Rui heaved a deep breath as he lightly stretched, reaching for the dark Kandrian skies. A cool evening breeze brushed past him as he gazed at the twilight sky with a relaxed expression.

The fresh air of the forest surrounding Quarrier Town was invigorating. He was glad that it hadn't been entirely destroyed by the deforestation that the expansion of Quarrier Village would have caused.

"Did you have fun today?" Amare's voice emerged from behind him.

He turned, glancing at her from the edge of his eyes with a knowing expression.

"I did," he replied. "It was fun to meet everybody after so long. Especially Arastia…"

His tone grew more thoughtful. "She's grown a lot in just a year."

Amare smiled. "You seem pleased by that."

"She carries the hope of our civilization," Rui replied with a calm tone. "The fact that she is growing well is good news for all of us. She has more potential than any Martial Artist alive ever did, including you and me. There's no telling how unfathomably powerful she will one day become. That power will become the salvation of our civilization when we need it the most."

"Even when we have you?" Amare raised an eyebrow as she drew closer to him, arriving by his side, brushing her shoulder past his. "I think that we won't ever head to a situation where our civilization will need such hope desperately as long as we have our most powerful protectors."

Rui shook his head. "I cannot protect human civilization forever. I don't intend to live forever. And beyond living forever, there may come a time when I'm simply unable to protect the Panama Continent."

Amare grew surprised at his words. "You don't intend to live forever, even though you are functionally immortal?"

"I don't intend to live without purpose," Rui replied. "I will stop maintaining my youth if I lose the purpose that sustains me, and most likely, even with all of my efforts, I probably will. I intend to fulfill Project Water, and after I do, there may not be anything that ever replaces it."

She pouted at those words. "Ouch."

Rui smiled at her wryly. "Hopefully we'll die together."

She gently brushed past him as her expression softened. "I like that sound of that. But even if you are closer to fulfilling Project Water than ever, I still think that there isn't much need for another symbol of hope and salvation for our civilization. She's still far too young to possibly serve that role better than you can."

"Perhaps," Rui admitted. "But it would be good to have alternatives nonetheless. I can be… unreliable. There have been times when I simply wasn't present for the people who needed me when they needed me the most due to whatever reasons. It would be good to have a more dedicated protector of our civilization. You will be less sorry if there ever comes a day when I'm not around to protect human civilization and you have an alternative present."

"You? Unreliable?" she gazed at him with disbelief.

"I might also die in the future," Rui replied with a calm tone. "It's not impossible, even if I will obviously do everything in my power to avoid it. I'm sure my father already has several contingencies in place in case I die, and I don't blame him. I take a lot of unnecessary risks in pursuit of Project Water, and I can be… irrational."

She gazed at him with a strange expression. "You're acting weird."

Rui simply exhaled heavily, gazing at the setting Sun with a knowing expression. "Seeing her today made me feel impatient. I truly wish I could fast-forward into the future and fight her centuries from now at her very strongest. At this rate, it will take her far too long to fully manifest her potential. It's a shame I can't just toss her into the manifold for a few years and get the fast-forwarded version of her. Considering that she's traversing a new path, she needs to do a lot of exploring and experiencing, which she can't really do in a sterile and controlled environment within the manifold."

"I suppose that's true…" Amare gazed at him with a raised eyebrow. "I doubt she would be able to develop as a person if you stuff her into the manifold her entire life."

"Unfortunately, that's true too," Rui began hopping lightly on his feet, loosening his joints.

"What are you warming up for?" Amare raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I did make a promise to my dad that I would partake in the Negatron Wars unfolding at the very bottom of the ocean," Rui replied, cracking his neck, before gazing at Amare with a knowing expression.

"I don't want to delay that anymore."

She frowned. "You want to go right away?"

He nodded. "I promised my father that we would dominate, and that's exactly what I intend to do. But I have some preparations to do before that. So I'll drop you off at Kiriket and then get started."

"I don't think it will be possible to dominate in the Great Void Ocean with most breaking news about the seafolk fully participating in the war and seizing territory," she remarked. "I hear that they have been careful to avoid antagonizing any of the powerhouses, but they have been merciless against all other parties, private or national. If you want to dominate, you will have to overcome more hurdles than ever before."

Rui smiled. "That sounds fun. I look forward to dealing with it right away."

Before she could even respond, he patted her on the shoulder.

WHOOSH

They disappeared, reappearing on Kiriket.

"Have fun with the Beast Path," Rui told her before disappearing.

WHOOSH

"…" Amare was left speechless, simply finding herself in the middle of a random forest with absolutely no idea where she was.

"I'm going to punch him when he comes to get me next time."

Rui, on the other hand, teleported not to the Panama Continent or to the Great Void Ocean, but instead to a particular location in the Great Nam Ocean.

To Jormungandr.

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