise decision by trying to become a Carmine mech pilot, but I have no doubt that I am doing what is right for myself." "Have you already formed a Blood Pact?" "Not yet." Rogere responded with an expectant smile. "The Yellow Jacket is beneath me. I am waiting for your father to complete a more advanced Carmine mech design project. According to what I have been able to hear, your father and his Terran collaborators are making rapid progress, so I do not have to wait much longer. In the meantime, I can continue to strengthen my piloting credentials by studying and mastering the theoretical course load of a mech cadet." Rogere’s life trajectory was undoubtedly harder and less straightforward than that of a norm, but at least he was still able to pursue his dream! Andraste knew how much his father had single-handedly changed the rules as far as this was concerned, but this was one of the few times she became exposed to such a case in person. "I am glad that my father is able to give you so much hope for the future. I don’t know how far ahead he is in his mech designs, but I hope that he will give you your hope sooner rather than later." The two continued to strike up a conversation as they retreated from the arena ground together. Both of them had to prepare for their upcoming matches. Rogere would be continuing on in the winner’s bracket while Andraste had been cast down to the loser’s bracket of the tournament. Each of them still had a chance to win the championship of this competition. Andraste grew determined to defeat Rogere in fair combat next time! Still, even as they strategized against each other, they still maintained their friendly demeanors towards each other. "So you are a reformed sword practitioner?" "Yes, but only to a point." Rogere replied in his cultured voice. "My ancient clan was still too hidebound by tradition during my younger years. I received swordsmanship instruction from hand-picked tutors and veteran mech pilots. It was only a year after the Age of Dawn commenced that I was able to persuade my parents and elders that there is greater merit in studying traditional swordsmanship practiced by your clan at the time. I never regretted this decision." Rogere Sulie’s swordsmanship therefore turned into a blend of clean techniques interspersed with a handful of extraordinary moves. He was able to use the former to keep tricky opponents like Andraste at bay. He was able to rely on the latter to surprise her and overpower her more than once. Andraste truly became convinced that Rogere would turn into a fierce swordsman and ultimately swordsman mech pilot once he matured! Whether Rogere had a future as a swordmaster or a high-ranking mech pilot remained to be seen. Even Andraste knew better than to predict such breakthroughs. Willpower cultivation was not considered the hardest cultivation approach by far. "How is it that you were able to block my laser pistol attacks so easily with your plasma rapier?" She asked him next. "Its blade is so thin, but you were able to maneuver it into place before my weapon discharged the energy beam." Rogere smiled and tapped the side of his head. "The magic is not that sophisticated. My cranial implant and auxiliary qi cultivation have both enhanced my reaction speed, precision and other traits from different angles. When combined, the whole is greater than the sum of their parts. This is what children of our age range have to worry about." Only elite descendants such as Rogere received such expensive and luxurious treatments, but this kid truly showcased what the next generation of children had in store. "I am not even the best fighter among my classmates." Rogere admitted. "There are impeccable fighters among us who can consistently defeat me because they have the edge in body constitution. " Andraste’s eyes almost popped when she heard that. She had struggled greatly against Rogere earlier. To think that Rogere was not even the best. Andraste grew both fearful and excited about the prospects of challenging these growing elites.