Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 2099: Frustration

After returning to the workshop, Vahn whisked Seraphina away in a princess carry before sneakily making a second version of himself to check in on Usalia, Hime, Sarina, and Nono. There was no way Usalia could look after all their children on her own so he had effectively bribed everyone else to lend a hand.

Poking his head in the room, Vahn adopted a casual smile as he said, "Yo~!" while casually waving his hand. In response, the twelve balls of fluff immediately perked up before scampering towards him in a rush to be the first. At the same time, everyone except Nono breathed a sigh of relief as, even if they divided the workload, they still needed to care for three children each.

"Welcome home, Master."

Being the first to recover, Hime rose to her feet and offered a polite bow that was quickly followed by Nono. This was completely unnecessary, but, considering he hadn't ordered them to do so, Vahn just returned a smile as he used his Telekinesis to prevent his children from falling as they raced to reach the top of his head and shoulders.

As was often the case, it was a pink-haired bunny named Momoiro that managed to secure the spot atop Vahn's head. They had a penchant for being first in everything they did. This included being born, and, more notably, their development. Excluding the ears, they were a full 5cm taller than the rest of their siblings, and, though they were still genderless, their appearance was such that it made it hard to think of them as anything but a girl.

According to the research he had conducted, the gender of a Wererabbit was largely dependent on their environmental conditions. Since things were relatively peaceful, most of Usalia's first litter had a very high probability of being female. Compared to their siblings, however, Momoiro was the only one to show signs of progressing to the second stage of their development.

Rewarding the pink-haired infant for their efforts, Vahn produced a third version of himself to pick up the triumphant Momo before starting the inordinately long process of putting the entire litter to sleep. They took naps throughout the day, but, unless he tucked them in, the children refused to go to sleep at night. After all, much like other Wererabbits, they were far more energetic in the evening than during the day...

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While the bedtime ritual was occurring in another part of the house, Vahn 'Prime' was sitting at the opposite end of a marble tub with Seraphina's foot in his hands. They had a literal onsen attached to the house, but, due to her fondness for bath oils and bubbles, Seraphina typically took her baths alone.

"Mhmhmhmhmm~. Make sure you get between the toes, Darling~."

Rolling his eyes, Vahn continued to dutifully massage Seraphina's feet as he asked, "Did you have fun today?"

Taking a sip of the inordinately valuable champagne in her glass, Seraphina practically beamed in response to Vahn's words, eyes glistening as she replied, "Of course~! In fact, I wouldn't complain if every day was like this~!"

Returning a chuckle of his own, Vahn carefully kneaded the space between Seraphina's toes before adopting a sincere tone and saying, "Sorry...though I'm certain a time will come when we can live together on our own, I have no idea when it will be. If you'd like, we can always reincarnate-"

Though he was going to suggest spending time together in an Actualized World based on the one she had originated from, Vahn was silenced when Seraphina adopted a serious expression and said, "Now, now. There's no need for that. I've already accepted that you have multiple wives. So long as you remember to pamper me plentily, I'm content with the way things are. Just don't expect me to go pumping out babies any time soon. I'm far too young and beautiful to be a mother."

Resisting the urge to point out she would be even more beautiful if she was a mother, Vahn rinsed Seraphina's foot before leaning forward to suckle her big toe. She had a sadomasochistic nature so it always riled her up when he pretended to be subservient. He wouldn't let her step on him, but, at times like this, he didn't mind giving her a bit of extra service for being so 'understanding'.

With glowing pink hearts appearing in the depths of her eyes, Seraphina observed Vahn's actions with an overtly seductive look on her face. If she were being completely honest, she hated having to share him with other people. It was Fenrir that opened her mind to the importance of sharing and moderation. She didn't believe in this at first, but, after spending the last couple of months patiently awaiting this day, Seraphina would be lying if she said it didn't feel fantastic to be rewarded for her efforts...

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"Achoo~!"

Furrowing her brows, Fenrir used the fur on her forearms to deal with the itchy sensation in her nose as she remarked, "Seraphina must be talking behind my back again..."

Since the only people who ever really badmouthed her were Seraphina and Sarina, it wasn't hard to guess which of them might be talking about her in this present moment. Unfortunately, Fenrir was currently keeping tabs on the Daybreaker Community, the group that had most recently joined the Burgeoning Communities Accord. She hadn't been assigned to do so, but, even without her Master asking, Fenrir did her best to support him from the shadows.

Fortunately, with very few exceptions, most of the Communities seeking assistance from the Sage Dragon's Hearth were legitimate and honest. Her Master had already built a reputation for being ruthless toward people attempting to exploit his kindness, so, after the first few idiots were dealt with, every other organization approached him was comprised of relatively kind or, at the very least, above-board individuals.

Seeing the youth named Hiro personally serving bread and soup to the children his Community had picked up, Fenrir nodded in approval before leaving Altria's Shadow to keep watch. She still hadn't forgiven the latter for disobeying her orders whilst billions of people were watching, so, whenever there was an opportunity to put the lazy pup to work, Fenrir did exactly that.

"Be a good girl and I'll make sure Master gives you plenty of headpats..."

Despite snorting through her nose, the cat-like wolf sunk into a nearby shadow. Shortly thereafter, her presence could be felt from the shadow beneath Hiro's feet. Others wouldn't be able to sense it, but, as the Shadows were ultimately an extension of herself, Fenrir could link senses and even swap places with them if she really wanted to. She really liked this particular aspect of her Innate as it was very similar to an ability her Master possessed.

Confident that Altria would, at the very least, stick around for a few hours, Fenrir used an advanced form of Shadow Step to maneuver through the Little Garden at tremendous speeds. There were still a lot of Communities she wanted to check on, and, knowing her Master would be preoccupied due to his promise with Seraphina, Fenrir wasn't in any particular hurry to return. After all, in spite of her efforts to convert others into good girls, she was actually a part of the faction that wished she could have her Master all to herself...

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After putting all the bun buns to bed, Vahn allowed himself to get talked into sharing a bath with everyone. Unfortunately for Sarina, he only agreed to do so on the premise that everyone would be wearing their bathing suits. For Sarina, this meant a school swimsuit with her name plastered across the chest. As for Nono, she was markedly more mature, so, even when she appeared in an off-white bikini, Vahn felt no need to correct her.

"This is clearly some form of favoritism..."

Staring at Nono's developing chest, Sarina's had a pouty look on her face despite the fact Vahn was helping to wash her hair. In response to her mutterings, her poured a bucket of warm water on her head, his voice carrying an amused yet stern tone as he said, "Stop pouting. Aren't you supposed to be the elder sister...?"

After failing to blow aside the wet bangs covering her face, Sarina moved them aside with her hand before leaning back against Vahn with an inquisitive look in her eyes. Before she could ask what he knew was coming, Vahn promptly teleported her to the deep end of the bath as he said, "Count to 100 and then come back."

Though she ultimately obeyed his instructions, that didn't stop Sarina from staring at Vahn like an alligator with half her face concealed beneath the water's surface. This left him feeling more than a little exasperated, but, knowing she had grown much closer to Jin over the past few months, Vahn did his best to relax until Usalia took it upon herself to sit in his lap.

"Hold me, plip."

"Of course...hahahaha..."

Ignoring the sound of bubbles emanating from Sarina, Vahn unhesitantly wrapped his arms around Usalia's petite frame before leaning back and closing his eyes. She was also wearing what appeared to be a school swimsuit, but, instead of the traditionally tame variation worn by Sarina, Usalia's was pure white and noticeably transparent. In other words, it was basically just her normal outfit without the stockings, overcoat, and mantle...

"Being a mother is hard, plip..."

Nodding his head in affirmation, Vahn hugged Usalia a little closer as he said, "Don't worry. You're doing fine. It's okay to rely on us. We're all one big family, after all..."

With a ruddy hue spreading through her cheeks, Usalia manipulated her ears to gently smack Vahn in the face. Despite this, he just continued to smile as he nestled closer to her and said, "You're cute when you're embarrassed..."

Feeling something poke against her bottom, Usalia's ears briefly stood on end as the color of her face became even redder. Then, despite Sarina eyeing her like a hawk, she adjusted her position so that she was sitting directly atop Vahn's bulge before saying, "Wash me..." with a serious expression on her face.

Though he made sure to avoid the more sensitive areas, Vahn obeyed Usalia's request with a casual smile on his face. At the same time, Usalia took advantage of his movements to discreetly grind her bottom against his bulge. Thanks to a bit of magic, Sarina and Nono remained completely unaware of this. Only Hime seemed to suspect, but, considering she had become the Guardian of the onsen, it would be stranger if she hadn't noticed...

Fortunately, even though he could have arranged something, Usalia wasn't nearly as shameless as Seraphina. She was pretty much always in heat, but, instead of demanding her take her then and there, she was willing to wait until they were alone. Of course, the moment that happened, there was very little he could do to stop her from pouncing on him like a ravenous rabbit...

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Unaware of the scene taking place at the Sage Dragon's Hearth, Black Rabbit was feeling downcast as she accompanied Asuka, Yo, and Calico Cat in the bath. She wanted to tell Vahn about what the members of Fores Garo, the Community founded by Galdo, were up to. Unfortunately, due to the Geass Roll and the conditions of the Gift Game, none of them could spread the information since it was the chip being wagered.

"Are you okay...?"

Seeing Black Rabbit blowing bubbles in the water, Yo approached her with a concerned expression on her face. Asuka was also listening in, but, due to her upbringing, she had never been very good at comforting people. Thus, with Yo being a self-proclaimed animal lover, Asuka elected to leave the brooding bunny girl to a 'professional'.

"Oh, don't mind me...I'm just feeling a little frustrated. What kind of monster would kidnap and then kill the children they are keeping hostage? It just annoys me so much...!"

Ignoring the water that had splashed onto her face, Yo sat down next to Black Rabbit, an ostensibly serious look on her face as she hugged her knees and said, "Don't worry...we'll make him pay..."

Tearing up slightly, Black Rabbit resisted the urge to hug the adorable girl attempting to comfort her. Instead, she balled her hands into fists, her hair turning a pale shade of pink as she exclaimed, "That's right...!"

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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Momoiro be like, "I will earn a chapter all for myself! Just you wait...!"','Vahn really knows how to pander to his women...','Absolutely shameless...!"