Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 1026 - Explanation

Chapter 1026 - Explanation

After a longer period of time than he had expected, Vahn found himself leaning against the external walls of the Tohsaka Manor as Fenrir, now adorned in a black one-piece dressed, happily nuzzled in his arms. With a wry smile on his face, even as gentleness radiated from his eyes, Vahn kissed the top of Fenrir’s head before whispering, "I didn’t know how much I needed that...I missed you, Fenrir..." This caused her to hum in satisfaction before putting a bit more strength into the ongoing embrace as she replied, "I could feel it, as soon as I could feel anything...Master was calling me, so I came to you as quickly as I could." Following these words, Fenrir gave a few playful pecks around the base of Vahn’s neck and collarbone as her tail gently moved the fabric of her dress from side-to-side...

Though the urge to continue where they had left off began to build inside of Vahn’s heart, he managed to keep his composure by reminding himself that Rin could return at any moment. There were a few pressing things he needed to take care of and, though he had already ’learned’ quite a bit about Fenrir’s current state during their reunion, Vahn wanted to test one of his standing theories as soon as possible. Fenrir, understanding his thoughts, gave one last playful nibble of his collarbone, something she wouldn’t have been able to do in the past, before adjusting herself on his lap so they could talk more easily. This, of course, didn’t stop Vahn from habitually stroking her hair and tail, watching his OP slowly increase alongside Fenrir’s rapidly increasing Loyalty...

As was to be expected, Fenrir had lost the benefits provided by her Falna but, unlike him, her internal energy hadn’t been affected all that much. Due to her Innates, Fenrir was able to convert ’anything’ into a form of energy that was specially adapted to her body. It was this same energy that she had adapted to Eva’s Magical System, meaning she hadn’t lost any of her learned Magic, the exception being the [Cinder*Ella] she had obtained from Lili. She could no longer freely adapt her shape and race, at least in the more comprehensive meaning of the world. Fenrir still her the ability to use her unnamed Magic to transform but, combined with the ability to manifest clothing, but this was just a complex illusion that drained her reserves rapidly, depending on how much she changed her body.

What Vahn wanted to try was bestowing his Blessing unto Fenrir’s body himself, seeing whether or not it could provide her any meaningful benefits other than making her excited at the prospect of bearing his mark. She, of course, happily granted him permission to apply his Blessing, leading to the scene of Vahn leaning over Fenrir’s body, bereft of everything but a pair of panties, as he imprinted his Maker’s Mark in between her shoulders. The method he used was distinctly different from the one in Danmachi, as the ’core’ language was fundamentally different, but that wasn’t much of a problem with his ability to automatically convert the language into a structure that matched his intentions. Vahn didn’t know the exact origin of the runes he used as part of the mark’s foundation, but it ultimately didn’t matter as he was able to read it similar to his own status...

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[Status]

Name: [Fenrir Mason]

Age: 33

Race: Vanargandr

Strength: 25D

Endurance: 20D+

Agility: 37C+

Magical Power: 41B+

Good Luck: 38C

Circuit Quality: EX

Soul Tier: 2 (Hero Soul)

Noble Phantasm: ?

Origin: Devour, Moon

Skills: [Insatiable Hunger:(-)], [Heaven Devouring Wolf:C], [Lunar Cry:S], [Freezing Roar:S->A], [Chainbreaker:A->D], [Huntress: SS->S], [Severing Claws:SS->A],

Magic: [True Ice Magic:E](new)

Magecraft: [Cantus Bellax:A->E], [Shundo: S->D], [Koku Shundo:A->H], [Sagitta Magica: A->G], [Crystallitatio Tell.u.s.tris:B->D], [Reflexio:C], [Hroovitnir:D]

[True Ice Magic]

Rank: E

Passive: Greatly empowers the user’s capabilities in areas filled with ice and snow.

Active: Enemies will constantly bleed mana while having their mobility drained within range of the caster’s domain. Mana lost by enemies can be absorbed by the caster to supplement their own internal energy reserves.

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Vahn hadn’t been particularly surprised by the fact that Fenrir’s skills had been ’balanced’ to match the standards of the Record but, seeing she had gotten a ’True Magic’ by default, he couldn’t help wondering if it was related to her prior Cultivation efforts. If that were true, Cultivation might prove to be one of the most reliable means of increasing his strength in this Record. Depending on the circ.u.mstances, he may even be able to establish it as an entirely ’new’ form of thaumaturgy that didn’t seem to exist within the Root at this time. Though there were a few accounts of practitioners in china appearing periodically throughout history, it seemed that much of the ’techniques’ that had been practiced were lost during the transition from the Era of Gods to the Era of Men...

Now having ’proved’ that it was possible to give his Blessing to others, even if Fenrir was just an exception due to the nature of her body, Vahn was in the best mood he had been in since arriving in this new world. While waiting for Rin’s return, he sat on a carved wooden bench with Fenrir snuggly sitting in his lap as he, for what felt like the first time in far too long, brushed her hair. It was even more ther.a.p.eutic than he remembered, causing Vahn to fall into a dazed, almost meditative state as he absentmindedly ran the brush through her hair. Though her ears and tail would be a bit of an issue, it seemed that the [Spirit Choker] was more than enough to sustain her when she wasn’t actively engaged in combat. This meant, so long as he supplemented her reserves with his blood and other ’consumable’ items, Fenrir was already at a pretty solid starting point for venturing into this world.

Amidst the long brushing session, continuing even after the sun had started to descend the sky, Fenrir’s ears perked up as she directed her attention towards the Manor’s front gates. Even her senses were obscured by the barriers littering the Tohsaka Manor so it wasn’t until Rin had disabled the security formation that Fenrir became aware of her. Vahn rested his chin on the top of her head while hugging her waist tightly as he explained, "That is a Magus named Rin Tohsaka. She is akin to our benefactor so try to stay on amicable terms with her. We’re staying in her house and there is a lot you can learn from her about this world if you can tolerate her presence..." Vahn knew Rin would freak out after seeing Fenrir but, remembering how she reacted upon seeing him transform into a Chienthrope, he didn’t think she would complain about Fenrir living within the Manor. Even if she did, that only meant he would have to find a new residence to stay at as, regardless of the circ.u.mstances, he wouldn’t abandon Fenrir on behalf of anyone...

Though she listened to what her Master was saying, Fenrir still silently sniffed the air before apparently ’realizing’ something as she hummed a happy affirmation. It didn’t take being the world’s greatest detective to deduce that Fenrir had probably been smelling Rin to see if his ’scent’ mixed with her own. No matter how much effort you put into washing your body, there was always a bit of the other person’s essence intermixed with your own after you became lovers. Vahn attested Fenrir’s ability to detect this aroma as something akin to a seventh sense, using the connection they shared to ’affirm’ whether or not someone was involved with him. Since he had kept to his word, abstaining from any ’serious’ thoughts about Rin and himself, Fenrir was quickly able to identify that Rin wasn’t a ’threat’...

Hand-in-hand, Vahn took Fenrir inside the Manor, just in time to here Rin’s voice echo, "I’m home~. Is dinner prepared~?" It wasn’t until he heard her mention it that Vahn realized he hadn’t actually prepared any food, even after promising Rin he would make something she enjoyed. In response, Vahn’s mind worked faster than a super-computer as he quickly purchased a few expensive dishes, even from the perspective of OP, to serve as an ’excuse’ for his oversight. He even placed them within the kitchen, making it appear as though they were freshly made as he shouted back, "You’re just in time. Before that, though, there is someone I want to introduce you to...!"

Rin had been coming toward the sound of his voice but, hearing what he said, the sound of footsteps quickly faded away. Vahn and Fenrir hadn’t been that far away, however, so he brought the latter with him to intercept Rin within the hallway. Her eyes immediately snapped to Fenrir, clear suspicion present within before she instinctually looked between the latter’s ears and tail. Even without Vahn explaining anything, Rin quickly made a few determinations of her own before looking towards Vahn with a piercing gaze and asking, "Is she from your world...?" Vahn immediately nodded in response to this, adding, "Her name is Fenrir Mason, my closest and most loyal companion..."

Recognizing the name as one of the ’people’ Vahn had talked about previously, Rin turned her attention back to Fenrir before releasing a long and exasperated sigh. With the aroma of food calling to her, Rin decided to set her building frustrations aside, instead, commenting, "I want to hear a proper explanation during dinner. Next time, tell me beforehand if you suddenly plan to have more freeloaders staying within my Manor. We only have so many rooms to go around..." As soon as these words left Rin’s lips, Fenrir raised her head slightly before saying, in a somewhat ’matter-of-factly’ manner, "I will stay in the same room as Master."

Hearing Fenrir’s ’proud’ declaration, Rin’s brows immediately furrowed as she gave Fenrir another appraising look. With Fenrir standing at a ’petite’ 148cm tall, compared to Vahn’s above-average height of 185cm, there was a significant difference in their sizes. This, combined with the fact that Fenrir actually appeared both youthful and delicate caused Rin’s expression to sour as she looked at Vahn with daggers for eyes. Though this might have cowered lesser men, Vahn’s gaze remained steadfast as he plainly stated, "Fenrir and I have known each other longer than you have been alive, Rin. As a Magus, you should know better than to make assumptions based on appearance..."

Though they hadn’t coordinated it, Fenrir punctuated Vahn’s words by using her transformation magic to assume a far more mature figure compared to her ’default’ appearance. Rin had been about to make a counter-argument against Vahn but, seeing the unbelievably advanced spell that Fenrir had cast without even chanting, her words got stuck in her throat. This reaction seemed to be in line with the one Fenrir wanted to see as, with a smile that was closer to a grin, she pressed her illusionary b.r.e.a.s.ts against Vahn’s arm while affectionately rubbing her head against his shoulder. Rin’s reaction to this display was even more humorous than her shock, as her mouth immediately gaped open with a look of sheer incredulity overtaking her.

Before Fenrir could make Rin explode, Vahn roughly stroked her head before half-heartedly saying, "Behave yourself, Fenrir. Remember what I told you, Rin is my friend and ’benefactor’. You should do your best to get along with her, okay...?" Vahn intentionally placed more emphasis on the word ’benefactor’, both as a reminder to Fenrir to behave while also reminding Rin of her ’status’. This caused her to immediately default into her somewhat haughty and prideful self as she raised her head slightly before declaring, "That’s right~! This is my house so you’ll have to follow the rules I set out if you intend to stay here. You and Vahn might have an ongoing relationship, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to tolerate your bumping around in the middle of the night. If you want to do stuff like that, go to a love hotel or something...!"

Fenrir seemed to want to argue against Rin but, before she could say anything to ’expose’ their earlier deed, Vahn gently pinched the tender flesh of her abdomen to silence her. Taking advantage of this, he gave a small nod in response to Rin’s ’demand’ before adopting a casual smile and commenting, "We’ll do that, then. I wouldn’t want to trouble Miss Tohsaka in the middle of the night, after all..." Since they had been on a first-name basis for a few weeks now, Vahn intentionally called Rin as ’Miss Tohsaka’ in an attempt to tease her. As a result, her face became slightly red as she instinctually took a step back, even though nobody had moved toward her. When she realized her own reaction, Rin’s face became even redder as she adopted an expression of mock anger before shouting, "That is quite enough of that, Vahn! Now, let us go eat dinner. I skipped lunch entirely in preparation for the meal you promised so it better be damn good...!"

Without waiting for their response, Rin walked by Vahn and Fenrir in a huff, passing right next the latter along the way. As a result, Fenrir’s tail lightly thumped Rin’s side, causing the latter’s steps to slow slightly as she cast her gaze towards the oversized ears and bushy tail adorning Fenrir’s body. She knew they were undoubtedly real but, as a result of her earlier shock, she hadn’t paid much attention to them before. Now that she got a better look, Rin had the instinctual urge to try and ’pet’ Fenrir’s head, much like she had seen Vahn do before. Fenrir, however, seemed to sense this as she immediately moved to place her Master between herself and Vahn, ’glaring’ back at Rin as she murmured, "Don’t think my ears can be touched by just anyone. Only family and Master are allowed to pet me..."

Rin’s face became red in response to Fenrir’s words but, choosing not to ’argue’ over such a silly topic, she instead gave a small huff before heading towards the dining room. At the same time, however, Rin recalled the time when she had stroked Vahn’s ears, resulting in her face becoming even redder as she hastened her steps. Vahn and Fenrir were left watching her retreating figure, both standing in silence until Fenrir looked up and asked, "Master, are you intending to take Rin as your lover...?" In response to this, Vahn immediately shook his head before lightly patting Fenrir’s as he said, "I can’t say for certain what the future will hold, but I have no intention of actively seeking relationsh.i.p.s right now. It hasn’t even been two months since I left everyone behind...I feel like I would be betraying them if I got together with someone so soon..."

Fenrir, somewhat surprisingly, wasted no time in nodding her head before tightly hugging his body as she said, "If you feel lonely, please come to me before you go seeking out other women...I will do my best to make sure Master doesn’t have to rely on others to comfort his heart. I have learned lots from Haruhime and Loki so please don’t get taken in by the wiles of other women..." As she spoke, Fenrir’s put more strength into her arms as she nuzzled against his chest in an affectionate manner. Vahn’s focus, however, was on the ’revelation’ that Fenrir had gone to Haruhime and Loki, apparently for ’guidance’ on how to best take care of him. This came as an extreme shock was, even in the time leading up to his departure from the Danmachi Record, Vahn felt that the relationship between Loki and Fenrir had always been a caustic one...

While guiding Fenrir to the dining room, Vahn couldn’t help but wonder what other secrets Fenrir had kept from him, even though her actions were undoubtedly out of concern for him. After all, Fenrir had a natural aversion towards Loki while, from the moment they met, an intense rivalry had been sparked between her and Haruhime. Though Fenrir inevitably won the ’competition’ by a landslide, becoming the one person that was rarely away from his side, it still came as a surprise to learn that she had sought guidance from Haruhime in secret. This wouldn’t have been the first time Fenrir took such action but, now that he knew she had learned ’more’, Vahn felt anticipation tickling his heart like a cat playfully pawing at it...

Upon reaching the dining room, Vahn was surprised to find that Rin had not only started eating but was well into her second dish as a blissful and contented smile adorned her face. Seeing the two finally arrive, she pointed her chopsticks towards Vahn before shouting, "This is easily the best food you’ve ever made, Vahn! If you continue to cook like this, I might not even mind if you bring all of your ridiculously oversized family to stay here~." Though she didn’t actually mean her words, Rin had been awed by just the smell wafting off the dishes that Vahn had left in the kitchen. She didn’t know what kind of meat and vegetables they were but, trusting that Vahn wouldn’t poison her, it quickly became impossible for her to resist sampling one of the dishes. After that, Rin only vaguely remembered the time between her starting the meal and Vahn’s arrival within the dining room...

Seeing Rin in a much better mood, even though only a few minutes had passed, Vahn returned a smile to her before casually remarking, "At most, there will probably be one other that will come to stay here. For the time being, however, it will just be Fenrir and myself you have to worry about..." With how Rin had reacted to Fenrir, Vahn knew her reaction towards Medusa would be far more extreme. Her clingy nature and childish appearance would set off alarms within her mind, even though Vahn had never actually done anything with Medusa. Most of his interactions with her had been relatively one-sided, even though he did occasionally rub her head when she behaved. For the time being, Vahn had decided to put off summoning Medusa until the Holy Grail War had come to an end as, even though she shouldn’t be considered weak, Medusa was a far greater liability than even Fenrir’s appetite.

Thinking about the childish ’Gorgon’, Vahn felt a little guilty to leave her sitting in his Inventory but, especially when he remembered how Fenrir had described the experience. Though she didn’t have the ’instinctual’ urge to avoid being sealed away, it couldn’t be a pleasant experience to be locked away inside of an empty void for an impossible to determine amount of time. Vahn knew he would have to make it up to her once he was able to freely summon her with his own reserves. Currently, his Od was around 177 but, if his guesstimates were correct, it would take around 400 Od to manifest even Medusa’s weakened body. As for Fenrir, she would have taken a monstrous 30,000 Od to manifest as, even though their Soul Tiers were the same, Fenrir’s unique constitution and massive mana pool made her far more difficult to summon. Though it was hard to be certain, Vahn estimated her inherent Od was between 5500-6000, meaning she could currently output far more Magical Power than himself...

Knowing her Master was thinking ’flattering’ thoughts about her, Fenrir happily dangled her legs from the chair directly next to him as Rin stared at them both from across the table. It was obvious at a glance that Vahn and Fenrir were ’very’ close to each other and, even though Rin hadn’t proactively tried to shorten the distance by much, it was slightly annoying to see them so ’chummy’. Thus, after finishing another large serving of what she would later learn was Dragon’s meat, Rin set aside her utensils before directly asking, "So, I assume you’re going to explain how Fenrir ended up here, right? Just like when you first arrived here, I want to hear every detail...starting from where you were while I was away..." Though she didn’t believe Vahn had actually followed her, Rin had sensed some of the magical fluctuations during the short skirmish between Vahn and Gray. It hadn’t been a major interruption in her conversation with Luvia and Lord El-Melloi II, but it was still a matter worthy of notice...

Hearing Rin’s question, Vahn’s expression remained a perfect mask of unperturbance as he calmly smiled and began recounting his normal training schedule. Rin frowned slightly in response but, as Vahn ’had’ actually done what he attested to, it was difficult for her to see through his misdirection. By the time he began talking about Fenrir, the less-significant details had no longer mattered as she listened closely to all of the details surrounding the Vanargandr’s summoning. Rin already knew Vahn was capable of using True Magic but, hearing the ’explanation’ he had come up with, combined with the existence of the [Spirit Choker] and the overwall ’fantastical’ nature of the story was enough to keep her distracted from the inherent falsehoods contained within. Though Rin felt there was something ’off’ about the explanation, she simply credited to the fact that Vahn wanted to keep the more important details of the process a secret...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: ’Fenrir has the seventh sense, thot detection’,’Fenrir’s terrifying ’dedication’’,’If only Rin’s intuition worked at times like this xD...’)

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