Burden

With Amarant's recent return and Ningguang not wanting to leave her projects untended for 8-10 weeks, Paul's scheduled tour of the Region was canceled. Instead, he spent his vacation much like his time at the Academy, primarily focused on training and interspaced by periods of borderline philandering.

When Amarant first saw Paul's progress in the Water God Style, he was genuinely surprised. Even the average Knight was only an Intermediate Rank Swordsman, so while Paul was technically still a Beginner, being at the precipice of Intermediate Rank at seven years old was incredible. He might have already become one if Augusta didn't have significantly higher standards than the average Instructor.

Fortunately for Paul, Amarant didn't compare him to any of the girls he had summoned. If that were the case, he would be near the bottom of the barrel. His physical strength and endurance were even higher than Jean's, but if the two of them were to fight, she would trounce him 99/100.

Among those Paul had summoned through the Intersection of Fate, the only people he could reasonably contend with were Barbara, Xinyan, and Yaoyao. Xiangling could have been among them, but ever since she had attained her second Constellation, she was nearly as strong as Jean. The latter would win all of their spars, but the fact it was close at all said a lot about the power of Constellations.

Paul was leaps and bounds ahead of the other children in his world, but he still had a very long way to go to be considered powerful. To that end, he asked Ei to oversee his and pretty much everyone else's training. She had nothing better to do, so Paul ended up training even harder while on vacation than when he was back at the Academy. After all, he didn't have to hold back or conceal his true power back at the Estate, and, much like Ei, he had nothing better to do...

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"Ningguang..."

"Yes, my Lord~?"

"Remind me how I ended up in this position..."

"Mmm...we were talking about what you thought my best feature was back in your world. One thing led to another, and now we're here..."

"Right..."

Though he would be lying if he said it wasn't surprisingly comfortable, lying back with Ningguang's thighs wrapped around his neck gave Paul the impression she was about to strangle him. He might have asked her to if they were much, much older, but it felt incredibly borderline considering their current appearances. It didn't help that Ganyu was currently seated on his lap...

"I think I should be going soon..."

"Oh~? Is there some important matter that requires your attention? And here I thought we had both cleared our afternoon schedules in order to spend some...quality time together..."

Flexing her still-developing but already firm thigh muscles, Ningguang elicited a low grunt from Paul as he instinctually grabbed them. Before she could continue teasing him, however, Ganyu suggested, "If Master Paul is uncomfortable, we should stop. This was supposed to help him relax and enjoy himself, not add to his stress..."

Since Paul could easily pry her legs apart or order her to stop, Ningguang didn't release him from her thigh hold. Instead, she began massaging his head and hair, muttering, "He is just being obstinate and a little dishonest with himself...isn't that right, Master~?"

Prying Ningguang's legs apart, Paul gasped before drawing in a series of deep breaths. His face was more than a little red, but that was currently the least of his concerns as Ganyu uttered a meek, "Oh..." before blushing up to her ears.

"Yeah, no...this is no longer borderline. We're way, way over the line. Let me up."

Though she hoped Paul would just go with the flow and let his 'instincts' take over, Ninnguang promptly released her hold and scooched back to let him lay flat on the sofa. The movement caused Ganyu's face to turn a much brighter shade of red, but she calmed down pretty quickly once she Paul lying with his eyes closed, willfully trying to calm himself...

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"I assume you invited me here for a reason other than simply harassing me...?"

Amused by Paul's sudden standoffishness, Ningguang covered her mouth to suppress a titter before answering, "You'll be returning to the Academy in a few days. We need to discuss who will be attending you and whether or not we should use the Intersection of Fate. There are presently 95,512 Asura Gold Coins in our private coffer. I need roughly 65,000 for my plans, but the remaining 30,000 can go toward bolstering our forces."

Since this was his first time hearing how much gold they had, the cogs in Paul's brain briefly stalled. Given how much Ningguang had spent, he half expected their funds to be running low. 95,512 was roughly 43,000 more gold than he had left her with...

"I mean...I see no reason not to? But what did you mean about who would accompany me? Aren't-"

Interrupting before Paul could finish, Ningguang explained, "While you are well within your right to play favorites, other girls need a chance to spend time with you. If you stick with the same four girls for the rest of your stay at the Academy, the others will begin to feel neglected. You will also have trouble picking the best people for specific jobs, prioritizing those you are comfortable with over the people most qualified."

"..."

Though he could understand what Ningguang was saying, Paul couldn't imagine Barbara, Xinyan, or Xiangling being okay with a long separation. Jean would probably be okay, but the other girls had really bonded to him during their stay at the Academy. If he was being completely honest, he had grown attached to them as well...

Seeing the problem, a melancholic sigh emanated from Paul's throat as he muttered, "Barbara is going to throw a tantrum..."

Nodding her head, Ningguang replied, "Most definitely." before shrugging her shoulders and adding, "Unfortunately, such is the hand we have been dealt. No matter how much she desires to keep you to herself, we need to prioritize the group's unity. We are no longer individuals fighting to obtain happiness for ourselves. We are a conglomerate with the penultimate goal of saving one world so that we can restore another..."

Placing her hand over Paul's heart, Ningguang's expression softened as she said, "You are the lynchpin that holds everything together. It will be difficult, but you need to have a heart strong enough to endure the stress of more than a hundred people's ambitions. People like Ganyu and myself will do our best to help share your burdens, but there is only so much we can do without infringing upon your autonomy..."

Preempting Paul's question, Ningguang's voice became a sultry purr as she susurrated, "Don't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to...for the sake of both our worlds, I don't mind becoming a monster..."

Though it was more of a last resort than anything else, Ningguang had plans to relocate Paul to one of the most isolated regions in the world. If he died, every single one of her plans would fall through. They would also lose their chance to restore their world, so if it were up to her, she would lock Paul away, assign someone like Ganyu to take care of him, and just send out the Archons to crush anyone who got in their way. It was, after all, the most 'efficient' method to guarantee the success of their mission.

Fortunately for Paul and the world as a whole, the agreement they made with the God of the Boundaries prohibited them from interacting with the world in a way that contradicted the Champion's will. Paul effectively had the final say in everything, so unless he gave her permission and ordered her to take him away, Ningguang had no choice but to play nice...

Feeling a bone-deep chill run through his body when Ningguang purred in her ear, Paul elected to take her advice and avoid asking what she meant by infringing upon his autonomy. Instead, he asked, "Did you already have someone in mind regarding who will accompany me...?"

Nodding her head in affirmation, Ningguang revealed, "If we don't access the Intersection of Fate, I was thinking of sending Yaoyao, Diona, Minne, Rosaria with you. I had originally planned to have Lilia accompany you as well, but I want her to be here when the children are born."

"Are you sure? Rosaria and Yaoyao I can understand, but Diona and Minne would struggle quite a bit within the Academy..."

Moving her hand from Paul's chest to his abdomen, Ningguang casually rebutted, "That's only because you're considering having them enroll as students. Most servants attending the Academy remain in their Master's quarters or work within the surrounding town. Even if you just have them stay home and keep the house clean, Diona and Minne would be beyond ecstatic just being able to help you..."

"Right..."

Recalling how Diona would cuddle up to him despite reacting with hostility whenever he tried to pet her, Paul could see what Ningguang was getting at. As for Minne, well, members of the Beast Race were just 'programmed' differently from humans. They were remarkably impressionable and had a habit of imprinting on those who showed them kindness. Their tribe was like one giant family, and anyone who had earned their trust was regarded in a similar light.

"And what about the IOF? Did you have anyone in mind...?"

Though this was her first time hearing Paul refer to the Intersection of Fate as the IOF, Ningguang immediately understood what he meant. In fact, she intended to use it herself in the future as it was better to avoid referencing it directly.

"Truth be told, I'm at my wit's end with just myself, Ganyu, and Xingqiu. I'll be able to manage, but things would become much easier if you managed to acquire even a single additional member of the Qixing..."

After seeing how hard Ningguang worked these past eight weeks, Paul no longer questioned her smoking habits. He genuinely had no idea how she was able to manage it, but he supposed it was that drive that allowed her to become the youngest Tianquan in the history of Liyue.

"Then we'll keep going until we get one or reach 27,000 gold spent. Sound good...?"

Though she understood 27,000 gold was nowhere near enough to ensure a specific person, Ningguang had high hopes. Paul had only accessed the Intersection of Fate 270 times yet had managed to acquire an additional Archon and the exact person he needed to treat his mother. He had also managed to obtain her, so it wasn't an overstatement to say his luck was exceptional.

Walking her fingers up Paul's body, Ningguang whispered, "Let's make a deal...if you manage to obtain a member of the Qixing, I will stop trying to wear down your defenses until your tenth birthday. If you fail...well, you'll at least be able to relax once you return to the Academy..."

"..."

Resisting the urge to hit Ningguang with a 'bruh,' Paul briefly considered her offer before shaking his head and saying, "Though I can be extremely hypocritical at times, I've learned never to tempt fate. The last time I let myself be baited by this kind of compromise, I ended up having my face sucked by an insatiable kissing demon..."

Though they had even made out a few times at this point, Paul was still recovering from the awkwardness he endured during his previous gacha spree. If he agreed to Ningguang's proposal, he might not even make it to his birthday before someone 'pounced' on him. Considering her status as a member of the Beast Race, there was a good chance it would be Minne.

"Let's just grab the others and do a normal summoning..."

Since it was ultimately Paul's decision, Ningguang didn't try to force the matter. Instead, she briefly shifted her gaze to Ganyu, who, after a brief moment of confusion, nodded her head and said, "I will return shortly." before rising to her feet and speeding off to gather the others...

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