Killed Me? Now I Have Your Power

Now she was interested.

But interest didn't mean she was accepting his words.

"So what are you going to do? Changing your single-woman tradition into a harem one?" she asked, amusement flickering in her voice, like a spark dancing at the tip of a fuse.

But Kaden simply shook his head.

"I'm not changing anything…"

He smiled.

"I'm just making an upgrade of the last version."

Mayari paused at his words, her eyes widening slightly in deep surprise.

Oh my, oh my…

His words looked simple, thrown lightly with a smile, but there was wisdom hidden within them, and as you all know, humans are afraid of change—they can't stand it.

Because change means stepping out of your comfort zone, means confronting an unknown threat without any preparation beforehand, means letting go of what you know in favor of something you don't even understand, and truly, who would accept such a thing?

Even when people know that this change will benefit everyone, even when they know it will make them stronger, make them better, they'll hardly accept it without resistance—and even if they do, even if they support you in the beginning, once the reality of the new takes hold and feels too different from what they're used to, a certain void will rise inside their hearts, a void that will gnaw at them slowly until they can't bear it anymore and they make a revolution, pointing fingers at the one who brought the change and accusing them of disrespecting tradition.

Classic.

But…

What if you don't change the tradition, what if you just… upgrade it?

In that way, you show people that you still respect their traditions, their beliefs, and at the same time, you show that you care about growth, about evolution.

They will support you.

And even if, along the way, you start to deviate more and more from that tradition, no one will really notice or even care at that point.

You eased their minds…

…and fooled them all the same.

A subtle move.

But a powerful one in the world of politics.

It was something Mayari hadn't even considered, something she never thought she would hear from the mouth of a fifteen-year-old Warborn boy.

She was… truly surprised, and now, deeply intrigued.

"How did you think of that?" she asked, her voice losing its previous stern and cold edge.

Both Meris and Kaden noticed the shift.

Meris didn't quite understand why.

But Kaden, obviously, did.

"It's simple. You just need to understand the nature of how humans behave," he said, sounding like a wise old man while looking like a damn fifteen-year-old boy.

It was jarring.

But it was the truth.

Like I told you before—a bullied kid learns how to observe the world, and once you stop being so self-absorbed, once you shift your attention outward and start truly watching how people move, speak, think, feel… you begin to understand them.

You start noticing patterns, reactions, little cracks in the mask, and eventually, you start to get it.

And Kaden got it.

It was a painful process—but oh well, that's what made it so satisfying. Especially in moments like this, where you could flaunt that insight and…

"Amazing…" Mayari muttered, her interest spiking even more.

And how could it not?

She was the type of woman who especially liked smart people—not just intellectually smart, but emotionally intelligent.

That was the rarest form of intelligence, so rare it was painful to even speak of it in this wretched world where no one gave a damn about anyone or anything but themselves and their chase for power.

And looking at Kaden, she could feel it.

That instinctual understanding that this boy had a very high emotional intelligence.

"Now you're getting me, Kaden," she said, a subtle, almost invisible smile curling at the edge of her lips.

"But there's still one thing I want to know."

"I'm not going to ask how you'll upgrade your family's tradition—let's just say I believe you can do it, and let's say you succeed."

"What I want to know is…"

"What will I gain from marrying my daughter to you?"

"What will The Elamin gain from such a union?"

"Because you might not know this, but us linking together will create a chain of events within this stronghold that will be very troublesome to resolve."

She paused, then locked her deep violet eyes onto Kaden with a seriousness that cut through everything else in the room.

"Make it worth it. And please don't say something like 'making Meris happy.' That would be fantastic but we are not in some fantasy romance setting," she added with dry sarcasm, making Meris look at her with wide eyes full of disbelief, as if betrayed by her own mother.

How could she not care about her happiness?

Meris clicked her tongue but said nothing.

She understood her mother's perspective, and that's exactly why she had invited Kaden here.

If she couldn't convince her… then she believed he could.

And so far, he hadn't disappointed her, not even a little. She continued to watch him, her silver eyes gleaming with affection and admiration, growing more obsessed with him by the second as truly—

'He is so cool!!!!' Meris was acting like a full-on fangirl at this point.

Very cute.

But Kaden's mind was already racing, working fast to find a response that would satisfy Mayari.

And then, something flashed in his mind.

"You're proficient with runes, right?" he asked, and both mother and daughter nodded in response.

"We specialize in elemental runes, yes," Mayari answered.

"You know the Warborn blacksmith lineage. You know we're exceptionally good at crafting. I can propose an exchange of equipment of high quality that your people can adjust and inscribe with your own rune specializations. We'll keep the prices friendly, and you can customize what you need."

First proposal.

Mayari nodded, visibly interested.

"Second, we can agree on a military accord. The Warborn will support the Elamin in case of any serious conflict. In short, military backup when needed."

Second proposal.

Mayari nodded again, her heart beginning to beat a little faster as she realized how beneficial all of this could be.

"And lastly, for the third one, I'll let you propose it," Kaden said, leaning back slightly. "You know your family better than I do. You know what you need more than I ever could."

Mayari and Meris looked at him, impressed.

"For the last one," Mayari finally said after a long pause, "I would say… knowledge."

"Knowledge about war."

"You seem to be pretty well-versed in that."

Her face revealed a subtle eagerness, and for just a second, you could see exactly why she was Meris's mother.

They looked very similar, especially in the way they expressed emotion when intrigued or impressed.

But Kaden only smiled after hearing her third proposal, and that was when he leaned slightly more on his chair, completely relaxed, and said,

"Well, I've told you what we could add to your family, the benefits."

"Now please tell me…"

"…what could you give us—us, the Warborns?"

"Don't tell me you think that just because I want this marriage, I'd jeopardize my own family, right?"

Mayari and Meris's eyes widened slightly at this unexpected reversal.

But Kaden only smiled, soft and confident.

"Please…"

"…I'm all ears."

—End of Chapter 136—