The Martial Unity

Prime Minister Edward Gel Dermont was not in a good mood these days.

Not only did the shocking rumors of the Void Prince’s breakthrough turn out to be completely true, but immediately after they were confirmed to be true, the announcement of the recovery of the Emperor of Harmony spread around the world.

Just the thought of it evoked deep rage within him.

If there was a man he hated from the bottom of his heart, it was undoubtedly Rael Di Kandria.

If there was a man he respected from the bottom of his heart, it was also Rael Di Kandria.

They had a long history with each other.

They were the heads of governments in their respective states for a long time.

They were also the prime strategists of their respective Sage-level powerhouses.

Of course, prime ministers did not normally serve as military strategists in most governments. A prime minister was the head executive of the government. Their primary role was to manage the nation’s executive branch. Their required skill set was bureaucratic management.

Yet, in the Britannian Empire, the prime minister, appointed by the Britannian Martial Assembly, possessed oversight over much of the government.

The reason for that was that he, the first and current prime minister since the Second Martial Revolution three hundred years ago, was so extraordinarily competent in all aspects of political engagement that Emperor Arthur had seen fit to give him the keys to the entire government.

He came to power around the same time as Emperor Rael. Of course, the difference between the two was that Emperor Rael was the true ruler of the Kandrian Empire, while the Prime Minister was little more than a glorified servant of the Martial Artists of the Britannian Empire whose power and life could be taken away at any time the Martial Assembly pleased.

The Britannian Empire was ultimately a Martialocracy.

Thus, no matter how brilliant he was, he could never gain true power.

Yet, nonetheless, they were, in some sense, rivals.

This was definitely the case when they first competed with each other in the First East Panamic War.

That was the first time he had been overcome as a strategist and a leader.

Of course, the outcome of a war was dependent on a myriad of variables in addition to the strategy.

However, the ideal strategist could maximize the probability of victory after taking into account all the many relevant variables.

The Emperor of Harmony had overcome him in that regard.

Without any dispute.

That was when Rael had earned his respect and his hatred.

Since then, the two of them had butted heads many times, with the Emperor of Harmony emerging victorious by thin margins.

When Emperor Rael’s condition came to light, he was delighted, although a part regretted not being able to overcome his rival and reclaim his honor.

However, now that Emperor Rael had returned, a small part of him felt delighted in the opportunity to finally defeat his accursed enemy.

And Emperor Rael’s very return had shown him a possibility of doing just that.

“Cease all investigative effort into the Emperor of Harmony.”

His command stunned the Britannian Intelligence Service.

“…Sir?” The deputy director stared at him, flummoxed.

“…You won’t learn anything meaningful if you do pursue investigation into the Emperor of Harmony,” the Prime Minister calmly remarked. “…There is no doubt that his predicament was the Eternal Dream Disease. It would be deeply foolish for him to have done something that stripped him of his power, undid a decade’s worth of effort of progress, and brought him absolutely no additional benefit, putting him back at square one or even further behind. Not each and everything is a conspiracy.”

His words were sharp and cleanly cut away fiction from fact. “…Of course,” his eyes narrowed, “that doesn’t mean nothing at all is a conspiracy.”

A predatory light flickered in his eyes as his gaze fell on a particular document. A profile analysis of one Rui Quarrier Silas Kandria.

“Let us revisit the facts once more.” His tone was imperious. “All the evidence at hand proves that he truly was afflicted with the Eternal Dream Disease. And now, he has fully recovered from it. An extraordinary outcome.”

His eyes narrowed. “…Yet, the thing about extraordinary outcomes is that they tend to have extraordinary causes.”

His gaze intensified.

“…Extraordinary causes such as breaking through to the Master Realm at the age of thirty-five despite being surrounded by four Martial Masters at all times.”

His expression grew certain. “…Divert all your investigative efforts into Rui Quarrier.”

“Over what timeframe, sir?”

“…Ever since Emperor Rael revealed him to be a royal prince.”

Centuries of experience as a statesman allowed him to catch the barest whiff of a deep conspiracy.

His instincts told him that there was something deeply significant that had transpired that resulted in these two extraordinary events happening nigh simultaneously.

“Pursue your investigations into the Void Prince. I have an inkling that you might find some truly interesting stuff on him.”

Previously, the man wasn’t too moved by Prince Rui Quarrier as a martial artist or as a politician. The former was because he was a martial senior, and they were simply too insignificant to earn his power.

He was clearly impressive as a politician. He possessed a sharp mind and had a good grasp of the ways of the world. However, he had a marked inexperience and lack of refinement.

Now, however, the Prime Minister couldn’t help but wonder whether his understanding of what the young prince was capable of was highly limited and deeply incomplete.

“Something is happening in Kandria.” His tone grew more confident.

It wasn’t just his intuition that told him this; it was also straightforwardly true. If they had no inkling of how such miracles came to be, then it tautologically followed that they did not know what was happening.

Regardless of how much merit the Prime Minister’s words had, the Intelligence Service followed his orders nonetheless, diverting all their investigative efforts to Rui Quarrier Silas Kandria. –