Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos
chapter-1082

Without knowing how long she had been asleep, Artoria awoke to feel a comfortable lethargy encompassing her entire body. Instead of the dirty and uncomfortable feeling of dried sweat, she noticed a subtle lavender smell wafting from her body. At the same time, Artoria realized she was wearing light blue pajamas that she didn’t remember creating while, instead of being left to sprawl at the side, a pair of thick blankets covered her shoulders while her head rested snugly within a comfortable pillow. All of these were new experiences for Artoria as, after having s.e.x in the past, there was always a feeling of mild shame and discomfort that would require her to bathe shortly after the fact...

Understanding this was another extension of Vahn’s ’experience’, Artoria pulled the blankets a little closer as her green eyes came into focus on the scene occurring only two meters away from her. She was a little confused about how no vibrations were transferred through the comfortable mattress but that seemed inconsequential as she looked into the blissful face of Fenrir as the latter tore out pieces of the mattress in timing with Vahn’s movements. She was momentarily reminded of how a cat would behave but, almost as though she were able to read her mind, Fenrir’s scarlet red eyes met her gaze at the same time such thoughts crossed her mind. This left Artoria awkwardly staring at Fenrir, using her blankets as a protective barrier as she saw a flash of mild frustration briefly pass across Fenrir’s eyes as she muttered, "Master..."

Vahn had already noticed Artoria stirring awake so he lightly caressed Fenrir’s backside as he replied, "I know..." without stopping his movements. This instantly put Fenrir in a better mood, causing her to ’taunt’ Artoria with her eyes before ultimately ignoring her completely. Now, feeling even more awkward, Artoria pulled the blankets over her head, noticing the sound of Fenrir’s mewling m.o.a.ns no longer reached her. Not only did the mattress completely mitigate vibrations, but the blankets Vahn had given her were both extremely comfortable while also being completely sound absorbent. This allowed Artoria to understand how she had even been able to sleep with the two of them going at it right next to her...

After making sure Fenrir was momentarily satiated, as her hunger in the bedroom was equal to her appetite, Vahn heavily pet her head as he said, "You did very well. Make sure you and Artoria get along in the future, okay? She will be with us for a long time..." In response to this, Fenrir playfully stuck out her tongue, surprising Vahn a bit when she said, "Don’t worry, Master. I can tell she is different from normal girls so I will do my best to get along with her. Now that we are ’sisters’, I can do all kinds of things to break through her meaningless resistance..." As she had been taught by Loki and Syr that women became ’sisters’ if they were committed to the same man, Fenrir was intending to ’teach’ Artoria some of the things that had been bestowed to her for this exact purpose...

Knowing that Fenrir was probably cooking up a scheme of her own, Vahn gave a light chuckle before ruffling her hair even more than before. This caused her to snicker before she eventually wriggled free from his hand and ’jumped’ onto the lump that represented Artoria’s fortress. Though the bed might prevent vibrations from passing through the unique material, that didn’t mean the blanket had the same properties. As a result, Artoria was startled by the sudden ’attack’, causing her to quickly move the blankets aside and send Fenrir tumbling along the bed, laughing all the while. This behavior confused Artoria a great deal, causing her to look questioningly at Vahn before realizing he was still n.a.k.e.d and averting her eyes...

Seeing her bashful behavior, Vahn smiled teasingly before pulling out a towel and asking, "Will you help wipe me down?" Since she was undoubtedly aware that he had done the same for her, Vahn didn’t imagine Artoria would be able to refuse a direct request. As expected, she gave him a sidelong glance before awkwardly crawling to his side and accepting the towel. Then, without so much as a single word, Artoria began to dab his body with the towel in an awkward and inexperienced manner. It took her a full five minutes to even finish the front side of his body, primarily as a result of her inhibitions about wiping down a specific part of his body, now lying dormant until the time of its next conquest...

Deciding to give Artoria some leniency, Vahn equipped a fresh set of clothing before lightly stroking the top of her head and saying, "Thank you, Artoria." This only caused her face to turn even redder, leading to the biting of her lower lip before she eventually said, "I wish you wouldn’t try and tease me, Master..." Though she made no attempt to escape his hand, it was obvious that Artoria wasn’t fond of the idea of having her head stroked. Since he didn’t want her to think she had no say in how she was treated, Vahn pulled his hand away from her head before lightly stating, "Sorry..." in an apologetic tone. After that, he turned his back and slid off the bed, saying, "You should rest for now. We’ll be leaving in around three hours so relax while you can..."

With that said, Vahn stood up from the bed and stretched his body in an exaggerated fashion before leaving behind the silent Artoria and the listless Fenrir thumping her tail at the side. She waited until her Master had left the room before looking over at Artoria and remarking, "You don’t need to worry so much. Master isn’t going to force you to do anything you aren’t willing to do. If you start putting yourself beneath him unnecessarily, it will only trouble him..." Since she could tell that Artoria was feeling guilty about asking their Master not to bully her, Fenrir felt she needed to carefully instruct her junior so that she didn’t make the same mistakes as her predecessors. The last thing their Master needed was another ’dependent’ that was trying too hard to please him in the most awkward ways imaginable...

Artoria frowned after hearing Fenrir’s words, mixed feelings welling up in her heart as she looked towards the blue-haired Vanargandr with a ’lost’ expression and asked, "Can you help me to better understand our Master? I want to know even more about his past, but I’m afraid to ask him directly." As she could no longer simply look at Vahn ’objectively’, Artoria felt that any attempt to try and talk with Vahn would almost come off as a desperate attempt to get his attention. She couldn’t shake the feeling that had been deeply ingrained into her body as, even now, she felt a disturbing amount of ’relief’ that made her just want to lounge around for the rest of the night...

In response to Artoria’s words, Fenrir rolled into a sitting position before nodding her head and saying, "I will tell you everything you want to know. You are now one of Master’s important people so I will trust you as well. In exchange, you will have to pay close attention...then, when you have no more questions, I will begin to teach you. You did well for your first time, but Master gave you ’a lot’ more than you gave him, you know? I feel bad watching Master do his best only to see his partner worrying about themselves..." Seeing Artoria fl.u.s.ter in response to her words, Fenrir knew she had taken the bait but she kept the smile from her face as she plainly stated, "Here, do as I do..."

With less than half an hour until he was supposed to be heading out, Vahn released a contented sigh as a pair of blond pigtails tickled his waist, accompanied by a powerful suction and a few audible gulping sounds. When he was completely ’empty’, Vahn had to inhale sharply as Ereshkigal gave him a few more probing licks before slowly ascending his length and releasing him with a ’pah’ sound. After he had tended to Rin and the ever-voracious Ishtar, Ereshkigal had ’fused’ with her sister in order to learn how to give a blowjob. When she had gotten the hang of things, Vahn had to be her experimental dummy as she spent a good twenty minutes trying different techniques to try and get a rise out of him.

After releasing a hot sigh of her own, Ereshkigal turned her maroon eyes up at Vahn before asking in her cold monotone, "Was it good...?" Without needing to embellish anything at all, Vahn gave an approving smile that seemed to satisfy Ereshkigal as she returned one in kind. After that, she crawled up his body before trying to rest her head against his chest, an action that caused her crown to poke into his collarbone. Vahn’s brow twitched in response to the unexpected puncture but he prevented Ereshkigal from seeing it as he prevented her apology with a kiss. Though others might be afraid of accidentally ’tasting’ themselves, Vahn was confident she hadn’t left any lingering surprises for him within her mouth...

With time quickly counting down, Vahn separated from Ereshkigal before stroking her chin with his thumb and saying, "I need to get going. The four of us can have more fun later on..." This earned him a small nod from Ereshkigal in response before she reluctantly separated from him, muttering, "You must take care of yourself...there is no Underworld in this place so I cannot guide you back if you die...do not leave us alone..." Though she was less expressive than Rin and Ishtar, Vahn was well aware of the fact that Ereshkigal had the most ’tender’ feelings towards him. In a way, he was her first love and, though she still didn’t fully understand these feelings, he knew better than to play with such a delicate maiden’s heart. Even the inexperienced Artoria wasn’t nearly as ’vulnerable’ as a woman like Ereshkigal who, before being summoned for the Holy Grail War, had never even left the Underworld a single time...

After spending more time than he probably should have promising Ereshkigal his safe return, Vahn found himself face to face with Scáthach just outside of Rin’s bedroom. This immediately killed his mood, causing Vahn to release a tired sigh before shaking his head and choosing to get it over with. He didn’t even choose to fool around this time, cutting through the fabric of Scáthach’s bodysuit with a single swift motion before hooking his finger inside her hot yet barely moist v.a.g.i.n.a. This didn’t so much as cause Scáthach’s brow to twitch as she casually asked, "Are you feeling better?" in her usual monotone.

Vahn knew she was just trying to rile him up so that he would put more effort into his training later, causing him to roll his eyes in response to her question. He still hadn’t gotten over what she had done to him four days prior, especially since he knew it would only get worse now that she had once again confirmed the method’s effectiveness. Vahn would never forget the unnerving sense of shame and comfort he had experienced when Scáthach had slipped his jewel inside her body, letting it be warmed by her furnace-like insides for several hours. It had taken even longer than normal to reform himself as her body had been siphoning off parts of the Source Energy he radiated, absorbing it into her w.o.m.b before disseminating into the rest of her body...

Once Scáthach’s eyes were glowing with sufficient intensity, Vahn pulled his finger free before placing it against her lips. As this wasn’t the first time he had done such a thing, Scáthach remained expressionless as she unhesitantly suckled on the finger that had been inside of her moments prior. Though this was an ultimately pointless act, Vahn felt like he needed to do ’something’ after what she had put him through. After all, while he was actually grateful for her assistance in becoming stronger, Vahn felt like he would break before actually learning ’everything’ she had to teach. He pitied her circ.u.mstances a great deal, especially after experiencing [Laplace’s Key], but his one-sided concern was hard to maintain since Scáthach herself was simply incapable of expressing any sign that she cared at all...

When Vahn plucked his finger from her lips, Scáthach didn’t even bother to wipe the line of mucus dribbling down her lips and simply stated, "Channel your frustrations against your enemies. Take care not to let them control you..." With that said, Scáthach vanished from the corridor, leaving Vahn standing alone with a slightly dampened finger being the only sign she had ever been there in the first place. Then, after reminding himself that Scáthach was just a victim of her circ.u.mstances, Vahn shook his head before psyching himself up for the coming battles. He knew she couldn’t truly be blamed for her actions as, just like he was helpless in his [Laplace’s Key] state, Scáthach was essentially forced to behave like an emotionless machine whose only sincere desires seemed to be training him and dying...

By the time Vahn reached the outside of the residence, he found Scáthach and Artoria both waiting for him, the latter accompanied by Fenrir. They were both wearing matching gothic dresses, causing Vahn’s mood to improve considerably as he gave a sincere smile and stated, "Those clothes suit you well...you both look adorable." As even Artoria could sense the sincere emotions contained within Vahn’s words, she gave an awkward smile in return as a slight blush crept up her face. Fenrir had a far more honest reaction, however, leaping through the air to hug her Master’s waist without inhibition. She could sense his earlier frustration and was more than willing to help improve his mood before he set out into the night without her...

With his mood successfully recovered, Vahn gave Fenrir’s body a firm hug before ruffling her hair, knowing thanks wasn’t necessary to express how he felt. In response, Fenrir snickered happily before making Artoria sweat bomb when she tiptoed to whisper into their Master’s ear, "Artoria is a good girl. When you get back, she will show you want I taught her previously, shishishi~." Since she made no effort to actually keep her words private, everyone present heard Fenrir’s words clearly. Artoria suddenly felt a little betrayed but, knowing it would only exacerbate her embarrassment, she kept mum and simply changed into her battle attire to help focus her mind. As for Scáthach, she just stared at Fenrir for a few seconds before silently returning to her Spirit form to conserve mana.

After coming up with a simple battle strategy, primarily revolving around Artoria dealing with Hassan and Scáthach dealing with Yan Qing, Vahn and ’Saber’ were making their way toward the Matou Mansion under the cover of a light fog. Even for a relatively normal human, it was only around a 30-40 minute sprint between the Tohsaka and Matous residences, meaning it had taken them less than five minutes at a casual pace to reach an area only two blocks distant from their target. At this distance, it was easy to see the protective magical array protecting the fortress-like mansion. With Vahn’s domain, he was able to sense far more than that, however, causing his face to darken as he regretted not coming to deal with Sakura sooner...

Noticing the look on Vahn’s face, Saber asked in a concerned tone, "Is there something wrong, Master?" In response to this question, it was Scáthach who emotionlessly answered, "This place is a breeding ground for Crest Worms. There are more than a dozen children imprisoned within an area beneath the Mansion..." Before Scáthach could say any more, Vahn’s glare brought her to silence, causing her to change tune and say, "We should move quickly. The only other presence within the Mansion should be Sakura Matou herself. Be careful, Master, as I can sense something ’wrong’ with her body..." The whole reason she had appeared from the start was to warn Vahn about the fact that she couldn’t fully see through the girl. Her vision was blocked by an anomalous aura and, even though she didn’t feel any ’danger’ coming from it, there was ’something’ she couldn’t quite put into words lingering around the girl’s body...

With Scáthach disappearing once again, Vahn hardened his resolve and, even though he abhorred what Sakura had done, he reminded himself that she had been twisted by the same process. Though he may not ever truly forgive her for what she had done, Vahn was determined to save both Sakura and her victims from their suffering. When he was done, Vahn intended to crush the Makiri family for ever daring to come up with such a despicable method. Though he wouldn’t ruthlessly slaughter all of them, Vahn would personally claim the heads of everyone who was involved with perpetuating this cycle of suffering...

As the knowledge she had obtained included the existence of Crest Worms, Artoria knew well why her Master was so angry. She felt righteous indignation in her own heart as she comfortingly placed her hand on his shoulder and said, "We will save them all." This earned her a nod from Vahn who, with just as much confidence, stated, "These are the things we will fight to prevent, Artoria. Thank you for being here with me...now, let’s go...!" With that said, Vahn leaped into the air before vaulting off a roof and easily clearing the walls surrounding the Matou Mansion. As for Artoria, she tightly gripped her fist with a resolute look in her eyes before following shortly thereafter. A lot of her uncertainty had been swept away by Vahn’s comment, allowing her to view things from a different perspective...one where she knew victims all over the world were waiting to be saved...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: ’After-care is important’,’Vahn isn’t worthy of Ereshkigal (T ^ T)’,’F.u.c.k the Makiri, seriously...’)