Death… And Me

Chapter 3931: The Third Option

A few days prior...

Donafela was in the middle of a teaching session with several hundred young cultivators. This was still a teaching program, after all. He took her time explaining the best way to use the meridians, when to push forward and when to hold back, things like that. She even checked each cultivator with her Divine Sense to make sure they were doing the right thing.

The class ended, and everyone began to make their way out. But then, Rean and Roan stopped by her desk. She saw the two of them taking part in this session, and there wasn’t anything wrong with it. Regardless of how big your potential is, you still need to learn things. It’s just that during the entire session, she didn’t see a reason to talk to them as they were cultivating perfectly in her eyes. She even wondered why they came to this class if they had the basic concepts so well consolidated.

Now that the two stopped to talk to her, she immediately understood that what they wanted was not related to her class. "What is it? I can’t believe the two golden boys stopped by my desk just to compliment me. Could it be you decided to join some country and came to report it to me?"

Rean shook his head. "No. We came to talk about the official yearly gathering of the countries."

"Hum?" Donafela didn’t expect that. "Why would you be interested in that. Yes, your situation will undoubtedly be a hot topic when the day comes, but there isn’t much I can do for you in that regard. That neutrality choice left you two pretty much without a footing, regardless of what decision is taken there."

"Much the opposite," Roan spoke. "You are a pivotal presence in that gathering, especially considering what is going to be decided there. We need you to bring a third option to the table."

"Third option?" Donafela didn’t know what they were talking about. "What kind of third option? The countries will just try to decide which one of them will take you."

"No," Rean shook his head in response. "There will be two options presented that day, and the second one isn’t very good for us. Thus, we need you to bring up the third one."

Donafela narrowed her eyes, getting up from her chair before making her way to the exit. "Come. This is not the place to talk."

---

Back in the present day, Donafela became the center of attention in the meeting hall. What Rean and Roan said would happen did indeed happen. She wasn’t sure if she should intervene, but after seeing that the two options the twins predicted to be brought forward, she decided to go with their plan, introducing a third one.

"One option is to get rid of them to prevent a severe break in the balance, which is the root of our peace at the moment. The other is to have those kids join different countries and not concentrate their futures in a single power."

"To be honest, the first option is idiotic, as I can’t see how getting rid of such incredible prospects could help our Runia Continent."

"As for the second option, that still has a huge flaw. Senior Ximao, even if we have those kids joining different countries each, the fact is that there are only seven of them. What about the other countries? That wouldn’t be very good for them if they fail to take at least one of those kids."

"That said, we can only rely on my third option. My idea is to leave those kids in their neutral positions. If they don’t side with anyone, there is no reason to be afraid of the power balance changing in the future. After all, they would be basically members of the Runia Continent as a whole instead of a few countries inside."

Everyone looked at Donafela and pondered her option.

"Hmph!" It was then that Ernest intervened. "Not joining any of the countries? Then what? We help them get stronger, and when they become powerhouses, they will be the ones to take over our continent instead? Let’s not forget they are outsiders."

Donafela nodded. "That possibility exists, but it is very remote. Ernest, let’s be honest here, with their potential, do you think they will remain on our continent forever?"

"This..." Ernest couldn’t come up with an answer for that.

Donafela turned to everyone else. "So, instead of worrying about them taking over or causing a power balance disruption, why not just leave them be? No recruitment, no push, just let them be the neutral cultivators they chose to be. In exchange, there isn’t much of a need to put a lot of resources into them."

"Normally, once one of us manages to acquire a prodigy like them, we don’t measure costs to make sure they develop fast and become the strong powerhouse we wish them to be, so they can work for us. But this time, they will have to rely on themselves, and no one here will need to worry about any costs, as we won’t be adding anything to the pile. The Divine Military Exchange Program already gives enough help in that regard. If anything, not providing them with any extra resources will, in fact, keep them at the same level as the others who are receiving their country’s extra support."

Ximao pondered a bit in his seat, his subordinates exchanging messages with him through Divine Sense. In the end, he quite liked the idea. "Very well, I will add your idea to the voting session."

Then, he turned to the rest. "Whether you liked her idea or not, that won’t matter after the results are out. You might have your reasons, things like those kids joining a country in secret or some shit like that. But in the end, isn’t that the same as it was with all the previous Golden Radiance Kids?"

Ximao used his CD to start the procedures, sending a link to all the participants of the meeting. "Well, let’s not waste anyone else’s time anymore. The voting is up, using the Werdlem Empire’s own voting system, so you know there is no way to cheat. Take a look and select what you think is best. You all have ten minutes to decide. And, as per the rules, my guys and I will not take part in the final decision."

Immediately, several discussions started in the meeting hall. Many had their doubts, and those on Ernest’s side still tried to convince them that the best option was to not have the twins’ group at all. As to whether they would succeed or not, they will find out soon.