The Martial Unity

Chapter 2654: Arousing Power

She closed her eyes as she thought about the entirety of her life. ”I have lived a life with the people I love, for a temple I love, and for myself. It has helped me gain profound power. And now…”

She turned to him with a deep gaze. ”And now I travel the world with you in pursuit of the truth. I voyage across human civilization to help as many people as I can with Gen philosophy.”

Rui stirred at her words. ”Sounds like that drive has been working out just well for you.”

”Well, nothing is perfect,” she giggled. ”The truth of the matter is that I have yet to live a life that is nearly as fulfilling and satisfying as I would like. For as wonderful as it has been, I have yet to…”

She placed a hand on her heart. ”…I have yet to fall in love.”

Her expression grew melancholic while her tone grew wistful. ”I have yet to find a partner. A partner to become whole with. To spend my life with. To build a family with.”

Rui tried not to make his optimism at her words obvious. ”Yeah, thatʼs tough.”

”It only grew harder the stronger I grew. I only found men growing more and more distant the more power I cultivated,” she remarked. ”Strange, donʼt you think?”

”Iʼm not surprised you find it to be strange,” Rui smiled wryly. ”But, as a man, itʼs not as strange as you might think.”

”Really?” she turned to him with curiosity. ”Why is it not strange to you?”

Rui coughed. ”Just man things.”

He wasnʼt surprised that she found it harder to find a partner the stronger she grew. Most men would probably feel a little uncomfortable or even emasculated with a partner as tremendously powerful as her. There was no way for an overwhelming majority of men to feel protective over her. There was no avenue to fulfill any masculine drive they had to impress her because it was impossible to impress someone as extraordinary as her. Perhaps it was because they wouldnʼt be able to fulfill an innate desire to feel needed and necessary, to be depended upon in a physical manner, little things like opening the jar because she couldnʼt. Perhaps it was the inability to indulge in masculine, albeit childish, fantasies that they harbored deep within them. Regardless, he could understand why, even if she was attractive, most men would not try to pursue a relationship with her because of her power.

The question was how he could convince her that he was different without being too straightforward and potentially making her feel uncomfortable. ”Your power arouses me.”

He blurted it without realizing it, simply thinking out loud.

The very moment he uttered it, he wanted to kill himself then and there. For a moment, she simply stared at him with a frozen expression.

”…Pfft!” she burst out laughing heartily, lurching forward as tears of mirth began escaping her eyes. ”…No man has ever said that to me before!”

Ruiʼs cheeks flushed red with embarrassment as he scratched his head awkwardly.

He was just glad she didnʼt call him a creep and leave.

What he had meant to say was that, unlike most men, he appreciated her power and thought it made her more attractive rather than less. Instead, he just blurted out his feelings, perhaps a bit too honestly.

He realized how unaccustomed he was to talking to women over whom he didnʼt have a massive power differential.

It hadnʼt happened since Xanarn. Ever since he had returned to the Kandrian Empire, he had gained a tremendous amount of power that often left the other party a little awed. It was easy to impress them, whether it was being the golden boy of the Martial Union or very quickly turning into the fastest-rising star within the Kandrian Empire.

And after the Emperor of Harmony revealed his identity as prince? He was doomed to never have a relationship with equal dynamics ever again. This trend only increased after he became the youngest Master in the history of the Age of Martial Art.

After he became known for his miraculous breakthroughs, his status skyrocketed far past every other Martial Master in East Panama. That was only exacerbated when he found himself becoming the center of an entire super war, someone who could make or break the fate of the war.

And even then, it didnʼt stop.

With the Era of Darkness, he became one of the pillars of salvation for all of human civilization, and with the Beggar Sect aggressively fanning the flames of his legend, he had soon become short of living deity while also becoming the strongest Martial Master he knew alongside Ieyasu.

He had long given up hope on finding someone he could truly respect as an equal.

And then, he met Amare.

Her power was just a notch below his, earning her respect and admiration but nothing more. His political power didnʼt seem to move her either; perhaps it was because she was the darling of a Sage-level powerhouse as well, perhaps because her personality was such that she didnʼt treat people differently regardless of how much power they had.

Her Martial Path and Art, her potential, and her growth rate were almost as extraordinary as his own, it made him feel quite normal.

He found himself deeply attracted to a woman who wasnʼt moved by his impressive profile.

And that just made her infinitely more attractive to him.

He found himself hopelessly infatuated with her. And he realized just how bad at ʼwooingʼ women he was without relying on their amazement at his extraordinary identity.

It took a while for Amare to stop laughing at his failed attempt to flirt with her. ”Oh dear… my stomach hurts,” she giggled at him with eyes of mischievous mirth. ”No one man has ever told me that they were aroused by my power. Still…”

”I find your power to be beautiful, as well.” Her tone was earnest, and her eyes were bright with emotion.

Her smile was warm.

”To be Water.” She gently brushed him. ”What a wonderful philosophy. I can only imagine what kind of profound origin such a profound philosophy has.”

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