Crownless Reincarnation: New World? Nah I'd win

[The Capital City]

Akamir stretched his body as he walked out of the alleyway.

The crown on his head dimmed then vanished as he walked towards the main streets.

"Are you doing good?" Nayomi asked, floating beside him. "I have a feeling that you don't—."

"I might breakthrough soon," Akamir replied, cutting her off. "Uh, maybe in a day or two."

Nayomi narrowed her eyes as she turned to face him.

"Aren't you godwin too fast?" she asked suspiciously. "It has only been a few months since your last rank up."

"Even less," Akamir replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "There is definitely something wrong with my body."

Nayomi nodded as she kept on opinion it herself this time.

"Are you going to destroy the Aure Royal family?" Nayomi asked, her voice curious. "It may cause a dainamo effect."

Akamir glanced at her. "How would that happen?"

Nayomi floated a little lower, her legs crossed as if she was lounging mid-air. "Aure trade routes feed half the continent. If you crush their royal family, every small state and merchant guild tied to them will panic."

Akamir scratched the side of his head, looking more annoyed than concerned.

"So what? Let them panic. The weak get swallowed, the strong survive. Same rule everywhere."

"True," Nayomi said, tilting her head with a sly smile. "But sometimes, swallowing too much at once makes you choke."

Akamir chuckled under his breath. "I'll manage."

"I have a better solution," Nayomi said, raising her hand. "It may be annoying but will be extremely helpful."

Akamir looked up at her. "And what might that be?"

"Kill all the males," she replied, her voice cold. "Marry the princess and rule the kingdom from behind."

"That's… not a good idea," Akamir replied, frowning in response.

"Why?" she asked. "You did the same thing with Inara—."

"I love Inara," Akamir cut her off. "What I did was for her benefit and me as well."

Nayomi arched a brow, her grin turning sharp.

"Love, huh? That's rare coming from you. I almost thought you didn't believe in such things."

Akamir shook his head, slipping his hands into his pockets as they weaved through the street.

"Don't twist my words. Inara's different. She needed me, and I needed her. It was… mutual."

"Mutual, sure," Nayomi said, lazily twirling in the air.

"But emotions can cloud judgment. If you love one woman too much, you won't take opportunities that could give you more power."

Akamir gave her a side glance, his expression flat. "Are you suggesting I should love more than one girl?"

Nayomi tilted her head in response. "Aren't you doing it already?"

Akamir stopped mid-step, his brow twitching beneath the mask. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

Nayomi smirked, leaning close enough that her whisper brushed his ear. "You treat Inara like she's your queen… but then there's Zaina and of course your wife Sephrina."

He rubbed the back of his neck, irritation flickering across his face. "The Sephrina thing was an accident, okay?"

"Mm-hm." Nayomi's grin widened. "Tell Queen Inara about your 'accidental' marriage and see what she has to say."

"..."

Akamir let out a sigh as he rubbed his temples in frustration.

'Well, we will see how this goes.'

He thought as he looked up as the royal palace stretched in front of him.

Akamir, without any problem, crossed the guards as he reached the inner palace.

'Inara seriously needs to work on her security.'

Akamir thought as he removed his mask.

If he can do that, then there are plenty of people in the world who can breach it.

The marble halls of the palace stretched wide, lined with polished pillars and golden trim.

Servants bowed their heads quickly as Akamir passed, none daring to speak.

His presence alone was enough to silence the corridor.

Nayomi floated along beside him, humming softly as though she owned the place.

"You really should be proud, you know. Walking straight into the royal palace like it's your home. Most men would call that an achievement."

"It is my home," Akamir replied flatly, his voice echoing against the stone. "I don't need pride to remind me of that."

He reached the grand doors of the inner chamber.

Two guards hesitated, their hands tightening on their spears.

For a moment, their eyes flicked toward his face, then away again.

They stepped aside without a word.

Inside, Queen Inara sat on her throne, draped in flowing silks, her silver hair pinned elegantly.

She looked every bit the ruler, but when her eyes landed on him, relief mixed with something warmer.

"You're back," she said softly, rising from her seat.

Akamir gave her a short nod, walking forward until he stood at the base of the throne. "You really need to work on the security."

Inara chuckled as she walked down the throne and gave him a firm kiss on the lips.

Akamir responded eagerly as he grabbed her waist to bring her closer.

For a moment, the world outside those walls didn't matter.

"You always come back at the most troublesome times," she murmured, resting her forehead briefly against his.

Akamir smirked faintly. "And you always look like you were waiting for me to fix it."

Her lips curved at that, but she didn't deny it.

Instead, she took his hand and led him toward the throne.

"The nobles are restless. Some want to sign for peace with Aure, others want to abandon the ports altogether. They think they can sway me."

"They can't," Akamir said bluntly, pulling out a chair and sinking into it.

"No," Inara agreed, sitting opposite him. "But if we're not careful, their doubt will spread faster than any enemy army."

Inara made him sit on the throne before she sat on his lap.

Her hands wrapped around his neck as she lay her head on his chest.

"I want to keep you out of this war," she mumbled softly. "But it doesn't seem like it's possible."

"I would have helped even if you didn't ask," Akamir replied softly. "We made a deal, didn't we?"

She didn't reply as she closed her eyes for a second.

Akamir rested one hand on her waist, the other tapping lightly against the armrest of the throne.

"You've been carrying too much on your own," he said finally. "Let me handle the things you can't."

Inara tilted her head slightly, her silver hair brushing his chest. "And what will you handle? The Aure kingdom? The nobles."

"All of them," Akamir replied without hesitation.

She let out a quiet laugh, though it sounded more tired than amused. "You say it like it's simple."

"It is simple," Akamir said. "Complicated things only exist when people are too afraid to choose."

"So, how do you plan to deal with the Aure kingdom?" she asked, her voice soft.

"I can simply crush them," Akamir replied. "They aren't that strong, Inara."

Inara gave him a look but nodded nonetheless. "…Yeah, you can do that if you are purple core—."

"I will be soon," Akamir replied immediately. "Maybe in less than a week."

She gave him a blank look before she sighed. "Of course, you can."

"I will go and assassinate the royal family," Akamir continued. "…We should be able to win the war easily—."

Akamir's words died down as Inara took out a letter.

"What's this?" he asked, taking it.

"A letter from the princess of Aure kingdom," she said. "Long story short, she wants to help us win the war."

Akamir frowned. "Why?"

"I don't know," Inara replied. "She just asked me to meet her soon."

Akamir didn't say as he read the letter… it was a simple one with nothing much.

Just a location and a necklace for a mode of proof.

Akamir leaned back on the throne as he couldn't help but wonder.

'Is it some kind of trap?'

There is a high possibility of this and he couldn't deny it.

People use any and everything to win a war.

'But why would they do that if they are confident of winning the war?'

Either they are doing it to minimise the casualties or the princess is genuinely trying to contact her.

In either case, Akamir wasn't going to let Inara meet alone.

"I will come with you," he said, glancing down at the woman. "It might be a trap—."

"I know," she replied, her voice soft. "Keeping that aside, I heard what happened in the Elven kingdom."

Inara looked up at his face. "How the hell did they lose the World Tree?"

Akamir shrugged as he had no plans to tell her the truth yet.

"Did you get any letter from them?" he instead asked. "From the empress."

Inara nodded in response. "Yep," she said. "The empress will send an envoy soon."

Akamir nodded as he let out a sigh. "This might be troublesome."

Inara smiled as she snapped her fingers. "One more thing."

Akamir tilted his head. "What?"

She drew in a deep breath as she replied. "The Church of Morana contacted us."