The old man was not wholly oblivious, though. The main reason he wanted to prevent the fake Sovereign from taking Cyneah was because he believed she did more than heal his illness. She might have boosted his magic, giving an illusion that he had the power of a Sovereign.
How that happened, the old man was unsure. But one thing he was sure of, the illusional boost in magic, was not permanent, which was why the fake Sovereign wanted Cyneah.
Of course, all of these were only the old man's speculations.
Unbeknownst to him, Kyran also had the same thoughts.
The ascension of the fake Sovereign right after his illness was healed of his illness was an indisputable fact. Add that up to his sudden interest in Cyneah and the fact he was not even a Sage; thus, even if he ascended, he should not have become a Sovereign.
'You are this plane's real Sovereign?'
'No, I'm not the Sovereign. At least, not yet,' the old man paused. Then he sighed in resignation and said, 'That is not exactly right. I had the chance but did not take it because I feared the Kingdom of Cretea would take advantage of my people once I became this plane's Sovereign.'
Gael fell silent. Before he became a changed man, thanks to his master, he did not know what it meant to be a Sovereign. Now that he knew, he could understand the old man's concerns.
The Eidums had great healers. Even their fighters could use powerful support spells, except healing. Many nations would covet them and exploit their abilities for their own gains.
'Now that I think of it, maybe I should have taken that chance. If I did, even when Sisi healed that man and granted the power comparable to a Sovereign, he would not be able to claim he is the new Sovereign. The Nobles would not fear him and do everything he said,' the old man added, full of regret.
'There's no point dwelling on that,' Kyran told him.
To be honest, he did not believe that the fake Sovereign would not try to claim he was the new Sovereign even when the old man ascended. After all, no one would know that their plane already had a Sovereign. And since the old man would be restricted from meddling with the plane's internal affairs, he could not tell everyone that the man was a fraud.
'Master is right,' Gael also agreed. 'Since you are not yet this plane's Sovereign, there is nothing wrong if my master takes this plane for himself, right?'
'Oi—.'
'I don't really mind,' the old man replied. 'Please go ahead and do as you see fit.'
'Thank you very much for understanding. My master is a good leader. He will definitely be a wise ruler.'
'Yes, I can see that. A good ruler needs charisma. Your master has plenty of that. You should have seen how he subdued our new recruits. Although they are not stuck up, they can be pretty arrogant. In the end, he only showed a fraction of what he could do, and he already won their trust.'
'Right, our master is a natural in that regard.'
Kyran's brow twitched as the two continued to spout nonsense. Obviously, he knew the old man was only messing with him. As for Gael, being a loyal Servant, he was exaggerating.
'Old man, do you think Azikh and Gidan will agree to my proposal?' Kyran veered the topic away from him.
There were a lot of things he had to consider if he decided to conquer Somuli. For this reason, he did not want to entertain the idea. Nevertheless, he admitted he was considering the idea after Gael mentioned Cyneah's attachment to the Eidums. However, he would have to put that idea aside until he sorted his thoughts.
The old man paused and pondered momentarily before replying, 'Half-half. Gidan will likely agree, but Azikh will not. Although Gidan appears to be a conservative type at first glance, and Azikh is the practical and neoconservative one, the truth is the opposite.'
Kyran already guessed as much. Gidan was only opposed to him because of his questionable origin. Not to mention, he did not believe the news about the Abbot's abduction.
'If Neah is added into the equation, my proposal will be rejected,' Kyran said.
Cyneah had tried to argue with Kyran that the Eidums lacked the strength to conquer. From this, it was a no-brainer that she was opposed to it.
'Not necessarily, master,' Gael said.
'Why did you think that?'
'I know the mistress will always support your decision. If you decide on a conquest, she will definitely follow your lead.'
'Let me get this straight,' Kyran started exasperatedly. 'I am not the one starting a conquest. I will only help the Eidums start one.'
'But master—.'
'Continue investigating the Armakea. I need to understand what is truly happening inside.'
'Yes, master.' Gael's demeanor changed at once as he received a new order. In a blink of an eye, he left and went to the other side of the border.
'You have an interesting subordinate,' the old man commented after Gael left.
'That guy had wanted to subdue me.'
'That...' the old man thought of something and said, 'So you have won him over with your charisma.'
'No,' Kyran replied. 'I devour him instead.'
The old man froze, waiting for Kyran to say he was kidding. When that did not happen, he could not help but want to know Kyran better.
'To devour such a powerful person, you are truly an enigma,' he said.
Kyran regarded the old man inside his Void world in amusement. He could sense the latter's curiosity about his real identity, but he reigned in his curiosity and only gave such a response.
'Why won't you heed your subordinate's suggestion? You know, I don't really mind if you want to conquer this plane.'
'Let's talk about that another time.'
'Why leave it for another time? Are you worried that once I ascend, I'll try to take back the plane from you?'
'There is nothing to take back. I am not a Sovereign. Thus, I can't claim other planes for myself.'
'Is there a rule that says you must be a Sovereign to claim another plane?'
Kyran did not answer.
Frankly, he did not know. But as far as he knew, a plane would only recognize a Sovereign as its ruler.
As he was thinking this, Dusk's words flashed in his mind, and he could not help but frown.
"You really don't know what it means to possess Ancient magic, do you?"
Kyran never knew his level. Initially, he thought Caelan was a Sage because of his title 'Dark Sage.' It turned out that he got the title from someone else and that someone was definitely a Sovereign— or even higher.
To be honest, Kyran stopped caring about his mage level. As long as he could fight another Sovereign, that was all that mattered.
But faced with the old man's question, Kyran wondered if that was not the case, then did it mean he could claim a plane?
Kyran pushed the thought at the back of his mind at once. The last thing he wanted was to get his priorities mixed up.
'Who can change Azikh's mind?' Kyran diverted the subject again.
'Me?'
'...'
'Err... my son may be able to change his mind,' the old man replied immediately when he sensed Kyran's silence.
Kyran frowned. When the old man mentioned his son, he immediately remembered the pact with Cyneah.
As if reading Kyran's mind, the old man sighed and said, 'I am truly sorry. I can talk to my son and convince him to dissolve the pact.'
'Don't talk nonsense. You're supposed to be missing. How are you going to talk to him?'
'Well... we can stage something where I managed to escape my abductors?'
'No.'
Kyran felt his head throb from the old man's words.
Did he forget that they did this so the Nobles would be busy looking for him to make any trouble for his people at the borders? What was he saying now?
Besides, as long as he stayed abducted, the Nobles could not pursue the dissolution of the pact.
'Then... I'm afraid unless you can convince my son, Azikh will not agree.'
Kyran did not respond. Although the old man said Azikh and Gidan would have a fifty-fifty chance of agreeing to his proposal, it was only speculation. For this reason, he did not want to consider 'convincing' the old man's son for Azikh to agree.
Besides, the old man's son was not even at the border.
As if reading Kyran's thoughts, the old man said, 'My son is scheduled to come to the border by the end of the month. That is two weeks from now.'
'Two weeks, huh,' Kyran said with a wry smile. 'He'll probably arrive much early than that.'
'Why do you think that?'
'Because you had been abducted.'
'Ah! You're right.'
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