NOVPUB
Chapter 265 - Meander
[Day 35]
Though most of his free time was spent with his harem and children, Vahn wasn't especially against spending time with other men if they invited him out for drinks or simply wanted to chat in person. It was thanks to that he knew that Azazel was expecting no less than five kids, that Gojo was able to prevent a major disaster from occurring, and that Kiba had entered into a relationship with a girl named Kobayashi Rindo—who recently became a Devil.
With such revelations still fresh in his memory, Vahn wasn't too surprised when Himmel invited him out for drinks and a meal in the resort's bar and lounge, leading to him casually disclosing, "This might come as a surprise to you, but I've been seeing someone..." midway through their fifth round.
"That's exceedingly good news..." responded Vahn, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from his heart as he offered a genuine smile and asked, "Who's the lucky lady?"
"Her name is Elinalise Dragonroad..." revealed Himmel, causing Vahn to spit-take mentally. The woman in question was an Elf originating from the same world as Paul Greyrat and Ghislaine Dedoldia. She had come to him in the past in search of a cure to a malicious curse that forced her to have sex and intake men's semen to survive, and though he initially refused her offer to repay him with her body, their paths had crossed more than once due to her status as a First-Grade Maid.
Though Vahn's expression didn't change outside a slight raising of his eyebrows, Himmel knew what he was thinking, a wry smile adorning his face as he nodded and confirmed, "It's the same Elinalise you're thinking of. The two of us formed a Party last cycle, but we only recently became a couple. That's why I wished to speak with you. I would like you to annul her contract or at least facilitate her demotion to a Third-Grade Maid..."
"Oh, is that all...?" responded Vahn, exhaling from his nose and smiling as he produced a copy of the contract members of the Maid Battalion signed as he explained, "Feel free to review it if you like. Every Maid we employ is an at-will employee, so there aren't any provisions or penalties that would preclude Elinalise from leaving our service or modifying her classification. She's free to leave, and out of consideration for our friendship, I will sync your keys to facilitate you traveling to her world and vice-versa."
Blinking in surprise, Himmel's first instinct was to refuse Vahn's offer on principle but it was simply too generous and opportune a gift to pass on. He would need to discuss the matter with Elinalise, but if she agreed, it would allow them to spend time together and aid one another without the palace or Tower as proxies.
"Hey, don't even think about refusing it..." said Vahn, noticing Himmel's hesitation and smiling as he added, "I want both you and Elizalise to be happy, Himmel. Everyone deserves happiness, but the two of you have put in the work. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise."
Exhaling from his nose, Himmel adopted a smile of his own, nodded his head, and responded, "Thanks, Vahn. I honestly didn't expect things to turn out like this, but I suppose that was my youth talking. As it happens, life is full of surprises and possibilities that only come into view when you stop thinking about how things should be and open your eyes to what is right in front of you..."
"That's deep..." muttered Vahn, holding his rocks glass up to his lips and taking a slow, reflective sip. He believed his perspective was fairly broad, but it never hurt to take a step back and reassess things.
"That said..." started Himmel, his voice low and face lightly flushed from mild intoxication as he leaned closer to Vahn and made a special request. Vahn was briefly caught off guard, but after his initial surprise, he adopted a wry smile and passed Himmel a wooden case treated with Preservation Magic—the interior of which held six conspicuously shaped, deep purple, faintly pulsing eggplants...
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After parting ways with Himmel, who sobered himself using Detoxification Magic, Vahn rode the resort's elevator up to the 42nd-floor penthouse—a spacious communal living area that felt like entering a separate reality the moment you entered. The original floor plan was already sizable at 1,938 square meters, but its interior space had been cubed, allowing the lobby alone to accommodate a sprawling garden with artificial cliffs suitable for climbing, a sizeable waterfall concealing a not-so-secret meditation cave, and a lazy river—all beneath a massive skydome that simulated a twenty-four-hour day-night cycle and had its own weather.
'The Dragon's Pavilion really could help a lot of people with Magic and technology like this...' thought Vahn, staring up at the artificial night sky, twinkling like a vast sea of stardust against a backdrop of deep, abyssal blue. He was well aware that achieving long-term prosperity required an abundance of restrictions and control measures that would make certain types of people feel suppressed, but the majority could enjoy happy and content lives under the Pavilion's supervision rather than rule...
'It's something worth trying...' concluded Vahn. Though, with children on the way and a functional eternity to implement various ideas and try new things, he didn't need to force the matter blindly. Instead, he could study how other Gods and societies developed, particularly those who reached the point of expanding throughout or even beyond the stars.
With such thoughts in mind, Vahn was nearly caught off guard by a figure silently snaking across the ground with impressive speed. Despite sensing it, however, he didn't react, allowing the figure to leap through the air with its four crimson-clawed forelimbs splayed wide before it latched onto him from behind.
"Where is the fatherly one going? You smell like spirits, sosu..." remarked Faputa, rubbing her cheek against Vahn's before biting and pulling on it as he habitually converted his body to rubber.
"Shouldn't you be in bed, Princess...?" asked Vahn, reaching up to caress Faputa's head, compelling her to release his cheek and nuzzle against his palm before crawling around the front of his body, obligating him to cradle and tickle the underside of her chin. Fortunately, though she preferred not to, she was wearing the elastic, cream-colored bandeau top he had gifted her to avoid her roaming around topless. It didn't particularly bother him, but some of the other Ascendees had expressed concerns since she had the appearance of a young girl despite being 638 years old. n𝚘𝚟𝚙u𝚋.co𝚖
"I was curious, sosu," revealed Faputa, adjusting her position so that she was standing on Vahn's hands, face to face with him, as she remarked, "It isn't typical for you to leave around this time. Where did you go? You don't smell like a woman, sosu."
"That's because I was meeting with a friend," explained Vahn, producing a second set of arms to grab Faputa by her sides, causing her to startle and climb to the top of his head, hissing. She enjoyed being caressed but was very sensitive to tickling, making it a convenient method to deter her from sniffing and inspecting him too invasively.
"Shall I see you back to your den...?" proposed Vahn, already heading in the direction, causing Faputa to puff her cheeks and poutily inquire, "You won't play with Faputa? Faputa will remember this discourtesy and lack of consideration, sosu..."
"Night time is for rest, not playing around..." contended Vahn, causing Faputa's golden eyes to narrow accusingly. He knew exactly what she was thinking, as she was well aware of what men and women did behind closed doors, but it didn't make his statement untrue. He was simply an exception since he didn't require conventional rest...
"Tell you what..." started Vahn, not wanting to see Faputa in a dour mood for the rest of the cycle. The diminutive Narehate Princess could seriously hold a grudge, having spent nearly her entire life resenting the group who turned her mother's body into their sanctuary, so after raising his hands to provoke her return to his embrace, he stated, "We'll watch a documentary or play an hour of video games. After that, you can have a bottle of peach milk tea. Then it's brushing your teeth and straight to bed, okay?"
"Mou...we have an accord..." responded Faputa, dragging her belly and tails across Vahn's face and smacking him a few times to mark him with her starchy, faintly sweet-smelling musk before curling into an adorably fluffy ball in his arms. Her intelligence parameter was startlingly high, on the level of individuals like Bulma, but the lack of a formal education and spending most of her life roughing it in the inhospitable environment of the Abyss had given her certain animalistic proclivities that would need time and patience to remedy. Fortunately, even without the benefits of being an Ascendee, she was biologically immortal, having maintained the same appearance from the time she was born to the present...
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With Faputa obediently going to bed after an hour-long documentary on sharks, Vahn briefly checked on the other members of the youth troupe, including his adoptive daughters, to ensure they weren't still up several hours past their bedtimes. Lupheria, in particular, didn't need to sleep, but as a bonafide good girl, she could typically be found curled up at the foot of Lastia's bed as a large wolf pup with a top coat of midnight blue fur and a snow-white underbelly.
After seeing Lupheria open her luminous golden eyes and meet his gaze from her usual position, Vahn nodded approvingly before closing the door to her and Lastia's room. From there, he intended to check on Riko, Mitty, Prushka, Sherumi, and Menae, who occupied the same room despite the latter being male, but a familiar sound stopped him in his tracks.
Ding!
'Hmn? Who could be contacting me this late...?' Vahn wondered, opening his chat interface without delay. If it were an emergency, Sis would inform him immediately, so he wasn't surprised to find that it was Bonney, once again using the priority message function to ensure he read her messages as soon as possible.
[Hey, my Party just got swarmed in Dungeon. Come and help me blow off some steam, you smelly lizard.]
[Swarmed?] Vahn asked, his brows furrowing as the implication was that Bonney and her Party had been killed attempting a Dungeon they had either underprepared for or was beyond their level. Death and respawning were things most Ascendees were acquainted with, but since Bonney was ultimately a twelve-year-old girl, he felt she should be in bed, not tackling difficult Dungeons in the dead of night.
[Literally] responded Bonney, revealing [It was a C-Rank Dungeon called Char's Crucible. We thought it would be easy, and it was until we reached the Boss—some creepy ass monster called a Zerg Broodmother. It had a skill that covered the ground in a disgusting liquid that made it difficult for us to move but allowed its Zerglings to move even faster than they did on normal terrain. It was complete bullshit.]
[Alright, then. Let's meet at the usual place] messaged Vahn, externally sighing and shaking his head. It wasn't his place to lecture Bonney or tell her how she should live after the hardships she had endured, but he could be there for her when she needed him. It might take a while, but once she realized that her carelessness was causing him to worry, she would either learn from her mistakes and make smarter decisions or gradually distance herself from him. Either way, she was the only person who could walk the path she had chosen for herself. His sole concern was ensuring she was happy—wherever she ended up...
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