Planet Master

196- Undercurrent

“Alright. So you tell me that the three of you reached some sort of agreement. Is that what you want to say?” Tatsumi crossed his arms in front of his chest, clearly considering the words of the three in front of him.“Yes.” The three said in unison.

Charlene, Ame and Tabitha were staring at him, as if seeking his approval for the verdict.

They told him that Tabitha liked Tatsumi, which threw the latter off guard.

‘So that was why they reacted so strongly.’ Tatsumi finally understood that women’s instinct was quite accurate.

But he internally sighed as he did not expect this to happen. After all, the uniqueness of the human race was there for all to see.

So he looked at Dian, then at the deity of Tabitha’s race and realized that they also knew about this matter. Tatsumi gulped down and tried to calm himself down.

What he was afraid of was that he fell short of their expectation. He felt that he was unworthy of her, actually, now that he thought about it. And yet, he was also reminded when he met Ame.

Wasn’t the situation similar? But what was the truth or the reality? Perhaps that was why Ame had an understanding look on her face when she approached him now.

“So, you have accepted her just now.” Tatsumi put his index finger on his forehead while saying this.

“Of course. Otherwise, you will not even consider this at all. Is that right?” Charlene said.

Tatsumi put his hand down and nodded severely. In his consciousness, he did not even consider the aspect of someone from a higher position liking him like Ame because the probability of it was too low and with Ame was actually a miracle.

That was why he already listed it as the lowest possible probability. But if that probability came true, he had to prepare himself.

“Right.” Tatsumi closed his eyes as he sighed.

“Then what is with you two? Are you feeling jealous?” Tatsumi asked about their action.

“Of course we are. Another one takes a liking to our husband. And she is even powerful and influential, too.” Ame put her hand on her chest while saying this.

“Well…I don’t even know how to respond to…this.” Tatsumi was also in the midst of confusion. He had not even prepared for this kind of event.

“We have talked about it with each other. There will be a problem if we don’t talk about it but we have done what is best for all of us.” Charlene added.

“Right, Tabitha is from another civilization and a different race altogether. How can she be allowed to be together with the person she likes and cares about?” Tatsumi considered things quite deeply and knew that this was the biggest challenge for their relationship.

Furthermore, Tatsumi cared about the feelings and opinions of the woman connected to him since he had learned to respect individuals as it was. So he needed to consider Tabitha’s opinion and feelings too.

“Listen.” Tatsumi then walked and went to face Tabitha.

“I am only a lowly person from a barely budding civilization. The fact that you like me is truly an unexpected variable. So I want to hear it directly from you.”

Hearing what Tatsumi had to say, Tabitha knew that the moment had come for her to discuss things with Tatsumi properly. After all, she had talked about this with his wives, who obviously noticed her earlier.

She became serious but the color of her face as well as that of her veil turned slightly pink.

“Because I am the one who has to do the divination in my race. The experience of not being able to stop a calamity was something I don’t want to experience again.” Tabitha said.

Then she continued, “Furthermore, the moment I saw your race, I knew that your race is the hope for the rest of us who barely fended off the invasion of the Outer Being. That is why I want to know more about your race.”

Tatsumi listened and found out that the specialization of Tabitha’s race was actually divination. He had not expected it but he listened to the rest of her words and he frowned deeply.

“You like my race but it doesn’t mean that you necessarily like me, though.” Tatsumi said after a pause.

“Uhm…that is because you are the first one to be in the front, eliminating the Outer Being Commander-class for good. After seeing it with my own eyes, I started to support you in eliminating the higher-class Outer Beings and my support is the kind of bond that gets stronger the more I know someone.” Tabitha said while her body trembled.

“Right. Soldier, Commander, Brigadier, Lord and Marshal-class Outer Beings are the Soldier-type Outer Beings. There are also Nobility-type Outer Beings but it is not important for me and my race at the moment.” Tatsumi nodded but he realized that Tabitha was trembling and he also felt a threatening gaze from Tritis’ group.

“But why me, though? There are others who will come after me and probably be better.” Tatsumi said this seriously.

And it made sense to him. There would be later generations, and Tabitha probably saw them too, eliminating the Outer Beings. The fact that she liked him made Tatsumi take this seriously.

“Because you are the first group.” Tabitha said.

“Furthermore, you are the very first one to be able to do it. The Martial Will that the humans possessed can assimilate even the dust of the Outer Beings, which usually corrupted even my race.”

Tatsumi felt that he had taken advantage of her instead. That was why…

“Please, think about this properly. I want you to make sure that your feelings are not misplaced.” Tatsumi said to Tabitha, looking straight into her eyes. He could see that her eyes were as clear as the sky at noon, clear blue.

Then he turned around and went away.

“I’m sorry not to be able to help you much.” Charlene said with an apologetic look.

‘But I understand him. He wants Tabitha to be sure of her feelings. But isn’t this a bit disrespectful?’ Charlene berated Tatsumi in her mind while speaking.

“It’s fine. He has a point.” Tabitha breathed a sigh of relief. She smiled slightly at the sight but she understood that she needed to make sure that she had her feelings right.

“You can think about it while we keep raking the kills of the Outer Being.” Ame said while placing her hand on Tabitha’s shoulder.

Tabitha nodded.

Then the mothership went to another location in another star system. Since the reinforcement had been dealt with, they could act with impunity. They wreaked havoc on the Outer Beings’ garrisons and chain of supply lines.

The Outer Beings’ supply lines consist of things with high energy density.

Dian saw this as an opportunity for his civilization to gather them and produce high-quality energy for further breakthroughs.

It looked like even Charlene and the others from His group understood the importance of those things too.

“I bet that Father God needs those high-quality energy sources. Get them!” Charlene commanded.

Tatsumi went through the Outer Beings’ Soldier and Commander classes as if a scythe reaping the wheat. He actually used Violet Sun Blade Intent along with Martial Will to achieve one move and one kill. Then he quickly grabbed those high-quality energy crystals, stones, and balls of light before tossing them inside the high-grade spatial pouch given to them by Tritis’ group for free.

For Dian’s group, the preciousness of such a bag was priceless, while to Tritis’ group, it was just a gesture of currying favor.

Tatsumi had a spatial ring and pouch, but they could not even pass for being low-grade.

And his was given by Tabitha, by the way, which was actually suggested by Charlene and Ame.

“Hah, so much for thinking about her feelings.” Tatsumi smacked his lips as he glanced once more at the pouch. The pouch was silver-white, adorned with golden thread.

“Well, thanks to that you know that she meant it.” Ame said as she twirled her spear and the Outer Being that was stabbed turned to dust and flowed to her. Then she changed the spear back into an umbrella.

“It is also thanks to you two that I know about it. Should I give you thanks?” Tatsumi asked.

Then Charlene came to Tatsumi’s side along with Long Wu, Bore and the rest of the group.

“No need for that. Furthermore, we can only accept her since she and her race have been helpful to us all along. Right, Sister Charlene?” Ame said in reply.

“Yes. So, husband, would you like to sacrifice a bit of yourself for the sake of humanity and our civilization?” Charlene smiled slyly.

“Wha-“ Tatsumi widened his eyes and could not believe that the two women dear to his life were actually suggesting accepting another woman.

Then he quickly turned serious and said, “Stop with this joke. This is not funny.”

But the response he wanted to hear was not there. Instead, something else came.

“I bet that your heart must be dancing with joy. Don’t deny it.” Charlene opened her mouth and pointed at Tatsumi.

“Although that is not false, to suddenly accept another woman to be close to me is still hard to accept, don’t you think?” Tatsumi felt that his defense was slowly wearing down but he still wanted to hold his principles.

“Uhm, please let me.” Tabitha suddenly interjected since she had heard what Tatsumi wanted to say.

The problem lay in the fact that Tatsumi was afraid of not being able to meld his life into hers. He had already done that with Charlene and Ame. But he held back when it came to Tabitha.

“It’s fine.” Tabitha said to Tatsumi. He looked at her with a complicated look, did not know what to do or how to proceed.

“To me, this is the first time I've liked someone. Perhaps, this is what they call love at first sight.” Tabitha said with a light tone.

“But there is too big a chasm between us. In transcendent power or in status, I am lacking so much.” Tatsumi denied her by saying this.

Tabitha knew that this was Tatsumi’s opinion. So she said, “Does it matter? The person I love does not care about that. What he cares about is that the person he loves is feeling loved in return.”

Tatsumi went silent as he thought about it carefully. He was too aware of the difference in status that he dismissed Tabitha’s feelings for him. Was that right of him?

Charlene smiled and Ame had an encouraging look as they looked at the two, silently praying in their heart that this would succeed.

“You are not wrong.” Tatsumi put down his index finger that touched his forehead.

“Perhaps I am too focused on certain things that I don’t see you and your feelings. The most important thing is to respond to your feelings, correct?” Tatsumi opened his mouth and said his conclusion.

Tabitha nodded. Then she erected a barrier that separated the two from the rest of the bridge.

Tatsumi realized this but let her do it.

“Do you know that only the closed ones of my race can get to see my true appearance?” Tabitha said.

Then she lifted the veil that covered her face. Tatsumi blinked because Tabitha was really a beautiful woman in appearance, not to be lost to Charlene and Ame.

She had short, white hair with blue eyes as clear as lake water. Her body proportions were also great and could compete with both Charlene and Ame as her curvaceous figure became visible.

“Am I beautiful?” Tabitha asked with a blush.

“To be honest, you can compete with both my wives in terms of beauty.” Tatsumi said in resignation. Tatsumi knew that Tabitha was beautiful, but to witness that firsthand was unbelievable.

“I see. You wanted me to see this so that I can be considered one of your close ones.” Tatsumi nodded in understanding. But he had to man up and accept this.

This move of Tabitha was as great as a maiden kissing her knight in shining armor on the cheek. That was why he…

-

On the other side of the Frontline.

“Venerable Yuan. You have dispatched the Slayer Division to guard the Venerable Tritis. Why is that?”

In the depths of the fortress which served as a base, in the meeting room.

Two Venerables were overseeing the Frontline. The Venerables were Yuan and Gorith. Venerable Yuan’s race was countless demonic beasts that had gained sentience and wisdom, while Gorith’s race was the famed Machina Race.

Their appearance was that of the strongest member of their races.

Yuan had the appearance of a humanoid yet bore traces of an oriental dragon. Gorith, on the other hand, had the appearance of a giant black ball with red lights turned on.

They were sitting side by side since their position was that high. But now, they were talking about something after the usual meeting to inform the situation of the entire Frontline.

“You also deployed Jeliel, your brightest creation. Hmm, should I also ask why?” Yuan countered.

“Because my causal calculation showed that bringing Jeliel to Her side will be beneficial to me too.” Gorith replied in the synthetic voice whose gender could not be told.

“Well, for me it is because our Diviner is moving a bit strangely lately, you know.” Yuan said with a bit of curiosity in it.

“But now, we see that the answer to our wish and prayer, if you want to call it that, has been answered.” Yuan smiled as he shared senses and perspective with his race.

Gorith also did similarly, leaving backdoors on Jeliel so that he could analyze the data Jeliel had gathered as well as share her perspective.

That was an easy aspect for a Planet Master. But through that, they could see the miracle firsthand. But at the same time, the meeting this time exposed that an undercurrent was happening on the Frontline.

“But with the disappearance of the lower-level Soldier, their immediate superior should try to investigate them. We need to make the most of it.” Yuan said while sighing.

“Should we deploy our main force to assault their front bases?” Gorith asked for verification.

“We should. We must actually create a fanfare to conceal the fact that a certain race can even free others from corruption as well as getting stronger through assimilating the Outer Beings.” Yuan knew that this news was both good and bad.

But for now, they would make the biggest commotion they could cause. Sacrificing a few for the greater whole was actually in their minds as of becoming a Venerable, so they knew how to do it.

-

When Tatsumi and Tabitha came out of the barrier, they were holding hands. Tatsumi sighed as the look on the Tritis’ group became intense, borderline on receiving killing intent.

Tatsumi was annoyed with that. ‘Clearly, it was your leader who liked him and actively pursued him so why did it become my fault?’

But his thought remained a thought.

Charlene and Ame who saw this then offered congratulations. Long Wu shook his head, smirking as he muttered something about pining for his wife.

Bore had an adoring look as he knew that having multiple beautiful and strong counterparts was part of strength and clearly Tatsumi had those in spades. So he adored Tatsumi.

Dian clicked his tongue but waved at him with a smile while Tritis looked at Tabitha and sent a reminder through a mental link.

“Did you finally decide to accept her?” Charlene with a sly smile asked.

“You knew that this was going to happen. What choice do I have?” Tatsumi protested but it was a light protest as his voice was a bit lowered.

“Come on. Let me comfort you for a while.” Ame suddenly said before hugging him. Her hand patted his back as Tatsumi barely calmed down.

“Hey, me too!” Charlene hugged him from behind.

“Em, do you mind if I join?” Tabitha asked.

Charlene and Ame raised their head to look at her. Then they made room for her to get closer and Tabitha took that chance without hesitation. Tatsumi was hugged from three different positions as he felt the look that came from Tritis’ group.

Ao Guang was amused while Jeliel was observing Tatsumi and his wives so Jeliel knew that they were trying to pull Tabitha into becoming their new family member.

“Please don’t forget that we need to eliminate as many Outer Beings as possible before we return.” Tatsumi coughed before saying this.

Actually, this was what Dian wanted to say but if he said it, it would be seen as an order of the utmost priority while if Tatsumi said this, it would mean that they need to consider things.

After the hugging session, Tatsumi was released from the comfort heaven. To him, it was worth it and caused his mind to clear up and prepared him to take more responsibility.

“How is it? Isn’t that feel good?” Ame teased Tabitha. Despite the difference in power, Tabitha was ultimately a youngster judging from her manners. No matter how old she was, she acted like a young woman rather than an elderly person.

“Hmm.” Tabitha nodded in agreement.

“This is the first time I feel this good.” Tabitha said while savoring and imprinted that feeling into her heart.

“Now that our husband has accepted you, what are you going to do from now on?” Charlene asked while glancing at where Dian and Tritis were.

“That…I guess I need permission from my deity to be able to be at his side.” Tabitha answered.

“I think that Father God can accept you but I don’t know about Her Excellency.” Tatsumi was worried about this issue and the cross-racial intermarriage.

When Tatsumi was with Tabitha in the barrier just now, she said that her race took that form because it was the most ideal form as well as a revelation that this form was the one that could put an end to the Outer Beings.