Shisui returned to the hotel where he was staying with his aunt, Yue. He had purified his body using the spirit water from the pond where Tui and La were swimming. After all, he couldn't miss such an opportunity!
This purification session had a powerful effect on Shisui's body. He cleansed things from himself that he had never noticed before. Now, he felt like the protagonists in Xianxia novels who expel impurities from their bodies.
He felt much more relaxed, both physically and mentally. The worries, doubts, and questions that had taken root in his mind over the past few months seemed to have cleared up. Now, he could examine them from a different angle and find solutions.
He felt like he could fight for a whole day without getting tired! Although there was no one to fight, at least for now. During the ride, Shisui noticed some mischievous glances from the crowd of people going about their daily lives in Agna Qel'a.
He didn't take action, though; it wasn't necessary, at least for now. What he did do was take a large amount of spirit water in front of Yue, who looked at him in disbelief. He compressed the water into a small drop that he concealed in his body along with the rest of his arsenal.
"Was it necessary to do that? You almost left the pond dry!" Yue complained to her nephew, her voice low so as not to be heard by those nearby.
"Like I told you, those spirits always regenerate the water they swim in. Why not use it if it doesn't affect them?" Did you think I'd just take a cup of water? No!" replied Shisui with an amused smile, much to his aunt's exasperation. She stomped on the icy ground loudly in silent retort.
"By the way, what do you know about the closed portal at the North Pole?" Shisui asked seriously, causing Yue to stop her tantrum.
"Everything's fine. That crucial event has yet to happen, but the influx of spirits is more noticeable. Luckily, there aren't any dark ones," Yue replied before pointing in a certain direction.
Shisui felt a strange spiritual fluctuation there, so he concentrated his senses in that area. Soon, he could see a spirit in its usual transparent form with a colorful outline.
This time, it was green. This was their usual appearance when they wanted to hide from the naked eye; they took the shape of a frog. It was located above the head of a woman selling fish.
"As long as they don't harm anyone, Tui and La let them stay in the city. Interaction between humans and spirits here is not direct, like in ancient times, but there is no animosity either. Besides, they are useful in their way," the princess explained, pointing to other places where Shisui could find spirits.
One caught his attention: an owl-like spirit with the shape these beings usually had when they came to the earthly world. Its color was navy blue, and it seemed much more "solid," though it was hidden from people less sensitive to its presence.
However, Shisui sensed that this spirit was different from the others. When the Sage used his gift to scrutinize it, the spirit seemed to notice his intrusion and returned his gaze.
Its green eyes emitted an emerald glow, and at that moment, the Waterbender felt as if someone was looking deep into his soul.
"Don't be so rude." A feminine and unusually charming voice emerged from the owl, which flew directly toward Shisui, hovering in front of him.
"I'm sorry, but you shouldn't peek inside others without permission either," Shisui commented, deactivating his gift without much concern.
The owl smiled humanely before her eyes stopped glowing. This caused Shisui to stop feeling as if someone were studying it. Then, the spirit watched Yue for a moment before rising into the sky and disappearing.
"What was that?" Yue asked, causing Shisui to shrug.
"I don't know, but you felt it, didn't you? It was different from the rest," the Sage replied, causing Yue to nod.
"Yes, but I never paid much attention to her until now. I felt a strange power in her eyes. Luckily, she didn't notice me. Yue pulled back her white hair and smiled at her grim-faced nephew.
"I felt exposed under his gaze!" The hair on Shisui's arms bristled, something he noticed now because of his recent experience.
"I also noticed a strange power in your eyes. You know, if I weren't so close to you, I wouldn't have noticed it," Yue said suddenly, making Shisui hesitate for a moment.
This wasn't a big secret to the Sage. After all, some people were born with unusual talents. Besides, he had already told his friends about his visual ability. So why had this topic never come up with his aunt or mother? Simple: he hadn't seen it as necessary.
"I can talk to you about it in more detail if you want. Just don't divulge it randomly. It's a useful tool against some people and entities." Although Shisui wasn't very specific about who or what he was referring to, Yue understood quickly, narrowing her eyes.
"You must explain to me what you talked about with Tui and La. I don't want any pesky bugs in my territory." At that moment, Yue's temperament changed from that of a gentle and considerate princess to that of an overprotective queen.
She could rule properly, even though her father had the strange idea of ceding the position to his nephew. Yue knew that Shisui wasn't interested, but it also made her resolve something in her mind.
'If I want the Northern Water Tribe to be great again, I guess I have to start playing. Luckily, I'm not just a vase; I'm the fucking moon,' thought Yue. Her lips curved into a smile reminiscent of Shisui's when he got excited during fights.
It seemed that Shisui had inherited Yue's terrifying smile.
...
The duo took their time getting to the hotel, chatting about personal matters. Luckily, no one foolish enough to walk next to them and eavesdrop was around.
There was a good vibe between them. After all, Yue was as young as Shisui, so they could easily have a normal conversation without much stiffness. Technically, the princess was Sage's aunt.
However, Shisui's good mood was visibly ruined when he encountered Arnook, a seemingly bad customer of the hotel, eating lunch at the first-floor restaurant.
He didn't have his entourage with him, and he wasn't armed. He just looked like a middle-aged man enjoying his meal. Not even the arrival of his daughter or grandson made him look up. However, from his somewhat stiff posture, it was obvious that he had noticed the two of them arrive.
"It seems he has a lot to tell you. Do you want to hear it?" Yue asked Shisui, who clenched his fists tightly before relaxing them.
"If I could live with Azulon for so long, I can with this old man," Shisui replied to his aunt before walking straight toward the table where Arnook was sitting. This time, seeing them coming toward him, Arnook looked up.
"Yue, where are the members of your security team?" Arnook asked, causing Yue to grimace as she sat down next to her father and took a piece of meat from his plate.
"I don't know! I was walking with Shisui. You don't miss much in the city," the princess replied to her father before stuffing her mouth with shark meat.
"I know, but you know you can't walk around by yourself. I think you can understand why," Arnook said. He didn't seem to care about his daughter's rude act of taking food off his plate; he seemed quite used to it.
"Father, I know I was born practically dead, but that doesn't make me frail. You know my strength. Don't you think you're a little old to be a tribal chieftain now?" Yue attacked.
Arnook looked at her for a few moments before sketching a smile.
"I originally thought Shisui would want the position, but you're just as good as he is." Arnook wasn't exaggerating when he said this. Although Sage's exploits labeled him as extremely powerful, could he go against the Moon's incarnation?
Shisui knew better than that! But was Yue even human at this point? Shisui, who wanted to be a source but wasn't obsessed with being the only one at the top, felt no concern.
To him, Yue was like the Avatar of the Moon. With beings like that, there was no point in comparing himself. However, he could take them as a reference to gradually grow and guide others along the same path so that he wouldn't be alone as he grew stronger.
For that and other reasons, Shisui hardly kept his advances to himself. After all, he wanted to be strong alongside others because it would be boring if he were the only one with peak power and had no one to spend time with. The difference in strength creates gaps between people.
This was evident with the Avatar. Only those close to him saw him as a relatable human, while others saw the world's most powerful being, whom they should love, respect, or fear depending on his actions and the epochal context.
Being too strong was lonely! So it's no wonder that Avatars generally don't socialize with other humans. Shisui didn't want this kind of rift between his friends, so he helped them become stronger directly. So far, it had paid off.
Mai was lethal with poison, daggers, and archery. Shisui didn't want to be the target of her arrows, especially after Petra suggested that she could equip explosives on her projectiles.
Ty Lee was much better than him in hand-to-hand combat; after all, he focused on Waterbending. Zuko was a better swordsman, and Azula was powerful in her way. Petra was even stronger than he was because she was an Earthbender.
Everyone had their strengths and roles, and that was what Shisui liked most. He didn't want to be a know-it-all capable of everything, always bearing the weight of the world on his shoulders, because that would be too lonely.
"Old man, you look like you want to tell me something." Shisui noticed how Arnook hesitated every time he looked at him, so he got straight to the point.
"I...it doesn't make much sense now, but I want to apologize to you for what happened with your mother." Arnook's words plunged the table into an unusually cold atmosphere.
"Fine, but wouldn't it be better to apologize to her directly? After all, being a cretin seems to be in this tribe's blood, and I guess I inherited that," Shisui said in response, causing Arnook to raise an eyebrow. Had his grandson just threatened to kill him?
"It's not what you think, Father. It has to do with the spirit world," Yue quickly clarified when he noticed Arnook's strange look.
"I didn't tell you before because...well, you understand, don't you? Some things in the tribe are rotten. But I met my sister in the spirit world. She became a spirit due to the grace of the Ocean and the Moon." Then, Yue began to recount the events surrounding Chang'e and her elder sister.
With more context, Arnook's body trembled. He lowered his gaze, and a few tears fell onto his plate of food.
"Looks like I have a chance to heal some wounds. That's good, very good," Arnook murmured before raising his head. His blue eyes bored into Shisui's face as he noticed the resemblance the Sage bore to his daughter.
"Shisui, maybe I was a fool to want to impose on you as I did with your mother in the past," Arnook said. This caused Shisui to roll his eyes before a full-toothed smile appeared on his face.
"Old man, you wanted to marry me to my aunt. Have you told Yue about that yet?" Shisui dropped the bombshell, and at that moment, everyone in the hotel, no, in the city, felt a sudden heaviness fall over their bodies.
Yue's white hair waved in the air alone, dividing into nine locks that resembled the tails of the Legendary Nine-tailed White Fox, a relatively strong spirit in the spirit world.
"So, Father, what made you think I wanted to 'love' my nephew in that twisted way?" Yue asked in a low tone, almost a whisper. But both Arnook and Shisui sensed they weren't facing a young woman but something else....
The Moon.
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AN: The Owl spirit is a reference to Séraphine Rohan, the main protagonist of my original novel "Witch's Adventure." Just take it as a reference.