The Martial Unity

Rui couldn’t help but smile at her words with genuine excitement and anticipation.

“And old man… was he?” Enthusiasm crept into his tone. “Isn’t that just wonderful?”

Mother Alicia was confused by the sentiment. ’Is it joyful to know that you perhaps weren’t as strong as you thought you were?’

Rui’s smile deepened.

“More than you can imagine.”

His tone was sincere.

“I love challenges. Adaptively evolving to stuff is fun. But especially when it isn’t easy. Unfortunately, there isn’t too much of a challenge left for me in my continent, so…” Rui’s eyes lit up with optimism. “…I had hoped the true world would be able to provide me with more nourishment.”

’…I see, this must be a sentiment exclusive to you Martial Artists, for it is one that I don’t understand in the slightest. I’m afraid.’

He didn’t blame her. In fact, his sentiment was probably unique even among Martial Artists, in that they too didn’t seek to face greater competition and were content being the strongest. It was why the reaction to a new Blood Path in Arastia brought about such a reaction from the Martial Sages, or why they initially rejected MECHAs so much.

“Well, it was a good talk,” Rui remarked, ending the conversation abruptly. “I will need to get back to my people and discuss some details. After that, we may proceed with the deal and help each other out.”

’Very well, I will need to do something similar on my side. May this be the beginning of a long-lasting friendship between our civilizations.’

Rui bade the Mother of Nature goodbye before departing from the Forest of War and returning to the outskirts, where Amare and Veruschia awaited him.

“Sorry for the detour and the delay.” His tone was apologetic. “I was just speaking with Mother Alicia about several important matters. I think that we have come to some interesting arrangements that I will tell you later.”

“Good fight,” Amare praised him. “Clever solutions to the impediments you faced, helping you avoid activating your Realms of power until the very final moment. However, I’m sure even you realize that you were pushing it at some points. Fighting such strong elves, with just your Martial Heart, that could give Masters a run for their money is a bit much, even for you.”

“Is it?” Rui tilted his head with a hint of skepticism. “I didn’t even go all out. I could have used my primordial core or my other more advanced techniques, perhaps. It just felt overkill to activate those first before my Martial Mind, but at this point, I think I could survive even without something like Gigabrain.”

“You’re getting too carried away with this,” Amare heaved an exasperated sigh. “Because you have run out of people to give you stimulation, you’re trying to make things fun by restricting yourself and intentionally sealing your power.”

Rui shrugged. “But you’d be wrong. You see…”

His smile grew excited.

“I just learned that I haven’t run out of people to challenge me.”

His gaze elevated to the skies.

“They’re out there. People who are even stronger than me.”

His tone was one of hope and optimism.

“Finding them will be another goal for this journey.”

“…Stronger than even you? At this point, that’s hard to imagine,” Amare murmured. “But good for you then. Can we get back to exploring Genora? I’m getting bored of the Forest of War.”

“You guys go on ahead,” Rui remarked. “I have some important stuff to handle. I’ll check them out another time. If things work out, we will likely be remaining here for a while.”

“Hmph, I’ll have fun then, you do your boring political stuff.”

The two groups diverged as Rui rapidly headed towards the settlement of the Panamic Alliance. It was in his interests to finalize these matters as soon as possible so that they could ensure that they had secured the dark elves as an ally before anything else could possibly butt in. With their first formal ally being a powerful civilization, it would drastically increase the probability of their safety, if nothing else.

He was also eager to meet up with the Ecologer as the very first thing he did when he reached the settlement.

WHOOSH

He arrived at a camp comprising makeshift tents while some construction had already begun to create a more sophisticated settlement. Compared to the dark elves who had already managed to create a settlement on the very first day of their arrival on the Panama Continent, the human base in the Genora Continent was slower in comparison.

The bright light of the afternoon Sun illuminated the makeshift base even as the human officials got to work, deliberating and communicating with a delegation of dark elves who welcomed them to the continent. The Martial Artists had already taken guard around the perimeter of the settlement, ensuring the safety of the base.

STEP

The moment he set foot in the base, each of the workers, officials, and employees immediately put their work aside before bowing deeply to Rui.

“Welcome, Your Highness Prince Rui!”

It was a reflection of just how much status Rui has come to possess in human civilization.

“Enough, there is no need to be so formal when we’re in a foreign land. There are more important things at hand,” Rui instructed them.

“Yes, Your Highness!”

They immediately got back to work as Rui took a stroll around the human base, inspecting the people.

“I must say…” A voice from behind him drew his attention. “I was rather disappointed when you refused to take me with you to the Genora Continent.”

He turned around to find himself gazing at the Ecologer.

Her green hair swayed in the cool winds of the coast of the continent while her attire was, as always, a strange fabric made from plant fibers and leaves. Her spectacles were thin, resting before her intelligent brown eyes that sparkled with curiosity and fascination.

“I didn’t want anybody getting in the way of my time with Amare,” Rui replied.

She tilted her head in confusion.

“You’re not supposed to say that part out loud, Your Highness.”

Rui shrugged. “It’s the truth. More importantly, I wanted to get your thoughts on something important. Let’s talk somewhere more private.”