In Search of Eternity Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

“Hmm, I see.” Her tail flicked, and Izuna flinched, “And in terms of his actual skill with the blade?”

Her subordinate didn’t blurt out an answer, despite her clear nervousness, instead making sure her response was properly formulated, “In terms of Kenjutsu... He is still new. He has learned quickly due to his experience with a similar style, but not enough to be called a master. If he is allowed to use whatever style he wants however... I believe he is more skilled than I.”

“Interesting.” Tamamo responded, eyes moving upwards to look at the ceiling.

Lothar wasn’t a warrior by trade. From what she could understand, his profession before becoming a teacher was something like a scribe, or perhaps an accountant. Either way, it was likely a job that dealt with a lot of paperwork and calculation, not exactly something that was conducive towards gaining fighting proficiency. That meant that to gain the skill he had, Lothar would have had to do so in his free time.

When she saw his memories, she had been guided to his recollection of the medium with which he glimpsed this world from his, but she had also seen flashes of his life. Most of them were of him sitting at a desk, working on that glowing rectangle, or in a wide room swinging a sword with several other humans around him.

Nothing else.

That spoke to either a pressing necessity for him to learn how to fight... or a personal obsession. He had been able to defeat one of her most promising young guards, something that should be unthinkable for a human. Although, she suspected that skill was not the only factor in play.

“Izuna.” She spoke, the other Kitsune starting, the silence being uncomfortable for her, “In terms of physical strength, not fighting prowess, would you say that you are stronger than Lothar?”

Izuna thought it over, obviously looking through her memories of their late night spar meticulously before she answered, “...I would say that Lothar is stronger than me. Faster too. It surprised me, I didn’t think humans could get that powerful.”

“Normal ones can’t.” Tamamo frowned, “He is able to enhance his body with Dark Energy, like we can.”

“That explains a lot.” Izuna nodded, her youth allowing her to take the startling thin Tamamo just said at face value, not quite comprehending what it meant.

Dark Energy was poisonous to humans, sapping their vitality and willpower away like an insidious toxin. It was the reason behind Critical Ecstasy, the Monster Girl injecting her Dark Energy into her victim at the moment of climax. Once the energy was circulating inside of the body, there was nothing a Human could do, every ounce of energy that could be used to resist being drained away by the contaminant instead.

Monsters could use this against other Monsters as well, but not nearly as effectively. By inserting their Dark Energy into another, they could smother the weakened Monsters reserves with their own, rendering them helpless as well.

The reason why Lothar was such a surprise when it came to this, was that he didn’t produce Dark Energy himself. Tamamo had checked, and although there was a passive reserve that he held that was slowly growing larger over time, he himself did not produce any of it. Instead, he gathered it from the environment around him and made it his own.

Dark Energy from the environment was not naturally occurring, instead it was a passive bleed off from the Monsters that lived in and around the area. Of course, the energy present in this way was minuscule, only truly powerful Monsters giving off enough Energy to even be noticeable. Therefore, Lothar was somehow not only taking the Dark Energy of other being without being poisoned or influenced, able to turn it into his own, but he was also somehow able to multiply Dark Energy.

Something that Tamamo knew for a fact, beyond any doubt, was completely impossible.

There was no way such a thing just happened, meaning that there was something else interfering here. Lothar’s presence in their world at all was a clear sign of such, but with what she had been able to figure out about his usage of Dark Energy, she no longer had any doubt.

She was at least sure that Lothar himself had no idea of whatever designs the unknown meddler had in mind. That did mean, however, that whatever goal it had merely required his presence, not his participation.

Still, it was nothing that she had to worry about right now. She was an old, old Fox at this point, having learned well from her many years. Whatever was behind her new paramour’s casual breaking of their world’s established rules, she couldn’t really do anything about it now. Not with how little she knew and understood about what was occurring.

The only thing to do was to be observant and wait until more came to light. Thankfully, she was used to being patient.

Although, that did bring something to her mind. If Lothar was able to subvert other’s Dark Energy and control it was his own, did that make him immune to Critical Ecstasy? That had some interesting implications, if true. She was almost hoping he succeeded in impressing her.

Not that she would make it easy on him, however.

---SESESE---

“So tell me, did you enjoy your stay within my domain?” The golden furred Kitsune asked me as we walked out of the village, a large ceremony having just concluded to send us on our way.

“I did, actually. I found it very peaceful.” I responded, adjusting my pack as it rested on my shoulder.

“That is good to hear, that my village is able to host a guest so well.” She smiled, “Although, I should inform you that it is not customary for said guest to spend his time flirting with my guards.”

“The very same guards who were instructed to stay near me and were told to set up such late night flirtations?” I responded, getting a flick of interest from one ear.

“Oh, that is quite the accusation.” She didn’t deny it, I noticed, “Although, should such a thing have occurred, then your restraint is to be praised.”

Of course, I noticed how excited Izuna got after I beat her. After disarming her, she demanded several rematches, each ending with her defeat. She was immensely skilled in Kenjutsu, but I was far more experienced when it came to sparring, as well as being faster and stronger than her.

The reason I was so sure that the whole thing was set up by Tamamo was her watching over the spar. She was hidden, of course, completely unnoticeable by either sight or sound, but those were not the only senses I had to spot hiding Monster Girls.

The Buzz of Dark Energy was present as ever, having become a fairly normal thing for me to pay attention to, Human adaptability meaning that I got used to the sensation rather quickly. Tamamo, with all her power, was like a humming speaker set right next to my ear whenever she was in close proximity. So for all her attempts to hide her presence, she apparently didn’t bother to do so from this weird sense I had, like Kamuro did when she ambushed me near the Cave.

“I don’t like purely carnal relationships.” I responded, the Kitsune’s attention locked onto me as I spoke out, slightly uncomfortably, “Relationships should be based on trust and understanding. Breaking that trust by taking Izuna up on her interest would be a very poor way to prove my suitability to you.”

“We aren’t even married, yet you are already so loyal.” She teased, “Why Lothar, I am truly touched. I’m tempted to give you your first trial just for that. However, I think instead I will simply settle for a gift.”

So saying, she... reached into her tails? The golden fluff parted as if a curtain, her arm impossibly stretching beyond the soft fur into almost her elbow, rummaging around.

“Here it is!” She announced, drawing from her tail a sheathed katana, “Your prize for such gentlemanly conduct.”

The saya was black, but had glowing red kanji moving around its surface, obviously denoting its enchanted nature. The tsuba was a bright, shining gold, while the ito was a deep, subdued blue.

Reaching out, she offered me the blade, causing me to instinctively take it from her, feeling a sharp spike of pain from my hand as it made contact with the hilt.

“Tch!” The feeling surprised me, but thankfully I was able to keep myself from dropping the obviously priceless masterwork in my hands.

Before my eyes, the sheathed katana in my hands flashed red, before the scrawling and wriggling kanji on the saya glowed brightly and disappeared, sinking into the black wood as if they never existed.

“Congratulations! It seems the blade has accepted you as its new master! It just took a small bit of blood from you to do so, that was the pinch you felt.” Tamamo explained, watching as I attempted to pull the blade free, a strange resistance to the motion bringing me pause, “I enchanted the saya personally. It is stuck to the Tsuba unless you bring your hands to either side of the Tsuba to draw it.”

Understanding came to me swiftly, “Giving me a blunt weapon in case I need to fight without killing.”

“Yes, unfortunately enchantment like Angel Halo is beyond me, but this was well within my capabilities.” Her voice held self deprecating humour.

I drew the blade in the manner she had instructed me, the blue-grey steel sliding smoothly from its container.

“It’s truly a beautiful blade, Tamamo. Thank you.” I spoke, my eyes tracing the pattern winding up the spine, the weapon a work on a master blade-smith.

The balance was perfect, almost like an extension of my hand, despite the fact that the sword was slightly longer than a normal Katana should be, almost reaching half my height in length. Despite that deviation, it didn’t feel awkward, almost as if it had been made specifically for me in mind. The curve was gentle, the point coming to a strong taper, meaning that it didn’t suffer over much in the thrust.

The length was more comfortable for me than a normally proportioned Katana, my familiarity with sabre and longsword meaning that I was used to shorter one handed weapons and longer two handed ones, the awkward in-between range of normal katanas something I had to force myself to get used to.

“I am glad you approve. It is a blade with a lot of history.” The Kitsune spoke, her own green eyes tracing the blade, “Its name... Doesn’t matter any more. Give it a new one when it accomplishes a feat worthy of such under its new owner.”

“I will make sure to give such a thing the appropriate amount of thought.” I responded, sheathing the blade and bringing it to my side as I bowed towards her, “Thank you for the gift again, Tamamo. Truly.”

“You are making such a big deal out of it, stop making it awkward.” She smiled, walking towards me and gently placing her hands over my own, “Your thanks are appreciated, however.”

She guided my grip, her soft skin ghosting over my own, placing the sword at my waist as if it was suspended from a sash. Letting go, taking my hands with her, she grinned up at me as the sword stayed in place, the enchantment acting in place of a belt.

“You’re a devious one.” I murmured down at her, earning a tilted head, “I wondered why you were so insistent on me learning how to use a katana.”

“Don’t hold it against me. You enjoyed the process.” She smiled, before a serious expression overtook her, “I will need your word on something, however.”

“What is it?” I asked, curiosity welling up.

“Promise me to not draw the blade unless it is to kill. I did the enchantments on the sheath, but the blade... It has a story of its own, one that is far too long to relay right now. However, its own magic is peculiar and not something to be used lightly. Promise me this?” She spoke, not truly explaining her reasoning but obviously being very serious about what she was asking.

“I promise.” I responded, not seeing a reason to refuse.

If I was drawing the sword, it would likely be in a life or death situation regardless. Promising to do so only in such a situation was not something difficult to do.

“Perfect!” She pulled back, clapping her hands in delight, before gripping my sleeve with one of her small hands, “Now, it is time for us to begin our adventure!”

Her excitement brought a smile to my face, “Port Natalia first, as planned?”

“Umu.” She nodded, her ears flopping in the motion, “I will bring us somewhere a ways out from the city, teleportation tends to make people nervous. Still, we should be there shortly. I wonder if their cuisine has improved since I last visited.”

My laugh at her question was swallowed by a swirling vortex, our surroundings blurring and shifting together before suddenly solidifying to a forest, the mystical movement seeming to take no effort on my companion’s part.

Releasing my sleeve, she brought her fist to the small of her back, stretching into it as spreading her tails into a fan of soft gold behind her. Her ears bent backwards into the motion, every single part of her extending to maximum before she fell back forward with a sigh.

“No matter how long it’s been, teleporting with others is still a hassle.” She hummed.

“If you would like, I could give you a massage for payment.” I responded, before stilling, suddenly feeling as if a predator had me in its sights.

“Oh?” Her slitted eyes locked onto mine, “Are you sure you know what you are offering? I will have you know, my standards in such a thing are exacting.”

I found my courage, “Are you sure you can afford to pass up this opportunity? I doubt anyone here has had the courage to give you a proper massage, after all.”

“I look forward to you backing up those words.” She growled, her ear flicking to the trees in front of us before she sighed, “We have company.”

I turned into the direction her ear had indicated, being greeted by the sight of a black haired Lamia slithering through the plants.

“I thought I smelled a tasty human suddenly appearing in my territory.” Her tongue liked out, extending far further than it should be able to, “Unclaimed too. My lucky day!”

I sighed, my hand going to the handle of my new sword, only to blink as I felt an impossibly soft feeling wrap around my wrist.

Tamamo stepped forward, one of her tails swallowing my arm within its incredible fluff, eyes pinning the Lamia in place.

“Leave.” Was all it took before the snake woman whirled around and fled like a bat out of hell, like her very life depended on it.

I blinked, a bit shocked that I didn’t have to fight her off myself. My surprise was ended by Tamamo stepping forward, pulling me along with her tail’s grip on my arm.

“Let us be off! The sooner we arrive the sooner you can give me that massage you are betting so much on.” She spoke happily, before looking back at me as I stumbled after, “Is there something wrong?”

I shook my head at her, my feet finding their rhythm as the Kitsune led me on, “No, it’s nothing.”

It really was.

After all, Tamamo was not Alice, why would she act like her?