Machinations

With three additional children to occupy his time, Vahn's schedule had become somewhat hectic. If not for the fact the Recreational Wing had been refurbished into a daycare, he would be running all over the place just to spend time with all his new children.

Though it might not have too much of an impact on his sons, as it would likely be several months, or even years, before they begin forming lasting memories, Vahn knew the Vanir were already aware of their surroundings. He needed to be a permanant fixture in their lives during their formative years or it would be too late to regret when they began using their powers to harm themselves and others.

All it would take was Vahn being going for a week in the outside world for the Vanir to have aged up to a full year. If he was gone for just four months, they would have already reached physical maturity, even if their mind hadn't fully caught up with their bodies. It was a truly terrifying thought, one that had caused Vahn to consider raising the Vanir outside of the Projection just so they wouldn't grossly outpace the development of their siblings. The only reason he decided against it was due to the fact that Isanna and Naavi, who would almost never cry, cried very loudly when they were separated from Daiki.

It was also impossible for Rin, Ereshkigal, and Ishtar to separate themselves, meaning they could only be with their daughters outside, or their son inside. Though this wouldn't be a problem in the future, as Vahn was intending to prepare vessels and resummon the two Goddesses, it was still beyond their means for the time being. Until then, Vahn couldn't even imagine separating the children as, more so than Rin and Ishtar combined, Ereshkigal was extremely overprotective of all three.

In the days following the triplets' births, Ereshkigal wouldn't let them out of her sight, even if they were just in the next room over. She would forcibly take over the body from Rin and Ishtar to make sure they were safe, overpowering the other two with pure willpower. This had put a lot of strain on all three of them so Vahn was intending to remedy this fact when the summoning system gathered the requisite amount of mana.

Vahn knew his vessels would be compatible, even with the Ego of a Goddess, so it wouldn't be much of an issue to perform a second summoning. Since they were alive, just on the Reverse Side of the World, they wouldn't lose any of their memories in the process. It would just free up Rin from having to share her body with two other people, something that was beginning to wear on her psyche as the months turned into years.

Fortunately, the upgrades Da Vinci had made to the summoning system, or at least the catalysts that powered it, had reduced the time between summons to only two weeks in the real world. This meant he could potentially summon both Ereshkigal and Ishtar before the duel between Artoria and Lorelei.

At the very least, he would be giving Ereshkigal a body while Ishtar would have to wait an additional four weeks. He had already discussed this with the trio and, after talking things over with Artoria, Merlin, Scáthach, and Alaya, Vahn had another candidate in mind to summon before he gave them both bodies.

Though there were no guarantees it would work, the limited-omnipotence granted to Merlin and Scáthach made them aware of a conceptual existence known as Maxwell's Demon. It was an entity that, in some tangential timelines, existed as a Heroic Spirit possessing no combat capabilities whatsoever. Despite this, it was one of the most powerful Heroic Spirits due to the fact it had theoretically infinite Magical Energy, just no way to use it.

Vahn needed a way to power the summoning system and provide the necessary energy to activate and maintain CHALDEAS. Since he wanted to get the facility up and running after dealing with the Barthomeloi family, Maxwell's Demon had come up in the discussion about how they should power the phenomenally consumptive system. With the only requirement being that they needed to feed energy into the closed system to get it started, Maxwell's Demon was the perfect solution to the vast majority of their future problems.

Eventually, Maxwell's Demon would reach the point that it could power both CHALDEAS and the summoning system simultaneously, seemingly without any consumption on its part. It was, quite literally, a source for infinite energy without any upper limits to its output. So long as they fed a constant supply of energy into it, the potential output of Maxwell's Demon would increase to the point it would even rival stars.

The best part was, unless it faced against an existence that could erase contradictions and kill the unkillable, there was nothing capable of destroying Maxwell's Demon. It could be sealed away and imprisoned in tangential timelines, but it was virtually indestructible otherwise.

According to Alaya, the only constructs capable of destroying Maxwell's Demon were the unsealed Rhongomyniad, Longinus, and Azrael. Though there were certainly other ways to destroy it, she was unable to reveal them to Vahn because, at the time, they did not exist. Since discussing the concept could give power to them, allowing them the means to exist in the present, she refused to discuss them. Vahn had actually been surprised to learn this as, if he looked at it from a certain perspective, it was clear that Alaya was being considerate of him, even without being 'forced'.

Vahn had noticed that Alaya had mellowed out considerably since she first started accompanying him, something he hadn't expected for years to come. She would now silently drain his bodily fluids and, even without him asking her, she would give him some privacy the moment he was tending to his women and children.

The most noticeable change, however, was the fact that Alaya would allow him to pet her without showing any discomfort. Instead, much like a Companion, she would silently tolerate the caressing with her eyes closed, seemingly enjoying it despite not showing any change in expression. This gave him a powerful urge to tease her but, considering she would probably get very upset, Vahn just took advantage of the change to enjoy petting the admittedly adorable blue creature.

---

While Vahn spent most of his time inside of the Projection, there were times when he would have to leave in order to handle the affairs of the Empire. This usually involved traveling back to London at the behest of Olivia after something particularly troublesome happened.

Today, Vahn was visiting a place he had never ventured in the past, a large mansion that had only a dozen or so powerful figures when excluding the presence of the Edelfelt's forces. This was the home of Lord El-Melloi II, now Waver Velvet, and his wife, Reines Archisorte, now publically recognized as Lord El-Melloi. Unlike Waver, she didn't bother to attach something like 'the Second' to the title as, in the long history of the Magus community, only Waver had bothered to make such a distinction.

After reaching the mansion, Vahn was greeted by the peculiar sight of two Maids, both having what could only be described as 'alien' appearances. One was comprised almost entirely of a silvery liquid, much like mercury, while the other was clearly some kind of Automata, if not a full-body prosthetic. He was able to see a few lines where the 'parts' of the Maid were pieced together, giving her a very unique appearance due to the two cat-like ears protruding from the top of its head.

Despite their peculiar appearances, both Maids were clearly designed to be aesthetically pleasing to look at. Each had delicate yet mature features, with the silvery Maid having flowing hair that curled at the ends while the cat-type Automata had a 'cool' appearance with angular eyes and short black hair. Vahn's only complaint was, despite her white ears clearly being modeled after a cat, she didn't actually have a tail, at least for the time being. Since he had been able to pass his senses over them, he was aware that she had a 'port' at the base of her spine that accommodated the existence of a tail, likely as a means of charging itself.

The moment Vahn stepped through the gates of the mansion, both Maids bowed at low, almost unnatural angles, as they simultaneously stated, "Please forgive our rudeness, Your Majesty. Our Lord asks that you forgive her lack of decorum by having others escort yo-" Before the girls could speak further, Vahn gestured for them to stop as he plainly stated, "Take me to Waver. I don't particularly care about the games Lord El-Melloi is trying to play."

Hearing Vahn's words, the two Maids gave a curt bow before stepping to the side and allowing him to pass unobstructed. They fell into step behind Kenshin and Lakshmibai, falling in line with Gareth as they guided Vahn by politely giving directions. This wasn't actually necessary, as Vahn already had a complete understanding of the mansion's layout, but he didn't want to put too much pressure on the girls, despite them both being artificial entities. They were essentially golems without a real Ego but, as Vahn was of the mind that such existences had the potential of gaining an Ego in the future, he elected not to treat them poorly.

After a short walk, Vahn found himself outside an ornate door that led to the master bedroom of the mansion. It was the second-largest bedroom after the 'dungeon' located beneath the property but Vahn chose to ignore the existence of the later since he was already familiar with Reines' personality. Instead, he waited for the Maids to announce his presence and, after gaining permission to enter, he stepped in the room to find Waver emaciated and bedridden while Reines stood unaffected at the side.

Reines was holding the hand of a little girl with luminous green eyes and golden hair that was tied into two pigtails by red ribbons. She was wearing a frilly, doll-like, dress and even had a light layer of makeup despite appearing around 5-6 years old. Seeing this, Vahn couldn't help but glower slightly as he looked into Reines' eyes, understanding her intentions.

Despite Vahn's sharp glare, Reines maintained a cool smile on her face as she performed a courteous bow and said, "I cannot express how grateful we are for Your Majesty's presence. I fear my daughter, Ridley, may have had to grow up without a father if not for the Sage Emperor's leniency..."

As she mentioned her daughter, Reines pushed the small girl forward slightly. Despite her age, she had an astute and calculating look in her eyes and, without floundering in the slightest, performed a perfect curtsy as she stated in a bell-like tone, "Greetings, Your Majesty. My name is Ridley El-Melloi Archisorte. Thank you for coming personally to help my father."

Vahn resisted the urge to rub his temples as he adopted a wry smile and said, "You are a very polite young lady, Ridley. However, I must ask that you excuse us for the time being. There are matters that I must discuss with your parents." Since he couldn't really blame Ridley for her behavior, as she was just a child, Vahn mentally pardoned her while his opinion of Reines, which had already been rather low, decreased substantially.

Though she was the type that pushed the boundaries almost excessively, Reines wasn't a completely hopeless woman. She understood that Vahn wasn't very enthused by how she decided to introduce her daughter to him so, without letting Ridley continue the act, she had Trimmau, the Maid formed from silvery-liquid, escort her out of the room. Since the introductions had already been made, she could easily use her daughter as a talking point in the future, so long as she carefully considered her words and actions.

Once Ridley had been escorted out of the room, Reines gave another courteous bow as she stated in an unrepentant tone, "It was not my intention to offend you, Your Majesty. Since you had not shown any interest in visiting my mansion any time soon, I feared this might be the only opportunity I had to carry out introductions. Please, forgive my impudence..."

Since Reines had also dressed up, electing to wear a sapphire-blue gown that loosely hugged her mature figure, Vahn would have been able to get an eye-full of her cleavage when she bowed low. Instead, he completely ignored her as he made his way to Waver's side, grabbing his skeletal wrist and sending threads of Source Energy into his body. This caused Reines to frown for a brief moment but, when she noticed the eyes of Kenshin and Lakshmibai directed toward her, she adopted a wry smile before turning to Vahn and explaining, "He wa-"

Without waiting for Reines' explanation, Vahn had already removed the malignant energy from the unconscious Waver's body. He had been afflicted with a powerful curse that was eating away at his vitality and artificially accelerating his age. Since his Od was well below the average of most Magi, he had almost no defense against the curse as it quickly ate away at everything, even his Magic Circuits.

Fortunately, Waver's affliction was something Vahn could easily treat by making his Source Energy emulate Holy and Life Elemental energy. He had completely purged the malignant energy from the emaciated man's body and, though it would take a few days, he would make a full recovery.

After treating Waver, Vahn turned his gaze to meet Reines', causing the cold beauty to swallow her words as she instinctually took a step back. Then, in a deep voice that caused the surrounding space to ripple, Vahn stated, "Even if your family is in dire straits, his condition shouldn't have degraded so far in such a short period of time. If you continue playing these games, there will be no place for the Archibald family in the future..."

Though the curse affected Waver had nothing to do with Reines, it was obvious for someone with Vahn's medical skills that very little had been done to treat him. This indicated that Reines had been fine with letting the man wither away, potentially to his death. If this happened, she would have the leeway to seek another partner, either by trying to seduce him or one of the central figures related to the Empire. At the very least, she could use Waver's death as a means of strengthening the ties between her family and the Empire, exploiting Vahn's tolerant and empathetic nature...

Despite the severity of Vahn's words, Reines made no effort to apologize. Instead, she dropped her act entirely, adopting a cold and calculating look as she stated in an almost emotionless tone, "Do not blame me for doing what I must to ensure my family's survival. I know you are aware of what I had to go through growing up. Though my nature may be despicable from your perspective, it was necessitated by the situation I had been thrown in. Make no mistake, Your Majesty, I have always loved my husband. My highest priority, however, has always been to reclaiming of my birthright and securing a position for myself and my descendants in a world that would readily erase us without a second thought."

Reines knew she wasn't a good person but, unlike most of the people around her, she didn't pretend to be. She had been forced to enter the world of adults and politics when she was only six years old. If she hadn't been vicious and decisive in her actions, she would have either ended up dead or as the plaything of some errant Magus that wanted to collect her like a doll. In order to avoid this end, she had done everything in her power, even embracing a state of mind that cut off most emotions and allowed her to enjoy the suffering of others. Though Waver had helped her stabilize quite a bit, she could never relax until there were no more enemies capable of harming her and the few things she cared about.

Seeing the resolute light in Reines' cold eyes, tinged by a glimmer of madness, Vahn couldn't help but furrow his brows. As she stated, he was already very aware of her circumstances as, even without Luvia explaining the situation, he had Merlin and Scáthach to fill in the blanks. She was the product of a society that had no qualms about victimizing children. In order to avoid becoming prey, she had adopted the mentality of a predator that skillfully lurked in the territory of monsters infinitely more powerful than herself. She had even been the mastermind behind the arranged marriage between herself and Bram Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri, buying her enough time to reach maturity while scheming in the background.

Regardless of her reasons, however, Vahn wasn't just going to tolerate Reines' actions in the present, especially if she was going to be an ally to the Empire. His gaze hardened as a divine light began to radiate from his eyes, causing Reines' legs to tremble due to the increasing pressure on her body. He waited until she was about to collapse before saying in a firm and commanding tone, "Do what you must, Lord El-Melloi...know that I will do the same..."

After that simple statement, Vahn released the pressure on Reines' body, allowing her to release a series of labored breathes as she glared back at him, the light in her eyes visibly wavering. Though she felt compelled to defend herself, she had the distinct impression such an action would be the same as digging her own grave. Thus, after swallowing her pride with similar difficulty to swallowing a whole egg, Reines performed another courteous bow as she took a step back and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty...I will take your words to heart..."

Though he knew this wouldn't be the end to Reines' schemes, Vahn gave a curt nod in response to her words before departing the El-Melloi mansion shortly thereafter. He left a few mana-rich fruits and vegetables for Waver's consumption before refusing an invitation to tea with the young Ridley. Part of him wanted to take the little girl back to Avalon with him so she wouldn't have to grow up under the influence of her mother but, as this could become a problem in and of itself, he elected not to. It wasn't his responsibility to raise the children of others and, while Ridley's situation was not ideal, it was an irrefutable truth that millions of children suffered worse fates...something he intended to change in the not-so-distant future.

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'It's like getting ahold of yer mum's credit card in a gacha game >:D...','Poor Ridley, growing up with a sadist for a mother and a doormat for a father...','Vahn's convictions are strengthening by the day')

(A/N: For those worried about me working too hard, please don't xD. I'm not going to write all of them back-to-back, just before the weekly reset. I'll most likely write two now before writing the other two after waking up in the morning ^_^)

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