CHAPTER 2260 IMPACTS AND VALUE
Their words were ominous.
They weighed down on the atmosphere.
Just from them alone, Rui was sharply able to deduce much. "The Sekigahara Confederate has learned about the truth about our breakthroughs, have they?" Rui's voice grew forlorn.
"…I'm afraid they have, according to Master Kane's testimony. He regretfully reported that he wiped all but one Master of the Sekigahara Confederate until their Sages protected the final one."
Rui's eyes widened with alarm. "Is he okay?!"
Running into hostile Sages was something that no Master possessed the power to survive.
"He is alive and well, Your Highness," the four Master reassured him. "Sage Arrancar himself intervened, protecting his son from what would have otherwise meant certain death."
"…Thank god," Rui heaved a sigh of deep relief. "What is the Martial Union's evaluation of him as a Master?"
"Grade eighteen, your Highness," they informed with a hint of amazement. "Short of yourself, that is the highest grade anyone has ever achieved right into the Master Realm. However, that is not important at the moment. His failure to kill the final Master of the Sekigahara Confederate means that you are in grave danger, for the Sekigahara Confederate has learned about your secret."
Rui's eyes narrowed. "That is not his fault. The fact that he managed to kill all but one of them is, in and of itself, extraordinary. The fact that he failed to kill one is not enough to discount his immense contributions to the Kandrian Empire. Especially when he was confronted with Martial Sages."
They quickly backed away, detecting the anger in Rui's voice. "We are not condemning him, of course. But, it is also true that your actions and his failure in that regard have led to a lot of consequences to Your Highness and, by extension, the Kandrian Empire."
Rui stared at them silently as he found it difficult to retort.
After all, their words were dead correct.
It did not take a genius to figure out the fact that he was in deep shit, and he was one, so he was able to gain a much deeper assessment of how much danger he was in.
Yet, strangely enough, he did not feel fear.
He could almost feel the bloodlust of the three Sage-level powerhouses piercing into him, threatening to kill him through the sheer pressure it put on him, but it was almost as though it had passed right through him.
He felt a deep amount of composure and calm despite his perilous and grave circumstances.
Yet, at its roots, there was not a deep confidence or certainty in his survival.
No.
It was just that the prospects of death did not seem to inspire the kind of fear that it once used to.
"Interesting…" He whispered to himself as he learned a new tidbit about himself, a small, tiny step towards the Sage Realm.
"Your Highness, the Emperor, and the Sage Council have summoned you upon your discharge." The Masters interrupted his little session of introspection. "Both of them have much to speak to you about."
Rui's gaze shifted in their direction as he lightly nodded. "I feel fine now, so I can just go visit them as I—"
"I'm afraid that I'll be the one to decide that." A familiar voice declared from behind the Masters, who parted to reveal the Divine Doctor.
"…It's a bit extravagant to put you in charge for such a trivial matter, don't you think?" Rui raised an eyebrow. "You have much more important matters to tend to."
"I beg to differ." His tone was as clinical in its lack of warmth as ever. "Did you forget? You are my stethoscope. A tool to diagnose Gaia herself."
Rui did not like the way he framed it, but it was true that Rui was to aid the Divine Doctor in his grand and crazy ambition. As for his question, Rui had indeed forgotten about it until he was reminded of it.
He didn't have time for such missions these days. Not as long as the Kandrian Empire was in the middle of a crazy existential war that would allow it to overcome the Great Limit and become the greatest nation to have ever existed.
How could he afford to frolic around the world in abandon, looking for the supposed disease plaguing a planet that was allegedly alive?
While the Divine Doctor's sheer competence and ability lent credence to his words, it was still a highly outlandish claim that Rui didn't know what to make of. "I cannot have you die or be crippled as a result of your own recklessness," he briefly commented as he began a medical check-up on Rui.
Rui shrugged lightly, complying. "I suppose it isn't the worst thing to have you as my doctor." If being of value to the Divine Doctor meant that he would get his personal attention for all medical matters, then it was worth it.
"More importantly…" Rui began. "Was it you? Were you the one who helped Sir Armstrong develop a Martial Mind?"
The guarding Master's listened with rapt attention to that question.
"It was nothing, really," his tone was one of mild interest. "He had an interesting Martial Body that allowed me to collect rare data that I would otherwise not be able to, honing and sharpening my understanding of the Martial Body. But that's about it. I taught him everything he wanted to know, which wasn't much by my standards of knowledge, but still more than one would ever find out otherwise." Exclusive content © by Nô(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.
Rui shrugged lightly. "You have done Kandria a great service by helping him to the Master Realm. His Martial Mind is extremely useful, you know?"
Rui had a feeling that the Martial Union would value his training system of thought almost as much as they valued his system of thought. If he could pass on his knowledge of training and growth to the Martial Union, then all of Kandria could experience a qualitative evolution. It was a level of contribution that was on par with Rui's voidlet contributions.
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