178 Book 6: Chapter 1 – One Year Later

Deep within the northern expanse of the Anarchic Lands, not far away from the forest of darkness, sat a small and simple yet elegant log cabin that overlooked a lake so pure you could see all the way to the bottom from on top.

A caramel-skinned young woman no older than 16 dressed in a tight-fitting white battle suit that showed off her still-maturing but obvious curves landed gracefully on the shore just outside the cabin, preparing to knock on the door when she heard the chime of an angelic voice sound in her ears. "It's open."

Hearing that, the teen didn't stand on ceremony. She gently opened the door and strolled through the simple living room, entering a small but simple bedroom at the back of the cabin.

"It's good to see you again, Mira," a stunning dark-haired woman voiced slowly when the teen entered. "You've become even more beautiful since the last time I saw you."

"Thank you, Aunt Milli," Amira said gently as she greeted her senior martial sister. "I'm still nothing compared to you."

"Still as sweet as ever," Milianna replied, her smile brightening the room. "How're your parents and the twins doing?"

"My parents are good," Amira nodded. "As for the twins, they're only a little over one, but they're already becoming quite the handful now."

"Awwh, I bet they're adorable," Milianna said as she looked at the dark-haired youth sleeping peacefully on the bed beside her. "I remember when Ace was their age. He spent all his free time in the library at the orphanage I worked at, ignoring the other kids, much to my dismay – although I have to admit, it makes sense now that I know the truth about his reincarnation."

"I bet he was quite the handful in his own way," Amira smiled warmly as she too looked lovingly at the teen on the bed.

It had been a year since the Yin-Yang Pavilion revealed itself to the world in the most overbearing way possible.

Since then, the political landscape of the whole continent had effectively been thrown on its head, but since losing consciousness in his mother's arms, Ace had slipped into a deep coma that nothing seemed able to awaken him from.

At first, they had all been deeply worried, as there didn't seem to be a reason for it. Whether it was Arianna or even Aiden after he eventually returned, no one could seem to figure out the problem.

Ironically, it had been Milianna who eventually discovered the truth behind the medical mystery and put everyone's mind at ease.

After the recovery of her pure soul, when she subconsciously used what Beirut had described as a Divine Ability, her ability to control her haki multiplied, even surpassing that of her son. As such, she was innately more sensitive to the power of will than others.

Having spent every waking moment by her son's side, she eventually sensed her son's will.

She knew that even if she had surpassed him in terms of control, as far as raw power went, she was well aware that she couldn't even begin to compare, so when she felt how weak her son's will appeared to be the reason for his coma suddenly dawned on her.

Ace had overdrawn the power of his will, turning what should've been a blazing sun into nothing more than a flickering ember.

Everyone was sceptical, as none of them, not even Arianna, had heard of the power of will, but hearing Milianna's explanation and witnessing her ability to control it, they had no choice but to believe her.

Milianna sensed that Ace's will was growing stronger each day but at an extremely slow pace. Still, the fact that it was growing stronger at all was enough for Milianna. Unfortunately, she had no idea exactly how powerful her son's will was originally, so she had no way of knowing exactly when he would wake up.

"He wasn't actually," Milianna said, preparing to tell the young woman she had already acknowledged as her future daughter-in-law about her son's childhood. "If anything…"

Before Milianna could finish her next sentence, both she and Amira felt something stir within Ace. Milianna, because of their shared bloodline and Mira, due to their innate connection.

The bodies of both women trembled when they saw Ace's long lashes flutter softly.

"Mom, Mira?" Ace groaned softly.

"Welcome back, son," Milianna said with tears of joy threatening to fall down her face.

Although she had been confident in her assessment of her son's condition, it didn't stop her from worrying about him. Still, all that mattered now was that he was awake.

"How're you feeling?" Mira asked gently as she reached forward to help him sit up.

Hearing that, Ace subconsciously tensed and relaxed his body multiple times before his eyes widened in surprise. "I feel better than ever!"

He had no idea how long he'd been unconscious, but last he remembered, ignoring all the grievous injuries he'd suffered that day, he had only just broken through to the early stages of the sixth rank as a mage and warrior, but now…

"How long have I been asleep for?" Ace couldn't help but wonder aloud when he felt that he was firmly in the middle stages of the sixth rank in both paths.

Not only that, but his foundation was extremely stable. More stable now than ever before. Something he didn't know was even possible.

"It's been a year now, sleepy head," Milianna explained with an amused smile as she looked at her shocked son.

"A year?!" Ace exclaimed as he turned to Mira for confirmation. "How's that even possible?"

"You repeated use of your [Conqueror's Haki] that day overdrew the power of your will," Milianna explained. "In the end, it took a whole year for you to recover."

"I didn't even know it was possible to overuse your willpower," Ace muttered. "It must have something to do with the laws of this world."

"I don't know about all of that," Milianna shrugged. "But from now on, you need to be more careful when using your [Conqueror's Haki], especially [Infusion]. From what I can tell, it's a power that shouldn't be used as a mortal."

"From what you can tell?" Ace asked in surprise. "You mean, you already lear…"

Before he could say anything, he sensed an all too familiar fluctuation pressing down on him before it disappeared.

Before Ace could get over his initial surprise, his jaw almost ended up hitting the floor over what he witnessed next.

"You… How… When?" Ace stammered as he saw his golden veins running across his mother's [armament] coated finger.

"You didn't expect me to sit still and not improve after a full year now, did you?" Milianna said teasingly when she saw her son's shock whilst shaking her hand to get rid of the pain from using [Infusion].

Even though it was barely a second and not going anywhere near all out, it was still strenuous. But it was worth it to finally be able to impress her genius of a son.

It was just one shock after another, and it wasn't simply how far her control over her [Haki] had come, nor that she had impressively broken through to the fifth rank – one rank below him – in both paths. The most significant but most welcomed shock came as a result of the giant change in her demeanour.

The confident and pride-filled aura she silently exuded was a far cry from the meek and fragile aura she had emitted his whole life.

Ace dove into his mother's arms, unable to control his happiness over the full recovery of her pure soul.

Milianna was taken aback by her son's reaction, but being that she was able to sense his emotions using her [Observation], how could she not understand what he was feeling?

A gentle smile replaced her teasing smirk as she returned his hug.

Her aura oozed appreciation. Not just because her son was awake but also because of everything he had done for her.

With her condition, since he was born, Ace had been forced to step up and be the head of their little but constantly growing family.

Not only had he done so without a single complaint, but he had also gone above and beyond to heal her.

Even if he was given a little cheat code, having reincarnated with all his memories intact, she knew it wasn't easy.

Now though, it was her turn to be a mother Ace could rely on.

"Now, now," Milianna said as she pat him on the back before standing up to make her way to the exit. "We're being rude hosts. I'll fix us all something to eat whilst you two catch up."

"How rude of me," Ace said as Milianna took her leave, his attention returning to Mira, who watched Ace and Milianna's intimate moment in silence, not wanting to interrupt. "I almost forgot that my beautiful wife was in the room."

"Wife?" Mira asked as a furious blush crept up her neck, covering her endearing face. "Who's your wife?!"

"You are," Ace teased shamelessly. "Or at least you will be!"

"Talk to me after you put a ring on my finger!" Amira snorted, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"I will!" Ace exclaimed, his sincerity catching Mira by surprise, causing her to stare blankly at his face. "But before that, why don't you start by catching me up – tell me everything I've missed over the last year!"

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Book 11: Part 20 – Ace's Urgent Need For Power