30 Desire to Protect

With Rosaria not being very talkative, it wasn't long before Paul found himself preparing for his final pull. As far as he knew, he was guaranteed to get a 5-Star ally or weapon during his next summon. The only question was, which one?

Seeing through Paul's thoughts, Xinyan asked, "Who do you want to get?"

Shifting his attention to the kissing demon sitting behind him, a wry smile developed across Paul's face as he answered, "My penultimate goal is to obtain someone who can treat my mother. To that end, I believe Albedo is the best possible option..."

Though she couldn't recall anyone named Albedo from the Intersection of Fate, that didn't prevent Xinyan from nodding her head and saying, "Got it. I'll do my best."

Fully embracing her status as Paul's lucky charm, Xinyan bounced to her feet before spreading her arms wide and saying, "Come on. I'll give you an extra special dose of good luck this time."

Resisting the urge to ask if she was serious, Paul exhaled a sigh before rising to his feet and opening his arms. In response, Xinyan adopted an awkward smile as she said, "I don't mind taking the lead, but I was kind of expecting you to do it..."

Blinking in surprise, Paul opened his mouth, but no words came out. He was strangely okay with Xinyan leaping into his arms, but the thought of doing the same just felt...wrong.

Adopting what could best be described as a sad smile, Xinyan dropped her arms and said, "Sorry. I guess I got a little carried away. I should have realized you wouldn't want to kiss me..."

Confused by the diminutive rockstar's words, Paul's brows furrowed as he asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Avoiding Paul's eyes, Xinyan became distinctly aware that everyone was staring at them. A combination of shame and guilt immediately washed over her, its wake leaving her feeling like a complete idiot.

Just as Xinyan was about to apologize for causing a misunderstanding, Paul grabbed her shoulders and said, "Let me make one thing clear. The only reason I have any apprehensions at all is because we currently look like children. If you were in your original form..."

With Paul's words trailing off, Xinyan turned her gaze to meet his, a fiery look in her eyes as she asked, "What would happen...?"

Though he felt like he was crossing a line he shouldn't, Paul's expression became severe as he repeated his usual, "I'm not a good person..." before lowering his voice and adding, "You know exactly what I would do..."

Since she was looking at him, Paul seized the opportunity to plant a very chaste kiss on Xinyan's lips. He knew she was expecting something more explicit, but that would have to wait until much, much later...preferably in ten to fifteen years...

Leaving Xinyan in her momentary daze, Paul plopped down between Jean and Ningguang before promptly placing his hands on the summoning dais and shouting, "Confirm...!" in a resolute tone. At this point, he just wanted to get things over with so he could get to sleep.

Reinforcing the notion that Pity existed, the meteor that emerged quickly gained a magnificent golden hue. It was the type of color that stirred the dreams and aspirations of men and women alike, so much so that Paul found it hard to stay seated even with two budding beauties flanking his sides.

Expecting another Archon or something else completely ridiculous, Paul found his mouth and eyes widening when the person who emerged from the golden light was someone he had been trying to obtain since his very first summon. She had pale-blue hair, amethyst eyes, and was noticeably shorter than most of the other girls present. She was also a little chubby, but the traits that stood out the most were the red and black horns on her head and the large bell dangling from her collar.

Though he had ultimately failed to obtain Albedo, Paul couldn't prevent his body from shaking a little as he muttered, "I actually pulled Ganyu..." in an audibly excited tone.

Ever since Paul had completed Ganyu's story quest, she had become his absolute favorite character in Genshin Impact. He honestly preferred the design of characters like Jean and Eula, but Ganyu had such a wholesome and forlorn temperament that people couldn't help wanting to cherish and protect her.

"Oh my...Xinyan really might be your lucky star..."

Hearing Ningguang, Paul reluctantly tore his eyes away from the adorable Qilin girl, asking, "What do you mean?"

Nodding in the direction of Ganyu, Ningguang explained, "Ganyu is one of the Adepti most knowledgable about healing and medicines. She was the one who restored the Jiangshi named Qiqi to life. Unless your mother has an incurable disease endemic to this world, Ganyu should be able to treat her."

"Lady Tiangquan...?"

Recovering from the disorientation that came with being summoned and crashing into an immovable stone platform, the first person Ganyu took notice of was Ningguang. In response, Ningguang issued a soft chuckle before directing a side-long gaze at Paul and stating, "I believe there is someone else you should be greeting before me..."

After briefly startling, Ganyu immediately folded her hands over her lap before bowing nearly forty-five degrees as she softly stated, "Pardon my late introduction, Master Paul. My name is Ganyu, and it is my great honor to be of service to you."

Though he felt awkward having someone like Ganyu bowing to him, Paul couldn't help smiling as he attempted to offer a bow of his own. Before he could, Ningguang chimed in, an amused smile on her face as she squinted her eyes mused, "Oh~? It seems our Master has a particular fondness for Liyue's local Qilin..."

Tensing in response to Ningguang's accusation, Paul wanted to refute her but found himself unable, or maybe unwilling to do so. The Ganyu he was familiar with was a pitiful girl who felt lonely even when surrounded by a sea of people who respected and adored her. He didn't have the heart to say he didn't care about her.

Surprising nearly everyone present, especially those he knew him, Paul said, "You're right. Back when you all were just characters from a video game, Ganyu was my favorite character. I never managed to unlock her, but her story and event dialogue made her most endearing character in the entire game..."

"My goodness..."

Not expecting Paul to say such a thing, Ganyu wasn't quite sure how to feel. Her most prominent emotion was anxiety, but there was also a faint, fluttering sensation in her chest. She was the type of person who counted the individual beats of her heart, so even minute changes in her physical condition stood out like candles in a dark room.

Fearing he had been misunderstood, Paul raised his hands in a placating gesture as he said, "Don't misunderstand. I mean, you're adorable, don't get me wrong, but I see you more as someone I need to protect.? It's...it's difficult to explain..."

Realizing he was fucking up magnificently, Paul scratched the back of his head and said, "You know what? Just forget I said anything...welcome to the group, Ganyu..."

Returning a dazzling smile of her own, Ganyu supplied a courteous bow as she said, "Thank you for your kind words, Master Paul. If there is ever anything I can do for you, anything at all, please let me know."

Though Paul's words and behavior had caught her off guard, Ganyu could tell he was a good person. She was only a half-qilin, but she had inherited many of the abilities associated with illuminated beasts. This included the ability to ascertain a person's true nature.

While it was impossible to say Paul was pure of heart and character, there was a breathtakingly beautiful light that radiated from the very core of his being. Like most humans, his essence was a chaotic muddle of self-doubt and other detrimental emotions, but his sense of purpose pierced through each of them like rays of sunlight after a terrible storm had passed...

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"Ningguang..."

"Yes, Master Paul~?"

"Remind me again how I ended up in this situation..."

"Why, certainly..."

Without raising her head from Paul's shoulder, Ningguang slowly traced her finger along his collarbone as she explained, "Even if everything went perfectly to plan, we would be stuck in this world for approximately thirty years. To prevent people from succumbing to things like depression and lack of purpose, it's important to strengthen the bonds between each of us..."

"Mmm...I see...however..."

"Hmm~? Is there something else you would like to ask, Master Paul~?"

Looking around at the half a dozen girls sharing his bed, three of which were sharing his body as a pillow, Paul's expression was a mask of calm as he said, "I feel like you're setting me up to become a criminal..."

As the person lying directly atop Paul, Ganyu blushed up to her ears as she asked, "Am I too heavy...?"

Forcing a smile, Paul answered, "No...but that is hardly the issue here..."

Exhaling a sigh of relief, Ganyu left Paul feeling at a loss for words as she smiled and said, "That's a relief..." before snuggling closer to him.

"..."

Taking advantage of Paul's silence, Ningguang appended, "Master Paul said it himself. There is 'absolutely no chance' of you taking liberties with us in our present forms. As laudable as that is, four-to-eleven years is a long time to abstain from physical intimacy..."

Since Xinyan was among the girls not present at the moment, Ningguang elected to use her as an example, explaining, "Take Xinyan as an example. Her skills as a warrior are lacking, and her talent as a musician is severely underappreciated in a world such a this. Even without conversing with her directly, I can tell she has been struggling with her sense of purpose. She wants to help but feels her talents are inconsequential compared to some of the more...capable members of our little group..."

Furrowing his brows, Paul asked, "What are you trying to say? That Xinyan developed a crush on me because she didn't have any other choice...?"

Shaking her head, Ningguang met Paul's gaze as she asserted, "Master Paul has is backward. Xinyan, much like the rest of us, made our choice long before you summoned us. Based on the information provided, most of us had the very realistic expectation that we would be treated as little more than slaves when we entered this world. Once someone has formed that kind of resolve, it creates a certain...disparity within their mind when things don't go as planned..."

Attempting to dumb things down a bit, Ningguang traced Paul's bottom lip as she explained, "Simply put, Xinyan came into this world fully expecting to sacrifice herself so that some of us would have a reasonable degree of freedom to act. Instead, she encountered a kind and sensible Master who contrasted every expectation she had..."

Adopting a faint smile, Ningguang appended, "In other words, she fell in love with you due to the quality of your character. Have more confidence in yourself...after all, for one reason or another, every girl presently within your bed chose to be here..."

"I might not have if I knew the two of you were going to keep talking all night..."

Sitting up from her position near the foot of Paul's bed, Diona rubbed her right eye as she grumbled, "Just go to sleep already, stupid Master. Even if you have the mind of an adult, you're still a kid. If you don't get plenty of rest while you're young, you'll end up stunting your growth..."

Seemingly finished with what she had to say, Diona laid down with her back touching Paul's left foot. She couldn't see a person's essence like an illuminated beast, but her intuition was comparable to the beast people in Mushoku Tensei. Paul gave off a 'completely harmless' aura, so while she would refuse if he asked to touch her tail, she might consider letting him pet her head if he brought his hands together and begged...

Taking advantage of Diona's interruption, Ningguang stopped tracing her finger around Paul's face and body, drawing closer to him as she quietly suggested, "Let's talk about this in the morning..."

Though there was still a lot he wanted to say, Paul remained silent for several seconds before replying, "Right..." in a quiet, somewhat subdued tone. Then, while doing his best to ignore the flowery aroma and softness of Ganyu's body, Paul closed his eyes in a vain attempt to force himself to sleep...

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