Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 1191 - Dedication: Fatigue

As waiting five days for the transfer process to complete would equate to an entire month within the projection, it wasn't really an option for Vahn to delay things. With the final count being over seven-thousand Homunculi, even if he worked his hardest every minute of every day, it would still take him more than seventy days' time within the Projection to treat each of them. Though it was possible to delay things through the use of [Primoridal Rune] Magecraft, ignoring the matter outright was out of the question. Fortunately, Vahn was confident he would be able to greatly reduce the amount of time it took to carve the requisite crest and, with Da Vinci, Paracelsus, Illya, and Iris all offering up their assistance, it was more of an inconvenience than a difficult matter to address.

While Da Vinci worked on creating a system that would allow crests to be carved via laser engraving, Paracelsus focused on mass-producing [Philospher's Stone]s alongside Tristana. As for Illya and Iris, they spent much of their time and effort helping the Homunculi get settled in, a rather arduous feat considering resources, housing, and other essentials needed to be arranged. At the same time, they conducted a census of sorts and assigned simple duties to each Homunculi back in the 'real' world. Since most of the Homunculi had never been given names, with the majority looking nearly identical to each other, they created ornate little name tags for each of the doll-like women.

Until Da Vinci finished with her project, Vahn had the most difficult task amongst everyone as even Rin, Luvia, and Circe fundamentally lacked the dexterity and perception to carve the requisite crests. Since the crest needed to be directly linked with the Magic Circuits and Core of each Homunculi, you needed to have an extremely intimate knowledge of their internal structure as even the smallest of mistakes could have disastrous consequences. Fortunately, in preparation for this potentiality, Vahn had already modified the seal Merlin had taught him in the past, developing what he had named the 'Ouroboros Seal'.

Representing Life, Death, and Infinity, the seal created a loop that recycled the limited vital energy that would have otherwise been consumed over the short lifespans of the Homunculi. Since they subsisted entirely on mana, requiring neither food nor water, the presence of the Ouroboros Seal would grant them a limited form of immortality. So long as they did not burn their vitality in intense combat, the Homunculi would be able to live for several hundred years without any detrimental side effects. The only real limitation to their lifespan would be their cells breaking down and their organs failing, both things that could easily be mitigated as their bodies continually stored mana.

Though he knew the Ouroboros Seal would eventually be spread throughout the Magus community, Vahn didn't particularly care about others seeking limited immortality. In the short term, their efforts wouldn't amount to much and, so long as they did not target the Homunculi in order to obtain the secret, it didn't really matter all that much. If anything, their attempts would only serve to limit their growth as, while Homunculi could be modified to have far more powerful Magic Circuits than most Magi, they were incapable of increasing their strength.

Anyone seeking to obtain immortality using the Ouroboros Seal would need to constantly upgrade themselves, requiring them to create a new body every few years. Thus, in the end, nothing would have changed and, as Vahn intended to have regulations that restricted Homunculi being created for selfish purposes, they would not be able to easily exploit the seal to create immortal servants and slaves. If they were found out using such means, Vahn didn't mind playing the part of a tyrant as, if you treated the lives of others with such disregard, you were practically asking to be treated in the same manner...

---

Though his physical stamina was without a limit, the same could not be said for his mental and spiritual energy. It hadn't affected his focus much but, after nearly five days of constant treatment, Vahn felt as if the image of lingerie-clad Homunculi had been carved into his mind. As soon as he finished one treatment, which included placing his Familia Crest on their backs and the Ouroboros Seal on their abdomens, Vahn would immediately be greeted by yet another waiting Homunculi. It wasn't really a sight that you could grow tired of seeing as, without exception, each of the Justeaze-Type Homunculi had an indisputable beauty, but Vahn was at the point that he could even see them when his eyes were closed...

Choosing not to complain, Vahn, in a state that was both focused and absentminded, did his best to ignore the pleasant aroma wafting from the body of his most recent patient, a Homunculi that had been named June. He had already carved his Familia Crest on her back so she was laying down face-up on a table wearing nothing but a simple white bra and panty set. Unlike the majority of other Homunculi, she had short and somewhat wavy hair. More noticeably, rather than eyes that lacked an ego, there was a small amount of light contained in her ruby-red pupils. She was one of the three-hundred or so Homunculi who had been training with Kenshin, making her one of the more battle-oriented types by nature.

Even if he had seen nearly five-hundred similar physiques over the last five days, Vahn noticed that June had an almost indiscernibly more toned body than her 'sisters'. Like the others, she watched his actions extremely closely, her eyes following his finger as he traced it around her navel, offering no complaints despite the discomfort he knew she was feeling. Then, as had been the case in the prior 483 procedures, June stroked her abdomen with a 'thoughtful' look in her eyes before muttering in a somewhat cold and emotionless tone, "Thank you, Master..." In response to this, even though it had become muscle memory at this point, Vahn's expression softened as he replied in a sincere tone, "You are very welcome, June..."

Hearing her name uttered by Vahn, June smiled in a way that showed the emotion was extremely foreign to her. Then, like her sisters before her, she sat up rather mechanically from the table before wearing the gown she had been wearing prior to the operation. After that, she quickly alighted from the room before, only seconds later, yet another Homunculi entered through the same door. At this point, Vahn felt like he was stuck in an infinite loop and, if not for the fack this version had hair down to the small of her back, she would have been almost indiscernible to June. Despite the incongruous feelings in his heart, Vahn managed to retain his polite smile as he softly uttered, "Welcome. You can place your gown on that hangar and then we'll get started immediately."

Without showing any hesitation whatsoever, his newest patient disrobed, following his instructions and taking a seat atop the examination and operation table. As he performed a routine check of her vitals and analyzed the internal structure of her body, Vahn kept her involved by asking, "Can you tell me your name, please...?" This caused her to immediately reply, a hint of emotion in her otherwise cold tone, "I have been granted the name Anna von Einzbern by Lady Illyasviel." As the act of receiving a name was quite significant for many of the Homunculi, Vahn had made a habit of asking each new face the first time he conversed with them. When he addressed them by name later, this would generally bring a smile to their face as, despite their similarities, Vahn was confident he would never mistake them for their sisters...

While carving his Familia Crest, Vahn continued the conversation, asking in a polite tone, "How are you adapting to life in the castle? Have you seen or done anything interesting...?" As he asked these questions, Vahn was observing the electrical signals in Anna's brain in order to gauge how close she was to developing an independent ego. Illya wanted him to let her know which of the Homunculi were the closest to developing independence as she was hoping to use them as an example for the rest. Unfortunately, though there were signals that indicated she was thinking about a response, Anna replied almost mechanically a few moments later, answering, "I have not had any difficulties adapting. Just recently, I saw one of the maintenance Golems stumble as it tried to evade stepping on a small creature."

Toward the end of her words, Vahn noticed Anna's brain light up a bit and, though she had her back to him, he knew a small smile had spread across her lips. Even without asking, he knew what she meant by 'small creature' but, wanting to encourage her further, Vahn asked, "Oh~? What did this small creature look like? You seem rather fond of it..." This time, Anna spent several long seconds in contemplation, her brain lighting up in different areas before answering in an uncertain tone, "It is hard to be certain...it had a human appearance but with rabbit ears and a tail...? I tried talking to it but it only stared at me for a few seconds before wandering off...I hope I didn't scare it..."

Understanding she was likely talking about Skoll, Vahn gave a small nod before consoling Anna and explaining the existence of the Companions. Most of the Homunculi were still back in the real world, as having them experience accelerated time was counter-intuitive, so only those who were preparing to receive treatment had been given the opportunity to see the rather adorable creatures. She wasn't the first Homunculi to mention encountering one and, as this seemed to 'awaken' something within them, Vahn had been intending to discuss the matter of mass-producing a few to accompany and monitor each of the developing Homunculi. This would be a good eay to stress test their capabilities before releasing them publically so he expected she would be more than willing.

While continuing to make small talk, Vahn quickly finished applying his Familia Crest before having Anna lay on her back. Though it would be easier to apply the Ouroboros Seal if she sat in front of him, Vahn had been a little too distracted by the sight and aroma in his other attempts. Having an unbelievably beautiful woman spread their legs slightly as you spent a few minutes placing a seal around their navel brought with it a few difficulties. It was also considerably more concerting to have them look down on him with their ruby-red eyes than have them watch his actions while laying down. Thus, after the first few emergency procedures, as there were a few Homunculi that were only being kept alive by Scáthach, Vahn had resorted to using a marginally less efficient yet exponentially easier to complete procedure...

With Anna's seal completed, Vahn had finished 485 of his arranged 500 procedures, meaning he only had around four hours left before he took a much-needed break. Still, while he had become numb to the process at this point, Vahn always managed a smile when saying, "Thank you for your patience. It is finished." Then, as had been the case for each of her sisters, Anna stroked the seal before saying in an almost identical fashion, "Thank you, Master..." This was his cue to remind her that he had already taken her name to heart, smiling gently as he replied, "You are very welcome, Anna..." Following this, Anna left the room and, as if the loop had begun anew, yet another Homunculi entered...

---

After finishing his final operation on a Homunculi named Celine, granting him a reprieve of a few hours, Vahn released a profoundly tired sigh before faceplanting on the operations table. Though there was a very fragrant aroma that had been soaked into the plush surface, he had already grown extremely accustomed to its presence and made no effort at propriety. Even if someone accused him of being a pervert that sniffed the table where half-n.a.k.e.d women had been laying for the last five days, Vahn wouldn't have particularly cared. It felt like he had just finished working on an extremely complex masterpiece and, though he felt considerably accomplished, knowing this was only the first of fourteen similar processes, it was hard to stay motivated.

Shortly after Celin's departure, Vahn uninhibitedly allowed the fragrance soaked into the table to spread through his lungs before raising his head and rising to his feet. Moments later, much of his fatigue had faded away as, bursting through the door of the room, a wild golden ponytail bobbed behind a red-clad figure as it leaped through the air, shouting, "Chichue~!" Vahn caught her out of the air, chuckling lightheartedly before holding her in his left arm and musing, "You seem excited Mordred. Did something interesting happen~?"

While rubbing the underside of her nose with her index finger, Mordred had a toothy grin on her face as she unabashedly admitted, "I just wanted to see Chichue. You've been working hard so here, have a reward~." Then, planting a sloppy kiss on his cheek, Mordred laughed mischievously before wriggling out of his arm and saying, "Come on, Chichue! Everyone is already waiting for you~!" As she said this, Mordred pulled Vahn by hand, leaving him trailing behind her with a wry smile on his face. He already knew everyone had gathered together a few days ago to discuss the internal affairs of the Imperial Family so this was likely an event they had prepared to inform him of their decisions.

Instead of following all the way to the hall where everyone had gathered, Vahn eventually snatched up Mordred, causing her to laugh uninhibtedly as she attempted to break free by instinct. When she had calmed down, Vahn caressed her head and explained in a tired tone, "This time, I think I'll use my privilege as Emperor to slack off a bit. Can you go and tell everyone that we'll discuss things a little later~?" Though it was perhaps irresponsible for him to 'slack off', especially around Mordred, the latter just smiled mischievously before pumping her fist and saying, "Leave it to me, Chichue~!" Then, after extricating herself a second time, Mordred ran through the corridors with nimble and deft movements, showing no signs that she cared about him slacking off in the slightest...

With Mordred entrusted with her task, Vahn veered on his heels, taking the shortest path toward his bedroom. This was one of the few times where he genuinely just wanted to relax a bit and, though he knew Mordred's explanation would likely make everyone feel guilty about expecting him to show up, Vahn wasn't at the point where he could keep going indefinitely. If he couldn't be a little selfish at times, it wouldn't be long before he had a mental breakdown or pushed himself too far. Thus, in an attempt to remind them that he needed time to mentally recharge, Vahn decided to take a nap without minding the fact he had subverted their expectations...

After reaching his room, Vahn saw his bed tempting him but, as he had already made a habit of it long ago, he decided to take a hot bath before retiring. He appreciated how quicky the tub always filled up and, after retracting his domain completely, Vahn soaked his body in the water and allowed his mind to rest. Though he fully expected Fenrir, Circe, and Medusa to show up at some point, they were a common fixture in his bedroom whenever he rested. It was a bit selfish of him, but Vahn was looking forward to having them pamper him for a change. Even Circe, while selfish by nature, was inclined towards service and hospitality. Though she was quite fond of receiving affection, she was just as likely to fawn over him when he was tired...

Though he had shut off his domain and closed off most of his senses, Vahn could feel the subtle vibrations through the air when the door to his room was opened. He had been growing increasingly sensitive to such things as, the stronger a person became, the more their presence would affect the Space around them. The fact he could sense this even without his domain caused Vahn to peel his eyes open, a thoughtful look in his eyes. He was currently in his base form, with most of his senses unenhanced, so it was quite literally an eye-opening revelation that he could still sense the intrusion.

Since he had already soaked for a few minutes, Vahn extricated himself from the hot water before using a towel to dry himself. Then, after changing into some sleepwear, Vahn exited his bathroom to find something unexpected. Instead of the three girls he expected, there was four present, making him thankful he had the wherewithal to put on clothes before exiting the bath. At the same time, he was able to understand why he had been able to sense them as, while others might go unnoticed, Artoria and Gray had particularly strong bonds that he was constantly made aware of...

Though Vahn felt a strange incongruity seeing the similarities between Artoria and Gray, as he had just spent days viewing near-identical women, it faded quickly when they both smiled back at him. Then, with a triumphant expression on her face, Mordred gave a cheeky smile as she exclaimed, "I completed my mission~!" before Artoria explained, "Since we realized you must be tired, everyone decided it would be best for you to relax. If you want, even taking a few days off is fine..." Before she had finished speaking, Vahn was already shaking his head, stating, "Just resting for a few hours with my two adorable daughters will be enough. I even get the company of two inordinately beautiful women so I can't really complain at all~."

With his words causing all four girls to smile, Vahn allowed his expression to soften as he moved to pick up Mordred and Sakura. The latter had a concerned expression on her face earlier but, seeing that her Otou-sama was in high spirits, she had a relieved look while hugging his neck, saying in a comforting tone, "Rest lots, Otou-sama. You shouldn't push yourself so hard all the time..." Though she had felt a little lonely with him being busy for several days straight, Sakura felt extremely guilty in hindsight. Since he was always so amazing she hadn't even thought that he would be tired so, when Mordred showed up to explain that he had gone to bed, Sakura felt a sour feeling in her nose.

Hearing Sakura's words, Vahn felt the kind of vindication only parents were able to experience. His smile became more natural and, while hugging both girls, he carried them over to the bed. Then, deciding to take advantage of the situation, Vahn pulled out sleepwear from his Inventory, earning an almost immediate sigh from Artoria and a bashful blush from Gray. As for Mordred and Sakura, they had already expected such an outcome so, after quickly changing, a family of five tigers could be found cuddling within Vahn's room...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: '7,119 Homunculi, each taking around 15 minutes each (O___O)...','TFW you realize this is the kind of state many Doctors in the real world work in...','Even Emperor's need to rest')

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