Chapter 811: Rumination
After the first round of the investigation had been completed, Vahn was sitting within the same tent that he used to inspect each of the expedition members. Sitting across from him was Finn and, having arrived to welcome the expedition much earlier, Gareth. They were all sipping on some [Dwarven Stout], with Finn partaking of a diluted solution that had been mixed with a much weaker ale. Gareth had snorted upon witnessing this but kept his opinion on the matter to himself as their discussion progressed. He was eyeing the liquid in his own mug as he asked, "So, what're the odds of Enyo attacking Lil Geirr? Do we need to start preparing for a war...?"
Vahn, tapping against the desk in a rhythmic fashion, brought his index finger to a stop as he responded, saying, "It's hard to be certain, especially with how things have been progressing. This is definitely not the limit of Enyo's forces so it almost doesn't even make sense that she would be trying to stop us. It would have made more sense for her to stage a massive attack the moment we tried setting up camp on the 50th Floor, especially since it should be closer to their base of operations. These actions are exposing her hand before there has even been any direct contact between our main forces...it doesn't make any sense..."
Because of how strange this matter had been, Vahn even went out of his way to meet up with Freya, Minerva, Nike, and Polemos, all gods possessing War and Wisdom Divinities. They were similar to his 'war council' and served as his advisors during situations where he might not be able to infer the answer from his own limited perspective. However, even they couldn't understand why Enyo, who had been keeping hidden for so long, would suddenly oppose the expedition in such a direct manner. In fact, Nike pointed out that, since Enyo obviously had the means to control monsters, she would have forced the expedition to retreat by sending waves into the upper Floors and trying to attack the City directly.
Though the City certainly wasn't helpless, having enough powerful monsters climb up through the upper Floors would effectively wipe out most weak Adventurers, potentially destroy the settlement on the 18th Floor, and force a restructuring of the defensive forces on the surface. If Enyo truly wanted to prevent them from entering, it would have made sense for her to completely ignore the expedition and pull their focus away entirely. Instead, she was clashing head-on with the expedition, which was the main reason Vahn began to suspect there was 'something' else going on.
Finn, seemingly a little tipsy at this point, gave a nasally 'hnnn' before making a speculative guess of his own, saying, "Maybe the point of their strategy is to throw us off by acting in an unexpected way from the very beginning. The feeling you have may not be coming from within the expedition itself, but may pertain to something going on 'away' from the expedition...maybe this is a big misdirect, or a means to buy more time so they can finish their preparations on the 50th Floor...?" Though he was speaking in a somewhat absentminded manner, Finn's words rang with a bit of wisdom that had caused Vahn to fall into reflection once again...
Though he might not have investigated every small detail, his cursory look over the expedition when they were traveling hadn't exactly been performed hastily. In fact, as everyone else was focused on the battle occurring, it would have been more difficult for them to keep secrets from his eyes and senses. Even when they announced the investigation, though there was a bit of dissatisfaction, nobody tried to sneak away or cause a scene. In fact, after getting some alcohol, setting up an entertainment tent, and making some delicious food available, most people had gotten wrapped up in a festive atmosphere. Now that Finn made his speculation known, Vahn was beginning to think there might be a fair bit of truth to the matter...
Gareth also seemed to be entertaining the idea and, after taking a hearty gulp of his stout, asked, "Ye' have one of yer bodies up on tha surface, right? Think you ought to issue an alert through the Alliance 'n start preparin' for an attack. If Finn's right, I expect that Enyo might be tryin' ta get you to focus more on what is going on in the Dungeon. By tha time ya get down to the 50th Floor, it would be a little difficult to turn around if somethin' started happenin' on the Upper Floors." After working alongside Finn for more than a decade, Gareth had a great deal of trust in the Pallum's intuition and didn't want to leave anything to chance.
Vahn just nodded his head, remaining silent because he had already issued the alert at the same time as his 'war council'. It was impossible to have a gathering of War and Wisdom gods where they wouldn't have already come up with such an idea. Though their speculation didn't run down the same line as Finn's, they were very aware of the possibility of a misdirect and, knowing about the divinations of Cassandra and Sylfia, they weren't going to take chances. Since a lot of the Alliance's war potential was concentrated inside of the Dungeon right now, it was even more important for them to maintain proper accountability for their members and the situation within the City in general.
Still, to follow up on Gareth's advice, Vahn went to talk with Eirene to have her increase the number of patrols occurring throughout the City, especially around the regions where construction was ongoing. Since this included Daedelus Street, and the artificial dungeon underneath, Vahn figured it would be prudent to focus their efforts there. If Enyo wasn't going to come up through Babel Tower, she would undoubtedly move her forces through the artificial dungeon. At the same time, he sent a personal message to Freya, even though Loki also had a paired logbook, asking her to station her Familia in the area as well. She almost immediately responded back, agreeing without any debate whatsoever before Loki added a few words of her own...
So that Gareth didn't think he was ignoring him, Vahn matched gazes with the amicable Dwarf and said, "Don't worry, we won't be caught off guard so easily. The Hearth Manor will be safe as long as Terra and myself are there, especially since we didn't bring all of our reserves into the Dungeon. I'm more worried that you and Finn hit the nail on the head, just with a different target than the most obvious. It's possible that Enyo may specifically target Lil Geirr and Rivira before she makes a move for the surface. The chances of her trying to cut off our escape from the Dungeon itself are quite high..."
Vahn's mind was brought back to the strange flowers that had produced the aphrodisiac, which his Inventory had been able to identify as [Viscum Eudicotyledons]. They were a type of flowering mistletoe, which was somewhat ironic, that had several different possible toxins contained within their spores depending on the structure of a special type of protein called 'lectins'. Other than the aphrodisiac spores, the most common spore produced would cause severe gastrointestinal problems, including debilitating stomach pain and spontaneous diarrhea. It was obviously a plant that had been designed for the sole purpose of serving as a distraction or causing chaos. Most Adventurers would have [Abnormal Resistance], which would prevent the majority of such effects, but it would be very effective on the general populous. Just imagining several million people running around like sex-crazed fiends, irrespective of age, race, or gender, was a terrifying thought...
However, using such methods in an open area would have a significantly reduced effect, leading Vahn to believe that Enyo may try to 'flood' the Upper Floors with the spores to cut off their route of retreat. Eventually, though it could take several months, it was possible for her to slowly extend the influence of the spoors between the 18th and 24th Floors until the entire area became almost impassable without specialized equipment. Fortunately, such equipment was easily purchasable through the system shop but it still didn't discount the fact that Enyo's forces could easily wipe out, at the very least, the settlement on the 18th Floor...
After Vahn gave his take on things, the tent became very quiet for several minutes as all three men ruminated over the best course of action. Vahn himself was starting to feel a nagging frustration that had been replaced by the familiar cooling energy from his [Will of the Emperor]. Honestly, he was getting fed up with these types of situations and was very tempted to throw caution to the wind and dive into the Dungeon with a small group of Elites and just target Enyo directly. He could even go on his own and, even if his body ended up getting destroyed, his soul would be entirely unaffected and reform with his Avatar on the surface. After that, he could always produce a second Avatar and then just repeat the process until Enyo's forces just 'break'...
The only thing preventing him from taking this course of action were things like Eva's advice, the guidance from Sis, and the non-negligible chance that Enyo may have a way to seal him away, at least temporarily. Though he would potentially be able to destroy his own body, or even call Terra to his side for assistance, there were simply too many unknowns to make such a bold risk. It was infinitely safer to put pressure on Enyo's forces, focus on the establishment of Haven, and slowly whittle them down through overwhelming power and resources.
Eventually, something would have to give and Enyo would be forced to try and contend with Haven directly, exposing the errant goddess and giving Vahn the chance to deal with her directly. He even had the option that, after finishing the establishment of Haven, diving into the Dungeon with Haven serving as a waypoint. This would save him a lot of time and effort while also creating a place for the girls to fall back to if things got dangerous. Since they would undoubtedly be involved in the fighting that was to come, having a base of operations to rest and recuperate were incredibly important...
Ironically, though he wasn't exactly fond of the idea, one of the best options was to simply wait for Bell to become strong enough to 'trigger' whatever events fate had machinated for the boy. Vahn was trying to accelerate Bell's growth so that he would become useful, not necessarily to resolve the problem, but to serve as a means of directing the problem in a controlled manner. Vahn believed that, if he and Bell were both involved in the situation, events would undoubtedly transpire around Bell. This made it much easier to plan around things because they would always know the approximate location where events would take place. By simply observing Bell's actions, and comparing them against other variables, it might even be possible to predict the future, even without someone that has an ability related to divination. After all, 'fate' and 'karma' were far more reliable things than any form of future sight that wasn't directly related to looping through time.
To bolster Bell's growth even further, Vahn intended to try and strengthen the people around him since it would constantly urge Bell to grow even faster. At this point, it was easy to see that Bell had imprinted on him as the 'target' for his [Liaris Freese], so Vahn had been trying to make the boy feel somewhat indebted towards him. Though there was certainly no resentment coming from Bell about the help he had received, Vahn could tell that it bothered the boy. It was because of this that Vahn had 'challenged' Bell to become stronger without having to use the second [Effigy of the Hero], as it would become a powerful motivator for the boy's growth. Once he obtained equipment that would allow him to push himself even further, Bell might even skyrocket to higher Levels in a very short period of time, especially with fate as his guide...
Realizing the 'best' option was to simply 'react' to whatever Enyo threw at him, the icy feeling in Vahn's mind increased in intensity. In truth, he didn't like the idea of simply waiting around, even if everything seemed to point towards that as being the best solution. He had already 'put off' several other things that were bothering him, especially the matters related to the Rakia Kingdom and the Iron Hills. If not for his resolution to avoid becoming the 'Emperor' version of himself from the Divination, Vahn felt it would just be easier to charge into the capital and 'remove' the cancer as he had in the Elven Kingdom.
The difference was, he had a very real reason to take action at that moment, especially with the coup that had been staged...if he just charged into two nations where he had no real power or influence, it would take much longer to bring about changes than it had with the Elven Kingdom. There, he had the support of the King, the High Priestess, and was even made the Prime Minister...none of which he would have once he essentially declared war on and slaughtered a large number of people...
Though he knew it wasn't likely the case, Vahn couldn't help looking over at Gareth and asking, "Gareth, you wouldn't happen to be some landed noble from a powerful family in the Iron Hills, would you...?" To this, Gareth began to laugh as if he had just heard the most hilarious joke in the world, even hammering the table a few times before he said, "Ah'm afraid not, ma boy. Before I came to Orario, I was nothing more than a miner who had a little bit of an ego, constantly gettin' myself in'ta trouble by accepting dangerous missions around volcanoes. Even so, I managed to make a name for myself an' have quite a few connections back in the Hills."
Vahn just waved his hand in a dismissive manner, not wanting to ruin any relationships that Gareth had established with his kinsmen. For someone like Gareth to associate with them, Vahn didn't believe they were part of the 'problem' and, even though it was a potential 'in' that he could make use of in the future, it wasn't opportune to do so right now. Still, the impatience he was feeling about everything was starting to wear at him and, at the very least, Vahn intended to vent a little bit when Enyo began moving. He intended to venture progressively deeper into the Dungeon after establishing Haven and harvesting a plethora of materials and OP that would serve towards completely his current goal. At the very least, he needed 10,000,000,000OP to complete his current objectives, meaning he needed to be somewhat frugal with his expenses whenever possible...
After another hour of drinking, Finn had been taken out of commission and was currently producing a pool of drool on the table, mumbling something about being too busy to change another diaper with an almost 'pained' expression on his face. Vahn and Gareth both laughed when seeing this, prompting Gareth to follow up and mention, "You know, I have a daughter of my own back in the Hills. Haven't talked to her after havin' a falling out though...damn, hard to believe it's already been thirteen years since I saw the lass...make sure you treasure the time you have with your children, Vahn, they grow up faster than you'd think..."
Vahn was tempted to retort something along the lines of 'you have no idea', but kept it to himself since he could see that Gareth had become melancholic after mentioning his daughter. Since he was currently 56, that meant Gareth had been 43 the last time he met his own child, something Vahn couldn't really imagine doing if he was in the same record as his children. Considering that Gareth was a Minor, that meant he was probably in his late teens or early twenties when he had a kid, making her around her mid-thirties, at the very least. Since it didn't seem like Gareth really wanted to talk about it, Vahn shelved his curiosity for the time being and intended to inquire about her later. After all, if he truly waged war on the Iron Hills, it would be a terrible tragedy if he accidentally deprived one of his few male friends of his own flesh and blood...
Slowly but surely, Gareth also started to succumb to the heavy alcohol and eventually ended up excusing himself after picking up the small keg and carrying it with him. He knew that Vahn couldn't actually get drunk and had only been 'humoring' him for the last few hours. Since he also knew that Vahn wouldn't mind if he took the 'remnants', Gareth happily snatched the keg and laughed boisterously as he made his way out of the tent. Finn had stirred a little from the loud laughter, enough to fall out of his chair and onto the ground, but ultimately remained asleep. As for Vahn, he finished the remainder of his glass and set a potion on the ground next to Finn before heading to his own tent. He had been able to sense that most of the girls had been waiting up for him and knew that Alexa was probably growing impatient with his absence.
After reaching the 'Hestia Familia' tent, Vahn was reunited with the girls and noticed the presence of two people he hadn't quite expected to see, Rufina and Shakti. It had turned out that, while he was watching over the encampment and busy with things back on the surface, the two girls had somehow found themselves staying within the Hestia Familia's tent. They were actually somewhat surprised to see him, as he hadn't slept a single night since the expedition began, with Rufina even asking, "What are you doing here?" in a mock hostile tone. Vahn, however, just released a small sigh and said, "I wonder..." before walking into the side room where the giant futon was and dropping onto his face with a thump.
Alexa had, very quickly, followed behind him and seized the initiative to claim the area immediately surrounding him. As if she was afraid the other girls would try to make a claim, she even used her wings to blanket him, something that made Vahn unsure of whether he wanted to laugh or cry. Ultimately, he just decided to let them sort it out themselves as the other girls had also started to meander into the room as they began teasing Alexa for her clingy behavior. At the same time, Haruhime and Lili had also moved to his immediate surroundings with Lefiya, showing a great deal of concern, even changing into her [Pactio] as she hesitantly asked, "Master...do you want me to wash your body...?"
To this, Vahn just sent her a telepathic message saying he was fine and saying he simply wanted to sleep for a bit to recover his mental energy. Though he had only sent this message to Lefiya, she quickly relayed it to the other things, causing the tent to become silent very quickly. They had wanted to talk about a few things before bed but, seeing Vahn appear genuinely tired, knew it could wait until the morning. As for Rufina and Shakti, they suddenly felt awkward for having intruded into the place they knew was Vahn's domicile.
In truth, they had just gotten a little carried away after having gotten along well with all of the other girls. When they received an invitation to stay in the tent, it had been pointed out that Vahn would undoubtedly be sleeping there as well. They had accepted this at the time but, until now, Vahn had never even shown up for a single moment. Now, they suddenly felt out of place and Shakti brought forth the idea of leaving to go set up a tent of their own nearby.
Around the same time that Shakti made this proposition, Haruhime poked her head out of the side room and said, "Come now, what are you two acting so shy for? We even have children sleeping in the room so you don't be afraid of just one sleeping boy...besides, will you really be satisfied if you keep hesitating~?" With a somewhat mischevious look on her face, Haruhime retreated back into the room and left the two girls alone with their thoughts. Eventually, Rufina got up with a huff and made her way towards the side room but ended up hesitating before making her way inside. Shakti, seeing this, released a sigh and, even though she felt like her life had taken a turn she had never expected, stood up to push Rufina into the room, following behind with a small blush on her face...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'War is never simple...','Vahn can't even drink his troubles away...','YOLO')
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Chapter 812: Snap
While his main body slept, causing a 'shroud' to cover his perception, Vahn was using his avatar within the sub-space orb to think of solutions and methods to circumvent Enyo's plans. Drinking with Gareth and Finn hadn't exactly provided him with any concrete ideas so he now found himself reclining in a plush spherical chair that allowed a person's body to sink into it. Curled up on his lap, Vahn had both Fenrir and Nanu keeping him company as he absentmindedly stroked their hair. Since girls with fluffy ears and tails had something of a therapeutic effect on him, Vahn had somewhat selfishly asked them to accompany him for a few hours...
Since there were so many things that were taking place in the 'future', Vahn couldn't help thinking about it and how all the pieces fit together, comprising his jumbled existence. One thing he was considering was how to best use his Unit Management in the future, as it was one of his most powerful functions within the system at present. At the same time, though he had tried to 'accept' the idea that whatever happened between him and other girls didn't matter, part of him was still resistant to the idea. Since 'opening' his heart and mind to the idea might exponentially increase the number of women around him, Vahn was considering tempering his mind to both refuse women, without letting their sadness weigh on his heart...
The problem with this was that it made him feel somewhat like Finn, who he had been frustrated with in the past because of the matter with Tione. If girls genuinely fell in love with him, which seemed to be the trend, but he still closed his heart to them...it would be very similar to how Finn had closed his heart to Tione. If there were girls like Sylfia, who showed they were willing to wait several years for him to eventually open his heart...Vahn felt like he had already taken a step down a path filled with endless troubles...
Vahn was genuinely afraid that he simply didn't have what it took to 'refuse' a woman in any meaningful way, especially if she was beautiful or had a nature he could appreciate. Though he had resolved himself to have little to no relationships in future records, well...it was easy to say such things. The question he had to ask himself is if he found some girl with a tragic past, helped her out, and then she fell in love with him...could he actually refuse her? If he became the 'anchor' for their existence, much like Chloe had for him in the past, could he simply burden them after potentially becoming their 'reason' for living...?
There had been a time when Vahn 'refused' such girls, such as when he first met Lili, Haruhime, Preasia, Maemi, and Emiru...but that wall had been broken down a long time ago. In fact, because he had 'made' them wait, Vahn had felt very guilty by the time he finally accepted the girls into his heart. It had been very 'unfair' to them when he forced them to work hard, essentially making them earn the right to be with him. Now, with things like that as a precedent, Vahn found himself severely lacking 'reasons' to refuse women, even though the only one he actually needed was a general unwillingness...he...just...wasn't...unwilling...!
Feeling a strong urge to break something, Vahn kept his calm by stroking the fluffy ears of the two girls, both of which had already noticed his state and were trying to comfort him. This was another thing he had become very aware of, the fact that he was 'extremely' reliant on the girls around him just to maintain his mental stability. There were just so many things going on at any given time that it was almost 'maddening' when things were happening outside of his control. All of these events with Enyo were wearing at his patience and Vahn felt himself deviating ever closer to the existence he had embodied as the 'Emperor'.
Vahn kept telling himself that, even if he walked down that path, he wouldn't end up the same way...after all, he had so many people supporting him. But, remembering the things he had seen in the Divination, how the girls kept chasing after him tirelessly, Vahn knew he had a great deal of support then as well...even when he had become a terrible person, there were likely hundreds of people propping him up and enabling him to keep moving forward...
It was a strange thought to consider, but Vahn now realized there were actually a lot of problems with having 'too much' support. He lived a truly blessed existence, surrounded people that loved and supported all of his decisions. At the same time, this enabled him to do almost anything he wanted to and, with The Path as his biggest support, there were fundamentally no limits placed on him. This had horribly warped his personality into something that was 'beyond' the comprehension of other people and, as much as he might try to deny the reality, Vahn knew he was 'exceptionally' spoiled...
Realizing this, Vahn began laughing out loud, even as tears poured down his face. He felt such an amazing amount of incredulity and confusion that it felt like something had broken inside of him but, even as this happened, the pieces of his mind were stitched together by all the people he loved, with his children being what kept his mentality firmly rooted in place. Vahn realized the answer had been in front of him the entire time, as it was something that had become his 'reason' for existence ever since he first laid eyes on his children. Since he wanted to live by example, Vahn knew he needed to be 'better' than he was now...he needed to become a rock that they could always rely upon, not something loose and unstable that would cause them to lose their own footing on the path of life...
In an instant, the cold energy that had permeated through his mind expanded through his body and mingled with the warmth rising from his heart. Vahn felt the two energies blend together, seemingly neutralizing each other while simultaneously filling him with incredible calm, almost like he was floating in a perfectly placid ocean. At the same time, Vahn felt that this 'ocean' was a seemingly endless amount of power that he had access to with but a thought...however, at the same time, Vahn knew that, if he tried to tap into it, the calm would be disrupted and turmoil would be introduced to this extremely peaceful state of mind...
He couldn't see it himself, but Vahn's black pupils now radiated with a gentle blue light and, much like they had in the past, there was an 'illusion' of a tall figure holding a sword. The difference was, instead of raising it high and appearing extremely tyrannical, the figure had the blade of his sword firmly rooted in the ground as he crossed his hands over the pommel, completely calm, almost as if it were waiting for something. Behind the figure, what appeared to be an endless ocean of people all stood solemn and patient, not even a single movement discernable to be seen amongst them...
By the time Vahn realized the changes, his domain had expanded from 781m and continued to increase until it had extended a thousand meters, omnidirectionally, from Vahn. The same calm persisted in his mind and it almost felt like every action he took was through a 'filter' of sorts, even though his senses seemed sharper than ever. It was in this calm state that Vahn made a firm and inviolable resolution that would define his character from that moment forward. He would not be bound by a future that had no relevance on the present other than what little value he afforded it. His love would not be bound by paltry sensibilities that had been concocted by people in a society that was fundamentally flawed from the start. The feelings other people had toward him should never sway his decisions unless they were people he had decided to open his heart to. He would not allow himself to be exploited, nor would he serve as the anchor for someone else's reality. From this moment onwards, he was Vahn Mason, not the possessor of The Path, but The Path itself. His existence was something inviolable that transcended the very tier system of reality itself. He was never 'normal', even when he had been born back on Earth long ago. The life he had lived in Danmachi had been nothing short of exceptional and, the only limitations he had ever possessed were those he placed upon himself. From this point onwards, compassion, love, mercy, these were things he would give at his leisure and, as long as he did not choose to walk the path of a cruel and merciless Emperor, there had never been a danger of that being a reality from the start...
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//Main Quest Chain Triggered//
[Quest: The Path of an Emperor Begins With the First Step]
Rank: Zenith
Objective: Unify the Continent of Eden:(2/9), Conquer the Living Dungeon, Tartarus(0/1), Form a Divine Council with a God of every Major Divinity(5/30)
Optional Objectives: [Curiosity] Form a Harem with at least one member of every race:(22/59), [Inspiration] Acquire 10,000 Followers, Subordinates, or Retainers(9/10,000), [Might] Overcome the restriction of Level 10:(6/10), [Virility] Sire 100 Children(18/100)
Rewards: 10,000,000,000OP, Quest System Upgraded, 1x[Innate Awakening Pill], 1x[Page of the Akashic Tome]
Failure Conditions: Forfeiture of Main Quest Chain
Penalty: Record Backlash, Divine Law Cataclysm Initiated
--------------------------------------------------------------
Even as the notification appeared within his mind, Vahn's only reaction was a small smile as he began to ruminate over his decisions. He found that it was much easier to 'act' than it was to just wait for things to happen. With that in mind, he tilted Nanu's head and looked into her slightly confused face as he asked, "Nanu, though I will never stop loving you, will you become my subordinate or retainer? I want to help you grow stronger and it will bring us much closer together. I swear that I will never exploit your status for my own benefit." Though he wasn't really surprised, Vahn's smile widened slightly when he saw Nanu's tail begin to wag quickly as she very earnestly said, "Yes, please! Master~!"
Following her acceptance, the notification about Nanu wanting to become his subordinate appeared within Vahn's mind once again. This time, instead of trying to push Nanu away and have her adhere to his intentions without him taking responsibility, Vahn quickly accepted the request. He wasn't even remotely surprised when he saw that her Loyalty towards him was already at 43,391 and continually increasing every few seconds. He then selected the [Rename] option within the interface and added the last name 'Mason' at the end, willing her into direct association with him and desiring that it give her greater power.
Nanu's eyes widened suddenly and formless energy that only Vahn could see began to flow around her body, very similar to Bell's except for the fact Vahn 'knew' he could influence it, instead of the other way around. Following this intuition, Vahn moved his fingers through it and could actually 'feel' it against his skin as Nanu's body trembled slightly. Pushing this even further, Vahn stated very seriously, "Nanu, without pushing yourself to a breaking point, I want you to earnestly continue trying to reach the pinnacle of forging. I believe that you have the potential of even reaching the level of the gods...never doubt yourself, as you now carry the surname Mason..." As if sealing a pact, Vahn tilted Nanu's head up and kissed her lips, feeling and guiding her reaction much like how he did when he first shared kisses with the girls.
When he pulled away, Nanu's face was flushed and Vahn was very aware of the state of her body, smiling with a somewhat teasing expression as he said, "I have some things to take care of right now. I'll stop by your workshop when I'm finished and take care of you properly..." While speaking, Vahn pulled Nanu towards him by lifting her butt, kissing her on the collarbone for a few seconds before lightly spanking her and saying, "Go, but make sure to rest properly and not distance yourself from the others."
Nanu, still breathing heavily, nodded her head like a chicken pecking at feed and said, "Leave it to me, Master! I won't let you down~!" With her tail spinning like a propeller, Nanu then ran off at her fastest speed, completely determined to break through to [Master Smith] as soon as possible. Previously, [Master Smith] had been a goal she aspired towards in order to be with her Master. Now, however, she sought something far greater and, having her Master bestow his family name upon her, Nanu felt like her heart was going to explode out of her chest. If she didn't begin forging something soon, it would be impossible for her to hold back from 'attacking' her beloved Master...!
Vahn had already risen to his feet, having Fenrir hop out of his lap and stand next to him as he said, "Things are going to be changing very quickly in the near future, Fenrir. I'm tired of waiting around to see what our enemies are going to do. Though it may be stressful for you, I'll need your help in dealing with a few problems that I can't tend to personally..." At the same time that he was speaking, Vahn ran his fingers through Fenrir's midnight blue hair and kept eye contact, marveling at this woman who he had a hand in creating. He never thought about it in such a direct manner before, but Vahn now realized that this adorable little Vanargandr in front of him really was the embodiment of what he considered as 'cute'. Since that had been his intent when naming her, she had become an existence that could easily weasel her way into his heart, something Vahn found humorous in retrospect.
Similar to Nanu, Fenrir also seemed to be getting very excited, nodding her head as she said, "If it is what you want me to do, I will do it without question. Please, don't hold back, Master...your trust is what gives my life meaning...I want to be needed by you, more than anything else...!" To this, Vahn's smile widened greatly and he made no effort to restrain himself as he sealed her lips with his own. Though he made certain to keep his tongue on the outside of her 'inviolable' devouring domain, this didn't mean Vahn couldn't share a passionate kiss with this lovable little subordinate of his. He even took it a step further, lifting her off the ground so that her paws dangled for nearly five whole minutes before letting her go. When he was done, he heavily patted her head and said, "Come, we have much to do..."
(A/N: "There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man." -Patrick Rothfuss)
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Breaking Point','Vahn is done playing games','With but a single resolute step of the Emperor, the entire world shall tremble')
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Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
371 Power
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