The Martial Unity

Rui spent some more time in the Quarrier Orphanage as he watched Amare playing with Arastia.

He had to admit that it was a picturesque sight.

She was intuitively good with children, and Arastia delighted in her presence.

Holding Arastia in her hands, she threw a pointed stare at Rui, who simply averted his gaze, heaving a sigh.

“Well, I’ll be back soon,” he said, getting up. “I have one last conversation to have before we leave.”

He turned towards Amare.

“You should make preparations to leave as well. We will be gone a while.”

She nodded softly as she watched Rui depart from the Quarrier Orphanage.

Rui headed towards Vargard to speak with his father one last time, heading off in the direction of Vargard as he soared through the evening skies, eventually arriving at the Vargard Royal Palace.

CLACK

The doors to the Royal Office were opened as Rui found himself gazing at none other than his father.

This time, however, he wasn’t alone.

Rui stirred as he found himself staring at the two of his half-siblings.

Prince Raul, the people’s prince, turned in the chair seated opposite to the Emperor, smiling warmly at Rui.

“It’s been a long time, brother.”

His visage had grown more aged since they last met, while Rui had only grown younger. The former now had white hair outnumbering the brown while his dark skin had soft and creased. His frame had also grown more lean, causing him to look even older.

He was near the end of his life.

Decades had passed since the Kandrian Throne War, after all.

It appeared that he was unwilling to consume a longevity potion, for reasons that Rui could undoubtedly predict.

And yet, despite his age, his brilliant blue eyes still sparkled with the same kind of wisdom that they always had.

He wasn’t the only one in the room, however.

Beside the Emperor was also Princess Ranea of the seas. She had been in charge of the Kandrian Empire’s navy and maritime affairs ever since the Beast Incursion had begun, taking charge of human civilization’s only means of travel across the world in that time period.

She gazed at Rui deeply before averting her eyes.

“Rui,” his father regarded him with a knowing expression. “Here for one final briefing before you depart?”

“Yes,” Rui replied. “Good to see you again, brother, sister.”

He liked the People’s Prince quite a lot, although his popularity among people had risen far beyond that of his brother. He still felt like his brother had the needs of the people at his heart and deserved Rui’s popularity more than Rui did.

As for Princess Ranea, he greeted her despite the fact that this was the woman who had plotted Rui’s assassination, along with the other princes who were nowhere to be seen nowadays.

He no longer felt anything about it or her.

She was an insect.

Irrelevant.

“Indeed,” Prince Raul replied with a tranquil smile. “You haven’t changed at all, yet you have changed more than I could have ever imagined. It appears that you have heeded my warning of old and have overcome the demons that chase you.”

Rui recalled his ominous words.

A hungering void within his heart.

“I did overcome it,” Rui replied with a softened tone. “I know who I am now.”

“That’s good to hear,” the man nodded.

Rui’s gaze shifted as he walked forth, taking a seat opposite the Emperor of Harmony.

“I will be leaving soon,” Rui continued. “I came here to report the recent deal I brokered with the Elder Tree and Jormungandr.”

Emperor Rael’s eyes lit up. “Go on.”

Rui described the arrangements that he had forged with both the Elder Tree and Jormungandr, carefully specifying all the details he had caught. It was important for the Emperor of Harmony to know these rules inside-out if he was to make the best of them and ensure that their part of the agreement was kept.

Princess Ranea grew excited when she learned that trade ships could pass between the Panama Continent and the true world, although her expression grew frosty when she learned of the warship restriction.

Prince Raul merely grew intrigued by the fantastical tales that Rui imparted to the three of them.

“You truly are something,” he remarked with sincerity when Rui was done.

“…Indeed,” Emperor Rael nodded with an appreciative expression. “With this, we can forge trade agreements with the dark elves. That will work extremely well for us. The warship restriction actually benefits us since we have the Great Nam Ocean as our ally. Those monsters are more powerful than any warship could hope to be.”

Rui nodded. “With this, you should be able to rapidly engage in trade and prove to the true world that the Great Nam Ocean does not restrict trade, only vessels with ill intentions.”

“We should accelerate the construction of trade vessels, Father,” Princess Ranea remarked. “If our warships are no longer of any use, then stripping them down and refitting them for the purpose of trade is the sensible thing to do.

“Indeed,” Emperor Rael nodded. “I will entrust the overseeing of that matter to you, my daughter.”

His attention returned to Rui. “Your agreement with the Elder Tree is just as useful. I was worried about the fact that your absence would mean that the beasts and monsters of the Beast Domain would no longer be under our control, but this is a clean solution that ensures that we retain this boon in our absence.”

“Indeed,” Rui replied. “The Elder Tree is trustworthy, just make sure that you keep up the promise that I made to it, alright? No more conquering of the Beast Domain.”

“Trust me when I say that the leadership of human civilization is far too traumatized by the Beast Incursion to even dream of such a thing,” Emperor Rael pointed out. “However, I will have them sign a pact and a treaty with the Kandrian Empire with strong terms and enforcing mechanisms. Human civilization will need to understand that from this day forth, the Beast Domain is our ally, not our enemy.”