The Martial Unity

BANG!

Prince Randal struck his fist against a table.

His expression was murderous.

His demeanor was grave.

They had just returned to one of their secret bases, transported by their Martial Masters. He gritted his teeth as he thought back to what happened.

Even at this very moment, it was difficult to conceive that what happened had actually genuinely happened.

He didn't understand.

How could something so outlandish happen?

He was unable to conceive of a possible chain of causality that could explain how this happened.

"What happened?" He turned to his Martial Masters sternly. "Why were we unable to kill him despite the numeric advantage?"

The Martial Masters grew severe. "The Voidreaper…he was incredibly dangerous. There's a decent chance that he would have been able to kill at least two of you before we could take him down."

His words stirred Princess Ranea as she turned towards them.

A glint of suspicion flashed in her eyes. "I have never heard of any circumstance where one Master is able to deter sixteen using assassination. It was literally sixteen to two. Couldn't you have split up and ganged up on them individually separately."

The Martial Masters shook his head. "With her stealth and speed, she would effortlessly weave past us and kill all of you. Or, Rui Quarrier himself would kill you while she keeps us busy. He may not be a Master, but after the shocking performance that he displayed, it is not inconceivable that he may be able to kill you in the briefest opportunity that presents itself."

She didn't respond to his words.

She was not qualified to dispute them.

Yet she was clearly unsatisfied by such an explanation.

Princess Raemina sat on the floor in the corner of the room, uncaring for her dignity as a royal princess.

She was shivering with rage.

Her eyes were bloodshot and widened.

She looked closer to a mental hospital escapee than a royal.

Princess Rafia had not uttered a word since the disclosure of Rui Quarrier's life.

It was as if her brain was short-circuiting, trying to rationalize how an event that defied causality had unfolded. She was no different from a computer trying to divide a number by zero at the moment.

"…" She murmured something under her breath.

"What was that, Your Highness?"

"I'LL KILL HIM!" She screeched with ugly bloodlust. "I'LL TEAR HIM TO SHREDS!"

"Please calm down, Your Highness," One of her Martial Masters tried placating her.

It was in vain.

"Oh, that's right. His brother in my faction," A quivering smile spread on her face. "Hahaha! I'm going to make his life hell. No. Everyone in that filthy orpha-"

"You'll do no such thing," Prince Randal growled at her.

"And who are you to command me, you filthy army dog?" She glared at him.

His eyes sharpened fiercely.

The air grew electric.

Surprisingly, he managed to keep his cool, exercising great discipline over his impulses.

"If you don't want to live a miserable life…" Prince Randal coldly retorted. "Don't think about doing anything stupid. He can effortlessly ruin your life if he wants. You will go from being a dignified royal princess with great prestige and authority in the Kandrian government to a filthy rat trapped in a Martial Union holding cell and prison for the rest of your life. Is that what you want?"

His words poured cold water on her inferno.

As much as she wanted to inflict the most unspeakable things on Rui Quarrier and everyone who could bring him pain, she cared about herself more. The Martial Union imprisoning her in a shabby prison with shabby cloth for clothes and livestock feed for food was an outcome that she desperately wanted to avoid with every cell in her body.

Prince Randal heaved a sigh as he thought about the circumstances that they were in.

It was beyond dire.

It was dooming.

They picked a fight with Rui Quarrier, and he proceeded to demolish all of them.

At this very moment, he could imprison them for life. Prince Randal had asked his Martial Masters if they could track him after they had left the warehouse, but the Master had informed him that he and the Voidreaper had disappeared.

It was game over.

There was nothing that could be done; now, they could only sit tight and hope that he wasn't a sadist at heart.

Because if he was, then they were in for a world of hurt.

Prince Randal gritted his teeth, clenching his fists as a glint of suspicion and resentment flashed in his eyes, flying around the room across the various Martial Masters in there.

He had indeed said he would take full responsibility, but now that the consequences of the actions were coming, he couldn't help but feel incredibly dubious and resentful about the choice that the Martial Masters made.

He, like Princess Ranea, was unqualified to question the evaluation of the circumstances from the Masters, but that did not mean he was convinced.

Yet he abstained from voicing out his compunctions.

This was no moment to isolate his protectors, whether sincere or not. However, he definitely needed to reconsider how much he could trust them to act in his best interests.

He got up, leaving the room wordlessly.

Now that their operation had crashed in a massive fiasco, he didn't have any more business with his three half-sisters. He didn't particularly enjoy their company either, and they were all fighting for the throne; thus, they were back to being enemies.

"Huff…" He heaved a grave sigh.

He was certain that his bid for the throne was dead. One of his lifelong dreams to ascend the throne and lead Kandria to glorious conquest had now probably died forever. He wanted to Kandria to become the sole hegemon over all of East Panama. He wanted to go down in history as a conquerer among conquerors.

Words couldn't begin to describe the hatred he felt for the fellow Kandrians who got in his way of delivering them glory.

He gritted his teeth. "Damn it."

"Damn it all."