[117] Can I Transform to the Empress?

Author Note: I've not been giving Eternal Samsara much attention lately to finish my Cursed Gamer, so we fell in the rankings. Now that I've finished CG in Pat, it's time to give my new favourite child what it deserves!

Goal is: We reach Top 5 by tomorrow, and I post 2-chapters tomorrow. I know, it's a big goal, 600 stones from where we are, but it's TWO CHAPTERS. So see you tomorrow! (Or not, if we don't meet it😞 all up to yall)

Chapter 117: Can I Transform to the Empress?

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I woke up with a small grunt, feeling a tight, bone-shattering squeeze on my waist.

 Out of pure instinct, I almost killed my mother dearest, the one squeezing me, who was hugging me tightly with a refreshing expression on her face.

"Oh, huh," I stopped my hand crackling with lightning energy just an inch above her skull. I canceled it immediately and ruffled her pink-purple hair. "Looks like it's super-strength this time."

Yesterday's photoshoot earned her Super Strength, it seems. Probably some other things too, we need to test that.

"Mom," I gently shook her. "Wake up."

"Mhm?" Ai fluttered her eyes and looked up at me with a sleepy expression. Seeing me by her side, she blinked, and a smile bloomed on her lips. "Good morning, my baby. Or do you want me to call you little Emperor now?"

"Stop being sleep drunk," I shook her a little more as she laughed.

The other girls sleeping on the same bed also got up from her laugh. They rubbed their eyes and yawned awake, while I held Ai tightly. 

"Don't try to wave anymore or anything at all, you gained Super-strength," I said. Anyone else she'd have hugged like this in sleep, and we'd have woken up in a blood bath. "Stay still."

Ai's laughter stopped and she went still. She slowly looked around, until her eyes fell on the spot she was squeezing me. The cloth was clearly torn, and under there, a dark purple bruise peeked out.

Her expression darkened, "Oh no, you're h-hurt!" she pulled her hand away and turned to Asia. "Can you heal him, Asia?"

"Don't be dramatic," I shrugged and used a palm to press [Pure Storm Baptism] Qi on the bruised spot. It healed immediately. 

"Oh." She blinked.

"You worry too much, didn't I tell you last time?" I asked her and she looked away. That made me lean over and kiss her on the nape, which was more of a tickle to her than anything as she began laughing again.

From the side, Ruby watched us with a frown and grumbled. She stormed off the bed and into the washroom to freshen up.

Blue didn't find anything weird in it, and neither did Asia. The two of them rather smiled at us being affectionate again, after so long.

I didn't mind Ruby's reaction much. She and Ai had talked a lot during last night's storytime, as they asked me about this and that to understand things properly and in the process got to talk to each other.

Besides, I'll give her the attention that she wants so much later. 

* * *

In the end, we did spar to help her control her newly enhanced strength. She wasn't in support of it at first, naturally as she's been talking about it since yesterday, so it took a bit of convincing before she got into it.

Once again, Ai proved to be a fast learner. She's used to adapting her strength already as she had gone it the first time she drank the Psyker Elixir, which granted her extra strength that she wasn't used to. 

Just after a couple of hours of sparring in an Instant Dungeon, she got an idea of her powers and limits. She's really strong now. If I have to compare, she's as strong as me when I was Underlord.

After the sparring was done, we played a little in the water and drank a few cans of Sprite. 

"Hm," As the sun was submerging in the horizon, I was sitting on a deckchair under an umbrella as I drew on my iPad. 

Drawing was a skill I have cultivated for too many years to count, so I could draw masterpieces in minutes. Yet, I spent two whole hours on this. Because I didn't need this portrait to be a masterpiece, I needed it to be accurate toward the person I was drawing about.

"So that's her?" Just when I finished, Ai's voice rang beside my ear. I turned to the side to look at her. She was looking at the drawing with a deep look on her face. "She looks incredibly dependable, strong, and of course, beautiful."

[Image Here]

"No need to flatter her," I let out a laugh and handed her over the iPad. "But yes, as you wanted. A drawing of the Empress, here you go."

After last night's story, Ai was curious about her predecessor, so much so that she asked me for a portrait. And how could I ever reject a picture of my Empress?

Ai took the iPad and stared at it for a long minute. "She's so intricate."

"She is," I couldn't help but smile. "and extremely powerful. You know nothing."

She shrugged, "I will if you tell me about it all. By the way," her expression shifted, she hesitated. "Am I allowed to use her as a character template to dive into?"

I rested my chin on my hand and smiled at her, "You want to be my wife that bad?"

"W-what?!" She screamed so loudly that a dozen heads turned at us. "Me? As if! Don't be silly and just say yes or no."

My smile vanished as I fell into a deep thought. I dreaded seeing her in her form of Goddess of Light, but it didn't turn out to be that bad. It… should be fine.

"Sure." I nodded. "But not in front of me, if possible. If there is a serious situation where even the Goddess of Light isn't able to help you, only then you should use her, but otherwise it's better not to. For both of us. And her." 

When I finished saying it she clutched the iPad tightly, giving me a look of pity that I absolutely hated. She quickly corrected the expression and nodded, "I… I'll keep that in mind, Aqua."

"Keep what in mind?" Ruby hopped into the conversation as she looked at the iPad with a curious gaze. "I wanna see."

Ai stared at her, and she stared back. Ai handed it over to her and she accepted it slowly. Ruby looked into the artwork and tilted her head. "Interesting."

"That's all you have to say?" I asked with a laugh as she shrugged.

"I'm more interested in seeing your older versions than some woman," she said and before I could say anything, Ai stepped in.

"Ruby, don't say stuff like that. That is his wife, be respectful." She advised.

"Okay? And I'm his twin, I can tell him my mind without caring, who are you to judge me when he doesn't mind?"

"...."

I clasped my face with both my hands and let out a breath. Why's she like this?

I looked up at her and shook my head, "I don't like how you're treating her, Ruby. At the end of the day, she's still our mom. Is that how you speak to her?"

"But-"

"I know," before she could bring up the incident where Ai hit me, I shut her up. "I know because you told me multiple times. But you have to understand that nothing is ultimate in this world, nothing should be. Especially the decay of relationships. Has she ever treated you harshly? She has done that only to me, but now we're back to how we were before. What's stopping you?"

"...."

Now it was her turn to go silent. When the silence stretched without any words, Ai seemed it was time to speak for herself once.

"Ruby," she walked over to the little girl and gently held her hands between hers. Ruby frowned but didn't push her away. "I love both of you. I admit my fault in the past, but… won't you allow me at least one chance?"

When she remained silent, Ai sighed. A moment later, she let go of Ai's hands and ran off. Ai sighed again and looked at me.

"Can you go after her?" She asked and I got up with a nod. "Thank you."

I stopped at that. "Don't say thanks, make me sound like a stranger."

Ai flinched, "I- I didn't mean it that way," she said, "I'm just…"

When she first asked me to tell her my 7th life story, I had brought it up to her. That it might make her feel more distanced from me than she already felt. So right now she was sensitive to me feeling that way, she didn't want me to feel like a stranger.

"Give me a kiss to make up for it?"

"...."

I asked and she stared at me. She opened her mouth to say something and then closed it. She chewed on her nails and looked at me for a short while before she sighed and looked around to make sure nobody was looking. Then she leaned closer. 

She placed a small peck on my lips and backed off right away.

"Oh."

"W-what?"

"I didn't mean a lip kiss…"

I said as she stared at me with a reddened face. I started laughing, and she cursed, "Little bastard…! Be more specific next time!"

"No way, you're looking forward to next time already?"

"Can you shut up?! You're impossible!"

 When I started laughing, she growled and turned around, kicking the sand as she too ran off. 

After I was done having a good laugh, I complied with the promise and followed after Ruby.

* * *

[Third Person Point of View]

Sitting on top of a solitary stone, Ruby gazed out at the ocean, its surface a dance of gold and azure under the setting sun. Her eyes caught the beauty of the scenery, but her mind wandered, a swirl of thoughts and emotions as vast as the sea before her. 

"Haah…"

She pondered over the recent events, the complex web of her family dynamics. Why was she being blamed for not forgiving that woman? She was doing this for him, she was mad at Ai for him, yet he was telling her to stop 'acting up'? Really?

Her jaws clenched in a mix of longing for the past when things seemed simpler and a stubborn wish that things would have turned out for the better. He was him; Aqua was Doctor Gorou, that's the best thing that could have ever mattered. 

Ruby's happiness in the moment of that realization far surpassed her happiness when she realized she'd been reborn, moreover as the daughter of Ai of all people. Yet, he was giving Ai more attention than her… Why?!

She sighed again, and her contemplation was abruptly interrupted by a call from the side.

"Hey there," greeted a male voice from beneath the rock she sat on. Ruby blinked, she hadn't sensed anyone coming.

Looking at the source, it was a caucasian man with two Japanese people, his friends from the looks of it, beside him. They wore shorts and easy shirts, and their intentions were clear from their smirks and the way they crowded her space.

The men approached with confidence, their smiles wide as they climbed the rock to reach closer to her. "Hey there, beautiful," the foreigner, the tallest one among them began, his voice oozing a charm that Ruby found instantly repulsive. "Alone on such a lovely day? That's a crime where I come from."

'What the fuck is that line?' she wasn't in the mood for this bullshit. Besides, what in the cliche was this situation?

Ruby's gaze remained fixed on the horizon, her body language screaming disinterest. "And where exactly is that? The land of unwelcome advances?" she shot back, hoping her coldness would be enough to deter them.

The second man, undeterred, leaned in closer, a little too into Ruby's personal space. "Come on, don't be like that. We just thought a pretty girl like you could use some company. How about we grab a drink together?"

Ruby's fingers twitched. She almost blasted him to cinders. However, restraining herself as she recalled her humanity, she instead edged away, her patience thinning. "I think you've mistaken my being polite for interest. I'm really not looking for company, especially not yours," she said, her voice sharp.

The third, who had been silent till now, tried his luck with a grin that he probably thought was charming. He was the ugliest of the three. "You know, a smile from you could light up the whole beach. Why waste it staring at the sea all alone?"

That's when Ruby's patience snapped. "Listen," she began, her tone icy, "I don't know what part of 'not interested' you guys don't understand, but—"

"Guys," Right before she could unleash her mounting frustration, a more imposing figure intervened. Aqua's presence, both in height and muscle, dwarfed the men who had moments ago seemed so daunting. He placed a hand on their shoulders and asked gently, "Is there a problem here?" 

His voice, sounding cheerful yet barely concealed threat, echoed slightly, drawing the attention of a few nearby beachgoers. The three men looked back sharply until the sharpness vanished when they realized the difference in mass. 

They exchanged uneasy glances and laughed. "No, no problem here, man. We were just leaving," one of them stammered, the bravado draining from his voice as quickly as it had appeared.

Aqua smiled at them quietly as they hurried away, their backs vanishing soon. Ruby watched them go, a mix of relief and yet annoyance left in her heart. She turned to Aqua, ready to call out his cliche heroic save, but was met with a characteristic smirk.

"I know, I know, no need to thank me. You're welcome anyway. Now would you talk to me, Ruby?" Aqua's voice, laced with a hint of amusement and a dash of something softer, made her defenses waver.

She shrugged and called him out anyway, though not with the rude tone she was planning to use at first, "Why do you always have to show up like you're some hero in a bad movie?"

"Because every time I look away, it seems you're auditioning for the role of a damsel in distress," he retorted, the smirk never leaving his face. "Joke aside, how can I let some hooligan hit on my sister?"

Ruby crossed her arms over her chest, her mood a little lighter now. "I had it under control," she lied, both of them knowing full well she was moments away from either causing a verbal scene or blasting them into pulps of blood.

"Sure you did," Aqua replied, the teasing tone in his voice softening as he took a step closer, his shadow now offering her shade from the setting sun. "But seriously, can we talk? Just you and me?"

Ruby hesitated, the remnants of her earlier contemplation returning and colliding with the sense of gratitude she felt for his intervention. A moment later, she sighed and nodded. "Fine, but I'm only doing this because you scared off those creeps."

"I knew my luck's beyond this world," Aqua said, offering her a hand to help her down from her stone perch. 

As they walked by the sea's edge, talking softly, the recent distance between them felt a little less insurmountable. Each step felt like a step toward mending bridges long thought beyond repair.

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