endless path, infinite cosmos

chapter 197

Unaware of the meeting going on between the gods and their eventual confrontation with Ouranos, Vahn continued along the way with the rest of his entourage while carrying the sleeping Tina in his arms. Everyone remained relatively silent along the way as it was already late into the evening and the atmosphere wasn't exactly conducive to conversation. Even Syr, who was often cheerful and outgoing, had a quiet and reserved demeanor as she led the way. The only person that didn't seem to be affected by the atmosphere was Arnya, who kept whispering words to Ryuu and asking various questions that caused the taciturn elf to sigh.

Milan walked alongside Vahn and kept her head down for the majority of the trip as she turned her attention between Tina and Vahn respectively. Vahn could tell that her aura was still chaotic so he spread his domain to a small radius of five meters and began using the calming effect of his [Hands of Nirvana]. Everyone briefly paused when they felt the warm energy before turning toward Vahn who had looked at Milan with an expression of concern on his face.

Milan had also stopped and turned her attention toward Vahn and could see the worry in his eyes. Her heart felt a bit of warmth and the energy seeping in through the atmosphere drove away the cold night air and brought her some degree of security. Seeing him cradling Tina gently while still paying attention to her mentality made the older cat woman feel almost fortunate. Were it not for the fact that she had phantom pains and the memories of the past events periodically flashing through her mind, she would have been genuinely happy by the current events.

Vahn could see that, though her aura had stabilized a bit, Milan was still in a bad state of mind. Furrowing his brows slightly, Vahn spoke in a quiet, yet firm, tone, "I swear, Milan, I will never allow something like this to happen again. No matter what it takes, I will protect you and Tina from now on."

In response to his statement, Milan gave him a soft smile and nodded her head before standing a little closer to him. Even though she couldn't truly believe in his words, given everything that happened, Milan knew that Vahn would do his best to keep his word. She had learned the motive behind the attack earlier and it had left a deep impact on her mind, but she didn't blame Vahn at all. It was the greedy and cruel nature of the men and their deviant goddess that had led to the incident taking place.

Now Milan felt the desire to grow stronger after a long period of inactivity and wanted her daughter to also do the same. She knew that associating with Vahn and the people around him would be the greatest guarantee of their safety in the future. However, it was also this thought that made Milan feel unnerved. If Vahn refused to take care of them, even though Milan believed he would never do such a thing, she and her daughter would have nothing. This was why she accepted the offer to stay and work at the Hostess of Fertility. Though she wanted to trust Vahn wholeheartedly, Milan couldn't place her trust in a man right now.

The group continued on their way until arriving at side entrance near the Hostess of Fertility. After exchanging a few parting words, Vahn gave Milan a gentle hug after passing Tina over to her. Though he could feel her body shake slightly, Vahn wanted to comfort her and continued using [Hands of Nirvana] to calm her body. Her shivering stopped by a large amount after a few seconds and she showed Vahn a slight smile before following Arnya inside.

Syr remained in the alleyway and placed her hand on Vahn's shoulder and said in a gentle tone, "Don't worry, we'll take care of them. Make sure to stop by later and visit...everything will be okay." Finished with her words, Syr gave Vahn a short hug before following the other girls inside. The only ones left the alleyway were Tiona, Ais, Naaza, Lili, and Ryuu who had remained behind and approached Vahn.

Though she usually wasn't very expressive, Ryuu had a gentle and comforting smile on her face as she placed her right hand over Vahn's chest. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and said in a quiet voice, "Your heart is stable...you will be okay. It isn't easy to walk the righteous path, but find some comfort in knowing that you saved those you care about."