Yuki

Alex turned to leave the throne room, though not before giving a courteous bow. The man before him really didn't seem like a king, but Alex wasn't naive enough to forget his place, nor believe that the man got his position simply by being kind and asking favors. Everything came for a price in the cultivation world.

However, as he left, he noticed a pair of eyes that seemed to drill into him. Turning, he looked at the culprit.

"Hello again."

Yuki nodded in response. Like the queen, she was a woman of few words.

Alex looked back towards the king then back again.

"I suppose you know the situation as well? Not surprising. Your father doesn't look like a man who hides things from his family."

Yuki stayed silent, something that Alex coughed uncomfortably at. He felt like he should talk to her, but he wasn't the best at leading conversations.

"Why have you come here?"

Yuki didn't say anything, she seemed to be waiting for him to guess.

'Hmmm...'

"Oh! Do you want to spar?"

Yuki's eyes brightened for a second as she nodded her head rapidly. It probably wasn't meant to be cute, but the speed made Alex chuckle.

"Makes sense. You probably have no one around your level here. Their either too strong or too weak, especially with your attribute making you gain an even greater advantage. I don't mind, but I only have a week, and it's not like I want to spar the entire time. I did just travel non-stop for a week..."

Alex paused.

"Tell you what? I'm not supposed to be seen in the city, in case there are spies, but I still want to go out and check out a kingdom of the 2nd Heaven. Surely, you must have some way of disguising yourself so people don't recognize you. If you show me around, I'll satiate your desires. Deal?"

Yuki pondered for a moment. Getting an extra stealth treasure wasn't hard. She normally wouldn't do it regardless, but she found herself more and more interested in the man before her. In the beginning, she had a slight interest in him as an ascender and then an opponent, but the words he said during their spar and his skill spoke volumes. They elevated her interest to a new level, a point in which she was willing to go out of her way just to try to understand him better.

Thus, Yuki nodded.

"Great! Do you want to spar first or do you want to explore with me? Keep in mind that I want to do both within the next couple of days, so I have plenty of time to prepare for my travels."

Yuki pondered for a moment.

"Explore."

Alex smiled. Her voice was ice cold. It was a voice that was unique to a yukionna, one that carried an immeasurable amount of frost. It didn't mean that they were actually acting cold, it's just that their voices naturally sounded this way, making a unique sound that cannot be described with simple words. It was the first time Alex had ever heard a yukionna speak and he had to say, it was quite incredible.

Alex began to walk, motioning Yuki alongside him.

"Hey, could we talk. Like without nods. I like your voice."

Yuki nodded, but tried to designate a limit. She didn't like to speak all that much.

"One word answers."

Alex's grin grew.

"Great! Now, I was wondering..."

Alex and Yuki continued walking, with Alex questioning various things about Blanc and Yuki herself.

The king, who was still sitting on his throne, smiled at their interaction.

'Be careful around that one, my daughter, I'd hate for you to start wanting to leave.'

The king knew Alex's type well. Even without knowing about Alex's eyes, he knew that the odds of his daughter wanting to follow Alex were growing ever higher. Not something he could afford to let happen, unfortunately. Yuki was a huge asset to the kingdom, her potential was not something that he could afford to allow to wander off on some grand adventure.