Veritas

[Tempest35]

The first pic of Madoka in the manga was misleading (very dark tone for the hair). But I'm incredibly biased towards girls with purple hair (Maya Natsume, Ayane (DOA), Mokoto Kusanagi).

Yeah, Vera doesn't strike me as the type to wear thongs either...lol

But now with Rud and Guhoo, these two are more similar than they are willing to admit. Rud overcame a weakened body and the limitations of a supposedly inferior art to become one of the top 10 in the school for the chance to avenge AniChella. Now Vera's blocking them from fighting because she knows that Rud's incredibly driven to beat Guhoo. And Guhoo follows Vera wherever. He's not a leader, he's a follower, but he's a good follower and Vera trusts that.

And Honse...powerhouse of the 'traditionalists'. He's freakin' awesome.

[Narona]

Originally Posted by Tempest35

Spoiler for More answers (hopefully):

For Vera, It's...complicated You know how some girls will fall for a guy who totally disregards everything they think should make him fall on their knees in front of them.
And it's not stated if Yoori died, but Fire Dragon let us know from telling Honse the reason why he wants the EOLT breathing method - because L.T. did manage to defeat the strongest single person in Reunion.

Spoiler for Vera and yoori:

What I guessed is that she is facisnated by him, and so might have fallen in love with him. I am not sure if she loves him. It could also be deep admiration.

In that flashback in which he's fighting Vera. IIRC, he's talking as if Yoori was still alive, am I wrong

Spoiler for .:

The two people that were there are Fire Dragon and one other member of the original Heavenly Paths. They don't care about the fact that Madoka met with Ma Ganryong if they even actually saw them together.

I just want them to hurry up to where Madoka starts teasing Shinra. All the crap Shinra's said up to now has gotten on my nerves and seeing Madoka give her some of her own medicine has me itching to see what she actually said.

Spoiler for Madoka:

If Ma Gangryon had accepted Madoka's offer, I don't think Fire Dragon would have let him escaping. I might be wrong, but I think he was there on purpose, and I think he will kill Madoka if she becomes a problem (an example, if she falls in love with Ma Gangryon and takes his side against Reunion)

Chapter 28's out. Pondering the new info as I type... And DAMN...this is a nice development. We finally know who Anichella is and the reason for the animosity between Guhoo and Rud. So they are planning a war against the Student Council...I wonder if Madoka returning has something to do with that as well...

It was a very interesting chapter. So Guhoo is the one who killed a girl that rub possibly loved. I see why Rud wants to kill him

Originally Posted by Tempest35

And Honse...powerhouse of the 'traditionalists'. He's freakin' awesome.

I have not fully understood what is the deal about honse. I should reread the old chapters.

IIRC, he was a strong fighter right? I may be mistaken but Vera did say that he was the second most powerful person in the school behind her, right?

Then why does everyone treat him like a piece of trash? I don't really understand... They are not aware of his past?

[Yorae_paladin1]

yeah maybe they are not aware of honse skills

[Tempest35]

Honse was the 3rd strongest overall, just beneath AniChella (Rud's oneesan) and then Vera. Honse modified many skills to be used against Reunion's standardized martial arts with surprising results. He's the one who researched the 'Half-Step' technique to use against Reunion. Honse isn't stupid, he just acts that way to keep under the radar. He still has a lot of pull becaue of Rud and Jeeha backing him.

The reason he's being treated like that is because he can no longer utilize any ki so he can't fight anymore. But what he knows is a gold mine.

Spoiler for Yoori and Vera:

For Vera, yeah, she has that 'strong admiration' thing for L.T. She even calls him by his actual name when she's alone. When he first saw her, he did think that she was Yoori. Maybe Yoori was alive, maybe she had died later due to injuries - no one really knows what happened to Yoori after her big battle against L.T.

Spoiler for Madoka:

As for Madoka, even if she did fall for him, the only way Fire Dragon would try and harm her is if she either killed Ma Ganryong or worse, sealed his energy points, rendering the only EOTL user useless. I don't think that she'd try and do that to Ganryong so her method of getting him out of the school would have been something else. She likes to tease so Madoka saying that she likes him has to be taken with a grain of salt. She has her eye on him but with her status of being Vera's secretary, she can't show blatant favortism to Ganryong like Rud and Jeeha can since they OPENLY oppose Vera. We have to see what her other actions are like in the school first. She's not like Shinra, in fact it seems that Shinra doesn't like Madoka at all so that alone makes her going back to the school worth it.

[evil|plushie]

anyone know how many vols this is up to in korea?

[AnymX]

Originally Posted by evil|plushie

anyone know how many vols this is up to in korea?

Currently there are up to 8 volumes.

[Narona]

Originally Posted by Tempest35

Honse was the 3rd strongest overall, just beneath AniChella (Rud's oneesan) and then Vera. Honse modified many skills to be used against Reunion's standardized martial arts with surprising results. He's the one who researched the 'Half-Step' technique to use against Reunion. Honse isn't stupid, he just acts that way to keep under the radar. He still has a lot of pull becaue of Rud and Jeeha backing him.

The reason he's being treated like that is because he can no longer utilize any ki so he can't fight anymore. But what he knows is a gold mine.

Thanks a lot for the explanation I didn't know that he can no longer utilize ki. Do you know why

Spoiler for Madoka:

As for Madoka, even if she did fall for him, the only way Fire Dragon would try and harm her is if she either killed Ma Ganryong or worse, sealed his energy points, rendering the only EOTL user useless. I don't think that she'd try and do that to Ganryong so her method of getting him out of the school would have been something else. She likes to tease so Madoka saying that she likes him has to be taken with a grain of salt. She has her eye on him but with her status of being Vera's secretary, she can't show blatant favortism to Ganryong like Rud and Jeeha can since they OPENLY oppose Vera. We have to see what her other actions are like in the school first. She's not like Shinra, in fact it seems that Shinra doesn't like Madoka at all so that alone makes her going back to the school worth it.

Spoiler for FD/madoka:

Fire Dragon scares me Those eyes XD But Imagine that Ma Ganryong actually accepted madoka's offer to free him from the Reunion. Don't you think that FD would have gotten mad at her? I have the feeling that he was there on purpose, in case of Ma Ganryong actually tries to leave the school.

And I guessed that she seems to like teasing people. I don't expect her to actually be in love with him, but I think it would be nice if she actually falls for him for real Ma Ganryong is not a perfect guy. He is violent. Somewhat ill-mannered. etc. But he has some good qualities too. And I hope that she realized that in the volume 7

[Bonta Kun]

from what I recall its not been explained yet why Honse can't use Ki but I do believe he did to himself.


Now I wouldn't expect Madoka to go all moe-eyed lovey dovey over Ganryong but I wouldn't mind her taking a kinda fondness towards him, then maybe later develop that abit further.
If there has to be someone to fill that role then I want it to be her

[Tempest35]

I'd certainly vote for Madoka over Vera. Vera doesn't like him because he isn't Yoochun/L.T. - it would be 'weak' to have Vera suddenly fall for him after he beats her up. Madoka doesn't get easily offended around him, she has the maturity to see through his gruff personality - I doubt if she gets refused about anything, especially considering what she wears when she's not in school uniform.

Madoka would have had all of Reunion mad at her if Ganryong actually went along with whatever her idea was.

As for Honse, the story is conflicted: He says that Reunion destroyed his ki center, Vera says that he closed off his ki center himself. Either way, they lost a very valuable fighter.

[balmung5000]

this is one of my
fav new mangas out there
i love the art and
the chars are great too
my fav is rud

[Wargumm1i]

Well this manga is far from being my favorite manga. Its like Break blade, you dont like it that much, but your curiousity is whats keeping you from stop reading it.

[Tempest35]

Well, the art is good, can't complain about that. Story-wise, it is not the best, I'll admit - but props on the EOTL concept though. A martial art that utilizes lightning is just plain awesome.

[evil|plushie]

My only gripe is that the story moves veeeeery slowly

[Tempest35]

Chapter 29 is out. So there are a lot of factions in the story but not enough spotlight on them for us to decide anything about them.

The 9 Dragons - we know a few of them but the last two are hard to determine. Madoka knows them and she befriended them, but I don't think she's with the group itself.

[Bonta Kun]

Originally Posted by Tempest35

Chapter 29 is out. So there are a lot of factions in the story but not enough spotlight on them for us to decide anything about them.

The 9 Dragons - we know a few of them but the last two are hard to determine. Madoka knows them and she befriended them, but I don't think she's with the group itself.

yea I'm thinking that too, she seems like she is sitting on the fence but would most likely side with Vera when it comes down to it.

she a very fickle lass she is, ...woman

but damn the art is very good with this series, Madoka could very well be my new no1 lass as "prettiest lass in manga"
Kurohime from Kurohime has that topspot atm

oh yea forgot about this before but the cover of vol 6 is soooooo outta place, lol I would never believe she could actually smile but still very very cute

well moar to the point bring me, my VERA WITH WHINNIE THE POOH PANTIES!!!

[Tempest35]

We should withhold final judgement on Madoka until we actually see her fight. :3 And she's only one year older than him...yummy.

Right now, I think that Madoka is one of those people that will follow the person rather than the organization. If she believes that the person deserves her loyalty, she'll go with them, regardless of whichever 'side' she's on. Ma Ganryong's similar but he'd rather go his OWN way rather than follow anyone else except Yoochun/L.T.

And Shinra's on edge...XD Love it.

But now I must ponder what 'Elder Wood' was talking about to Fire Dragon. I now understand how Madoka was going to get him out - using Elder Wood's influence, she was going to arrange to have him leave the school under his protection, and using Yoochun's name to get Ganryong to go along with him.

[Narona]

This chapter was great. We get some new pieces of infos

I was so wrong about Fire Dragon and this other guy (Elder Wood). Fire Dragon would have let ma Ganryong to leave the school. To bad Ma Ganryong refused =< I Guess Elder Wood would have helped him about the EOLT art =( As I was thinking, I was sure that somebody will say that "Ma Ganryong is like Yoocheon (Now I wonder if Vera will also fall in love with him if he ever fights her and win, it would be funny =p) That's a bit cliché "the apprentice who resembles to the master" =D

And apparently Yoori is still alive, but unable to be the leader of the Heaven's Riches? I guess she is badly injured.

And Fire Dragon is planning to harm Vera o___o That was unexpected. So is that the role of Mr. Masked Man?

I do think that Madoka or that "paul" guy are maybe part of the 9 Dragons. Or maybe Vera =D No that's impossible, just kidding.

Random comment: I dislike Shinra

Random comment 2: Madoka was beautiful in those pages

[frubam]

Man, it's almost a bit confusing as to what is going on =_=. Still alot of interesting info these past two chaps. I wonder if Rud, Jeeha, and Honse are planning a 'coup de'tat' of sorts, which is why they need 6 student council members.

So there's another faction to Heaven's Riches. If FD is concerned that Vera's going to join them and fight against Yuri, it's understandable that he'd be worried. Maybe I need to reread some more, because I'm not sure exactly what Heaven's Riches is, other than that it's the fighting style Vera uses.

Wonder why Honse is part of the Nine Dragons?What I mean is, if the Nine Dragons are supposed to be some kind of powerful force[for whatever reason], why the hell did Honse allow two normal students join?

And Gangryong is STILL looking at that coffee pot ?

Originally Posted by Tempest35

And Shinra's on edge...XD Love it.

But now I must ponder what 'Elder Wood' was talking about to Fire Dragon. I now understand how Madoka was going to get him out - using Elder Wood's influence, she was going to arrange to have him leave the school under his protection, and using Yoochun's name to get Ganryong to go along with him.

She was scowling a bit TOO much >_>. In just about every panel .

I didn't see that angle, of Madoka using EW to get him out of the school, so thanks for pointing it out .

Originally Posted by Narona

And Fire Dragon is planning to harm Vera o___o That was unexpected. So is that the role of Mr. Masked Man?

I do think that Madoka or that "paul" guy are maybe part of the 9 Dragons. Or maybe Vera =D No that's impossible, just kidding.

Random comment: I dislike Shinra

Random comment 2: Madoka was beautiful in those pages

From what I understand, I thought he was trying to prevent some family successor issues between Vera and Yuri by stopping Vera in some way.

@comment: Well, I just love her. She's such a ***** .

[Tempest35]

It's actually a lot of politics going on in the background. I'm familiar with marital art lineages and the like and this is pretty normal for what goes on behind the really big tournaments and schools/styles.

I'll try to draw parallels between Veritas and Tenjou Tenge since it's set up like that. Heaven's Riches is similar to the Takanayagi Family, meaning that they are the main house.

The 5 Heavenly Path Successors are similar to the 12 Feather Family heads that serve their respective main house. So far we know that the 5 paths corespond to the 5 Elements: Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Metal. These elements are used in Eastern culuture moreso than in Western culture. Thanks to that, we know 4 of the 5 Heavenly Path Successors:
Fire = JinYup/ Fire Dragon
Wood/Earth = Ancient Wood
Water = Liquid Shark
Metal = YooCheon/Lightning Tiger
Wind = Unknown

What has me confused is if Earth Beast was a member of the 5 Paths or not, especially since Fire Dragon refers to him as a 'fake'.

Heavenly Riches seems to focus on the 'Void' aspect - the hidden element that none can fully prove nor disprove. Yoori mentioned that in the ancient times, the family that has the Heaven Riches lineage aided five prominent families/lineages in exchange for their continued loyalty to their family alone. Up until Yoori Linus, the Heaven Riches family had not raised a successor worthy of becoming the true head of the family. It's bad because not only Yoori, but her little sister Vera is strong enough to fully understand and utilize the secrets of the Void techniques.

When Yoori tried to use her influnce, along with the artificial ki, to make herself a 'god', the successors of the Paths of Metal, Air, and Water broke away to battle against her idea, even though she had approval from the Elders Council, that governed them all, to do so. They constantly made strikes against Reunion's labs to set them back in making the artificial ki. Ancient Wood just put himself on the sidelines. Some time ago, L.T. managed the unthinkable - he defeated Yoori Linus the previously thought 'untouchable and unbeatable' leader/successor of Heaven's Riches. How he did this we don't know yet but because he defeated her, everyone fears L.T.

This is why Fire Dragon wants the EOTL breathing method - while L.T. didn't use any artificial ki, the self-ki cleansing method put him above someone who was thought to have nearly unlimited ki. If Fire Dragon could manage to learn how to purify all that artificial ki he's got - he'd be unstoppable and he knows it. It's also why he has Reunion put such a high price on it - imagine all that ki and it being purified...

This is why L.T. made Ganryong stare at that coffee pot - visualization of the ki-purifing process.

As for the other factions breaking away, from what Fire Dragon says, they either want to make Vera the new head of Heaven's Riches or they have something else planned altogether. Fire Dragon's surprisingly loyal to Yoori - he doesn't want anyone else trying to claim leadership of the Heaven's Riches family. He's worried since Yoori's in some kind of 'condition' that prevents her from actively participating, that Vera, along with all the new graduates who are incredibly strong in their own right, will try to muscle in Vera as the new named Successor to Heaven's Riches. Fortunately for him, there are the '9 Dragons'...

I don't know what kind of relationship the '9 Dragons' have with everyone other than they seem to be people who bear a grudge against Vera and Reunion as well but are willing to use and be used so they can become strong enough to challenge. Jeeha let a comment slip that they really needed a lightning attack for the dummies - a clue that they indeed could be planning to fight against Reunion. From clues, it's impossible that there are exactly 9 members - the idiots in the lower class don't seem like they are true members of 9D. This person, Paul, seems to be able to sway one of the one of the other remaining Council members to their side, meaning that he is also a member. Coincidently, there are 11 Council seats as well. To have majority, you need 6 - which makes more sense for Paul to say that he can sway one other person to their side. With Paul, Jeeha, and Rud on the council, plus Vera, Shinra, and now Madoka, we need to see the remaining 5 to see who's side they are on.

For now, these are the actual members of 9D that we know of:
1. Honse
2. Rud (Council)
3. Jeeha (Council)
4. Paul (Council - Away)
+
the 3 Stooges

1 Hidden one (possibly Madoka, but not)
1 Coming out of Iso
1 potential from Paul
=
10 + 1 if counting Ganryong

I don't have Madoka listed since she seems more in Vera's camp but she isn't wholly against 9D either. Ganryong might be the one to sway her if things come down to that.

[frubam]

Thanks for that wonderful synopsis of the political structure of the manga! I didn't quite realize I missed so much . This is one of the reasons I don't like blazing through chapters all at once; not enough time for me to analysis them.

After reading this, I read through the manga from the beginning(well chp 3), and I see all of the things you mentioned. I laughed when Gangryong had a flashback about the ginseng and LT said if he found some he'd sell it as Honse did exactly that . Also, I wondered why Vera decided to punish Guhoo and Shinra, but not Rud and Jeeha? It feels like she lacks discipline when it comes to the latter two. It's almost seems kinda like she's digging her own grave as Shinra and Guhoo are gonna be locked away for 4 months while the Nine Dragons get ready to strike.

Did Honse teach Rud the Half-Step? I love Honse, since he's soooo amusing, but when it comes to Gangryong, i have a foreboding sense of distrust outta him for that. Then I'm reminded of what Madoka said about them going their own way. Makes me think he might not be siding with them for the entirety of whatever's gonna happen in the future.