Chapter 44 - Sun Tap

"S-So? How is it Sir High Priest?"

A mild and slightly sweet tang hit my taste buds and fizzled in my mouth. There was no flavor, but the sweetness was obvious. Like a very subdued candy that was turned into a soda. I thought that Sample B was going to be the best we could do, but now that I gave Sample C time and let the aftertaste echo back to me...

'Sample C. This is the one.'

"Hm. I think Sample C is the closest to what we want. Too much sugar overloads the senses, don't you think?"

Something I appreciated about Asian candies more than some types of candy in America was that they were very light on their flavor. Sometimes, it felt like you were eating nothing at all. While I couldn't appreciate that type of taste all of the time, it was refreshing in moderation. However, such a taste wasn't that good at hooking a consumer. While Sample C wasn't as bland as an Asian candy, it wasn't as "loud" as the American candies I was used to back home. A refreshing taste for a refreshing beverage.

"Y-Yes sir!"

I hoped that this guy wasn't a yes-man like the previous one. That idiot's over-zealous confidence almost mislead me into picking Sample A for our product, which was by far the worst. It was like I ate a salt and vinegar chip without expecting it. The salt numbed my taste buds for the next 20 minutes or so. Sample C may not have been perfect, but it was good enough to use as a base and with it, we could iterate on its taste with regional feedback.

Back home, different countries had different types of the same branded food and drinks. The local culture and diet of the peoples strongly influenced what they preferred to ingest. Eorzea was no different. We'd need to tweak Sun Tap for each region with careful focus testing in the future, but that was a concern for future Winter to stress over. Sorry buddy.

"Very good. I'll have a talk with Baderon and see about having a Sun Tap keg put into his tavern. On your end, I expect more feedback and testing before we finalize our formula and open up for the mass market. Understood?"

"Yes sir! Right away! May the light set you free!"

"Yes, may the light set you free."

The Suns of Yda worked more like a hivemind. I had no clue who that guy was, but he knew me and that was good enough. Sun Tap was coming along nicely. It costs almost nothing to produce, and at first, the roll out will be slow. As I hadn't made any Daemon Glass just yet, Sun Tap would need to be distributed within steel kegs. They were far more expensive, however it was the best option I had at the moment.

A benefit of steel kegs is that they could be refilled at any time with a bit of effort on the side of the Suns of Yda. Wooden kegs required a surprising amount of modification to make a refillable variant. On Earth, you could walk into any market of mass produced goods, but on Hydaelyn, most things were made on order.

I gazed around our temporary headquarters, admiring the work being done so far in silence. It was good, great even, but not enough just yet. For the Suns of Yda to fulfill their purpose, we needed more warm bodies and more cold gil. 

I had yet to completely monopolize our sliver of the market, but I didn't mind any competition that would pop up. Sun Tap was just to get the ball rolling. It was less about the taste and satisfaction, and more about the brand and marketing. It was good to establish these business relationships early for the Daemon Company. These very same relations would build our credibility and spread the word.

What would you rather trust? Sun Tap, which you've known for years and grew familiar with, or some no name brand like Greenbull? Not only do they not taste like what you knew, but they tried to charge more as well! More health benefits? Technically a better taste? Nothing was better than your first. Rational like that had people back on Earth arguing over pretty much any and every brand like rabid dogs. I fully intended to emulate that behavior to some extent in Eorzea. Yes, we the faceless corporation here at Daemon Company care for your opinion and well-being. Please buy more!

I pushed open the front doors of the Arcanists' "guild" and walked out onto the dark and moody wooden Lower Decks of Limsa Lominsa. Sea spray hit my nose and a small smile spread on my face unconsciously. I really loved the smell of ocean, but it was just too fucking dangerous to set roots down here. I began walking towards Hawker's Round. One of many circular plazas that made Limsa Lominsa's city.

The days I had left to spend here were growing shorter and shorter. Yda, Thancred and Papalymo already left with very little fanfare. Well, the more accurate way to say that was Thancred left with little fanfare and Papalymo was stuck sitting around the Aetheryte for more half a day in abject misery.

Of course, Yda was difficult to separate from. Ala Mhigo's Aetheryte was disconnected from the network many years ago, so she could not flick from me to her work over and over again. Even though she had the Hearthstone and I wasn't worried about her throwing her life away stupidly in Ala Mhigo, she was a lot more emotional than I thought. Our concerns differed comically.

---

"WAAAAAAHHH! WIIIIIINNNWIIIIINNNN!"

Instead of rough and sticky sex like I expected, instead we ended up spending our time cuddling, sharing stories, and giving each other light kisses. Her tears stained my shirt and also my heart, but it didn't take long for them to dry. I was happy to see my Yda go back to her jubilant and bubbly self.

While she sat on my lap and nuzzled into my neck like a small animal, I listened to her talk about her sister, and how much she cherished her. Yda was a dummy, but her heart was one of gold. She genuinely cared and loved others, perhaps even more than herself. She wanted the whole world to be bright and happy, while also being aware of the darkness that lurked in the shadows. 

Even though she was so heartfelt, I could feel her hips slowly grinding against me. In-between each breath, she'd find the time to suck on my bottom lip, stroke my neck with her tongue or whisper sweetly into my ear.

She had almost persuaded me that she was wife material after all. But when I dozed off by accident, a direct result of her soft and warm body pulling me into a deep hypnosis, I woke up to my poorly trained pet, riding me. 

THUCK SHLUCK THUCK GRRRRRIIIND SLUCK SLUCK THUCK PLAP SHTHUCK

"HN! GNN! NN!~"

Yda was completely nude, straddling my tool, trying her best to silently cum without my say so. She held her knuckle between her teeth, biting down to prevent her voice from leaking. Did this idiot really think that'd be what got her in trouble?

Not her warm and soaked inner folds? Not the heavenly suction force that was working to suck my baby batter directly into her womb? Not the weight that shifted back and forth, alternating between grinding my dick against her cervix and impaling herself on my length while covering me in a spice infused nectar?

Idiot.

Naturally, I threw all thoughts of making her into a proper wife out of my mind. My instincts were never wrong. It didn't take more than 5 seconds for me to take back control. 

THUCKPLAPLOPLAPTHUCKSHTHUCKPLAPTHUCKPLAP-PUUUUUUMMMMPPPP-SPLUUUUUUURRRRRRTTTT-PUUUUUULLLLLL-SHOVE-THUCKPLAPFUCKTHUCKPLAPPLOPTHUCKGRIIINDTHUCKTHUCKPLAPLOPLAPLOPLOPLAP

"EEEEEEIIIIIIEEEEEEE!!! WOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHOOGGGGGUUUUUOOOOO!!"

Obviously she belonged on her knees. What was I thinking? How could I ever conceptualize anything else? Was I being affected by her air-headed behavior?

While I was gumming up my Yda's womb with hot servings of cum, hooking my hands under her arms and locking them behind her head, pinning her face down on the bed, mindlessly pounding her soft insides and making her plump ass ripple with force, I made a note to treat my mind better. 

Becoming dull in the head would be a worst case scenario for me.

---

My mind returned from the memory of our dramatic farewell and returned to my current objective. 

Y'shtola would stick around with me and tag alongside when I return to Gridania. I only had a few more things to take care of before our departure. One being Louisoix, who would be coming back pretty soon, specifically to speak with me.

I felt a bit bad for not spending more time with the Sage, but at the same time, it was hard to while also knowing what would happen to him. In addition, he never took much time to sit still. Most of his efforts didn't seem to involve Eorzea just yet, though I knew those times would come along soon.

These first steps were essential to ensure that the rest would unfold as expected. Though it would eventually go off the rails, I was prepared for such a thing. The only immediate event that had to absolutely happen, was the descent of Dalamud. It was this event that, in a way, gave birth to the Warrior of Light.

My destination was the birthplace of the Suns of Yda. The Drowning Wench. Somehow, the tavern became a type of holy site. Until now, I had been personally punishing heretics for pointing out the flaws in our cult, but I couldn't keep it up personally forever. Luckily, a power structure evolved without me knowing it, and inquisitors were born. 

Were they a result of Yda's work there? I couldn't be sure, but now they patrolled this holy site instead of me, wearing white suits with golden ties. In their hands were dark brown carpenter's hammers, stained with far too much blood.

Not only did they take the burden off my shoulders of patrolling, but these inquisitors offered plenty of opportunities to train Cure. At first, my Cure was so much weaker than what I expected that I almost fainted in anger. It was like my Cold Snap all over again. 

In XIV, Cure was a simple cast that instantly restored the majority of a target's HP. 

And yet, mine could fix bones, slowly. 

Numb pain, slowly. 

Close wounds, slowly.

I knew that somewhere along the line, I must have become inconsistent when developing Cure. Subconsciously, I had to have been holding something back from my internal logic. With careful analysis, it didn't take long for me to correct my mistake. 

I had accidentally thought of Aether as a fabric, just like Telent taught me, however such a literal interpretation conflicted with how my domain portrayed Aether. If the world was filled with rivers, then within all life had to be a pool. An Aetherpool. 

I stopped trying to see clothes and instead started to patch the holes in the pool's walls and foundations. From there, I just added the Aether that was leaking. 

While my Cure still wasn't some instant act, it could act as a slightly weaker regen. I would need more time to enforce it into something that could instantly save me from danger. Until then, I'd simply not put myself in such dangerous situations! Duh!

---

'As expected. A dangerous situation.'

"Yes, I understand. Did Master Matoya specify from where I had to walk?"

"Indeed...Mor Dhona."

'Oh god.'

She couldn't give me an easy mode. Of course not. I felt a bit dizzy, but I absolutely knew this would happen. I could handle this.

"I understand."

"Youn-"

"I'll do it!"

'This was gonna happen eventually.'

"...I beg your pardon?"

"It is of no concern Master Louisoix. I shall make the journey to Master Matoya on foot!"

Even as a sub-level 10 newbie, I had my pride. If this was the bare minimum I needed to prove myself, then I'd have to do it wouldn't I? Fighting everything on the way like an idiot would be suicide, but I already knew I couldn't avoid every single danger that may have popped up on the way. Eventually, I'd have to cross blades with something or other. 

Before taking the trip, I'd need to buy a new set of blades and modify them for casting. If I needed more time to test their durability, then I would take that time. There was no rush to reach Master Matoya after all. Haste would get me killed.

"Are you sure? Young Winter, there are ways aplenty to grow. I can see that you have the ability to defend yourself, however..."

'Since when did he start worrying about me so much? Were we close?'

"It's no trouble Master. If I was ever in true danger, I know how to value my life."

I presented my Hearthstone to his eyes. It gave me a glare for putting it on the spot so suddenly, but I couldn't help it. This thing was my get out of jail free card. As long as its Aether wasn't suddenly wiped or overpowered by a Primal, I could escape most situations.

I, Winter Modi, as a genre savvy reader of those Isekai stories, also was aware that saying such a thing in my mind was a death flag. Suddenly the final boss would descend from the heavens, somehow "jam" my Hearthstone, and force me into a sudden and unexpected battle for my life.

Well sorry final boss, I had already promised my Momo-nee not to worry her anymore. I wasn't taking such stupid chances. Before leaving, I had to create a counter-signal stone and an empty Hearthstone as well. If the Aether was too strong, then I'd hijack it to pull into the empty Hearthstone. If the Aether was scrambled, I'd open a hole in the interference veil, and escape that way.

I, Winter Modi, refused to be a victim of shitty plot events! Sudden tension my ass! This was my life I was playing with here!!!

"Hohoho, I see~ It would seem unwise of me to persist in my persuasion further. But do be careful Young Winter. You've touched more lives than you may know. They all will await your return."

'Naturally.'

"Yes Master. I will not be arrogant and end up in a terrible amount of trouble."

"Just the normal amount then?"

"Yes sir."

"Hohoho~"