With Fenrir eliminating virtually every group that appeared within her range, Vahn was beginning to think Hime wouldn't even get a chance to act. Fortunately, it wasn't long before spiritual versions of the people she had eliminated began to rain down from the sky, seemingly unrestricted by the rules prohibiting flight above a certain height as they attempted to assault the fortress.
"So these are the Einherjar? They seem stronger now than when they were previously eliminated..."
Though it was just an observation of his, Hime mistook Vahn's remark as confusion, explaining, "It is most likely a type of blessing. The word Einherjar translates to "army of one". They are meant to be mythical warriors who have distinguished themselves on the battlefield. Upon death, the Valkyries of Sigrun would descend from Valhalla to escort them to Odin's Longhall. There, they would feast upon the meat of the resurrecting-"
Placing his finger on Hime's mouth, Vahn adopted an amused smile as he said, "I know. There is a reason Fenrir is named as such. I'm intimately familiar with the legends and lore related to Norse and Icelandic mythology..."
Freezing in response to Vahn's words, the tips of Hime's ears became red as the former issued an amused chuckle and wrapped his hand around her waist. Then, before she could recover, he moved his hand closer to her bottom, gently caressing it as he said, "You should lend a hand. Fenrir might have unlimited mana while we're together but her most powerful attacks would break the rules of the game. Besides, I want everyone in the Little Garden to know that I have a remarkably beautiful Water Goddess on my side..."
Though a part of her wanted to stay seated next to him, Hime nodded in response to Vahn's words before rising from her seat and spontaneously transforming into a massive white serpent. This was actually her true form so it was more cost-efficient to maintain than her humanoid transformation. She also knew the people in charge of broadcasting the game wouldn't hesitate to take liberties with the viewing angles, so, while she had no problem showing off, she didn't want people staring at her with their lascivious gazes. She was a Goddess, after all. She could literally sense when people were having such thoughts about her...
Taking advantage of the functionally infinite supply of ice and water produced by Fenrir, a massive vortex appeared around Hime as she ascended towards the sky. Anyone that got close to her was instantaneously shredded to pieces, and, thanks to the excess Ice Elemental Energy saturating the atmosphere after Fenrir's attacks, the sky above the fortress became a veritable ocean that froze anything that attempted to pass through it.
"Mmm...she's strong. With training, she could be even stronger..."
Nodding in response to Fenrir's remark, Vahn continued to stroke her unbelievably soft and pliant fur as his senses briefly linked with Siegfried and Scathatch. He doubted they would have any real trouble dealing with the Einherjar but it never hurt to check...
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After cutting down dozens of foes, Scathach had managed to single-handedly secure one of the altars located on the Northern side of the mountain. Under normal circumstances, this would have resulted in multiple people teaming up to attack her. Instead, her surroundings had become eerily silent as even the Einherjar had given up attacking her after experiencing the excruciating pain of having Gae Bolg pierce their bodies.
With nothing better to do, Scathach was sitting atop Sigurn's Altar with a listless expression on her face. It wasn't that she was particularly bored. The enemies had just failed to couldn't excite her. She was used to battles against beings that exceeded the Gods and even defied common sense. Normal opponents were remarkably mundane no matter how great their numbers.
While staring up at the mountain, Scathach's eyes widened ever so slightly as she sensed a familiar presence overlapping with her own. It took a tremendous amount of effort to prevent herself from smiling, but, thanks to her exhaustive training in mastering every single faculty of her body, she was able to play it off as if she hadn't noticed Vahn's presence.
Demonstrating an acting ability that would earn the approval of her original self, Scathach exhaled a melancholic sigh as she laid across Sigrun's Altar and muttered, "Master..." in a longing, ostensibly anguished tone. She even placed her hand over her heart, its steady rhythm becoming increasingly unstable as her serotonin and dopamine levels dropped.
Though it was impossible to discern from her physiological reaction, Scathach couldn't help feeling amused when the senses that had overlapped with her own suddenly radiated a concerned, slightly apologetic vibe. At the same time, she could feel a sudden and spontaneous longing from Vahn, an indicator that he was thinking about all the times they had spent together, and, most importantly, apart.
Taking advantage of the vulnerabilities in Vahn's mental state, Scathach moved her hand from atop her heart to her breast. A warmth that didn't belong to her immediately suffused through her body, and, though there was a chance she was being spied upon, Scathach didn't particularly care as her free hand crept towards the darker purple fabric covering her lower body. Humans were covetous by nature and there was little you could do to prevent the Gods from spying on you. Thus, the only gaze she really cared about was Vahn's. She also knew that he could feel everything she was feeling right now, so, without any hesitation whatsoever, she began to unabashedly caress herself through the fabric of her clothes...
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"..."
"Master...?"
Sensing her Master's arousal, Fenrir sneakily took a big whiff of his aroma before turning her head up and calling out to him.
Offering a wry smile in response, Vahn grabbed the sides of Fenrir's face, shamelessly squishing and massaging her cheeks as he said, "We may need to speed things up a bit..."
Understanding the implication within her Master's words, a familiar longing spread through Fenrir's abdominal region as she hopped from his lap and said, "Leave it to me!" in an excited tone of voice. Then, stunning everyone spectating the scene within the ice fortress, Fenrir began shaking her body like a wolf that had just submerged from a river. This caused her already fluffy coat to become even fluffier, but, more importantly, several nebulous wolf pups began spreading through the area until a rather sizeable pack had formed.
Though the pups appeared similar at a glance, closer observation would reveal that the runes and patterns on their bodies were distinctly different. Some had patterns reminiscent of scales, wings, and other racial markers. Others had complex magical formations that glistened like icy blue light or destructive flames against a backdrop of black fur.
As ridiculous as it sounded, each of these wolf pups represented one of the people in Fenrir's pack. The one with angelic markings on its back originated from Jeanne while the version producing fiery red flames actually drew power from Mordred. She had grown into her own woman, but, much like her respect towards her Mother, Mordred had never lost her appreciation for Fenrir. She was, after all, her first girl crush...
"Go. Bring victory to our Master."
Since the nebulous clones were effectively amalgamations of energy, they lacked the sapience to converse with words. Instead, they howled in unison before spontaneously turning into shadowy puddles that moved along the ground and passed through cracks with startling speed. The only exception was a pup with amber eyes and pale gold markings that formed the shape similar to a sword near its bottom.
Ignoring Fenrir's adorably pouty expression, the disobedient pup mozied on over to Vahn before rubbing its body against his leg and jumping into his lap like a cat. This caused Fenrir to bare her teeth as she muttered, "Altria..." in an overtly threatening tone.
Looking over at Fenrir, the pup based on Altria adopted a slightly taunting expression as it plopped down and made itself comfortable on Vahn's lap. It had inherited its original's mischievous and lazy personality, so, unless the situation was serious, it had no intention of exerting itself. It would much rather just laze about in Vahn's lap and receive his pampering. Just like the real Altria...
Though she was tempted to bite the disobedient pup, Fenrir's anger faded in an instant when Vahn placed his hand on Altria's head and said, "Don't fight. The others will be able to handle things. For now, let's just relax until the Bifrost is active. There are still a few hidden objectives that have yet to reveal themselves. No sense in getting worked up before the climax."
Ignoring the smug look on the clone's face, Fenrir returned to Vahn's lap before snuggling next to the annoying pup and making herself comfortable. The only thing she really cared about was her Master's opinion, so, understanding that she could always deal with the real Altria later, Fenrir didn't mind cuddling up next to the traitor if it meant she could receive additional headpats...
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A stark contrast to the situation on Scathach's side, Siegfried was beginning to feel pressured as dozens of Einherjar persistently raided his position. This had nothing to do with a lack of strength on his part. Rather, the moment he reached the Altar, Siegfried discovered that another Community had already claimed it. More importantly, they were barely holding on as they desperately resisted a siege.
Though the Community was technically his enemy, Siegfried was unable to simply ignore people in need. He also refused to raise his sword against the innocent, so, until he could ascertain what kind of people they were, he intended to help them. After all, there were a total of eight altars. Even if he gave one up, there were five others he could claim.
With such thoughts guiding his actions, Siegfried released a three-hundred-meter wide blade of energy towards the group of Einherjar descending from the sky. This was far less effective than if he had targetted the ground, but, as an Anti-Army ability that could erase small islands from the map, he didn't want to get the people he was protecting or the altar caught up in the aftermath.
Taking advantage of the momentary lull, Siegfried exhaled an ostensibly fatigued sigh as he casually blocked the sword of a young man with fox-like ears and clothing reminiscent of a ninja. The runic circle behind him denoted him as an Einherjar, but, rather than deal a fatal blow, Siegfried parried the young man's blade to the side before chopping the back of his neck. This added to the pile of unconscious individuals encircling his body, people he had chosen to spare due to their relatively young ages or overall weakness...
Looking around, Siegfried confirmed there were no other enemies nearby before turning toward the purple-haired woman that had attempted to guard his back but was too stunned to actually do anything. Her slack-jawed expression caused his to own soften considerably, and, as a result of his handsome appearance, a rather potent blush developed across the woman's face as she averted her eyes and muttered, "Thank you for helping us...we wouldn't have been able to defend this place without you..."
Shaking his head, Siegfried adopted a kind smile as he said, "I didn't do much. I'm sure that, even without my assistance, you and your friends would have been able to manage. I can sense great power dwelling within you. If you released it fully, even an army of Einherjar might not be able to match you."
Though she believed Siegfried was just being polite, the purple-haired beauty couldn't suppress a smile as she said, "Thank you very much. My name is Dorothea, by the way. If it isn't too much to ask, I would be honored to hear the name of my savior. Who knows, maybe our Communities can work together in the future?"
Returning a polite smile of his own, Siegfried's aquamarine eyes shifted towards the other members of Dorothea's party before answering, "Siegfried...my name is Siegfried..."
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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Hime is adorable...','Scathach is too bold (O////O)...','A very mischievous little pup...')
https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu <-(p.atreon link)
paypal.me/Einlion
Discord Invite: https://discord.gg/Jwa8PKh
"Master, my pack has taken over three of the Altars."
Though it had only been a few minutes since Fenrir sent out her pack of puppies, Vahn wasn't surprised to hear they had already completed their objective. Even the weakest among them was stronger than the average 6-Digit Community member. They also had nothing to do with any of Fenrir's actual Gifts, so, even if someone tried to cry foul, it wouldn't take long to prove their innocence.
"Good girl."
Running his hand along the side and bottom of her neck, Vahn compelled Fenrir to roll over so he could give her belly a vigorous rub. As this was happening, a horn could be heard in the distance, its sound carrying across the game board as a rainbow-hued pillar of light impacted each of the Altars.
"Oh. I half-expected something like Jörmungandr to show up..."
Since this made his job a lot easier, Vahn created a double to teleport near the base of the Altar Fenrir's fortress had settled over. The rainbow-hued pillar had penetrated through the icy mass as if it didn't exist. This would have terrified most people, but, knowing he could just make another version of himself, Vahn immediately stepped into the beam.
After a sensation akin to having his body broken down molecule by molecule, Vahn found himself reassembled in a large stone arena. There was a large runic symbol that had burned itself into the ground beneath his feet, but, rather than pay attention to that, he raised his brows toward the rather fierce-looking redhead standing at the opposite side of the arena, asking, "Is it just you...?"
Furrowing her brows in response to Vahn's words, Ragna brandished her twin battleaxes, the runes across its surface emitting a fiery blue light as she explained, "The arena of Himinbjörg is a sacred place. Only two people can enter. Only one can leave. You will have to occupy this place until the end of the Gift Game if you wish to declare yourself the victor."
As Ragna spoke, an updated Geass Roll appeared out of thin air. Now, instead of three hidden conditions, there were only two. The third row of question marks had updated to reflect what Ragna had said.
"Well, that simplifies things..."
Raising his hand as he spoke, Vahn left Ragna frozen, the pupils of her eyes contracted as he caught the lightning bolt that attempted to strike him. If he had tanked it, she wouldn't have been that surprised. Instead, his touch had caused it to turn into a physical tendril of energy as he said, "You can have this back."
Though she could deflect natural lightning, Ragna was barely able to tense her body before the bolt wielded by Vahn struck her like a whip. In the very next moment, she felt as though her body had passed through multiple membranes. In actuality, these were a series of stone pillars and a thick wall...
With Ragna's body breaking down into bluish-white light, Vahn shifted his attention to the structure of the arena. It was approximately 500m in diameter with a series of ten, thirty, and fifty-meter walls forming three concentric circles. The circle he had presently found himself in was host to nine large pillars, each connected via a large engraving resembling a tree.
"Marvelous..."
As a Blacksmith and an Artisan, Vahn was someone who could appreciate interesting designs and themes. It was obvious that someone had put a lot of effort into developing this particular Game Board. If he didn't know that everything would be reset the moment the game came to an end, he might even be reluctant to destroy it...
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"Greetings, friend. My name is Thanus Nyx, Leader of Twice Twilight. I owe you my sincerest gratitude. Without your help, we would have already been eliminated from the competition."
Though he could sense of overwhelmingly dark aura emanating from the glowing-eyed man, Siegfried had learned from Vahn that he should never judge a book by its cover. Thus, without any discernible hesitation on his face, he accepted the former's handshake, stating, "It's not a big deal. I was just passing through and decided to lend a hand of my own volition. There are no debts between us."
Smiling in response to Siegfried's words, Thanus gave the former's hand a firm shake before retracting his hand and asking, "What will you do now? I can't imagine you cooperating with us until the end of the Gift Game. Shouldn't you be helping your own Community?"
Answering in Siegfried's stead, Dorothea, the same woman Vahn had encountered prior to his affiliation with Thousand Eyes, revealed, "He said he doesn't belong to a Community. He is the conjured spirit of another Player."
Blinking in surprise, Thanus gave Siegfried another once-over as he remarked, "Amazing. Your Master must be a remarkable individual to summon someone as powerful as you. From what I can tell, you're no different from any other Player..."
Returning a kind smile, Siegfried withheld any remarks related to Vahn. He had no intention of parting with any information related to his best friend and benefactor. Instead, he just nodded his head and said, "I should be going. I wish you and your Community the best of luck for the remainder of the game."
Without waiting for Thanus' reply, Siegfried directed a second nod towards Dorothea before spreading his wings and taking to the sky. This caused the smile on Thanus' face to turn wry, but, understanding he wasn't a match for the silver-haired warrior, he ultimately just shook his head before looking back at Dorothea and musing, "You're as popular as ever."
Blushing in response to her Leader's words, Dorothea adopted a slightly pouty expression as she rebutted, "Mooou! I told you to stop teasing me! B-Besides, the person I really like-"
Before Dorothea could finish her impromptu confession, one of the Einherjar that had been knocked unconscious by Siegfried suddenly charged toward her. Unfortunately for him, he was only able to get about three steps before a bluish-black shadow resembling a demonic ant emerged from the ground, bifurcating him in an instant...
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With five of the eight Altars under the control of his forces, Vahn wasn't surprised by the lack of people arriving to challenge him. Each individual member of Fenrir's pack could wipe out an average 6-Digit Community on their own, so, even if numerous Communities teamed up, there was very little they could do to shift the tide in their favor.
Fortunately, the Gift Game seemed to have accounted for this particular scenario as another horn could be heard echoing throughout the Game Board after an hour had passed. Since he had another version of himself idling about at the base of the mountain, Vahn was able to see a massive blizzard forming along the edges of the playing field.
"So that's how they intend to force the Players inward. The playing area shrinks over time..."
As soon as those words left his mouth, Vahn was unsurprised to see a Geass Roll manifest in front of him. Whenever Players discovered one of the hidden objectives, the rolls had a habit of updating for all participants. What he didn't expect was the actual description present on the scroll...
"We have to protect the Altars from a Frost Giant invasion? That's sneaky..."
With a clause dictating that everyone would be eliminated if more than half of Sigrun's Altars were destroyed, Leviathan's Tail would have been able to guarantee their victory against most other Communities. The rules of the game not only forced a Community to divide their forces to conquer multiple Altars but they would also need to send their strongest members through the Bifrost in order to ensure victory. In other words, only their weaker members would remain to defend against the Frost Giants' assault, and, due to the restrictions placed on summoning, someone like Jin would have been helpless to do anything.
Unfortunately for the members of Leviathan's Tail, Vahn had no such limitations. Siegfried and Scathach weren't even considered summoned creatures, and, even if they had been, the rules of the game didn't designate that a Player couldn't use multiple Gifts to summon. It only said that Gifts related to summoning were limited to a total of three summons. Nowhere did it say you could only use a single Gift related to summoning.
After briefly considering whether or not he should summon the entirety of Avalon's forces in order to deter future challengers, Vahn ultimately shook his head before patting the two pups in his lap and saying, "My turn."
Though the pup representing Altria seemed unwilling to part with him, she ended up having little choice when Fenrir, appearing as a much larger wolf, picked her up by the scruff of her neck. This allowed Vahn to rise to his feet, his bones creaking and popping as the clothes on his body gradually disappeared. This created quite the sight for female viewers to behold. As for the men...well...
Thanks to his numerous Divinities, Vahn was vaguely aware of how others, especially large groups of people, perceived him. Fortunately, he wasn't inexperienced with this phenomenon so he was largely able to ignore it as he appeared outside the frozen fortress. Then, under the shocked gazes of virtually everyone spectating the Gift Game, his body increased in size as an azure light erupted from his body.
With the intent of increasing his familiarity with [Rakshasa Body], Vahn decided to transform into a proper Azure Dragon for the first time in quite a while. Instead of the humanoid version, however, he went with the full dragon transformation. By the time the light faded away, he had grown to more than 300m in length, his body resembling that of an eastern dragon, complete with a serpentine body, golden scales, large horns, whiskers, and an azure mane that crackled with electricity.
Ignoring the ravenous look he was receiving from Hime, Vahn opened his maw to release a roar that, for a brief moment, created absolutely no sound. At the same time, the image most people were viewing appearing to freeze. It was like everything had suddenly come to a stop, and, were it not for the ambient sounds around them, some may have even believed they had been frozen in time.
As a feeling of incongruency welled in the hearts and minds of the average spectator, a scene unlike anything they had experienced appeared before them. The image seemed to glitch for a brief moment as a majestic roar emanated from the screen, seemingly echoing throughout the entirety of the East Side. At the same time, incomprehensible devastation was reflected in the image they had been watching as thick bands of azure lightning tore through the blizzard that had been encroaching upon the Game Board...
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Seeing the form of Vahn reflected on a floating jade tablet, a man with remarkable features, long white hair, sword-like eyebrows, and sky-blue pupils couldn't help raising his brows as he remarked, "What a curious fellow. I wonder if he has any relation to Meng Zhang?"
Answering the inordinately handsome man's inquiry was a woman whose beauty could only be described as heavenly. She also had long white hair, but, instead of radiant, sky-blue eyes, hers were a shade of opaque pink that seemed to draw in anyone that stared into them. As for her response, she simply replied, "Perhaps."
Returning a curt nod in response to his wife's remark, the inordinately handsome man pulled out a jade slip with his right hand, shattering it as he said, "Wang. Fetch Meng Zhang. There is a matter I wish to discuss with him."
Shortly after the man had spoken, a remarkably reverential voice, seemingly emitting from the void, answer, "As you will, Your Imperial Majesty..."
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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Is it just you...?','That is a pretty sneaky clause...','Vahn takes showing off to another level...')
https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu <-(p.atreon link)
paypal.me/Einlion
Discord Invite: https://discord.gg/Jwa8PKh
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