Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Due to the time dilation of the Projection, it was early in the evening when the tiny lantern strapped to Vahn's waist began to stir. When he noticed this, he created a barrier, not to protect himself, but his surroundings. Then, after apologizing to Lakshmibai and Gareth, who he had been having tea with, Vahn opened the lantern's door to release a wave of heat that caused the temperature inside the barrier to skyrocket in an instant. At the same time, a figure wreathed in flames pokes its head out to look around before turning its amethyst eyes toward Vahn.

Upon seeing Vahn, Aeterna smiled radiantly, causing the temperature to increase even more as she flew up near his face and rubbed her fiery cheek against his. It was an admittedly adorable action but Vahn adopted a wry smile on his face as he could feel some of his hair curling, even if they weren't outright catching fire.

Aeterna's default temperature was around 5000 degrees Celsius so she would need to practice using them non-destructively in order to avoid burning everything in her surroundings. He knew some of the older Vulcanae could even sit in the palm of a normal person's hand without burning them so it wasn't beyond her means. She simply lacked the experience due to being born only three days prior so Vahn didn't really blame her as he used his index finger to lightly rub her head, using his [Hands of Nirvana] to send threads of Source Energy into her body.

After blinking in surprise, Aeterna began to giggle as she rubbed her head against Vahn's finger with a cheerful smile on her face. As could be expected, the temperature around her began to gradually increase as a result, causing Vahn to chuckle before he set out his hand for her to sit. Once she was snug in his palm, he continued to stroke her head as he mused, "You'll need to practice controlling the temperature of your flames or I won't be able to take you around with me. Try cooling down a bit, okay...?"

At this point, Aeterna was close to 7,300 degrees and, though it wasn't enough to breach through his immunity, Vahn's clothes had paid the price. Event hough he had swapped to something that was supposed to be extremely resistant to fire, it dried out quickly and had started to wrinkle and char at the edges. Her flames weren't normal at all; they were fueled by the phenomenal amount of mana that had been gathered to form her body. As a result, they possessed magical qualities that allowed them to slowly affect even equipment with A-Rank [Fire Resistance].

While Vahn was rubbing the larger-than-average Vulcanae's head, Lakshmibai and Gareth watched with visible intrigue. The latter, with a vibrant smile on her face, eventually pointed out, "She is very cute, isn't she~?" This was answered with a nod from Lakshmibai while Vahn chuckled before also nodding his head in agreement.

Aeterna was already capable of understanding and speaking most languages so she was aware of the fact she was being praised. This caused her to laugh happily, completely ruining her attempt at reducing her body temperature. Instead, the flames comprising her body become a rich violet as the temperature skyrocketed further.

Vahn wasn't worried about her damaging the surroundings, as he had constrained his domain to form a barrier while actively guiding the Fire Elemental energy back toward her body. Still, he knew she needed a change of scenery in order to practice her control so, after apologizing to Lakshmibai, he headed toward the Workshop so he could make use of his personal forge. Gareth accompanied him part of the way but, knowing it would be a while until he finished his business, Vahn gave her leave to go do Quests or simply relax.

With the boyish dog-girl departed, Vahn ventured into the Workshop where Da Vinci was watching a projection that showed the outside corridor. She then turned around, her eyes making her intrigue apparent as she stated, "I'm very curious about the nature of Fae. Please make sure your experiment is within view of the Companions so that the Mother System can archive the data properly. It would be very interesting to give future Companions the characteristics of Fae~."

Since Da Vinci wanted to give the Companions the ability to evolve into practically anything, without limitation, she needed to acc.u.mulate a phenomenal amount of data. In the future, she intended to archive and compile an ecological study on every Phantasmal Species and Spirit. When she finished her research, the only limiting factor for the Companions would be the capabilities of their Partners. It would even be possible for some to reach the level of Greater Divine Spirits, putting them at the same scale as literal Gods.

Vahn already understood Da Vinci's intentions so he gave a curt nod in response to her reminder before entering the small room containing their isolated 'research orb'. It contained both his forge and a much larger laboratory than the one existing beneath the Armory of Camelot. Da Vinci had Golems working around the clock to continually expand the facilities, turning them into a massive compound that could staff more than a hundred researchers without them interfering with each other's work.

Currently, there was no method to transplant a [Sub-Space Orb], as they were bound to formations linking them to the land, but Da Vinci didn't believe in such restrictions at all. She fully intended to adapt Spiritron and Projection technology to transplant the laboratory aboveground at some point. Though it would probably take her a while to work out the particulars, Vahn knew she would be able to pull it off as, with her Omnipotent Genius, there was no such thing as impossible, just inevitable.

---

After reaching his forge, Vahn set Aeterna's lantern on one of the worktables before opening the tiny door and allowing her to come out and look around. When she saw the kiln at the back of the forge, she performed a cutesy dance mid-air before flitting over and jumping into the fiery depths without any hesitation. This caused the white-hot flames inside to gain a violet hue but, as the kiln was of the same quality as the one he used to house the eternal flame in the past, Vahn didn't have to worry about it melting down.

Now that he had an 'assistant' to help regulate and control the flames, allowing him to split his focus while she proactively refined the materials, Vahn was actually a little excited. He knew it would take a while before they were able to work seamlessly together but, as she had inherited knowledge from her subjects, Aeterna already knew how to assist in the forging process. She was almost on the level of a Greater Fire Elemental so she could even produce a few materials that simply didn't exist in the natural world.

Sharing Vahn's excitement, Aeterna poked her head out of the kiln before happily exclaiming, "Hurry, hurry~!" as the temperature in the forge continued to increase. This caused him to release a hearty laugh before he changed into fire-retardant pants and removed his top. He used a similar method to Tsubaki, meaning he preferred to feel the heat on his skin without bothering to protect himself from stray fragments of metal. Because of this, [Memory Orb]s of him forging were actually quite popular amongst the girls in the castle. Vahn was also aware that, every now and then, one of the girls would venture into the [Space-Time Orb] where he performed most of his forging so they could watch his Memory Fragment at work.

With his preparations complete, Vahn sat down next to the kiln and said, "For now, we'll focus on helping you control your temperature by melting and refining various metals. Are you ready...?"

In response to his question, Aeterna performed a dainty spin as she loudly exclaimed, "Leave it to me, Vahn~!" before retreating into the heart of the kiln in preparation for a very long session of forging. Since Faeries didn't really tire, so long as there was an ample supply of mana, she could easily keep up with Vahn's monstrous stamina.

Over the course of a nine-hour period, Vahn refined several hundred ingots with the help of Aeterna. Though she had a considerable amount of trouble at first, especially with more exotic metals such as Adamantine, she was extremely quick on the uptake. He had thought it would take her several weeks to get up to speed, not just several hours. This was a pleasant surprise so, toward the end of the nine hours, he was hunched over with two needle-like tools as he engraved tiny [Faerie Rune]s into what would serve as Aeterna's crown in the future. While he did this, she kept regulated the temperature to keep the metal in a malleable state without heating it to the point that it would actually melt. It was a delicate process but, as if they had been working together for years, they managed to pull it off without any accidents occurring.

When the crown was completed, Vahn even used his [Keeper of the Akashic Tome] to strengthen it further, increasing its rank from lower S-Rank to very-near the requirements for SS-Rank. This made Aeterna literally dance from joy as she hugged the crown to her chest and flittered around the forge for several minutes. It was a genuine masterpiece that they had worked on together so, while it may not have many uses, it was the best example of their cooperation. In the future, they would create a plethora of masterpieces together, elevating his and Aeterna's status amongst the Dwarven and Vulcanae communities considerably.

After finally calming down, Aeterna brought the crown back to Vahn before having him place it on her head. When he had finished, she flittered up to his face and planted a fiery kiss on his cheek, singing him a bit despite his immunity. He even had a tiny burn mark in the shape of her lips for a few seconds, causing Aeterna to giggle playfully before asking, "What will we make next~?"

Unfortunately, Vahn had other things to do so he could only adopt an apologetic expression as he explained, "I don't have as much time as I'd like to forge. For now, I'll take you back to the Great Forge so you can spend time with your people. Don't worry, though, as I'll set up a linked mirror for you so you can freely enter the Projection in the future. When I intend to forge something, I'll make sure to call you..."

Though Aeterna was clearly reluctant to leave, she was aware of her duties as Queen so, rather than argue, she pulled on his finger a few times while exclaiming, "You have to promise! From now on, we are partners! You can't forge without me, okay!?" Since it was a both fun and exciting to work with Vahn, thanks in large part to his Source Energy, Aeterna didn't want to miss out on any of his future projects.

Rather than promise outright, Vahn made use of his unnatural dexterity to lightly poke Aeterna's nose as he said, "I won't let you forge weapons with me. Still, I don't plan to ignore you. Whenever I forge anything in the future, I'll make sure to call you. I promise."

Hearing Vahn's words, Aeterna giggled happily before finally returning to her Faerie Lantern. After that, he grabbed the tiny crystal that contained the observation data of his forge while a group of Companions waddled out of the extremely hot room to return to their other duties. They were semi-permanant residents of the [Research Orb] but, using the Spiritual Communication Terminal, they were able to send data back to the Mother System after linking to the central nexus. As for the data crystal, Vahn was going to hand this over directly to Da Vinci as she preferred analyzing things from her own perspective, rather than relying entirely on the analysis of Ark and the Mother System.

---

While her Master had been busy training his new fiery companion, Gareth had decided to spend her time productively. She couldn't just take a break while knowing her Master was hard at work so, after parting ways, she immediately set out for the Knight's Training Field to accept a new Quest and enter the [Training Orb]. There, she made her way over the Kenshin's Dojo where more than three-hundred Homunculi now ardently studied Zen Buddhism and the monochromatic War Goddess' unique brand of martial arts.

Upon entering the premises, Gareth was greeted by some of the resting disciples, each wearing a set of black and white Gi. This was the practice uniform issued to each of Kenshin's students, allowing for ease of movement while a powerful enchantment significantly reduced the amount of time it took to replenish their stamina and mana reserves.

Among the group of resting disciples, a woman with a very mature figure, named Briana, asked, "Did you come for the usual~?"

Unlike the emotionless individuals they had been at first, the vast majority of Kenshin's students now had vibrant red eyes. Many had even adopted a somewhat playful nature as, despite how serious the training was, Kenshin's nature had been influenced quite a bit by Nobunaga and Vahn. This, in turn, caused those studying under her to develop a similar nature, especially since they often spent time in the bath just messing around after a hard day of training.

In response to Briana's question, Gareth bobbed her head in affirmation with a massive grin on her face as she cheerfully stated, "I have to defeat thirty today~!" This exclamation surprised the group of Homunculi as, in the past, Gareth had rarely challenged more than ten of them. They knew she had accepted a Quest so, after learning of the objectives, Briana went off to explain the situation to Kenshin while some of the Homunculi exited the orb to accept Quests of their own.

After a half-hour or so of preparation time, Gareth found herself standing in one of the larger of four training arenas. Though she wasn't one of Kenshin's students, she was also wearing a gi, albeit one that was completely white instead of half-black. Standing across from her was a Homunculus with a rather athletic figure, one of Kenshin's top-fifty disciples named Sierra. She had already accepted a Quest of her own so, with Kenshin acting as the referee, the two immediately began to fight using pure technique and their inhuman physical prowess.

As an entity with the capacity of a Heroic Spirit, Gareth was considerably stronger than most of the Homunculi so, despite being pressured a bit, she was able to defeat Sierra without much difficulty. They had only exchanged blows for around three minutes before she managed a solid kick on the white-haired maiden's flank, cracking a few ribs and scoring enough points to bring the match to an end. Then, after only thirty-seconds of rest, Gareth faced off against a slightly strong opponent, the second of thirty sequential fights...

Even with her monstrous stamina and higher physical capabilities, Gareth was extremely tired by the time her twentieth opponent came onto the stage. Despite this, she didn't ask for extra time as one of her Quest Objectives stipulated there couldn't be more than thirty seconds between the matches. If she failed to follow these rules, the Quest would be considered a failure, penalizing her by causing an incurable itch that would wrack her body for several hours. Fortunately, she could just soak her body in the mineral-rich hot springs to treat some of the symptoms before returning to her Master's side in high spirits later on.

Still, Gareth wasn't fond of having her entire body itching so, despite her fatigue, she continued to fight without rest against progressively stronger opponents. By the time she was down to the final three contenders, they were actually able to pressure her as a result of her fatigued state. Gareth found herself on the defensive but, much like how she refused to quit even after her tendons tore, there was nothing her opponents could do to keep her down. Instead, as the grew progressively more tired, Gareth's mind came into focus as her usually cheerful expression became increasingly serious.

The purpose of this training was to refine her techniques and decreased wasted movements as, even without her Master pointing it out, Gareth knew she was a bit 'excitable'. Though her Master didn't seem to mind it, she felt a little self-conscious about it since she wanted to be more reliable in the future. Her current goal was to become like Fenrir who, despite having a wild combat style, was very calm and attentive whenever they spent time together. Gareth admired this quality and, seeing how close Fenrir was to their Master, she did her best to temper and discipline herself...

In order to garner her Master's praise, Gareth, despite her legs trembling and her lungs failing to pull in enough oxygen, stood her ground against her final opponent, a Homunculus named Nora. She was one of Kenshin's best students and, even if she was at full strength, Gareth would struggle, at least a little, against Nora. This was due to the fact that the girl specialized in holds and throws, using Gareth's own attacks and momentum against her.

Despite the bad matchup, Gareth refused to go down without a fight so, as darkness crept in on the edge of her vision, she used [Shundo] to appear at Nora's side before trying to sweep her feet out from under her. This was answered by Nora also using [Shundo], causing Gareth to groan in pain as she blocked an attempted knee to her temple with her forearm. Using the momentum of the strike, she rolled to the side before setting a new anchor point and activating [Shundo] once again. This made her thighs throb in protest but, no matter how much it hurt, Gareth was more afraid of failing her Master's expectations than any amount of pain.

Nora knew she needed to continue pressing Gareth so, without giving the latter any time to catch her breath, she closed the distance in an instant. Once she was within her effective range, Nora struck hard against Gareth's shoulder, knocking her off balance before using [Shundo] to shift to the side. This allowed her to evade Gareth's counter as she twisted her waist like a bow, tracing her leg in a perfect ark before bringing it to down like a hammer onto Gareth's chest. This caused the latter to cough up a mouthful of bile but, at the same time, it allowed her to catch Nora's leg in a vice-like grip.

According to the rules they had established, Gareth would lose if Nora managed to land another clean hit on her so, in her desperation, she squeezed the Homunculi's ankle hard enough to break the bone. As a result, Nora winced slightly but, as she was no stranger to pain, she largely ignored it while trying to leverage Gareth's hold to strike down with a palm-thrust to the latter's face, an action that would secure her the victory.

With Nora's palm bearing down on her, Gareth's expression became fierce and resolute in an instant as she twisted her neck and rolled to the side, still holding Nora's leg. This caused the limb to bend at a sickening angle before Nora found herself smashed into the hard arena moments later. Even this wasn't enough to take her out, however, so Gareth pounced on her in the same motion, attempting to end the battle with a headbutt. Nora countered this by using the momentum of Gareth's leap to send her flying toward the edge of the arena, an action that would normally lead to a ring out.

Though she had never succeeded at it previously, Gareth refused to let things end in such a manner so, mustering as much mana as she could manage, she tried to create a foothold on the air, one of the prerequisites to using [Koku Shundo]. Instead, she created a small explosion, similar to [Mana Burst], as her thighs and calves ruptured at several locations. This caused her an excruciating amount of pain but, with adrenaline driving her forward, Gareth barreled toward Nora like an artillery shell as she attempted to smash the surprised Homunculus into the arena.

Fortunately, Kenshin immediately appeared to receive Gareth's attack, dissipating the force of the blow with considerable ease as she plainly stated, "This battle is your win, Gareth. Still, it is also your loss as you took things too far...haaaa..." Since there was a chance Gareth's final attack could have seriously injured, or even killed Nora, Kenshin couldn't help but reprimand the earnest woman. If she had accidentally killed an ally, it would have devasted her so it was important that she reflects on her actions. Gareth understood as well but, while apologizing with a pained expression on her face, she ultimately ended up collapsing due to the extreme amount of pain she was in...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'I am inevitable... -Da Vinci','Aeterna is quite cute','Gareth is a very earnest and hard-working girl')

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