The Martial Unity

"What?!"

"He's suddenly his son and his chosen heir?!"

"Unbelievable..."

"The Kandrian Throne War has changed forever."

"Who could have known..."

A wave of murmurs erupted from the crowd as the Emperor made his final declaration.

Rui himself was frozen where he stood, shell-shocked.

"...What?" A single whisper escaped his mouth.

The Emperor did not respond to him, instead waving his hand.

A servant walked over to Rui with a prepared ostentatious tray with a ceremonial blade and an insignia atop it. A platinum-gold adorned insignia that bore the crest of the Royal Family.

"Commence the blood seal," The Emperor commanded.

Rui had no idea what that meant, but the circumstantial context and evidence were enough for him to rapidly infer exactly what was expected of him. He took the knife, cutting his palm, allowing the blood to fall on the insignia.

VMMM!

The artifact absorbed the blood, shaking and glowing, before finally subsiding.

"The Royal Insignia is proof that you are of the Kandrian Royal Family," The Emperor declared. "And the Royal Sword of Kandria…"

He extracted his sheathed ceremonial blade from his robes. "…

is proof that you are my heir."

Rui stared at him with uncertainty.

"Come forth, my son, and accept my offering of heirship." The Emperor commanded him.

measured gait, ascending the

each other's. Rui's eyes bored into his with askance, yet the Emperor's steely eyes

he bestowed his Royal Sword upon the kneeling Rui. "The world shall recognize

CLASP

ceremonial sword. His mind jarred back to reality as he broke out of his shell of shock. The surreality of what was unfolding

his heart, squeezing it in

hoped he was having

hoped, from the bottom of his heart, that he would wake up in the Quarrier Orphanage as just another ordinary orphan blessed to

denied

where he was somehow a Royal Prince,

wandered around with uncertainty as he returned to

weighed

It was heavy.

burden

a burden he

was thrust upon him against

reached the part where he could

the nature of his own circumstances. He didn't even know how to begin processing everything that had just happened. He didn't even know how it could

"My subjects."

as the Emperor took the opportunity to address the

"My children."

the royals gathered closer to

The severity of his tone reflected the weight of the circumstances.

from the Emperor himself,

that I have fought, with all might, against this curse that addles my body for far longer than any of you could have imagined.

meeting everybody with his powerful gaze. "This is my final act. This is my will. I believe that

of his words was

Kandria that had gathered within the hall. "I have made my choice, and it is time for

The air grew electric.

single person in the hall understood what the

prince had entered the

who bore the

other words, a powerful competitor for the throne had emerged from the woodwork. It was bound to be the birth of a new

a great