2231 - The First Meeting
"Dad!!" A girl's voice was heard from afar, then—
*Bam*
The glass door opened, and a feminine silhouette entered, leaving behind a captivating fragrance with every quick step she took.
"Zara, my little darling!" Robin's dreamy, calm expression completely changed as he recognized the newcomer, and joy immediately spread across his face.
*Thump*
Zara sat on the bed and hugged Robin tightly without any preamble.
"Ooh, ooh..." Robin winced in a low voice, "Alright... take it easy now... I'm fine."
"Fine?" Zara pulled back slightly and gave him a thorough look from head to toe, "You look worse than yesterday!" Then she quickly asked in a higher pitch, "How can you look worse than yesterday?!"
"Oh... what lovely compliments and attempts to boost my spirits..." Robin chuckled. He wanted to raise his hand to stroke Zara's head, but couldn't find the strength, so his joy subsided, though he kept his smile. "My vitality is no longer focused on recovery now; my consciousness has started drawing part of it, and my heartbeat and breathing have increased because I'm awake. This has made my condition appear worse."
Then he winked at her, "Young lady, am I supposed to be the one explaining something like this to you?"
"..." Zara hugged him again, "Forget everything you've learned when it comes to you."
"It's fine, I'll be alright..." Robin tilted his head slightly to rest it on Zara's head, then lifted it again. "But what brings you here? Don't you have important work with the Sovereignty Note?"
".....?!" Zara pulled away from him again, her brows furrowed with a reproachful expression.
"...Can you stay?" Robin didn't know what to say, so he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
Step.
Step.
"Father." This time, the voice was rough.
Another followed, "Father, you're finally awake!"
"Father."
Robin turned toward the door with a joyful expression.
Caesar, Peon, and Theo—all three entered one after another.
Then he immediately frowned. "Did you all take leave? Who's running the Empire?!"
"....?" Their expressions weren't much different from Zara's.
"Are you joking now, old man?" Caesar returned to his usual stance. "You were half dead when Lord Blokan pulled you out of the Void. It took every support array we could make or buy just to get you breathing again, and you don't want us to stay by your side to make sure you're okay?"
"All missions, all wars, all plans have been halted for three months." Theo spoke clearly. "Your health comes first; everything else comes after."
"...." Robin sighed. "If i died, are you just going to let the empires we worked so hard to build collapse so easily?"
"Of course not." Peon spoke gruffly. "We'll burn the sectors containing the empires first, then let them collapse."
"....?" Robin was surprised. He even looked toward Theo and Caesar, but saw no strange reaction from them. Were they thinking the same way?!
"Hey, that's unacceptable!" Zara shouted at Peon.
"Tell him!" Robin was impressed by Zara's sensible outburst. "Tell this madman!!"
Zara stood up, placing a hand on her hip. "When you hear your father talking about his death, you should say: 'May harm be far from you' first, not talk about work and burning empires!"
"...Is that the problem from your perspective?!" Robin felt a pang in his heart. "I'm fine now, I'm going to live. Go and save your possessions."
"Don't worry, Father." Theo reassured him. "All plans are halted, but that doesn't mean we're collapsing. You could call it a cold peace. Anyone who attacks us has the Planetary Generals to respond without needing us... You built a massive, multi-layered entity. Even if all of us were absent, it wouldn't be affected."
"...." Robin nodded slowly, then took another look at the four of them, and looked down at his bed. "...Where is Richard?"
"We didn't tell him about your condition," Caesar replied. "We isolated his residence more thoroughly in terms of sound and spirit so he wouldn't feel what's happening on the planet."
Theo nodded. "He's already suffering enough. We didn't want him to see you like this, and we didn't want you to see him in that form."
Theo was now closely observing Robin's reaction.
For a long time, he had wanted to tell him about Richard's condition so he could help, but his brother told him not to. Since Robin himself had asked, this was a good opportunity to inform him!
"Oh... good." Robin nodded, his face showing relief once more. "He has a long journey ahead with the Law of Antimatter... Even with the Sixth Path Technique, he'll need time to use it properly."
"...?" Theo was deeply astonished. Had his father known what was happening to Richard all along?
"Father, Richard couldn't make it," Peon interjected with a smile, "but someone else came in place of their uncle."
"Their uncle?" Robin raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise, then broke into a very wide smile. "You brought your children?"
Robin had known for centuries that Peon had married and had children, fulfilling the condition imposed on him. He had become a grandfather but had never had the chance to meet his grandchildren since that day.
"Haha, come in." Peon turned toward the door and gestured to the group standing outside.
Step
Step
Step
Step
The Glass House quickly filled.
Yes, filled.
"This..." Robin raised his eyebrows in surprise.
There were no fewer than forty youths, men and women, all wearing various armors and standing with military respect.
More than just military respect...
They all stood like statues, swallowing their saliva, gazing at Robin as if he were a legendary figure long absent... This was the person they had heard about for centuries, under whose grace and shadow they had lived, their grandfather who was born in a juvenile sector yet controlled several mid-level sectors through their father and uncles, who were merely orphans.
This was His Imperial Majesty... and this was their first time seeing him!
Armor of the Shadow Swords, the Imperial Guard, special forces, admirals... It was as if a random assembly of ranks from the joints of the Empire had gathered!
"Are all these my grandchildren?" Robin muttered unconsciously.
"Unfortunately, no." Zara looked annoyed, "Only five of them are Peon's children, who call me aunt, while the rest are the children of your grandchildren and their children... They've become a small tribe!"
Zara seemed deeply irritated; she herself had become a grandmother, and a great-grandmother at that!
"Come on, come on," Peon pushed his nearest son forward, "Kiss your grandfather's hand and receive your first-meeting gifts."