Story 2 Magical Ascencion Chapter 17

Makoto after introducing the three girls quickly said her goodbyes as she needed to go check up on her broody sister and apparently and I quote. "Make sure she doesn't try to make sweets out of mutated monster sugar cane again."

Leaving me alone... With the dysfunctional duo and Keqing apparently. "So... My name is Jake Barriss, I have the elements of summoning, water, and a newly awakened element that mimics astral events," I explained gently as I tried to make a good first impression on Keqing and Furina.

Lalatina... I could already tell was utterly hopeless as she was till mumbling about being betrayed and being used as a distraction to allow our team to survive.

Furina grandly laid her hand across her somewhat flat-looking chest as she said with a grandiose tone. "Then Jake Barriss, I Furina bearing the Noble name of Folcalors will protect you with the infinite souls of those I have drowned in my waters while you serve beside me!"

My lips twitched before I smiled and retorted with zero mercy. "I already mutated my water element. We both only have Novice water magic in the Water Shield and while with yours have to drown a monster to get an echo, I can just smash monsters with multi-ton water constructs."

A snort rang out as Keqing couldn't help the chuckle as Furina's eyes went wide in offense at my words.

"No! I am the water mage who will deal with controlling monsters like a great Queen! Lalatina is bait and Keqing was the attacker." Furina dramatically pointed at me as she said strongly. "You are just here to fill out the team numbers hmph!"

I looked at Keqing and she bluntly spoke. "They are both useless. Furina even as a mage is physically weaker than a typical adult due to the stress her mutated water element puts on her body and soul hence she needs to be babysat in combat with her inability to protect herself at all." The purple-haired beauty then looked at the blond-haired beauty and said with utter disgust. "Lalatina's own constitution is disgusting because she takes pleasure from pain and the act of healing from any damage she takes actually makes her cultivate faster along with regenerate her magic quicker..."

"Hnnn! Calling me disgusting and making our new leader look at me with such lustful eyes!" Lalatina moaned and for a long moment... I really fucking wanted to just abandon my promise to the Raiden Siblings to lead this group.

Hell why couldn't we just move Lalatina at least elsewhere, I had my friend Eric who was a good earth mage who could act as a defensive unit? 

But before I could voice my thoughts Lalatina's previous words caught up to me. "Wait, what do you mean I am the leader already?" I demanded.

Furina sniffed with reluctance clear in her eyes as she spoke unwillingly. "Keqing is an honorless assassin who is only good for killing, I need a protector... And Lalatina would likely make some ridiculous sacrificial play again and end up choking the monster she dove face first into its gullet to its death again making us have to dig her out. We need someone else to lead, but that doesn't mean I will be subordinate to you!"

I could only go limp with my head thumping on the meeting room table as I mentally screamed. And even more pitifully I felt Kusanali in the back of my soul trying to give me a sort of mental hug as even she found my team very unreliable.

"Alright... Whatever, I will do what I need to lead this group into the Great Lake during the competition." I said accepting my fate and while the girls shared a look of 'suprise' at my acceptance I continued evenly. "Here is my number, you girls call me so I can add us to a group chat or something." 

Furina then got my number and added me to their prior group's group chat and scrolling through the backlog my lips twitched seeing the very feminine conversations taking place on Furina and Lalatina's end while Keqing was rather quiet and only sent really short messages though she would commonly share pictures and videos of cute animals/monsters that weren't dangerous.

With that all taken care of, I stood up and said. "Then in that case, I must be going as my mother and sister are likely still in the car waiting for me after this meeting." 

Furina and Keqing gave me rather bland goodbyes but Lalatina actually stood up and said with some excitement. "I will escort you outside then. I want to get to know my team leader anyway." She said more to the other two girls who rolled their eyes and Keqing said they were going to wait for Makoto to teleport them home as Furina was also apparently a ward of the Raiden siblings after she spent a large portion of her family's past wealth to pay for protection.

'I wonder how bad her family was in their ruling that they all got killed... Or was actually another noble family that overthrew them?' I thought wondering if Furina had some kind of grand revenge plan baking in that proud mind of hers.

"Sooo Jake I have a question?" Lalatina asked and I raised an eyebrow as I took in her beautiful and curvaceous form and the obvious way I looked her over made her shudder. But she rallied her thoughts and spoke quickly and thankfully quietly. "Why are you on the team honestly?" She asked.

I shook my head as the memory of the offer in front of both Raiden siblings wasn't something I could refuse to say nothing of how I wanted the materials to enhance my cultivation. But regardless I answered easily. "We came to an agreement. Now I got a question for you if you don't mind?" I asked and she tilted her head to the side. "Are you actually a hopeless masochist pig like Makoto said, or is there something else going on in your head?" I asked with honest curiosity.

Lalatina's face flushed deep red and it was only the fact that we were in a hallway of the stadium we were in that kept her resulting whimper quiet in fear of others coming around and hearing her reaction to my blunt depiction of her. And that sight as her legs quivered sealed the deal for me mentally.

I took a moment looking at her form and I couldn't help the thought of grabbing her by the hair to see what would happen but I remembered very clearly that I had family in the car waiting for me so I just met things halfway. I reached forward and Lalatina moaned loudly as I just pinched and twisted her breast with one hand before letting go.

"Yup... You only have one use tsk." I said before snorting as I walked away while knowing all to clear, that Lalatina was going to be trouble with her antics... Though nothing was saying I couldn't take advantage of that.