1968 Matter of Course

With more than seventy hours having passed since their arrival on the 60th Floor, Vahn began to send out telepathic messages before subsequently recalling everyone who had ventured beyond the borders of the Gateport. At the same time, having accepted his invitation to reside in the Little Garden, Lotte was communicating with her family to explain the situation and convey Vahn's terms.

Though he would have liked to heal everyone, Vahn couldn't simply ignore the depravity of many members of the Hendo Lok Family. Many of their members pursued forbidden methods to increase their lifespans, and, more often than not, they ended up willfully sacrificing countless lives with the goal of extending their own.

While this behavior was almost entirely the result of the circumstances of their birth, Vahn refused to extend the lives of people who would simply go on to torment others for an even longer period of time. Thus, in order to receive treatment, members of the Hendo Lok Family would need to pass a similar evaluation to the one imposed upon Regulars on the lower floors.

Fortunately, just as he had taken into consideration the 'nature' of the Lo Po Bia Family members, Vahn viewed the descendants of the Hendo Lok Family in a similar light. He couldn't blame them for circumstances beyond their control, so, as long as they were willing to sign a contract, he would still treat them. As for the terms, that would depend entirely on the severity of their transgressions, and, most importantly, whether or not children were among their victims. This precluded most of the so-called Elders from receiving treatment, but, as they were supposed to live for the sake of the Family, those with more sense would ultimately accept this and begin preparing their replacements. As for the rest...well, they would be forced to face the consequences of their actions...

Finished with her report, Lotte emerged from the relative privacy of the suite's master bedroom, her expression one of considerable surprise as she observed the twenty-three exceptional beauties that had appeared during the short period she was away. This included a surprising number of uncannily similar women, who, at a glance, could easily be mistaken for septuplets.

Noticing the scantily-clad woman emerging from Vahn's room, nearly every woman present turned towards Lotte as Nero, standing out even among the 'septuplets', remarked, "Oh? I don't recognize you. Since my memory is perfect, that must mean you are a new addition to the harem. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. As your senior, I will do my best to guide you properly. Umu!"

Following up on Nero's words and interrupting Lotte's attempt to correct the misunderstanding, it was Theo who said, "Wow. You're pretty big..." before directing her gaze to the former's chest and thighs, adding, "In a lot of ways..."

Though her height was certainly a factor, Lotte's proportions were, by and large, 'fuller' than every other woman present. Her bust, alone, was close to 100cm, and, though she looked somewhat thin and muscular from a distance, her individual thighs were more than 70cm in circumference. Simply put, she was 'massive' compared to the average woman, and, even if stood next to Vahn, she would be nearly a full head taller.

Blushing in response to Theo's remark, Lotte raised her hand in a bashful manner while averting her eyes to the side. This cause the fabric of her halter-top to strain to an incredible extent, and, though it was unintentional, she ended up accenting her bust even more due to her arm pressing between the two melon-like mounds of flesh...

Noticing a few tell-tale indicators in Lotte's reaction, a knowing smile flashed across Theo's face as she attempted to approach the girl and confirm her theory. Before she could, however, Vahn lightly clapped his hands, drawing the eyes of everyone present as he said, "The future remains to be seen, but, for the time being, Lotte is not a member of my harem. You're jumping to conclusions."

Since a firm denial would end up hurting her feelings, Vahn decided to leave things ambiguous by speaking in a way that implied he wasn't against the idea. He had actually grown rather fond of the inordinately tall woman during her sojourn in the Little Garden, and, though he had no intention of forcing the matter, he couldn't deny certain thoughts had crossed his mind. Her outfit was, after all, more than a little eye-catching...

Understanding the implication contained within Vahn's words, literal steam began to emanate from Lotte's body as she covered her beet-red face with both hands. This exceptionally innocent reaction earned her quite a bit of favor among the veritable garden of girls present, but, most notably, it was Mash who seemed the happiest about this particular development. She and Lotte had spent a lot of time together over the last week, and, though the latter was significantly older, she always felt like the bigger sister whenever they bonded...

Though various thoughts had emerged within the minds of those present, it was Nero who opted to nod her head, arms crossed beneath her ample bosom as she remarked, "It seems I was off by a day or two. Umu! Either way, my offer still stands. If you ever need advice, counseling, or just want to talk, you need only say the word. We are a sisterhood that supports each other no matter what. Umu! Umu~!"

Hearing Nero's words, Lotte peeked through her fingers to find that most of the people present were looking at her with approving, or, at the very least, helpless smiles. The most important thing was that there was no resentment or malice visible in the eyes of anyone present, something that was impossible to imagine regarding the expansive harems associated with the Ten Great Families. Even her own mother had fought tooth and nail for political power prior to being poisoned, so, for a variety of reasons, Lotte couldn't quite believe her eyes. Despite this, an awkward smile developed across her face as she meekly responded with a bashful, "Nn...".

---

Following Vahn's departure from the 60th Floor, Maschenny, who had been keeping a close eye on the situation, couldn't help adopting a somewhat cold look as she heard the report attesting to the fact that Lotte had not appeared after initially entering the frozen pavilion serving as his temporary residence. This implied that she was still inside of Vahn's miniature world, a place rumored to be rife with treasures capable of increasing a person's strength, exponentially, in a short period of time...

Though she had already made the decision to pursue a different path, that didn't mean Maschenny had given up on receiving benefits from Vahn. The more she could learn about the structure of the worlds beyond the Tower, the better prepared she would be. She also wanted to increase her power as much as possible prior to her transmigration, not because she had any grand ambitions to fulfill, but because she wanted to, at the very least, experience what it was like to stand near the pinnacle...

Having already made up her mind, Maschenny turned towards Lucian, the Silver Dwarf who served as her personal Guide, Light Bearer, and Butler, ordering, "We're returning to the 123rd Floor. Have everyone prepared and ready to move within the hour. Also, contact those rascals and tell them to hurry up and ascend the Tower. If they can't reach the 100th Floor within a year, there might not be a place for them to return to."

Suppressing a sigh, Lucian removed his silver-rimmed spectacles in order to clean the lenses as he remarked, "Even Ureko took fifty years to ascend the Tower. She might have taken her time, but she is still the current record holder. Unless you provide them with a Guide and the necessary resources, even a team with multiple Princess of Jahad wouldn't be able to reach the 100th Floor within a year. They might be able to manage if they work together, but, even then, the odds are slim..."

As her own climb had taken approximately a hundred years, Maschenny was well aware of the truth contained within Lucian's words. In her case, however, her pride had compelled her to take on all of the Tower's most infamous challenges on her own. If all the Regular Princesses were to team up and work together, setting aside their pride and differences, their ascent would be meteoric. With this in mind, she manifested both her Arms and regular Inventory, emptying both except for a few choice items such as the Yellow May and her favorite artifacts. Then, with a severe yet excited undertone to her voice, she said, "I don't care what it takes. Empty out the treasury if you have to. Either way, they only have a year or so before they miss this opportunity in its entirety. Unless they want to fade into obscurity, tell them to light a fire under their asses and hurry the hell up."

Seeing Maschenny toss out her treasures with complete disregard, Lucian couldn't help feeling a little perturbed. She had inherited her father's trait as a collector, so, unless the situation forced her hand, she would never part with her treasures. A few months ago, she had even been coordinating with groups in the lower floors to capture and imprison Khun Aguero Agnis, as, prior to becoming a Regular, the youth had stolen their father's entire collection. Now, however, she was throwing away painstakingly acquired treasures without batting an eyelash...

Amused by Lucian's reaction, Maschenny crossed her arms with a haughty smile on her face as she mused, "Oh? Do you mean to tell me that you didn't see this coming? It seems actions inspired by the Sage Dragon Emperor's influence are beyond even the abilities of an A-Rank Guide to foresee. How interesting..."

As he hadn't been proactively using his power, Lucian couldn't help furrowing his brows in response to Maschenny's teasing remark. Then, with his eyes releasing an illusory silver glow, he peered into the predatory Princess' future before paling as images of her lifeless yet smiling body infiltrated his mind. This gave him the urge to refuse her order, but, as a Guide, it wasn't his place to decide what path others walked, only to advise them when they felt lost. Maschenny had clearly resolved herself to this particular path, so, even if he wanted to advise her to choose a different route, he could only clench his teeth and stay the course she had decided upon...such was the responsibility and curse of a Silver Dwarf...

---

Though she understood it would take approximately 51 days for him to reach her Floor, a certain tomboyish blonde could already be seen waiting expectantly in the canopy of a massive tree that, from a distance, resembled an amalgamation of glowing white wings. This was none other than the Wing-Tree, and, as could be expected, the only person with enough insolence to casually relax in its branches was none other than Ureko.

After hearing reports regarding Yuri's spontaneous increase in strength, something she was looking forward to experiencing directly, Ureko was convinced that Vahn had surpassed her expectations by a considerable amount. This made it difficult for her to remain calm, so, after stealing another seven pairs of panties, she promptly decided to return to the 77th Floor. There, a considerable number of Wolhaiksong members, several of which Vahn would have immediately recognized, had gathered in anticipation of his arrival. They were all looking forward to meeting the person rumored to possess the ability to make their collective dream come true, so, along with Ureko, a veritable horde of High and Advanced Rankers were 'patiently' awaiting the appearance of both Yuri and the Sage Dragon Emperor...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'One of us. One of us. One of us~','Maschenny employing those late-game speedrun strats...','Prepare the boss music track o_o...')

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