"The world has truly advanced a lot," remarked the Swordmaster as he looked at the airship while we waited to depart.

"When I was young, I never even imagined that humans would be flying through the sky," he added, clearly impressed.

In the Swordmaster’s youth, wasn't the clashing of swords more common than gunfire? Decades ago, swordsmen who could unleash sword energy had a clear advantage. While guns and cannons existed back then, firearms with cases were still an emerging concept, and mass production hadn’t quite taken hold. This kept ammunition prices high, so most armies preferred single-shot weapons. This …