Mira controlled her surprised reaction when she recognized Salam. It was likely that he didn’t evolve to an inhuman race since he looked the same but the notification from her IP said it all [Rank 23 Human Elementalist (Silicon)].

He on the other hand was extremely shocked when he saw Mira’s Rank. He thought ‘Rank 27, the highest Rank!’ His fear deepened as he realized that Mira was someone he couldn’t face.

The people that reached Rank 27, where people whose growth didn’t stall because they evolved into Mythical grade races, and Mira was one of them. Her race allowed her to gain the features of other races providing her a way to keep growing her stats even without en-code so with en-code it was greatly amplified.

Salam thought ‘They really hid a big one! I have to tell the emperor… wait, it’ll be better if I handle it on my own rather than get him involved. The last thing I want is a war’.

Salam said “I heard you wanted to tour the empire? I can only allow you in my territory. The others are not very welcoming to visitors, especially those from your backgrounds, that aside, may I know your names?”

Mira said “I’m Mira and this is Funmi”. Salam didn’t connect the shortened name with the one he knew of after doing some research on the girl that caused the destruction of one of settlements in Abuja. This was because Mira currently looked very different from her old self and since he was associating her with the APT, he never assumed she came from anywhere remotely north.

Mira said “We plan on touring the whole empire one way or another but who are we to make you do anything beyond your power? We’ll take your offer”.

Salam wasn’t eased but he smiled and gestured for the girls to come in through the gate. Salam showed them his territory which had people that were honestly happy with their situation. He told them about the political situation and how not everyone in power agreed with the current system.

They were later joined by Hassan who was a Lord of his own territory and he also gave Mira and Funmi a tour of his territory which had a similar working as Salam’s territory. At the end of the tour Mira thanked the two of them and asked “How many other territories are like this?”

Hassan answered “It’s just ours for now but soon, especially with the way the other settlements are treating us, the others will come around too”. Mira nodded and asked “How many other Lords apart from you guys are in the empire?”

Salam said “5”. Mira nodded and said “2 out of 7. It’s not a bad look compared to what we were told. Do you agree?” and turned to Funmi who nodded. Funmi sent a mental message saying 'It seems the people who came here didn’t encounter these guys. They must have encountered the others and came to a quick judgment'

Mira nodded and said to Funmi with a mental message 'What do we do then? They are not all bad and they have a chance to change'. Funmi said 'The main factor is what the emperor believes. If he changes the balance would tip and the society will get civilized'.

Mira thought for a moment before saying 'Let’s talk to him. It’s extremely important for us to know if he has any plan of possibility to change without violence. He does accommodate people like them that are civilized.'

Funmi nodded and Mira turned to the Lords and said “We would like to have a discussion with the emperor if that is possible”. Salam asked in surprise “You are not going to check the other territories?” Mira nodded and Hassan hastily called for a messenger.

The empire didn’t have advanced psychic technology so they could only enact long range communication by using a bunch of people who had psychic manipulation capabilities and having them form a network with each of them working as servers and receivers.

The communication request was sent to the emperor and he agreed to speak with the ‘APT representatives’ that Salam had mistaken Funmi and Mira for. His voice came to their minds saying 'What do you want?' His voice was light and frilly almost like a girl’s.

Mira and Funmi had already decided on the questions they would ask while the communication was being setup. Mira asked 'We would like to know if you have any plans to change the social structure of your empire?'

The man answered 'Not in the near future'. Funmi asked 'Why do you tolerate the system of governance that Salam and Hassan use?'

He said 'I don’t hate their system of government and they are Mythical members they are allowed their freedom within their own territories. I will not infringe' Mira was surprised by the answers of the man and she asked 'I’m sorry but I don’t know your name everyone calls you the emperor. Can you tell me?'

The man answered 'It is unnecessary that you know my name. All you need to know is what I am and that is the Emperor'. Funmi asked 'What would happen if all your Mythical members changed their views and as a result their system of governance?'

The man answered 'I would change mine to fit them as I said before I do not hate Salam’s system of governance'. Mira asked 'Have you ever considered this? If you change your system of governance and ensure a more equalized society in all territories, the Mythical members under you will be forced to either deal with it, go to another settlement which offers even less freedoms for people with their power or strike it out on their own and antagonizing the whole country. This will cause the other settlements to start trading with you and will ensure the prosperity of the empire and the friendliness of your neighbors.'

The man was quiet for a while, he didn’t want to tell Mira of his future plans and he couldn’t disagree with what she said since it made a lot of sense. The news of the appearance of Mira and Funmi and their discussion with the emperor was now spread to the Lords of the other territories. They were also listening to the conversation so the emperor couldn’t say some empty words to hide his plan.

Now he was at a crossroad, he thought back to why he chose this system of government and why he resisted the change that the others tried to force on him so much. He remembered the days when he was a beggar on the streets. Sitting beside the gutters and sleeping under bridges, getting robbed and struggling everyday to get enough to eat from the passing people that were always better than him.

He wondered why they were in that position and why he was in his position. He knew the answer, it was simple; their parents and ancestors were better than his own, they came from better bloodlines and had better lives than his. This cascaded to the result of his life, a beggar, a position he could never rise from. When the apocalypse came it gave him a chance to redeem his bloodline to make his generations thank him for his hard work that gave them a better life.

So he fought, he risked his life and gave his all and here he was, at the top yet the people with better and luckier parents come and tell him that he should live by their standards. Like hell he would ever take it! The people that lost in the evolution race were those who had it easy all their lives and found it hard to adapt to the new world. He would never yield to their principles! Why? Because he had made it! He had fought, and while others died he won and now it was his turn to be at the top and for someone else to be at the bottom. He would not give this up for anything because he rightfully deserved it.

He said “No one is born equal. And that was when we were all the same race. Now with the evolutions a child that can kill a full grown adult man just by crying can be born. The difference has widened and the lines between what people are worth has thickened. I will not pretend like you people that the difference isn’t there. I will embrace it, because this is our reality now.

The evolution race has come and gone. The winners like me and you have been decided and the losers have also been decided. I don’t see why I should pretend that we are back to our OLD SOCIETY THAT WASN’T EVEN EQUAL TO BEGIN WITH!!” The man’s voice grew louder as he remembered his past.

He continued “THE NEW ERA HAS COME! IT IS AN ERA WHERE THE POWERFUL RULE THE WEAK! IT IS AN ERA WHERE HUMANS BOW TO MONSTERS TO LIVE TO SEE THE NEXT DAY! IT IS AN ERA WHERE THE WORLD IS RIPE FOR THE TAKING! IT IS AN ERA WHERE ONLY THE POWERFUL HAVE A VOICE!!! I HAVE FOUGHT MY BATTLES AND I HAVE COME OUT VICTORIOUS! I HAVE GAINED POWER AND I DECIDE WHAT IS AND WHAT ISN’T WITHIN MY SPHERE OF INFLUENCE! If you want to speak, you speak with your might!”

The communication was cut from the man’s side and the network went quiet. Funmi had a dark expression as she thought ‘If we all thought like this wouldn’t we become the same monsters we despise? Wouldn’t we be animals at that point?’