Subtle

Several hours after entering the portable Japanese cottage, Vahn and Musashi could both be found relaxing in a large bathtub filled with hazy-green water. The former had a content smile on his face, arm hooking around Musashi's shoulders as the latter reclined against him with the look of someone who had survived a dangerous battlefield. She had a somewhat distant look in her eyes, but, despite a lack of focus, there was a considerable amount of satisfaction visible in her countenance.

While letting her mind wander, Musashi absentmindedly traced her finger along the various lines of Vahn's body, lazily asking, "Is it always like this with you? I can see how you are able to keep so many women loyal to you...you're a beast..."

With his ego successfully stroked, Vahn couldn't help but laugh in response to Musashi's musings. It always made him feel slightly vindicated whenever he heard such claims, bringing a large smile to his face before he answered, "I pace myself based on my partner. You're pretty amazing to have lasted for thirteen hours..."

Punctuating his statement, Vahn lightly pinched Musashi's still-erect nipple, causing a hushed moan to escape her throat. In the next moment, however, she dexterously extended her hand beneath the surface of the water, gripping the most delicate part of Vahn's body while turning her eyes up at him with a threatening smile.

Amused by Musashi's silent threat, Vahn returned a smile of his own as he stared into her eyes and let him sleeping dragon speak for itself. This caused her hand to instinctually squeeze, but, refusing to succumb, it wasn't long before his dragon surfaced menacingly. As a result, Musashi issued an awkward laugh, quickly retracting her hand before resting her head against his shoulder and closing her eyes, seemingly intent on pretending she had done no wrong...

Vahn could have let her off, but, despite appearances, he could sense Musashi's expectations quickly rising. Less than two hours had passed in the real world so he still had over half a day to stay inside the cottage without endangering his schedule. Though he wanted to go and spend some time with Semiramis, as she would undoubtedly be expecting him, he could still spare a few minutes to lightly punish Musashi's 'impertinence'...

With this thought crossing his mind, Vahn ran his fingers up Musashi's neck before gently guiding her chin to tilt toward him. This caused her to open her eyes, a slight glaze already spreading across their surface as she stared back at him. Then, with an affectionate smile on his face, Vahn brought his lips close enough to brush against Musashi's as he said, "Point your butt toward me..." before lightly licking her lips...

---

After a considerable stint within the bath, Vahn and Musashi were sitting side-by-side outside the cottage, enjoying a few drinks before his departure. She forced him to hand over more than a dozen premium sake, pointedly reminding him that her time was an expensive commodity. Despite this, she poured him a considerable number of drinks, rarely filling her own cup. This was uncharacteristic for her, but, after everything that had happened over the last couple of hours, Musashi's usual cravings had been completely pacified.

Accepting yet another cup poured by Musashi, Vahn swirled around the contents as he asked, "What are you going to do from now on?"

Hearing his question, Musashi knew it wouldn't be long before Vahn departed to handle his other affairs. This made her feel strangely lonely, causing her to release a small sigh before answering, "I'd like to say I will just follow you back to the Empire...but I can't just up and leave the Heroes Faction. I might not care about their mission all that much, but I would feel guilty if I left without at least trying to explain things. I don't want Alice and Abigail to hate me...besides, I still owe that damned monkey for stealing my reserve stash..."

As her answer wasn't outside of his expectations, Vahn gave an understanding nod before downing the contents of his cup and saying, "After my actions today, I think the goal of the Heroes Faction is going to change. Once things start to settle down, know that you always have a place in Avalon. I'll tell the others what has happened...Artoria might be a little aggressive during your next battle, but she is a good woman. As for Wukong...give her a few smacks for me..."

Amused by Vahn's words, Musashi giggled in an uncharacteristically feminine manner before, once against, resting her head against his shoulder. She had let her hair flow freely, so, contrasting her usual 'wild' ponytail, her pale-pink locks fell gracefully around her shoulders. It gave her a delicate and demure appearance, something she 'very' rarely showed others. Vahn, however, had become a unique existence in her heart, as, not only did he satisfy her in ways she never even thought possible, he allowed her strength to grow further than her efforts alone would allow...

---

As was the case with all good things, Vahn's time with Musashi eventually came to an end. He didn't actually have to leave so abruptly, but, knowing Semiramis would be upset if he wasn't considerably early, it was better to end things on a high note. With this in mind, Vahn decided to spend what remained of their time combing and styling her hair.

Musashi actually wanted him to pick a new style for her, so, after imagining how she would look with various styles, Vahn settled on a modified version of her original. He actually preferred her wild and untamed look quite a bit, so, rather than making a drastic change, he opted to braid the few loose strands she normally allowed to flow freely. This gave her a slightly more 'tidy' appearance, but, at a glance, there wasn't much of a change from before. His intent was to emphasize that, while he had made his mark upon her, he still respected the person she had been before their tryst...

Seeing the braid that now fed into her usual ponytail, Musashi had a satisfied smile on her face as she slowly ran her fingers along its length. It was very subtle, but, as she hadn't changed her style in several centuries, it left quite an impact. She half-expected Vahn to tie her hair up like Artoria's, as, from what she had seen, it seemed to be a 'very' popular style in the Empire. Even a considerable number of female students had started to style their hair similarly, emulating the Empress they had come to fear and respect.

After staring at herself for a full minute, Musashi returned the hand mirror to Vahn, saying, "Thanks for today. It might sound a little strange, but I really needed something like this. I'll be relying on you from time to time, so give me a way to contact you. After what you've done to me, I'm expecting you to take full responsibility. If you try and shirk your responsibilities, don't blame me for charging into Avalon to punish you."

Despite the joking tone she used, Vahn knew Musashi was actually very serious about charging into Avalon. She was, in many ways, like a humanoid typhoon. It was impossible to completely tame her, so, if you neglected her, she had the capacity to become a living natural disaster. While her rampage might not harm anyone, the amount of damage she could cause to buildings and obstacles in her path wasn't something that could be ignored...

As he had already prepared for situations like this, Vahn pulled out a pale-purple ring formed from an enriched version of Jadeite. Besides functioning as an interspatial ring, it also served as a direct line of communication with the paired accessory, the pendant Vahn often wore outside of battle, an exact replica of the one he had crafted to match Lili's. Since the real pendant would turn to dust if he tried to remove it from his Inventory, Vahn had made a copy to serve as one of the many reminders of the home he needed to return to.

After handing over the ring and explaining its functions, Vahn couldn't help but release a sigh, as, despite nodding her head, Musashi didn't seem to be listening. She was too busy admiring the ring after 'forcing' him to quickly place it upon her ring finger. It wasn't the first time someone had tried giving her such a gift, but, as she never had any real interest in the people making the offer, she had refused each and every one of them. This was the first real accessory she had received from another person, bringing a smile to her face as it made things seem more 'official' between her and Vahn.

While Musashi was distracted by her ring, Vahn sneakily reached his hand around to her backside, lightly pinching the exposed flesh as he said, "I won't force you, but you should start wearing panties in the future. If it bothers you too much, I can also enchant your skirt so that it automatically blocks any attempts to peek..."

As it was strangely satisfying to hear Vahn fret over such things, Musashi exaggeratedly nodded her head in approval, patting him on the shoulder as she said, "Now that we're together, it is natural for you to start worrying about me. Still, I really don't like how restrictive underwear feels. I'll wear them if you want, but I'd rather go with that enchantment. To be honest, though, it doesn't really matter if others sneak a peak. I'm not ashamed of my body and it's not like they would be able to do anything to me. Rather, if someone tried to desperately see up my skirt, that seems like a pretty good reason to test my blade, doesn't it?"

Musashi was born in an era where undergarments had yet to become widespread. In fact, before western imperialism became the trend, it was heavily frowned upon to wear undergarments that might be visible through a kimono. Many had considered it unnatural, nothing more than a scheme to sell unnecessary garments for additional profit. After all, what was the point of wearing expensive clothing that nobody was supposed to see? Thus, much like Gozen and Tamamo, Musashi elected to go commando, not caring about the wayward eyes of others.

Since he wasn't going to force her, especially after saying he wouldn't, Vahn spent a few moments enchanting Musashi's clothing with Circe's unique 'Enchantment of Modesty'. It manipulated cloth in such a way that, no matter what angle you tried to view from, it would always obscure your vision. It also protected from most forms of clairvoyance, so, even if someone tried to be a voyeur using the relatively common technique, their attempts would end in failure.

Noticing how her clothes shifted slightly when she moved around, Musashi was mildly intrigued by the enchantment, adopting a teasing smile as she said, "Give it a try. I want to see the effect with my own eyes."

Shaking his head, Vahn explained, "If you want to be seen, the enchantment doesn't work. I wouldn't mind taking a look if you insist..."

Though she was tempted to take him up on the offer, Musashi felt like things might go the same way as they had in the bath. This was an enticing thought, but, fearing she might become a pervert if she spent too much time with Vahn, Musashi ultimately shook her head, saying, "Maybe next time. I should get back to headquarters and I know you already have someplace else to be. I already have a method to contact you, so get going. When we both have some free time, let's meet up and enjoy a few more drinks together."

As he really did need to get going, Vahn didn't refute Musashi's words. Before he left, however, he pulled her closer to him, allowing her breasts to rest against his chest as he sealed her lips with his own. Their current relationship was a little peculiar, but it was still a relationship. This made Musashi his woman, so, following the tradition he had established long ago, Vahn dutifully said his farewells before resting his head against hers and promising to meet again soon. Then, with an affectionate smile on his face, his figure slowly faded from existence as Alaya teleported him away...

Seeing Vahn's figure disappear, Musashi maintained her smile, holding it for several seconds after he had completely vanished. Then, like a marionette with its strings cut, she plopped down onto the cold stone tiling, letting her body sprawl out as she stared towards the vast ocean of stars above. It had been a long time since she felt this tired, but, rather than exhaustion derived from exertion and fatigue, pure contentedness had pervaded her entire being. Even now, she could feel the echoes of pleasure that Vahn had left inside her body, almost as if they had never separated. Thus, rather than return to the Heroes Faction Headquarters, she decided to make use of the cottage Vahn had left behind, calming the fire in her body by soaking in an icy bath...

---

Almost immediately after his separation from Musashi, Vahn found himself within the Throne Room of the Hanging Gardens. Semiramis was nowhere to be seen, but, leading from the Throne to the bed-chamber behind, a trail of black rose petals had been meticulously strewn about. This caused a smile to spread across Vahn's face, as, internally, he remarked, ("It seems today is going to be one of those days...")

Using composite magic to make sure there was no trace of Musashi's scent on his body, Vahn began following the trail of rose petals, peeling off his top in the process. He could have easily unequipped it, but, with several pieces of black and gold fabric strewn about, discarding his own seemed like the proper thing to do.

Stopping just outside of Semiramis' bed-chamber, Vahn noticed the pair of black-lace panties that were hanging from the door handle. He doubted she would actually let him have sex with her, as she absolutely abhorred relinquishing control, but, at the very least, her defenses were lowered. If he let her take the lead, there was a chance he would get to experience her charms for a short while. They had only had sex three times, each session lasting fewer than fifteen minutes, but, knowing it was only a matter of time before she relented, Vahn hadn't lost hope...

After opening the door, Vahn found Semiramis admiring herself in her standing mirror near the corner of her room. It was difficult to see through her raven-black hair, as it covered most of her body from behind, but she seemed to be wearing nothing but a topless bodice, stockings, and a garter belt. Though she would probably lash out at him for 'surprising' her so suddenly, seeing Semiramis in her battle attire brought a large smile to Vahn's face.

(A/N: Alternate Titles: '*Stares menacingly with its one eye*','When a woman changes hairstyle, it is an important moment o3o...','A never-ending cycle...')

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