Chapter 36: Out in the City (1)
I had fallen asleep shortly after I looked over the experience I gained throughout the day.
[Daily XP - 262.5]
[Level 11 (1292.5/5764.5) -> (1555/5764.5)]
The quests from dressing Jahi up and cleaning the tables added up, giving me more than my normal 187.5xp a day.
Today was just like yesterday; Get Jahi bathed then dressed, prepare her hair, and make sure she looks like the daughter of a Marquess.
Like yesterday, I put my hair into a bun, before smoothing my dress out.
Grabbing my hand, Jahi led me out of our room, heading towards the lounge. We would be leaving at noon, and as such Jahi decided to sleep in, leaving us only two hours before we left.
Entering the lounge, Jahi pulled me onto the couch next to her. Only the Countess and Lorelei here, and the room had a mixture of the sweet smell of ozone and the tang of iron.
Seeing us enter, the both turned to look at us, smiling.
"So you finally decided to grace us with your presence hmm?"
"Good morning, Jahi, Katherine..."
Hearing the cheerful tones directed towards us, I froze. Looking at Jahi, I noticed that she had simply nodded, before taking the lid off one of the trays left on the table.
It was a simple spread of fruits with a few slices of bread, with a few small cups of various jams on the side.
Somehow the meal still looked like it was just freshly prepared, as the slices of apples were still the shining white instead of tinged brown, which would indicate that they had been laying around for awhile.
Jahi dug into the meal, spreading jam on her bread before shoving it into her mouth, almost swallowing it instantly.
Shaking my head, I turned towards my own meal, slowly taking bites.
The Countess and Lorelei had turned back to each other, glaring.
"Where did everyone go?"
Hearing Jahi's question, Lorelei turned and said "Leone and the Empress are in the library, while the Sultana and Kio are still... resting. Anput is out in the yard, training."
I nodded my head, not surprised by where everyone was.
Slowly finishing my food, I listened idly as the Countess and Lorelei talked about their time in the academy, both sending veiled threats and insults at each other with a smile.
When I finished, Jahi grabbed my hand and led me towards the library.
Entering, we saw the Empress sitting at the table, a large book open in front of her. Turning, she smiled at us before going back to reading.
Looking around, I saw Leone laying on the floor next to her two headed puppy, reading a book and scribbling something down in her own notebook.
Leading me towards her, Jahi dropped to the floor besides her, causing Leone to flinch.
"Hey, I meant to ask, but what is... the puppy?"
"His name is... Janus... and he is an Orthrus..."
Hearing Leone's low voice, Jahi nodded, before reaching out towards Janus. Scratching now of his ears, Jahi flashed me a smile when the dog whined, kicking its leg out slightly in pleasure. Giving her a dry look, I asked "Where did you get Janus?"
Leone looked at me, her orange eyes flashing slightly. She hesitated, looking towards the Empress.
"It's fine, Leone. You can tell them."
Hearing the low voice of the Empress, Leone nodded, before saying "My mother is a vampire... and when mixed with mom's blood, well... apparently I am a purer vampire than mother... when I awoke my magic, Janus also appeared..."
I widened my eyes in surprise. I remembered from some of the time I had been interested in vampires that some where known to have familiars, usually some kind of nocturnal creature. However, some where stated to have any kind of familiar, and an Orthrus...while not the most well known creature from the various mythos, many knew of the 'superior' version, Cerberus.
"You... summoned Janus?"
Leone looked up at me, her eyes glowing. "Yes, in a way, I summoned him. From where, I don't know... but I want to find out! After all, being able to summon powerful, loyal beings like Janus..."
Jahi nodded, looking down at the dozing Orthrus. "Being able to summon even just a few creatures would be amazing, but imagine a horde of them..."
Leone nodded, a smile on her lips. "That's why I want to learn about Ritual Circles! When I awoke my magic, and Janus appeared, I could see a ritual circle briefly. I know what it looks like, but when I try and write it down or describe it..."
She pursed her lips in frustration. I looked over at the book she was reading, and saw it was a book about different aspects of sequences.
Seeing my gaze, Leone blushed slightly. "Well, in order to create a ritual circle, you need to understand sequences..."
Jahi chuckled, saying "Yeah, and that's something Kat can certainly help with. She's quite good at. creating sequences."
"Really? At such a young age too... do you mind letting me see one of these sequences, Katherine?"
Turning around, I jumped when I saw the Empress standing behind me, a slight smile on her lips.
Swallowing, I nodded my head, before moving to the table, taking a loose piece of paper and a pen. Quickly scribbling down one of the sequences I made for Jahi, specifically one that was an area of effect healing spell, I showed it to the Empress.
She looked closely at both the full sequence as well as the combined rune. Nodding, she looked down at me.
"You are quite talented. Not many children could create something this complex, let alone something that might just work."
Looking at Jahi, the Empress gave a small smile. "You really are lucky, Jahi. If Katherine here grew up not bound to you, she could easily attend the academy and make her own path. So treasure her well..."
Jahi nodded furiously. Looking at me, Jahi had a wide grin on her face, before moving to stand beside me.
"Well, it's about time to go. Come on, Leone."
Getting up, Leone placed the book on the table before scooping up Janus. Following her mom out the door, she looked back towards Jahi and I, her eyes flaring.
Following them out, we went back to the lounge, finding that everyone was waiting.
Looking towards the Sultana and Kio, I saw that Kio was shaking slightly, and she was trying to hide her slightly bloated stomach. Sadly, everyone in the room could catch the slight scent of sex wafting off her body, making her blush deeper.
The Sultana didn't seem to care, as she sat there quietly.
Chuckling, the Marquess said "Well, I hope everyone got enough rest last night..."
Shooting the Marquess a glare, Kio grit her teeth before looking back at the ground.
"... because today we are going to be taking in the sights of the city!"
"This shall certainly be interesting... After all, March Asmodia is well known for it's jewelry and metalworks, as well as leather working."
Hearing Lorelei, the Countess said "Indeed, we are luck enough to own quite a few mines, as well as having talented people to utilize the minerals and gems we find..."
"Shall we take two carriages? One for us adults, one for the children?"
The Marquess looked towards Jahi, and upon seeing a nod, she looked towards the others, before smiling.
"Well, try not to have to much fun in your own carriage children!"
With that, we made our way out, making our way towards the gate where some carriages waited.
Stepping towards the larger carriage, the Empress spoke to her guards, one moving towards the seat while the other moved to the side.
Seeing that, the Sultana gestured for one of her guards to join the Empress', while the other moved to stand beside the other.
Getting in the carriage, the rest of the adults followed.
Looking towards Jahi, I moved towards the other, smaller carriage, opening the door and gesturing for everyone to get in.
Jahi got in first, smiling at me, while Leone gave me a nod, before scurrying in.
Stopping beside me, Anput said "Thank you very much, Kat~"
Ruffling my ears, she entered the carriage, making Jahi's eye twitch slightly. Sighing, I entered the carriage as well, sitting beside Jahi.
Knocking on the wall behind us, I felt the carriage lurch forwards moments later.
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Bit shorter, I know. Also, just too give a rough idea of the future: we got a couple more chapters of Jahi and Kat spending time with Anput and Leone, which means it will be a bit before Kat's core and other stuff happens.
Additionally, I just want to say thank you so much for 100k views! It was kinda funny cause we hit 100 PStones this week almost the exact same time we hit 100k...
Lastly, all three side novels are out right now. 'Rekindling Our Flame', 'Alexandra the Iron Maiden', and 'The Ker: Danmachi Fanfiction'. Go check them out! They will likely be updated once a week, maybe twice depending on if I suddenly have inspiration for them. Also, yes, they will have some smut chapters. Enjoy~
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