Fates Parallel Chapter 421 - Together

With the armies gone, Yoshika’s new life in Jiaguo gradually found a routine. There was a lot to keep them busy, but the lack of any imminent world-shattering threats allowed them to relax enough to focus on more mundane problems.

Getting Lin Xiulan’s Cult of Harmonious Stars settled was easier said than done. Xiulan herself was happy to take Qin Zhao’s old residence, and even agreed to teach spiritual arts once the newly established academy started taking students. The rest of the cult wasn’t quite so easy to work with.

Most of Xiulan’s sect were women, but not all of them, and while they were eager to be able to openly practice their arts without persecution, that didn’t always mean that they were happy to be away from Qin.

A major point of contention was Yang Qiu and the demonic prisoners of war. The Qin healers weren’t happy to hear that any demons had been left alive, much less that the medical pavilion had been turned into a makeshift prison, or that the de facto warden of that prison was a demon herself.

For the most part, they’d been appeased with the promise that they’d eventually get their own custom facilities, but it remained a source of tension.

Ruiling and her friends posed another issue. In truth, Yoshika wanted to welcome them immediately as citizens. Her vision for Jiaguo was a place where people of all races could come together in peace, but even for the relatively egalitarian Goryeon people, the fiends would be a hard sell, and she knew it.

On the other hand, their unique cultivation techniques would be an enormous boon to the academy, and Melati alone could be an entire labor force if she maintained control of her hive.

Even in the quiet moments, when she wasn’t being buried under the realities of building a city-state, there were some rocky moments.

Yoshika’s house wasn’t large enough for her entire family, but the former dorm houses were packed tightly enough together that it was simple enough for Jung and Narae to move in next door. Meili took Yue’s old room, while Kaede and Yue took advantage of the abundance of free space to take an entire house each to themselves.

Jiaying, however, surprised them by electing to stay with Jung and Narae.

“Your sisters have been really good to me during our travels, and Jung said she’d be happy to have me stay with them.”

Meili frowned across the table at her.

“Why not stay here with us? There’s enough room for one more.”

“Meili, there’s not even enough room for the three of you. I can’t believe you lived here with Yan Yue for an entire year. How did you not end up killing each other?”

“We were definitely tempted...”

Jiaying chuckled.

“Anyway, I appreciate the invitation, but...I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like this before, much less with...another woman—or four. I need some time to adjust to...everything.”

Meili sighed.

“I guess that’s fair. We’ve got a lot of adjusting to do too.”

“I can’t even begin to imagine. Isn’t it weird, not having any privacy?”

“Honestly? Not as weird as we expected it to be.”

Jiaying blinked.

“Really? I mean...don’t Jia and Eui...?”

She trailed off, blushing, and Meili giggled.

“Yes, but we share all of our thoughts. If Jia and Eui want to share a kiss—or anything else—then that desire is shared by all of us, as Yoshika.”

Jiaying cocked her head and wrinkled her nose in confusion.

“I don’t understand how that works. So you’re just all attracted to each other?”

“Not quite. Let me put it another way—if Jia is hungry and wants a snack, it doesn’t mean that the rest of us also want to eat something, just that we want Jia to eat something. We share senses, but at the same time there’s a big difference between me experiencing the food that Eui tastes and actually tasting it myself.”

“And that isn’t weird?”

Meili shrugged helplessly.

“It is—just not as much as we thought. It’ll take some getting used to, but Jia and Eui have been together for a long time, and we all have their experience to draw from.”

“What does that mean for you and I?”

“I don’t really know. As Eui, I couldn’t imagine being with anyone but Jia, and as Jia my feelings for Eui took precedence over any feelings I might develop for someone else. But now...let me tell you something I’ve never shared with anyone before.”

Jiaying sat up straight and nodded solemnly. Meili smiled at the gesture before continuing.

“Jia and Eui knew for a long time that eventually there would no longer be a distinction between them—that they would be ‘Yoshika’ at all times, rather than ‘Jia and Eui.’ We were terrified that our ascension would end up just blending us all together into a single person, and what that would mean for their relationship.”

She shook her head and chuckled.

“But then it actually happened and...we feel more distinct than ever, while also being more connected than we were before. It’s a paradox, but that paradox is part of who we are. I am Lee Jia, and An Eui—I always have been, and I always will be. I’m Yoshika. But I’m also not them—I’m Li Meili, and while I’m not entirely sure what that means yet, I know that I want to be with you—which means that Yoshika wants Li Meili to be with you.”

Jiaying covered her face and blushed.

“That’s...really sweet. And I think I’m starting to get it. By the emperor, I just had to pick the weirdest person in the world to fall for.”

Meili grinned.

“So you’re okay being with me, even though I’m the weirdest person in the world?”

“Yes. Of course I am. I’m still not moving in with you, though—not yet, at least. I don’t know how your previous relationships went, but I’m a proper woman of Qin. There’s an order to these things, you know.”

“What order is that?”

Jiaying stuck her tongue out and winked.

“You’ll have to figure that out for yourself.”

Meili covered her mouth and giggled. She was looking forward to it.

—-

Yue’s house was twice the size of Yoshika’s, and she’d chosen conservatively. Jia was surprised at how quickly she’d managed to transform the inner courtyard into an idyllic flower garden as she and Eui joined her for tea. She shook her head in wonder.

“Where did you even get all of these flowers? It’s been years since anyone maintained the gardens here.”

Yue smirked.

“Flowers are hardier than we give them credit for. Life always finds a way to flourish, given the chance. I was able to recover a few, here and there, but the majority came from Elder Qin’s garden.”

She held up one hand and wiggled her ring finger.

“Your little gift made it much easier to gather them up.”

Eui shrugged.

“It’s nice and all, but you do realize that this is a temporary residence, right? Once settlers start arriving, we’re going to need to think about districts.”

Yue waved off her concerns.

“You’ve already forced our hand there, haven’t you? Or did you think that we’d let our heads of state live in some tiny hovel in the middle of the academy dormitories? That house and its surrounding buildings are to be converted into an estate for you and your families, which will become the core of a new government district.”

Jia raised a skeptical eyebrow at her.

“That sounds suspiciously similar to a palace complex.”

“It’s just more efficient for the people making the big decisions to be near each other—don’t read so much into it.”

Eui scoffed.

“And I suppose the fact that you get to keep your big garden doesn’t hurt?”

“Tsk, is it so bad to enjoy the privileges of my station? We’ll soon be buried beneath an avalanche of responsibility, and I intend to enjoy my comforts while they last.”

“Uh huh. How’s the suitor situation going?”

Yue sighed wistfully.

“They’ve all packed up and left, for now. Officially, I’m still engaged to Xin Wei, but that’s a mere formality at this point. Guan Yi went with him back to the Flowing Purewater, leaving me quite bereft of romantic pursuits.”

Jia frowned.

“What about Zheng Long?”

Yue snorted, nearly choking on her tea.

“That was never a real option. Besides, he’s wandered off somewhere to do some soul searching. Poor Han Yu—how will that boy manage without anyone around to tell him what to think?”

Eui rolled her eyes.

“I’m sure he’ll manage. Any word from my parents?”

Yue shook her head.

“While I’m sure that the news of our new nation will spread like wildfire, it’s going to take much longer for information to come back to us.”

Eui sighed. She trusted Eunae to ensure the safety of her parents, but she was still worried. Losing them once had been hard enough. Jia gave her hand a comforting squeeze.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine. We just need to be patient.”

Yue nodded.

“We don’t know when—or if—the first group of prospective migrants or students will arrive. All we can do is prepare for them as best we can, and be ready for whatever news they bring.”

“What are you expecting?”

She frowned at Jia’s question, biting her thumbnail as she gathered her thoughts.

“It’s hard to say. Our nations aren’t hegemonies, so the responses are likely to be mixed. I think our existence is going to be the source of a lot of infighting, and how that affects us is going to depend on where the lines are drawn and who comes out on top.”

Yue took a long sip of tea before continuing.

“Short of the emperor himself making a declaration, we can probably expect the northern provinces of the empire to ignore us entirely. I can only speculate on my father’s motives, but I suspect he will continue to follow Shen Yu’s lead—does Jianmo have any insight in that regard?”

Jianmo vibrated at Eui’s hip.

“He’s a coward above all else. After these defeats, he’ll want to bide his time and search for a more opportune moment to strike. Boring as he may be, he’s not the type to underestimate someone who’s already bested him.”

Yue inclined her head in acknowledgement.

“Thank you. As for the southern provinces, it will be the Silver Orchard against the Flowing Purewater. They’re both highly respected sects, but I predict that the overall favor will lean towards Sun Quan’s side. Either way, it will be a political fight happening behind closed doors, rather than anything out in the open.”

Jia nodded slowly.

“Master Ienaga and Kaede predicted something similar from Yamato. Shogun Hayakawa is going to want to take immediate action, and it’s just a matter of whether the other factions can talk him down without inciting a civil war.”

Eui crossed her arms, frowning.

“Goryeo is a mess. One thing we can count on is that the high nobles are still reeling from the attempted coup last year. They aren’t going to want to stir up any trouble with us until things are more stable domestically.”

Jia shook her head and laughed, prompting a questioning look from Yue.

“Something funny?”

“Not really. It’s just finally sinking in for me. We’re really doing this, aren’t we? Founding our own country—working towards divinity. This is real.”

“Having second thoughts?”

She smiled.

“Not at all. If anything, it’s kind of exciting. For once, I’m in a position to make a real difference. Not just for me, or my family—for everyone. I’m not just trying to find a place for myself in a world that doesn’t want me—I’m creating a place where nobody will have to go through what I did.”

Yue chuckled.

“Just don’t let it get to your head. We have a long way to go before our little city-state even achieves functionality, much less realizes your utopian dream.”

“Right. Of course, sorry.”

“No, no. It’s good that you’re excited—I was worried that you’d be an absent ruler, like the God-Emperor. You’ve never really shown much interest in statecraft.”

Jia shrugged helplessly.

“Maybe that’s Kaede’s influence, but it feels different now. As a homeless orphan living on the outskirts of Nayeong, I didn’t care about noble houses or great sects, but Jiaguo isn’t just my home anymore—it’s part of who I am. I owe it to that starving orphan girl to make this a place she’d be proud to call her home.”

“Well said. I, for one, look forward to seeing what sort of world you’ll create for the girl you used to be.”

Jia wrapped an arm around Eui’s waist and pulled her close, shaking her head.

“Not just me. You, Eui, Meili, Kaede, Jung, Dae, Rika, Yun—even Eunae and Xin Wei doing their best back home...”

Yue chuckled.

“Are you going to name everyone you’ve ever met?”

Jia stuck her tongue out playfully.

“My point is, if it were just me—I’d be scared. I wouldn’t know where to begin or what I wanted. But because I have people I love and trust, I know I can do it. We can do it. Together.”

Yue raised her glass and nodded, smiling.

“Together.”