After taking a shower, Edward went to the dining room where he saw Rowena sitting and waiting for him with a table full of different kinds of dishes from different parts of the world.
Like Edward, she was wearing [The Robe of Archmage] from DND, but hers was blue, while Edward's was white and grey. Powerful magic could be felt from these clothes due to how powerful they were.
"My Empress," said Edward as he kissed her on the cheek, to which she just smiled at him.
"How have you been?"
"Not very good," replied Rowena.
"Did something happen?" asked Edward who was preparing to put a piece of bread in his mouth. Unfortunately for him, a magic light hit his hand, preventing his movement.
"I have not checked for poison yet," said Rowena as she stared at him. Then, white light flew from her hand to the food as he used the spell Poison Detection.
Meanwhile, Edward rolled his eyes to indicate that she was overcautious. His body is modified to create a new organ to store poison in case he was indeed poisoned. Plus, he still has nanites in his body to deal with the issue in case the poison sack did not work.
After checking the food, Rowena motioned for him to start eating.
"So, why are you not happy?"
"I don't know, maybe because you are leaving without me."
"We already talked about this. You can go with me on the next voyage, but not this time as it's too dangerous."
"Even you admit that it is dangerous, so why not bring us to support you in case of danger."
Nevertheless, Edward was adamant about his decision.
"In that case, why not wait until Project Uranus is finished. That way, your safety would be more guaranteed."
"I cannot wait that long. Plus, it's not like I'm being as reckless as the first time. I have prepared for many things for my departure--even my possible death.
"I have left a piece of my soul here, so if I were to die in the Void, with enough Soul Crystals, I can revive myself. And if I'm unlucky enough to encounter a being that controlled causality and managed to destroy the piece of my soul left all the way here, I left a copy of my consciousness somewhere to be transferred to a clone.
"Although technically speaking that this kind of resurrection would just be another soul with all my memories and abilities, it's still better than nothing."
Rowena sighed as she knew how stubborn her husband can be, so she did not mention this topic anymore. The two ate breakfast before spending a few hours together, then Edward went to Academy City, while Rowena had some diplomatic affairs she had to deal with.
--Scene Break--
Academic City, 7th Magic Tower, Luna Lovegood stood at the very top of the tower, looking in the sky, a little distracted. Suddenly, a voice sounded around her.
"Master, someone is requesting entry to the Tower?" asked the Tower A.I., which is more often referred to as Tower Spirit.
"Who is it?"
"It's the Emperor."
"Let him in."
Soon after that, Edward appeared on the highest level of the tower. With a smile on his face, he walked behind her to hug her.
"How are you doing?"
"Not very good."
"Why is everyone not feeling well recently?"
"That's because of your selfish decisions," replied Luna calmly. She sighed out loud. "I've tried to look at your future, even to see the most basic information of the amount of danger you will face, but I could not see anything. I even almost accepted their offer, thinking that they might have the power to help me divine your future.
"So much for the noble Seer Bloodline."
"There is no need to blame yourself. Plus, I'll be fine. And under no circumstances should you even be communicating with these things until we know for sure what they are," replied Edward.
The two remained quiet for a while as they stared at the blue sky. Although they have seen such a sight countless times, for some reason, it appeared different today; it appeared more beautiful.
"Do you remember what I said to you countless years ago when you started courting me?" asked Luna as she turned around to look him in the eyes.
"You said that the only reason you accepted my advances was that fate told you that we were meant to be together, but you refuse to easily accept this fact. So, I had to work extra hard to gain your approval."
Luna raised her hand to caress his face. "You have to survive and come back, otherwise, you will never gain my approval."
"As you wish, my queen," replied Edward as he embraced her tightly.
Three days later.
Academic City. Amelia, the Ten Rings Council Members, along with a few other ordinary council members stood waiting for something. Surrounding them were a few hundred soldiers dressed differently.
Some had armors shined with magical light, holding things like swords, spears, or bows and arrows. Some had modern combat uniforms with guns, while the others had long staff in their hands, dressed in magical robes.
Despite the differences of these people, all of them had one thing in common: they all had an excited look on their faces.
After a few minutes of waiting, they finally saw what they were waiting for. Something came flying from afar, landing in front of the Council members.
"Welcome, your majesty the Arcane Emperor," said the army as they knelt on one knee. As for the Council members, they placed their right hand to their left shoulder, their left hand behind their backs as they saluted him.
The only person not doing anything was Amelia.
After landing, Edward smiled after seeing the pose of the council members.
'As a transmigrator, the greatest pleasure is to change the world to your liking.'
(AN: For anyone who does not know, their pose is the one from Attack on Titan.)
"At ease," said Edward before focusing his gaze on his aunt.
"How are you doing? Please do not say you're not doing alright as well."
"Having a rough few days?" asked Amelia.
"You can say that."
"Well, mine has not been good as well."
"Another argument with Susan?"
"Yes. I just do not understand why she wasted all her potential by becoming a painter."
"What's wrong with painting? She likes it, and is very talented and successful."
"I know this, but I just think that it's a waste. She could do so much more if she focused on magic research. *Sigh* I just do not understand how things turned that way."
"It's actually very understandable," replied Edward. "She spent most of her lives under the shadow of the 'Arcane Emperor's Cousin', with many people often comparing her with me. So, it is completely reasonable that she chose a profession completely unrelated to me."
"...I never thought of it that way. Maybe you're right. I should probably stop bickering with her and her parents as much."
"Yeah, let the poor girl live her life the way she wants to."
While these two were casually conversing, the other members had to pretend not to hear anything, or even exist. After all, this was related to the royal family's personal affair or drama. It was not their turn to intervene.
After chatting with Amelia, Edward finally looked at these people: "Alright, let's begin with the Tower Master Inspection. Let's begin with the 2nd Tower."
However, as soon as he finished, a commotion occurred around this group.
7 chapters.
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