1398 The Price To Pay

"A few weeks minimum." In a boat that flew across the clouds, Varian informed through his yawns.

Even though he had long passed the need for sleep, it was still a good mood reliever. However, the fact that he was so fatigued he had to sleep was an indicator of how things were.

"Good job figuring out the hard parts so soon. I hadn't studied anything about Prime Worlds but Sonya has some idea. And she kept saying you were crazy for trying something so absurd."

Facing the strong wind, Isadora pushed the strand of her silver hair behind her ear and let out a delightful laugh. Looking at him as her hair moved around gently, she said. "I honestly wasn't expecting you could do pull this off."

"You should work on your conversation skills a lot more." Varian put his arms on the boat's edges and leaned back.

"…Really?" The Princess tilted her head and looked into his eyes with a strong gaze as if she was going to give his response some serious thought.

Looking at those determined red eyes, Varian raised his hands to concede. "Well, no. I prefer you being honest than telling sweet lies. It doesn't suit you in the first place. Imagine the legendary princess telling lies to take care of my feelings, huh, I can't imagine that."

"Then I'll be brutally honest. The question, can you bear it?" Isadora pursed her lips, her voice turning from playful and honest to solemn

Varian's expression hardened and he did not reply.

"You weren't actually fatigued from figuring this out. A rank 7 Ignis, a man with seven full paths, it's absurd that you couldn't figure this out. Sonya thinks it's impossible. But I think it's too easy for you.

How many days, no, how many hours would you need to figure it out once you really put your mind to it?

Yet you came out only after so many days. Even now, you're prepared to stay locked in that room. If I didn't call, no, if I didn't drag you out, you'd still be in there for those 'few' weeks which will never end."

Varian avoided her intense gaze and looked down the boat. His celestial vision pierced through the clouds, capturing the vast landscape of the planet. And his ears picked up the millions of voices ringing on the planet.

Due to his insane physical and soul prowess, he was able to experience the lives of hundreds of millions of people all at once, as if he was walking beside them, laughing with them, and sharing their tears.

"Here's the thing you'll need."

An emblem floated to him smoothly and landed on his shoulder.

With a crown, a sword, and a book in a triangle with the center of it being a flame, the emblem had much more value than the incredibly precious metal that bore it.

"Show it to them and they can sense the divinity with my aura in it. They'll believe the story and take you in. It's best if you stay there until you perfect the process of making the perfect world. If anything goes wrong, I'll switch with Enigma in the worst case and act as my own clone."

"…What are you talking about? Like I said, I'm weeks away from getting the theory right." Varian said with a look of disbelief. "I'll go to the kingdom once I'm done with the theory. With the uncertainty there, I can't focus on studying."

"Stop bullshitting." Isadora's tone was confident, no, it went a notch beyond that. She sounded certain. "You aren't fooling anybody, mister. With your talent, you already figured out the theory. You'll probably need some more days to get the process right."

Varian shook his head. "I'm not going."

"Do you think I proposed for this talk? It was Sia. Sarah also noticed why you were doing this. You want to delay your trip and wait for the assassin, why? Because you don't want to abandon the people here and leave? Because you feel guilty?"

Varian looked down at the beautiful cities and bustling streets.

People, so many people. Young and old, men and women, happy and sad. All of these lives…

"They'll have no protection if I leave."

"Sarah is okay staying here until you return."

"Do you think I'd let her stay?"

"You idiot! Do you think she'll move to safety if you stay here and the assassin

comes? Nope. If a dagger is going to your heart, she'll come in the way and die first."

"…I will send them away. And I'll stay. What if the assassin slaughters everyone here?"

"You were okay with my plan before. What's with the cold feet now?"

"I feel like a piece of shit, leaving the fate of these people to the wolves and fate."

Isadora grabbed Varian's shoulders and looked into his eyes with fire in her gaze. "You bastard! Where did all that cleverness go? Did your brain just vanish?

Wake up!

You aren't a hero! You're just a weakling who can't even stay in his own home safe and have to take shelter in a kingdom so assassins won't slit your throat.

And what if you stay?

The girls will stay. All of them. Don't think for a second you can send them away. I know what you tried last time against that rank 8. It won't fly this time.

I've seen them and I can tell you this. If you die, they'll pour their hearts and souls into vengeance. If they fail, they'll die in the process. If they succeed, they'll kill themselves after it.

If it's an assassin who can kill you, then it's useless for you to stay here. And believe me, Eshala is not a woman to be taken lightly. Her subordinates are assassins who even the kings fear!

And about these people?

Yes. They might all die. And they might not.

But if you die, all of your wives will die with you.

Let me put it this way: Because of your stupid heroism, your concern with your so-called race, you're willing to kill your wives who love you the most and would die for you?

Make a decision!"

Varian was severely shaken and he finally let out a deep sigh.