Arnold’s final match went smoothly, and he even learned something new.

The technique, [Rain of Aether], involves condensing raw Aether into small arrows. These arrows pack the same power as Ki, Aura, or Aether blasts but can be produced in astronomically greater numbers. The trade-off is simple: larger, more powerful arrows reduce the quantity, while smaller, weaker arrows drastically increase it.

Unlike energy blasts, which require a delay between each attack to charge, Aether arrows can be created en masse with a single charge. This eliminates the vulnerability of being counterattacked while preparing another blast. Once charged, Arnold can unleash a barrage of arrows in rapid succession, giving him a significant tactical advantage against swift enemies.

The technique reminded Arnold of his forbidden [Sword Tribulation], albeit on a much smaller scale. While the forbidden art could wipe out entire populations in a single strike, [Rain of Aether] operates on the same principle but lacks the overwhelming destructive capacity. Still, it was a valuable addition to his arsenal, offering versatility without catastrophic consequences.

Back inside his room…

Gathered inside were Lian, Kairi, Liwei and Arnold. The two servants were watching Lian as she taught Arnold how to act the part of the “formidable tyrant” Funiji.

“—Funiji’s movements are all about flair and authority. Watch.” Lian strode forward, her posture rigid but elegant. Of course, that intimidating presence Arnold’s been hearing about was absent in this delicate woman.

“Every step says, ‘I own this space and if I don’t, I will take it from you.’ Do you think you can pull that off?”

Arnold mimicked her, exaggerating the movements slightly. “Like this?” his head turned mechanically.

“Too stiff,” she said, poking his shoulder. “Loosen up a bit as if you’re moving your shoulders back but stop when your arms are an inch behind your chest. That broadens your shoulders and pushes your chest out—just like what Funiji does.”

He rotated his shoulders before trying again, walking from one end of the room to the other, keeping Lian’s instruction in mind.

“That’s it. Now pretend you’re fluttering a long robe using your arm. He often does this when turning around since his blue robes are quite long.”

“Hm, like this?” Arnold swung his arm to the side. It looked comical, like an inexperienced ballerina swinging her arm while tiptoeing.

“No…” Lian frowned with a finger on her lip, “I can demonstrate it perfectly if we had a robe to practice with but a simple blanket won’t do. It needs to wrap around my arm.”

“Why not just turn into him?”

“Eh?” She looked at him in confusion as he took out a small earpiece. It was the same earring he had received from Ruria—an artifact of undeniable power depending on how you use it. The centerpiece was a black pearl, its surface flawless yet alive with an enigmatic swirl of energy. Encasing it was a delicate frame of silvery metal, etched with arcane runes that pulsed faintly with an otherworldly glow. The artifact felt ancient, exuding an aura that spoke of untold mysteries and the kind of power that could reshape destinies.

“This is something that will allow you to turn into Funiji. I’m not sure if it can change your clothes just yet so you’re the perfect guinea pig.” He recalls that Ruria’s clothes stayed the same but her body changed slightly after she deactivated the illusion.

“Uhm, how does it work?” asked Liwei, “I’ve heard of a sect of shapeshifters who only need to imagine the person they want to turn into instead of touching the person.”

“This is simply an illusion magic item so there are definitely limitations compared to shapeshifting.” He held it out to Lian, “See if you can get it done then show me a perfect Funiji representation.”

She felt unsure if what he said could be done. Funiji is two heads taller than her, a bit taller than Arnold. She looked like a child compared to him.

After putting the earring on it, she closed her eyes and tried to imagine Funiji’s face and robes, each layer a different shade of blue. She remembered his long dark blue hair and piercing blue eyes.

“Ho…” she heard Arnold let out a voice of amazement. Upon hearing that, she opened her eyes but before she could remark, Kairi spoke, “Lady Lian turned into Funiji!”

Lian looked at her hands. They were still the same but her clothes, hair and height had changed in mere seconds.

‘Amazing…’ the three of them thought. They were simply too stunned to make a big deal out of a magic item being right in front of their eyes.

“It looks like there are some imperfections. One arm is longer than the other and your hands are still the same but apart from that, it looks doable to fool anyone who knows what Funiji looks like.”

“I-Is that so…” Lian felt drowsy, “Ugh, it feels like my body is being sucked into this magic item…”

“That’s normal since it feeds on vitality. Of which you seem to have little of.”

“S-So, one would need a strong physical body to withstand the side effects.” Lian spoke in a voice mixed between feminine and masculine. But midsentence, she managed to change her voice to sound entirely like Funiji.

“Ugh.” A sharp pain assaulted her head when she did that. She was about to fall forward but Arnold caught her.

“Don’t change anything else and proceed with your teachings.”

“Y-Yes.” It felt like he was a brick wall that nothing in the nine realms could move. His hand holding her arm was as hard as steel and his face as perfect as porcelain.

There was no way this man didn’t have a harem of women waiting for him back home. The sight of two men holding each other like this looked quite strange to the servant girls. Liwei was blushing intensely and drooling while looking at the two.

Snapping out of her stupor, Lian continued with the lesson. It was way easier to teach him this way since she literally became Funiji.

“On to the next lesson,” Lian took off the earring, turning back into her normal self and looked at the servant girls who were watching the lesson for some reason and not enjoying their free time, “The two of you, stand on this spot and look straight at him.”

“What is this all about?” Arnold asked out of curiosity as he took the earring.

“Funiji doesn’t like when servants look at him when he enters a room. Their gazes must remain on the floor the entire time he’s there.”

“Even at parties?”

“I don’t know. I only know about what I see in the white tent where he and Ko Johun dines before battle. Maybe he tolerates the nobles because they’re right below him in social standing.”

Between Ko and Funiji, Lian admitted that the former is a better man than the latter, albeit bitterly. Ko ruled fairly and treated this conquered city’s people as his own. Meanwhile, Funiji’s cities are experiencing mass migrations from the common people. It wasn’t just due to the politics surrounding the nation but also how the non-wealthy are treated—like Pawns.

“I want you to put on your best impression of a tyrannical warlord with extraordinary strength.”

“Alright.” Arnold turned to Liwei and Kairi, both blushing at him.

“Begin.” Lian stood at the door to observe him.

“Does a dog look up at its owner at the dinner table? It would mean the dog is expecting something, no?” Arnold spoke in a deeper voice voice, trying to imitate the voice he heard from Lian, although confusing the two girls.

“Uhm, Lord Arnold, what are you—” Liwei was suddenly slapped in the face.

It was a light slap but she staggered back and held her cheek.

“Was that what you wanted when you stared at me with your puppy eyes?”

“W-What do you mea—”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He slapped her again, “Even after getting what it wanted, it still whimpers while raising its paw. What an ungrateful mutt.”

“P-Please stop! I g-get it!” Liwei held her arms in defense to protect her face.

“Another whimper?” Arnold looked at Kairi who almost jumped when his eyes landed on her.

“N-No, sir, I didn’t say anything…” she hurriedly spoke.

‘It feels as if he’s an entirely different person…’ Kairi backed up a little and averted her eyes. His aura changed in just this short amount of time. She was trembling from that alone.

Years of training her body and mind, and she can’t even stand up to someone who isn’t even serious about hurting her? What if this were a real fight? Would she cower?

Arnold caught her looking at him again. Before she could do anything, he grabbed her and slapped her twice.

“Here’s the food you wanted, Mutt. Be grateful.”

As someone who’s trained her body ever since she was little, being manhandled this easily was something she was greatly ashamed by. Looking into his slanted cold eyes, she felt powerless, unable to speak in protest, not understanding if that or her silence will be treated as a “whine” in his eyes.

The moment Kairi lowered her head, avoiding his gaze, Arnold released her, turning his sharp focus to Liwei. Seeing Kairi’s submissive gesture, Liwei mirrored her, bowing slightly as if to shield herself from his scrutiny.

‘Funiji and I—well, the former me—are quite similar so this feels disgustingly natural.’

When was the last time he had behaved like this—a scumbag, treating his servants like punching bags? The memory came rushing back: his first day in the new world. Overwhelmed by anger at Olivia’s distant behavior, he had lashed out at the first person who "messed" with him—a servant girl who had accidentally spilled tea on him. The look of terror on her face haunted him still. But back then her fear filled him with ecstasy, craving more.

It had been so easy then, just as it was now. Kairi and Liwei stood before him, vulnerable, powerless. His fingers itched with the same adrenaline-fueled rush that had consumed him back then. His breaths came shallow and rapid, his muscles taut as if forged from iron. The performance had cracked open something dark inside him, a part of him he had thought was buried after his soul fused with the earthling’s soul.

Yet, he had held back. Even in the depths of his anger, he hadn’t let his killing intent fully surface. Standing this close, he knew it would have knocked them out. Still, the unsatisfied weight in his chest lingered.

A sharp clap from Lian broke the tension. “That’s enough. I’m glad the two of you helped with this little test.” She reached into her robe, retrieving a pouch. With a practiced motion, she scattered its contents over Kairi and Liwei. Moments later, the red marks on their cheeks faded, and a cooling sensation spread across their skin.

Liwei sniffled, her voice trembling as she turned to Lian. “Why is he so mean?”

Lian smiled wryly. “It’s important for his mission that he doesn’t make Ko suspicious. Acting the part is always good to maintain focus. You should understand this already.”

Kairi, however, remained composed, her earlier submissiveness replaced by an unnerving calm. Though, she was just trying to hide the shame she was feeling within, “She’s right,” she said softly to her best friend.

Lian addressed Arnold. “I think you have the basics down. We can continue tomorrow morning to ensure you’re ready for what’s coming.”

Arnold had already turned away, heading toward the window.

“Where are you going?” Lian asked, her brows furrowing in confusion.

Arnold glanced back briefly, his expression unreadable. “I’m going to give the emperor a little... surprise.”

The remark left her staring after him in bewilderment. Before she could press for an explanation, Arnold stepped onto the sill and leapt out, disappearing into the night.

**

Standing atop the towering clocktower, the highest point in Moon Plum City, Arnold surveyed the sprawling city below. The night was vibrant with the flickering lights of homes, lanterns, and shops casting long shadows in the streets.

His exhaled slowly, feeling the Aether within him stir, hardening every inch of his body.

With an almost imperceptible flick of his will, he unleashed a wave of his killing intent, an invisible force that rippled through the air like the crackle of lightning. It surged outward in all directions, carrying with it the weight of his ferocity, his bloodlust, and the utter certainty of his strength.

At the center of it all, he stood calm, deadpan and silent.

For miles around, the people felt a sudden suffocating pressure, as if the very air had turned dense and heavy, pressing down on their chests. Some froze mid-step, their bodies paralyzed by an instinctual fear they couldn’t comprehend. Others stumbled, clutching at their throats as their hearts raced in primal terror. In their minds, the cold certainty of death loomed like a shadow, and they couldn’t escape it.

The killing intent swept through every corner of Moon Plum City, beyond its walls and into the surrounding lands, extending far into the empire. No one was spared. From the lowest beggar to the most powerful noble, all felt the crushing weight of Arnold’s presence. Children cried out, dogs whimpered, and even the most hardened warriors stumbled, gripped by the feeling of their mortality. The pressure was so intense that it seemed to suck the air from their lungs, making even the bravest hesitate to take another breath.

The clocktower beneath him groaned slightly under the pressure of his presence. He remained as still as a mountain, his eyes still locked on the flickering lights far below, waiting for the emperor’s reaction.

Sometimes it thrills a dragon when the arrogant wild dragon that roars so arrogantly, buckles under the pressure of a greater being and hides like prey.

‘I wonder, will you hide like a coward or are you truly as powerful as people say you are?’

…

Ko Johun, deep in slumber, felt a familiar pressure wash over him. He wanted to wake up but his mind steered his consciousness towards a bitter memory.

--AHHHH!!!

The sound of charring flesh and screams echoed. An ominous feeling coming over his subconscious, he ran through a sea of blood and mountains of corpses to confirm whether his premonition held true—

In the end he saw two bodies in the middle of a lake of blood, their skin charred and the only thing remaining… two necklaces….

That pressure from before returned and Ko looked behind him.

The sky was pure darkness but a figure was staring down at him from the endless abyss—

A gigantic skeletal monstrosity—a being of absolute power and magic.

“You again!” he roared, unable to control his own voice, since this was just a reenactment of something that already transpired, “You will return what you have taken from me!”

The being of absolute power said only one thing, “Consequence was inevitable even if the price for power was paid.”

Feeling like he was pulled deeper into the depths of the ocean, Ko’s body shot backward—

“Guh!” he jumped in the bed, his body drenched with sweat and heart pounding relentlessly.

‘Ming….! Ming! Ming! Ming!’

He searched desperately through the darkness, then felt the cold arm of something next to him.

Though the coldness of her body made the bitterness return, her calm breaths brought relief.

The same pressure that pressed down on him suddenly appeared again, this time more obvious as to where it was coming from since he had control of his body now.

“…”

The killing intent was so similar to that skeletal figure that he thought It came looking for him after what happened during their last meeting.

What or who could emit the same amount of pressure as that being? This pressure was laced with pure malice that only the most corrupted heart could unleash.

There was only one other person capable of such a pressure that Ko was aware of—Funiji.

Putting on a robe, Ko decided to confront it to confirm his suspicions.

…

Standing atop the highest balcony in his palace, Ko looked straight ahead. Though nothing particularly notable lay in that direction—at least not to normal humans—his gaze was one that pierced far beyond. The wind, though gentle, stirred his robe, but he did not acknowledge it.

He felt that immense pressure. He was one of the first to feel it. Instead of going into a panic like the martial soldiers patrolling the palace, he stared far into a void as if he knew exactly where the pressure was coming from.

“P-Pappa, my legs won’t stop shaking…!” A small voice broke through the tension, trembling and weak. Tiny hands clutched his robe.

It was his “stepdaughter”, Sing, shivering like a frightened mouse before a great predator.

“I-I’m scared!”

“Fret not, my little flower.” He knelt, placing a steady hand on her trembling head. “Nothing will harm you so long as I am here. Stay here. I will return after dealing with the threat.”

“Don’t leave!” Her grip tightened, desperation filling her teary eyes.

His heart twisted. He hesitated, then spoke softly. “I will not let anything take you or your mother from me.”

Not again.

The memories hit him with the force of a storm—raging fire, a sea of blood, mountains of corpses scattered across a broken world.

He had survived, though he had not deserved to. His weakness had cost him everything.

Strength, he learned too late, demanded sacrifice. He had paid a heavy price for what power he now possessed, though it would never undo what was taken. In his desperation, he had turned to an alchemist whose craft defied nature itself, seeking to reclaim what had been lost.

What he regained was a shadow of what once was, born from sacrifice and unnatural means. He had given much of himself for them—his lifeforce, once a raging firestorm was now a mere bonfire in an approaching snowstorm. The fire was hotter than most but soon the cold will engulf it completely and make its spark go away.

…

If he had this strength back then… perhaps he wouldn’t have sought the alchemist, wouldn’t have traded his own vitality for the echoes of his family’s embrace. Even though they could laugh, smile, tell him they love him—he still felt something was missing, something that only the gods could create and humanity could never imitate.

He tightened his grip on the hilt of his weapon, forcing the images from his mind. Glancing back at Sing, he whispered, “Stay safe, my flower. I’ll return soon.”

And with that, he stepped into the storm of killing intent, eager to challenge the ant who dares invade the empire he ruled.

…

At this moment, it felt like the citizens had upset a Martial God and were about to face judgment for their lack of discipline to the Martial Rules they—the martial gods—had set forth. The air thickened with an oppressive silence, as if the very heavens held their breath, waiting for the inevitable strike.

However, the pressure Arnold had unleashed over the city began to dissipate, the suffocating weight lifting immediately and with that, also his presence. People began to breathe again, confusion replacing panic as the oppressive fear vanished into the air. Arnold’s eyes narrowed as he felt it—a subtle shift, a presence drawing closer.

However, the moment that presence appeared at the same spot he stood, he was gone. Between the pressure vanishing and Ko Johun pinpointing where he was, only two seconds had gone by.

“Nothing.” He scanned the entire capital but found no trace of it. Looking down, he noticed something wrong with the citizens’ signatures.

“Their signatures are unstable. Did the source of it all do this on purpose and not just to draw me out? Is he or she a child?”

‘But this does seem like something Funiji would do…’

If not Funiji, it would be an insult to him as a martial master if the source of this incident was a martial who wanted to play with these mortals after getting drowned in power. A martial master does not use his hard-earned power to toy with weaklings. You use it to conquer them. That is his perspective of the power granted to mortals by the ancient martial gods.

He was unsure if it was really a martial so the desire of wanting to teach this arrogant fool a lesson, quickly vanished, replaced only by vigilance.