endless path, infinite cosmos

chapter 108

Hephaestus, still leaning against Vahn, was unable to form any thoughts. She just stared at the pointing finger of Lili with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth, still wet from her kiss with Vahn. Tsubaki snatched up Lili who began to struggle as she slowly made her way toward the door while laughing. "Hahaha, I guess we should come back later!" Tsubaki carried out the flailing Lili before closing the door behind them.

Hephaestus looked toward Vahn, who also had a shocked expression, before finally coming to her senses and separating from his body. Vahn also recovered after she moved away, and sat up on the couch while Hephaestus ran to the door. "Wait, come back Tsubaki!" Hephaestus was incredibly embarrassed after the incident. She had completely forgotten that she had told Tsubaki to bring Lili by, and now they had both seen her in a compromising position with Vahn.

Tsubaki hadn't gone far before Hephaestus caught up with them. Tsubaki stared a the heavily breathing Hephaestus with a big grin on her face, "Are you sure, Hephaestus-sama~?" She let her words linger in the air and Hephaestus began to blush fiercely. "Get back inside Tsubaki! We have important matters that need to be dealt with!" Different from her normal self, Hephaestus screamed with words before returning back to her office in a huffy fit.

Watching her flustered figure, Tsubaki couldn't help but laugh out loud as she carried Lili into the office. She could see Hephaestus leaning against the top of her desk while Vahn was sitting up straight on the couch as he stared at the two as they entered. Tsubaki released Lili before giving Vahn a big thumbs up and saying, "I didn't know you had it in you, Vahn. Good job!" Vahn was incredibly embarrassed to hear her words as Lili took the empty spot next to him.

Lili inspected Vahn's body and noticed his skin was lightly flushed. She could see that his lips were slightly swollen and there were kiss marks on his neck. She glared toward Hephaestus and said, "Hephaestus-sama...no fair." Seeing the accusing look of Lili, Hephaestus coughed loudly and tried to clear the atmosphere. "We...weren't going to do anything. I just got caught up the moment... I had been rather stressed out lately while Vahn was in the medical ward."

As Lili continued to glare at Hephaestus, she felt a weight on her head and the familiar hand of Vahn as it began to ruffle her hair. "Don't blame Hephaestus, Lili. She tried to resist at first, and I was the one that kissed her." The words Vahn had intended to diffuse the situation practically exploded in the ears of all the girls present. Hephaestus couldn't prevent herself from covering her face as Tsubaki was bent against the wall while loudly laughing. "Way to go, way to go~! Ahahahaha!"

Lili had taken the most damage from the words, as she knew Vahn was trying to comfort her. If what he said was true, she really couldn't blame Hephaestus at all. "Uuuuh, Vahn... I was worried too you know!?" Lili was practically frantic now, and Vahn frowned slightly as he looked toward Hephaestus who refused to make eye contact with him. Seeing that Tsubaki wasn't any help, he decided to try and placate Lili.

Removing his hand from her head, Vahn reached around her shoulders and pulled Lili into an embrace. Since Lili was so small, her face ended up landing right in the center of Vahn's chest as he began to gently stroke her back. "Thanks for worry about me, Lili, I'm sorry to have put you through so much." Lili felt slightly aggrieved after hearing his words because she knew Vahn was trying to comfort her, but the smell coming from his body made her heart feel sour. Mixed in with the scent of Vahn, Lili could smell the fragrance of Hephaestus, and it made her feel a bit jealous.

After a while, Lili seemed to have made up her mind and she pulled away from Vahn a bit. "Vahn, can I get a kiss too, please?" Hephaestus seemed to awaken at the words, but she didn't stop Vahn from making a decision. Tsubaki also looked over, but she was no longer laughing and had a more serious expression on her face. Vahn contemplated Lili's request and realized that, much like Ais, she had very high affection.