The Martial Unity

At that moment, the net entirety of all Kandrian powers and forces that heard his words faltered.

Many of them had aligned themselves with one of the princes and princesses, excited about the possibility of a ruler that worked for their interests. Excited about a ruler that would warp Kandria to elevate them above all.

Yet, history was a heavy weapon.

When wielded properly, it could break apart any conviction and any emotion.

Rui's eyes widened as he realized the Emperor understood this truth better than anybody else.

His powerful words were armed with the weight of human history.

Not just human history.

His history.

He who quelled the most fierce civil war. He who masterfully intertwined countless opposing forces into a single nation. He who elevated Kandria to the pinnacle of human civilization with the power of harmony.

Yet history alone was not enough.

It needed to be channeled carefully, masterfully, and with immaculate communication, both verbal and nonverbal. It needed to be channeled so that it wove past the greed and ambition of its beholders. It needed to weave past the human condition that drove man to war.

It needed to strike the human heart.

And struck the human heart, he had.

At that moment, uncertainty radiated from those who beheld his words.

Rui's eyes widened as realization dawned upon him.

At that moment, the Emperor of Kandria sought to move Kandria with the weight of history…with the weight of his words alone!

Yet it was not to be.

"Permission to address His Majesty Second Emperor Rael Di Kandria." A powerful voice cut through the atmosphere.

It cut through the progress that the Kandrian Emperor had made.

It was Prince Raijun.

The Kandrian Emperor glanced at Prince Raijun with calm nonchalance. "Raijun, my son…"

Prince Raijun glared at him, waiting for a response.

"You have grown much," The Emperor gazed at him with pointed interest. "Your breakthrough to the Squire Realm was one of great surprise to me. I was now aware that there was a way to overcome the fact that you've never fought a real battle in your entire life as a Martial Artist."

Rui stirred at his words.

He couldn't help but feel that the Emperor was looking at him even though his eyes were fixed on the Martial Prince.

"Permission." Prince Raijun gritted his teeth at being humiliated before all the powers of Kandria.

"Granted, my child. Not just to you, but to all those who bear my blood." The Kandrian Emperor's tone grew relaxed. "Let us speak with each other as the family that we are. Let us indulge in open dialogue before the subjects of Kandria. Let us truly engage in the spirit of the Royal Addressal Ceremony before commencing the formalities of the ceremony."

Rui understood what he was trying to do. He had already planted the seeds of doubt with his powerful words earlier. Hammering the same point over and over redundantly would not help his case at all. If anything, it would weaken it.

On top of that, the optics of refusing to allow anyone to speak was one that could ruin his impact. It conveyed an inability to engage, perhaps even fear of engaging, crippling his credibility.

However, by freely allowing not just Raijun but also all other royals to speak openly, he maintained the momentum he had built, conveying unerring confidence.

It was only then that Rui realized that the sheer mastery over communication that the Emperor of Harmony possessed was far greater than that of anybody else he had ever seen.

In just a short amount of time, he had demonstrated a profound ability to move people with words alone.

He truly was what Prince Raul thought of himself.

"Your Majesty…" Prince Raijun's eyes narrowed. "Your words betray cowardice. Yes, civil war is bad. Yet, it is inevitable. Conflicts of ambition and greed are inevitable. Greed and ambition are the fuel of human civilization. Would you have us cripple human civilization in a dovish attempt to prevent its negative consequences? Your way would send us back to the Shadow Ages!"

The Shadow Ages, an era in the five-thousand-year-long history of mankind, was an era long before the Age of Martial Art characterized by the recession of human civilization on all fronts.

Prince Raijun had attempted to associate the negative connotations of this era with the Emperor's words.

Unfortunately, it was a crude attempt. He did not possess even a fraction of the sophistication and mastery of his father's oration and speech.

"My ways will send the Kandrian Empire back to the Shadow Ages, hm…?" Amusement crept into the Emperor's tone. "My ways have ruled Kandria for three centuries."

His powerful gaze pinned Raijun.

"Tell me, boy, have they sent Kandria to the Shadow Ages in the past three centuries?"

Prince Raijun's expression crumpled, growing ugly. "That…"

There was simply no argument to be made. The Emperor of Harmony had elevated the Kandrian Empire from one of the countless nations in East Panama to the very pinnacle of it, standing equal to the three legacy powerhouses that were in power from before the Age of Martial Art.

"You said civil war was inevitable, did you?" A glint of predation flashed in the Emperor's eye. "If that's true, then I suppose it is a shame I was unable to prevent the Civil War of Kandria at the dawn of my rule then."

A light touch of sarcasm to cleanly convey the apparent absurdity of Prince Raijun's statements.

"That's not what I meant!" Prince Raijun gritted his teeth.

The funny thing was that Rui didn't disagree with Raijun's statement. Civil war was indeed inevitable when looking at the very same exact history that the Emperor's compelling rhetoric was based on.

The guests stirred as the Emperor effortlessly dominated the rhetorical battle that underlied their exchange.

"Your cheap word games do not impress anybody, Father." Another voice joined the conversation.

Prince Rajak glared at him. "Your eloquent sophistry cannot obscure the fact that we will fight to ascend the throne, just as you did. It is the height of hypocrisy to condemn us for partaking in a power struggle that you yourself partook in when you were in our position."

The dynamics of the conversation shifted once more as Rajak's words attacked the Emperor.