Unduh Aplikasi
56.19% Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos / Chapter 1324: Dynamic

Bab 1324: Dynamic

With most of his duties taken care of, at least for a short while, Vahn was watching over his two sons, Kamiya and Daiki, as they glared at each other with 'fierce' expressions. In his lap, Penelo and Ulla were watching their two brothers with visible interest while, at the side, Mordred, Naavi, and Isanna each looked like they were ready to step in the moment something went wrong.

At this point, Kamiya and Daiki were both around two years old and, while neither spoke all that often, they were strangely prideful boys. From the moment they began playing together, they had started to compete for various things, be it the attention of the caretakers or the toys they were playing with. This was something that worried Vahn a little bit but, with Nobunaga and Rin stating that they were just playing around, he could only watch on in silence as the two attempted to see who could stack blocks higher than the other...

As if it was an intense historical moment, Mordred was urging on Kamiya to do his best while, on the opposite side of the room, Naavi had to keep Isanna from intervening as she had a bad habit of favoring Daiki during the competitions. Fortunately, Daiki was surprisingly mature and, despite his young age, he was a little 'too good' at dealing with his two elder sisters. Vahn had even seen him lecturing both of them after they got into an argument, a peculiar sight to behold considering Isanna and Naavi had the physical appearance of girls around fourteen years of age...

The only time Daiki really acted his age was whenever he was being pampered by the caretakers, his various mothers, and when he was competing with Kamiya. This was the same for Kamiya who, as a result of having Nobunaga as a mother and Mordred as his 'Aneue', was a bit of a rebellious child. He was usually very quiet but, when riled up, was quick to anger and prone to spontaneous emotional outbursts. Though this rarely ended in violence, it meant it was often butting heads with Daiki as the two competed against each other for a variety of arbitrary reasons.

This time around, it was looking as if Kamiya was going to win as his Guardian, the Four-Armed Adamantine Ape, gave him a distinct advantage when it came to stacking blocks. Daiki's King of Twilight had a slow growth rate and, as a wolf-type Guardian, it didn't provide many advantages when it came to matters requiring greater dexterity. At best, it could serve as a footstool for the young Daiki but, as he treated his Guardian very well, he would never do such a thing.

Unfortunately, just as Kamiya was about to obtain victory, Isanna began to gesture behind her back and, unbeknownst to the children, the space around Kamiya's tower began to warp. Vahn dutifully stepped in to prevent Isanna from misbehaving but, undoubtedly due to the latter's mischief, Kamiya's Guardian failed to place a block and, in his attempt to catch the falling cube, the entire tower came tumbling down.

Kamiya stared at his fallen tower with a blank expression while Daiki, understanding there was foul play involved, gave a pointed look toward the lackadaisically whistling Isanna before saying, "We will have another match later. I will help you clean up." Then, without waiting for Kamiya's response, Daiki began to pick up each of the fallen blocks, stacking each of them neatly where they were supposed to go. Kamiya joined him shortly thereafter while Vahn, after turning over Ulla and Penelo to their caretakers, had Isanna follow after him despite her initial protests.

Despite being a bit of a troublemaker, especially when it came to supporting her brother, Isanna was a relatively obedient young Vanir. The moment she realized her father was serious, she gave up on making a scene as, near the table where the mothers generally lounged, Ishtar had given her a pointed stare of her own. This was enough to turn the usually rambunctious girl completely silent, understanding full well that she was the root cause of the situation she was in.

After exiting the daycare room, Vahn extended his hand to Isanna and, without questioning his intentions, she unhesitantly reached out with her own before squeezing it tightly. Immediately after that, the two of them teleported to one of the highest points within Avalon, a place Vahn often took Isanna when he wanted to talk with her. They had a lot of memories here and, while most of these related to her getting in some kind of trouble, Isanna actually liked high places quite a bit. She even played with Daiki and Naavi within the connecting tower on occasion and, as a result, the interior was decorated with various 'treasures' they had accumulated over the last two years.

Finding his usual spot, Vahn took a seat before allowing Isanna to sit on his left knee, her body half-facing his own. She really was a carbon-cop of her mother, albeit with a far more youthful appearance, so Vahn couldn't be too hard on her unless she had seriously erred. Instead, he adopted his usual before lightly pinching her nose with his right hand and asking, "Do you know what you did wrong...?"

As this was the usual sequence of events, Isanna adopted a slight pout but, instead of blaming others, she honestly admitted, "I didn't want Daiki to lose so I cheated to invalidate the match...he will be able to win the next one, I'm certain of it..."

Hearing Isanna's words, Vahn lightly shook his head as he pulled his hand away and stated, "If you were certain of anything, you wouldn't have intervened...Isanna, there is no shame in suffering a few losses here and there. Rather, I'm certain Daiki is more troubled by the fact you don't trust him enough to allow him to make his own decisions. Being protective of your brother is fine but, while you may have different mothers, Kamiya is also your brother..."

Isanna released a sad sigh in response to her father's words before burying her face into his chest and complaining, "Kamiya wins too much though...if they were the same age, Daiki wouldn't be at a disadvantage..."

Adopting a slightly more stern tone, Vahn had Isanna sit properly before he admonished her by saying, "In life, it is impossible to ensure things are perfectly balanced. People have various banes and boons, some providing what others may consider unfair advantages. However, as one of the few with greater blessings than nearly all others, you must be more tolerant and empathetic. You are a very smart girl, Isanna...I'm certain you understand that your actions, rather than helping, are a cause of concern for Daiki. He already has two amazing sisters so, if he can't express himself and experience a friendly rivalry with his own brother, he will eventually begin to shun others..."

Hearing her father's words, Isanna hung her head in shame but, after a few seconds of struggle, she seemed to find some kind of resolve as she looked up at him and exclaimed, "But Mordred is cheating also! She helps Kamiya train all the time while Fenrir has been busy lately! I don't know how to help Daiki become stronger so I want to-"

Before Isanna could finish her train of thought, Vahn began to lightly pat her head, interrupting her outburst by saying, "Let Daiki choose his own path, Isanna. If you truly want to support him, walk alongside him. When he struggles, push him forward...when he stumbles, pick him back up. However, no matter what you do, you can't live for him. The more you try to make decisions on his behalf, the more struggles he will face in the future. As for the matter of Mordred training Kamiya, we both know she isn't really doing much other than teaching him...discipline..."

Remembering Kamiya following Mordred around like an obedient puppy, Vahn's momentum was arrested a bit. Fortunately, Isanna didn't seem to notice this as she was thinking about his words, not watching his face.

In actuality, restrictions had been put into place regarding the education and training of every child born within the castle. Physical training had to wait until they were four years old and, while the Vanir were an exception to this rule, even they had various restrictions placed on them. This was primarily due to their immense power which, if used wantonly, may very well lead to serious injury or death. This was something Isanna was very aware of but, after challenging Mordred in the past, only to be refused on the premise that she was too young, they had been at odds with each other.

Vahn didn't mind if there was a bit of competition amongst his children but, no matter what, he didn't want to see them genuinely fighting amongst themselves. He would have a talk with both Mordred and the children's respective mothers once he was done speaking with Isanna. For now, however, he didn't want the latter to feel as if she was completely at fault for what had happened. After all, parents 'always' had some amount of responsibility in the behavior of their children, no matter the circumstances.

With this in mind, Vahn planned how he would make it up to them, gently stroking Isanna's hair as he asked, "How about we all go out to play in the near future? I'll take everyone to visit the Undine and we can all go explore the bottom of the ocean together. I know I've been busy lately but I will always try to make time for my beloved children..."

Toward the end of his words, Vahn gave Isanna a kiss on her forehead and, as if affected by a magic spell, her mood seemed to improve considerably. She was very sensitive to a person's intentions so, even without him directly apologizing, Isanna knew what he was thinking. In truth, she and the others had been a little sad regarding the fact he wasn't around as often so, while she felt guilty due to his earlier words, Isanna was happy with how things turned out.

Understanding she needed to make a concession of her own, Isanna tightly hugged her father's neck, nuzzling her cheek against his as she said, "I'll apologize to everyone and try to get along better with Mordred in the future..." Then, deciding now was a good time to start, Isanna pulled away so that they were only a few centimeters away from each other as she smiled and said, "I'm sorry for worrying you, Father...thank you for always doing your best..."

With her own words finished, Isanna gave her father a kiss on his cheek before hugging him tightly once again. As for Vahn, he tightly embraced the mischievous girl while, elsewhere in the castle, he was already taking Mordred to meet with her mother and Nobunaga so they could all talk about her involvement in Kamiya's upbringing. He was, admittedly, a little worried that the influence of Mordred would have some negative consequences on his eldest son and, while he would obviously not prevent them from having a sibling relationship, Mordred seemed to be on the fast track to becoming the boy's mentor.

Rather than solely focusing on the education of the children at the Clock Tower, Vahn realized he needed to properly consider the intrapersonal relationships between his actual children. The last thing he needed was Isanna losing her cool and suddenly fighting all-out against Mordred so, in order to avoid any potentially disastrous situations, he would take proactive measures to try and bridge their relationships. After all, he was a father before he was an Emperor so, before anything else, he needed to ensure that his own family was happy. They were his reason for being so, if he shunned them in lieu of his other duties, he had already failed as both an Emperor and a father...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Serious stacking competition...','The birth of various rivalries...!','Never lose sight of what is most important')

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Bab 1325: Idle : Idyl : Idol

After addressing the matter of Mordred's and Isanna's budding conflict, Vahn spent a few more hours just engaging with his children while his second vessel discussed their futures. He couldn't make as much time as he'd like so it ultimately fell to the children's mothers and the various castle staff to ensure they were properly attended. He didn't really want to pressure them too much but, in order to ensure they were building rapport with each other, Vahn came up with planned family functions such as picnics and internal competitions. The latter was necessary as, with the children growing like beanstalks, he knew it was only a matter of time before they needed a platform to compete amongst themselves in a low-risk manner.

Fortunately, Da Vinci had made several breakthroughs in Virtual Projection technology so, in lieu of allowing the children free reign to move about in the outworld, they would be able to use their own personal terminals to access the virtual world. Since he couldn't really let them outside at the present moment, this was the best alternative he could come up with to ensure that the children experienced some degree of freedom.

Since they all knew how important it was for the children to experience a variety of things, there wasn't much resistance against the idea of allowing the children to make use of the Virtual World. Though there were a fair number of restrictions put into place, as the last thing they needed was the children becoming addicted to something that didn't exist, the time dilation within would give them ample time to play around in between their training and studies.

To convince everyone, Vahn had made a template using his memories of the Record of Danmachi so, while there would be a distinct lack of people, at least in the beginning, it would allow any of the castle's residents to experience his home. This was something nearly everyone was interested in as there was a very big difference between viewing memories and experiencing them. With the tech developing at a monstrous rate, there was a very real chance they could even experience an entire life within the simulation, including joining various Familia and attempting to conquer the Dungeon.

Vahn really wanted his loved ones to share in his experiences so, while it would be embarrassing to see a simulated version of his past self, it would still be interesting. Better still was the fact that, if they wanted to, each person could experience a unique instance of the same world. Once the 'full immersion' mode was completed, they would even be able to interact with the past version of himself to shape the world in a completely unique way, entirely determined by their decisions...

While these types of discussions could quickly reach existential levels, it obviously didn't deter any of the Heroic Spirits occupying the castle. Even Gawain was looking forward to experiencing the Virtual World as it was a way of broadening his horizons without wasting much time. After all, up to fifty days could pass within the Virtual World for every day that passed in reality.

By entering the world for just a single hour, you could experience the passage of two days within, time that could be spent on both study and recreation. As a result, people were restricted to four hours per day, separated into hour-long blocks, as it would become a big problem if they spent literal years inside while their body remained unchanged in reality. This was a regulation that Vahn intended to pass as Common Law in the real world as, if left to their own devices, he knew a large number of people would spend all of their time inside without any regards to their actual lives...

The Virtual World could be a tremendously useful tool or a debilitatingly addictive social platform depending on how it was used. Using it, a person could study any subject to mastery within a few months and, despite a relatively short lifespan, experience dozens of different lives amongst the myriad worlds that would be created within. There were, virtually, no limits to what they could achieve and, if they managed their time accordingly, people could be professor-level in their early teens.

Inversely, because real-life could be 'boring' or 'difficult', Vahn knew a lot of people would flock to the Virtual World since it was effectively a place where all their wishes could be realized. Sadly, this made them just about as useful as inert dolls. Thus, in order to prevent the effective death of human progress and culture, access to the Virtual World needed to be regulated. People had to earn the right to use it and, even then, they could only access it for a few hours each day...after all, life may be difficult but, for the same reasons that you enjoyed living in another world, you should face reality and make the most of it...

---

Around the same time that Vahn was discussing projects with Da Vinci, his main body was idling about in the Menagerie, his head resting against the soft thighs of Circe as she gingerly cleaned his ears. There wasn't actually any wax inside but, as it was a strangely pleasant and intimate act of trust, Vahn enjoyed being pampered by the woman who usually demanded that he pampered her.

Circe, along with practically everyone residing inside the castle, knew that Vahn wasn't in the best mental state since his announcement so she was giving him special treatment. They knew he was heavily affected by the ongoing chaos and, every time he heard about some major tragedy, Vahn would radiate a melancholic and somewhat cold aura. Since they didn't want him to break under the weight of his own decisions, they had daily discussions to effectively determine which of them would be pampering him that night.

This time around, Circe had won the right to pamper Vahn and, now that she was pregnant with her second child, her emotional state had mellowed out more than she ever expected. She was no longer plagued by the 'slight' urge to harm the other women, something that usually resulted in her holing up inside the Menagerie. Instead, she felt happier with each passing day, almost as if the little bundle of life growing inside of her was a literal bundle of joy...

Now, with Vahn resting against her thighs and leaving himself completely defenseless, Circe had a gentle smile on her face as she picked at the hair around his ears while swabbing the pristine interior of his ears. The peaceful and content smile on his face made her feel happy and, while a part of her wanted to swap places with him, she ultimately kept it buried since the moment was too enjoyable to bring to an end.

Unfortunately, Circe wasn't alone with Vahn and, while it didn't affect the mood too much, having a few pairs of eyes staring at them wantingly was a moderate distraction. This was especially so for Vahn as, after enjoying the lap pillow for the better part of ten minutes, he opened his left eye to see Jeanne staring directly at him. Though she averted her eyes immediately after, the fact nearly everyone else repeated the action caused him to chuckle in amusement.

Circe puffed out her cheeks when she felt Vahn begin to shift his weight but, without complaining, she set aside the long swab as he moved to a seated position. Ultimately, the best thing for Vahn's mentality was to just let him do as he pleased so, while the peaceful moment was rather pleasant, Circe actually looked forward to what he would decide. After all, nine-time-out-of-ten, Vahn would seize the momentum from them and, ten-time-out-of-ten, they would all be happier for it.

This ended up being one of the few instances where Vahn wasn't actually in the mood to have sex so, before things could get out of hand, he began to caress the underside of Circe's ears and neck as he explained, "There are a few things I need to deal with. When I'm finished, I'll return here and we can all spend some quality time together..."

Without waiting for a reply, Vahn stole Circe's lips for himself, pacifying her with a few gentle pecks as his right hand gingerly stroked her abdomen. This was enough to remind her of the current state of her body so, while she was slightly frustrated that he would be leaving them, she quickly regained her senses. At the same time, Gareth, Okita, and Jeanne began to prepare their clothes and equipment, fully intent on accompanying their Master wherever he intended to go...

After a small parting 'ceremony' with each member of the Menagerie, including some head pats for Medea, Vahn made his way outside of the Inner Sanctum to visit the nearby Residental Halls. A lot of people had come to reside there over the last week or so and, while it might not be proper for the Emperor himself to go check up on people, Vahn had a habit of doing so. It would be a lot more awkward to summon him to private quarters and, as it wasn't really much an inconvenience for him to do so, he didn't see the harm in paying them a visit.

With this in mind, Vahn soon found himself in front of a door that, as per usual, had a number of people and Companions present. They quickly gave way for him and, after a few polite greetings, Vahn entered into the room to find Spenta and one of the castle's newest residents, Aura, sitting together as they drank tea. The rest of the room was filled with hundreds of Companions and, as the aura emanated by Spenta was simply that pleasant, many of the Homunculi liked to rest inside while on their breaks.

Though they had already noticed his presence due to the clamor at the front door, Spenta and Aura both gave pleasantly surprised smiles when they saw who entered the room. Considering the latter was blind, the sequelae of one of her Innates, it was always peculiar to see her easily follow his movements with her eyes. As for Spenta, she delicately placed her teacup on the saucer before hopping out of her chair and practically bouncing over to Vahn and throwing her arms around his waist.

Feeling the tension in his body practically melt away, Vahn's smile became more natural as he bent down and picked up Spenta in his arms, holding her like one of his own children. She had a special place in his, and many other's, hearts so he couldn't help but be good to her.

'Seeing' the interaction between the two, Aura's smile turned more radiant as she mused, "How envious. I wonder if a day will come where you hold me in a similar manner? To be cherished is a wonderful thing..."

Understanding there was a bit of seriousness in her words, Vahn lightly shook his head before taking the seat vacated by Spenta, the latter happily accepting his lap as her own. Then, making eye contact with the blind Alien Conceptual Entity, Vahn stated, "Despite your appearance, I do not believe you have the capacity to act like a child. Spenta is a truly innocent young girl so there is no danger in treating her as such. You, however, have an agenda and a hyper-rational mind...I will do my best to treat you well but, treating you like a child, that is something I cannot do."

At this point, Vahn had come to learn a lot more about the nature of Aura's existence so, in spite of her appearance, he knew she was an especially ancient being. According to the information he had been able to obtain, she was even older than the planet itself by around 100 million years so, on the low end, she was around 4.643 billion years old. This was information 'purchased' directly from Akasha and, after their discussion, Aura herself had been allowed to answer his questions.

With this knowledge, Vahn knew that one of Aura's primary functions was to 'observe', not just Gaia and Alaya, but everything transpiring on the planet. She served a similar role to Ouranos in the Record of Danmachi and, despite her innocent appearance and disarming aura, she had an immense amount of power. He had originally thought she was only near the peak of Tier 4 but, after learning her true nature, Vahn discovered that Aura was, at the very least, more powerful than Gaia, Alaya, and ORT...combined...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The dangers of unrestricted full-dive...!','90% of the time, Vahn leaves women 100% satisfied (>,...,<)...!','There is always a taller mountain but, no matter how high you climb, there is still a sky beyond even that...!')

https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu <-(p.atreon link)

paypal.me/Einlion

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