Imperial Palace, Caroxtel City.
Alexandros impatiently tapped his feet as he anxiously waited outside a pair of closed doors. His eyes continued to be drawn in the direction of the room while his hands could not remain still.
Unable to patiently sit waiting, he rose from his seat and began to pace around, up and down the palace corridors.
After what seemed like forever, the doors opened, immediately drawing Alexandros' attention towards the person exiting the room.
"Master!" he cried, running up to the masked woman. "How is it, master!? Can my sister be healed?"
At his question, Mountain King let out a quiet, inward sigh. She then motioned for Alexandros to take a seat before replying, "Healing will be… difficult. Her body is extremely weak and her life force is not very abundant. If we try to use a high-level Path Technique to attempt to regrow her limbs, I'm afraid that she will die before the attempt is successful."
The young emperor's face turned deathly pale as strength drained from his body.
"Putting aside the issue of healing her body, what bothers me more is the issue of her mind." Shaking her head, she honestly confessed. "I do not even know where to begin."
"Due to the excessive drug use and prolonged confinement and torture, her mind, or to be specific, her consciousness has fractured. While the brain is keeping the body alive and functional, what we consider as 'your sister' is no longer present in there."
"I am not an expert on this matter. If you want my advice, I would tell you to seek the aid of a practitioner of the [Wisdom Path]. They would be better equipped to help you with this matter."
"I'm sorry." The Mountain King quietened.
A long time passed before Alexandros summoned the strength to reply. "I… see."
He then shakily rose to his feet and bowed, "Nonetheless, I thank Master for coming to the palace and advising me on this matter."
"You have nothing to thank me for. This is the least I could do, considering that I was absent for the final confrontation. Perhaps, had I been there, the tragic battle at the Death Sink might have been avoided."
Alexandros did not speak anything more about this topic. Instead, he asked, "Master told me that you had something to ask me about?"
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"Right." Mountain King remembered her objective in coming to meet her disciple at the palace. With a frown on her face, she asked, "Do you remember that day? When the two of us arrived at the smouldering campground of the Iron Rhino Tribe?"
Confused as to why his master was asking him about this past matter, Alexandros nodded his head. Then, under her request, he recalled the events that had occurred on that day.
The more she heard the more confused and shocked the Mountain King grew. "Wait a moment! You are telling me that I lose consciousness after fighting with an enemy? That it was that hellion who saved us?"
"Hellion?" Alexandros narrowed his eyes. "Master, I must ask you to not disrespect my teacher, Wuzhi, like that. I and this empire owe everything to him."
Mountain King did not say anything. She quietly peered at Alexandros with a sharp and incisive gaze. After a long while, she asked, "Are you certain about what you saw?"
"I am."
"Are you lying to me?"
"I am not."
"Do you recall what happened next?"
"No. I was knocked unconscious not too long after Master. When I woke up, I was already back at the camp where I heard that Master had been rendered unconscious and Teacher Wuzhi had been granted the title of Great Warrior."
"Are you really not lying to me?"
"I can swear by the heavens if Master requires me to."
A short pause later, Mountain King heaved a sigh and replied, "Never mind. Just answer me this; do you know where that devilspa—I mean, Wuzhi is?"
"No. Teacher Wuzhi did not appear after I last saw him at the Hielands many months ago. I tried having my people look for him but could not find him at all. There has been no news at all, worrying me a little."
"I see," Mountain King nodded her head. "If he ever appears before you again, tell me. I would like to meet and speak with him."
"Also, regarding the healing of your sister; I will see what I can do to heal her body. There are some ancient materials available in the Hielands that might perhaps help with the regrowth of her limbs."
Alexandros gave her a deep bow and thanked her. "I thank Master in advance. I will forever be grateful for your help."
"As your master, I am obliged to help you with your troubles." She then peeked at the sky outside and said, "It is getting late. I must leave and return to the Hielands now."
"The edict proclaiming the independence and sovereignty of the Hielands as an equal vassal of the empire will be announced in the following days."
"I am aware," the Mountain King succinctly said. She then turned around and walked away. After walking a fair distance, she suddenly stopped. Without turning her head around, she softly spoke for Alexandros to hear.
"I can understand if you choose to disregard this advice of mine. However, as your master, I feel that it is my responsibility to tell you this."
"Do not blindly believe in Wuzhi. He is more than he appears to be. He is… wrong."
After saying as much, Mountain King disappeared from his sight. Left standing alone in the corridor, Alexandros looked towards the disappeared figure of his master and processed her final words.
After a while, he sighed and shelved this matter in a corner of his thoughts. Regardless of what the issue with Wuzhi was, it was undeniable that both Alexandros and the South Aislan Empire owed him their existence.
"Whatever the case, I must continue to work hard and build the empire into a powerhouse that will no longer be pushed around by other powers. I must build it to be strong."
"For the sake of a better tomorrow."
[END OF VOL 1: WAR FOR UNIFICATION]
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