KAPPA 42 (Patreon)

Partway through the second contract 'negotiations,' Reine appeared in the dining area, initially pleasantly surprised by the existence of a third guest. However, when she found out who Vira was, her legs immediately gave out, causing her to plop onto her rear with a loud thud.

"Just...just who are you...?" asked Reine, gazing at Cairn with a mixture of shock and growing fear.

Exhaling a tired sigh, Cairn considered how to respond but was spared the need when Vira took it upon herself to state, "Keep it a secret, but Cairn is from the line of the First King of Man, Alfred. Most people are unaware, but Alfred was a very daring and promiscuous man before and even after becoming King. He left behind many children during his journey into the Frontier, sewing the seeds of several powerful tribes. Cairn is the last surviving member of one of them, so I am monitoring him to ensure the legacy of his people does not vanish into the never-ending encroachment of time."

Leaning forward and placing her cheek on the knuckles of her left hand, propped up by her elbow, Vira added, "As such, I will be staying here for the foreseeable future. What you need to do is continue living as you always have. You need not concern yourself with my presence, nor do I expect you to treat me with undue consideration or respect. I am just a phantom that inhabits this place."

Punctuating her words, Vira promptly disappeared, causing a shiver to pass along Reine's spine. Cairn, feeling a little sorry for her, rose to his feet to help her stand, extending his hand and adopting an apologetic smile as he expressed, "I'm sorry for all of this, but, at the very least, I can promise that you and your daughter will be protected..."

Hearing Cairn's gentle words, combined with his heartfelt expression, Reine felt her heart skip a beat, a fluttery sensation spreading through her chest as her thighs squeezed together instinctually. She couldn't even begin to describe how confusing and overwhelming the past two days had been, but when Cairn gazed at her with care and uninhibited concern, Reine couldn't help believing in him...

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Since he didn't have time to do so the previous day, Cairn made his way to Mari's shop immediately following lunch at the Rainy Day Inn. Kaia stayed behind to keep an eye on things, but he knew for a fact that Vira had accompanied him since she would periodically surprise him with random questions and advice.

Though he wanted to ignore her, Cairn couldn't deny that Vira's advice was extremely helpful. Most of it was related to his current Status and how he could improve various Skills and Talents. This might sound like she was trying to shoehorn him into a specific path, but it was more accurate to say they were theory crafting based on his answers about his wants, desires, and intentions moving forward.

As knowledgeable as Kaia was, there had always been a fundamental 'disconnect' between her and Cairn. The latter still viewed his current life as a kind of game, not because he still believed he was trapped in a simulation of some sort, but because of the nearly unbroken seven years he had spent in the virtual.

Unlike when he spoke to Kaia, Vira had no trouble understanding what Cairn meant when referencing things like builds and talked about how he might be able to cheese things. Rather, she empathized with these notions, as could be seen in the numerous bodies she had created for herself. Cairn had thought her laboratory was super creepy at first, but if he shifted his perspective a bit, Vira was basically a Player that had reached max Level with a specific Race or Class before creating an alt or smurf account to experience a different playstyle. If he interpreted her actions that way, he could actually empathize with her...

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Upon reaching Mari's workshop, Cairn knocked on the door and was pleasantly surprised when Elle answered it. His joy was tempered a bit when she initially just stared at him, but he didn't take it to heart as she eventually smiled excitedly and said, "It's Cairn~!" before leaping into his arms and kissing him.

After several seconds of making out, Cairn held Elle like a koala as he entered Mari's workshop, questioning, "How'd the whole proficiency test thing go?"

Answering in Elle's stead, Mari appeared from the door connecting the entrance area of her workshop to the actual workplace, stating, "She has a lot of room for growth, but at least she hasn't been slacking off the past two hundred years."

As she was somewhat weak to praise, Elle scratched the back of her head and exhaled an awkward "Ehehe~" in response to Mari's words. What neither she nor Mari could have expected was for Vira to appear at that exact moment, stating, "Show me." in a tone that left little room for argument.

"Grandma...!?" exclaimed Elle and Mari, their voices overlapping near-perfectly.

Raising her right fist, Vira's expression didn't change, but she was apparently quite annoyed as she said, "You brats...how many times have I told you? It's Gran Maa, not Grandma!"

Since Elle was the closest, Vira tried to knock her on the head, but Cairn prevented this by turning away from her and saying, "Oi..." in a warning tone. His actions caused Vira's eyes to narrow, but she also dropped her fist, turning to Mari to say, "It's a bit early, but since I'm here, I shall review your progress."

"Yes, Ma'am..." responded Mari, appearing somewhat lifeless as she slumped her shoulders, turned around, and dragged her feet to her workshop, followed closely by Vira. In their wake, Elle clung tightly to Cairn, her expression completely serious as she said, "Let's run." with beads of sweat beginning to form on her face.

Before Cairn could respond, Vira's voice echoed from the back of the workshop, shouting, "Get in here, 692...!"

"Aww, man..." grumbled Elle, extricating herself from Cairn's arms and hurrying toward the back. It had only been seventeen years since her last performance review, so she knew she would be in for a scolding if Vira weren't pleased with her development...

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Providing Cairn some insight into the struggles of the Dwarves, Vira not only had Elle and Mari demonstrate their skills, but she also had them strip naked so she could take their measurements and weigh them. After that was a psychological evaluation, followed by a review of the journals they were mandated to keep.

Though she glossed over Mari's journal in minutes, Vira spent several hours perusing Elle's, focusing on the parts concerning Cairn and their travels together. For this section of the performance evaluation, Cairn was also roped in, leading to an awkward situation where Vira asked about their sex life and other private details like a marriage counselor. Reinforcing this comparison, he provided very little information while Elle held nothing back, enthusiastically revealing every intimate detail of their relationship with startling accuracy...

While listening to Elle's account, Vira penned some notes on a tablet-like device with a stylus, her expression rarely changing from the faint smile she typically wore. When they were done, she stored the device away, leaving motes of bluish-white light behind as she stated, "I only have a few questions remaining."

Directing her nearly pitch-black eyes to Cairn, Vira asked, "Would you like to produce offspring with this child?"

Though Elle definitely wasn't a child, Vira regarded all her creations as children, especially the Dwarves. Thus, Cairn wasn't too taken aback, eventually responding, "Not now, but maybe someday..." in a reluctant, audibly uncertain tone. He wouldn't mind if he and Elle had and raised a child like an ordinary family, but that clearly wasn't how Dwarves did things...

"Then, may I have your permission to preserve your seed...?" asked Vira, making it clear that she wasn't talking about Cairn impregnating Elle directly. Rather, once Elle returned home after her thousand years abroad, a Seventh Generation Dwarf would be manufactured using his and her genes as a template.

"Did you ask Alfred the same question?" asked Cairn, delaying his actual response.

"Of course," replied Vira. "Unfortunately, as I expect will be the case with you, he refused, justifying his actions with faulty logic and empty sentiment. But that was often the case with Alfred. As remarkable as he was, his most outstanding trait was his brazen hypocrisy..."

"What do you mean?" asked Cairn.

"Well, for one, he was obsessed with love and did everything in his power to force that view on others," replied Vira. "Yet, despite all his preaching, my words about Alfred siring several illegitimate children during his foray into the Frontier were true. He was a 'curious' man, so whenever he encountered a species he was interested in that was capable of speech, he invariably found one to fornicate with. He was also a frequent guest at many brothels and night houses, much to the chagrin of his purportedly beloved wife."

Shrugging her shoulders, Vira added, "Don't misunderstand. I'm not condemning Alfred's actions. Nor am I trying to devalue the existence of sentiments such as love. What I 'loathe' are hypocrites. However, as most Humans only live a few decades, I try not to take your inability to reconcile your words and actions to heart. Even the thousand years I afford my children is not always enough for them to mature fully, so it would be unfair of me to expect you to be capable of genuine reason in less than a century...

"..."

Though he was tempted to call Vira a cold and nasty bitch, Cairn held his tongue. Lashing out at her would just prove the point that he was immature and childish. Instead, he, very calmly, replied, "You can ask me again in ten years..."

"I shall," replied Vira. Then, without any delay, she transitioned to the next battery of tests. At the very least, she attempted to, pulling out a handheld camera as she stated, "Now that I've heard your accounts, I would like to witness your intercourse directly. Remove your clothes."

"Eh, I don't think Cairn would be okay with that..." said Elle, surprising both Vira and Cairn. The latter half-expected her to immediately begin stripping, forcing him to be the one to interject and protest.

Seeing the look of disbelief on Cairn's face, Elle tilted her head and asked, "Did I get it wrong? You're usually such a prude about these types of things."

"I'm not a prude..." protested Cairn, weakly arguing, "I just have a different standard of decency than the natives of this world. In my world, people were much more...discreet. Not everyone, but most of us..."

"But this isn't your world," reminded Elle, following her statement by asking, "So, are we going to do it or not? I don't want to get excited over nothing."

Instead of answering Elle's question, Cairn leaned back against the sofa they were sitting on and closed his eyes, exhaling loudly through his nose. He had thought that he and Elle had made a lot of progress. However, ever since their arrival in the Capital, he had received near-constant reminders about how 'impractical' their relationship was. He had come to care deeply for his petite lover, but after only a day apart, she needed to use Inspect to recognize him...

"Hey..." said Elle, positioning herself so her knees were on the sofa, flanking Cairn's thighs. At the same time, she grabbed the sides of his face, waiting until he opened his eyes to meet hers before saying, "I'm doing my best..."

"I know..." muttered Cairn. He 'understood' it took time for Dwarves to change and form meaningful connections, but that awareness did little to alleviate the frustration in his heart. Still, as he had already resolved to make things work between them, Cairn eventually grabbed Elle's waist, guiding her to sit atop his growing bulge before leaning forward to kiss her. He had been feeling pent up for the past two days, so even though Vira, Mari, and even Tarou were present, he ignored everything else to focus on the girl before him...

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(A/N: Stay strong, Cairn. Vira may have a point, but love is the purest and most irrational emotion. It might take a lot of time and effort, but even mountains can be made flat (O,...,O)...!)