Proposition

Looking up out to the stars above, I frowned in thought. Toady had been my coronation, I was now officially King of Sakaar, exactly as I had wanted from the beginning. Everything I had done, the plans I had made and the actions I had taken all led me to this one point, precisely as planned.

However, I yearned for more.

Administration and statesmanship, they were not things I enjoyed. I could learn very quickly, my intellect enhanced by Lor-Em certainly provided me with the ability to do so, quite easily in fact. Yet it was not what I enjoyed, endless hours of paperwork and legislation, why would I spend my time doing all that when I could be out in the stars doing more exciting things?

It was times like these I questions why I ever had the ambition to conquer the universe in the first place. Was I really so naive as to believe that I could just conquer the planet and move onto the next afterwards? Did I really believe that I wouldn't have other duties and responsibilities to fulfil as a King or Emperor?

Yes, I did.

Perhaps the only reason I want to conquer the Universe is because it would mean that I'm not powerless anymore. It would prove that I am strong by having defeated all my enemies, the strongest beings in the Universe all dead or serving me.

The answer would be definitive, I am powerful.

But did I ruled want to be a ruler, someone who spent their lives bearing the weight of the responsibilities of my people? To be entirely honest, I'm not a hundred percent sure if that's what I want. I certainly didn't want to bow down to someone, but I also didn't want to bear the responsibilities of being a King. I wanted the best of both worlds, the question was, how did I get to have that?

I was reborn into this world, in the few stories I read that followed a similar story threat, that usually meant I was able to do whatever I wanted without consequences. The plot and the characters the protagonist, me in this situation should bend around me, allowing me to keep going without interruption.

Except that wasn't the case.

My brief time as a slave upon this very planet proved that this wasn't a story where I had plot armour or had the plot on my side. The people I met, they thought and acted like real people, scheming for power and taking out their rivals.

On top of that, I couldn't purely take on a role and only enjoy the positives of it. I also had to endure the negatives that came along with it, the restrictions and responsibilities that tied my hands.

That wasn't something I enjoyed.

And so once again the question came, what would I do to free myself from this? What steps could I take that would allow me to enjoy all the positives of being King without the negatives? What could I do that would allow me to freely wage war and fulfil my ambitions?

The answer was surprisingly simple, delegation.

I would delegate the duties and responsibilities I didn't want to those around me. Especially those I knew wouldn't squander those responsibilities. The question now was, who could I trust? Funnily enough, I didn't trust many people and none of them I trusted to fulfil these responsibilities well-enough to justify why I gave those to them in the first place.

So that crossed out that option.

But there was another one, marriage.

Strange, I know, me getting married already. But it would allow me to keep the title of King, while my Queen did the ruling in my stead. So who did I take as my Queen? Well the answer to that is very simple, the only person I knew that while not loyal to me, was loyal to the people of Sakaar. Someone heavily invested in their continued survival, Caiera the Oldstrong.

It certainly didn't hurt that she was beautiful, but hey, that's just a nice little bonus to incentivise my decision.

Just as my thoughts came to an end, the door opened and in stepped the woman in question. I had been following her movements closely with my hearing, her footsteps loud and clear. "You called for me...my King." Smiling at her reluctance at calling me such a title, I turned around.

She had made it clear that she was wary of me being the new ruler of Sakaar. Why wouldn't she be? Caiera was loyal to the people of Sakaar, so much so she was willing to continue serving the Red King and kill me just to save those that would be caught in the crossfire. However, misguided that plan was, it was proof of her loyalty to them.

Caiera was also acutely aware of my ambitions and the future plans I had in store. Not only did she believe that would threaten her people, but also that I wouldn't fulfil my duties as King.

"I wanted to make a proposition." Waving towards a table, the pair of us made our way towards it, sitting down and looking across at one another. "One that will see your people well taken care of and in capable hands. I in turn able to freely fulfil my ambitions."

Caiera frowned heavily. "But not exclude them from the risk that comes with your ambitions." She pointed out sharply and I smiled

"No, that would not remove them from risk." I replied. "However, I will be securing their future with my plans. So long as they remain only upon Sakaar, your people are destined to die eventually. Either by over population and a lack of food to feed them all. Or because one of the great Empires of the universe will arrive. To them, Sakaar is an inhospitable wasteland, instead of wasting time conquering a planet that holds no valuable, they'll simply just bombard it from space, killing everyone upon it."

That was the truth.

Even I would not have wasted my time conquering Sakaar if I didn't know its importance within Marvel comics. As a military commander, I was able to easily recognise that without the Hulk or the ability to properly terraform the planet into a suitable place to live, it would be best to simply destroy it and move on.

"My point still stands." Caiera knew this, but she was stubborn.

"True." I conceded easily. "What I provide is the chance for your people to freely spread across dozens of different worlds. Within the nearby system there are many which would prove to be suitable planets to conquer therefore ensuring your peoples survival should another force come to invade."

I had no intentions of letting myself fall that far, but it wasn't something I was going to ignore as a possible future. If I wasn't smart about my future plans, it may very well end up being how my future goes. Except next time, I don't think I'll be lucky enough to escape from my enemies.

"However, that's not what my proposition is. What I propose is that I allow you to rule." I said quickly, wanting to move on. "You oversee the ruling of this planet and many more, as my Queen."

There was a pause, Caiera looking to me as her mind processed what she was being told.

I had her attention, which was good. "You see, I know what's expected of a ruler and between you and me, that's not who I am. I have the capabilities to do it, but not the mentality. Perhaps in the future that might change. But I'm young, I want to go out there and explore the universe. I want to see my ambitions completed and that won't provide me the chance to be a proper King."

Caiera nodded her head in agreement, her face showing little in the way of positivity or negativity towards my proposition. However, the way her gaze traced along my face and down my body, just as I had done to her on many occasions, I knew she was considering it.

Marriage came with it certain duties, especially for a Queen. Caiera was very much aware of that and while the way I looked probably wouldn't be much of an influence on her decisions, it certainly didn't hurt. And well, I like to consider myself pretty attractive, though I guess it's a little hard to judge how you look without being biased.

But trust me, I know that I am decently good-looking. Perhaps not the best, or perhaps I am, either way, I'm not ugly and I'm certainly not just average.

"I would rule as Queen?" Caiera questioned and I nodded my head. "Over Sakaar and other planets?"

"If you wish. Though you can simply be Queen of Sakaar if that's your desire. There will be others who can rule over other planets." I'm just going to say it, no beating around the bush or pretending like I'm going to be a one woman kind of guy. Straight up tell her the truth and make sure she's fully aware of that fact when going into this marriage with me.

She is not going to be the only woman I take to my bed or make my Queen. I will have others, I will also have concubines and mistresses. Whatever you name you want to give their positions, Caiera will not be the only woman I have a relationship with.

Caiera was shocked by my admission unsurprisingly and she did pause. "Others? I see. Sakaar will still be mine alone, not theirs?"

"They will have no influence upon the ruling of Sakaar at all. The planets under your rule will be yours alone. Just as the planets under theirs will be theirs alone." Looks like my gambit paid off and despite being surprised, Caiera still seemed willing to go ahead with this things, that's good.

"So I will be Queen of Sakaar, you the King. While I rule, you will fulfil your ambition."

I smiled slightly. "To summarise it in its most basic form, yes, that is the case." Like I said though, this might change. Right now, I knew I didn't have the temperament to rule a planet let alone an Empire even if that was what I wanted. The thing that excited me most was the prospect of conquering, in my old world I loved playing war games like Total War.

Seeing my empires borders expand across the map. That's something I wanted to do once again, conquering, not administration. But that was how I was now, who knows what I would become in the future? I don't and so it was best to secure someone who could rule in my stead.

Caiera the Oldstrong, my future wife and Queen would be the person to do it.