“What is a mountain?”
“A mass of rock and stone that looms over the horizon and looks down upon the creatures of Earth.”
“Many people view mountains as the final frontier, as colossuses of nature that no mere man could conquer.”
“But they couldn’t be further from the truth.”
“A mountain exists for one reason, you see.”
“To be climbed.”
“As big and powerful as these creations of nature may seem, their whole existence from the beginning of time to now has been to elevate man to another level. Those who can ascend to the tops of these behemoths obtain something beyond mere praise or adoration.”
“They attain greatness.”
“Many men try their hands at scaling these peaks only to fail, plummeting back down to the ground below.”
“But history will not remember their names.”
“Nor will it remember the mountain for inhibiting them.”
“All history will ever know are the names of the mountain, and the men who conquered them.”
“Banzan, as far back as time can go, you have existed in OSW as the gateway to greatness, the final vanguard before someone is catapulted into stardom at your expense.”
“Darby Sorrow was the first, climbing upon your skin and standing atop of you as he snatched the world title from your grasp to lay claim to his greatness.”
“Next was Corvus, the crow himself ascending to the top of Level Up with you being the last man in his way before he was able to obtain victory and a shot at the very title that would put him in the history books.”
“Many more have faced you in hopes of obtaining greatness by sitting upon your peak. However, many have failed, their names lost to history, added to the pile of those who could not defeat you when they needed to most.”
“And now? As Ring King is upon us, you are the mountain standing in my way, the peak I must ascend in order to become on step closer to the crown. Sitting upon your shoulders is the semi-finals, the last hurdle before I can lay claim to my own prize.”
“No matter how massive and seemingly invincible you are, you are nothing more than a challenge to be undertaken, a goal to be obtained.”
“Try as you might, you are nothing more than the mountain wishing to stand in my way, and nothing will stop me from climbing to the top.”
“Every blow I land is a climbing pick in your skin as I pull myself ever further to the peak.”
“When our match comes to an end, Banzan, all that people will see is the man standing on top of you to the count of three.”
“They will not remember you for your strength.”
“They will not remember Ether for failing before me.”
“All that will be remembered is how I used you as a stepping stone to greatness.”
“How the mountain was conquered.”
“I have walked this path before, I shall walk it once more.”