Emperor's Reckoning

"Tell us what you know, Tael!" said Carius with his eyebrows furrowed.

The matriarch of the Yuki clan also put her glance toward Tael. 

The matter concerning the Mortal World must be shared at all costs since the three of them could decide the very fate of it.

Tael understood their glare. He might have detached himself from worldly affairs but no matter what, he was born in this world.

"Hohoho, you want to know right?" said Tael as he laughed wholeheartedly. "Why should I tell you though? Weren't you there with me, Carius?"

"I was not there with you," said Carius as he waved his hand in denial. "You were way over there when I was over here. Naturally, I couldn't see what you saw!"

The matriarch of the Yuki clan chuckled looking at old Carius getting flustered by simple words from Tael. He might be a stern old man but Tael managed to peel off that thick skin of his. (Maybe it is one of the comprehension that one received after detaching one's self from the world).

"Alright, calm down old friend, you might stop your heart if you keep being angry all the time."

Tael chuckled.

"Hmph! This is nothing but the fruit of my labor leading my clan. If my heart stopped for protecting my clan then so be it."

"So noble, I appraise you. Despite being a grunting old man, you are still the same noble I knew from back then."

"Of course I am, I'm not as mischievous as you," said Carius.

"Hahaha, well, I don't want to make a beautiful lady waiting with our old chalk of nonsense," said Tael before his glance was put to neither of the two. 

The matriarch of the Yuki clan smiled.

"You remember that I went there on my own accord right? I didn't even bring any of my elders there."

"You are still as careless as ever," commented Carius as he nodded before crossing his arms.

He was there and witnessed the old man was almost brooding over against the raging storm. The wild thunder made sure that no ordinary cultivator could even come approach. However, the main problem was that Lyon was said to be resting at Garuda's mansion ever since the destruction of the wealthiest family in the Mortal World.

"Well, what did you see that we don't?"

"You won't believe it even if I tell you," said Tael as he shook his head. 

Carius was about to berate him for joking around but after seeing those sharp eyes he refrained from his intention.

"I won't ask you, Carius, but I will ask you, Matriarch Yuki, oh, please excuse this old man for assuming your name, but may I call you Matriarch Yuki?"

The matriarch nodded with a smile hidden under her thick blue ice veil. 

"I'm sure that you have witnessed the place firsthand too just at a different time than us. Tell me, do you think that disaster is from nature or manmade?" asked Tael.

The matriarch slightly averted her glance to the side as she contemplated. She returned her glance toward Tael before nodding, "I believe that it is manmade."

"Oh, everyone knew that! There is no way that multiple disasters could occur at one time!" said Carius as he spits out the obvious.

"Then, how many men do you think it would take for those disasters to happen simultaneously," asked Tael as he leaned his head slightly toward Carius.

Carius pulled back with furrowing eyebrows, "Four? Tornado, tsunami, volcano erupting, earthquake."

Tha matriarch nodded in agreement to what Carius had just said. Considering each one was responsible for one natural disaster of that level, then four was the most dangerous answer. With one controlling a natural disaster of that size for an extended period of time, they could only imagine the power of the four cultivators.

"Hahaha, that's what I thought you would say, four, but these weary eyes of mine said otherwise."

Carius and the matriarch furrowed their eyebrows. The man talking had trained in the way of the sword more than half of his life. His eyes might seem old and being beaten whole by time but the sharpness was as sharp as the blade on the side of his waist. 

He pointed out with his index fingers and middle fingers rose from his knuckle. "Two."

Their eyes opened wide in disbelief. The pupils shrank as they gawked at the number he showed them.

"Gah! Impossible!" said Carius as he was the first one to deny the number.

"I-I'm sorry but I'm afraid I have to agree with him," said the Matriarch. She was not even confident if the exertion of her full power managed to freeze a quarter of a world. However, the disasters in that world occupied every corner.

"Heh, I was there, Carius. You think your eyes could see better than me?"

Carius refrained to answer. It was true that Tael's eyes were better than both of them combined. His instinct had been honed for countless years.

"Are you sure that they were only two? Do you know where they were from?" asked the matriarch.

The identity of the two cultivators responsible for this matter was crucial for their decision. 

Tael shook his head, "No, I don't know where they came from, I couldn't even see their figures clearly. Only their silhouettes."

"Silhouettes?"

"However, I did notice that none of the disasters befell the Garuda City itself. I see it by myself, not a single thunder even struck that place."

"What?!" exclaimed both of them.

(Then, what was the purpose of the natural disasters then?) thought the matriarch as she shared the same question inside Carius's mind. 

"Are you sure that none of it touched Garuda City?" said Carius.

"I'm sure, I mean, my grandson was there at the time," said Tael.

"What?! Then where is he now?"

"Hm? Carius? Why are you getting nervous over the later generations?"

"Tch!" Carius crossed his arms as he looked away. A slight blush was on the old man's face. The stern character that he always displayed on others broke on instinct.

"Hahaha!" Tael laughed as the matriarch's chuckle was unheard of.

"But nonetheless, my grandson was safe and sound. My son apparently found him at the front of my gate. Of course, he reported back to me. This happened after a few days I was there to witness the disaster, I didn't even know that my grandson was visiting him."

Tael rubbed his chin with his thumb before muttering. "I think that he is rather close with Lyon. As if idolizing him or something hahaha."

"My grandson apparently too," said Carius.

"I can't say about that with Ivy," the matriarch chuckled. (That disciple of mine is too uptight and cold).

"Do you mind if I turned back the conversation to those two silhouettes that you saw?" asked the matriarch of the Yuki clan.

"Hm..?"

"Can you discern anything about the silhouettes? Any movement that might give us a clue to identify them."

Identifying even one person would be enough. No matter how small the detail was, she needed it.

"Hmm... I can hardly say, but one thing for sure was that I don't think your ears should hear about my thought on what they were doing."

The matriarch furrowed her eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

"Hoho, please do not misunderstand my intention. I'm not saying that you are not qualified to hear it. What I'm trying to say is, it might be a bit too vulgar for you."

"Vulgar?"

Carius twitched his eyebrows, "You're not joking are you?"

The old friend immediately notice what he was trying to say.

"I'm not Carius," said Tael as he shook his head with a weak smile.

"Perhaps I have no idea what you're getting at, please tell me clearly," said the matriarch.

Tael shrugged his shoulder before looking at her and said, "They were having sex."

"W-What?!" the matriarch immediately exclaimed as she stood up. She was blushing but Tael's eyes told her no lie. 

"Are you sure that it couldn't be anything else?"

"I'm sorry, I might have learned over a thousand sword moves but none of it describe what they were doing at the time. It was sex alright."

The matriarch couldn't believe her ears before she sat back down. "T-This, this is..."

She was lost for words. She wouldn't even expect that intercourse would be the answer. (They ignited the natural disasters by having...?!).

Her mind was lost. She couldn't decide if they were uncouth or strong at the point.

"I see that you were looking at your sword, what was that about?" asked Carius. Normally this type of question won't even dare come out of any cultivator, but only he could ask Tael directly.

Tael grinned as the grin reminded one of Zet's.

"My sword was shaking the moment I saw that two silhouettes, no, the moment I stepped into that world!"

"What...? What did feel from your sword?"

Tael opened his mouth before the word that came out from his throat made their eyes stretch wide in disbelief.

"Fear."