Chapter 786 Politics
The Transcendent Step style had one foundation form and six advanced ones. The former was necessary to unlock the latter"s training, but its standalone power was far from low. Simply learning its basics would turn anyone into an untouchable speed demon.
That speed could become power as long as the soldiers" legs could endure the impact. Basically, the art"s mere foundation could score above eighty points. The others came from the advanced forms.
"Is this faster than me?" Khan wondered, inspecting the basic form"s specifics.
Khan wouldn"t claim to be bad with numbers, but comparing the diagrams on the holograms to his top speed wasn"t doable, at least in his mind. He would need to record himself inside a training hall before applying the results to the file. Maybe Khan would even require a scientist to help him with the process.
Nevertheless, Khan knew his incredible speed resulted from mastery and alien arts, which he could theoretically apply to other martial arts. The proper comparison was between the Lightning-Demon style and Transcendent Style"s basic stats, and the latter obviously came out on top.
That wasn"t surprising given the far higher score, and Khan couldn"t help but feel engrossed by the read. He wasn"t a stranger to new techniques, but it had been a long time since he had to study to learn one. Some childish curiosity invaded him, and his feet itched to test the theory shining in his eyes.
Khan didn"t limit his reading to the foundation form. He skimmed through the advanced ones, trying to figure out why no one had ever mastered them all. The answer arrived quite soon and made perfect sense, considering everything he knew about human methods.
"They all need such different applications," Khan concluded. "It"s like each advanced form is a martial art of its own."
The foundation form was extremely difficult to perform, and the advanced ones were even worse. When Khan added the human methods to the equation, it stood to reason that no soldier could ever master more than one technique.
Still, Khan had abandoned the human methods long ago, and his mastery over controlling mana had constantly evolved. He wasn"t even sure how good he was anymore.
"Do I have a shot at mastering all advanced forms?" Khan wondered. "Did they choose this martial art because they knew I could?"
Princess Felicia had openly admitted Alexander had chosen the Transcendent Step style after studying Khan"s growth. Yet, the matter could have another layer to it. Maybe Khan"s Grandfather hoped he could succeed where no one else had.
"I might be overthinking it," Khan admitted, his eyes still lingering on the holograms, "But this is interesting."
Mastering the foundation form had to come first, but Khan inspected the other techniques to get an idea of what to prioritize afterward. He easily found a few that perfectly matched his fighting style, but their execution"s requirements sounded insane.
Khan had initially skimmed through the file, but a more focused read followed. He immersed himself in the various explanations, running through all the available bottles and even forgetting about refilling his stash. He remained captivated for so long Monica recovered enough to wake up.
"What are you doing?" Monica whispered, straightening her back to change her position. She threw her legs on Khan"s lap while nestling on his shoulder and reclosing her eyes.
"The Nognes family"s martial art," Khan shortly explained. "It"s interesting."
"It"d better be," Monica commented, her warm breath spreading on Khan"s neck.
"It"s not like that," Khan said. "It"s complicated and has even harder levels to it."
"Is it good?" Monica asked.
"Looks like it," Khan replied.
"Then, learn it," Monica uttered.
"It says here no one ever learned all of it," Khan pointed out.
"No one until you," Monica stated. "You"ll do it anyway, so stop hesitating."
"Who said I was hesitating?" Khan questioned.
"I know my scoundrel through and through," Monica muttered. "You always overthink stuff. Just do it."
"This might take years," Khan revealed.
"It will take months for you," Monica rea.s.sured.
"Months sounds too optimistic," Khan admitted. "Still, I might be able to do it."
"You do," Monica confirmed. "You can do anything you set your mind to."
Khan was too engrossed to notice the open praise. He kept reading and cuddled Monica from time to time. Part of him wanted to head to a training hall right away, but other matters filled his schedule.
Prince William"s reply arrived sooner than Khan expected. He set the meeting for that night, openly telling the network about his imminent trip. Needless to say, countless headlines popped out in the following minutes, and notifications flooded Khan"s phone.
The matter was bound to attract a lot of attention, and Khan counted on that to add fuel to his fame. He didn"t mind being hated as long as the public knew the respect he deserved. Khan needed that kind of influence to continue doing as he wished.
"My Cousin is coming here," Khan explained. "We have a few hours to kill."
"I need to eat something," Monica whispered. "Otherwise, you"ll kill me."
Khan allowed himself to chuckle, but the couple soon got to work. Some political events required the proper etiquette, and Monica wouldn"t let Khan skip on it. Her education prevented it.
When the night arrived, Khan and Monica had rearranged the flat"s living room to prepare it for the meeting. They also filled the interactive table with food and booze and invited the necessary parties.
Lieutenant Dyester, Gordon, and Andrew gathered in the flat an hour before Prince William"s arrival. Their presence was merely symbolic, but the etiquette required it, especially since the Prince had his escort.
Soon, the living room split into two sides. Khan and Monica sat on a couch with Lieutenant Dyester, Gordon, and Andrew standing behind them. Instead, Prince William occupied the opposite sofa with four fifth-level warriors coldly inspecting the room from behind his back.
"Know that I would have avoided such formalities," Prince William announced, pouring booze into his drink. "Still, the family wouldn"t let me after the recent events."
Khan barely cared about those words. Prince William"s precautions felt obvious after Khan"s recent killing spree. According to the network, he was a loose cannon, and the Nognes family couldn"t afford to risk losing a Prince.
"I will take control of the faction," Khan went straight to the point. "I"ll take all the support and resources it can give, but its obligations will exclude some parties."
"I"m guessing the Solodrey family," Prince William stated, "The Ildoo family, and those you built a friendship with."
"I also expect protection for those parties," Khan continued. "I won"t accept casualties due to your infighting."
"You made that point quite clear," Prince William commented, leading to Lieutenant Dyester"s snort. The latter agreed with Khan"s actions but didn"t like them one bit.
"I must warn you, Cousin," Prince William added. "Our uncle will fight back unless you settle things with him. I"m also sorry to say he won"t agree to support you without the proper price."
"What price are we talking about?" Monica asked.
"He wants the faction," Prince William revealed. "I don"t see him ignoring the fight unless you give him a leading position."
Khan didn"t reply, but his cold face spoke loudly. He would remove any hindrance, especially if it threatened his loved ones" safety.
"I wouldn"t suggest that approach," Prince William said, understanding what Khan had in mind. "The family can deal with external losses, but our uncle wields a lot of power. It"s also connected to his figure, so removing him would badly hurt us."
"How come you didn"t replace him yet?" Khan questioned, but his companions" auras told him he had missed something obvious.
"That power is strictly connected to his figure," Prince William explained. "The various businesses he owns exist because he is the owner. The same goes for his political allies. They don"t trust a n.o.ble. They trust him."
The explanation made sense, but Khan inevitably found the matter troublesome. His uncle seemed a political monster who had spent years acc.u.mulating resources and binding them to his figure. It was more than simple wealth and influence secured through the status of a n.o.ble.
Khan also understood why his uncle had worked hard to secure those a.s.sets. It wasn"t only his duty. He probably needed that power to hope to control the faction one day, and a knife wouldn"t solve the issue. Khan needed to deal with it through politics.
Normally, Khan would accept the loss and focus on rebuilding afterward. However, he had already significantly hurt himself in the past week. Maiming his faction would kill any advantage he hoped to obtain and open the path for more problems. The Nognes family itself might eat those a.s.sets at the first sign of weakness.
"I can arrange a meeting with uncle," Prince William declared. "The faction will push for political training first, and there would need to be an external mediator, but I can make it happen."
"No," Khan directly refused.
"Cousin," Prince William called, his tone growing serious. "This is unavoidable. You will clash with uncle sooner or later."
"Later," Khan said. "After I own enough to stand at the same political level."
"That will take years," Prince William pointed out, "And there"s no certainty that you will succeed. I"m not underestimating you. The Global Army simply doesn"t have many available a.s.sets that can bring you to uncle"s level."
"The Thilku Empire has them," Khan uttered.