The Queen vs. The Emperor

A day went by after I won the tournament. My confidence was at an all time high as I was able to now go to the citadel to meet and duel against Azusa. I spent most of my morning and afternoon with Nebula in the same open field I found her, meditating and cultivating my energy, unlocking more of my power that I purposely hid.

I knew Azusa wasn't going to be going down easily, but I also didn't want to unveil too much power as my purpose here isn't to dominate and take control. I only needed enough power to neutralize Azusa and get my point across.

As I meditated, I heard Nebula neigh, warning me that someone was approaching me. I opened my eyes to see who was approaching me, noticing Kotone walking toward me. "You have some nice tracking for a ninja...Have you come here to test if the third time's the charm?"

Kotone scoffed, turning her head away due to my teasing. "No! I just came here to remind you that the queen wills your appearance just in case you forgot."

I chuckled softly then sighed a bit, closing my eyes once again to return to my meditation. "I already know...Like I'd forget something so important. You can tell Azusa that I will be there. There's nothing that can stop me from going through with this."

"You're not defeating Azusa. I'll admit, you are versatile and have a lot in your arsenal, but my queen isn't going down easily. The strength she holds is far more terrifying than you could possibly imagine it being." Kotone said, her confidence and trust in Azusa at an all time high.

"You just want to see me lose, and that's alright. A lot of people want to see me lose," I responded, standing up from my spot. "But that's not happening. There's only one person I will ever lose against...and that's me."

Kotone scoffed then turned away, walking off. "Yeah whatever, Yeshan. Just keep in mind that no matter what you do, you'll never have my respect. You're just a Tyrant who's motives are hidden behind your lies."

I just let her walk, knowing I didn't have to explain myself to her. I knew the truth and I wasn't going to waste any energy nor breath trying to convince her through words. I knew my actions speak louder than my words.

Nebula looked at me and whinnied, her tail slightly swaying and her expression filled with a bit of concern.

I looked at Nebula then smiled at her, gently rubbing her mane. "Do not fret, Nebula. I won't lose...besides this isn't a battle about winning or losing anymore. All I have to do is get my point across. Now let's ride, the first sign of dusk is coming shortly."

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The sun has just dipped below the horizon, casting a warm, fading light across the landscape of Athirus. The shadows grew longer, the colors deepening, and there was a sense stillness and anticipation looming in the air as I approached the castle.

Azusa noticed me walking up then crossed her arms. "You're late."

"No, you're just early." I said, a smile playing on my face.

Azusa rolled her eyes then turned away. "Follow me."

I chuckled softly as I began to follow Azusa's lead. As I followed behind, I noticed Mari watching behind a pillar then smiled at her. Her eyes shimmered, a happy smile returning to me. She secretly followed us, wanting to see our duel up close and I noticed it, giving her simple hints on where she could hide so she could watch.

Azusa and I made it to her personal battlefield where all of her personal duels were held. I stopped in my tracks as Azusa kept walking forward to take her spot on the other side of the battlefield. She turned around, her blue eyes glowing with a determination and willpower only known to the Queens.

"Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Queen Azusa, ruler of this kingdom known as Athirus. My Kingdom is known for their Assassins, Ninja and Knights...I, myself, am an Assassin who went through an entire Royal Rumble with the other 19 Kingdoms and came out on top due to my Phantom Style Martial Arts," Azusa started before throwing down a smoke bomb and revealing her assassin's attire. Her black scarf flowed with the gentle winds, her blue eyes glowed within the shadows that cloaked her. "Now tell me who you are...and why you are actually here."

I crossed my arms, closing my eyes and letting out a soft chuckle. "My name is Ryoma Miyazaki...I will save you the pleasantries as I've said this once before to Takesi, and I could explain why I'm here..but there's no chance of you believing me."

Azusa looked at me with curiosity then crossed her arms. "I'm willing to listen...for now. Your reasoning better be good."

I nodded and met Azusa's gaze with my own. "It is true that I am here for the Legend of Uthea, that who conquers the 20 Kingdoms of Uthea and the City of Xezar will be rewarded with a once in a life time chance to meet any Goddess of their choosing...but I am here for another reason."

Azusa stayed silent, allowing me to state my second reasoning.

"I am here...to marry all 20 Queens and the Empress." I said.

Azusa immediately went on the defensive and placed her hand on the handle of her katana. "And you think I'm just gonna offer my hand up for marriage and let you hold dominion over MY people?"

I shook my head gently then sighed softly. "See? You don't even know why I want to marry you all. It isn't something I just randomly thought about. Everything I do has a purpose. Everything I do has a reasoning. You will never find me acting out of reasoning and probable cause, however...I will have this duel with you and when I win I'll tell you the true reason behind my choice."

Azusa slowly unsheathed her blade then casted shadows around the exits, preventing either one of us from leaving. "You won't even get the chance...just as I, and the other Queens and Empress, have killed the King of Athirus...You too shall fall by my blade."

I chuckled softly and began stretching then hopped up and down, energizing my body. Small crackles of lightning surrounded by body as my body became more energized then I got into my stance. "We shall test that theory~"

The moon hung high in the night sky, casting a silvery glow over the secluded battleground behind the castle of Athirus. Azusa, cloaked in her dangerous shadows, emanated a chilling aura as she prepared to face me, her Phantom Style at the ready. Across from her, I stood with a calm demeanor and a smirk on my face, my eyes fixated on Azusa with a mixture of determination and respect for Azusa going through with this.

"Get ready! This is where your journey ends!" Azusa called out before lunging forward with blinding speeds.

She began launching a barrage of strikes and slashes, her movements fluid and percise as she attacked with a deadly intent. I met her onslaught with controlled movements, deflecting each of her attacks then countered with a palm strike to her stomach, knocking her back. Azusa stumbled backwards then lunged toward me again.

Clash after clash, the blades of our swords echoed throughout the air, a symphony of battle speaking of skill and determination from the both of us. Azusa noticed I was still holding back and this angered her more into using more cunning techniques, but was met with swift dodges and parries with calculated percision.

Azusa feinted her next attack, managing to kick me back then performed hand seals then exhaled, black smoke escaping from her mouth. 'Phantom Style—'

"Phantom Style: Shadow Barrage." I called out and gave her a smirk that sent chills down her spine.

Azusa looked surprised then regained her focus as she dodged and parried my Darkness Clones then sent her own to rush me down with attacks. After our first Phantom Clash, Azusa started to reach deep down into her arsenal then she flickered out of sight.

'Hmm~ What could this technique be..? I couldn't copy it so it has to be a special skill..~' I thought to myself then noticed five Phantom Versions of Azusa appearing around me.

They all went in for an attack but their bodies phased through mine, telling me they were simple illusions. As I tried to figure out with Azusa was the real one, I was attacked from behind and launched forward. Azusa appearing in front of me then palmed my chest, blowing me backwards. I recovered then noticed Azusa was gone for once again.

I chuckled softly then kneeled down onto one knee. I placed my hand on the ground, absorbing Earth Energy and obtaining the ability to use Earth Manipulation. I stood up then clapped my hands together before spreading them apart, generating a black orb of energy and tossing it to the sky.

'Earth Arts: Meteor Crash...' I chanted in my head.

Azusa appeared behind me once again then grunted as a piece of the ground rose her upwards. She noticed she was getting pulled toward the black orb of energy that ripped parts of the ground apart to form a meteor in the sky. Azusa jumped off the piece of earth that carried her to the sky then went for a slash at me.

I dodged her slash swiftly then grabbed her arm, spinning around and tossing her below the meteors position then shifted my foot, trapping Azusa. I looked up at the meteor then rose my hand. Once I swiped my hand down, the meteor came down crashing at alarming speeds. Azusa tried to break out of her hold, but it was too late as the meteor hit Azusa and caused a massive explosion.

Kotone and Takesi watched in complete awe of my skills before noticing a burst of aura from Azusa. They sighed in relief as they noticed her recover quickly from the attack.

Azusa stood strong then perform multiple hand seals quickly then held her hands out. "Phantom Style: Nightmare Dance!"

I watched as a barrage of Darkness Clones charged toward me, flicking in and out of sight with elegance and grace. I moved my eyes quickly to keep up with all of her illusions then closed my eyes chuckling softly. I began to dodge the strikes of her clones while black lightning crackled around my body.

A symbol on my right shoulder shined brightly. 'Zodiac Arts: Velocity Devastation!'

I stomped my foot down then charged forward, my aura and black lightning trailing behind me. I vanished at high speeds, catching Azusa off guard. She looked around for me then groaned as she was getting rushed with high speed strikes from all angles. I kicked her upwards then the Crest of Arcane shined brightly on my hand.

Azusa recovered in the air then her Crest shined on her hand. "Silencer! Heed my call!"

"Arcane. Let us finish this." I said then my sword shined brightly.

"Twilight Breaker!" Azusa bellowed as she propelled herself toward me at high speeds.

I watched Azusa then perfectly parried her attack, shutting down whatever chance she had left of winning before countering with a circle slash to knock her back. I rushed forward, rushing her with slashes then my eyes shined.

"This is it... Emperor's Impact!" I bellowed, landing my last strike and blowing her away.

Azusa groaned as she hit a wall, the smoke and debris covering her body. Mari, Kotone, and Takesi were surprised to see how much I overpowered Azusa.

"Did you think it would be that easy?!" Azusa bellowed as she appeared behind me.

'That was a clone?' I thought to myself, impressed by Azusa's skill.

Azusa bellowed as she landed a powerful attack, blowing me forward. She summoned multiple kunai then threw them at me, warping to each one while striking me. She appeared above me, a large orb of energy in her hand. "Phantom Style: Phantom Shadow Blitz!"

She slammed the orb of energy down against my back, bellowing as she drilled me to the ground with her ultimate attack. A huge explosion happened, creating high winds and smoke around the area. She appeared a good distance away form the smoke cloud then softly grunted.

"She hit him with it! She got him! Her ultimate technique!" Kotone said happily, cheering for Azusa.

"There's no way he can get up from an attack like that...even with his power and skill, Azusa's Phantom Shadow Blitz is too great, even the Queen of Eternus was defeated by that attack..." Takesi said.

I chuckled softly as I stood up from the rubble and smoke. Azusa looked at me in disbelief, her eyes widen with shock.

"Let me remind you...that I am not just some random Emperor," I said then swiped the smoke away, all my wounds healed completely using my Crest of Arcane.

"How...How did you withstand that attack..?! It should be impossible!" Azusa yelled.

I looked at Azusa then held my hand toward her, generating a black orb of energy that pulled her toward me at great speeds. She grunted as her neck was caught in my hand. She gripped my wrist, grunting and trying to escape my hold. I set her down then stepped backwards.

"Why...why did you let me go..?" Azusa asked, gently rubbing her neck.

"As I've stated before...I do not come here to destroy or dominate. Plus I can tell you used up your remaining energy for that attack and there's no reason to beat a dead horse." I answered then walked toward her, gently grabbing her hand. "Azusa...Believe me when I say that my only mission is to seek the lust of the wives I wish to marry, to father your child and our future children. All I want to do is revive my bloodline...and start over."

Azusa slightly resisted at first, but she listened to my words, her expression of disdain now replaced with curiosity. "What..?"

"I don't want your people. I don't want power, as you've seen I have enough of it. I only want to have a family...I want to start over and rebuild what I have lost in Eyica. You can keep your people, you can keep your Kingdom and power. Keep all of that, My Queen. All I need is a ring and your love. It's all I ask for." I said, my tone soft and intimate.

Azusa blushed and slightly looked away. "I...I don't know...how can I trust you..? How can I trust the man who ruined his Empire? How can I trust that you won't do the same here..?"

"My words aren't enough to explain it to you, but my actions will...My Queen. I mean everything that I say. I only tell it to you how it is. I don't know what else I can do to convince you that this is my true purpose of being here.." I said.

Kotone watched and tilted her head. "What could they be talking about..?"

"I don't know, but it seems to be working on her.." Takesi answered as he watched.

Mari watched us, hearing every word we spoke and her eyes shined with excitement at the thought of me marrying her mother. "Mama!"

Azusa looked surprised, turning her gaze to her daughter, who had been watching the entire time. "Mari?! What are you doing here?!"

"Mama! Is he really going to be my new Daddy?~ Please say yes! He's so cool and super powerful and way cooler than my old Daddy!" Mari said excitedly then hurried over to me, grabbing my hand. "Are you really planning to be my new Daddy?~"

I chuckled softly as I looked at Mari. "It all depends on what your mother says, Princess.."

Azusa clearly saw and realized how much Mari liked me just based off first impressions and the skill I displayed in the tournament. She sighed softly then looked at me. "Meet me in my room... we'll talk more about this there."

I nodded then watched Azusa gently take Mari's hand to put her to bed. I closed my eyes and exhaled then looked at my Crest. 'I actually had to try in that fight. She's way stronger than I anticipated...if this is how it's going to be in Uthea, I need to set aside my hubris and think of ways to avoid battling these Queens if possible.'

I nodded to myself then made my way out off the battleground and back into the castle to meet Azusa for the conversation we were planning to have.