"Be careful, don't push yourself too hard, okay?" Lashara asked with a worried expression.
"Don't worry mom, I'll be fine." Rui insisted, yet she didn't appear convinced.
It was a cold morning, as always. Rui had was standing at the entrance door of the orphanage, facing Lashara and other members of the Orphanage. Three days had gone by and now it was time for Rui to return to the Academy.
The Academy allowed for short vacations per season for a reason. So that students didn't lose their disciplined mindset. This was especially true for students at earlier stages. The Foundation and Exploration Stages, in particular. Three days was around the sweet spot where there was just enough time for a break, but not long enough to break the students out of their mindsets. They all knew they were returning to the Academy in three days so they psychologically didn't relax too much and adapt to their circumstances, knowing they would be returning soon.
Rui wasn't too sad either, he loved his family and truly enjoyed catching up with them. However, three days was a lot of time for chit-chat and banter. He had conversed with all of them for hours and the all the standard topics of conversation one would engage in when conversing in family reunions were already over. Rui had satisfied his homesickness and now his urge to complete missions grew even stronger!
He couldn't wait to get a taste of what it was like to be a Martial Artist. Furthermore, he couldn't wait to earn credits so that he could purchase higher-grade techniques. His Martial Art yearned for greater development! His Martial Path yearned for more depth!
He felt the itch to begin running towards the Academy even in the middle of his farewell! Immediately invoking even stronger feelings of guilt. Which he pressed down, forcefully.
"Alright mom. Everybody. Goodbye." He said. "I'll be back sooner than you think, so don't miss me too much." he grinned.
He began his journey once he finished exchanging farewells with all those who were there to see him off.
This time, he focused purely on speed. He didn't care to conserve stamina by getting a rickshaw like he did when he applied for the Entrance Exam. Back then he had a difficult exam to give, he needed every ounce of his stamina.
Thinking about that day made him feel nostalgic. More than a year had passed since that day, and he had gotten vastly stronger since then. The bloodlust test in round one, the bouncing slimes, the tag stealing game.
In hindsight, those trials were trivial. In his current state he would comfortably place top five or even top three.
He was considerably stronger than the Kane from back then, who had scored twice his score and ranked number four.
The only real problems would be Fae and, of course, Nel.
Rui suddenly did a double-take as he realized it had been truly a long time since he thought of Nel. He had been so engrossed in his Martial Path that he had long forgotten about the number one freshman of their batch.
"I don't think he's an Apprentice." Rui murmured. He hadn't seen Nel in the Apprentice sparring sessions, which he would have had he actually discovered his Martial Path.
"Maybe I should look into him when I get back." Rui shrugged, though he was curious why someone so talented was being stalled so long. Nel was so gifted physically, he was able to defeat an Apprentice while still being a novice. Relying largely on brute strength. Only after Rui became a Martial Apprentice did he realize how absurd that feat was, even if Felix was much weaker back then, much weaker than Rui was now.
Rui wasn't sure why he was taking so long to discover his Martial Path.
"Then again, one year isn't abnormal." Rui remembered. He was the freak, not the norm.
"Once he discovers his Martial Path, he'll be a menace." Rui concluded. The mental evolutions that discovering the Martial Path provided would complement his innate physical gifts remarkably. Rui was a bit curious how strong he would be as a Martial Apprentice, would he able to beat Martial Squires?
What about Squire Kyrie?
Rui shook his head. Kyrie would mop the floor with him hard with just a portion of her full combat power even if he became a Martial Apprentice. She was just ridiculous.
Rui dispelled such superfluous thoughts as he reached the central districts of Hajin, he could even see the large prominent figure of the Mantian branch of the Martial Academy standing proudly in the distance.
Thankfully it was still quite early in the morning, since he left well ahead of the already early reporting time, so the traffic and rush were still low.
He pushed himself to the limit as he used Parallel Walk, Balance Direction and Helical Breathing to their maximum, zipping through the town as fast as a sprinting horse.
"Ahhh, we're finally here." Rui sighed in relief. He smoothly grabbed his student ID, verifying his status as a student of the Academy to the security before rushing towards the Apprentice dorms.
"Good to be back!" Rui grinned as he opened the room to his dorm. "Maybe I'll take a rejuvenation potion or two before hitting Kane up and heading to out to check out some missions."
Just as he knocked on Kane's room after having put his belongings away, he remembered something important.
"Oh wait. He's out on a long mission." Rui recalled, before sighing. He shrugged, looks like he would have to do this by himself, it was a shame Kane wasn't around to show him the ropes.
"Maybe I'll run into Fae and Milliana." He hoped, though he wasn't sure if they were back yet. He was quite early, after all.
"No no no." He shook his head. "This is my personal endeavor. I can handle it by myself."
He headed down to the commission department, drawing attention to a staff member boldly.
"Excuse me. I would like to apply for an Apprentice-level mission please."