章節 1809: Extrapolate
Waking from his daily meditation, Vahn wasn't surprised to find that he had been surrounded by fluff from all sides. This was pretty normal whenever he attempted to comprehend the Mantra of Eternity within the Emerald Grove, so, after considerately waking everyone from their slumber and extricating Yoruichi from his shirt, Vahn stretched his body as he lightly mused, "You girls need to find a hobby. As for you, Kushina, you should take your condition into consideration...I don't think it would be a problem, but I can't help but worry..."
Quickly reverting back to her human form, Kushina gave Vahn a light punch in his arm, smiling as she said, "You're such a worry-wart. I'm barely even a month in so stop worrying so much. Besides, it's not like it'll make much of a difference, right? I mean, no matter what happens, our kid should be able to transition between a fox and a human whenever they want."
Though he knew she was right, that didn't stop Vahn from messing up Kushina's hair as he adopted a firmer tone and said, "It's better to be safe than sorry. Don't play around too much."
Rolling her eyes, Kushina quickly fixed her hair as she said, "I'm gonna go make lunch. Do you want me to cook you up something?"
Having already made plans, Vahn shook his head in response to Kushina's offer, saying, "I'll have to take a raincheck. I promised to eat lunch with Fenrir and Ryun. Afterward, I was intending to stop by and visit Arceus and the triplets. How about we do dinner together...?"
Before Kushina could answer his question, something soft pressed against Vahn's back as a pair of arms wrapped around his neck, followed by a sultry voice asking, "How about you do me instead? I never got my reward for helping you eliminate all those Regulars~."
Though he wasn't unaccustomed to Yoruichi's antics, Vahn felt a strong inclination to give Yoruichi's backside a spanking as he rolled his eyes and remarked, "I literally spent three hours with you in the outer rings..."
As if she didn't hear him, Yoruichi began to gently nibble on the top of Vahn's ear. As for Kushina, she adopted a slight frown, crossing her arms as she answered, "Sure. We'll make it a date between you, me, and Hinata. Just the three of us."
Answering before Yoruichi could interrupt, Vahn smiled as he said, "Sounds great. I'll ask Xerneas if we can use the Forest of Eternity. It's been a while since we've had an evening picnic."
Since the Forest of Eternity was filled with various bioluminescent plants, it was an exceptionally beautiful place once the sky began to dim. Kushina was well aware of this, so, in response to Vahn's words, she returned an excited smile of her own as she gave him a thumbs up and said, "Yosh! I'll be looking forward to it, you know~!" (A/N: If Kushina's verbal tick annoys people, I can disregard it in future dialogues.)
A little annoyed at being excluded, Yoruichi bit the top of Vahn's ear before releasing him from her grasp and whispering, "You owe me one." as she pinched his butt. Then, in a flash of bluish-white, she vanished from view with the sound of a thunderclap mildly disorienting those present.
Though she was one of the ones who had been startled by Yoruichi's explosive departure, Kushina managed a victorious smile as she held up her middle and index fingers. Vahn just lightly chuckled at this before giving everyone present a few parting headpats...
---
With little else to do, Vahn spent the duration of the Elimination Competition in much the same way as he had before: training, researching, spending time with his loved ones, and helping to develop his Templates. There were a few hiccups every now and then, but it was nothing he couldn't handle with some skillful negotiation and the occasional compromise.
In this manner, Vahn was able to improve his mastery over the Law of Petting, and, though it was far behind the former, he even managed to make a few breakthroughs in the Law of Authority. His Will of the Emperor helped a lot in this regard, but the true MVPs ended up being Roger and, to a lesser extent, Madara.
Roger possessed an Innate called [Pirate King's Indominatable Will], the source of his [Conqueror's Haki], an ability that allowed him to effectively suppress, control, knock out, and even kill weaker willed individuals. As for Madara, she had a non-standard Innate called [Progenitor of the Uchiha], an ability that drastically increased her willpower and seemingly made her immortal so long as she was the only Uchiha left alive.
By spending time with and training alongside the two charismatic battle-junkies, Vahn had learned how to resist and even deflect the intent of others. He was still at a very basic level, but, thanks to his [Will of the Emperor] already being SSS-Rank, it was more than enough to give him the edge in a contest of wills. He had even managed to stun Madara long enough to give her a light pat on the head, a mistake that resulted in him being buried beneath a hill-sized meteor. Still, it was worth it to see the look on her face, even if it was one filled with unadulterated wrath...
At this point, Vahn had started to feel an inclination to 'pet everything', and, though he doubted it would happen, he even humored the idea of awakening an Innate related to petting. Thus, even if it resulted in him losing an arm, he had no regrets about petting Madara's head. Rather, he was even starting to consider the possibility of petting the Leaders of the Ten Great Families into submission; but, remembering the Ha and Eurasia Families were a part of this equation, Vahn wasn't quite at the point where he wanted to conquer the entire Tower through petting.
Thanks to the Law of Identity, Vahn would be able to identify Jahad and the Leaders of the Ten Great Families by both appearance and aura. He couldn't deny that Yuri's Great-Grandmother was an unbelievably beautiful woman, but the most important takeaway was that Jahad wasn't nearly as omniscient as the rumors purported him to be. His power was borderline incomprehensible, but he was blissfully unaware of the existence of Baam as an Irregular thanks to Lo Po Bia Ren being stuck in a coma ever since Gandr's attack.
To conceal Baam's existence and allow Team Wolf Pack to continue their climb unimpeded, Vahn was going against his original intention of lying low and just going with the flow. He didn't intend to 'spoil' everything for himself by researching and planning around everything, but, after sensing the auras possessed by Jahad and the Ten Great Warriors, he knew there would be plenty of close fights in the future. This gave him a lot to look forward to, so, before parting ways with his lovable brats, Vahn wanted to make sure there weren't any dangers lurking in the shadows.
Fortunately, the Law of Identity was completely 'broken' in regard to obtaining information. She could literally assume the identity of anyone, obtaining all of their knowledge, experience, and memories. This meant she could find out the identities of a person's boss before asking her all manner of questions related to their operations and intentions. This could be repeated until he reached the highest point in a person's chain of command, the literal people pulling the strings behind every major event taking place in the Tower.
With the loveable redheads support, Vahn was able to learn that some of the Elders of FUG were not completely on board with allowing Baam to remain outside of their control. Others, however, fully believed in the prophecy that stated he would be the one to defeat Jahad and open the way forward for everyone else trying to climb the Tower. This latter faction was actually the strongest within FUG, but, unfortunately, their belief made them inept and unwilling to support Baam. Even if others within FUG attempted to kill him, they wouldn't lift a finger to try and stop them since they genuinely believed he was 'fated' to succeed.
Vahn was never fond of things like prophecies, and, knowing how Rachel had betrayed Baam, it wasn't difficult to imagine the latter suffering to an unreasonable extent just because the people who could have helped him believed there was no need. Fortunately, now that he was here, Baam would be able to move relatively unobstructed up the Tower.
With any luck, Baam would remain the same vibrant, happy, and wholesome young man that inspired everyone in his team to be 'better' than their past selves. If anyone tried to corrupt or break him, the only mercy Vahn would afford them would be a quick death and a prayer towards their next life. He had absolutely no tolerance for those who would readily place heavy burdens of suffering upon the innocent just for their own sake. Thus, if FUG tried to intervene, Vahn would do everything within his power to completely wipe them out.
Unfortunately, unless he directly intervened, Baam's powerful fate was bound to lead him down a path where he discovered the truth. This was something Vahn lamented because he had already learned about the boy's origins directly from his mother. She was currently masquerading as the High Priestess of a cult that existed outside the Tower, willfully serving the God who had infused the Primordial Sin of Gluttony into her dead child's body. This resulted in Baam's fractured Ego merging with the Primordial Sin, simultaneously killing yet resurrecting him.
Though it wasn't inaccurate to call the revived entity her son, Arlene, Baam's mother, didn't see him as such. She lamented the fate of her child to such an extreme that she was blinded to the fact that her son's Ego had persisted thanks to her sealing him using a forbidden mystic art. As a result, she treated the being that possessed her son's actual Ego as a monster, sealing him beneath the shrine of her God and forcing herself to stay away. This was unbelievably tragic, as, despite being the Sin of Gluttony, Baam was the same child she grieved for every night for the last ten-thousand-years...
When Baam invariably learned the truth about his origins, Vahn was intending to help him reunite, not just with his mother, but his father as well. The latter had died thousands of years prior, but his spirit still remained within the Tower, unable to move on after seeing his wife fall into madness. He was currently in a self-imposed hibernation, sealed within a pendant in the possession of the leader of FUG, the 15th Ranked Grace Mirchea Luslec.
Luslec was a former subordinate of Baam's father, a former warlord named Viole, better known as V. The latter had entrusted Luslec the task of handing down the pendant to Baam once he was strong enough to fight against Jahad and the Leaders of the Ten Great Families. He didn't actually care for things like revenge, but, knowing how accurate his wife's prophecies could be, Viole had decided to preserve himself so he could pass down his teachings unto his son.
Though Viole had the intention of disappearing after completing his final duty as a father, Vahn had already made arrangements to revive the man when the time came. He had even been mixing some of the man's teachings into Baam's foundation, preparing the latter for their inevitable reunion.
Vahn had never been fond of tragic backstories, so, with both of Baam's parents still being alive, in one form or another, he saw no reason to keep them apart. He couldn't do much right now, but his power in the future was beyond even his own comprehension. Still, that wouldn't prevent him from doing just about anything he had put his mind to. After all, he didn't call himself the God of Infinite Possibilities just to toot his own horn. He had plenty of people who were more than willing to take care of that...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Nine-Tailed Fox vs Thunder Cat~','The Law of Petting has no limits...','Arlene could learn a lot from V...')
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章節 1810: Hidden Intentions
A stark contrast to the chaos and uncertainty that dominated the first day of the preliminaries, the days that followed were relatively peaceful and quiet. Many teams were still apprehensive about leaving the safety of their dwellings so they ended up stalling until the barrier surrounding the battlefield forced them to head inward. This was when the 'true' competition began, a bloody affair that resulted in a substantial number of deaths due to the remaining 17% of Regulars being among the strongest and most violent in the batch.
Fortunately, Team Wolf Pack had managed to secure one of the centermost defensive points within the entire battlefield. This forced them to constantly be on guard against enemy attacks, but it also meant they were able to accumulate a considerable number of Points just by keeping others at bay. Even people like Shibisu and Nare were able to earn their keep by manipulating Observers capable of firing dense beams of Shinsu at unsuspecting enemies.
Though their individual members were far stronger than the average Regular, what truly set Team Wolf Pack apart was the enviable quality of their equipment. Each member had been outfitted with an extremely durable hooded mantle that loosely emulated the features of a Vanargandr. The hood had two large ears that worked as powerful sensors; and, though some people might assume it was purely cosmetic, the tail drooping near the backside helped to store Shinsu absorbed through the fabric of the mantle in order to power a number of useful functions.
The 'bagworms' were not only extremely durable, but, so long as the user had precise control over their Shinsu, they could conceal themselves from scans, turn invisible, and even teleport over short distances. They also helped to give Team Wolf Pack a sense of uniformity, quite literally appearing as a pack of wolves whenever they moved and coordinated together.
The only thing Phae hadn't provided Team Wolf Pack was powerful weapons since neither she nor Vahn wanted them to become entirely reliant on their equipment. Instead, they were tasked with developing their individual skills and abilities while improving their Shinsu capacity and control. In the end, each member of Team Wolf Pack was expected to be able to fill virtually all Positions in a team, Light Bearer and Wave Controller included.
If a member of Team Wolf Pack wanted a powerful weapon, they could either save enough Points to purchase one from the Workshop, complete a Quest that offered one as a reward, or confiscate the weapon of an enemy attempting to kill them. Stealing was strictly discouraged, but, so long as your foe attacked with malicious or vile intentions, taking their weapon as compensation was considered acceptable.
---
With Endorsi's 'consent', Gandr was patrolling through the forests surrounding their team's fortress alongside Anak. They had teamed up a lot over the last few days, and, though she didn't speak that much, it was easy to see how much Anak was enjoying their time together based on how the tip of her tail would periodically waggle. She had also become rather fond of headpats, so, whenever she successfully defeated a group of Regulars without severely injuring them, Gandr would express his approval by patting her head and telling her she had done a good job.
Unfortunately, even after months of training, Anak still had trouble holding herself back whenever she got excited. The stronger her opponent was, the more excited she became, so, unless they were relatively weak, most of Anak's opponents ended up suffering from broken bones and other serious injuries. As for those who looked down on or insulted her...well, they only had themselves to blame for their hubris...
Having been called a brat by a woman on the enemy team, Anak didn't hesitate to charge directly at the offending Light Bearer as the former's team attempted to protect her. She was much faster than any opponent they had ever dealt with, however, so she easily evaded the piercing lunge of the Fisherman by ducking under the sapphire-blue point and hammering the back of her fist into his ribcage, shattering several bones. This also sent the man flying to the side, his body crashing through several trees as she side-stepped their Scouts flanking attack by a hair's breadth before rewarding him with a similar prize.
Seeing the two strongest members of her team taken out in an instant, the opposing Light Bearer could only stare with wide eyes as her mental faculties slowed to a crawl. Fortunately, she was not fated to be Anak's victim as Gandr promptly appeared behind her, striking the back of her neck in much the same manner as the rest of her allies. He could freely produce Shadow Clones, so, before Anak could lose her cool, he decided to end the fight by eliminating the other enemies himself.
Noticing Gandr's actions, Anak was unable to prevent a pout from developing across her face. This was only for a very brief moment, however, as she knew Gandr had assuredly done the right thing by eliminating the enemies swiftly and efficiently. Only tyrants, bullies, and thugs willfully harmed those who were much weaker than themselves. She didn't want to be any of these things, so, after forcibly calming herself down, Anak adopted a slightly apologetic expression as she muttered, "I'm sorry..." in an uncharacteristically demure tone.
After quickly destroying the badges of the enemy team, Gandr made his way over to Anak's side, petting her head as he said, "You're doing your best, Anak. Don't let small setbacks like this get to you..."
Though she continued to lower her head slightly, Gandr could tell his words had made Anak feel a little better since the tip of her tail was twitching. Her tail was a lot more honest than she was, so, if you know how to read her body language, it was pretty easy to tell how Anak was feeling. She had tried to control it several times in the past, but, as was often the case for those who possessed tails, the extra appendage had a habit of betraying you at the most important times.
Retracting his hand from Anak's head, Gandr had to force himself not to laugh as the tip of her tail immediately drooped. Fortunately, he had already been smiling before so she didn't see wasn't able to see through his thoughts as the corners of his smile curled upward ever-so-slightly...
---
While Gandr was out patrolling with Anak, Endorsi was lounging in a beanbag chair near the corner of their temporary control center. The interior of the fortified room had been refurbished to make it marginally more habitable, so, whenever she wasn't on duty, Endorsi liked to snuggle with Yun-Yun while following Gandr around with an Observer she had 'borrowed' from Shibisu.
Endorsi genuinely liked to watch Gandr showing off so part of their agreement allowed her to freely spy on him whenever she wanted. The other part involved having him revert back to his puppy form so that he could sleep with her in the women's resting area. This latter part had caused Gandr quite a bit of stress as Endorsi had a bad habit of going overboard whenever other women were around. As a result, he had been pet and fondled excessively over the duration of the preliminaries, not just by Endorsi, but by nearly every female member of the team.
With the exception of Ohta, who didn't seem to think his cub form was very cute, the other female members of Team Wolf Pack absolutely adored Gandr's wolf transformation. Even Phae wasn't an exception to this, so, as the days passed, it became increasingly common for him to be handled and passed around among the group of doting girls.
Unfortunately, Gandr actually enjoyed being doted upon and pampered quite a bit, so, even though he had the sinking suspicion that Endorsi was trying to groom him into something like a pet, it was difficult not to enjoy the attention he was receiving. He especially liked being cuddled while having the backs of his ears scratched. Belly rubs were a close second, but, more than anything else, Gandr was developing a mild addiction to having his face nestled between a woman's breasts while they hugged his body.
Though they knew he had a human transformation, even Nare seemed to completely forget about this fact whenever Gandr was in his puppy form. She liked to cuddle and play with him, and, every now and then, would even talk to him in 'baby speak' while squishing and pulling his cheeks. This was extremely embarrassing but it was nothing compared to the time when Yun-Yun attempted to conceal him within her blanket like some kind of stuffed animal that she could freely cuddle as she slept...
Needless to say, Gandr had been living a rather enviable yet stressful existence, all in accordance with Endorsi's grand plan. She was proactively encouraging the girls to cuddle with him in his wolf form in order to instill in them the idea that it was her 'permission' that allowed them to get closer to him.
Endorsi knew there was little she could do to prevent others from coveting someone as adorable and capable as Gandr, so, before it became a problem, she wanted to cement herself as the 'highest authority' among the women he would become involved with. She had already come to realize that it was impossible to control him due to his loyalty towards Vahn and the Aldrnari Empire, so, rather than focus on something she couldn't change, Endorsi set her sights on influencing the perspective of the people around him.
Though she would never admit it, Endorsi didn't mind the fact that Gandr was the dominant party in their relationship. She liked that he didn't fawn over her like a complete idiot, and, though it was a little annoying at times, it made her feel giddy whenever he would put his foot down and correct her behavior. He also showed restraint no matter how far she pushed him, a stark contrast to what she would have expected from a 'normal' man. This made her like him more with each passing day, and, though she wasn't quite at the point of admitting it, Endorsi was pretty sure she had already fallen in love with the fluffy-eared brat.
Before others could encroach upon her territory and contend with her for Gandr's attention, Endorsi felt compelled to establish herself as the undisputed 'number one'. She couldn't tolerate the idea of being below others, the only exception being Gandr himself. With that in mind, it became necessary to convince the girls around him that she was the one in control. This might not be the case behind closed doors, but, if they ever wanted to advance to that point with 'her' man, they would, first and foremost, need her permission. This wasn't something she could compromise on, so, while it made her feel a little guilty to put Gandr in a position she knew stressed him out, Endorsi was determined to do whatever it took to ensure the integrity and stability of their relationship.
With this in mind, Endorsi continued to follow Gandr and Anak around on their patrol while lightly patting the sleeping Yun-Yun's head. She had developed a bit of a petting habit, much like the rest of Team Wolf Pack, so, whenever she was spying on Gandr, Endorsi generally cuddled with the pink-haired Mare. With the exception of Phae, who had easily seen through her intentions, Yun-Yun was the only person who knew the full extent of her plans.
To prevent Yun-Yun from exposing her intentions to the others, Endorsi had bribed her by allowing the former to draw nourishment from her dreams. This had exposed many of her secrets to the not-so-young little girl, but, after spending so much time with Team Wolf Pack, Endorsi had learned how to place her trust in others once again. At the very least, she trusted Vahn, Phae, Gandr, Anak, Baam, and, to a lesser extent, every member directly associated with the Empire.
Endorsi believed that, so long as she didn't deviate down a dark path, the members of the Aldnrari Empire would always be willing to lend a helping hand. Vahn, in particular, seemed like the type of person who would battle against an entire Empire just for the sake of a single person. This gave her the confidence to move forward with her plans without hesitation, a smile on her face as she silently zoomed in on Gandr fearlessly staring down two groups of Regulars...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Team Wolf Pack on the prowl','Gandr has succumbed to the fluff','Endorsi is actually quite smart (OwO)...')
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