Rui was deeply stunned at the idea that a Martial Apprentice could fight a Martial Squire head-on. And yet, the fact that the Esoterist had even suggested meant that it was, at the very least, going to be competitive.
No one had ever aggressively bridged the gap between Realms before this. Not even Rui himself had ever fully bridged the gap between Realms. Although he shortened the gap between Realms with each Realm that he climbed, he had never fully bridged the gap.
The gap between a Martial Apprentice and a Squire was significant. The former was still ultimately human, while the latter was very much superhuman in their physiology.
And yet, the power of a MECHA, if the Esoterist had truly managed to exploit its technological potential to the maximum, could not be so easily dismissed. It could potentially neutralize the superhuman strength that Martial Squires had.