Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

(A/N: There is a unique difficulty when writing about Danmachi, since the original story is incomplete and has several unsolved mysteries and hidden backstories. In order to make the novel interesting, I have to take some artistic liberties to build the world and characters in the direction I think benefits the story. From this point on, other than significant events, you shouldn't compare this novel to the source material~! Hope you enjoy how things play out (O,...,O)_b)The moment Vahn saw Syr's reaction, he couldn't help but retort in his mind, ("What is this adorable creature!?"). When that thought passed through his mind, Vahn experienced a feeling of deja vu as he compared the bashful girl to Lefiya from the past. Seeing her crimson face looking upwards at him made Vahn's head buzz and he felt a little dizzy. He felt like, the longer he looked into her slightly glazed eyes, the more prominent the feeling became.Vahn shook his head to shake the feeling and even activated a small burst of his [Will of the Emperor] while using his [Stealth] skill to keep it hidden. Almost immediately after he expanded his domain, Vahn felt a cooling sensation that chased away the strange numbness in his mind. Unfortunately, in the time it took for him to clear his head, Vahn got yet another notification from his system.//[Syr Flova] Has Reached Maximum Affection////Quest Completed: [The Hearts Desire:C-SS]//Completion Grade: ARewards: 10,000OP, 1x[Hearts Desire: Syr Flova]Grade Rewards: 1x[Ambrosia Extract], 1x[Matryoshka of Fertility], 8,000OP[Ambrosia Extract]Rank: UniqueUse: Oil incense with a powerful aphrodisiac effect. Powerful enough to even influence the gods. Duration: 8H[Matryoshka of Fertility]Rank: UniqueUse: When placed above the womb, creates a seal that guarantees pregnancy regardless of fertility. Duration: 8HEverything was happening faster than Vahn could process the changes, and he couldn't help but stare at the blushing girl who continued to stare at him with an unveiled interest in her eyes. After Vahn had suddenly asked her if she liked him, Syr couldn't help but feel her interest in him suddenly explode. Though she was certain nothing had appeared to give away her intentions, she knew that Vahn could somehow see through her expression. When he asked his question, Syr could tell that it wasn't so much a question as a confirmation of something he already knew. She could feel the mana in her body stir as Vahn quickly began to be influenced by her weak charming ability.She had expected him to get flustered or even try to make advances against her, but his reaction had shocked her to the core. Instead of becoming enamored and trying to please her, he simply shook his head and escaped the effects of her ability. The most important thing to note is that he didn't seem to notice what had happened and still looked at her with the same familiarity and trust he had previously, albeit with a hint of confusion in his eyes. Syr immediately felt a ticklish feeling in her mind as it began to buzz looking at the 'naive' and honest boy.Vahn was still trying to process the information and knew that Syr had somehow reached maximum affection for him which completed the heart's desire quest yet again. The items he obtained made his heart itch and he could feel a nervous feeling in his stomach as Syr continued to stare at him. After several long seconds, she asked in a subtle yet sultry voice, "I wonder...if there is enough room in your heart for me~?"When she asked the question, Vahn could feel a warmth flow through his body which immediately faded away. He noticed that her expression became even happier after she asked if he liked her, and Vahn didn't know how to respond due to the rapid-fire series of events. Taking a deep breath, Vahn averted his eyes a bit and seriously considered how to answer her question. Syr saw his actions and fixed her posture as she sat up straight on the seat next to him and quietly waited for his response.Her movement had caught his eye, and he was curious about how she went from fiercely blushing to stoic and elegant in such a brief period of time. She now had her characteristically cheerful expression as she looked at him with an expectant smile. The smile that he used to find pleasing, now made Vahn feel a subtle sense of danger in the back of his mind. He began to suspect his dazed state earlier had been triggered by something other than his heightened emotional state.To prevent her from reading his expression, Vahn put more effort into his [Will of the Emperor] as he closed his eyes and completely calmed his mind. Replaying the events in his mind, Vahn suspected there was more going on than he had been aware of. Though he didn't mind that she had such high affection for him, Vahn found it strange since she knew of his relationship with Chloe. When he asked her in order to clarify things, her affection increased by a large amount suddenly, even though he hadn't done anything significant. Then, in the short period of time when he had been in a strange state of mind, she suddenly reached the max in less time than it took to brew a pot of tea.Though he wanted to explain it away as coincidence and pretend she simply like him, Vahn couldn't ignore all the signs. He still felt appreciation for her, and even though she was remarkably beautiful and kind, but he couldn't ignore everything that just happened. If not for his ability to see auras, Vahn may not have even noticed something was strange from start to finish. After a small amount of hesitation, he looked into his inventory and saw the item that he had just obtained. Expecting that it would clarify things, Vahn used the [Hearts Desire: Syr Flova] in order to clarify matters.Even with his eyes closed, Vahn could feel time stagnate around him as his mind began replaying a series of images in his mind...Syr hated everyone around her. Ever since she could think and act for herself, she had quickly developed a disgust for all of the foolish people around her. They all treated her kindly, but she could see they were all trying to fool her and manipulate her into doing what they wanted her to do. All of the kids in the orphanage avoided her, and some of them even called her a demon and a witch behind her back.Though she pretended their words didn't affect her, she couldn't help but cry when she was alone. She resented the parents that had abandoned her and left her with such cold and malicious people. Though they acted nice on the surface, she could see through their facades and knew that even the kindly couple that ran the orphanage actually sold some of the young girls to brothels after fooling them into thinking they had been adopted. She still remembered how the 'kind' and 'beautiful' blonde woman tried to fool her the same as the other girls the moment her body began to mature slightly.The only way she could protect herself was to act out or isolate herself away in areas where they couldn't easily find her. She refused to eat large meals and tried to stunt her own growth to prevent the lecherous eyes of others from taking an interest in her. However, even though she made so much effort to avoid their attention, it didn't prevent the man that ran the orphanage from trying to **** her. She struggled fiercely as the man continually accused her of trying to seduce him. He even called her cruel names like 'bitch' and 'slut' as he tried to force himself on her.Fortunately, before the man could rob her of her chastity, a massive woman showed up and quickly pummeled the man until most of the bones in his body were shattered. Syr couldn't help but ball up and cry in a historic fashion after the event had been brought to an end. The woman, who she later learned was named Mia Grande, had taken pity on her and took her away from the hell hole that was her life.Several months later, when she turned nine years old, she had finally started to feel safe again. She had spent the last few months cooped up in the home of Mia and refused contact with anyone. Everyone except Mia seemed to be irredeemably cruel in her eyes, and she couldn't help but see the disgusting nature they kept hidden behind their facades. Even the friends of Mia that tried to coax her into opening up had cruel natures hidden behind their smiles. The only place where she felt safe was within the house where only she and Mia resided together.One day, the goddess that Mia served showed up at the house and, for the first time, Syr couldn't see through the woman. The only thing she saw in the beautiful silver eyes of the goddess was intrigue and a hint of concern. Though she didn't know why Syr felt a bit of familiarity with the woman and a warm feeling passed through her mind for a brief moment. From that point on, even though Mia tried to oppose, Syr became the protege of the goddess.Syr learned that the beautiful goddess was named Freya, and that, she too, possessed the ability to 'charm' other people. The accusation had terrified Syr, since she still had nightmares about the man that kept insisting that she was tempting him. She began to fear that his words were true and that the cause of her suffering and near-rape was due to her own actions. Freya admonished her for her foolishness and began counseling her on the way people thought and acted. With her teaching, Syr learned that she had the ability to see the 'truth' behind peoples thoughts and emotions, and she could use her ability to find people worthy of her affection.For several years after that initial meeting, Syr was taught by Freya on several occasions and forced to interact with people. She was constantly tested and required to evaluate people's true natures, and she slowly began to learn how her own 'charm' was activated. Whenever a person had an interest in her, if she maintained eye contact with them for several seconds they would enter a naturally charmed state. Though it wasn't nearly as powerful as her goddess and mentor, it was still very useful.However, when she was twelve years old, another incident happened which terrified Syr to the core. Freya had wanted to test her one last time and required her to actively try to seduce an influential man that was also the Captain of a smaller Familia. Though the Familia was just B-Rank, the Captain was still Level 4 and quite capable. He was young and popular among women, and Freya wanted her to steal him out from under their noses. She taught Syr that, the only way she could be happy was to create a world where she had absolute control over the people around her. The only way she could do that is with power, and if she couldn't obtain it herself, she needed to obtain it from others. If she could steal the heart of powerful adventurers, there would never be any danger to her well-being again.Though Syr still had inhibitions and didn't even like the man, she still tried to 'seduce' him according to her teachings. Unfortunately, things didn't go planned as she quickly learned what kind of personality the man had. Though he looked kind and treated women politely, Syr could sense the same negative feelings from him as the man from the orphanage. It wasn't long until her intuition proved true as the man actually tried to drug her and **** her in her sleep on the very same day she approached him. Because of her resistance, Syr wasn't affected to the same extent of other girls, but the man wasn't deterred and seemed to become even more excited at her struggles.Luckily, Mia had gotten wind of what was going on and burst into the scene before twisting the man's arm more than three times around before crushing his genitals. Even though the man was strong in his own grade, he couldn't do anything against the powerful Mia as she made short work of the cruel man. Syr learned later that, the only reason so many girls catered to him, was because he had threatened them after forcibly raping them in a manner similar to what he had tried with her.From that point on, Syr hated Freya as well and left her guidance to work with Mia at a pub called the Hostess of Fertility. She swore to herself that she wouldn't rely on her 'charm' ability to try and live happily and that she would seek out kind and gentle people to associate with. She didn't care about trying to build a powerful organization like Freya in order to 'guarantee her happiness', she just wanted to meet someone that would treat her well.However, no matter how much she wanted to change, she couldn't put her habits behind her and quickly fell into a cycle of exploiting others. Though she didn't use their affection for her to manipulate their lives or control them, she did use it to promote Mia's business. Their regular customers began growing at a rapid rate, and Syr was very happy with how lively things were. She also had the chance to meet many strong and powerful adventurers and hear the stories of their conquests. She learned that not every many was a cruel and lecherous scoundrel, but she still refused any of their attempts to court her.Though she didn't like to admit it, Syr couldn't help but admit that she had agreed with one part of Freya's teachings. It was better to have a strong and capable man instead of one that just treated her well. A weak man, no matter how kind he was, wouldn't be able to guarantee her safety if something happened. She wanted a strong man near her own age or one that had boundless potential. In order to find what she was looking for, she began listening to the various rumors of the guests and trying to bait the discussed people to the pub so she could meet them. Unfortunately, no matter how many men she met, none of them could meet her standards. Everyone always had something they were hiding, and the more she interacted with them, even the 'nice' guys started looking at her with disgusting expressions.The only thing she wanted was a man that was kind, strong, capable, and treated her well without only caring about her appearance. They also needed to possess a strong will that could resist her 'charm' and enough resolve to improve regardless of the difficulties they would face in the future. Was that really too much to ask for? Syr didn't think so, and she never stopped looking for her prince charming.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Divergence','Literally everyone has a tragic backstory','Very Dangerous Items')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 $485/640 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 could fee the stagnant air and frozen time thaw around him as the vision ceased within his mind. Syr's past had been something far different than he expected, and he couldn't help but pity her upbringing. Though Vahn had yet to meet Freya, he got to experience what type of person she was through Syr's vision, and now his apprehensions toward her had increased by a large amount. As for Syr to his right, he wasn't too sure how to feel, especially given how tragic the events were leading till moment in her life.Syr, who was waiting patiently for Vahn's response, felt something in his demeanor and bearing change. When he opened his eyes from his contemplation and stared at her, she had the feeling that he had seen through her entirely. It was both scary and exciting, but the gentle and compassionate look in his eyes made her fearful feelings more prominent. She could see that he 'understood' her somehow, and it terrified her to think what kind of person he saw her as.Vahn looked into Syr's light-grey eyes and could see her aura had begun to fluctuate with a slightly purplish hue. He understood that, though her cheerful expression hadn't diminished, that she was currently feeling afraid. Vahn was astounded by her perception and ability to read others, especially after experiencing how she developed the ability within the vision. Eventually, he noticed the aura begin to stabilize and he released a long sigh.Syr had noticed that, though he seemingly saw through her, he didn't seem to judge her for her character. The fearful feelings she had began to diminish when she saw the concern in his eyes. Curiously, the moment her fear ceased, she noticed that he was aware of the fact she had been afraid and now had calmed down. For the first time in her life, other than Freya, Syr thought she found someone that could understand her. Vahn's perception rivaled, or even exceeded, her own. The only difference between them, other than gender, seemed to be Vahn's inability to control his own expressions.Vahn never had a bad opinion of Syr, and the vision of her tragic past hadn't changed how he viewed her in the slightest. Though she might have done things that could be called to question, she never truly took advantage of anyone or hurt anybody. If not for Freya's manipulation and the circumstances of her childhood, she would have likely lived a happy life once she learned to control her own abilities.Looking into her light-grey eyes, Vahn could see a gentle and happy expression veiling a hint of sadness. He gave her a gentle, albeit awkward smile, as he responded to her earlier question, "I don't know how to answer your question, Syr. I don't understand my own heart well enough to give a coherent response. I'm already wrapped up in several relationships and have a great many things to think about and take care of. Until I return a bit of stability to my life, there isn't any easy way to accept others..."In response to his words, Syr's eyes squinted a bit as she covered her mouth with her hand and laughed cheerfully. Vahn's serious response after everything that happened made her feel like it was a very 'Vahn' way to reply to her question. She already knew about part of the situation from Chloe, as well as some of the details she had heard directly from Vahn himself. Fortunately, they were both young and they had plenty of time to build a friendship for the time being.After Syr laughed for a few seconds, she removed her hand and showed a wide and cheerful smile as she said, "I understand, Vahn. For now, let's just be friends; we can think about the future at a later date. As long as you treat me a bit kindly and continue to come to the Hostess of Fertility, I'll be satisfied...for the time being." Toward the latter end of her words, Vahn could see a playful gleam in her eyes as she stood up from the booth and dusted off her dress and apron.Syr turned to Vahn and showed a gentle smile as she bowed slightly before leaving the private room. Vahn stared at her departure with unveiled concern in his eyes; It wasn't easy for him to simply turn her down, even if he did it in a somewhat roundabout manner. However, his words had been true, and he could tell by her actions and response that she understood his intentions. Until he could meet the expectations of the women around him and become a stronger person, both mentally and physically, he couldn't easily accept more people.The biggest reason was, though Syr had a troubled past and various difficulties in her life, she was a very strong person with strong sensibilities. She wasn't in need of his help right now, and they would still be able to interact with each other of the next several months, or even years, without there being any issues. Vahn wanted to try growing closer to her and developing their friendship for the time being since he also had concerns regarding other girls for the time being.---After Syr had left the private room, her cheerful smile couldn't help but show a bit of melancholy as she stared back at the closed door. She understood that Vahn had affections for her, and he was likely willing to accept her along with his other girls in the future, but she still felt a bit saddened by his dismissal of her feelings in the present. In the four years she had been working at the Hostess of Fertility, he was the only one that managed to pass her evaluation, so she felt a bit of apprehension just walking away.While she was lost in her own thoughts, another girl approached her silently from the side. After a period of silence, Syr noticed her presence and showed a cheerful smile as she asked, "Did you need me for something, Ryuu?" Almost as if her previous mood had been an illusion, she immediately returned to her characteristically cheerful disposition as she stared into the sky-blue eyes of Ryuu.Ryuu had seen Syr enter and exit the room, and had been curious about what had transpired in the short few minutes for her to have such a 'sad' look when she left the room. After a brief hesitation, she asked, "Did something happen?" Though she was asking out of concern for her friend, she couldn't help but let her eyes wander to the closed door for a brief moment.Syr saw her actions and began to laugh in a playful manner as she teased Ryuu, "Are you worried about me, or Vahn?" After her words fell, Ryuu's plain expression softened a bit and she averted her eyes as she responded, "You're not acting like yourself...so I was worried." In response, Syr began to laugh cheerfully as she looked into Ryuu's averted eyes and said, "You're also not acting like yourself, Ryuu~. Don't worry though, nothing serious happened...Vahn just turned down my confession." As she spoke, she stuck out her tongue playfully and closed one of her eyes.Hearing Syr's words, Ryuu's eyes widened a bit as she asked, "You confessed to him?" Syr nodded her head and 'pouted', "Mou~, it's really heartbreaking...Even though he has so many women, he doesn't have a place for me right now. Ryuu, help me break down his resistance in the future. He seems to like you, so maybe we can work together and catch his attention~?"Though her expression hadn't changed much while Syr was speaking, the moment she heard the words, 'he seems to like you', Ryuu looked toward the door and asked, "You said he liked me?" Successfully baiting Ryuu, Syr nodded her head and explained with a low tone, "Isn't it so? You know, even though I had met him first and talked to him, he never showed me a gentleman's courtesy and grabbed my hand. You seem to be a bit special to him, don't you think~?"As she was listening to the quiet voice of Syr goading her further, Ryuu showed a small smile that was very uncharacteristic of her usually placid expression. Before she responded, Syr grabbed her arm and said in a playfully urgent tone, "Come on, Ryuu, let's go talk to Chloe. If we can convince her, our chances of getting to Vahn will increase~"Ryuu allowed herself to be pulled by Syr as she continued to contemplate her words. Ever since Vahn had grabbed her hand, Ryuu already had a special affection toward him. However, she knew there were already several women around him, and she didn't want to trouble him or get in the way of others. Though she had some slight inhibitions, if Vahn truly likes her as Syr said, she was somewhat interested in trying to pursue him. Remembering the words of her dead best friend, Alise, Ryuu didn't want to easily let go of the handsome boy that had easily grabbed her hand.---Vahn left the Hostess of Fertility completely unaware of the minor scheme he had incited behind the scenes. He made his way toward his house while thinking about various matters and how best to go about resolving issues in the future. However, a few minutes after he started ruminating over his thoughts deeply, Vahn stopped in the middle of the street and looked toward the slightly cloudy sky before exhaling a sigh through his nose.Though he knew it wasn't possible to make everyone happy, Vahn still wanted to treat those with high affection towards him well. He was especially interested in the characters from the original plotline who had a special place in his mind just by virtue of their existence. Every time he interacted with them, Vahn couldn't help but feel a bit excited and expectant to see how they would react to his presence.The biggest problem he had was one he had never expected to happen in the first place. There were simply a great number of women and girls that seemingly became interested in him within a short period of time. Vahn attributed this to his 'View Affection' function as well as his [Hearts Desire] quest, as he seemed to easily influence the women around him. Not only people from the original plot but even those he never had any foreknowledge of. Anubis, Nanu, Tina, and some other girls, never appeared in the original story, yet Vahn had quickly been wrapped up in their lives.Vahn almost felt like, if he put in the effort, he could actually get together with any girl he wanted. Though the thought made him feel excited, it also terrified him since it felt like he was manipulating them through the use of 'The Path'. But, the simple truth of the matter was, Vahn actually enjoyed interacting with the girls. The majority of his 'acts' were things he would have done regardless of being able to see auras since he genuinely wanted to make them happy. These two contrasting thoughts created a bit of a paradox in his mind since Vahn wasn't sure what he truly wanted, other than to make them happy while becoming happy himself.He felt like the matter with Syr would escalate in the future, since his response was essentially just a delay tactic like what he had with Lili, Nanu, and Tina. The hardest part to deal with was the fact that Vahn actually didn't dislike Syr at all. Now that he had seen her heart's desire, he actually empathized with her even more and wanted to help her if he could. But, there were already so many people he wanted to help, and Vahn wasn't nearly strong or influential enough to take care of everything on his own.After standing idly in the middle of the street for a few minutes, Vahn just shook his head after failing to come up with a solution. The key always seemed to be becoming stronger or having more self-restraint. Becoming stronger wasn't too difficult, and even having self-restraint wasn't something Vahn couldn't develop. The hardest part was not caring about the people that developed affections for him over time. Vahn simply couldn't turn them away, and it seemed like his future was bound to be one where he was in a relationship of sorts with a large number of women.Vahn ultimately decided to live as he pleased while deferring to the women around him for assistance in managing his affairs. As long as he communicated with them properly, Vahn hoped things would never develop to a point where they became irreconcilable. Since he knew he would have an issue with gods and goddesses the moment his [Enkidu] became known, Vahn was already preparing himself for the aftermath. Vahn knew there were several men that would envy his position, so he decided to simply do his best to make the greatest number of people happy. If he ultimately fell short, Vahn believed there would be people to help him recover and find his path again.With a bit of confidence reappearing on his face, Vahn made his way toward his house in higher spirits than the gloom he had experienced moments before. Though it might have been a strange thought, Vahn couldn't help but imagine the image of various women around him pregnant. The thought of having children of his own made him feel more excited than almost anything else, and Vahn looked forward to having the opportunity to be a father. Until then, he would just focus on getting stronger and keeping the promises he already made.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Birth of the Harem...Emperor?','Sneaky Syr','The Vahnatus is going to look like a convention in the future')(A/N: For those that think there are too many girls around Vahn, I can't help but agree with you. The problem is, given Vahn's skill-set and character, there are too many ways in which he can leave deep impacts on girls/women/goddesses. Imagine if you could always measure your actions to make the affection of people around you grow? Combine that with being young, capable, influential, nice, etc, and it's a recipe for a harem disaster! The only way around it would have been to not introduce characters, but it wouldn't make sense for some people to not show up if Vahn visits a certain place. Like the Hostess of Fertility, there are simply too many 'single' girls with tragic pasts that would naturally be drawn to Vahn the moment he has a relationship with any of them. Syr definately has a somewhat scheming/cheerful/manipulative personality, and Ryuu's hand fetish is canon~!)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 $495/640 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

After awakening in the real world, Vahn got out of the bed and made his towards the door. Opening it, he came face to face with Tina who had been waiting for him patiently. The moment he saw the cute little girl, he couldn't help but pat her on the head with a bit of affection. Though it had only been a few seconds for her, it had been three days since Vahn had seen her last. He was beginning to realize how peculiar it was to transition between the two different worlds.Tina didn't know what Vahn was being so affectionate, but she just closed her eyes with a subtle frown as she resisted mewling out due to the pleasant sensation. Vahn then made his way to the dining room and relaxed with the boys while all the girls took their bath. After Tina had shown up, the children were quickly beginning to open up more and more. It had only been a day since her arrival, but they were already making an effort to be more open with him, so Vahn was very pleased. He asked about what each of them was studying and offered a bit of advice on the subjects that he understood.Once the girls had finished their bath, Vahn and the other boys entered for a couple of minutes before leaving and preparing for an early dinner. Unlike the previous days, the girls had started preparing the meal using ingredients that had been stocked in the kitchen. Tine had convinced Anubis and the other girls that it wasn't appropriate to rely on Vahn to bring fully prepared food home for each meal. Since she had helped her mother when cooking for the Inn patrons, Tina was actually relatively skilled when it came to cooking the basics.Though it wasn't nearly as delicious as the normal food Vahn ate, he actually preferred the meals that had been cooked by the people he cared about. After the meal was finished and everyone cleaned up, Vahn made sure to give heavy compliments to the young cat girl. In response to his words, Tina's tail flicked up around slightly and Vahn couldn't help but notice it was a distinctly different motion than when chienthropes were happy. It seemed that cat people tails 'flickered' while chienthrope tails 'wagged' or spun around when they were excited.After dinner, everyone idled around and Vahn even attended the lesson of Anubis and Tina before parting ways with the rest of the children when it came time for bed. Vahn gave his evening pats to Anubis and Nanu before retiring to his room with Tina in tow. She was significantly more comfortable than the previous night, but Vahn noticed she was still overly cautious of the change in her living conditions.Without being told, Vahn had already turned his back to her as he began preparing for bed on his own. Tina stared at him for a few seconds before changing into a cream-colored nightgown of a similar design as her light-blue one. She then waited for Vahn to climb into bed before she crawled under the covers before appearing next to his side with a somewhat bashful and happy expression on her face. Vahn smiled and pet her ears for a little bit as he allowed her to use his shoulder as a pillow.Since she had been in high-tensions all day from interacting with the other children, Tina fell asleep very quickly and curled up into a ball next to Vahn while holding on to the edge of his loose shirt with her small hands. Vahn gave her a kiss on the forehead before he too fell asleep after reminiscing about the day's events. He still couldn't easily wrap his head around essentially spending an entire week of time for every day that passed. It felt like his meeting with Chloe and their promise was several days ago, when it had, in fact, happened only about seven hours prior.Vahn awoke a few minutes before it was time to re-enter the orb, and he noticed that Tina had been sticking to him more than when she fell asleep. He helped fix her posture and pulled down her nightgown which had been riding up her stomach yet again. After patting her on the head, he relaxed his body and pulled out the orb in order to meet with Eva as punctually as he was able.Learning from past experiences, the moment Vahn entered the orb, he unequipped his tunic mere milliseconds before Eva pounced on his body. They kissed and cuddled for nearly two hours as she drew his blood and 'enjoyed his warmth' as she put it. Vahn was quickly falling into the new routine he had established inside the orb and spent about 70% of his time forging while investing the remaining 30% in resting and tending to Eva's needs. She had remembered his parting blow from last time and made sure to get her revenge twice-over before Vahn finally conceded defeat and apologized.One thing to note, though he had expected it, Vahn was still surprised when there were small saplings growing in the garden as well as a variety of bushes, plants, and flowers. They were all neatly arranged and tended to, and Vahn could see the care and affection Eva showed for each individual plant. The hobby she had taken up was painting, and Vahn noticed that she had an incredible amount of talent after seeing the various landscapes she had drawn from her memory. She had even, though it embarrassed Vahn greatly, painted a picture of his nude form striking a heroic pose.The amount of detail she had put into his body, including his genitals, had unnerved him a bit. Perhaps she had noticed his concerns as, shortly thereafter, Eva actually gave him a second painting after making him swear to never reveal it to another person. After making the promise, Eva pulled out a large painting that had been beautifully framed before revealing its contents to Vahn. The moment he laid eyes on it, Vahn felt slightly faint as an itchy feeling appeared in his chest. Within the frame, there was a picture of a beautiful doll-like girl with long golden hair that barely protected her modesty as she laid in a pose on her side while supporting her head with one hand. The piercing ice-blue eyes of the girl were striking to behold, and Vahn felt like the painting possessed a life of its own. The painting which she had gifted him ended up being a full-scale replica of her nude form laying down on a regal looking couch while staring at the viewer.Keeping the painting safely into his storage, Vahn was then pinned to the bed for the remaining hour or so until he was freed from the space. Unlike last time, Vahn didn't have any energy to tease Eva as she had thoroughly exhausted his body both physically and mentally. As a Shinso Vampire, as long as she had mana, Eva actually never got tired and immediately healed from wounds. Though she could be in an excited state, she never lost control and always managed to get an advantage over him unless he used his [Will of the Emperor] and [Hands of Nirvana] to force a stalemate.Waking up in the real world, Vahn went through his routine of trying to wake up the sleeping Tina so they could prepare for the coming day. He noticed she wasn't much of a morning person and it took a few minutes for him to rouse her from the bed. They then dressed in silence before meeting Anubis in the corridor and setting about and executing their daily routine. Vahn helped the children train before enjoying breakfast and then teaching Nanu blacksmithing for the first half of the day. During the afternoon, he walked to the Hostess of Fertility and interacted with Chloe for around an hour or so. He had talked it over with Mama Mia and permanently reserved one of the private booths Monday-Friday and paid the fee in advance.During his visit, Chloe had been much more mischievous than in the past and took to the role of teasing Vahn. He never expected her to act so spoiled and it almost felt like their roles had been reversed as she laid on the booth with her head on his lap as he fed her grapes. She told Vahn that it was her dream to be spoiled by handsome young boys, so Vahn assumed the role and treated her in an overly affectionate manner.To reward his effort, Chloe allowed him some liberties to stroke her stomach and even fondle her chest a bit as long as he wasn't too rough. It was also worth noting that she had forbidden him from grabbing her tail unless he wanted her to bite him hard enough to leave a permanent mark. Vahn learned that it was the trait of cat people to mark the partners that had grabbed their tails by biting into their shoulder hard enough to leave indentations that wouldn't fade away. Remembering how she had instantly bit his tunic the last time he grabbed her tail, Vahn was almost tempted to go against her wishes but stayed his hand in the end. He was afraid of what Eva might think if he showed up in the orb with a bite mark on his neck other than the ones she often left.Interestingly, when Vahn was preparing to leave, it wasn't Chloe who was to see him off, but Syr. Vahn was a bit confused by the strange change, but Syr chuckled at his reaction and explained, "Don't mind it too much, I just asked Chloe to allow me some of your time. I'm not a bother, am I, Vahn?" Vahn shook his head and responded, "It's not trouble at all, Syr. I would like to be friends with you, and I've got plenty of time if you need it."Hearing his response, Syr couldn't help but chuckle with a very pleased and cheerful expression on her face. She sat in the booth next to him, instead of the one across and Vahn had to give way a bit or they would have been sitting close enough to contact each other. Syr hadn't missed his reaction and she even leaned on the table a bit as she propped her head up and asked, "Vahn, is it true that a bunch of girls that might be your potential love interests gathered together the other day? I had asked Chloe about it, but she only gave me vague details without explaining anything."Though she had a somewhat 'sad' look in her eyes, Vahn could see that she wasn't really affected by the story and was likely just interested to know about the information. Her strong aura remained stable and didn't show the signs of being flustered or confused. Instead, it was gentle and watery and had a subtle silver color with hues of a sunny yellow showing that she had no malicious intentions.In response to her question, Vahn nodded his head and explained the purpose behind their meeting without expressly giving away any details. He didn't want to be the type of person that was ashamed of his relationships with others, so he had no inhibitions talking about the women he interacted with. Syr listened to him with clear intrigue on her perpetually cheerful face as she asked leading questions to try and get more information out of him.Because of his ability to see auras, Vahn wasn't easily misled by her questioning, but he was still curious about her motives. She had such an elegant disposition and acted very kindly towards everyone, but Vahn also felt like she had a mischevious personality with an apparently insatiable curiosity. He noticed that she stared at his expression in a very similar fashion as Eina, and was likely able to intuit more information from his expression that he was willing to divulge normally. He felt like, even if he wanted to lie to her, he wouldn't have the ability to do so.From Syr's perspective, she couldn't help but marvel about the accomplishments and 'prowess' of Vahn. Because he recounted everything honestly and only misconstrued a bit of information that related to privacy and other people, she had a very good impression of him and wanted to know more and more. Though they were only two years apart in age, he had lived such a 'colorful' life and was now surrounded by capable people that would likely give him incredible influence in the future.As the conversation progressed, Vahn noticed that Syr had oriented herself closer to him and she never seemed to drop eye contact while they were speaking. Eventually, almost as if it was natural, she subtly contacted his body as she continued to make conversation without seeming to notice. Though he had the opportunity to touch her before, Vahn never came into contact with Syr previously and now he couldn't help but pause a bit at the information that appeared in his head.//Syr Flova: Affection +43, Intrigue +50//[Syr Flova]:Affection: 93(Amour), Intrigue:100(Insatiable Curiosity)Syr noticed his dazed look as a gleam passed through her eyes and she asked, "Vahn, what's wrong?" As if it were the natural thing to do, Syr placed her right hand on his face and turned Vahn's head toward her as she looked into his eyes as if she was trying to find something concealed within.Vahn's mind was still in a daze as he was trying to process what happened. Generally speaking, a person started at values of 50/50 for affection and intrigue respectively. When Vahn finally contact someone, he would receive all of their hidden values in an instant which meant that, since the time he had met Syr, she had somehow developed an entire 43 points of affection for him while reaching capacity for her intrigue. He couldn't help but wonder what he had done to so deeply impact the cheerful young girl.Instead of answering her question, Vahn looked at her strangely and asked, "Do you like me, Syr?" Syr had been staring into his face for a while and didn't seem to process the question that he just asked her. After a brief delay of around five seconds, her eyes twitched a bit and she broke eye contact with him for the first time as a clear blush almost immediately covered her face. In a manner similar to Lefiya, she turned completely beet red as she whispered in a low and begrudging voice, "Don't tease me, you meanie..."//Syr Flova Affection +5//(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Assemble the Avahngers','Complacency can be dangerous','Nom Kitty')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 $485/640 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 175: Prince Charming