Chapter 1643 Pursuit : Truth

With most of his business completed, Vahn teleported to the center of Fenrir's gradually expanding castle.

Curiously, perhaps because she was able to sense his presence from the gemstone, Asuna reacted a little slower than usual. It was only after Fenrir raised her body that she seemed to notice his arrival, her face a subtle shade of red as she quickly 'concealed' the rainbow-hued gemstone from view.

Though he found Asuna's behavior rather amusing, Vahn could only smile wryly as he extended his hand, materializing the gemstone in his palm. This caused the twin-tailed princess to puff out her cheeks slightly, but, as he really didn't need the stress of a precocious girl becoming increasingly bold with his gemstone, Vahn pretended not to notice her pouting expression.

After walking over and allowing Fenrir to nuzzle against him for a few moments, Vahn hopped onto her back, ruffling the deadpan Asuna's hair before saying, "It seems our enemies want to draw this out. I guess it's about time we meet with the members of Ala Rubra. Are you ready, Fenrir, Asuna?"

Though she was able to speak in her wolf form, Fenrir's response was a bored yawn. As for Asuna, her fake pout turned more genuine as she asked, "Are they going to be living with us?"

Understanding Asuna's concerns, as she was going through a bit of a 'selfish' phase right now, Vahn smiled wryly in response before gently guiding her to sit in his lap. This was more than enough to pacify her mild frustrations, her ears turning a rosy tinge as she leaned into Vahn's chest and turned her head up, clearly expecting an answer to her previous question.

While smiling back at her, Vahn explained, "Depending on how things develop, they will probably come to stay on the island. Don't worry, I have no intention of revealing the Garden of Avalon to them at this point in time. Even if it turns out the mastermind behind Ala Rubra is involved in some grand scheme, they won't be able to trace our movements if I'm serious."

Knowing Ala Rubra wouldn't be able to enter the Garden of Avalon, Asuna could feel the tensions in her body melting away. She could already imagine Vahn helping Nagi train, and, while that wasn't a bad thing, she didn't want to spend years living in close proximity with the members of Ala Rubra. It was one thing to be allies, but, after reading excerpts about Nagi's various exploits during his youth, she wasn't comfortable with bathing or changing anywhere near him.

Feeling a little angry just thinking about someone trying to 'prank' her, Asuna's expression became somewhat scary as she muttered, "I want to fight against Nagi. I need to overcome my aversion to injuring others and I can't think of a more suitable training partner..."

Sensing the sword intent radiating from Asuna's body, Vahn was struggling to restrain a laugh as he internally remarked, ("I'm starting to feel sorry for that brat...")

In the original timeline, Asuna would have undoubtedly grown fond of Nagi, and, though she might have felt forced by the circumstances, Arika likely loved him dearly. Now, however, both girls held a bit of resentment towards the boy. This was one of the downsides to learning about the future from a historical account. It allowed people to form a bias because all the finer details, such as the actual context and emotions involved, were simply missing.

If he were being honest, Vahn had also formed a bit of a bias towards the legendary party, but, as they were undoubtedly the 'protagonists', he knew there had to be a greater reason for everything that happened. Nagi was probably a good kid, and, though he would undoubtedly be a little dense, he should have a natural charisma that drew people to him. As for his perversion...well, that seemed to be a common trope when it came to protagonists.

Based on how people viewed nakedness in Mundus Magicus, it wasn't difficult to imagine that the world was created as either a romantic comedy or an action novel with a fair amount of fanservice. Even Eva had shown up in what amounted to a BDSM outfit, and, though she had defaulted to less revealing clothing after their reunion, her leather g-string wasn't something that could be forgotten easily. She also had a habit of wearing rather skimpy side-tie panties, and, though it was easy to just blame it on happenstance, even the wind within Mundus Magicus had a high probability of blowing up skirts to reveal the contents hidden beneath...

Remembering his stay in Ariadne, Vahn couldn't help but shake his head slightly, a wry smile on his face as he answered, "I don't mind if you want to fight against him. If he is as strong as rumored, he will be a good rival for you. Just make sure you wear your Aegis properly to prevent any 'accidents' from occurring."

Knowing what Vahn meant by accidents, Asuna's sword intent became even more potent, her eyes sharpening like blades as she said, "If he tries anything...I'll cut it off..."

Feeling goosebumps spread across his body, Vahn found himself unable to reply to Asuna's rather 'dangerous' words. Instead, he just lightly pat her head before turning to Fenrir and saying, "We'll head West to draw out the people who are undoubtedly pursuing us. If anyone powerful shows up, you will probably need to return to your true form. You don't need to force yourself to fight in your transformed state."

Understanding the weaknesses of fighting in a giant form, Fenrir didn't hesitate to nod in response to her Master's words. Then, after storing her [Pristine Jace-Ice Bed], her scarlet eyes began to blaze with an intense light as the palace around her began to vibrate and crackle. From the outside, it was like the entire structure was being illuminated from the interior, and, after reaching an intensity that could rival the side, the entire thing simply 'dispersed' into a veritable tidal wave of icy white light.

Though the glacial palace only covered a few hundred meters, the ice elemental energy released by its dispersal spread out for several kilometers. In its wake, a large part of the bay was frozen down to the mud as a thick layer of frost covered most nearby structures. It was almost like a giant snow globe had been formed in the region, as, due to the presence of the ice elemental energy, any rain that entered the pale white bubble immediately turned to ice and snow...

---

Immediately following Fenrir's departure from the Megalomesembrian entry point, various forces that had been patiently lying in wait stirred to action. Fighting inside of the city was forbidden, for obvious reasons, so, even when Vahn had been making his way towards the Senate Building, they had been unable to act.

Fortunately for the would-be bounty hunters, Megalomesembria had yet to even consider whether or not they were going to retract Vahn's bounty. Thus, without any fear that their efforts would be wasted, various groups decided to pursue the giant wolf that was somehow able to run across the surface of the water as if it was flat ground.

Among the first groups to react, a youth with two-tone red hair and similar red eyes had a massive grin on his face tossed his staff into the air before leaping atop it and shouting, "I'm going ahead! I won't let them get away this time!"

Without waiting for any of his companions to respond, the youth took off toward the horizon at breakneck speed, his body shrouded in a thin white barrier that mitigated air friction completely.

Seeing their young charge take off without even considering a plan, the remaining members of the group had mixed reactions of amusement and concern. The oldest among them, at least going by appearance, was the first to speak out, worry audible in his tone as he said, "Shouldn't we be giving chase as well? Nagi is very powerful, but that monster seems to be in a class of his own...I'm worried he might be getting in over his head this time..."

Hearing their Japanese companion's words, the other two members of the group turned toward the man, smiles visible on their faces as the truly oldest among them answered, "You are correct to be concern