Chapter 187: Guardianship
[October 14th DxD/June 7th DBT]
'I was wondering how they would meet with Riko being so much stronger than her canon self...' mused Vahn, relaxing on the sun-facing slope of a flowery hill with Lupheria dozing silently atop his chest. Riko had told him earlier that day that she and Reg were preparing to enter the Fourth Layer of the Abyss, colloquially known as the Goblets of Giants, so he was using his day off to monitor and ensure she didn't end up nearly losing or having her left arm permanently crippled as it had been in canon.
Much to Vahn's relief, Reg and Riko, the latter wearing thigh-length metal greaves that allowed her to hover and wielding a rifle that made use of magical, armor-piercing rounds, made short work of the Fourth Layer's most ferocious predator, a primarily white, spine-wielding, exceptionally venomous monster known as an Orb Piercer. Then, using a pair of green-lens goggles that functioned similarly to a scouter from Dragon Ball, she discovered the adorable and tragic Narehate, Nanachi, secretly spying on them from afar, leading to their inaugural encounter and eventual visiting of the latter's hidden, moss, grass, and mud-formed abode.
'They should be fine from here...' concluded Vahn, closing the display to grant Riko some privacy when she separated from Reg, Nanachi, and the amorphous Mitty to relieve herself. The thought of visiting them to treat the latter's condition briefly crossed his mind, but as he was certain that Riko would request his assistance once she learned of Mitty's origins, he decided to let things play out.
'Let's see what Fran is up to...' thought Vahn, prompting Sis to produce a new display, this time depicting Fran wielding a two-handed sword with a wolf motif that was longer than she was tall, using it to cut down a group of Orcs. She had tracked down the titular sapient sword shortly after the first Tower Cycle, guided there by a System Quest, but since she viewed him as her parental figure and Roxanne as her Master, she named it Fenryl after the monster it was based on.
"Mmn...Chichi...hungy..." groaned Lupheria, rousing from her slumber and tightly gripping the fabric of Vahn's yukata. She had a habit of defaulting to simple speech when they were alone, but since he found it exceedingly precious, Vahn didn't go out of his way to correct her.
"Well, then, we better get you something to eat..." responded Vahn, rising to his feet with a burst of Touki and carrying the still-sleepy Lupheria like a koala toward a cottage identical to the one Jack-O and Dizzy had lived in when they were still inhabitants of the virtual world. Dizzy, in particular, felt a strong sense of attachment toward the structure, so while they were residents of his palace, she and Jack-O had made themselves at home in one of the Eighth Floor's training rooms.
Reacting to Vahn's arrival, Dizzy, absent her wings and wearing an outfit that wouldn't have looked out of place on Miu, consisting of a black, blue-trimmed biketard and a white, qipao-like crop top with blue accents that matched her hair, emerged from the kitchen with a broad smile, greeting, "Welcome back, father. Food has already been prepared. Shall I take Lup-chan to wash up?"
"Please," responded Vahn, nodding affirmingly before handing Lupheria over to the blue-haired half-gear, who now wore her hair in a long, split-braided ponytail, allowing her glossy, black, salamander-like tail to sway behind her as she walked. It took considerable restraint for Vahn to avoid stealing a glance at her very bubbly butt as she departed, but since Dizzy regarded him as both her father figure and Creator, Vahn even went as far as blocking his perception of her through his domain.
"Did you enjoy basking in the sun with Lup-chan...?" asked Jack-O, seated at a small dining table populated with a small mountain of food in a white, collared, western shirt that she regularly kept half-buttoned, stretch-fit white jeans that perfectly conformed to the contours of her immaculate ass, and white, western-style riding boots as she seemed to enjoy cowgirl and biker fashion.
"That girl drools like a faucet, but other than that, it was very enjoyable..." confirmed Vahn, making his way around the table to bend down and give Jack-O a brief peck on the lips before taking his seat.