Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

A few minutes after he had returned to his room, Vahn saw Hestia step inside with her hair down and she had already worn her white dress once again. She seemed to look very tired and Vahn thought she had spent too much time inside the bath and exhausted herself. Rising from the bed, he approached her before pulling out a cold bottle of [Vanilk] that he had become fond of in the past. It was a dairy product that tasted like vanilla that was popular in the Far East and Vahn had managed to find it listed within the system for 2OP.Hestia received the glass bottle with a bit of confusion on her face before Vahn said, "If you remove the top and drink this after soaking in an onsen, it helps rehydrate your body and calm your mind a bit. It's also pretty sweet and I haven't met anyone that disliked it yet." Some of the tension in her body melted away as Hestia removed the seal on the bottle before taking a small sip of the milky white beverage. Noticing it was actually very sweet and creamy, Hestia gulped it down in a few seconds before exclaiming with a, "Paaaaaa~" sound.As if the earlier tiredness had been an illusion, Hestia handled the empty bottle over to Vahn with a large smile on her face as she said, "That was super delicious~! From now on, we'll always drink that after we take a bath!" Since it was already a habit he had developed when he lived with Tsubaki, Vahn nodded his head before saying, "It's getting pretty late, so I'm going to head to bed soon." In response, Hestia seemed to hesitate for a brief moment before she said, "Since we just got out of the bath and are already relaxed, I wanted to try something unless you're already tired."Vahn turned his head to look at Hestia and saw there was a glimmer of expectation in her eyes even though she also seemed to be nervous. He asked, "What did you want to try?" Since he couldn't think of anything, the only way Vahn could know was if she answered him. He could see her take a deep breath as if she was mustering up her courage before she responded, "I heard from Hephaestus and the others that you were very good at massages. Since I've never had one...I wanted to try it out if its not too much trouble."Ever since she had heard the 'warnings' from Hephaestus, Loki, and Anubis, Hestia had been curious about Vahn's [Hands of Nirvana]. She had wanted to ask him back at the Inn the previous night, but hadn't had enough courage to follow through in the end. Because of the tensions, she didn't even remember to conduct the Familia induction ceremony until the following morning. Now that they had gotten to know each other better and had even bathed together, Hestia wanted to see what all the fuss was about.Hearing Hestia's request, Vahn tilted his head sideways and thought about the matter a bit. He knew from experience that his massage skills were very effective and he hadn't met anyone that had any complaints to offer. Since Hestia was the type that liked to be spoiled, Vahn had already expected her to ask at some point so he wasn't too surprised. He actually liked giving massages and using his [Hands of Nirvana], so Vahn didn't have any reason to refuse so he said, "Sure, but you have to prepare yourself. I'll try to go easy on you at first and you can tell me how you feel during or after the fact. Most of the girls I give a serious massage to end up passing out, so I'd like to receive feedback if possible."Hestia's heart began to beat powerful in her chest after she heard the words, 'serious' and 'passing out'. Though she was very curious, she was beginning to think there was more to the matter than was insinuated by her fellow goddesses. Seeing the gentle and 'innocent' expression of Vahn and remembering he said he would 'go easy' on her, Hestia mustered up a bit of courage and asked, "W-w-what do I need to do?"Vahn looked around between the couch and bed before coming to a decision and saying, "You just need to lay on your stomach in a comfortable position. If you're worried about falling asleep we can use the bed, but if you think you'll be able to stay awake we can use the couch. Hearing that it was something as simple as laying on her stomach, Hestia released a relieved sigh and said with a smile, "Let's use the bed, its actually super comfortable and I don't mind if I fall asleep. I can always tell you my opinion in the morning~!"Vahn agreed since he had also been laying on the bed earlier. It was the first time since he had purchased it and the mattress seemed to conform to his body a bit even though it had a certain sense of 'firmness'. It was very soft on the surface and cool to the touch without making his body feel cold at all. It was almost paradoxical, but Vahn couldn't argue that it was extremely comfortable as Hestia had said.When Hestia crawled into the bed, Vahn wasn't far behind her and it actually felt awkward since he felt like he was 'chasing' her. Since the bed was rather large, the only way to get to the center was to crawl to it from the sides. Because she was on her hands and knees, Vahn could see up her short dress if he didn't avert his eyes. After she had finally laid down, Vahn was on his knees next to her body and she was giving him a slightly expectant look.Warming up his hands, Vahn looked at Hestia and said, "I'll start off with a normal massage, or did you want me to use [Hands of Nirvana] and give you the same kind as the others?" Hestia thought for a few seconds before swallowing her saliva and saying, "I want to try the same thing as them...if its too much, we can always try something less intense later." Now that he had her consent, Vahn nodded his head before placing his hands on her lower back.The first thing Vahn noticed was how small Hestia was compared to the other goddesses he had given a massage. Even Loki was slightly taller than he was, so seeing the petite Hestia laying on her stomach made him feel slightly awkward. It didn't help that he had to lean forward slightly since it was difficult to massage her back while kneeling at her side. Before he officially began, Vahn frowned slightly before explaining in a slightly awkward voice, "It's somewhat difficult to massage you like this..."Hestia had closed her eyes the moment Vahn put his palms on her back and didn't quite understand what he was saying until she opened her eyes. She saw that he had to tilt his body over hers at an awkward angle since they were on the same level. It wasn't like a normal massage where he would be able to stand at the side and easily reach around her body. In order to get all the proper angles, he would have to move around and put in a lot more effort to successfully complete the massage.As if realizing what he was trying to ask, Hestia buried her face into the blankets for several seconds before she said something in a muffled voice that Vahn couldn't hear. He tilted his body a bit and inclined his ear to listen closer and still couldn't make out what she was saying so he asked, "Hestia, are you...?" Before he could finish, she turned her head and had a slightly teary-eyed look and an extremely frustrated expression as she spat, "Just do it properly~!"Her words finished, Hestia turned her head away and refused to look at Vahn while leaving him with a confused expression on his face. After thinking about her words, Vahn nodded his head and found a bit of confidence as he said, "I'm going to straddle your legs a bit so I can line up with your back." His words made Hestia flinch but she didn't say anything even as he climbed over her body.For the second time during the same session, Vahn realized how small Hestia's body was as he loosely straddled her legs without resting his weight on hers. Since he remembered her light she was, Vahn was somewhat worried about sitting on her legs like had done with Anubis. Staring at the line of her back, which was mostly exposed because of the design of her dress, Vahn leaned forward a bit and placed his hands on her side as he officially began the massage.Hestia, who had buried her face into the pillow, immediately felt her tensions hit a new high the moment Vahn sat overtop her own body. Even though she couldn't see where he was looking, she felt somewhat afraid by the current situation. As Vahn placed his hands on her sides, her fear continued to increase until an incredibly relaxing sensation spread through her body from the sides and it felt like she lost all the tension in her lower body. Not only that, but when she tried to move her legs, Hestia realized she couldn't put any strength into them at all.Though it was very comfortable, Hestia immediately felt afraid and wanted to put an end to the 'dangerous' massage but was unable to turn her head and exclaim in time before her upper body also become completely relaxed. Hestia felt like her entire body had suddenly become paralyzed and she couldn't even put any effort into her vocal cords to deny his 'advances' anymore. For a brief instant, Hestia felt like she had fallen into Vahn's trap and he was about to have his way with her and there was nothing she could do about it.Vahn noticed the powerful fluctuation in Hestia's aura and pressed six different areas on her back to undo the progress he had been making. Functionality returned to Hestia's body and she immediately curled up into a ball before Vahn could say anything. He could see her aura was flickering chaotically like a flame that was about to burn out and was tinged with a hint of purple as she protected herself with one of the pillows from the bed. Vahn felt like he had somehow wronged her and a painful feeling gripped his chest as he stared at the goddess that had treated him so well recoiling as if she was afraid of him.Hestia had been so scared that Vahn was going to attack her that she didn't even think as she escaped out from under his body. She used one of the large pillows as a shield as she looked back with a hint of fear to see how Vahn would react. The moment she saw his expression, Hestia's fear diminished by a large amount and she suddenly felt very regretful. She could see that Vahn had an apologetic expression on his face intermixed with confusion and a hint of fear.Hestia immediately understood that he had no intentions to harm her and that she had overreacted because of her own inexperience. She remembered that not only the other goddesses, Vahn himself had warned her before he began. The fact that she, if even for a brief moment, felt afraid that he would take advantage of her was a big breach of the trust between them. She suddenly felt like she had failed him as a goddess and someone that claimed to be his family.Seeing that Vahn was about to apologize, Hestia's heart felt like it was going to break so she immediately threw the pillow aside before jumping into his arms and, with tears in her eyes, shouted, "I'm so sorry Vahn, I know you weren't trying to harm me! I just got scared because I hadn't expected to suddenly lose control over my own body like that! Please don't blame yourself and give me such sad look like you want to apologize!"Vahn had been caught off guard when Hestia suddenly lunged at him and had fallen back onto the bed as she hugged his chest with tears and concern marring her expression. He noticed that her aura had changed from the slight purple one to a sunny yellow intermixed with an azure blue and a tinge of pink. Vahn released a relieved sigh as he began stroking her back gently with the calming effects of [Hands of Nirvana]. For a moment, Vahn had thought he had harmed Hestia somehow so he was incredibly relieved when he heard it was a misunderstanding.Hestia felt Vahn's warm caress on her back and could feel the gentle energy spreading through her body and driving away all of the negative feelings she had been feeling. She looked into his expression and saw that it had returned to the same gentle smile that he always seemed to show others. Vahn saw her staring at him silently and used his free hand to stroke her long silken-black hair as he whispered in a gentle tone, "Maybe we can try something less intense next time...I want to help you relax and feel comfortable, not scare you and make you fearful of me."Though his words were gentle, Hestia felt them like heavy impacts on her heart because she knew she had wronged him unfairly. Even though he did nothing wrong, it was now him trying to comfort her when she should be the one trying to make it up to him. It was even worse because she could feel the warm energy from his hands and couldn't hold on to her own sadness and anxiety as he seemed intent on driving it away.Vahn could see her aura fluctuating slightly and saw the struggle on her face so he put some strength into his body and lifted himself up till she was sitting in his lap. Hestia was confused at first and then Vahn put his hands around her back and held her close to his chest as he rested his head on top of hers. Before she could say anything, Vahn whispered, "Misunderstandings happen, Hestia, we just need to put them behind us and continue moving forward. Didn't we promise to help make each other happy and become family? Don't let such a small matter make you feel down..." Finishing his words, Vahn kissed her on the top of her head before releasing her.Hestia stared up at him with a slight frown on her face and didn't say anything for several seconds as she continued to sit awkwardly in his lap. After thinking for a bit, she took a big breath before releasing it as a powerful sigh. She bumped her head against Vahn's chest and remained silent for another couple of seconds before she turned up to look at him with a vibrant smile on her face that caught Vahn completely off guard.Almost as if the earlier incident had never happened in the first place, Hestia had returned to her cheerful demeanor and her deep blue eyes had turned completely tranquil as a gentle light reflected in them. She spoke in a solemn, yet happy tone, almost as if she was making a promise, "I know you will never harm me, Vahn. From now on, and forever hereafter, I will place my trust in you completely." Her words finished, Hestia grabbed Vahn's hands in her own and held them close as if she was uttering a prayer. It was a similar manner as the time when they had first met, and Vahn wondered if there was some significance to the act.After she released his hands, Hestia showed another vibrant smile that felt like it could banish away bad thoughts and feelings. Vahn suddenly felt somewhat protective of the tiny goddess and instinctively began stroking her head as he smiled and said, "Let's go to bed, Hestia." Her eyes squinted a bit before she nodded her head and said, "Yes, but I want to try that massage again tomorrow. No matter what happens, I want to see it through to the end."After making the promise to continue tomorrow, the two laid down onto the bed in a much better mood than a few minutes prior. Though they didn't embrace or cling to each other from the outset, it wasn't long before Vahn awoke to find Hestia crawling onto his body even though the bed beneath them was far more comfortable than he imagined his stomach to be. If not for the soft feeling pressing against him, and the incredibly light weight of Hestia, Vahn would have muttered a silent complaint before he once again fell asleep with a slight smile on his face.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Curiosity Killed the Cat(Goddess)','Instinctive Fear','Terrifying Godhand')I am currently at $721/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

When Vahn woke up to prepare and enter the orb, he was taken aback by the present situation and briefly stunned by what he saw. At some point during the night, Hestia had flipped her body and was laying on top of him on her back. It was the first time a girl had laid on him in such a strange fashion and Vahn could clearly see down her cleavage and the small [Sapphire Star] dangling off to the side. Pulling up the covers to hide her body, Vahn shifted sideways slowly and allowed her to roll off of him without waking her up. As if to rebuff his efforts, Hestia, seemingly still asleep, crawled back on top of his body and hugged around his ribs like she refused to let him go.If not for the fact he could see her stable aura and the drool coming from her mouth, Vahn wouldn't believe she wasn't awake. Since his awareness of the body, especially any he was in contact with, was very high, Vahn could feel the stability of her pulse and the rhythm of her breathing with indicated she was still asleep. It was almost like she had some kind of homing instinct that sought out warmth while she was unconscious and it made Vahn laugh as he stroked her hair a bit before entering the orb.Within the orb, Vahn forged the emblem that he was going to place outside of their gate as well as several smaller ones to give to any of their future Familia members. To prevent them from falling into the hands of others, Vahn also purchased thin bangles that he forged the member emblems around. This gave it the properties of a piece of equipment that had been obtained through the system, so only the members he 'gifted' the emblems to would be able to make use of them. Anyone else that tried would experience a small backlash and be forced to drop it.Because he got a little carried away, Vahn forged more than twenty of them and even nearly had to give one to Eva when she found out what he was working on. Instead, Vahn decided to give her something from the system that he thought suited her. It was a hairpin that had a lily-motif with five beautiful white petals with a slight golden coloration in the center. When he placed it in her long golden hair, Vahn felt like his own affection for her had increased by +5. To 'thank' him, Eva spent some time treating him 'gently' while wearing only the hairpin as they laid in bed together.When Vahn finally escaped into the real world, he nearly laughed because of how adorable her actions had been. If not for Hestia currently sleeping on his body, Vahn would have wanted to laugh in order to vocalize the feelings he had been bottling up. As if she had 'sensed' something, Hestia wriggled about on top of his body for a bit before raising her head and staring at him with sleepy eyes.Vahn saw her looked and gave her a smile that was enhanced by the feelings he had within. Reaching out his hand, he stroked the side of her hair and ran his fingers through it as he said, "Good morning Hestia..." His words made Hestia show an equally happy smile as she rested her head against his hand before laughing in a strange manner and trying to go back to sleep. Vahn felt a bit awkward because she was holding his forearm with her right arm and using it to support her head. A few seconds later, he noticed she had actually fallen asleep even though her upper body was being held up by nothing by her head. Her breasts were dangling down because of the awkward position and Vahn could clearly outline their entire shape with his eyes. Releasing a sigh, Vahn gently lowered Hestia's head until she was laying against his body again. Her 'instinct' immediately took effect and she once again hugged around his body.Hestia seemed to be the type that wasn't a morning person, so Vahn allowed her to sleep for a bit longer as he organized things in his inventory and began preparing for the coming day. Since it was Saturday, it was also the day that had been arranged to celebrate his birthday. Vahn hadn't heard anything about what was planned, but he knew he was supposed to visit the same cafe where he previously waited for Hestia around 10 AM. There were still nearly five hours until then, so Vahn allowed Hestia to get some more sleep.Slightly after 8 AM, Hestia finally woke up and Vahn helped wipe away her slobber with a small handkerchief he had prepared. She seemed embarrassed at first before just laughing away the matter and showing a cheerful smile. Afterward, the two prepared for the day and Vahn reminded Hestia of the upcoming celebration. Hearing his reminder, Hestia immediately became bubbly and hugged his arm between her breasts while looking up and shouting, "It might be a bit late, but happy birthday Vahn~!"After preparing a few things, Vahn and Hestia made their way to the cafe in high spirits. Hestia seemed to be looking forward to the celebration even more than Vahn and he was beginning to be affected by her mood. Instead of letting him lead the way, Hestia was pulling him along in an excited manner while only being distracted a few times along the way. Vahn laughed every time she stopped to experience something new and patiently explained things before Hestia would suddenly 'realize' they had stopped before dragging him along at a faster pace.They arrived at the cafe with about a half hour to spare, but there were already several people that had shown up which made Vahn feel a warmth in his heart. Since Hephaestus had coordinated with everyone, all of the people that had close relationships with Vahn had shown up, including some people he was both surprised and pleased to see. The first of which noticed him the moment he entered and raised his hand with an amiable smile on his face and said, "Yooo, long time no see man!"The person greeting him had been the crimson haired Welf that Vahn hadn't seen in a long time. Walking forward, he extended his hand and clasped Welf's as he responded, "It's good to see you, Welf, how has the research been progressing?" Though Welf had a smile on his face, Vahn saw it twitch a bit when he asked about the research. After releasing a sigh, Welf put his palms together and bowed slightly as he asked, "Please give me another one of those staves! I broke the last one when I was trying an experiment and things haven't been going well ever since!"Vahn laughed and waved his hand as another [Heal] appeared out of thin air. He passed it over to Welf who had a look of gratitude on his face before another voice shouted out while laughing, "Welf-boyo, what kind of thoughts go through that brain of your's to be asking for gifts from the person whose birthday we're celebrating~!?" The voice had belonged to Tsubaki who was wearing a white and purple eastern looking top that showed off her midriff. Though it was still somewhat revealing, it was a much better outfit than just wearing her sarashi while in public.Welf had a frustrated and somewhat apologetic expression on his face as he turned to her and said, "Mind your own business you old bat. Vahn and I are partners and he asked about my-" Before he could finish, Tsubaki grabbed the top of his head and pushed him down to the floor and shouting, "Who are you calling an old bat!? You sure got bolder in the time I haven't seen you, haven't you 'kid'?"Though Welf had a forward and something 'aggressive' personality at times, he was still only a Level 1 and wasn't remotely close to a match for Tsubaki's strength. Vahn didn't know how he could muster up such courage to even lightly insult Tsubaki since she wasn't exactly known for her delicacy. To prevent the situation for getting worse, Vahn walked over and placed his hand on Tsubaki's shoulder and said, "Don't mind him too much, you're still quite beautiful regardless of what others might say."Tsubaki's eye widened a bit and Vahn helped Welf to stand before she could say anything to stop him. Vahn helped dust Welf off before saying adamantly, "Never insult a woman for her age, even if you don't mean it..." Vahn almost mentioned that Welf used to like Hephaestus, even though she was millions of years old, but the thought of vocalizing the words didn't sit well with him at all. Almost as if Welf had understood something from his words, he released a sigh before placing his hand on Vahn's shoulder and saying in a solemn tone, "Make sure you treat her well..."Though Welf had once thought of Vahn as his rival in love, it wasn't long after their first meeting that he realized there wasn't even a competition to be had. The rumors regarding his and Hephaestus's relationship were common knowledge and he had already verified matters previously. Though he didn't know about the marriage yet, Welf was certain there was more to the relationship between Hephaestus and Vahn than was currently rumored. The moment he saw Hephaestus without her eyepatch, Welf had already given up pursuing the goddess that had deeply rooted itself in his heart.Vahn understood what Welf was saying, so he nodded his head confidently and said, "No matter what, I'll make sure to take care of all the people I care about." Though he wanted to say Hephaestus instead of 'all', Vahn couldn't ignore the fact there were several of the girls he was close to present. Though they hadn't greeted each other yet, Vahn could see Loki, Eina, Tiona, Tione, Ais, Lefiya, Naaza, Lili, Milan, Tina, Anubis, the entire Anubis Familia, and, last but not least, Chloe. Counting Tsubaki and Hestia, that brought the total count of attendants to 17 females and 6 males. Though he was already aware of it, Vahn noticed that he had few male acquaintances. Since Finn, Gareth, and Bete hadn't shown up, that left his only actual male acquaintance to be Welf, since Rasui, Nour, Akil, and Ata were all technically closer to his proteges or 'pack' than anything else.After a few polite words, Vahn made his way over to the rest of the group with Hestia, Tsubaki, and Welf as he began to greet everyone in turn. They all seemed happy to see him and Vahn could feel their affection as he had short embraces with almost all the girls present, including Tsubaki and the girls he didn't interact with much like Chione and Maat. Seemingly unaware of what was going on, Welf looked at Vahn like he was some kind of monster and, once Vahn had greeted everyone, leaned over and asked, "What the hell is going on, did I not get the memo or something?"Since it wasn't a secret and he should already know about Tiona and Ais, Vahn began to give a short explanation of his relationship with all the girls present while skimming over most of the details. Some of the people present could pick up on his words, even though he was speaking quietly, and they had a happy expression as Vahn recounting things for Welf's benefit. By the end, the incredulous look on Welf's face had turned into one of abject confusion and he had a somewhat strange, yet serious, expression as he asked in a moderately loud voice, "Are you trying to say that almost every girl here besides some of the brats are your women!?"As if dissatisfied by something he had said, Lili, Nanu, and Tina all stood up and shouted in concert, "We're not brats you idiot!" Welf gave them an even stranger look and Vahn couldn't even read what kind of emotions he was experiencing just based off of his expression. Without responding to the trio, he turned to Vahn with wide eyes and asked, "Even these three brats as well?" His words made everyone at the table begin to laugh with the exclusion of the so-called three 'brats'. They stared at Welf with venomous eyes as if they wanted to rip out his tongue. Even Tina, who was usually a very sensible young girl, looked at Welf as if he was her natural enemy.Welf could feel the gazes on him and saw the reactions of everyone around him including the somewhat difficult expression on Vahn's face. Though he was almost positive he wasn't the one at fault here, Welf felt like he had found himself in a ridiculous situation without the opportunity to prepare himself. All he had heard was this was a birthday party for Vahn; he never expected it to be some kind of convention of Vahn's current and future women. Even his first love was among the crowd and Welf suddenly felt like Vahn was trying to show off to him. However, no matter how much frustration he felt, Welf's impression of Vahn was a powerful one in a pretty positive direction. Instead of feeling any resentment, he sighed deeply before looking at Vahn was a peculiar, almost respectful, look on his face.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Bad Sleeping Habits','Level 1 Crushed by a Cyclops','Get startled boi')I am currently at $721/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

After Vahn finished recounting his tale, he got up from Hestia's lap pillow and stretched his body a bit before saying, "It's getting pretty late, so I think I'll take a bath before going to sleep." Hestia, who had been ruminating over various matters, had her ears perk up at Vahn's words and remembered they had an onsen. She jumped off the couch and lifted her right arm high and shouted, "Yes, I'll take a bath as well~!"Vahn smiled at her excitement before they both headed toward the onsen on the first floor. Making his way through the door, Vahn noticed that Hestia tried to follow behind him and he explained, "Hestia, this is the boy's side, please use the other room." His words made Hestia flinch and she laughed awkwardly before saying, "You don't have to be embarrassed, I don't mind if we take a bath together as long as you don't try anything~."With a smile on his face, Vahn reached his hand toward Hestia's head and she began to smile in anticipation before he gently chopped the top of her head. She made a cute, 'Eiii!?' sound and Vahn laughed before saying, "Maybe in the future, but for the time being, we should use different baths. I promised to only share a bath with a woman when they're someone I'm in a relationship with."Hestia rubbed the top of her head with her fingers and gave Vahn an aggrieved look as she said, "But we're in a life-long relationship already...There is nobody else in the Familia yet, and it will be almost impossible to share a bath with just the two of us in the future." Even though Vahn had 'gently' chopped her head, Hestia had almost no physical strength or resistance so it still hurt her head a bit.Vahn considered Hestia words and agreed that what she said was actually true. Since she had high affection for him and he didn't have any real reason to refuse her at the moment, Vahn didn't think it would be a bad idea to take a bath together. If he had to be honest, Vahn enjoyed bathing with girls even before he became aware of the differences between men and women. Even when he had bathed with Tsubaki, Lili, and Naaza in the past, Vahn just enjoyed their company and the atmosphere as he soaked in the warm waters.After a few seconds, Vahn decided to accept her offer since he was actually somewhat inclined to spend time together with her. Rubbing her head and removing any discomfort she might be feeling, Vahn smiled and said, "Sure, we can spend some time together. Just make sure it doesn't become a habit when others start staying here. I'm supposed to be practicing self-control, so its dangerous if I make too many exceptions."Hestia pumped her fists and shouted, "Yosh~! Don't worry, you can use this as an opportunity to temper yourself for the future!" Vahn laughed at her outburst before making his way into the changing room with Hestia trailing behind him with a somewhat fiery expression. Without paying too much attention to her, Vahn began undressing casually before stowing away a change of clothes into one of the cubbies.He had noticed that Hestia had been watching him change, but he already resolved himself to not mind her for the time being. Vahn imagined Hestia had next to no experience with men, so she would probably be paying close attention to him and his actions. He decided to try and treat her in the same way as he used to treat Tsubaki, Lili, and Naaza in the past when they bathed together.When Vahn had been changing, Hestia had been admiring his form and physique with a bit of interest since he was indeed the first fully naked 'man' she had seen. Even though she had plenty of second-hand knowledge, she didn't really associate with the gods in Heaven so she was somewhat curious. Seeing his healthy tan and muscular figure made her heart tighten a bit as she admired his back that had her crest carved into it.After Vahn finished changed and started heading to the onsen, she realized she also needed to undress and felt a little 'blame' for Vahn since he hadn't stayed behind to wait for her. Though she didn't 'want' him to look at her, it felt somewhat frustrating that he didn't even try. Clasping her hands together, her outfit began to splits apart into small white petals that neatly arranged themselves into a pile inside one of the cubbies.Because Hestia's outfit was created as part of her Divinity, it was easily removed and worn at her leisure. Even if it suffered damage from wear and tear, it would just split apart into white petals that would regenerate over time as long as she had enough energy. If Vahn had been around to see the sight, he likely would have stared at her with intrigue as he tried to make sense of the mechanic behind her clothing.The only thing the remained were her unblemished white panties and the blue ribbon tied around her arms which she had to remove by hand before placing them neatly on top of the pile of petals. Turning toward the door Vahn had exited through, Hestia froze after taking one step and began to hesitate. Even though she didn't particularly mind being seen by Vahn, she still had some slight inhibitions about how he would react. If he tried to 'attack' her, she would probably run away and it would harm their relationship for a while. However, even if he didn't 'attack' her, if he showed disinterest in her body she would have some regrets about asking to bath together. She had a bit of confidence in her body, and Hestia also knew that Vahn showed an interest in her, but she was still hesitant to 'reveal' herself to him.After a minute or so, Hestia took a deep breath and tried to psyche herself up as she slowly walked forward. Even though she remembered his 'disinterest' when they were changing, Hestia believed Vahn would appreciate her body and still have enough wherewithal to not take any offensive actions against her. She even knew that, if anyone was likely to do anything, it would probably be her and Vahn would probably just spoil her. Believing in the 'gentle' and 'innocent' boy, Hestia felt emboldened and stepped into the men's bathing area.Vahn had already been relaxing in one of the smaller pools since he thought powering the larger bath would be a waste considering it was just the two of them. The current one he was in could probably fit 4-5 people without issue so he thought it was more than enough until other people joined the Familia. While he was waiting for Hestia, he even though about other guys that he could convince to join in the future. He definitely wanted to see if he could recruit Welf since they would benefit each other in their research in the future...As he was thinking of future members, Vahn heard the pitter-patter of footsteps and turned his head to see Hestia walking toward him with mechanical movements. The moment he looked over at her, she immediately blushed a bit and instinctively tried to hide, strangely enough, her breasts. Vahn thought her actions were cute because she didn't hide the more important parts from view. Though he didn't stare and almost immediately turned his head away, Vahn noticed that she was also completely bare like every other goddess he had seen. Even though he hadn't confirmed it with his own eyes, Vahn suspected Loki would be the same since he had heard the reason from Hephaestus previously.Seeing Vahn look away after smiling slightly, Hestia felt a mixture of emotions but the biggest one was relief. She felt like he 'appreciated' what he saw but had enough propriety to not gawk and make her feel more uncomfortable. The tensions in her body eased up a bit and she walked over to the pool he was in before taking the spot right next to him.Vahn was somewhat surprised since he could see she was nervous yet still chose to sit right next to him. He suspected she may have sat there since it would be more difficult for him to see her body unless he looked directly at her. If she sat across, or away, from him, he would have been able to stare at her body through the side of his vision if he had any intent to do so.After soaking in the water for around five minutes in absolute silence, Hestia tried to break the ice as she remarked, "This water feels very comfortable...it's nice and hot..." Vahn nodded his head in response while he relaxed against the smooth stone surface and enjoyed the heat. Ever since she had entered, Vahn had kept his eyes closed and was just soaking his body complacently since it had been a long time since he used an onsen.Hestia was watching Vahn from the side and felt a bit of frustration in her heart with how 'dismissive' he was acting. She felt that, even though they were alone in the bath, he didn't have to go to such great lengths to avoid her. Hestia wanted to tell him that, If she cared about being seen by him, she wouldn't have bathed with him in the first place. However, even when she tried to vocalize the words, they always got stuck in her mouth because of how 'forward' it sounded even in her mind.Eventually, it came time for the bath to come to an end, so Vahn used the soap to lather up his body before wiping himself down and rinsing off. The water in the onsen had the same properties as the one used by Tsubaki, so the soap would break down and be purified by the mana in the water without requiring any cleaning. The whole time he was washing, Hestia stared at him from outside his line of sight but he could still feel her gaze and it made him feel a little strange.As he prepared to get out of the pool, Vahn asked, "Are you going to stay in much longer? I can make you something cool and refreshing when you get out." Almost like his words were a trigger, Hestia shouted, "Vaaaaahn~! Why are you so casual when you get to have a bath with a beautiful goddess like me!? I won't be satisfied unless you give me a good reason~!"For the first time since she entered, Vahn looked straight at Hestia with a somewhat confused expression on his face. Hestia froze up under his gaze as she held the pose she had taken when she shouted out earlier. When she had exclaimed, Hestia stood up straight with her arms balled into fists at her side as she looked up at Vahn with a pouting expression. Now Vahn saw her full body, including the pale pink nipples on her almost flawless white breasts and she suddenly felt very nervous.After considering her question for a few seconds, Vahn responded, "I felt like you were placing your trust in me, and I didn't want to make you feel scared since I noticed you were very nervous. I'm not really acting casual so much as trying to keep myself from staring rudely at someone else's body." Ever since he had become 'aware' of women, Vahn always felt somewhat awkward if he gawked at their bodies without permission. Even though Hestia wanted to bathe with him, Vahn didn't take it as consent to do whatever you pleased.Hearing his 'honest' answer, Hestia's tensions collapsed and she dropped down into the water and hugged her knees as she blew bubbles into the water. Vahn didn't know what to make of her reaction and was going to ask before she said, "From now on when we bathe together, don't act so reservedly. It makes me feel even more uncomfortable when it feels like I'm being ignored."Vahn could see the 'serious' look in her eyes, so he smiled and said, "Sure, I won't act so reserved in the future." Finishing his words and giving Hestia one last glance toward her crystalline blue eyes, Vahn stepped out of the pool and revealed himself fully for Hestia's 'appraisal'. Since she had only seen him from behind this entire time, it was her first glimpse of Vahn's sleeping dragon and her body immediately turned to stone as he walked away from the pool without noticing her reaction.By the time Vahn had left the room, Hestia was still a statuette that was huddled down in the water as if she had just seen the Heavens collapsing. Even though she had been lectured by Hephaestus, Loki, Anubis, and Eina in the past, none of them had informed her about the size of Vahn's 'dragon' and she felt thoroughly intimidated. Though she never had any expectations of pushing their relationship to that level any time soon, Hestia couldn't help but imagine what would happen to her body if she got 'attacked' by Vahn.As if all her earlier bravado had been an illusion, Hestia felt less confident about playing around with Vahn. If on the off chance he did lose control, she wasn't sure if there would be a route of retreat left to her. Suddenly, Hestia's desire to meet the two girls named Tiona and Ais increased by a marginal amount as her concern for her best friend began to grow exponentially.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Life-Long Relationship','Steamy Bath-Time Goddess','The sealed dragon's slumber')I am currently at $721/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

Chapter 222: Mistake