The Martial Unity

Chapter 3821: The Nature of the Resolution

The royal funeral hall grew stunned at his bold proposal to invite Princess Ru into his faction as tense silence hung in the air. The darkness of the night sky deepened with each passing moment as everybody watched with bated breath. Princess Ru, to her credit, maintained her composure, her expression grew serious, and her golden eyes grew hazy with thought.

The merits of Rui’s proposal were not lost on her, and just as he had said, it was a compelling offer.

’The throne is a foregone conclusion, I will be ousted from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the changes to the administration will make it so that important people who were appointed to important positions will also be kicked out,’ she realized. ’I will lose influence once he ascends the throne unless I accept his offer.’

Of course, that would also mean that she would be doing the dirty work for her opponent by accepting this so-called Minister of Harmony position. She was accepting responsibility for Rui’s regime over the Martial World. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, of course. She didn’t think Rui’s idea to subjugate the Martial World was truly that bad, as she fought against it on behalf of those who hated it.

The Martial World needed order; development would never occur, but she would have preferred to take the tried and tested approach of her father than this radically new, crude, and violent approach.

Still, she was practical; these were the cards she had been dealt, and she could only make the most of them.

Her scrutinizing attention shifted back to Rui.

’To serve him as a subordinate, life can be ironic indeed,’ she couldn’t help but take a moment to muse on the turn of events. ’He’s a little rough around the edges politically, but he’s surprisingly competent at the art of politicking as he was all those years ago. It makes me wonder why he rejected the throne back then but accepts it now.’

The battle of rhetoric that they had gotten into was not simple and required someone who was highly adept at communication, people, and persuasion. On a broader level, the art of politics was simply an art of power. The art of gathering power, the power of civilization, was what politics truly was at its core, and Rui had demonstrated that, despite being rusty and out of the game for a quarter of a century, he could easily do it better than almost all of her other half-siblings.

’It’s a worthy offer and, frankly, better than all my other options right now. I, too, would rather not have to spend my entire life serving as merely political opposition.’

She may not gain the opportunity to become Empress, but that didn’t mean she was devoid of ambition.

The decision was obvious as long as certain conditions could be fulfilled.

She heaved a deep breath as she returned her full attention to her older brother.

”Your offer is moving, but I’m afraid that it is not one that I can accept right here and right now. If I’m to serve as a balancing force between your regime and the Martial World to maintain harmony between the two, then I will need to first speak with all the recalcitrant Martial Sages who oppose your ideas and gain their approval to represent their interests in your so-called Ministry of Harmony,” she replied tactfully. ”Then we may commence negotiations to iron out the terms of my service in your faction. However... I can promise you that as long as you make a sincere effort and some concessions to remain in harmony with the Martial World, then you’ll have my full support in ensuring that your vision is fulfilled.”

Rui’s ethereal eyes bore deep into the depths of her golden eyes before nodding. ”Then we have come to a tentative agreement. I do not wish to delay the resolution of this matter all that much. We will reconvene today privately and finalize an agreement after you have gained a mandate of representation from these Martial Sages and Sage-level powerhouses.”

”Very well, my esteemed brother. I look forward to our negotiations. I hope that we can reach a final agreement immediately. I do not wish for the throne to remain vacant for too much longer.”

And just like that, the intense battle between Rui and Ru came to an end, for now. The tension in the atmosphere unfurled, loosening as the pressure that had mounted on all the guests of honor, royalty, and cabinet of ministers.

Many gasped for air, panting heavily, realizing that they had held their breath for too long. They were all sweaty and exhausted after the post-funeral announcement.

But not a single one of them regretted partaking in the funeral after all. It would have been criminal to miss such an important event that had so many consequences for the future of Panamic Civilization. Especially when they were all able to participate to a small degree in shaping the future trajectory of humanity.

Rui turned towards the vast hall where the leaders of human civilization had gathered. He had been continuously using the Eye of Prophecy to ensure that there wouldn’t be teleported attacks; the image of the Kandrian Empire would be truly wrecked if highly important guests of honor were assassinated in his presence.

Thankfully, NOVA appeared to have taken a step back to de-escalate hostilities. Perhaps it was because she understood that Rui would have welcomed the geopolitical justification to personally retaliate right then and there in an aggressive manner after the war was over.

”Leaders of human civilization and the Martial World,” Rui began his final address. ”I thank you for listening in and partaking in the funeral to honor my father and to pay your final respects, and I thank you for listening to and participating in my announcement of my bid for the throne. I thank you for listening to my vision of the nation and of the world, and I thank you for sharing your thoughts, for and against. No matter what happens from here on out, I am grateful that you have heeded my call and have traveled a long way to reach the Kandrian Empire to honor my invitation. With the conclusion of the ceremony and my announcement, you may return to your housing provisions with the transport ready outside to gain some rest after this long funeral and event. I’m sure we will have the opportunity to speak more often in the future.”