章節 800: Mystery
After finally settling things within the Traveler's Inn, Vahn was now flying through the sky with Asfi using her [Talaria] to keep pace. Though he did end up coping a feel of Lulune's butt, which was springy and tender, Vahn couldn't exactly stay there all day and keep messing around. The original purpose of his visit was to follow-up with Asfi and have her develop some magic items for him. He already had a few ideas in mind for things she could make and, considering he actually 'owned' her now, there were no longer any restrictions on the total amount. So long as he provided her with ample materials, Asfi could theoretically make anything his imagination could come up with.
From the information Vahn had been able to gather on the [Mystery] Development Ability, it was purported able to create 'miracles', which seemed to match the description provided by the system as well. As for what constituted a miracle, it was any phenomenon that was naturally occurring in the world, but represented through a function that had nothing to do with the original phenomenon. An example that was quite popular, even though the items were very expensive, was the concept of creating magic items to allow flight. Within the natural world, there were numerous creatures that could fly and, by 'believing' in that phenomenon and superimposing onto an item, you were able to create a 'miracle' that allowed the item to reflect the initial phenomenon.
Asfi's [Talaria] worked with this same concept and, though they had the basic form of sandals, she could use them to produce four wings out of thin air, allowing her to fly around the same speed she could run. As for other magic items she made use of, Asfi's dagger was able to produce magical fire, her glasses enabled her to see the flow of mana, her leather armor could be as hard as metal, and her cloak was able to obscure the detection abilities of others. All of these properties were things that existed naturally and, though it was possible to create similar effects with his [Master Smith], the fact that magic items could be assigned almost any effect was fundamentally different than the abilities obtained while blacksmithing.
After landing in the Manor's courtyard, Vahn led the way while Asfi, who had been following behind, suddenly came to a stop. Even without looking at her, Vahn had detected her hesitation and, without breaking step, said, "Come along, Asfi. You can't lecture me about hesitating if you're going to act like this...." Then, coming to a stop at the door, Vahn turned around and smiled before adding, "Besides, it is a little late to start worrying about things you can't really do much to influence. From the moment we shared vows, this place became your home...besides, most of the things you're worrying over don't have much to do with the reality of the situation...well, you'll understand soon enough."
From the moment he had said 'come along', Asfi had already started walking toward the door, no longer able to stop her own feet from moving forward. Vahn's words helped her calm down a little, though not to the extent that she didn't feel a great amount of trepidation about meeting the other girls in the Manor. She felt like she had intruded in on something that should have been inviolable, as the Hearth Manor was the 'heart' of the entire Alliance, the most powerful organization on the continent. Because of this, Asfi was a little worried about other people would see her, especially those that were close to Vahn...
Unable to do anything about her fears, Asfi followed behind Vahn in silence until he stopped outside of a door and said, "Well, do your best, Asfi..." These words caused Asfi to feel even more nervous as Vahn opened up the door to reveal...another Vahn. Not quite understanding what was going on, Asfi's mind blanked until a small part of her memory was triggered, reminding her of the fact Vahn claimed to have two bodies. Remembering this, she started to relax a little, at least until the second Vahn stepped to the side, revealing an entire room full of people staring back at her. Asfi felt like her heart was gripped by each and every one of them and sweatdropped when Vahn gently said, "Go inside..." while lightly pushing against her back with his surprisingly warm palm.
What followed was Asfi sitting like a statue between Haruhime and Mikoto as she answered everyone's questions. As for Vahn, he sat down between Loki, Hephaestus, Anubis, and Hestia. Having two bodies was convenient for situations like this, as he could see from two different perspectives while also giving more people an opportunity to sit next to him. He had already explained the situation to the girls before Asfi and him had even shown up, so they mainly asked about her past, her [Mystery] Development Ability, and her various likes and dislikes.
Asfi, realizing that almost none of the girls were hostile towards her, with Haruhime even showing her a bit of support, quickly calmed down after a few minutes had passed. When the questioning phase was over, Loki had her take some very detailed vows to ensure she wouldn't ever be able to exploit any loopholes to share the secrets of the Manor. After that, Asfi was given her own set of network items, a book containing all the rules and regulations of the Manor, and a summary document of decisions made during past Vahnatus. Seeing how 'organized' everything was, Asfi started to realize that what she had just become a part of was much 'bigger' than anything she had expected...
While Asfi was going over the documents, Hephaestus leaned against the table and said, "You know, Asfi, I've always been curious about the [Mystery] Development Ability. If possible, I'd like to see you make something within the workshop of the Manor. My daughter would probably be interested to see your skills in action as well, especially since you also have [Metalworking]. Honestly, I'm quite surprised to see how far your skills have developed while you're so young..." When she Hephaestus' voice, Asfi became a little rigid before responding with, "You're too kind, Hephaestus-sama, I-" Before she was able to continue any further, Hephaestus furrowed her brows and said, "Just call me Hephaestus. Here, in this Manor, we're all family..."
Swallowing her words, Asfi fell silent for a few seconds before nodding her head and saying, "I understand, Hephaestus..." This earned her an approving nod from Hephaestus, who then added, "Also, don't try to see yourself short for no reason. One of the things you'll learn after staying in this Manor long enough is that everyone here works hard to improve themselves. Though there isn't anything wrong with being humble, that kind of mentality will only slow your progress. Be confident and proud of what you've been able to achieve, especially if the person paying you a compliment is a couple of hundred million years old than you..." With Hephaestus' words, Loki, Hestia, and Anubis all began to chuckle. Demeter and Eirene were currently busy with their Familias or they likely would have joined in on the laughter.
Piggybacking off of Hephaestus' words, Tsubaki showed an amicable smile and added, "You wouldn't be known as the most capable item maker in the City if you weren't inordinately skilled. I'm also quite interested in your skills and wouldn't mind taking a look myself later. You never know, I might actually be able to give you some advice on where you can improve. Since you're already at the A-Rank, it'll only take a few more breakthroughs before you reach mastery. I'm pretty curious to see what the [Mystery] Development Ability becomes once it reaches S-Rank..." As one of the rarest Development Abilities, the amount of information on the [Mystery] skill was severely lacking, with no record of the next tier anywhere in the Guild's files.
Vahn, however, didn't have such a limitation and immediately threw a filter into the system shop to see if there were any books or journals that would detail the skill further. It didn't take long for him to even find a manual for the [Mystery] Development Ability, costing 3,000,000OP, but he instead purchased a small encyclopedia of skills, magic, and abilities that had been documented. He assumed it would have the information he needed because it had the same name as one of the Guilds records but cost several times more. Though it was almost impossible to buy items from the future of his current timeline, as it no longer existed within the system, Vahn was able to buy items from the other records of Danmachi that existed within The Paths information base.
Upon purchasing the book, Vahn copied the information to his mind and immediately found what he was looking for, deciding to vocalize his 'discovery' by saying, "There is a good chance that Asfi's [Mystery] would evolve into [Enigma] once she mastered it. After that, it would become [Phantasm] before finally reaching the peak at [Miracle] itself..." As they were very accustomed to Vahn's 'quirks', none of the girls were surprised by his revelations, even when he pulled out a book they knew had likely never been printed before. Vahn passed it off to Loki, who immediately opened it up and began reading the contents. Once she was finished, the book would become one of the important records of the Alliance, much like the other random books Vahn would 'create'...
Asfi, thinking that Vahn had already had the book this entire time, didn't think much about it and just kept relatively silent in the lively atmosphere. She was thinking about what kind of item she would make and, though they had asked if she were willing to let them see her process, it wasn't as though she could refuse. If Vahn told her to stand in the middle of a public venue stark naked and create an item in front of a crowd, that would be her fate. Besides, as all of these girls were people that were close to Vahn, Asfi couldn't come up with any justification to deny their request, even if she wasn't told expressly to reveal her techniques.
Unaware of the exhibitionist thoughts running through Asfi's mind, Vahn was also thinking about a simple magic item she could make that wouldn't take too long. He was pretty confident in being able to learn the [Mystery] Development Ability himself, which is why he wouldn't spend 3M OP just to get a manual explaining things. There was also a good chance that, once Asfi's Affection reached 100, their bond would likely outright give him the skill. Presently, she was at 97(Love?) and Vahn believed it wouldn't take too long to reach 100. In fact, he speculated he could get her to 100 almost instantly if he was a bit more forward in his approach...Asfi seemed like the type of girl who was stoic on the surface but was actually fragile underneath. She wanted to be sought after openly and, now that they were bound to each other, Vahn knew he would have to take the initiative to avoid having her lose confidence in herself...
After a lively luncheon, most of the girls went about their own business while Vahn, Hephaestus, Hestia, Loki, Tsubaki, and Haruhime all went with Asfi to one of the spare workshops in the East Annex. Along the way, they picked up Ina from her workshop and, even though she was a little annoyed at the interruption, her eyes glimmered the moment she heard about Asfi's ability. When Asfi saw Ina, knowing it was Vahn's daughter, she was shocked to the core and could hardly believe her eyes. After all, Ina was only around two years old publically but the girl standing in front of her looked closer in age to a teenager...
Keeping this thought to herself, Asfi began setting up her workshop with the assistance of Vahn, surprised by the fact that he seemed to be able to pull out anything she could think of from thin air. When he noticed her surprise, Vahn smiled and explained, "It should be in the documents you were given, but I have the power to create almost anything I can think of. The only requirement is that I have enough special energy within my reserves, which is the reason why the Alliance exchanges so many drop items with the Manor. I produce many of the hard to obtain resources within the market by using the energy contained within the drop items that are provided..."
When she heard Vahn's explanation, Asfi's face had a completely blank expression, like she was looking off into the distance and had seen something outside the perception of others. When she finally processed exactly what he had said, Asfi had wanted to ask several questions but lost the opportunity when Loki said, "You've got plenty of time to learn about what's going on within the Manor, especially if it relates to Vahn. For now, just focus on creating a magic item and, after you're done, there are a couple of things I want to talk to you about. I need to get your input on the Hermes Familia so I have a better understanding of how to use them in the most efficient manner."
Though she really wanted to have her questions answered, Asfi knew that Loki's words were true and, after she had finished here, there was plenty of time to ask about the things on her mind. Loki herself would probably be the best person to answer the majority of her questions so, without further delay, Asfi quickly got to work. The first thing she did was take a piece of already refined metal and, using the template blueprint Vahn had given her, began shaping it into a disc. Unlike what a [Blacksmith] would have to do, she was able to shape the metal itself by directly inserting her mana into the structure and molding it. Though it took a lot of her energy, Asfi was startled when Vahn placed his hand on her back and a warm flow of energy invaded her body, replenishing her reserves much faster than she could consume them...
Vahn knew about the [Metalworking] ability, so he wasn't too surprised to see Asfi suddenly warp the metal just by placing her hands above it. Though the others couldn't see it, he was able to see a hemisphere of energy that had been created by Asfi when she activated the ability. He wasn't able to understand everything that was going on, but Vahn could still memorize the process and strive to emulate it later. It would take some trial and error, but he would eventually be able to replicate the strange energy coming out of Asfi's hands, enabling him to use the [Metalworking] ability himself after a bit of practice.
When Asfi finished shaping the strange disc, which was around 150cm in diameter and had several small grooves located on its surface, she reached up to wipe the sweat from her brow only to discover a white towel being handed to her from the side. Seeing Vahn holding it out for her with a smile on his face, Asfi felt her heart flutter before accepting it, muttering a small 'Nn' in the process. The moment she did this, however, it felt like a jolt of cold electricity ran up her back and, turning towards the direction her instincts warned her of, she saw Vahn's daughter staring at her with somewhat icy eyes. This didn't last long, fortunately, as Hephaestus had brought her hand to Ina's shoulder and began lightly rubbing it to calm her down.
As he had also noticed Ina's behavior, Vahn knew he would have to explain things clearly to her and the other children later. The situation in the Manor was certainly very unique and, to avoid them harboring any ill will towards any of the girls that may come to reside here in the future, Vahn wanted to clear some things up with them. He knew Ina was probably worried that she would have even less time with him in the future, something that made him feel a little guilty at times. There were even moments when he considered trying to make another Avatar for the sole purpose of spending time with his children but Sis had advised him against it, saying he needed to increase the Tier of his soul if he wanted to split his consciousness any further.
Knowing how difficult it had been just to master controlling two bodies, which he was still working on, Vahn knew her advice should be taken very seriously. This once again brought up the idea of using shadow clones but, after experiencing the mental strain of just absorbing his memory fragments thoughts, Vahn knew the skill wasn't the best solution. Instead, he intended to simply make more time for them when his main body went into the Dungeon with the majority of the girls. This would actually free up a lot of time for him on the surface since he was supposed to be within the Dungeon and it would raise a few flags if people discovered he was in two places at once.
Currently, the number of people aware of this fact, at least outside of the Manor, numbered only eight people. It was a very important secret that he wanted to keep under wraps since it would allow him to get a jump on any enemies that wanted to attack his home, or the Alliance, while he was away. Since he had the ability to change his form, Vahn intended to transform into a smaller version of a Vanargandr and use an Ice Raiment [Magia Erebea] to make people think he was just another Xenos kept secret by the Alliance. He was quite fond of the transformation as well since Fenrir was 'extremely' fond of it and he had gotten pampered quite a bit after showing it off to the girls...
Broken out of his thoughts but Asfi finishing up the template 'levitation platform' he wanted her to make, Vahn smiled and answered her unasked question, "You've seen it yourself, but I'll demonstrate it again and explain the phenomenon of levitation..." While speaking, Vahn hovered off of the ground slightly and crossed his legs into a seated position, explaining, "Essentially, but using your mental energy in a skilled manner, you can manipulate objects with your mind and bring about a variety of phenomenon. This specific technique is called levitation and, by having a proper grasp of Space, you can change your orientation to the ground or even create 'anchors'. I'll demonstrate..."
Vahn sent a telepathic message to Tsubaki, surprising her at first before an excited grin appeared on her face. Then, surprising Asfi, and many of the other girls, Tsubaki jumped through the air with a 'Haaaaaaa!' and kicked towards Vahn's chest. She didn't put that much force into the hit, but Tsubaki was also a Level 6 with a large focus on physical Power. Her kick caused the ground beneath Vahn, which he wasn't even in contact with, to crack slightly as he caught her bare foot with his hand. Unlike in the past, Vahn was now more than a little stronger than Tsubaki, especially if she wasn't going all out.
Releasing a sigh, which caused Tsubaki to laugh even more, Vahn turned to Asfi and explained, "As you can see, it is possible to 'anchor' yourself to other objects, with the ground being the easiest. The miracle I want you to perform is imbuing that platform with the ability to levitate off the ground while still being anchored to it. This will give it much greater stability and stop the platform from wobbling when weight is placed on top of it. At the same time, you should keep in mind that it shouldn't be a perfect anchor, like what I just demonstrated, and should instead act as a shock absorber...like so..."
Turning to Ina, Vahn gestured towards his daughter and she immediately ran over without any explanation required and hopped into his lap. This caused Vahn to 'spring' slightly with the added weight before immediately returning back to his starting position. Ina happily began dangling her feet while leaning into his chest, giving Asfi a somewhat haughty look as if she had achieved some great victory...
Asfi was starting to realize it wasn't the girls in the Manor she needed to win over, but Vahn's children. For the time being, however, she just nodded towards Vahn and said, "I understand. Though I may not be able to get everything working properly the first time, I can use my [Mystery] skill multiple times on the same object. Only one effect can 'stick', but removing effects I personally assigned is easy enough..." Without waiting for Vahn to tell her to proceed, Asfi brought her hands together like she was praying and actually did exactly that. In reality, she was forming the image of the phenomenon she wanted to create and, by understanding the said phenomenon, she would be able to imbue it into the object she had designated.
Vahn watched Asfi with his [Eyes of Truth] active and could see one of the strangest phenomena he had ever observed before. An illusory sphere had surrounded Asfi's body and there were several cogs, rings, and other strange mechanical components that nobody else seemed to be able to discern. The reality, however, was quite different from Vahn's expectations as the young Vanir sitting in his lap could also clearly see these things, her own eyes glimmering with the illusion of eight segmented parts, each reflecting a different image of the same scene. They both watched as the strange mechanical structure around Asfi changed into a more organized shape before blue characters appeared in front of her face, which Vahn could interpret as 'Levitation'. It would seem that, once again, the phenomenon on the world could be guided by words and intentions, just like how magic itself was able to function...
When the word had formed, it began to condense into a small droplet of energy between Asfi's hands and, when she opened her palms, the illusory droplet now existed in reality. She was able to move it forward without it falling to the ground and placed it above the platform before letting it drop. When it contacted the metallic surface, it created ripples that could be seen with the naked eye before the metallic surface became calm once again. From the side, Hephaestus hand her hand to her chin in a thoughtful manner and said, "Hooo...trully, a prodigious talent...I haven't seen someone use the [Mystery] ability with that much finesse in my entire time in the mortal world..." Next to her, Loki also nodded her head and understood that Asfi was actually far more skilled than she had expected. Though neither she nor Hephaestus had seen the phenomenon observed by Vahn and Ina, they were able to sense the fluctuations of the world and a small amount of Divine Power contained within Asfi's ability...
After releasing a sigh of relief, Asfi smiled and picked up the platform before placing it on the ground and standing on it. Since she was used to activating magic items near her feet, with her own [Talaria] requiring the same capability, Asfi was quickly able to activate the [Levitation Platform]. The moment it was activated, she hovered about two meters off the ground and, to test the shock absorption capabilities, jumped up and down a few times to make it bob. As for Vahn, he had averted his eyes to the side as Ina looked up at Asfi's pale-blue lace panties that were on full display from the current angle...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Into the shark tank...','Ina's icy gaze...','*staring further intensifies*')
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章節 801: Preparations
Though she didn't catch it at first, Asfi quickly noticed the gaze of Ina and the fact that Vahn had averted his eyes. A bit of heat reached cheeks as she defensively pressed the front of her skirt to make it harder to see. Then, in an effort to calm herself, Asfi focused on lowering the [Levitation Platform] to the ground before setting it on the table. When she was finished, as if nothing had happened, Asfi turned to face everyone with a stoic expression on her face and asked, "Is there anything else...?"
Loki and Tsubaki both laughed boisterously at Asfi's behavior while Hestia and Hephaestus had somewhat wry smiles on their faces. This caused the blush to return to Asfi's face as she averted her eyes to the side, making eye contact with Ina in the process. She noticed the girl had a small frown on her face, filling Asfi with a bit of trepidation that she had no easy means of dealing with. Since Ina was Vahn's daughter, Asfi wanted to try and make a good impression on her but, given how Ina had been acting, Asfi was certain she didn't appreciate her presence here...
Vahn also noticed that Ina didn't seem that fond of Asfi but he assumed it was just because Asfi was an 'outsider' and potentially ate into the time they could spend together. As he was ought to do, Vahn reached out his hand and pat his daughter's head, causing her to startle slightly before immediately calming down. Instead of staring towards Asfi, she turned her eyes to the side and stared at the [Levitation Platform] with a glimmer of intrigue in her eyes. Contrary to expectations, she was actually more than a little interested in Asfi's abilities and had a ton of questions to ask her. Though she was a little annoyed that there was another girl to divert her Papa's attention, Ina had already gotten used to the fact that she couldn't always be with him. There was also the simple fact that she could look into her own future and see herself getting along with Asfi, making it a lot easier to accept her...eventually...
Since there were a lot of things she wanted to talk to Asfi about, Loki cut through the atmosphere with her words, saying, "Okay, that was pretty interesting but there are a lot of things we still need to discuss. I'm sure you have a lot of questions as well, so let's move to a private room in the west wing. There are a lot of empty rooms where you can take up residence in as well so we'll get you situated afterward." Then, turning to Haruhime, Loki added, "Haruhime, you seem to have the closest relationship with Asfi so I'll have you come to our meeting. When we're done, you'll be in charge of looking after her until she gets acclimated to the Manor."
As she had already expected something similar to happen, Haruhime just smiled politely as her four tails flickered behind her. Ever since she had grown her fourth, Haruhime's tails had a natural inclination to curve around her body whenever she was standing idly. They would also frame her body like a fan whenever she was in combat and always seemed to be moving around in a mesmerizing manner. Though she could proactively control them, almost with the dexterity of a hand, Haruhime let them 'act as they pleased' in normal circumstances. As a result, it was easy to see that she was pleased by the outcome and, at least from Vahn's perspective, he could see a slightly mischevious glint in her eyes...
With Asfi heading off with Loki and Haruhime, the other girls were all planning to go their separate ways as Hephaestus, Tsubaki, and Ina carried off the [Levitation Platform] to study. As for Hestia, she stayed behind and came to Vahn's side, grasping his hand in a comforting manner as she asked, "Are you okay, Vahn...?" Since her bond with Vahn was inarguably the strongest amongst the girls, Hestia had felt the turmoil he had gone through earlier. She had been talking with Hephaestus, the other goddess that could 'literally' feel what Vahn experienced, and decided who should comfort him. Since Vahn's other body had been with Loki at the time, they hadn't had the chance to get him to relax and open up his heart if necessary.
Feeling Hestia's concern, Vahn produced a soft smile and, somewhat surprising her, reduced his height to more closely resemble her's as he hugged her inexplicably soft body and buried his face in her breasts. Hestia blushed a little at the sudden intimate contact before bringing up her hand and patting the top of Vahn's head, saying, "You did the right thing Vahn...good boy..." Being talked to in the same way he would sometimes talk to the more emotionally unstable girls, Vahn felt a small urge to laugh but just kept silent and held Hestia for a while. Though he had already calmed down a lot after Lulune's 'reminder', Vahn was still reliant on the girls of the Manor for his stability...
---
With the inclusion of Asfi in the Manor, there were a few ripples that had been made, especially as the reality of her situation began to settle in. She was shaken to the core when she learned about the existence of the orbs and how powerful each of the girls in the Manor was. At the same time, Asfi's presence was a topic of interest for the girls themselves, with Haruhime acting as something of an intermediary to facilitate her adaptation. She also stepped in to help Asfi begin her training, meaning that latter spent a lot of time at the Fox Shrine with Chloe, Shizune, and Tina.
Asfi immediately started training as hard as she could, facilitated by Vahn giving her a 'flame seed' and, though her face had turned a ruddy crimson, bestowed upon her a [Pactio]. Asfi's raiment took on a form nobody had quite expected, with her having a white blouse, short black skirt, and what looked like a white lab coat. As for her artifact, it took on the form of a series of belts and pouches that actually worked as interspatial storage compartments. It would seem that Asfi's propensity to try and prepare for anything had manifested itself as an organized storage for the magic items, equipment, and consumables that she would keep on hand...
Because she had access to an almost unlimited number of supplies and also benefitted from the existence of four skilled blacksmiths, with three being [Master Smith]s, Asfi could make significantly more powerful items than in the past. Vahn had quickly tested a theory he had formed and, working alongside Asfi during the production of an item, he had managed to forge an A-Rank bracelet that she was also able to use her [Mystery] on. Generally, an item maker could only bestow a miracle on the items they had created but, with the two of them working alongside each other, Asfi was able to get around this restriction. At the same time, Vahn was over the moon since Asfi's [Mystery] was actually able to emulate the 'storing' function he had been struggling to crack for years.
It took a few tries but, after showing Asfi the functionality of the gems that could store items within their internal structure, she was eventually able to bestow this effect on any item with a 'core'. The best part of this was the fact that the items were able to benefit from the abilities derived from his [Master Smith] without any conflict with her [Mystery] Development Ability. Though it wasn't exactly more useful than the interspatial bracelets that he had already developed, the fact that the girls could instantly transform into a combat-ready state was meaningful. Yes, they could do something similar with their [Pactio], but not every girl had a raiment and artifact suited for combat. This innovation would be instrumental for their protection in the future and also served as another unique product that only the Alliance could create.
Adding to the changes was the fact that Asfi's Affection had quickly reached 100 during the [Pactio] ceremony, unfortunately without awarding him the [Mystery] Development Ability. Instead, Vahn received Asfi's [Metalworking] at C-Rank, a pendant that allowed the wearer to breathe underwater, and a few thousand Origin Points. Though he had been a little disappointed to have missed out on the [Mystery] Development Ability, Vahn admonished himself for the thought and got over it pretty quickly. After all, he didn't actually need the ability and, if he truly wanted to learn it, the only requirement was that he put in the effort to do so...
Though it was difficult for her to process, most of these events had happened over a four day period, meaning not even a day had passed in the real world. Asfi now perfectly understood how the girls had been able to increase their strength so quickly, especially after experiencing her own growth in a short period of time. Even without killing any monsters, just using the techniques demonstrated by the girls had started to increase her parameters rather quickly, especially her Magic. She was also looking forward to being able to cast the same spells as the other girls as her own magic, [Kalov Argol] had 'literally' always left a bad taste in her mouth. Since it had the visual impact of watching her vomit out a large volume of pungent liquid, she very rarely ever used it, especially if other people were around...
After exiting the orb, Asfi ended up returning to the Traveler's Inn because she was still the Captain of the Hermes Familia and needed to organize things in accordance with Loki's intentions. Their Familia would be serving as an extension of Loki's own information network while the more unique members would become part of the expedition party heading down to the 50th Floor. They would be acting as scouts and serve as lookouts to make sure things were running smoothly, as Vahn himself could not always be observing everything taking place during the construction. As they 'had' to be loyal, and already possessed very keen observational skills, they would make adequate observers and informants during the long construction process.
At the same time, Hermes had already learned of the fact that his Familia had been purchased and hadn't been surprised, even for a moment. Instead, he ended up having a long conversation with Loki, Freya, and Hephaestus before disappearing to go on 'vacation'. Vahn hadn't been present for the meeting, as there was a high chance he would have entered into conflict with Hermes, but he heard about the details after the fact.
Hermes currently had no authority over his own Familia and, according to the contract that Vahn and Loki had agreed to when taking ownership of his 'children', he was only required to stop by once a month to update their Status Boards. Thus, without detailing what he would be doing over the next year, Hermes simply 'disappeared' after the meeting, apparently to return to Heaven temporarily. He was one of the only gods that could freely travel between the mortal world and Heaven without destroying his avatar and was probably putting into motion the next step of whatever plan he had machinated...
As they were used to their god being absent, none of the Hermes Familia members seemed to care at all about the changes. Though they had been surprised by the fact that Vahn had purchased them, the shock had worn off very quickly with the passage of the evening. With a few exceptions, almost everyone in the Hermes Familia had experience with being purchased previously and Vahn being their owner was inarguably better than most other arrangements. The fact that he announced he would be paying them a salary, even though they were his 'belongings', caused many of the members that had previous concerns to settle down very quickly. They were able to intuit from this fact alone that Vahn wasn't actually treating them as possessions, at least for the time being...
One thing that Vahn had both expected, yet was still surprised about, was the fact that Lulune and Pot had essentially spread a lot of rumors over the course of a single evening. Since many of the girls in the Hermes Familia had already harbored 'intentions' towards him, the words of the two girls had caused many of them to feel emboldened. This was especially the case for the Beast Human girls as both Lulune and Pot had 'verified' the rumors that Vahn had a tendency to pet the heads of girls. Lulune also came forward about the fact that Vahn had actually grabbed Asfi's butt and made remarks about her own tail and ears.
When Vahn learned about these things from Asfi after the fact, he immediately regretted not telling Lulune that she should have kept quiet about 'everything' that happened during their discussion. Instead, the only things she wasn't allowed to talk about were the secrets they had shared, allowing her to freely cause misunderstandings with her propensity to say whatever was on her mind. Even Elilly had contributed to the misunderstanding, proclaiming something about him being the type of man who showed compassion to all women. Since Elilly was currently a very hot topic within the Familia, her words had been the final straw that now turned the Traveler's Inn into a 'landmine' that Vahn would have to be cautious of in the future...
This didn't mean he would actually avoid going there, however, since many things could be avoided by him simply 'telling' the girls not to pester him. After all, even if he didn't truly treat them like his possessions, his word was 'absolute' to the Hermes Familia members for the next year. As a result, he stopped by on the evening of the second day and took care of one of the things that had been bothering him.
Dodon, the man who seemed like a kind soul who had been brutalized by his tribe, was someone Vahn felt deserved a better lot in life. His file showed that the reason for his exile had been the result of an internal struggle where the wife of the tribe's chief had actually been in love with him. Since the chief didn't want his then-fiancee to elope with another man, he simply used his authority to brutalize Dodon before burning down his house and chasing him out of the village. The only reason he was still alive is that the chief's fiancee had threatened to kill herself if he didn't allow Dodon to flee safely.
Strangely, Dodon didn't seem to harbor any ill will towards his tribe, even after he had been treated so poorly. This was because, even though he had lost respect for the chief, he genuinely cared for the villagers that he had spent his entire life growing alongside. Though he had regrets about the fact that his childhood friend ended up marrying the much older Chief, Dodon knew she would be taken care of since the Chief wasn't simply fond of her, but actually loved her a great deal. Thus, Dodon accepted his lot in life and now his only desire was to look over the weaker members of the Familia and make sure they don't have to suffer. Most of the money he earned actually went to the younger members of the Familia, especially the Pallum girls like Tallow, Meryl, and Pot.
With all of these factors, Vahn had a great deal of respect for Dodon's character and decided that he would heal the man and allow him to live without the burden of being a disfigured mute. Though Dodon himself had politely declined the offer, Vahn didn't leave the man much of a choice and 'selfishly' healed Dodon's body. This allowed Vahn to see the extent of the damage on Dodon's body and made the respect he held towards the man even stronger. After he finished healing him, Vahn pat the muscular man's shoulder and gave him a tab for entry into the Clubhouse as a VIP member. Then, for the first time, Dodon rubbed the back of his head and, after remaining silent for nearly a minute, muttered in a deep baritone voice, "Thanks..."
Contrary to his expectations, Dodon donned his previous disguise and, when Vahn asked why, the behemoth of a man simply explained, "My silence has become something many members of the Familia rely on. I am someone they can talk to, an existence that will listen to their troubles without judgment. Even if I can now speak, the identity I have assumed for the last five years is something important to both myself, and my companions...still, thank you for healing me, Vahn. I'm certain I will sleep much better now that the aches and pains in my body are gone..." Then, without any other explanations, Dodon bowed politely and excused himself from the room as Vahn stared with an absentminded expression on his face...
With Dodon as the precedent, Vahn also healed many of the injuries of other Hermes Familia members, both male and female. Many of them had either sustained an injury in their work, or were subjected to the whims of their 'clients' in the past. This was especially true for some of the female members who, after being healed, would generally spend a few minutes in front of a standing mirror and inspecting their bodies. Some of them shed tears, as many women were very self-conscious about their appearance, while others tried to proposition him after the fact. Vahn politely declined their offers, even though he was more than a little tempted by some of the more flirtatious girls.
As a result of his efforts, his reputation within the Hermes Familia immediately became very positive, even though some of the girls complained about him being a 'prude'. Most of this was said in jest, as it was very easy for them to see that Vahn had an appreciation for their bodies, but it still ended up being an 'affectionate' complaint when they were gossiping about him. As for the girls who had been lucky enough to receive his touch directly. Since he needed to touch the damaged areas to remove scars and repair damaged muscles, they ended up being the 'winners' amongst the girls within the Familia, claiming the first advantage in a 'competition' that had apparently been started between them...
In this manner, the days before the expedition continued to count down and Vahn was in the final phase of his own preparations. They had already confirmed the members that would be heading towards the 50th Floor, consisting of nearly six-hundred construction workers and a total of two-hundred Adventurers over Level 3. With the logistics group and Supporters, generally those that were Level 2 or lower, the total number of members had exceeded a thousand, coming to a record high 1308 personnel. It was the largest expedition since the establishment of Orario and was also the most ambitious project in History, being the construction of a settlement on a Floor that many had no hope of reaching in the past.
Since he wouldn't be able to lead and direct such a large group of people on his own, the Expedition had three Commanders that would be in charge of groups around 400-450 members. As an official operation of the Alliance, every Familia was pitching in their support, giving Vahn access to a wide array of talent to choose from. To command each unit, he had selected Finn, leaving Gareth in charge of Lil Geirr, and Shakti, as the Ganesha Familia would be playing a major role in the establishment of Haven. As for the final unit, it would actually be commanded by Haruhime. Though she would officially be classified as the Rearguard Commander, this was an important moment for her to accumulate leadership experience while also serving in the capacity of the Hestia Familia's Vice-Captain.
Haruhime wasn't the only one with a key role, however, as many of the girls had been assigned as part of a strike team that would constantly be moving to protect all three units. Ais would be pairing up with Tiona and Tione while Arnya and Lefiya acted as ranged artillery. The second strike team would be led by Fenrir and included Mikoto, Chloe, Shizune, and, as she refused to be left behind once again, Tina. As a Level 5, Vahn didn't really have a justifiable reason to refuse her and, with Milan giving her permission, Tina would be acting as the group's vanguard. Her defensive capabilities had actually reached a monstrous level, especially after getting her own [Pactio], so there weren't many enemies that could threaten her.
Not only did Tina's [Eclipse] allow her to sap the strength of her opponents, increasing her own, but her artifact took on the form of a shield, just like her mother's. The biggest difference was that Tina's shield took on the form of a small buckler that, when struck by an attack, caused a strange sphere comprised of hexagonal panels to appear around her body for an instant. At the same time, whatever struck her shield became rooted to the spot, essentially making Tina almost impervious to damage and indefinitely stunning an enemy. Though it wasn't impossible to break out of, as Lili and Tiona had both managed to pull it off, the amount of strength required to do so was immense...
The remaining members that would be entering into the Dungeon with the expedition were Lili, Ryuu, and, in order to give her a chance to vent out her frustrations, Alexa. Lili and Ryuu would be charged with protecting Haruhime and, should any large enemies show up that Ais and Fenrir couldn't easily deal with, they would take it out with their almost unstoppable offensive power. As for Alexa, Vahn would be watching over her personally while serving as the Supreme Commander in the case of an emergency situation. His own power was at the level that he would be able to defeat almost any enemy the moment he took action so he decided to let the girls cut loose a bit to warm up for whatever Enyo would throw at them.
With that in mind, while every resident of the Manor was gathered around, Vahn entered into the Space-Time orb to retrieve Alexa. They would be celebrating her 120th birthday in the real world while also welcoming her into the Hearth Manor as it's newest resident. Though she wouldn't have much time to venture around, as it was currently the day before the expedition, Vahn still wanted to take her around the City to experience the sights and sounds of society for the first time. The fact that he would probably end up riding on her back for this tour was something he selectively chose to ignore...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Lulune is a blabbermouth...','Dodon is a real man (O_O)...','The expedition approacheth~!')
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