Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Not long later, Tiona actually came out of the changing room while Ais and Lefiya were still busying themselves with changing into their swimsuits. Since both Ais and Lefiya wore several layers of clothes and had dresses, they took a lot more time than Tiona who just had two pieces of fabric on her body.Vahn raised his brows slightly when Tiona came out of the changing room and showed off her new outfit. Since it was a bikini, the top looked a bit strange on Tiona since her breasts were on the smaller side of an A-Cup. The bottoms, however, were a black fabric held together with a stretchy string-like band and barely covered the fleshy and fit butt of Tiona. Though he had been working on his self-restraint, Vahn couldn't help but swallow his saliva at the sight when she spun around to give him a better look.Tiona had noticed his hardly concealed action and began laughing as she stuck to his arm and pressed her breasts against him. Vahn noticed that the fabric around her chest had risen a bit and he had serious concerns that it would fall off if she got carried away. Using his [Hands of Nirvana], he helped calm her mind a bit and managed to de-escalate the situation before things got out of hand.Tione, who had been observing the scene furrowed her brows a bit more since she felt like Tiona had gotten another win against her. Even though Vahn had complimented her bikini, the one that her sister had selected was even more revealing. She had also seen Vahn swallowing his saliva and she felt envious of her 'little' sister's success. Turning her head away, she began to browse for more swimsuits while the two 'love birds' acted lovey-dovey in their own little world.Though Tiona was still a bit excited, the moment Vahn began channeling the warm energy into her head she just smiled as she nuzzled against him without acting out too much. The calming energy didn't do much to prevent her rising emotions, but it allowed her to maintain her clarity long enough for Ais and Lefiya to finally exit the changing rooms. Seeing the two girls, she let go of Vahn and returned to wear her normal clothing. She had decided to buy both swimsuits since Vahn had complimented her when she wore either.Likely emulating Tiona and Tione, Ais had also worn a black swimsuit that made Vahn have a brief flashback of Eva. Since both girls had beautiful golden hair, seeing Ais in a black getup had reminded him of the over-affectionate vampire princess. Seeing that she was waiting for his compliment, Vahn showed her a happy smile before taking a better look at what she was wearing.Unlike the Amazon sisters, Ais's black swimsuit was a one-piece that covered the majority of the front side of her body while leaving her back mostly uncovered. There were several strings that bit into the skin around her waist before converging back to a point right above her tailbone. Overall, Vahn felt like the swimsuit was a bit too 'mature' for Ais considering she hadn't fully developed into the body of her future self. Even so, Vahn still paid her some heavy compliments which brought a smile to the typically blank expression of Ais. He realized that the longer they interacted with each other, the more expressive she became.Lefiya's swimsuit was the tamest of them all, but she also had the most bashful expression as she hung her crimson-colored face as she seemed to be waiting for Vahn's evaluation as she covered parts of her chest and groin with her hands. Vahn had a few mixed feelings about Lefiya and how she acted around him because he was never sure what to say to her. He knew that she liked Ais and also seemed to have positive feelings for him, but her actions made it very difficult to make conversation with her normally. Vahn didn't want to pressure her and felt like she was just getting caught up in the situation through association with Ais and Tiona.Even still, as long as she was making the effort to participate along with the other girls, Vahn didn't want to leave her out. He noticed that the swimsuit she was wearing was a one-piece that covered the majority of her torso and shoulders without leaving anything exposed. The entire thing was a natural looking white color with red flowers periodically dotting it. Around her waist, there was a red, somewhat transparent, sarong that covered her front and back. However, she didn't seem to have a lot of faith in it since Lefiya was still covering herself with her hands regardless.Overall, Vahn thought it was a very cute swimsuit and suited her young and petite body well. When he gave her compliments, she blushed even deeper and hung her head low before returning to the dressing room after thanking him in a stuttering voice. Ais also followed behind her and even entered into the same changing room. The moment Ais's back disappeared behind the thick black fabric blocking the view from the inside, he could hear Lefiya release a muted 'wawawawa' which made him laugh.Expecting the girls to return in their normal clothing, Vahn was completely unprepared for what happened next. Tione, who had entered the changing rooms earlier, came back out and, for a brief instant, Vahn didn't even think she was wearing clothing. She was wearing what essentially equated to a few strings of brown clothing that closely matched her own skin tone but with a more diffuse coloration.The string holding the incredibly small fabric that hid her delicates rode high into a V-shape on her hips before converging into the shape of a T above her entirely revealed butt. Since she had an almost identical figure to Tiona, she also had a very fit and somewhat fleshy butt that drew the eyes and caused Vahn to instinctively gulp.Since she had been showing it off, Tione had been paying attention to his reaction and smiled after seeing him gulp his saliva. Turning around, Vahn could see that the fabric around her moderately developed breasts created a triangular shape that didn't do much to conceal the contents. Before now, Vahn didn't know that a swimsuit could be so revealing and couldn't help but question the practicality of such a design. It almost seemed like it was designed more to draw attention than for actual swimming, especially with the almost skin-tone coloration.Tione saw where his eyes and wandered and lifted up her breasts with her hands and asking, "Which do you prefer, big ones like mine or small ones like my sister's?" In response to her question, Vahn blanked a bit since it was a question he seemed to be asked often. Shaking his head, he responded in a serious manner, "I think every girl has their own charms, regardless of the size and shape of their breasts. I think your breasts suit you while Tiona's breasts suit her. I feel the same way about other features as well..." Vahn's words trailed off a bit since the image of various butts passed through his mind.Tione didn't seem satisfied by his response much, but also couldn't find a way to refute it since it seemed like an 'honest', albeit non-committal, answer. She wanted to get more of a rise out of Vahn so she could get a little payback against Tiona, but it didn't seem like he was very cooperative. Remembering his gaze from earlier and how he had swallowed his saliva, she seemed to realize something before turning her back to Vahn while watching his face.As one of the butts that had passed through his mind, Vahn looked down to stare at the entirely defenseless flesh of Tione's backside. Other than the T-shaped fabric running down the crevice between her two cheeks, the rest of the skin was entirely revealed and Vahn couldn't help but have his eyes drawn to it. Tione had noticed his expression and a smile grew on her face as she clenched together her butt to emphasize it.Vahn's eyes widened a bit at her action before averting his eyes and staring at her smiling face. He realized that she had been teasing him and felt somewhat ashamed that he had fallen for her ploy. Turning his head away, he heard Tione asked in an amused voice, "Ehh~? Are you sure you don't want to keep staring? I think, just like my breasts, my butt is also bigger than Tiona's~."Before Vahn could respond, a pair of hands reached around from the front of the distracted Tione's body and firmly grabbed the two fleshy butt cheeks. Tione startled from the unexpected contact as Tiona, who had been the person to grab her, began laughing loudly before declaring, "They seem pretty similar, but I think I might have the advantage~?"At this point, Tione noticed that the three other girls were standing in front of her when she had been looking over her shoulder to tease Vahn. Though it wasn't too obvious, she began to blush slightly before shoving away the hands of her younger twin. In order to get a rise out of her, she said in a somewhat haughty voice, "It looks like Vahn had a 'bigger' response to me than he did to you earlier." As she emphasized the word 'bigger', Tione used her arms to press her breasts together with a mocking look on her face.Unexpectedly, though she would have gotten upset in the past, Tiona just laughed loudly as she dashed over to Vahn and pressed her chest to him while hugging his neck. With a big smile on her face, she looked toward Tione and said matter-of-factly, "Vahn likes my breasts just the way they are, isn't that right~?" Vahn nodded his head as he wrapped his hands around Tiona's waist and gave her a short kiss. His response had made the smile on her face widened even more as she laughed in a silly manner.Tione saw their interaction and frowned deeply since it felt like she had once again lost to her younger twin. Turning away from the affectionate display and walking toward the changing rooms, she saw Ais who had looked at her with an almost 'challenging' look in her eyes. Ais held her hands over her breasts and had a small smile on her face as she said, "Vahn likes mine too."Hearing the confident claim of Ais, Tione felt like she had suffered a mental blow as she turned her eyes to the bashful Lefiya, the only person who was her 'ally' at this moment.Lefiya saw her gaze and couldn't help but cover her chest in a similar manner to Ais, though for entirely different reasons. She thought that Tione was about to ask what Vahn thought of her breasts and, the moment she considered the matter, Lefiya's overactive imagination pictured Vahn's warm hands groping her chest while they were entirely nude in the bath together. A blush immediately rose to her face and it almost looked as though steam was about to rise from the delusional elf's head.Tione misconstrued Lefiya's actions to indicate that she was also someone that had received Vahn's 'appreciation'. She suddenly felt like, amongst the four girls present, she had gotten the short stick and suffered several simultaneous defeats. Gritting her hands and teeth, Tione made her way to the changing room to return to her normal clothing. At the same time, she swore to get one over on the three girls in the future regardless of the cost.After everyone had finished changing, they each purchased a variety of swimsuits as well as other outfits that Vahn also had the privilege of evaluating. Everyone seemed to be in higher spirits, even Lefiya who, after bearing the embarrassment of being seen in a swimsuit, didn't mind normal clothing as much. With a smile on her face and a subtle, ever-present blush, she too showed off various outfits and smiled when she received Vahn's unfettered compliments.One noteworthy thing that had happened, other than the swimsuit scene from earlier, was when both Tiona and Tione had tried on maid outfits. Even though Ais and Lefiya had also tried them on, Vahn couldn't help but feel a bit incongruity at the sight of the two Amazon twins wearing matching maid outfits. Since they were nearly identical with the modest clothing, Vahn could hardly tell them apart if not for their expressions and hairstyles. Combined with the fact that Tione was obviously trying to compete with her sister, Vahn ended up sandwiched by the two healthy brown-skinned girls in frilly attire black and white attire.After enjoying the latter half of the date, time was beginning to stretch into the afternoon and it wasn't too long before Vahn would be required to enter the orb. Explaining the situation, without giving away too many details, Vahn managed to convince the girls to call it a day. They had already nearly filled his inventory with their purchases, so everyone was in very high spirits with how the day had gone.Vahn then escorted the four girls back to the Twilight Manor and exchanged embraces with both Tiona and Ais before preparing to head home. Unexpectedly, Tione had tried to tease Vahn into embracing her, but she inevitably stopped after Tiona's teasing regarding Finn. With a frustrated expression on her face, Tione ended up storming off into the Manor, likely in the direction of Finn's quarters yet again. Tiona laughed at the display and even Ais had a slight smile on her face as she watched the scene play out.The only one who didn't seem entertained was Lefiya, who had hung her head slightly with a blush on her cheeks. Vahn somewhat understood what she was thinking, so he reached out his hand and used [Hands of Nirvana] to comfort the bashful elf as he said his goodbyes. Lefiya had a slight frown on her face and didn't stop him from rubbing her head as she nodded slightly with an 'Nn' sound.Having said goodbye to the three girls, Vahn left the Twilight Manor after depositing their purchased items in one of the nearby rooms. Afterward, Vahn was in high spirits as he made his way toward the Hearths Embrace. Though it was slightly different than his expectations, Vahn enjoyed spending time with all the girls on their group date. Even though it felt like he had just accompanied the four girls on a normal outing, he still enjoyed the experience immensely and looked forward to having similar dates in the future.Turning a corner, Vahn had a casual and happy smile on his face which quickly turned into an expression of caution and alert as he immediately expanded his domain. Since he didn't often walk around with his domain spread within the City, Vahn had nearly been caught off guard by the apparent ambush that was about to take place. If not for the fact he was very perceptive to auras after increasing his Soul Tier and awakening his [Eyes of Truth], Vahn may have been caught unawares by the figures encroaching on him. From within the surrounding buildings and roofs, Vahn could sense several black-aura'd figures approaching his position.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Tione's Defeat','Vahn is a man of culture','Danger Approaches')If you'd like to support me on ******* so I can become a full-time writer, please follow this link~!https://www.*******.com/user?u=14397149I am currently at $581/640 of my goal of making this my actual job. I promise that, if I'm able to do so, I will be writing 50 chapters a week :D

Unaware that they had been noticed, the presences in the surrounding area remained hidden even after Vahn entered a combat state. Vahn turned his head and saw two men behind him as a group of three appeared at the opposite end of the alley. Seeing their predatory eyes and attempts to appear intimidating, Vahn had no illusions that the men weren't enemies. He transformed into his Báihǔ form and the men started laughing as the largest enemy in front of Vahn crossed his arms with an evil grin on his face.The man was around 180cm tall and looked to weight around 230lbs of pure muscle. He had brown hair and purple eyes and his entire body was covered in battle scars. He looked at Vahn like he was appraising a piece of meat in the market and opened his mouth and said without a humorous tone, "So, this is the famou-" Before the man could finish speaking, Vahn had leaned forward and rapidly closed the distance and tried to sink his claws into the man's stomach.Unprepared for the sudden attack, the man barely managed to cross his arms to receive Vahn's blow. He could feel the bones of his body creak and he was sent back several meters before he was able to regain his footing. He had a grim expression on his face as he prepared to threaten Vahn, but the words got stuck in his throat when he saw the sight in front of him.After failing to incapacitate their leader, Vahn immediately attacked the two men that had been at the scarred man's sides. They were also caught unprepared by his sudden attack as Vahn gripped their wrists and crushed the bones as he twisted his body and slammed them into the walls opposite of where they previously stood. Vahn then crouched low and stared at the man that had blocked his previous blow with a cold and emotionless look on his face.The scarred man immediately realized that Vahn wasn't the easy mark they had thought, but didn't lose his confidence as he unsheathed a knife and got into the stance of a veteran knife-fighter. He held his left hand out and low in a loose position while holding the knife near his hip to allow for an optimal thrusting angle. Staring at the tiger-like boy in front of him, he displayed a somewhat crazy expression as he threatened, "You'll pay for that, kid."At this point, the other two men at the opposite of the alleyway had closed the distance between Vahn with short metal clubs in their hands. Vahn scanned his vision over the two enemies before turning his attention towards the roof where there were three more enemy signatures. He had marked everyone on his map and could easily track their location within 300m from his current position. Satisfied with the result, Vahn smiled at the scarred man before disappearing from the spot when the two men had tried to attack the back of his head.All three men's eyes widened as the entered a cautious state, but they were still unable to respond to Vahn who had appeared from behind them. Even though he hadn't mastered Shundo, his increased agility and perception in his Báihǔ form while having his domain active allowed him to cover short distances in an instant. The moment they tried to attack him, Vahn used Shundo and disappeared through the small gap between their bodies and used his superheated claws to reach forward and stab into the spines of the two assailants. They immediately dropped to the ground paralyzed and unable to even scream out from the intense pain.Having dealt with four of the thirteen enemies, Vahn turned his attention back to the scarred man who had been too afraid to move forward after watching another two of his companions fall in such a cruel manner. Even though he was a Level 3, he had absolutely no confidence in being able to outmaneuver Vahn given the speed he had displayed. As soon as Vahn leaned forward slightly, he shouted out, "Don't fucking move another step unless you want those two cat bitches to suffer!"The moment Vahn heard the man's words, his mind blanked and the cold feeling in his mind reaching an absolute low. Seeing Vahn's 'hesitation', the man showed a cruel smile as his confidence began to return. However, before he could even utter another word he felt Vahn's killing intent lock onto him as the burst of a golden aura spread throughout the area. Without being able to react in the slightest, the man felt a powerful impact through his back as he saw a resplendent golden chain pierce through his body and penetrate into the ground.After being pierced by [Enkidu], the man vomited blood and nearly collapsed forward but his body was being held up by the perfectly rigid chain. He turned his head to find the source of the unexpected attack and saw golden ripples in mid-air less than a meter behind his back. Gritting his teeth, the man took a deep breath and shouted, "Beat this mother fucker to death!!"The scarred man had a crazy look in his eyes as he held onto the chain penetrating through his gut and tried to forcibly remove it. He imaged that, any second now, Vahn would be assailed by the rest of his comrades and they would be able to get their revenge before forcing him to listen to their demands. However, today didn't seem like the scarred man's day, since the chain in his stomach seemed indestructible. He couldn't even make it wiggle a single millimeter and no matter how much time passed, the allies that he had called out for never showed up.Vahn immediately closed the distance to the man and placed his red-hot hand on the man's chest and burned a hole clear through the fabric of his clothes before leaving a burned palm print deep into his flesh. Even though there were pedestrians in the area, most of them had run away while some brave ones had even left to retrieve the guards. Vahn paid them no mind as he stared coldly into the eyes of the man and asked, "What...did...you...do?"Even though he had just screamed out like a pig when Vahn burned him, the man still had a crazy smile on his face as he spat a mouthful of blood toward Vahn which evaporated before it got anywhere near him. He said in a low and cruel voice, "After you pulled this shit...expect them to suffer...I hope you're satisfied!!!"All the man got for his troubles was Vahn reaching forward with his index finger before planting it into the man's deep purple eye. The scarred man squealed in a pig being slaughtered as he began cursing out and yelling, "WHERE THE FUCK IS EVERYONE!?" So much time had passed, but none of his companions had shown up. He was completely unaware that Vahn had detected the men with his domain and had also impaled each of them with one of the chains. Though it took a major tole on his energy usage to summon them, keeping them out cost next to no energy. Because of this, Vahn was able to pin all nine of the remaining men for later questioning.Vahn explained in a cold voice, "Tell me what you wanted to accomplish here unless you want to lose your other eye." Finishing his words, Vahn lifted his index finger that radiated a fierce heat and pointed toward the last eye of the scarred man. As the finger inched ever closer, the man finally couldn't bear the pain and suspense he was experiencing as he groaned through bloodied teeth, "They're our hostages...if you want to see them...you'll do as we say..."Vahn's brows furrowed a bit, but he didn't stop his finger as he asked in a cold tone, "Who sent you? Why?" Since his finger wasn't far from the man's face, he was trying to arch his body back to avoid the approaching finger. Each of his movements made the wound in his stomach worse as the man vomited a second mouthful of blood. He gave Vahn a fierce look and said, "If you don't..fucking RELEASE ME...expect them to die!"Unimpressed by the man's threat, Vahn swiped his hand in a blurred motion that sent the right hand of the man, where he was hiding his knife, flying through the air. The scarred man screamed out again and felt like he was about to pass out from shock and blood loss. Vahn noticed this as well and dispelled the heat from his palm and began closing the man's wounds without removing [Enkidu] from his stomach. It nothing else, it would buy Vahn a few more minutes to get the answers he wanted.Vahn warned in a cold and emotionless manner, "I will ask you one last time before I decide you know nothing and move on to the other nine men that I captured. I'm certain one of them will be willing to answer my questions." He then absorbed fire elements into his hand before preparing to blind the scarred man's second eye.After hearing Vahn claim to have captured the nine hidden people in the surroundings, the man finally became truly afraid of the young boy before him. He was far crueler and resolute than any of them had expected before executing this operation. Given that his mind was also being suppressed by the effects of [Will of the Emperor], he could no longer resist the coercive nature of Vahn's threats.Seeing that the man had broken down into tears and started narrating the events that had transpired, Vahn waited patiently for him to explain the situation. The more he heard, the angrier he got, but Vahn's expression didn't change in the slightest. The only thing he could feel in his mind was a shockingly cold sensation that forcibly kept his mind clear and focused.According to the scarred man, who Vahn learned was called Macker, they had been keeping track of his movements ever since he left his house on Saturday. Since Vahn had dropped Tina off before leaving, they assumed she was someone important and confirmed their assumption when Vahn had returned in the evening. With such an easy mark like a mother and her daughter, the man just had to wait for Vahn to leave again before capturing the two. Even though Milan resisted, since she was a Level 3, they quickly forced her to concede after they captured Tina.From there, they trashed the Hearths Embrace and set fire to it before kidnapping the two girls and keeping them in a safe house nearby. They were planning on moving the two girls in the evening and intended to use them as barter for forcing Vahn to take a vow. Macker claimed to be unaware of the greater plan even after Vahn broke several of his fingers while watching the changes in his aura. After that, Vahn asked for the location of the safe house but Macker refused to tell him unless he made an oath to let him live.In response to his request, Vahn pulled out one of the nondescript black swords that he had forged inside the orb. It had a simple name, [004], and was part of the mass-produced series of blades Vahn had forged recently. At this point, the series had grown to [022] and Vahn decided it was more than the man deserved as he stared in disgust at the head that he had just sent flying through the air. With his black aura and the fact that he had kidnapped Milan and Tina in order to blackmail him, Vahn had little patience for the scumbag's request. Even though he obtained a bit of negative karma for torturing the information out of him, giving him a merciful death had more than made up for it.Vahn simultaneously removed [Enkidu] from the other eight men before retrieving their bodies and healing their wounds to an extent where they would not die from blood loss. It wasn't long before the City guards showed up and tried to surround Vahn, but he revealed his relation to the Hephaestus and Loki Familia and explained the details behind the ambush. Though they wanted to take him in for questioning, Vahn refused and gave them each cold looks before telling them to look for him after contacting Hephaestus. Every minute he wasted dealing with their bullshit would be another minute Milan and Tina weren't safe.The guards wanted to detain him regardless so Vahn just disappeared from the location using Shundo before they could even react. Even if it caused him problems later, Vahn wasn't going to waste time trying to explain the situation even further. He had already informed the guards of the kidnapping and burning of the Hearths Embrace, and they could investigate themselves later. Vahn wasn't going to wait idly by for the results of their investigation and jumped to a nearby roof before finding a safe spot and entering the orb.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Author-Style, Cliff Summoning Jutsu!','Vahn Gives No Fucks','Unstoppable [Enkidu]')(A/N: As a bit of clarification, the $640 is the amount that needs to clear at the end of the month, not the amount that is displayed on the ******* xD. I'll increase the number of chapters I release starting Monday, but I still hope there are more people willing to support me in the future &lt;3)If you'd like to support me on ******* so I can become a full-time writer, please follow this link~!https://www.*******.com/user?u=14397149I am currently at $637/640 of my goal of making this my actual job. I promise that, if I'm able to do so, I will be writing 50 chapters a week :D

Vahn awoke early the next morning and stared at the sleeping faces of the two girls for a few minutes before removing the orb from his inventory and entering into the black and white space. After playing around with Eva for a bit, Vahn noticed that Fafnir's size hadn't changed much and, other than its magical power and spell arsenal expanding, it seemed to have stagnated a bit. Since the ecology of dragons gave them a lifespan measuring hundreds of years, Vahn anticipated that Fafnir wouldn't be able to grow much stronger without hunting and killing monsters in the future.The two sparred for a bit and Vahn got some practical experience training with Eva for a few hours before he returned to his tireless work at the forge. He had gotten to the point where the majority of the items that he created were near the apex of B-Rank, while a number of them had crested into the A-Rank. Unfortunately, unless he put a lot of effort into a single item, Vahn was still far from the point where he could naturally create an S-Rank item. Other than a bit more experience with Shundo and a few intimate sessions with Eva, Vahn hadn't gained much within the three days he was in the orb.Awakening in the real world, Vahn waited for around an hour before an alarm clock that had been set by Milan the previous night began to ring. Similar to Tina, she seemed to be really bad with mornings and tried to ignore the alarm for almost ten minutes before finally removing the covers and stretching. Before she turned off the alarm, Milan looked to her left and could see Vahn staring at her face with a gentle smile that caused her to immediately blush as she fixed her night-gown that had opened slightly during the night.After turning off the alarm, Milan began to get dressed for the day as Vahn helped awaken Tina who seemed to be immune to the ringing sound from earlier. Seeing the sleepy cat girl lazily get out of the bed before Milan helped her change, Vahn couldn't help but laugh out a bit as he also began to change his clothes. Once everyone was ready, Vahn gave Tina her early morning pats before turning toward Milan and attempted to do the same. Unfortunately, Milan caught his hand mid-attempt and gave him a teasing smile before embracing him for a few seconds. It wasn't overly intimate, but it did make Vahn feel a bit of warmth inside.Vahn then helped the two prepare to open the Inn for the normal business hours before relieving Davi and Sasha from their duties. Tina set about going upstairs to gather the linens from any unoccupied rooms as Milan and Vahn began preparing breakfast for the early-rising patrons. By the time 7 AM rolled around, they had served around twenty customers and Vahn was in high spirits because of all the new things he was experiencing. Since Tina was busy doing laundry, Vahn ended up interacting with the customers a bit more and even recognized some of them from the past who gave him polite comments. There were a number of people who knew him as 'Vulcan' and had congratulated him for his successful recovery.Before he left the Inn, Vahn gave Tina a big hug and lifted her body off the ground when doing so. She seemed to be very happy by the new experience and even gave Vahn a kiss on the cheek moments before he let her go. Milan stood at the side with a gentle smile, but Vahn had no intention of letting her off as he returned her earlier embrace with one of his own. At this point, he was slightly taller than she was, so it was distinctly different than their past interactions. Vahn noticed the characteristic twitch of her tail which showed she was happy, even though she watched him leave the Inn with an 'angry' look on her face.Since Vahn had promised to meet up with Tiona and Ais for a date, he made his way to pick them up at the Twilight Manor. Though they could have met at a rendezvous point, Loki had asked him to pick them up personally since she wanted the rest of her Familia to get used to Vahn's presence. There were still a number of disgruntled people that harbored some ill-will toward him, and Loki wanted to nip the problem in the bud by allowing Vahn unrestricted access into the Twilight Manor. This showed that he wasn't simply, 'the guy that stole two girls', but an important person that represented the Alliance between the Hephaestus and Loki Familia. There were few people that had been in the Familia for a long time that would dare try to approach him and find trouble since it would draw the ire of not only their Familia-mates but Loki herself.Vahn was looking forward to the date, but he had also been mentally preparing himself for any trouble that might arise. Even though he was somewhat famous within the City, there were few people that bothered memorizing his features and face. This prevented the majority of people from recognizing him when he walked around normally, but now he would be escorting two beautiful and highly coveted women through densely populated areas. Since Tiona and Ais were both very strong, that meant that anyone brave enough to approach Vahn during their date would likely possess a certain degree of strength themselves.Because of his constant forging and creating items, Vahn had obtained a large influx of OP from his time within the orb. Even when he mass produced weapons, he still obtained around 1,000 OP every three hours, which netted him around 15-20,000 OP every time he entered the orb. Even with his expenditures, Vahn was sitting on 243,529OP for emergency usages. As long as he wasn't caught off guard, there would be few situations that he would be unable to deal with. There was also a very high probability that, even if Vahn couldn't deal with the situation, either Tiona or Ais would step in and resolve the matters. However, Vahn wanted to avoid that situation since even the thought of it made him feel slightly awkward. It wasn't that he thought 'men should protect women', as both Tiona and Ais were incredibly strong, Vahn just wanted to be reliable in the hearts of the two girls.When he arrived outside the Twilight Manor, there was a bit of a commotion in the reception area where several core members of the Loki Familia had gathered. When Vahn arrived, a lot of eyes gathered on him other than the five girls that were waiting for his arrival. Indeed, other than Tiona and Ais, the two he had asked out on the date, there was also Loki, Tione, and Lefiya waiting in the reception area. After they noticed his arrival, all of the girls had various expressions but they all seemed pleased to see him.Almost as if it had been scripted, Loki had loudly welcomed Vahn to the Twilight Manor while both Tiona and Ais had taken turns giving him relatively reserved kisses. Unlike the passionate kiss they shared at their parting in the past, they were trying to act in a more reserved manner to practice a bit of self-control themselves. Vahn discovered that, though it wasn't as 'intense' as the previous times, it was actually somewhat enjoyable to savor the moment of the gentle embrace as he simply enjoyed the sensations they shared.Ais seemed to always allow Tiona to kiss Vahn first, but she put in a little bit more effort to make up for going second. When Vahn finally parted with her, he noticed that the auras of some of the people in the surroundings had fluctuated slightly as Loki tried to step in and receive a hug of her own. She spread her arms wide and puckered her lips as if waiting for Vahn to accept her, but she instead received a bonk on the head from Ais who was standing slightly behind her.After creating a bit of a scene, Loki ended up explaining to Vahn that it was safer for the entire group to go together, but she was denied participation by the other four girls immediately after the suggestion. Following that, Loki explained why she was having Tione and Lefiya accompany them on the date. Lefiya was considered to have the most developed sensibilities of the group and would keep them out of trouble, while Tione may be required to reign in Tiona if things got out of hand. Riveria was also supposed to accompany them, but she ended up declining since she didn't want to 'babysit' the entire group.Though Vahn had only planned to accompany Tiona and Ais for the day, he couldn't help but agree with the decisions that had been made by the group before his arrival. He was the most aware of how Tiona could get out of control, and there was a fair chance that Ais alone wouldn't be able to stop her. Imagining himself being attacked by the voracious Amazoness in the middle of a crowded area, Vahn was actually somewhat grateful for the assistance. Tione and Lefiya also didn't seem to mind the situation at all, so Vahn didn't have much room to complain. If anything, the only comment Vahn wanted to make related to the fact that things had developed in a direction where he was the one accompanying the girls, instead of the other way around.It was fortunate that he had left the majority of his unnecessary items within the orb since Vahn assumed he would likely end up carrying a variety of goods for the four girls. Even though they might not be 'normal' girls in some sense, they were still women and were very fond of shopping. Having someone with 'storage magic' on hand would remove any inhibitions they might have had about purchasing items on the date since they wouldn't have to lug them around on their own.Since everyone present ware all adventurers, the location for the date ended up being Babel Tower and, as expected, the group ended up doing a lot of shopping. Though they were all very satisfied with the weapons Vahn had created for them, it didn't stop the girls from checking out a variety of different types of equipment and discussing countermeasures against certain types of enemies. Vahn didn't mind the situation as it was very informative, and he even enjoyed how excited everyone got when they were talking about their exploits in the dungeon.The date didn't only relate to matters about equipment and the dungeon though since both Tiona and Ais had made an effort to display their affections in public. Tiona naturally had no inhibitions about the situation and actively clung got Vahn as they walked through the tower. Ais showed a bit more reservations and just held onto his hand while the trio drew a variety of different looks from the various passersby. Even though the majority of the looks were borderline malicious, Vahn actually felt a bit of pride at being able to escort the two beautiful girls on each arm.After the group had eaten lunch, things took a slightly different turn, though they were still related to shopping. Instead of looking for weapons and armor, the girls had decided to shop for swimsuits and casual wear. Vahn ended up being the designated judge as the girls lined up various types of clothing against their bodies for his 'approval'. Tione had immediately jumped on board and, though she resisted at first, Lefiya ended up being involved later. As the only person that had been left out previously, she didn't have a lot of resistance left to refuse.Tiona and Tione hardly wore clothing that concealed their bodies, so the swimsuits they wanted to purchase barely had any fabric at all. After selecting several, the two girls entered the changing rooms while Ais and Lefiya picked slightly more reserved swimsuits for themselves. Ais didn't seem to mind what she wore, but the fiercely blushing Lefiya had refused to let her wear anything that had been picked by the two Amazons.As they had entered first, Tiona and Tione exited the changing rooms shortly after they entered. Since their clothing was minimal to begin with, it was also very easy to remove and they didn't take long to change into the swimwear at all. Tiona had decided on a leafy green swimsuit that had a top very reminiscent of a sports bra but only had one strap over the shoulders. The bottoms were similar to the white shorts she always wore except they seemed to ride into her skin a bit more. Overall, the swimsuit really enhanced her incredibly fit figure and lively appearance.Tione's swimsuit could hardly be called a swimsuit at all. She had decided on something very similar to a bikini with a black fabric that only covered the important bits. The entire thing was held together by strings and it didn't look like it could actually be used in the water at all. At this point, her breasts were only around a B-Cup, and she really stood out within the store. After asking Vahn for his impression, he told her honestly which caused her to puff out her chest in pride as she stared at Tiona with a taunting look. Vahn had said to her, "You have a very fit body and the swimsuit compliments your features well. I think the black color suits your healthy-looking brown skin."Tiona seemed to be inspired by his words while at the same time being annoyed by her own sister. After making a comment about her inability to win over Finn, she grabbed a small black swimsuit of her own and beat a hasty retreat back into the changing rooms. Since Ais and Lefiya had also gone to change, that left the incredibly frustrated Tione standing outside with the patiently waiting Vahn who had a slight gleam of anticipation in his eyes. He couldn't help but feel happy with the current situation that allowed him to view the figures of the girls and even pay them compliments in a natural manner.While Vahn was standing there with a somewhat silly smile on his face, Tione had been gritting her teeth after the parting remark of her sister. After she had tried to forcefully sneak into Finn's room after the tryst between Vahn, Tiona, and Ais, Finn ended up forcing her to sit on her knees as he explained the situation to her. Since he had dedicated his entire life to the Pallum race, there was no way he could accept Tione's advances in the future. Though he respected her 'love' for him and would allow her to continue her pursuit, he informed her that he could only marry and have children with a Pallum. He even informed her that he had made a vow with Loki before he agreed to join her Familia in that regards and was unwilling to stray from the path he had decided.This revelation didn't do anything about Tione's feelings for Finn since it was his self-sacrificing mentality that drew her to him in the first place. It did, however, make her feel no small amount of frustrations knowing there was little to no hope her love would bear fruit. As an Amazon, she had a powerful compulsion to have children, and though she could cope, for the time being, watching her sister enjoy a happy love-life was slowly whittling away at her self-restraint. Looking over at the 'silly' face of Vahn as he waited for the other girls to change, Tione couldn't help but clench her fists a bit.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Soon(TM)','Baggage Emperor Vahn','The Luckiest Man in the World')If you'd like to support me on ******* so I can become a full-time writer, please follow this link~!https://www.*******.com/user?u=14397149I am currently at $581/640 of my goal of making this my actual job. I promise that, if I'm able to do so, I will be writing 50 chapters a week :D

Chapter 188: Group Date (2/2)