The Martial Unity

('That's not all.') Rui mused. ('I'll probably be approached outside the Martial Contest as well.')

Not everybody was on good terms with the Virodhabhasa Faith. Certainly, not everybody was a partner or a benefactor of the religion. There were those who sought to scout Martial Squires who weren't going to be part of the banquet. They would certainly try to approach Rui outside of the banquet.

Of course, he highly doubted that they would dare try using unsavory means to establish contact with him within the Virodha Theocracy given that he was a treasured contestant of the Martial Contest and the Martial Festival.

In that case, he would still have to be more careful since these people were less willing to play by certain unspoken rules and guidelines that the others who were partaking in the banquet would.

Regardless of what they did though, Rui already knew what he needed to do. 

('Polite non-commitance.') 

He definitely could not agree to anything, but it probably wasn't wise to outright refuse them. They would probably offer means to communicate with them if he said he would consider whatever lucrative deal they were trying to get him to agree to. All he needed to do was make sure he didn't piss anybody off. That was definitely something worth striving to avoid, but aside from that, he had not intention of accepting any of their offers.

Once he returned to the Martial Union as a Martial Senior, hopefully, he would have everything he needed. The powerful organization did not lose even when compared to international powerhouses across the entire continent, and he probably didn't need anything else except it.

Regardless, everything was set, and he knew what he needed to do in order to get what he wanted to get. He spent the rest of his day simply wandering around, trying to make himself grounded and composed. 

He even trained, but it wasn't to grow stronger. It was just that the discipline behind his routine helped him focus and enter a state of concentration very easily.

He also spent some time lightly traveling around the Virodha Theocracy. It was a pleasure to subject himself to the beauty of the place, especially since he knew he probably wasn't going to be back here for a long time.

Eventually, enough time passed and the next day arrived. It was time for the event to begin. The opening ceremony was soon to commence. Rui was content wearing his regular Martial Art attire, but apparently, the organizers had a different idea.

"…Really?" Rui raised an eyebrow. 

"Yes, sir," His guide and manager bowed. "You may wear whatever Marital Art attire you please for the Martial Contest, however, the opening ceremony is an important ceremony, and you will be expected to wear dignified attire worthy of the event. You will also need to be groomed appropriately."

Rui sighed, before him was a group of women who were equipped with all kinds of tools that he had no understanding of. "Alright, let's get this over with. I'm not taking my mask off for even half a second, I'm letting you know that now."

The mask took care of his face, keeping it clean despite it never being taken off his face. It was equipped with esoteric substances that drained sweat while exfoliating his skin and ensuring that it was clean, furthermore, it made sure that his skin tone did not lighten and matched that of the rest of his body. It was quite a handy mask.

"Do not fret sir, they have been trained to deal with Martial Artists that do not wish to disclose their appearance as you do. They will work around this limitation."

Rui sighed. The three women escorted him to a bath where they began to brush and rub at him like he was a dirty statue that needed to be restored to its sparkling clean state. Rui did not enjoy even a bit of that, or the fashion part of their grooming session where they took measurements of his body before procuring a fancy ostentatious Martial Art attire with a symbol of the Seonmun town on it, signifying that he was in fact the champion of the Seonmun town.

He had to admit, the end result was pretty good. Violating as they were, the women knew what they were doing. He probably looked better than he ever had in his entire life.

It wasn't long before he found Master Deivon at his doorstep, waiting for him.

"Good, you look fine," Master Deivon nodded.

He too looked particularly well-groomed with an especially ostentatious attire that made him look especially important. 

"Was this really necessary?" Rui grumbled. "We're Martial Artists, not fashion models."

"The opening ceremony is an important and significant ceremony. The image that it presents will affect the image of the Virodhabhasa Faith, and the Virodha Theocracy. If we allow you Martial Squires to wear your worn out, torn, and patched up Martial Art attire during this ceremony, it will reflect badly on us."

"I don't have to wear this during the actual Martial Contest, correct?"

"Correct, you will be provided high-quality custom-fitted Martial Art attire of any style and sort of your choosing so long as it doesn't involve working parts that aid in combat."

"I'll take you up on that,"

Master Deivon immediately took to the air once they walked out. "Come, we don't need to use carriages to get there, and I personally prefer traveling by myself rather than a carriage."

"I thought it was at the center of the nation." Rui raised an eyebrow. 

"We'll be fine unless you're especially slow for a Martial Squire," Master Deivon burst forward, forcing Rui to exert himself to keep up.

It wasn't long before they reached the site for the opening ceremony. Instantly, they drew many eyes to them as they landed in the large colosseum. Thankfully, Rui still had his Mind Mask on so he did not draw any special attention from the contestants. Master Deivon, on the other hand, drew attention from the Martial Masters around.