Path of a saint

'I was first born in titan as the son of a duke who rose to his position as a reward for his achievements as a knight leader in the empire'

Grid listened to every word muller spoke with the utmost attention.

'As a family of knights, we were trained in swordsmanship since an early age, I was rather isolated from the other noble families as my father was discriminated against for carrying half the blood of a commoner, the other half being that of a baron, so my sword and family were all I had. Me and my childhood and only friend Alfred, a commoner from the slums, were gifted in combat.'

'Despite the big difference in status, I continued secretly meeting up with him while he worked and took care of his young siblings until we became knights at the age of 14'

Muller's eyes showed warmth as the scenery in front of Grid started changing. Two young lads carrying a sword and standing among a legion of adults could be distinguished by their red armor.

'We rose to the position of red knights at the age of 21 after being recognized for our feats in battles, we fought in harmony, each of us leading a legion of knights, but the days of glory never last long...'

The scenery changed once again, a battlefield occupied grid's field of vision, blood spurted everywhere. And in the hands of the young muller was his friend's bloody body with a warm smile on his face.

'Alfred died in a battle of struggle against the 32nd great demon Belial who was summoned by Yatan's church'

Even though Muller spoke of such a sad story, his tone was more melancholic than sad. Silence reigned for a whole and Grid felt his consciousness dragged into muller's body.

''Muller...''

[You have assimilated with the red knight 'Muller']

Remembering what happened during his assimilation with Madra and Sigmund, Grid waited a bit before talking in order for the information he received to be organized.

''Alfred, don't push yourself too hard...''

Despite not knowing who the guy in front of him was, Grid's heart was heavy, was it the effect of the assimilation? No, it was because he had already witnessed such a scene many times in his life, the loss of a loved one, and he knew how much Alfred meant to Muller. A wide grin spread on Alfred's face as he patted Muller's shoulders, His teeth painted with blood indicated he didn't have a lot of time left, his tear-filled eyes stared at Muller's while he spoke his last words.

''Live your dream, Muller, survive, run away from here, live the life you wanted as an unchained man... But please... Before starting your journey...''

Alfred's eyes became darker as his consciousness was drifting away.

''...Take care of them.''

He barely managed to utter these last words, a rite of parting and the last promise with his dearest friend.

[Assimilation has ended]

'And so I lost my ability to reason, picked up my sword and ran towards an enemy that was impossible to beat, towards my certain death.'

The scenery unfolded once again, amidst the knights who were torn apart, a young man wearing red armor rushed towards the beast with a grieving heart, he knew not fear, he knew not regret, he only wished for his sword to deliver a strike, as a sign of respect for his only friend.

''Oh, how foolish I was...'

Once again Muller's voice showed hidden pain, for hours he fought while failing to land a serious strike on the demon. only 3 red knights remained, even when their bodies were in rags their firm hand holding the sword never once wavered; The moment they arrived it was their duty to put their own life on the line for the sake of the empire. But Muller's sword was different, it was a sword that harbored uncontainable anger, a desire for absolute destruction. It was then that Grid felt his sentience merge with Muller's, the trial would begin now.

[You are resonating with the memories of Sword saint Muller]

[You have forcefully assimilated with Muller, however, you can not control your actions]

'What?'

It was a similar phenomenon to when he assimilated with Madra's diary, he could feel the person's emotions, their senses would become one, however, he wouldn't be able to change anything. Muller started rushing towards Belial as his burns became worse and the corruption caused by demonic energy slowly spread through his body. Muller gained momentum as he accelerated and started swinging his sword.

''SUPREME SWORDSMANSHIP''

'WHAT???'

Grid's mind was in turmoil, not only were Muller's emotions steadily invading his mind, the words Muller just uttered were nothing new to him.

'PIARO?'

Supreme swordsmanship, it was none other than Piaro's family's swordsmanship, one passed down through the ages. Sword saint Biban had once noted that he didn't know how a blueprint of his swordsmanship ended up in the hands of Piaro's ancestors who probably tried to reproduce it as 'Supreme swordsmanship'.

''Tearing the sky!!!''

It was the same technique that Piaro was famous for as a swordsman along with 'fated to perish' , yet the difference between his version and Muller's was like night and day, Muller's version was overwhelmingly more aggressive. Muller's voice reached Grid's ears yet again.

'In my family's keepsakes existed a book, it was the 'Matchless heart technique', well one version at least.'

'My ancestors considered it a treasure and tried reproducing it with their best efforts by passing down the works of the generation and the blueprints to the next one.'

Grid fell into deep thought, Piaro, the great swordsman who was thought to be the closest person to reaching the position of sword saint before becoming a farmer, a duke of the empire who was highly regarded and whose sword skills transcended any in the empire. Would it really be weird if such a person was the descendant of sword saint Muller? But if that was the case, why was supreme swordsmanship degraded yet again?

'Do not be confused, I never had any kids, I was a lone wolf who ventured in the wild endlessly.'

'Although I was the rightful successor, since I abandoned my right the position was passed down to my cousins, thus my swordsmanship was not inherited by the family, and I never intended for it to be.'

'I see...'

Grid understood Muller's intentions, he had heard the stories about Muller being a lone wolf in order to not create a shift in power inside the continent, so not passing his techniques to a specific person would make sense.

'And thus I cut Belial's eye with my attack, as the other 2 red knights gloriously sacrificed their life, my endurance allowed me to survive until support arrived and the reverse summoning was complete, following which I passed out.'

'I fell into a critical state for years to come, during which I couldn't leave my house. The succession ceremony was canceled and I didn't inherit my father's status. So I studied, dedicating my life to decipher it.'

The scenery changed once again, in the heart of a dark room illuminated by but a single candle, a man covered with leather strips was holding a book, he closely inspected the last page before closing it.

'The matchless heart sword'

Muller's voice turned stern, it was as if he regained the dignity of the strongest sword saint.

'I admired the heroes in fairy tales, not knowing the weight they held.'

Muller's eyes shifted towards Grid as a smile formed on his face.

'This is why I admire you now, Grid.'

The darkness spread into the small room before dissipating, what stood before their eyes now was the era of destruction, an era akin to the one Grid experienced recently.

'The age of chaos had only just begun'

Muller's voice slowly faded once again as Grid felt fear invade his head. What stood before him now, was the trial of the sword saint, one where he would need to prove not only his heart but his qualifications as well.

'''MULLERRRR'''

A voice that Grid could never forget, the ruler of hellfire, hellgao, was his enemy.