MI63: Introductions and Departures (Patreon)

After passing toll-free through the monster-infested route, Paul and Ghislaine found themselves at a decently sized village known as Tria. It was only around 19km from their actual destination, but the duo decided to rest, mainly at Paul's behest.

"Before we go any further, there's something I've been meaning to tell you but couldn't due to our circumstances."

Though he was tempted to keep traveling as just the two of them, Paul knew Barbara and the others would get upset if he was on the move but still left them inside the IOF. Thus, after reserving a party-sized room in an Inn, he apprised her of his past, his 'power,' and his intentions for the future.

When everything was said and done, Ghislaine surprised Paul by simply stating, "I knew you were special." in a matter-of-factly tone of voice. It didn't matter to her that Paul was a 'former' Noble or that he might be in contention with the Asura Kingdom in the future. She would fight and, if necessary, die to protect her partner.

Feeling a little sheepish, a wry smile developed across Paul's face as he said, "Wait till you meet the others...I feel like I've closed the gap these past two and a half years, but some of my companions are on a different level..."

Having sparred with the matured Ei, Jean, and Barbara, Paul knew he still had a long way to go before being considered powerful. Ei, in particular, gave off an even more dangerous feeling than Gal. Paul didn't know if this meant she was more powerful than him, but the difference in their 'intent' was like heaven and earth. Since Gal was in his last forties while Ei was in her two-thousands, it wasn't difficult to imagine why.

"Okay, wait here. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Without explaining how his 'powers' worked, Paul placed his palm against the door leading to the bathroom. The Kingdoms belonging to the Magic Triumverate had a progressive mentality regarding magical and scientific studies, so they had relatively advanced plumbing, recycling, and waste disposal methods. It was genuinely a breath of fresh air.

After opening the IOF, Paul reminded Ghislaine that he would be back in a few minutes before stepping through the seemingly innocuous door and vanishing. The ashen-haired cat girl immediately shot up from her bed to investigate, so Paul poked his head out and told her to stay put with a wry smile on his face. This time, knowing he hadn't vanished on her, Ghislaine complied.

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"That's the situation. What do you think?"

After explaining his situation and plans for the next year, Paul opened the floor to discussion. The first to speak was Jean, suggesting, "If you're not in too much of a hurry, I propose having Barbara, Ei, and Xiangling travel with you while Eula, Razor, and myself venture to the Sword Sanctum. We still need to obtain official Ranks for ourselves, and it would be extremely inconvenient to do so later."

Hearing her sister's remark, Barbara asked, "What about me? Don't I need a rank...?"

Shifting her attention to Barbara, Jean stated, "I assumed you would have opposed traveling to the Sword Sanctum in order to spend more time with Paul. If you wish to come along, I'm not going to object."

"Ah..."

Realizing she might be apart from Paul for an additional four months, at the very least, Barbara's brows creased. Seeing this, Eula suggested, "You should go. I will stay and protect our Master. My style of swordsmanship is better suited to the Water God Style, so I see no reason to travel to the Sword Sanctum."

Believing that the reason for Barbara's hesitation was safeguarding Paul, Eula puffed out her chest with pride as she readily ceded her spot on the expedition Westward.

Staring at Eula, or, more accurately, the former's perfectly sculpted body, Barbara's face morphed into an accusatory glower. Before she could say anything, however, Paul interposed himself into the conversation, stating, "We only needed official Ranks if we planned to operate in the bounds of the Asura Kingdom. Now that we're heading Eastward and looping around to the Strife Zone, we may not even be returning to the Asura Kingdom for years. I'm down to wait in Sharia if you want to attain Ranks of your own, but they're no longer as necessary as they were."

Though she understood what Paul was trying to say, Jean expressed, "I believe it is better to have a Rank than not. There's no knowing what the future holds, so it's best to take advantage of these opportunities as they come."

"Then what about me? Should I not travel to the Sanctum as well...?"

Listening to the conversation, Ei, having long regained her transcendental beauty, decided to chime in. In response, it was Paul who answered, "You and the rest of the Archons are in a league of your own. If you were to go to the Sword Sanctum and attain the Rank of Emperor, it would draw a lot of unnecessary attention."

"Mmm...I see..."

No longer caring about the Sword Sanctum in the slightest, Ei shifted her attention to the door connecting to the outside world as she added, "Then I will stay with Master and fulfill my duty as the Electro Archon..."

Understanding what Ei meant when she mentioned fulfilling her duty, the smile on Paul's face became noticeably wrier. Ei had already given birth to one Seelie thus far, and while Paul found the nebulous little Electro Spirit to be incredibly adorable, the notion it was more than technically his child gave him goosebumps...

"Right..."

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Following the discussion, it was decided that Jean, Barbara, and Razor would be venturing to the Sword Sanctum while Ei, Eula, and Xiangling would be accompanying Paul and Ghislaine to Sharia, globally renowned as the home of the Ranoa Magic Academy. 

Despite seeing Paul emerge from the bathroom alongside numerous girls, Ghislaine wasn't particularly surprised. She had frequently smelled their scents on Paul's body, so, while she had never met them, she had known about their existence for quite some time. 

The only people Ghislaine really cared about from the IOF were Ei, Razor, and, after tasting her food, Xiangling. Ei caused her body to tense just by being in the same room, while Razor's striking resemblance to a member of the Dedoldia Tribe caused Ghislaine to feel a kinship toward her. Razor felt the same way towards Ghislaine, so the two girls became surprisingly close, literally overnight.

With Ei, Eula, Xiangling, and Razor keeping Ghislaine company, Paul ended up renting a second room to 'bid farewell' to Jean and Barbara. The trip to and from the Sword Sanctum would take approximately three months, so, including the time it took to acquire their Ranks, it would be around four to six months before they saw each other again. Thus, more so for Barbara's sake than Jean's, Paul dedicated the entire night to giving the two sisters something to remember him by.

After the time he had spent with Reida, Paul was even more confident in the bedroom than on the battlefield...

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"Take care of yourselves. And remember, if any bandits attempt to harass or exploit you, spare them no mercy. Doing so is the same as consigning the group of girls after you to an even worse fate."

As the words were addressed to her more than Jean and Razor, Barbara nodded her head in understanding, an inordinately serious expression on her face as she said, "Don't worry. Even if I don't have the heart to take a life, I won't get in the way of my sister and Razor finishing them off."

Since he would prefer it if Barbara never had to kill, Paul returned a nod of his own, saying, "That will suffice..." before wrapping the petite beauty in his arms and whispering, "Take care of yourself, Pipit..."

"Nn..."

Taking advantage of her short stature, a mere 162cm compared to Paul's 187, Barbara nestled her face into his chest. It annoyed her that she had never even come close to her sister's level of development, but, at times like this, she enjoyed being small as it made her feel as though Paul was enveloping her entire body in his embrace.

Releasing his dainty songbird after a kiss to her crown, Paul turned to the much taller Jean and asked, "Can I get a goodbye hug...?"

With a faint smile on her face, Jean turned her eyes up at Paul and asked, "Do you still need to ask questions like that?" before wrapping her arms around him and adding, "We'll be back as soon as possible..."

While enjoying the feeling of Jean's rather sizeable and pillowy breasts pressing against him, Paul nodded his head lazily in response. Barbara wasn't lacking in charm, but Jean was a beauty from top to bottom. The moment he had seen her mature form within the IOF, Paul felt as though she had stabbed her hand into his chest and gripped his heart directly. It was almost scary how beautiful she was, especially in form-fitting white trousers.

Feeling Paul's hands making their way down her back, Jean separated from him with a playfully admonishing look on her face. It made her heart flutter whenever he showed just how much he wanted her, but she would prefer it if he showed a bit of restraint in front of Barbara...

Demonstrating his increasing shamelessness, a teasing smile developed across Paul's as he gestured to Barbara and said, "C'mere, Pipit."

With Barbara sheepishly returning to his side, Paul 'hugged' both girls, this time taking a firm grasp of their bottoms as he asserted, "I love you both." before planting kisses on each of their lips and adding, "Take care of each other for me, okay?"

Nodding their heads in affirmation, Jean replied with a curt, "Understood." while Barbara responded with an even more straightforward but bashful, "Nn..."

Though he would have liked to continue holding them for an eternity, Paul reluctantly released the sisters' soft and pliant bottoms before turning to Razor and asking, "What about you? Want to say goodbye...?"

Since his relationship with Razor was closer to that of sex friends than lovers, Paul often found himself unsure of how to act around her.

Nodding her head in affirmation, Razor answered, "Master Paul is Lupical. Lupical should always say goodbye before parting."

Punctuating her words, Razor stepped forward to give Paul a firm hug and a lick on the lips. She knew what kissing was but favored licking since she often forgot to breathe when she got too immersed in the former...

Though it was noticeably awkward, Paul managed a smile in response to Razor's affections. Then, more so for the sake of 'fairness' than anything else, he gave the wolfish girl's remarkably toned bottom a firm squeeze as he said, "Take care of yourself, protect our family, and make sure to listen to Jean..."

Surprising Paul a bit, Razor gave his butt a firm squeeze of her own as she nodded her head and replied, "Leave it to Razor. Razor will protect Master Paul's Lupical...!"

With a paradoxically wrier yet sincere smile on his face, Paul issued a soft chuckle before raising the earnest wolf girl from the ground and giving her a chaste kiss on the lips. It was a shame she wasn't an actual wolf girl, as Paul could easily imagine her tail wagging from side to side as she tensed excitedly within his arms...

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After seeing off the trio of Jean, Barbara, and Razor, Paul, accompanied by Ei, Eula, Xiangling, and Ghislaine, departed Tria through the Northern gate. Their destination, Sharia, was a relatively leisurely four-hour journey away, so by leaving early in the morning, they were guaranteed to reach it before lunch. At the very least, that's how things should have gone...

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