Mushoku Impact

Though he wasn't even remotely surprised by Varuna's question, Paul asked, "You want to know what justice means to me...?
Nodding her head, Varuna continued to stare unblinkingly into Paul's as she slowly raised her right hand and explained, "I wish to know what kind of man the God of Boundaries chose to be our Champion. If your answer does not satisfy me..."
As Varuna allowed her words to trail, a harsh sound reminiscent of metal sliding against metal spread through the area as Ei flashed forward with her Musou no Hito-tachi drawn. Paul wasn't sure of the actual distance, but her blade appeared to stop less than a millimeter away from Varuna's neck as she practically growled, "This is not a situation where you can do as you please..."
Seemingly unbothered by Ei's actions, Varuna's expression remained calm as she said, "If the man chosen to by the Gods possesses a wicked heart, it would be better to let our world fade into oblivion. Ruining this world for a chance to restore our own...the only way our actions can be justified is if we do everything in our power to better both."
While continuing to stare into Paul's eyes, Varuna added, "So tell me, Paul Notos Greyrat. What is your version of justice...?"
Instead of immediately responding to Varuna's words, Paul took a moment to inspect his dampened clothes and the layer of moisture that covered his body. When Varuna raised her hand, water from the air had started to condense and swirl around him, Kokomi, and Mona. Ei's attack had rendered most of it inert while the rest was conveniently repelled by the two women at his flanks, each possessing Hydro Visions.
"Hmm..."
Though Varuna's attack should have made him more cautious, Paul felt more than confused than anything. There had been no hostility within her attack, so unless she was a complete psychopath who felt nothing when trying to kill people, the attack was more likely to put pressure on rather than harm him.
"Ah, fuck it..."
Adopting an inordinately serious expression that caused Varuna to narrow her eyes at him, Paul went on to surprise everyone present by answering, "Ass and tits." in a firm, ostensibly resolute tone.
While Venti suddenly erupted into laughter, Varuna did away with her mask of calm, a very clearly displeased expression on her face as she repeated, "Ass...and tits...that's your response?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Paul replied, "Your question is dumb, so I gave you an equally dumb answer. I mean, seriously, there are as many forms of justice as there are people in the world. Beyond that, there are societal notions such as social justice, economic justice, criminal justice, and even poetic justice. When it comes down to it, the 'justice' most people speak of is a convenient excuse at best and completely arbitrary the rest of the time."
Though it looked like Varuna was about to grab him by the shoulders and bite his head off, Paul tried to mimic the tone of his Ethics Professor from his previous life as he added, "The most meaningful form of justice is as a mirror for society. It's what brings us together, helps us identify right from wrong, and unifies us against outside threats. You want to know what kind of man I am? You won't find that out by asking asinine questions that only serve as an excuse to compare your idea of justice to others. That's what we call Absolute Justice. Not because it's better than any other kind, but because it's Absolute Bullshit."
"How dare you...!"
Unable to sit idle as Paul insulted her Goddess, Lyney picked up one of the many weapons littering the ground and attempted to charge at Paul from behind. What she didn't expect was for a wall of water to rise from out of nowhere, pushing her up and ensnaring her in a vortex as Varuna said, "I am not so feeble of heart and mind that I need others to express outright in my stead..."
Returning her attention to Paul, Varuna didn't seem to care that Ei's blade had pricked her neck as she said, "Though your choice of words leaves a lot to be desired, I am not incapable of seeing the reason within them. To that end, allow me to rephrase my question as such...what do you intend to do once you finish linking the two worlds? When the authority afforded to you as Champion no longer serves a greater purpose, will you cling to it or relinquish it without complaint?"
Rolling his eyes, Paul left Varuna feeling taken aback as he replied, "See, that's exactly what I mean. If you actually took the time to learn about me rather than basing your views on how people answer your questions, you would find that I've only ever used my authority a single time. Even then, it wasn't to serve any 'malicious' or 'wicked' ends. I just wanted to know the truth. Since then, I have never used my authority. If the God of the Boundaries wanted to take it away, she could shove it up her ass for all I care."
"..."
Taking advantage of Varuna's silence, Zhongli elected to explain, "Before today's summoning, I was careful to inform our Master about the dangers posed by you and the Tsaritsa. I told him that, for the sake of protecting himself and others, he should be prepared to use his authority to compel your obedience. While I still believe that is the best course of action, it is clear he has chosen to adhere to his principles and stand his ground in a moral discourse. That should tell you everything you need to know about his character..."
Though her expression darkened when she heard Zhongli disclose her intentions to have Paul compel her obedience, Varuna didn't lash out. If what Zhongli said was true, it meant she had severely misjudged Paul's character. She had presumed that any mortal in his position would use their authority to basically do as they pleased. After all, she would have doubtlessly done the same...
"I see...then, at least for the time being, I will set this matter aside and observe for myself what kind of man our Master is. That being said..."
Meeting Ei's Electro Purple eyes with her glistening Hydro Blues, Varuna asked, "How much longer do you intend to hold your sword to my neck?"
Maintaining a look as cold and ruthless as the Electro-formed blade in her hands, Ei replied, "We are our Master's sword. Unless-"
Interrupting Ei's statement, Paul said, "It's okay, Ei. We may have gotten off to a rocky start, but I choose to believe that the person Lynette spoke so highly of is a respectable person. Once she integrates with our group and realizes what we're trying to accomplish, I believe she will become a powerful ally."
Though he was more or less talking out of his ass, this wasn't the first time Paul had gambled with his life. He wanted to believe he could reach the end of his journey without becoming the piece of she the IOF clearly intended him to be, so, even if Varuna or the Tsaritsa turned against him, he would rather fight them head-on than manipulate them against their will.
Some lines should never be crossed, not so long as a single other option remained...
After one last narrowing of the eyes, Ei allowed her Musou no Hito-tachi to dissipate. Instead of returning to where Yae and Klee were, however, she elected to remain close to Paul, ready and willing to protect him at a moment's notice.
Taking advantage of the momentary lully in the conversation, Venti, once again, attempted to make herself noticed by musing, "And thus concludes the heart-racing first encounter between the Champion, his loyal shadow, and a misguided Goddess of Justice. This will make a fine first chapter in our shared tale, the Ballad of the Broken Worlds."
Looking past Varuna, Paul met Venti's gaze before shamelessly lowering his eyes to her melon-sized breasts. That was a bit of an exaggeration, but it was the first thought that came to mind when seeing Venti's round and full breasts threatening to burst forth from her blouse.
Without minding Paul's gaze, Venti returned an ostensibly helpless smile as she said, "Now you notice me." while simultaneously crossing her arms in a manner clearly intended to display her assets.
Shaking his head, Paul risked incurring Varuna's displeasure as he firmly asserted, "Oh, trust me, I noticed you. In fact, you were one of the two Archons we were aiming for during tonight's summoning, so I was pretty stoked to see you pop out. No offense to you, Varuna."
Contradicting the mildly annoyed look on her face, Varuna replied, "None taken." in a borderline monotone. As for Venti, she adopted a natural smile and mused, "Oh? Am I finally entering my popular phase after a thousand years~?"
Returning a smile of his own, Paul replied, "Something like that." before looking toward Ningguang and saying, "Let's hurry and ob-well, that was fast..."
Seeing several stacks of parcels atop Katheryne's desk, Paul didn't have to ask to know what they were. Either Ningguang had told her to prepare them, or Katheryne had been listening when he expressed his intention to make a bulk purchase. Either way, he ended up forking over an additional 3600AGC, bringing his total expenses for the evening to a whopping yet tolerable 16,200AGC...
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Making good on his promise from earlier, Paul maintained a firm grip on Zhongli's hips as his own smacked into her ass with enough force to send ripples through her back and make her tits smack her chin. She wasn't the most reactive girl, silently enduring no matter how intense things got, but at least her expression was honest.
Though she was using a technique frequently employed by Adepti to limit their sensitivity to things like pleasure and pain, Zhongli's eyes had glazed over as a mildly distressed look replaced her usually stoic expression. She had severely misjudged just how sensitive her body was when stimulated by someone who knew what they were doing.
Feeling his climax building, Paul took Zhongli by surprise with a sudden position changing, turning her onto her side as he sat atop her left thigh and began to piston her from a different angle. He had told her they were going to continue until her eyes rolled toward the back of her head or she cried out in pleasure, so he watched her closely as he released his twelfth shot in the deepest regions of her perennially writhing vagina.
"Come on! I can't see your eyes properly if you close them! Where is the usually calm and collected Zhongli at, huh...!?"
Without waiting for a response, Paul adjusted his position before pulling Zhongli to sit astride his lap as he whispered into her ear, "I can't even count the number of opportunities I gave you to back out. Instead, you kept taunting and trying to goad me into action. Now, you have a body that's literally designed to take my cock. In other words, you're no longer just the Geo Archon. You're an extension of my hip...a sheathe perfectly suited to house my sword..."
Partially opening her amber eyes, Zhongli stared back at Paul with a hint of disbelief in her gaze. She knew she had effectively brought this upon herself, but the way Paul was behaving was so drastically different from anything she anticipated. She had mistakenly believed he would continue to do her from behind pretty much indefinitely, never saying a word from start to finish.
Further increasing Zhongli's confusion and disbelief, Paul took advantage of the fact she was facing him to steal her lips and slip his tongue into her mouth. He hadn't actually overcome his inhibitions towards the befuddled brunette; he just wasn't stopping to think. All of his focus was on fulfilling the objective he had set for himself, so, even if he had to keep fucking her for an entire week, he wasn't stopping until Zhongli had either cried out or passed out...
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"I'm going to miss this..."
"Haaaa....haaaa....hawuu...?"
Though her wolf-like ears twitched when Paul spoke, the mint-haired girl 'assisting' him with the extraction of his essence was too muddleheaded to make out what he had said. She just kept wagging her hips from side to side as Paul fondled her butt and kept bottoming out in her deepest parts over and over and over again...
"Please, try not to go too overboard. The last time you did something like this, she nearly destroyed an entire lab after her mind wandered during an experiment."
Instead of heeding the ashen-haired woman's advice, Paul continued to pump his hips as he countered, "If you're that worried, you could always replace her. All I'm doing is providing you with what you asked for."
"Haaa..."
Exhaling a sigh, Albedo briefly considered swapping places with Sucrose before remembering what happened the last time. They had gone to great lengths to extract twenty isolated samples of Paul's semen, but they were all but useless by the time she got around to analyzing them.
"I'll pass. As pleasurable as it might be, I don't enjoy losing my ability to think straight. Besides, this is your final few moments together for some time. Sucrose might come to resent me if I attempted to take you away from her..."
Demonstrating her point, Albedo moved a bit closer to Paul and Sucrose. As she did, the latter's ears angled backward as she bared her teeth and started to growl. It was a behavior that Paul found particularly endearing but left Albedo feeling at a loss for words.&nbsp;
Feeling the pleasure building in the tip of his dick, Paul grabbed Sucrose's hips and began to increase his pace. In response, Sucrose squeezed the handles that had been installed to give her better leverage as she began to push against Paul's thrusts. Her watery eyes made it seem like she was about to break into tears, but the somewhat silly smile on her face made it clear she wasn't in pain.
"And...this...makes...ten...!"
Finishing things by pushing forward and arching his back, an action that raised Sucrose's feet from the ground, Paul's back and waist trembled as he released a supernatural quantity of semen. Unfortunately for Sucrose, the efforts of her cervix to try and lap up the viscous fluid were ultimately in vain as Albedo has developed a pliable membrane, basically a condom, to prevent the 'contamination' of her samples.
As a feeling of frustration filled Sucrose's chest and lower abdomen, Paul pulled out his penis and an almost mandarin-sized globule trapped within a thin, skin-colored membrane. Sucrose whimpered as he did so, but she quickly calmed down when Paul spread her sopping wet lips open with his thumb and returned his cock to her depths.
"Ah..."
Since she had wanted to collect even move samples, Albedo's expression morphed into a slight pout when she saw Paul insert himself into Sucrose without a collection membrane.
While his hips produced loud, wet, smacking sounds, accompanied by the chorus of Sucrose's mewling moans, Paul gave Albedo a sidelong stare as he said, "I still have other places to be before the night ends. Besides, it's been like five weeks, and you've yet to make any meaningful progress. I'm not going to tell you to give up and focus on other things, but I doubt the God of the Boundaries would have chosen this kind of method if Alchemy could have provided a solution..."
Though there were countless ways in which she could deconstruct Paul's argument, Albedo chose to nod her head, affirming, "You do have a point." while eying the body temperature globule in her hand. She actually had a working hypothesis that their dependency on Paul's 'essence' was merely a method to ensure they slept with him. It was apparent that he received 'something' from them during intercourse, but Albedo currently lacked the means to measure and ascertain what it was...
Sparing one last glance at Paul's side profile and the penis pushing in and out of Sucrose, a thoughtful glimmer briefly flashed across Albedo's eyes before she ultimately turned away to give the duo some privacy...
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Though it earned him a moderately disproving stare from Albedo, Paul ended up fucking Sucrose until she was so overwhelmed with pleasure that her speech had reverted to incoherent babbling. The only word she could properly enunciate was no, the word escaping her lips like a pitiable whine when they attempted to use Healing Magic to restore her ability to walk.
Fortunately, though it had gotten him into a fair amount of trouble, this wasn't the first time Paul had fucked a girl into a pleasure-induced state of regression. His first victim had actually been Zhongli and, a few weeks after that, Varuna.&nbsp;
After it had become increasingly apparent that she was the only Archon not fulfilling her duty, Varuna sent Lyney to summon Paul to her chamber. While he hadn't been particularly bothered by Lyney basically demanding he respond to her Master's summons, Paul lost his patience when Varuna presented him with a literal turkey baster atop a silver platter. That would have been bad enough by itself, but Varuna followed the reveal by stating that her chastity was sacred, not something a 'mere mortal' had any right to claim.
Unfortunately for Varuna, Paul was under no obligation to play her games. He pretended to at first, accompanying Lyney into an adjacent room so that Varuna wouldn't have to witness their 'vulgarity.' However, when he emerged a few minutes later, he simply ignored the silver-haired beauty when she asked him if the deed was finished. When she eventually got up to check on Lyney, she found the ashen-haired girl with her ass in the air, and a turkey baster filled with warm water shoved up her butt...
Though Paul's actions caused Lynette to pout and ignore him for a couple of days, he eventually managed to coax the catgirl into forgiving him after explaining how her sister and Goddess had treated him. She didn't believe him at first, but Varuna openly admitted it when Lynette confronted her.
After Lynette, one of her most ardent supporters, gave her a piece of her mind, Varuna appeared to swallow her pride as she approached Paul of her own accord. Unfortunately, she hadn't truly learned her lesson, so while she was willing to have sex with him, she asked that his hands be bound and his eyes blindfolded. The reason she gave was that she didn't want to see the lasciviousness in his gaze or let him defile her body as he pleased.
With Paul basically telling her she could go fuck herself, Varuna ended up holing herself up in her room for several days. According to Lynette, she was in there painting surprisingly lifelike portraits of him before ultimately tearing them into tiny pieces. She knew she couldn't attack him outright, so she passive-aggressively took out her anger and frustration on Paul's likeness.
What eventually changed the dynamic between Paul and Varuna was a visit from her fellow Archons. Paul wasn't privy to what the quartet had said to her, but he was intimately familiar with the aftermath. The silver-haired Archon had come knocking on his door during the evening he was supposed to be making amends with Lyney. What truly surprised him was the fact she was wearing little more than a nightgown and, more notably, a blindfold.&nbsp;
Though he was briefly tempted to send the silver-haired Goddess away, such impulses faded from Paul's mind when he noticed the leather cuffs on her wrists and ankles and the spreader bar in her hands. She also had a leather choker around her neck, complete with a thin chain serving as a leash...
As tempted as he was to tie Varuna up and engage in some BDSM play, Paul immediately concluded her outfit was a sort of test. Either that, or it was her way of making amends for suggesting she give him a similar form of treatment.
Instead of tying the silver-haired Archon up and having his way with her, Paul brought her into his room, had her lay on his bed, and spent nearly a full hour focused on eating her out with her blindfold still attached. It was only once she had instinctually grabbed his hair and began trembling with each of his movements that he eventually moved on.
While Varuna had probably expected him to rob her of her virginity right there and then, Lisa had regularly emphasized the importance of patience if you wanted to break down the walls of a woman's heart. Thus, while he did remove his trousers, Paul defied the almost instinctual urge to jam his cock into Varuna's visibly pulsating insides. Instead, he linked his fingers with hers, pressing her hands to the bed as he leaned over and began to pepper her neck, shoulders, and collarbone with kisses. Going for the lips from the start was a pretty good way of sobering a woman up, so Paul left that for later as he gently suckled her neck and rubbed his cock along her vaginal folds and clitoris.
Paul didn't know if it was because Varuna was the Hydro Archon or just incredibly sensitive, but the volume of fluids leaking from her body was enough to make it look like she had pissed the bed. Luckily, she still had her blindfold on, and though he was incredibly tempted to tease her, Paul remained silent and focused as he slowly dragged her deeper and deeper into the abyss of pleasure.
After nearly three hours of delicate yet passionate foreplay, Varuna's only response to Paul removing her blindfold was to stare back at him with an unfocused gaze and parted lips. As his face drew closer to hers, she even stuck her tongue out, fully aware of his intentions but too muddleheaded to even consider resisting.
As their lips and tongues met for the first time, Paul began putting greater force into his thrusts. Lisa had taught him that emotional correlation and positive association were the foundations upon which sexual preferences were built. Thus, by gradually increasing the amount of pleasure Varuna experienced during their first kiss, he was effectively hardwiring her brain to associate kissing, specifically him, with increased satisfaction.
By the time Paul lined up his dick with the entrance of Varuna's vagina, the silver-haired Archon was so far gone that she even spread her legs and raised her hips to make things a little easier for him. Paul wasn't even sure she was entirely conscious as her pupils had strangely vanished, the surface of her Hydro Blue irises shimmering like the surface of a reflecting pool...
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While wondering if Varuna would appear during his 'surprise' going away party, Paul nearly bumped into a petite figure with chestnut brown hair as he rounded a corner. Instead, he instinctually picked the person up by the pits of their arms before realizing his victim was none other than Yaoyao.
Before the diminutive woman could adopt a pout and complain about him picking her up like a kid, Paul seized the initiative by planting a quick peck on her lips and musing, "Well now, if it isn't Yaoyao..." as his thumbs drew circles over her clothes.
Instead of expressing anger, Yaoyao's face immediately turned a bright shade of red, her brows and jaw quivering as she whispered, "How many times...do I have to tell you? You shouldn't do these things...where people can see us..."
"Mmm...you're not wrong..."
Since his only intention had been to prevent Yaoyao from getting upset, Paul placed one final kiss on her lips before setting her down and asking, "What's up? I'm guessing you're looking for me...?"
Though she took a moment to stare at Paul with an upturned, pouty expression on her face, Yaoyao eventually replied, "Ningguang wanted to confirm the details with you one last time before your departure. You can find her in her office."
As she was still Ganyu's assistant, it wasn't uncommon for Yaoyao to act as a messenger. This time, however, Paul could see a hint of nervousness in the young woman's gaze as she attempted to send him on a wild goose chase. Klee and Esme had blabbed about the surprise going-away party when they were playing together, so he already knew someone would be waiting at Ningguang's office to send him elsewhere.
Since he had promised Klee he would play along and act surprised, Paul nodded his head and said, "Sure. I'll head right over. Thanks for coming all the way to tell me."&nbsp;
Relieved that Paul hadn't been able to see through her, Yaoyao exhaled an inaudible sigh of relief. Unfortunately for her, Paul had been something of a rogue his entire second life. The moment she adopted a smile and was about to excuse herself, Paul startled her by slamming his palm against the wall, mere centimeters away from her head as he leaned over her and whispered, "Afterward, how about we meet up in my room...? Just the two of us..."
"Hawawawaaa-"
Though she wanted nothing more than to scream 'yes' at the top of her lungs, Yaoyao knew everyone was waiting to spend one last night with Paul. She couldn't just betray everyone and keep him for herself...right?
Before Yaoyoa could make up her mind, Paul adopted a smile and said, "Something to look forward to when I return, then..." as he gently traced his finger over the location of her crest. Then, as Yaoyao leaned against the wall for support, her eyes following his departure, and goosebumps covering her arms and legs, Paul began his journey towards Ningguang's office...
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With Shenhe and Ganyu apparently knowing each other, Paul asked the latter to apprise her of their circumstances while Kokomi and, somewhat surprisingly, Mona came over to assist him.
Unable to resist, Paul adopted a fairly cheeky smile as the twin-tailed girl knelt next to him, inquiring, "Is this your way of familiarizing yourself with spending my money...?"
Snorting through her nose, Mona countered Paul's teasing by picking up an Asura Gold Coin and flatly asserting, "Considering what I'm expected to do for you, permitting me to spend your money is the least you could offer in exchange."
Rolling his eyes, Paul resisted the urge to point out how Mona's words made her sound like a courtesan. Instead, he adopted a wolfish smile as he teased, "Poor choice of words. Now I'm tempted to have Ningguang task one of her accountants to keep tabs on how much money you spend on research. I won't be around all that often, but you can be damned sure I'll get my money's worth when I return..."
"You..."
Balling her right hand into a fist, Mona looked like she was about to punch Paul as a crimson hue spread through her face and ears. Before she could make up her mind, however, Kokomi covered her mouth to stifle a chuckle before revealing a beaming smile and calmly asserting, "Our Master is just teasing you. And I can see why. Miss Mona's appearance is very charming when she blushes."
"Wha-just what are you saying to someone you just met? We haven't even been formally introduced yet."
Before Kokomi could do precisely that, Paul interrupted the duo, stating, "You'll have plenty of time for things like that later. For now, let's focus on wrapping things up here."
Though he was the one that had started the exchange, Paul wanted to finish things up so he could cut loose and release some tensions. It had only been around forty-seven minutes since they entered the IOF, but he felt as though several hours had passed...
With Kokomi responding in the affirmative and Mona eventually getting tired of glaring at Paul's profile, the three proceeded to execute a total of twenty-six 10-Pulls without acquiring anything new. What left Paul truly speechless was the fact that Klee had gotten yet another Constellation despite being summoned just an hour prior. She really was a ridiculously lucky little girl, but the same could be said of Kokomi as she also acquired a Constellation despite being summoned the previous night.
Among the 'repeat' items they obtained, Paul acquired Constellations for Xinyan, Lisa, Yun Jin, Bennet, Fischl, and, most notably, Barbara. As for what made Barbara's Constellation so significant, it was the fact it was her sixth. In other words, she was the first person among everyone Paul had summoned to awaken her potential fully.&nbsp;
As he was imagining how excited Barbara would be to learn she was the first to achieve something so momentous, Paul didn't immediately react when the twenty-seventh 10-Pull revealed what he initially believed to be a Constellation for Lynette. It was only after several seconds had passed that he realized the ashen-haired girl had human rather than cat ears. She was also wearing clothes and had a tear-shaped mark under her right eye instead of a star-shaped mark under her left...
Realizing who the inordinately lithe-looking girl was, Paul remarked, "You must be Lyney." in a matter-of-factly tone of voice. In response, the very slender girl ceased looking herself over, a very practiced smile developing across her face as she replied, "And you must be Paul Notos Greyrat, the man who has been monopolizing my sister for the past six or seven years. You'll have to forgive me if this sounds rude, but what the hell took you so long...?"
Though it had only been a few weeks from her perspective, Lyney knew that several years must have passed for her once-younger sister. Before that, they had never been separated for more than a few hours at a time. Thus, unless Paul had a very compelling reason, Lyney knew she would hold a grudge. She would, regardless, but the degree of her resentment would vary drastically depending on his excuse and the condition of her sister.
Understanding why Lyney would feel annoyed, Paul lowered his head and said, "Sorry. Your sister never stopped trying to get me to summon you as soon as possible, but our circumstances didn't really allow it. Once we're finished here, you can ask Lynette for the details."
"Hmmm...very well..."
Not expecting Paul to be so quick to apologize, much of the anger Lyney harbored towards him spontaneously vanished. At the very least, she was no longer overtly angry at him. Instead, she bottled it up and saved it for after she had the chance to speak with her sister.
After asking Lyney to stand off the side, Paul took a moment to stretch his legs while Kokomi and Mona continued slotting coins into the summoning platform. When they had finished manifesting ten Fates, he sat back down and joined them in another session of mass summoning.
Bringing several people closer to their full potential, four of Paul's next hits were Constellations for Xingqiu, Chongyun, Xiangling, and Diona. Yet another Constellation appeared for Chonyun during his Pity pull, but Paul was far more focused on the petite, inordinately slender woman that had appeared at the center of the platform. She had fair skin, long, burgundy-brown hair that faded into crimson at the tips, and peculiar, bright scarlet eyes with luminous, blossom-shaped pupils. Her hair was done up in twin-tails that formed a zig-zag pattern on her scalp, while her already peculiar eyes were further accented by faint red makeup.
Recognizing the girl immediately, Paul felt tension returning to his body as he remarked, "Hu Tao..." in a wry-sounding tone.
Hearing her name, Hu Tao abruptly kicked her heels together and saluted as she replied, "Ding, ding, ding~! That's the correct answer! Hu Tao, 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, reporting for duty! If you ever find yourself in need of burial services or a coffin, I'm your girl~!"
Though her focus was initially on Paul, Hu Tao quickly took notice of the other people present. This included Zhongli, her eyes widening to be as round as saucer as she exclaimed, "Holy Hillichurls! What did you eat to get so 'big'...!?"
Deciding to make a joke at Paul's expense, Zhongli's expression suddenly became demure as she averted her eyes and replied, "I have our Master to thank for that..."
"This mother-"
As Paul was cursing under his breath, Hu Tao exclaimed, "O-ya!? I guess you're more than just a pretty face, huh? Let's get along well~!"
"Right..."
Though Hu Tao was one of the most popular characters in Genshin, she was one of the few that Paul wasn't particularly fond of. Not because she wasn't cute, quite the opposite, but because her storyline and interactions with other people were just so...depressing. He had never understood the archetype of characters that concealed their pain and loneliness beneath a very morbid sense of humor.
Shaking away his negative thoughts, Paul forced a friendly smile as he repeated his usual, "Welcome to the world of Mushoku Tensei, Hu Tao. Glad to have you."
Pretending not to notice Paul's previous discomfort, Hu Tao's smile became incomparably mischievous as she leaned forward, hands behind her back as she teased, "If it's you, big boy, you can have me when and wherever you like~."
Understanding that Hu Tao had never actually done anything to make him not like her, Paul's smile became a little more sincere as he replied, "Then you'll need to be careful wandering the halls at night. I might just pull you into a broom closet and keep you there..."
Feeling the 'sincerity' in Paul's words, Hu Tao covered her mouth as she snickered like an imp. For a moment, she had thought that Paul was going to regard her the same way as the vast majority of people she met. It was still pretty obvious he was uncomfortable, but his willingness to set aside his aversions said a lot about the type of man he was...
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With Hu Tao joining the group consisting of Zhongli, Ningguang, Shenhe, Keqing, and Xiao Ping, Paul took a moment to eye his decreasing reserves of gold. He had only burned through about a quarter of it, but it was still noticeably smaller than it had been.
Deciding their spree had gone on long enough, Paul turned to Ningguang and said, "We may have to continue this some other time. I know it's not, but I'm starting to feel like our pool has been exhausted. After this next one, we'll wrap things up by purchasing everyone's original outfits. Sound good?"
Though she found it rather adorable that Paul was basically asking for her approval, Ningguang elected not to tease him in front of others. Instead, she placed her hand over her chest and lowered her head respectfully as she replied, "If that is your will, we shall see it done."
"Mmm..."
Understanding what Ningguang was trying to do, Paul offered a curt but approving nod before returning his attention to the summoning circle. A part of him wanted to continue until the end, but the increasing number of Constellations he was obtaining made him feel like there was nothing left to pull.
Reinforcing Paul's mindset, his first eight pulls contained items he already possessed. He was happy to acquire a third Constellation for Diona, but it all but confirmed his suspicions that the pool was restricted to characters and items from Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma. Lynette and Lyney stood in direct opposition to this sentiment, but they were pretty much the only exceptions outside of Kusanali...
Recalling that Zhongli had mentioned the pool being limited during his very first summoning, Paul made a mental note to ask for a more detailed explanation as he placed his hands on the summoning platform one final time. When the cerulean blue meteor gained a luminous golden glow, he wasn't even remotely surprised. When it suddenly split into two, however, trailed by eight blue comets, his eyes widened to their limits.
"This would be a good time for Diluc or Klee's mother to show up..."
Following the duo of golden comets to their destination, Paul was both disappointed and beyond surprised. His disappointment stemmed from the fact that neither Diluc nor Alice made an appearance. His surprise, however, was far greater as a noble-looking woman with ashen grey hair and eyes had appeared alongside a petite yet remarkably buxom beauty with short, raven-black hair that transitioned into teal near the ends of her side-hanging braids.
Though Paul immediately recognized the shorter woman as Venti, every nerve in his body tensed when Lyney explained, "Madame Varuna! What a fortuitous turn of events...!"
In acknowledgment of Lyney's remark, Varuna nodded her head ever so slightly as she replied, "Indeed." At the same time, however, she didn't so much as blink as her clear, silvery-grey eyes bored holes into Paul's face.
For the fourth time in the same evening, Paul felt as though he was being seen through to the very core of his being. However, instead of following Zhongli's advice and ordering Varuna to obey him, he engaged the woman in an impromptu staring contest.
Feeling as though she was being ignored, an awkward laugh emanated from Venti's throat as she waved her hand and expressed, "Hey, Varuna isn't the only one here. Please don't ignore me. Look, I even sprouted a ma-"
Without tearing her gaze away from Paul, Varuna squinted her eyes and said, "Silence." in a firm tone that left no room for argument. Then, like an executioner affording a criminal their final words, she stared intently into Paul's eyes and asked, "What are your views on justice...?"
...
..
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Chapter 119: MI119: Discourse