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47.52% Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos / Chapter 1119: Projection

Chapter 1119: Projection

In an effort to keep Cath Palug from throwing a tantrum, Vahn was forced to go 'all-out' against it while alternating to different sides of its shoulder and taking small nibbles. This was enough to keep it happily calling out 'Fou~' as he ran his hands up and down its sides with [Hands of Nirvana] in full effect. As a result, Cath Palug gradually stopped caring about being bitten as the amount of comfort and gradually building pleasure it was experiencing slowly became its main focus. As for Vahn, he was doing his best to come up with an excuse to give Illya when she finally took back control. She wouldn't have experienced it directly, and may not even understand what happened, but Vahn knew she would eventually figure it out based on context clues. He didn't even know exactly why Cath Palug had acted as it did, only that it seemed to 'really' enjoy it...

After a little more than ten minutes, Cath Palug had become like putty within Vahn's hands, eyes drooping heavily with a contented look on its face. Though there was a mind-numbing heat coming from where their bodies overlapped, Vahn was able to largely ignore it as he picked Cath Palug up and dressed it in a nightgown and a pair of panties. This time, it actually raised its legs on its own, showing that Cath Palug was actually paying attention and learning, even in its absentminded state. Since it was likely near the peak of Tier 4, even in its 'sealed' state, it wouldn't be too surprising for it to have some form of 'extra' awareness, as that simply seemed to come with the territory of beings at their level. This realization allowed Vahn to understand that he needed to give proper 'aftercare', as Cath Palug would learn and imprint on his behavior, just as it emulated Fenrir.

Once Cath Palug was properly dressed, Vahn decided to 'reinforce' the idea that wearing clothing was a good thing. Instead of lulling it into a deep slumber, he placed Cath Palug's head on his lap and began stroking its head and ears with his left hand while rubbing its back, side, and waist with his right, complete with sending thin strands of Source Energy into its body to stimulate its Magic Circuits and cause it small amounts of pleasure. He knew better than to take things too far, especially after the unexpected and marginally traumatizing experience he just went through, but it would help Cath Palug learn quickly if it was 'rewarded' for good behavior. At this point, Vahn was more or less trying to tame the problematic Beast of Gaia as, the quicker it stabilized and began communicating properly, the better it would be for everyone.

Eventually, though Vahn eased it in several times slower than normal, Cath Palug eventually fell asleep while stretched across his lap, its belly turned up since it seemed especially fond of having it stomach rubbed. When its ears began to shrink away, accompanied by its hair losing its shaggy quality, Vahn knew that Illya was regaining control so he stopped rubbing her belly and waited for her to collect herself. Her eyelids slowly peeled open to reveal their ruby-red color, glazed over slightly since she was awash in the afterglow of Cath Palug's own pleasant feelings. He had never brought the creature to the 'breaking' point, but the combination of comfort and pleasure was something few people ever got to experience. Though she was only experiencing what remained, Illya wasn't familiar with these types of feelings so there was visible confusion in her watery eyes, the only sound in the room coming from her slightly labored breathing.

Since he knew it was unavoidable, Vahn released a small sigh before adopting an apologetic smile as he said, "Sorry, Illya...even I don't know what Cath Palug was thinking. I did what I could to keep it from lashing out..." These words seemed to stir Illya's memories as, the moment she processed what Vahn had said, her face became scarlet as she covered her face with both hands. This was a slightly different reaction than he anticipated, as it would have been perfectly normal for Illya to be a little freaked out by the fact he had 'literally' bitten her a few times. He could tell by Cath Palug's reaction that it didn't actually experience pain from the biting but that didn't mean that Illya would be as enthused as the peculiar creature...

After a while, though she still kept her face covered, Illya asked, "You really are willing to do almost anything to make Cath and me happy...aren't you...?" This was also somewhat unexpected, causing a few warning signals to sound within Vahn's mind as he bit the bullet and answered, "So long as you do not end up going down a dangerous path...happiness and indulgence are two different things. If you end up hating me for a short while, I would rather shoulder your ire for a few years if it meant you would be happy later in life..." Since he was a little worried that Illya might deviate in a strange direction, Vahn wanted to remind her that he was willing to become hated for a while if it would be better for her in the long run.

As if she vehemently disagreed with something he said, Illya shook her head in denial, followed by her mumbling, "I can't hate you anymore..." Though she had been intending to exploit Vahn's nature previously, Illya now realized he was completely serious in trying to make her happy. This knowledge alone was enough to make a lot of her intentions fall to the wayside as most of the things she had in mind were just ways of testing him. Now, as she lay across his lap, it felt like her body was burning up as all kinds of emotions she didn't know how to deal with were overwhelming her. She couldn't even look at him right now, the thought of making simple eye contact suddenly making her feel extremely giddy...

Since he had gotten used to being able to sense the internal structure of Illya's body at this point, Vahn was aware of what she was going through as her brain lit up like a bunch of fireworks going off. He could feel her heartbeat going wild in her chest, causing his smile to soften as he began to lightly stroke her head while sending waves of calming energy into her body. Though she flinched at the unexpected contact, Illya made no attempt to stop him as she quickly realized what the invasive energy was doing. As a result, her breathing steadily calmed down and, as the red in her face faded away, Illya peeked through the gaps in her fingers to stare back at him. Vahn returned a gentle smile in response, causing her fingers to close up against as she released a light groan of embarrassment.

---

Though it took quite some time, Illya had eventually calmed down enough to collect herself and behave relatively normally. After that, she asked him to stay with her and, after what he had done, Vahn knew he didn't really have much of a choice. Thus, while hugging Illya from behind, the two laid in her bed as the latter took nearly two hours to actually fall asleep. Vahn didn't actually require sleep, under most circumstances, so he just continued to hold Illya in his embrace while sending a subtle stream and undetectable energy into her abdomen. This is what ultimately helped her fall asleep as, compared to before, Illya was hyperaware of his presence and simply couldn't calm down on her own. He knew this was a sign that she was crushing on him pretty hard, a stark contrast to her previous behavior when she felt like she had control of the situation...

When Illya awoke early the next morning, she spent a few minutes in silence, her heart rate slowly began to climb even without Vahn doing anything. Eventually, he decided to make the fact he was awake known to her, lightly kissing the top of Illya's head as he said, "Good morning, Illya." This was enough to get her to curl up and bury her face in her hands once again as she sheepishly answered, "Good morning, Onii-sama..." With that, Vahn released her from his embrace before sitting on the bed and making a point of stretching his body and yawning. Then, taking advantage of the fact the momentum was heavily in his favor right now, Vahn casually stated, "It's pretty early...how about we go and watch the sunrise together before breakfast? I have yet to see what the sunrise in Camelot is like...seems rather fantastical just thinking about it..."

It seemed to take her a brief moment to understand what Vahn was suggesting but Illya eventually managed an awkward smile before answering, "I'd like that..." Then, even though she wouldn't have chased him out previously, Illya made Vahn leave her bedroom while she got changed. In a way, it was a good sign that she was suddenly more bashful around him as anything that could delay their physical relationship was a positive outcome from Vahn's perspective. Though Illya was twenty-eight years old, he would rather she mature a bit more physically before they do anything together. Since she had a greater sense of awareness after what happened the previous night, he was hoping she would open up more and start actually moving towards her happiness from now on.

After a surprisingly long period of time, enough that they would have missed the sunrise in other areas of the world, Illya finally opened the door to her room, albeit just a crack. When Vahn looked back at her, she made a shy pouting expression before finally opening the door to reveal that she was wearing one of the outfits he had purchased for her the previous night. Since she an appearance like a masterfully crafted doll, indicating she would be an unbelievable beauty if she matured, Vahn had picked out a few outfits he thought would suit her.

Illy seemed to have taken his compliments to heart as, instead of a thick coat and a scarf, as she always seemed to be cold, she was wearing a sleeveless white blouse with pink accents and ribbons on both her sides and around her neck. To complement this, she wore a dark purple skirt that had a few extra layers, some for warmth, others for modesty as it ended a few centimeters above the knees. Beneath that, she had pink stockings that were a similar shade to the pink on her blouse and a pair of red shoes covering her rather small feet. It was obvious that Illya had a unique but stylish fashion sense, even though Vahn could see nearly every outfit he previously bought for her splayed out over the bed...

Deciding not to expose her, Vahn just smiled in response to Illys' behavior as he complimented, "You look adorable. I think those clothes and that hairstyle suit you...it almost feels like you're a different person." Since Illya had tied up part of her hair with dark purple ribbons, creating two small twin-tails to compliment her otherwise long and straight white hair, Vahn couldn't help but compliment her. He knew girls liked any compliments pertaining to their hair, especially when they went out of their way to style it before heading out. As a result, Illya's face beamed with a happy smile as she nodded her head in response before grabbing his hand and stammering, "L-let's go...we don't want to be late..." in a far more lively voice than in the past.

---

Though watching the sunrise from one of the castle's battlements would have been more than adequate, Vahn took things a step further by picking Illya up in a princess carry and ascending to the top of one of the Magus Towers. This gave them a view of the entire island as the sun slowly crested over the horizon, breathing life into the previous cold and dark world. It was rather breathtaking and, as if it breathed life into her own small body, chasing away just a bit of the darkness shrouding her heart and mind, Illya managed a genuine smile as she held his hand, leaning against his shoulder until the sun had fully risen over the horizon. Afterward, without too many words passing between them, Vahn carried Illya down from the tall tower before they both went to breakfast, holding hands the entire way...

---

After enjoying a breakfast that ran on a lot longer than normal, Vahn found himself in a secure room located next to the emptied 'Armory of Camelot', a place that once held various treasures that would have easily qualified as Noble Phantasms. Though the island had eventually forced everyone away with the Dragon's Breath, that didn't prevent several individuals from cleaning out the castle of its treasures immediately following the Battle of Camlann. Since Britain was already in a state of civil discord leading up to the final moments of 'King Arthur', it practically tore itself apart after the fact. If Mordred had been there to stand witness, she undoubtedly would have credited it to what she believed was the 'true nature' of man. She believed that, without a leader, people were no better than cattle and sheep that needed to be shepherded just to avoid having them destroy themselves. Sadly, though Vahn didn't agree with her, it was hard not to form a similar conclusion when he saw the current state of the world...

Since he would be one of the few 'shepherds' in the future, Vahn knew he needed to consolidate his own power and enact policies that would allow people to thrive without leading to stagnation. His methods would have to be slightly different from those in Danmachi but, after butting heads with the other world powers for a few years, Vahn felt he would have a better idea of how he should proceed. For the time being, he needed to focus on creating the second Sub-Space Orb so, under the guidance of Merlin and the observation of Scáthach, Vahn made small changes to the massive formation that used the Welsh Dragon as its core. Since it only used the ambient 'Mystery' that leaked from the dragon's body as a source, without draining the vitality and mana from it, Vahn didn't have any qualms about tying the formation of a Sub-Space Orb into it.

With two semi-perfect and peerless individuals assisting him, Vahn was able to complete the process without a hitch before moving on to the production of the Orb itself. Fortunately, this part was much easier than normal as, after creating the basic structure of the Sub-Space Orb, Merlin took care of the rest himself. Reality projections were a derivative branch of [Illusionism] that could even be used to develop Reality Marbles if the person had a strong enough connection to their Origin. Since there were unlikely any beings as competent with illusions as Merlin, who himself existed as a physical projection, Vahn was confident he would be able to manage without any issues...

While watching Merlin work, Vahn recalled one of his previous conversations with the errant Magus, specifically the one where he had confronted him about the 'transluscency' of his body at times. As he had expected, Merlin revealed that he wasn't actually manifested in the world as, even though he was able to exploit the 'gap' created by Vahn's arrival in the world, his body was still imprisoned back in the Reverse Side of the World. This was why, shortly after the Holy Grail War was brought to an end, Merlin had to leave their side temporarily. He had returned here to Camelot in order to establish an 'anchor' to the world after the Greater Grail had been destroyed. Though he could still leave for a few days at a time, Merlin was currently bound to this land in much the same way as the Welsh Dragon...

In a surprisingly short period of time, only twelve minutes, Merlin eventually removed his hand from the Sub-Space Orb, explaining with a casual smile on his face, "It is done. Do you wish to try it out, Your Majesty~?" Since Vahn was actually very interested in what a projected reality was like, as his battle with Ozymandias was still fresh in his memory, he gave a curt nod before placing his hand on the Orb. In the next moment, Merlin and Scáthach vanished from the surroundings while everything else remained virtually the same. Vahn understood it was actually him that 'vanished', as he could feel an incongruous feeling in his mind since his two 'jewels' were still outside experiencing a much slower flow of time.

After around half a minute had passed, Scáthach and Merlin both appeared next to the 'projection' of the Sub-Space Orb. Under normal circumstances, there wouldn't be a physical representation of a Sub-Space Orb within itself but, due to how this world was an almost perfect replica of the outside world it wasn't difficult to intuit that this second Orb would serve as the 'gate' that allowed passage back to the outside. This was later confirmed by Merlin who explained that, with the exception of the summoning system, the Welsh Dragon, the flow of time, and a few other 'unique' aspects that simply couldn't be formed by a projection, virtually everything else was the same. There was even a sun in the sky while the temperature of the outside air matched what was present back in the outside world. Though it would be a little strange seeing the sun take seven full days for a single day and night cycle within the Sub-Space Orb, Vahn was still truly awed by the amazing display of Magecraft. Merlin even informed him that he would be able to interface with the island-wide magic formation to essentially transfer between the real world and the protection at will...

With the Sub-Space Orb finally completed, serving as a near-perfect emulation of reality, the only people who didn't move inside were Paracelsus and Catherine. Though Vahn would make a 'gate' in their shared Magus Tower, as it would still be extremely useful for them to grow herbs and other ingredients within the Sub-Space Orb, most of their time would be spent outside. Catherine wasn't in a hurry to 'age faster' while Paracelsus was a man of unwavering principles that couldn't really be swayed without an extremely convincing argument. He treated the process of creating Homunculi with an extreme amount of reverence, knowing full-well he was creating a life, not a tool to be used. Vahn couldn't fault him for this, as he fully intended to treat the Homunculus with the same respect as other sentient creatures, so Paracelsus was left to his own devices as the Head of the Alchemist Order.

---

As the creation of what Vahn was calling the Sub-Space Projection Orb took more than eleven hours, it was already after 7 PM in the outside world by the time everyone had moved in. With night falling upon the Sub-Space Projection Orb, a phenomenon that would persist for nearly three full days due to the seasons, Vahn found himself inside of Lakshmibai's room. Nobunaga had also accompanied him and, after she went out of her way to track him down, Circe showed up after he didn't return to his bed. They would need to install a few clocks around the castle that ran at seven-times the normal speed so everyone would be able to adjust to the time-dilation but Vahn didn't mind spending a long night together with the girls. He knew his training with Scáthach was going to be particularly fierce so Vahn spent the better part of seven hours tending to Lakshmibai and Nobunaga, though not before sending Circe on her way after a long session of 'pampering' and a bit of playful teasing from Nobunaga...

With two buxom women overlapping his body, Vahn felt a feeling of contentment and release that was hard to come by. Though his most intimate moments were shared with Fenrir, that was largely due to their extreme familiarity and trust in each other. Vahn and Fenrir always knew how to make each other feel the best, something other girls couldn't really match. However, just like he would relax with Tsubaki and Hephaestus, Vahn always felt a sense of comfort when he was wrapped in the embrace of a woman with large breasts and a shapely figure. Their softness and warmth was simply something more petite girls couldn't match, allowing Vahn to relax more than he normally would. For smaller girls, it felt like he needed to restrain himself and take care of them while having Nobu's and Lakshmibai's bodies curling up against him made Vahn feel like he had few legitimate worries in the world...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Breaking down the barriers of the heart','The difference between skill and mastery','Vahn is slowly being traumatized by excessive exposure to lolis xD...')

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Chapter 1120: Balance

With the Sub-Space Projection Orb established, the only way Vahn could 'balance' his life was to come up with, at the very least, a loose schedule to follow. He needed to spend time being a good father to Mordred, taking care of Illya, and splitting himself between the girls based on the situation. Fortunately, with how the day/night cycle was split within the Orb, Vahn could split his focus so that he was training and spending time with Mordred and Illya during the 'day' while, once night fell upon the Orb, Vahn would focus on learning and getting intimate with the girls. Though this wasn't set in stone, as it would obviously depend on the situation, it was the easiest template to work from since the atmosphere within the castle varied greatly between day and night.

When it came to his training, Vahn spent the majority of his time 'learning' from Scáthach, often spending upwards of ten hours at a time being beaten by her as, after his 'success' with [Laplace's Key], she never showed any openings. Now, though she had alternated between using her fists and spears int he past, Scáthach completely changed up her fighting style at times. She would use bows, scythes, flails, bo staffs, swords, daggers, and even katars to cut his body into ribbons. This was to ensure he was used to fighting against all kinds of different opponents instead of unilaterally getting 'used' to being beaten in a specific way.

On one occasion, she had even used a set of bladed pistols at close range to break through his guard before firing spherical bullets that had various effects into his body. The purpose behind this training was to allow him to 'counter' different kinds of Magecraft on the spot as, much like Illya, Vahn had the ability to deconstruct Magecraft and prevent its activation. As a result, Scáthach would embed various different spells into the bullets, giving Vahn only microseconds to react before his body would be torn apart by explosions, shocked to a charred state, or even frozen solid in an instant. She never once gave him any quarter and, the worst part of it all, Vahn knew she still wasn't going all out. Since he had believed her thrashing him in the past was her being serious, when it wasn't even a tenth of his current beatings, Vahn knew she was increasing her strength to prevent him from ever 'adapting' to her current level...

Fortunately, Mordred was never allowed to watch his training as it always took place in a third Sub-Space Orb that had been created. In total, there were now three Sub-Space Orbs and seven Space-Time Orbs present around Avalon. The third Sub-Space Orb had been created specifically for training with Scáthach, existing as another empty white space where there was no danger of damaging the surroundings. As for the Space-Time Orbs, five of these were used almost entirely for growing herbs and other useful ingredients, each having a dilation ratio of 100:1. These lacked Memory Fragments to regulate the space, meaning they were 'anchored' using a five-elements formation, while the other two Space-Time Orbs had time dilation effects of 50:1, each with a version of Vahn and Fenrir within.

Since Fenrir did a lot for him in the 'real' world, she was the first person that crossed Vahn's mind when it came to having a companion Memory Fragment. Though the purpose of the orb was for research and production, Vahn fully intended to 'download' and 'update' the Memory Fragments periodically so that he could expand his knowledge further. Since he wanted to avoid 'losing' himself to feelings of loneliness and apathy, Vahn needed a companion to keep him focussed and allow him to relax. This would allow him to spend a lot of time with Fenrir and, even though it might not be the same 'quality' as reality, they would eventually share thousands of years between the two of them...

As a result of these changes, Vahn didn't spend nearly as much time with Fenrir in reality as, the more 'focused' he was, the more emphasis she placed on her own duties. Unless he wanted to see her, she would always be off training, playing with Mordred, or spending time with Illya and Cath Palug. She also acted as a 'Big Sister' to Medusa who, somewhat against expectations, became really good friends with Astolfo since she spent most of her time with Catherine. Though Medusa wanted to get stronger as well, she was going down a completely different route than Fenrir as, instead of pursuing the path of a 'Magic-Knight', she was focused entirely on being a 'True Mage'. As a result, Medusa spent a lot of time studying with Catherine before expanding her 'circle' to include Circe and Merlin.

One of the things Vahn appreciated the most about his current situation was that everyone, for the most part, helped each other out. Though it was 'extremely' common for Magi to keep secrets and only care about themselves, even Tristana had exchanged knowledge with Medusa and Circe, albeit rarely. Of course, the two people literally everyone sought out for advice and knowledge were the duo of Merlin and Scáthach. The former could be extremely roundabout, talking circles around the questions you wanted answers to, but he would eventually help you understand if you continued making an effort. As for Scáthach, she was marginally more difficult to approach unless she thought you were 'worth' teaching. For the Heroic Spirits, as they couldn't really increase their parameters and obtain new skills, she had no interest in even sparring with them. The only people she showed an interest in were Vahn, Fenrir, Medusa, Mordred, and, as a member of the 'Imperial Family', Illya.

With her [Wisdom of the Haunted Ground], Scáthach was suitable for teaching practically anything, including the method to obtain skills she herself couldn't emulate. The only pre-requisite for learning from her was that, once you become her student, she had borderline sovereignty over your actions. If she wanted you to have a specific diet, or wake up at specific times, there was absolutely no room for debate. Though you were allowed to quit whenever you like, that would be the same as losing your value in the eyes of Scáthach since it showed you simply lacked the willpower to reach your full potential. After all, though she pushed you far beyond what you believed your limits to be, Scáthach never pushed you beyond the breaking point. Thus, so long as you had enough willpower, there was no limit to the amount of growth you could achieve by studying under her...

Of the people that Scáthach was willing to teach, Medusa had only lasted a few hours before she ultimately quit. She had been given the task of inscribing a magical formation either one-thousand times or within five seconds. Though this in itself wasn't that difficult, Scáthach would periodically flick you with a thin red switch, often drawing blood as a result. This was enough to break the focus of most people, especially someone who lacked patience like Medusa. After that, Vahn was forced to console the pouting Gorgon, both after the lesson had ended and when Scáthach refused to teach her a second time. Even if Medusa also had 'limitless potential', it didn't matter to her at all since she placed more focus on her own emotions than her desire to improve...

Fortunately, Merlin was far more agreeable so, even after losing Scáthach as a teacher, Medusa was able to pester him to teach her every now and then. Since the airy Magus had a penchant for cute things, he wasn't able to hold out long whenever Medusa invaded his tower and refused to leave without learning something new. As a result, though her progress wasn't all that remarkable, Medusa was steadily growing stronger in her own way. The most important thing was that she was learning and having fun, at least from Vahn's perspective. Though he might need Medusa to increase her strength at some point, the main reason Vahn had brought her with him was to observe her hidden Innate. He still had the distinct impression that Medusa's fate was somehow linked to him through an Innate, even though there wasn't even the subtlest fluctuation of 'Fate' around her body...

When it came to Innates, Vahn knew there was no end to the amount of research he could put into them without fully comprehending them. The only thing that was 'absolute' was that they were linked to the soul yet, even if there were infinite instances of a person with the same Innate, each could have subtle differences. Ultimately, the only thing that seemed to matter was the individual's understanding of their Innate as, so long as it was within their comprehension, there were seemingly infinite ways in which Innates could manifest. As even The Path wasn't able to see through them, even though it was an existence beyond Tier 9, Vahn could intuit that Innates were the product of something on the same level as The Path itself...

With that in mind, Vahn actually spent a great deal of effort on training his own Innates, using his [Will of the Emperor] and [Eyes of Truth] almost constantly throughout the day. As for things like [Rakshasa Body] and [Keeper of the Akashic Tome], Vahn's reserves couldn't sustain prolonged use of the former while the latter had only been useful for test-naming a pendant he had forged back when he was working Rin's basement. Since it was actually his most Source Energy-intensive skill, Vahn had only been able to elevate the pendant to the B-Rank, meaning it was around A-Rank if going by the standards of Danmachi. Though this wasn't that bad, Vahn had been going for S-Rank yet had ultimately failed to achieve it. Now, his Od was steadily increasing and, with the time dilation of the Sub-Space Projection Orb, Vahn was intending to get some use out of it when he tries to produce equipment of similar grade and quality to a Noble Phantasm.

One of the things Vahn wanted to try was reproducing Artoria's [Excalibur] and, though it was a bit ambitious, the 'key' that was used to access the [Gate of Babylon]. Even if he couldn't steal Gilgamesh's [Gate of Babylon] itself, having access to a similar ability to essentially weaponize his Inventory was something that fascinated Vahn more than a little. Though the speed left something to be desired, Vahn felt he would be able to improve upon this weakness by using [Primordial Rune] Magecraft to multiply the speed and momentum of objects in motion. He already had some marginal success by pulling swords out of his Inventory but it was difficult to control the orientation of items placed into his Inventory without 'setting' them in certain positions when he placed them inside. It was significantly different from the golden spatial gates that were produced by the [Gate of Babylon] so Vahn knew he had a bit of work ahead of him. Fortunately, with the knowledge he had obtained just by having access to the key for a short period of time, Vahn was confident he would be able to pull it off if given enough time...

---

In what felt like the blink of an eye, nearly three months had passed within the Sub-Space Projection Orb, equating to just over two weeks since the end of the Holy Grail War. Vahn found himself laying on a slopped hill beneath the canopy of an apple tree, one of the most common types of trees on the island of Avalon. He was relaxing with his hands behind his head, enjoying the warm rays of the sun shining down from above, even though the air temperature made it very clear that it was Winter. This didn't really bother him at all and, based on how she was drooling on his chest with a silly smile on her face, it didn't seem to bother Mordred either. She had really embraced being a child over the last couple of months and, though she trained hard every day to become a Knight, the times they spent together as father and daughter had been increasing lately. Though she still had a 'slight' preference for her mother, the fact that the latter always forced her to train hard, while Vahn often played with her, had slowly been shifting the odds in his favor...

Seeing the happy face of his sleeping daughter as she lightly clung to his tunic, Vahn couldn't help but smile as he allowed the gentle breeze, made warmer by his domain, to wash over them. The only 'complaint' he had about Mordred was, after realizing she could get away with quite a bit, she had defaulted to wearing form-fitting shorts, often with a 'cut', punk-rock style, while her tops usually consisted of a loose camisole or a tank-top. Though he had convinced her to wear sports bras and tube tops underneath, Mordred never liked wearing restrictive clothing and even ran around without shoes on more often than not. She reminded him a lot of how Fenrir used to behave in the past, a fact that brought the two 'wild' girls together as Mordred considered Fenrir her 'best' friend. They would even take naps together, cuddled up in a sunny area within the castle, much like what he and Mordred were doing right now...

There were only two things that could make Vahn 'happier' right now, excluding having Rin, Sakura, and Gray coming to stay with him. He finally had an understanding of how often the Summoning System could be used, at least without a catalyst to reduce the interval. The standard cooldown was a startling three years in real-time, meaning twenty-one years within the Sub-Space Projection Orb, while the only reliable means to reduce the amount of time was to use something on the leve of the [Divine Energy Cube] he had been given by Akasha. This could 'instantly' reduce the amount of time, something she had likely taken into consideration when giving it to him in the past. Because of this, Vahn was able to quantify how much a Heroic Spirit cost from the perspective of OP, making a single summon worth around 2,000,000,000OP.

One of the things Vahn needed more than anything right now was a means to increase the amount of OP he was able to earn, something that was surprisingly difficult even though he was in a Tier 5 Record. The only 'reliable' means seemed to be striking a deal with Akasha and her superiors or, acting as the second biggest issue he was facing in the present, getting the help of Alaya. After a series of rather peculiar events, Vahn now had a good idea of how much each of his body parts and their constituent biomass were worth. He also knew that his semen had a startling 300 times the amount of 'mana' compared to his blood, making it only marginally less valuable than outright exchanging his heart or brain to Alaya for Magical Energy. His heart had been worth around 400 times the amount of his blood, by volume, while his brain had beaten it out by having an exchange rate of 418 times blood alone.

Since it wasn't exactly viable to continually produce brains and hearts for Alaya to process, the most cost-effective and 'efficient' means was to give Alaya his semen. Using a manner similar to what he had previously used with Scáthach, however, proved that there was a significant reduction in the 'energy' contained within the vital fluid. His mentality and intentions seemed to considerably affect the potency of his semen, much like how his blood was more effective when he was 'happy' during the time he was still imprisoned in his first life. With Alaya taking in concentrated spheres of semen or sucking on his finger, the ratio was reduced to between 60-100, making it three-to-five times less efficient than more 'direct' means. However, this was still far more efficient than having her suck his blood so Vahn had created a specialized 'pouch' with a vein that ran near his neck. Alaya would latch onto his neck in much the same way as before, sucking a cocktail of blood and semen from his shoulder with a persistence that would make a leech blush...

Though he had gotten used to her presence, Vahn was also troubled by Alaya as it almost felt like she was slowly becoming a part of him after more than three months together. During the moments they were separated, Vahn would have the strangest feeling that 'something' was wrong as he rolled his shoulder to release tension that didn't go away until she latched onto him again. Even now, as he looked down at Mordred's sleeping face with a smile, Vahn had a small blue furball tucked into the nape of his neck, even smaller than she had been in the past. She looked like a baby squirrel that was latched onto his neck like a pup suckling a teet. Her eyes were closed as if she was 'very' focused on the process, at least until she knew Vahn was paying attention to her. During moments like this, Vahn could see her glowing violet eyes silently asking, 'Do you need something?' as if he was the one bothering her...

Of the two things Vahn needed a 'solution' to, dealing with Alaya was a slightly higher priority as he had a growing urge to just be separated from her again. Even if he knew it was for the best that she continued to drain his bodily fluids, as more Magical Energy meant more potential uses, Vahn felt like he was developing a strange dependency on her. His body would feel colder when she wasn't near and he was always 'aware' of his movements so as not to disturb her too much or dislodge her from her perch. The only occasion in which this incongruity went away was whenever he was training with Scáthach as, during moments like that, he simply had no time to think about such things...

The worst part of his current situation was that Vahn could 'rationalize' things in a way that had him having sex with Alaya, potentially increasing the efficacy of his semen beyond 300:1. Since he could extend his ejaculation virtually without end, having her intake his semen 'directly' for a few hours each night would be the same as having her latched to his shoulder for the whole day. He had even suspected that she had 'skewed' the numbers a bit to make this apparent but, as his own analysis with Sis had confirmed things, Vahn knew it was the truth. Unless he could alter his mentality to place just as much emphasis on having sex as having her suck fluid from his neck, it was impossible to bring the potency to the same level. It was all a mental thing but, as Vahn simply couldn't place the two on the same level, for various reasons, there was no simple solution to the problem...

Though Vahn had increased the rate of Magical Energy transferred to Alaya from around 200,000 per hour to around 12,000,000 per hour, it was still a far cry from the potential 60,000,000 he could be transferring. As he grew stronger, this number would increase and, if he placed more 'emphasis' on the exchange, it was possible to greatly increase the exchange rate. This would, however, require him to actually develop feelings for Alaya but, as she fundamentally lacked the means to reciprocate such things, it would always be a one-sided dependency on his part. He had even tried to use his [Hands of Nirvana] on her previously but, unless she 'let' him affect her, Alaya had no reaction at all. Then, just as quickly, she could dismiss what little progress he had made the moment she determined there was no longer any value in continuing.

As a result of Alaya's unique nature and constitution, Vahn knew that anything between them would almost be akin to him having emotionless sex with a doll. He felt this would pervert his experiences with the other girls, especially if he was sacrificing time that could have been spent with them just for the sake of 'efficiency'. Since Alaya already had now stored around 22 billion units of Magical Energy on his behalf, a number that was both massive and infinitesimally too small, Vahn found himself unable to make a decision. As a result, Alaya continued to leech off his shoulder while, as much as possible, Vahn pretended she didn't exist. Though this reduced the efficacy of the transfer even further, he would rather focus on his happiness rather than dealing with a source of potentially infinite stress.

Fortunately, Vahn had plenty of sources for happiness and, even though twenty-one years was a long time, it wasn't as if he 'needed' to summon more Heroic Spirits. Increasing his power and spending time with everyone he was currently involved with was more than enough for the present. As he began to get involved with the affairs of the Mage's Association and the Holy Church, Vahn felt that most of his problems surrounding the Summoning System and Alaya would gradually resolve themselves. The Clock Tower was apparently built atop the corpse of a mountain-sized True Dragon that had tried to dig its way through to the Reverse Side of the World in the past. As a result, there was a structure not all that dissimilar to the Dungeon of Orario located beneath the Clock Tower, filled to the brim with progressively more powerful monsters the deeper you went...

In much the same way, the Holy Church had a 'trial ground' that was used to help train prospective members of their Exorcism department. By sealing away powerful Daemons throughout history, regardless of whether or not they were good or bad, there were a lot of deeply rooted 'grudges' and 'living curses' located in their trial grounds. As a result, various 'demons' and other forms of pseudo-spirits like 'ghosts' would manifest in the area, allowing Exorcists to practice their Sacraments, the most powerful form of Thaumaturgy in the world due to the Holy Church's influence. By using verses that were powerful by faith and conviction, they were able to kill demons and spiritual entities using nothing more than words and holy-elemental Magecraft that they claimed to be divine providence.

Vahn knew there were several Spiritual Lands located all over the world so, once he entered open conflict with the current powers of the world, it would be possible to secure a few for himself. He had no doubt that things like monsters, demons, and spirits would be able to grant him OP while also providing him a means to gather resources and train. Since he had been able to bestow his 'blessing' on Rin, Fenrir, Medusa, Mordred, and even Illya, Vahn knew they would be able to increase their strength considerably if they fought against enemies and gained 'experience'. Even though he was in a different world, the blessing should work in a relatively similar way as, much like all forms of thaumaturgy, such things were strengthened by belief. Since Vahn 'knew' his blessing worked, there was absolutely nothing to prevent anyone with his blessing from becoming much stronger than normal, in a significantly reduced time. After all, even more so than something like the Welsh Dragon, he could be considered his own source of Mystery, rivaling other gods even without an active Divinity...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'This chapter feels like a fever dream')

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