Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Of all possible reactions, the last thing Vahn expected was for Adori to turn statuesque in response to his words. At the exact same time, the Law of Identity began laughing maniacally, hands holding her stomach as she revealed, "You short-circuited her brain by making her think lewd thoughts. She intends to completely thrash you now~."

As if to demonstrate this was the case, a resolute light flickered within Adori’s eyes as she said, "You have a glib tongue...it seems you need to be taught how to respect women..."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Vahn focused on repairing the damage done by the El Robina as Hagipherione and Maschenny gradually liberated themselves from the influence of his domain. This was a testament to their capacities as Top 100 Rankers, but, compared to Adori, they were lacking in a number of ways. Maschenny, in particular, seemed annoyed by the fact she was the last to break free, her expression morphing into a challenging scowl as she brandished her Yellow May, a sun-like spear that caused her characteristically blue Shinsu to resemble bands of golden lightning.

Fortunately, with various schemes formulating inside of her head, Maschenny was able to suppress her urge to rush into battle, her scowl relaxing into a mask of amusement as she remarked, "This is quite the scene...three Princesses of Jahad standing around a presumed enemy of the Empire as he resurrects our people and mends the damage caused by Imperial forces...I wonder what our Father would think of this?"

Frowning almost imperceptibly in response to Maschenny’s words, Adori sent a warning look to the former before shifting her attention back to Vahn and saying, "Though I find her selection of words rather troubling, it would be remiss of me to ignore the unusualnesses of the current situation. Tell me, Vahn Aldrnari Mason, what are your true intentions? Are you truly an enemy of the Empire? Will you not join hands with us to help ensure the peace and prosperity of all the Tower’s inhabitants?"

With most of the damage undone, Vahn shifted his gaze to match Adori’s, an accusatory glimmer in his eyes as he remarked, "An interesting thing to say considering the widespread corruption present within the Empire and abroad. Why is it that the same people who establish systems that suppress and exploit others always mention things like protecting everyone and ensuring peace? Are you just completely ignorant of your own faults and the lack of oversight in your administration? Other than ensuring your personal prosperity and maintaining a system that allows those in power to act with complete impunity, what are you doing to actually make the Tower a better place?"

For the first time since the start of their encounter, Adori’s expression changed drastically, her calm and unperturbed countenance morphing into a resolute grimace as she said, "I cannot agree with such poorly considered sentiments. Though I can’t deny the existence of corruption among Imperial officials and members of the Ten Great Families, your words ignore the larger issues and the tireless efforts we make to weed out such troublesome elements. Have you ever given any consideration as to why the Inner and Middle Towers were established? What about the Ranking Administration that allows even our enemies to be classified in accordance with their power and authority? If you truly possess the power to read people’s minds and know their most profound secrets, you would be a fool to question my commitment to the Tower and its inhabitants. I don’t pretend to be perfect, but I’ve dedicated the last five-thousand-years to preserving the peace and bettering the lives of those who respect Imperial rule. What are you doing to make things better other than selectively helping the people you deem worthy whilst destroying systems intended to monitor and regulate people who, by virtue of being chosen as Regulars, have already proven themselves as self-centered and greedy individuals?"

Surprised by the fervor of Adori’s words, Vahn, Maschenny, and even Hagipherione couldn’t help but raise their brows. She was known to be one of the quietest and most cool-headed among the Princesses, someone with very little care for worldly matters. Now, however, she was giving off the impression of someone who had worked hard only to have all their efforts looked down upon by others. For a brief moment, they even thought she might tear up, but, rather than show any signs of weakness, Adori’s aura continued to surge outwards like an endlessly gushing geyser...

With the platform and all its inhabitants returned to normal, Vahn allowed his influence over the flow of time to slip away as he turned to Adori and said, "I will not deny your perspective and the efforts you have made over the years. The problem is, regardless of the number of people working towards a solution, nothing will change without influencing how things are run at the top. There is also the matter of the Tower’s purpose, something that has been profaned and forgotten by all but a few of the most influential people within the Empire. Things cannot continue like this indefinitely. Even the most resolute individuals within the Tower, yourself included, will eventually be consumed and swayed by the passage of time. The only way to prevent the encroachment of stagnation is to continue moving forward...change is necessary in order to ensure true prosperity..."

Though Maschenny couldn’t help but smile in response to Vahn’s words, Adori held firmly to her resolute frown as she asked, "So you would see the Tower thrown into turmoil so that the most powerful among us can move forward? Before my Father became King and paved the way for the Era of Peaceful Coexistence, millions died on a daily basis. There were people running around with no regard for the people beneath them, freely exhibiting their power and behaving like Gods. Now, there are groups in the Outer Tower who have never even heard of the Inner and Middle Towers. It might not be a perfect system, but it is infinitely better than the chaos that came before...!"

Restraining a sigh, Vahn shook his head, his expression softening slightly as he calmly explained, "If those were my intentions, I would have joined hands with FUG and flaunted my power long before now. Instead, I limit myself to only taking action when injustices occur right in front of me. The only reason we stand in contention with each other is that I refuse to ignore the injustices committed by the Ten Great Families. I don’t care enough about the politics of the Tower to stand in opposition to the Jahad Empire. I merely take action against those who exploit and suppress others for things like entertainment and their own convenience. If there wasn’t corruption appearing virtually everywhere, you might not have even heard my name until I reached the top of the Tower. It’s as simple as that."

Seemingly confused by Vahn’s words, Adori tilted her head almost imperceptively to the side as she asked, "What about your actions at the Name Hunt Station? You have been accused of brutalizing a Princess of Jahad and kidnapping a member of the Lo Po Bia Family. There are also reports attesting to the fact you have hijacked the Hell Express in an effort to resurrect the infamous Slayer known as White. Last but not least, you stand accused of killing the Zygaena, mounting an attack on the Yeon Family’s Floating Castle, and assailing numerous females on the 21st Floor...do you intend to tell me these accusations are without merit...?"

Unable to restrain himself, Vahn issued a light chuckle in response to Adori’s interrogation. This earned him a pointed stare, but, having experienced such glares countless times in the past, he ultimately managed a relaxed smile as he explained, "Princess Maschenny here should be able to clear me of any crimes mentioned regarding other Princesses. As for the rest of the matters at the Name Hunt Station, well, they are obviously being embellished by the Lo Po Bia Family. In fact, the person I am being accused of kidnapping chose to follow me of her own accord. All I did was seal off the station until someone worthy enough to rule over it appeared. As for the accusations of me attempting to resurrect White, that should have been cleaned up by my conversation with Princess Hagipherione. Though it is true that I commandeered the Hell Express, this was necessitated by the fact that it was under the control of the organization known as FUG. They were the ones attempting to revive White so I was forced to deal with the Conductor when he attempted to interfere. As for the matters related to the Yeon Family...don’t even get me started...if I really wanted to harm them, they would have been killed. As the Commander-in-Chief of the Jahad Army, do you expect me to believe you are unaware of the schemes of Yeon Ilarde?"

Though she didn’t take Vahn’s account at face value, Adori couldn’t readily refute his words after seeing Hagipherione and Maschenny nod their heads. She hadn’t mentioned it, but there were also reports of him destroying a FUG base, and, though he had been accused of an ever-growing list of crimes, there were very few casualties. In fact, most of the people who had encountered Vahn had come out with relatively light injuries, the only exceptions being a number of unconfirmed deaths connected to the Lo Po Bia Family.

Realizing that she might have jumped the gun due to the reported connection between Vahn and Ureko, Adori couldn’t help but avert her eyes as she fished for reasons to justify the mobilization of three whole Divisions of the Army. Her Father had tasked her with investigating, and, if necessary, eliminating Vahn before he could become a threat to the Empire. Now, however, it seemed like the Lo Po Bia and Yeon Families were the ones at fault while Vahn was cleaning up a mess that should have been arbitrated by the Administration of Internal Affairs or resolved by the Royal Enforcement Division...

With the Law of Identity narrating Adori’s thoughts, Vahn couldn’t help thinking that the legendary Princess was surprisingly naive. This made her rather scary as there were few things more terrifying than a naive person who was resolute and powerful enough to effectively erase continents from the map. The fact she instantly resorted to using a weapon like the El Robina showed just how detached she was from common sense, so, before she could reach a conclusion on her own, he stepped in to suggest, "Look...why don’t we just fight and settle things directly? It will make things a lot easier for me once your side has a better understanding of my power. Truth be told, I wouldn’t mind resolving things peacefully. Unfortunately, this requires mutual respect and a willingness to compromise from both parties. Right now, you still think I’m some upstart that might become a threat to your Empire. The truth of the matter is that your Empire would cease to exist if I got serious and truly committed to wiping you out. For now, I’m content with moving at my own pace and affording you the chance to fix things from your end. If things continue like this...it is only a matter of time before your side does something that results in your destruction..."

Hearing Vahn reference the destruction of the Empire in such a casual manner, Adori, Hagipherione, and even Maschenny all adopted expression of disbelief and moderate disdain. They knew just how incomprehensible their Father’s power was so it was difficult for them to even consider him actually losing to someone. Even the combined efforts of the Ten Great Families and Ureko wouldn’t be able to defeat him so the notion of someone else succeeding seemed utterly ridiculous.

Feeling the oppressive aura emanating from the trio of inordinately beautiful women, the color of Vahn’s eyes immediately shifted to a resplendent gold coloration as he added, "Don’t worry...even if I win, you won’t have to worry about me spanking your bottoms in front of everyone..."

As the unfortunate trio designated by Ureko’s ’Optional Objective’, Adori, Hagipherione, and Maschenny had all experienced being disrobed, having their bottoms spanked, and their panties stolen by the mischievous Dragoness. Adori, in particular, had never suffered such embarrassment in her life, so, upon hearing Vahn’s words, her expression immediately darkened as the crystalline blades behind her began resonating with enough force to cause small cracks to appear in the space around their edge...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: ’*Maschenny playing the part of Loki...’,’It’s all a matter of perspective...’,’Vahn over here digging his own grave...’)