So this was what I submitted for my final for the Character Design Class. Might not seem like much because a lot of it was refinement, conveying visual traits, and stuff I was NOT implementing in past designs of my characters. Being an art class, we didn't get straight up grades on this but I'm pretty sure I got an A.
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The story behind this idea goes as follows;

For years, two feudal warlords were locked in strategic combat for land control. When their armies were wearied, the warlords themselves went toe to toe. For three days the two were locked in furious combat. Wearied themselves, they somehow both managed to sprain their ankles at the same time, rendering them unable to fight. So they settled on a wager; "Our nextborn children will be the ones to finish what we started, and decide the fate of our nations."
Both warlords expected to give birth to strong sons, but instead, both were given daughters. Rather than not waste any time, both raised their daughters just as they would their sons for the sake of the wager. However, neither country knew their opponent had given birth to a daughter, so each prepared for the worst. Worse still, these "warrior princesses" were spited by their nations, thinking a woman would be incapable of winning this wager.
One daughter came to spite and hate her destiny, which turned to anger. She would challenge any and every man that would dare fight her in order to vent her anger and master her bow, until she was a better shot than her own father, and capable of taking down the royal guards single handedly.
The other daughter sorrowed from the lacking hope of her nation, coming to believe the assumptions of her weakness herself. But when she began training, her affinity for the blade made her and the armies marvel. Battle gave her hope, and a chance to prove to everyone that she was no mere woman.
Twenty years from the day the wager was set, the two nations came to witness the fateful event. Both daughters came to behold their opponent, shocked to see another woman. Shock, confusion, and insult, all set in at once. All this time they had trained to conquer another man, but would the same hold for women? The crowds jeered and questioned whether this was worthy to settle the wager with women. Amidst this doubt however, the daughters lashed out at each other, providing a spectacle of the martial arts that hearkened back to the terrifying ferocity of Twenty years ago.
But even then, the daughters began to question this entire wager. Was this even necessary? Why did they have to settle this like men? And so to the shock of all who were present, the daughters rehearsed the wager, stating that in no case was it necessary for either one to suffer defeat. Instead they decided to form a United Republic, so that both countries could enjoy the benefits of both lands with no conflict.
From that day forward, each year the Day of the Wager was celebrated with tournaments, filled with both male and female competitors alike

... or something along those lines. I dunno, I just like thinking up stories.