Munetsuchi

[Bloodedge]

The departure of Solomon resulted in a timely exodus of most men in Munetsuchi's palace. Qin had little purpose to stick around from the beginning, and would be gone by the time Anais returned. Wukong had oddly taken his place by the throne, where he seemed to be... putting the goddess's hair back in order? Yes, that appeared to be the case. Mugen continued watching and waiting, mulling over what he'd be doing next. All the while, Ailen simply awaited the return of his pupil for the next lesson. She'd have to receive a tour of the labs if she was to be doing any experimentation here, but first... he'd have to establish a sleeping arrangement. "That's that, then. Now, I think it's safe to say you've had a very busy afternoon. What sort of room would you like?" he wondered.

Meanwhile, Charlemagne was beginning to stir under the familiar warmth of a candle. Slowly but surely, his mana was returning under the candle's amplifying effects. The lad had enough to function, though it wasn't as if he had much energy prior to that little stunt of his anyway. "Ugh. Where am I?" he wondered, his vision an absolute haze. "And why do I keep getting run over by trucks?" he asked further. Perhaps it would be in Charlemagne's best interest to take a rest day after all the nonsense he'd been through. Maybe he'd do that... whenever he could tell left from right.

[Apollymi]

Munetsuchi's throne room had all but cleared out after Solomon's exit. Upon looking around, Anais noticed that Qin was gone, Ailen was waiting for her and Mugen seemed to be contemplating something. Ah, but Sun Wukong was busying himself, doing the godesses's hair. Anais had a brow quirk while she took in that sight and it was oddly cute and not really surprising when she considered what Sun Wukong was, 'Monkey-senpai acting like a monkey and grooming someone isn't really surprising,' she thought absently. That being said or rather thought, Ailen spoke to her much to her own happiness. He made the claim that she'd had a busy afternoon, and asked her what kind of room she liked. Ah, yes, the goddess Miwa had stated that they all could stay, and given ehr own connection her staying was pretty natural anyway. "It really has been very busy, as for a room..." the girl seemed to go into deep thought. Why? Well because as was the case the last few hours her internal voice had decided that now was the opportune moment to speak up. 'Take Shishou's room!~' Anais's eyes widened. Why was her internal voice so very forceful? Asking such a thing went against her very nature as a Japanese person, she'd get herself out of this, "Is there a room like yours anywhere... I like that one," she mused. Yes, she wouldn't take his room, but if she could have a similar one she could be happy. Or at least that is what she could tell herself. 'Boo, part of the point is to share it with him, ya' know?'

While Anais continued to battle her internal voices, Charles began to stir with another set of sentences. Once again, he'd find himself with his head in Sakura's lap all the while she studied that candle floating above him, bolstering his ability to regenerate his missing mana, even outside the direct influence of his friend who'd cast it. She found this magic quite interesting and wondered if the other lass understood how advanced it was to be able to make something so self-sustaining. "We're in on of the other pavilions. It is a nice place, I thought it fit you..." she stated as if it made the most sense in the world. To the rest of his statement she could only look down at him with curious eyes seeming to not understand something. "I don't know what a truck is... but, you're probably feeling so strangely because you keep trying to act while your body doesn't have any mana. You should let it regenerate before you attempt any more uses of magic or even magecraft at this point," she advised. "Also this candle is interesting," she said pointing to the candle. She wondered if it would disappear when Charles finished regaining his mana.

[Bloodedge]

With lodging in question, Anais appeared to be in thought. That was fine, and in fact, expected. There was much variety in Munetsuchi, so it was always possible to acquire something resembling what she wanted. What did she want though? Ah, she asked for something like Ailen's room; she liked that one. In Ailen's mind, that made things far easier in many, many ways. If she liked that particular room, she could be perfectly accommodated. "Ah, excellent choice. Easily managed," he said simply. There were no heavy implications given, but in his mind, Ailen recalled the benefits of a shared bed between mentor and apprentice. A low-frequency mana transfer overnight made one more receptive to another's energy, and furthermore allowed greater retention of it. "Come along then," said Ailen, who would then lead the way out of the throne room. Of course, he would indeed be headed toward the same room Anais previously exited.

Charlemagne heard a voice. Ah, it was Sakura again. Was he in the same position as before? It seemed so. A brief explanation let him know motor vehicles didn't exist in Munetsuchi either; he'd still yet to see one anywhere in this world. "Mrph... It's like a mechanical carriage," he explained easily. As for why he felt this way, it was easy to blame his excessive use of energy. On the other hand, using his mana felt a fair bit different compared to previous experiences. That break was becoming a more appealing idea by the moment. As Charlemagne's vision began to clear, Sakura said something about a candle. Oh. He could somewhat see it now. "That's Annie's; she's a lifesaver. I should be good to go pretty soon if she left me that," he said.

[Apollymi]

Anais being in thought had little to do with the variety of Munetsuchi and everything to do with trying to avoid being imposing. It was her nature after all, to not get in anyone's way for any reason. Her quiet demeanor, beyond that would apparently finally be rewarded. Her question would have Ailen claiming she was easily accommodated. "Hai!" Anais seemed pleased. If she could sleep somewhere comfortable and maybe even avoid some strange pitfalls of harem life, it might be easier to come to terms with it. Besides all of that, perhaps a bit of sleep would help her feel better about her overly busy day. All the while, Miwa watched a knowing smile crossing her face. She realized what would happen here and strangely given the girl's previous actions what she was trying to avoid. 'Too easy,' the goddess thought. Oh well, Anais was soon following along with Ailen and taking in a strangely familiar, 'No, he wouldn't actually have interpreted that desire that way... right?' she questioned herself. 'Shishou is super smart, he gets it!~' her internal voice was way too pleased. Maybe just maybe, she was being lead to a similar place because the wings were themed. Yes, that made sense, like hotels having different placements of similarly designed rooms.

Charles on the other hand, was being treated to another lap pillow while he spoke of things unknown to Sakura. He made the claim that a 'truck' as he called it was some sort of mechanical carriage. She'd seen carriages, and she understood the existence of machines though they didn't fall into her regular realms of study. Oh, perhaps this was one of those strange other world things that were used to move about. Yes, that made sense when considering other factors. "Sou ka, I don't know if the image I have in my head is right but that does make sense," she stated seeming to have a wayward thought or two. Ah, but onto the candle, he called the elafia girl 'Annie' and claimed she was a lifesaver. That the candle itself would help him get better in no time. She gave it thought, the pair must really be friends. Anais referred to Charles as Charlie, and she'd gone out of her way to provide that candle after he'd collapsed. "Oh? You two really are good friends then," she considered the naming issue first. "This candle is interesting as it seems to manipulate the mana around itself and alter its frequency to encourage receptivity in the intended target. It's a very complex thing for something that looks so simple... she might be brilliant," Sakura commented. "I wonder if we could be friends?" she questioned. She'd like to pick the other girl's brain a bit, but still wasn't truly sure about all else. It'd take quite a while for her to understand completely the nuances of interpersonal interactions.

[Bloodedge]

Ailen did not understand the elafia's internal desire to share his room, nor did he have any ulterior motives. Simply put, a room 'like' his own did not exist, and any that did would be a downgrade to the original concept. Apart from those factors, it was simply mutually beneficial for them to share a bed whenever possible... so Anais's familiarity with the path they walked would only persist. Such would be the case all the way to the very same door she'd passed through twice now. Once in and once out would become once in again, as there was only one door Ailen would open. Perhaps the integration of a few other mana signatures would even let her realize the more special nature of this room. In truth, there was a magical seal around the room of each Myouou, keeping the interior and exterior mana sources from intermingling while also keeping unwanted presences out entirely. "Okaerinasai. Make yourself comfortable," Ailen said while walking in. He was already doing as much himself, fiddling with buckles to loosen his upper sleeves.

Whatever mental image Sakura had of trucks may not have been far from the truth, considering the vast array of vehicles Charlemagne had seen in his lives. Moving on, Sakura made the strange comment of how he and Anais must be good friends. Of course they were; he considered their entire group the equivalent of a large family. "Well, yeah... We're all good friends," he said with a yawn. Sakura took a moment to comment on the candle's nature, concluding with a curiosity. Could they be friends? Charlemagne couldn't imagine that being anything but likely. "Of course you could! Annie's a little skittish, but she's coming out of her shell a lot lately. You guys could be awesome friends," he said, settling further into comfort.

[Apollymi]

Anais was in turmoil once more. She'd been trying to avoid any strange pitfalls. Though she didn't like being alone, she would have taken a room by herself to preserve this man's peace and his space. But much to her own dismay the room he stopped in front of was his own. There were no other doors immediately close by and he opened it and stood waiting for her to pass the threshold. She would of course, as it would have been rude to stand around, but it was different from what she expected. "Shishou, I didn't want to impose," she murmured softly. Actually, having crossed into the room, she felt like she'd placed a pair of noise cancelling headphones onto her head. It was as if all outside noise had disappeared completely. It really was a relaxing place, she did like the room... "Oh, tadaima. I do really like this room, so thank you for sharing it with me," she managed somewhat sheepishly. She figured regardless of their conversation she wouldn't really argue about being here. And to that her internal voices had nothing to say aside from seeming to be pleased. Sharing a room with not a girl was bound to be strange, but she supposed that was part of this learning experience, perhaps she should take it in stride.

According to Charles they were all really good friends. Sakura assumed that he meant himself and his 'Peers' that group of people they claimed. According to the previous conversation only one among them wasn't up to their general standard, but the others seemed to get along well enough. Charles claimed that Sakura and Anais could be friends, that the latter was skittish but had been coming out of her shell lately. "Hm, okay... I will see," she said noting that Charles seemed to be getting more comfortable as the moments passed. The use of her lap as a pillow was something she'd allow him without any fuss, still a gentle hand rubbed his head as he seemed to be getting quite relaxed. "Given your depletion you should sleep, and eat when you wake to avoid any undue fatigue," she stated simply. The tool provided by his friend would indeed be helpful but the lad did need to replenish his mana stores and could do it more quickly than he was currently thinking about.

[Bloodedge]

Upon reaching his room, Anais claimed she didn't want to impose. Oddly enough, he had no idea what she was talking about. "How so?" he wondered. Whatever the case, Ailen would soon be rid of his top and working out of his breeches. If Anais would be resting, he would do the same. After all, he had to keep his own mana in high enough capacity to give numerous lessons. "Actually, sharing a bed has numerous benefits. The frequencies of our mana will attune themselves to each other with long-term contact, making future lessons simultaneously simpler and more potent," Ailen explained while bending at the waist, pulling trousers down over his hips.

Sakura was still talking, yet Charlemagne seemed hardly capable of focusing. It took all of his consciousness to process her words. Satisfyingly for him, she spoke of sleeping. What a wonderful idea. Of course, Charlemagne heard her words a bit differently. His ears told him they should both sleep... or perhaps it wasn't only his ears? "Mm. I thought you didn't sleep much," he said while stretching out, freeing Sakura's lap of his head and taking one half of... whatever was beneath them. "Yeah. Sleep sounds great," he added, yawning yet again.

[Apollymi]

Ah, Ailen truly didn't appreciate the amount of boundary respecting that someone like Anais did and was used to. She looked a bit embarrassed as she began undoing the buckles on her shoes. How did she explain it? "Well, normally people are quite reserved about others entering their personal spaces. You choosing to share them with me earlier could have been simply a matter of necessity. I wouldn't expect to keep being so invasive. It feels a bit rude to intrude on your privacy and peace in such a way," she explained of the situation. True enough he'd invited her here of his own accord but it still was one of those things which was unexpected. Though she realized their relationship was one which dictated intimacy, this was a far cry from general intimacy... to be perfectly honest she'd never expected to see this room twice, much less be allowed to sleep here. Meanwhile, Anais looked up and found her teacher had all but discarded most of this clothes and was even taking off more as he proceeded to explain the benefits of sharing bed space between. 'And he's getting naked. So naked...' her brain was on fire. No wonder she was tired, it was taking all the energy of her body just to keep her mind from wandering too far. "That makes sense. Mana tuning through contact is pretty common in general. It might be a bit odd to consider two people the point of that kind of assertion but it's fine," she mused. Of course, he would be preparing to sleep naked. Sharing a bed naked with a man wasn't something she had on her list for the day. 'Do it! Do it! It'll be great!~' her inner voice was back. Well, she didn't pack her own bag so she doubted her normal sleep attire was present regardless. In fact, she was more afraid of finding some strange lingerie in her bag than anything else. 'Topless. I can do that... does that work?' she asked herself as she undid belts and armor pieces after removing her cloak. 'Fine. Sounds like we're sleeping in thongs!~' Her inner voice having access to her inventory of words was disturbing. Whatever, though her reddened face and occasional glances towards her mentor were very pointed.

Charles seemed to be falling back to sleep rather quickly. Of course, this was fine with Sakura but she didn't expect him to stretch out more nor to mention her sleeping. She hadn't intended to sleep but if he wished for her to, she'd join him. "I do not normally. Sleep is not truly necessary, but Otou-chan says there are a great many benefits to sharing such things... so I can sleep with you, if you'd like," she mused. She rather easily used those shadows to dissolve her clothing at a single moment's notice. She was naked beneath and easily wrapped herself around Charles as he settled in for sleep in this rather luxurious bed. "Oyasuminasai, Char-kun~" she whispered as she settled in against his torso, facing him so she would watch him sleep initially at least.

[Bloodedge]

Ah, so the act of imposing was somehow meant to be sleeping in his room, was it? Such utter nonsense, Ailen thought. "Think nothing of that. Again, you are my apprentice. It is only natural that my room and bed be available to you, whether I am present or not. Though I suppose it would be more odd for me to not be present. I should be far more attentive than that," Ailen mused. All the while, he was stripping himself bare. Not a single article remained on Ailen's person by the time he looked toward Anais again, and once he did, he found her glancing back. It seemed she was discarding several articles as well, which he assumed to match the extent of his own disrobing. In Ailen's opinion, such would only be natural. "Is something the matter?"

Meanwhile, Charlemagne was losing consciousness by the second. He only became more and more comfortable while Sakura spoke of sleep and some unknown benefits it held. Well, he could certainly list a long line of benefits, though he didn't know she meant shared sleep when speaking. Oh well. Whatever she meant, surely it wasn't something outlandish. Charlemagne's still-open eyes caught sight of Sakura's dress vanishing. At this point, nudity didn't even surprise the lad. Strange though, was how she chose to wrap her extremities around him, facing him as consciousness slipped away. No matter. A goodnight was given, but not returned... simply because Charlemagne was no longer awake enough to do more than mumble.

[Apollymi]

Ailen had mentioned earlier that their new relationship was something all encompassing among elf-kind. Of course, she'd heard those words and understood them, but at the same time the amount of openness which was generally unexpected. It was heart-warming at the very least, perhaps she was indeed just overthinking things. "Shishou..." she murmured. All other things aside, she could at least deal with this particular development. "If you say so... I won't think too much about it..." she mentioned. Just the same she'd gotten down to base amounts of clothing and had undone the strings on her top and slipped it off, before moving to slip her stretchy pants off her bottom. She had been looking at her teacher and he'd taken note of it. That was almost strange, but perhaps she should just keep her thoughts off her face and avoid staring at random? Yes, probably. "Iie," she murmured as she slipped off her pants. She began neatly folding and stacking her things with her hair spilling down her chest, as was natural for it to do when it wasn't hidden beneath her hood. "I just realized I don't think I've shared a bed since coming here... I have no idea how it should work," she stated. She wasn't a nude sleeper, but sleeping in underwear like the ones she had on shouldn't be a problem given they were basically just strings anyways. Having expressed her oddity as something other than her major mental freak out she was content to crawl properly into bed and sink into its softness. All the while she'd wait to see how very far this form of bonding would be going today. Yes she could do that. This was just a step towards her own comfort in her student teacher relationship.

Just the same Charles seemed to have passed out almost completely by the time, Sakura had wrapped herself around him. She wondered if he might want to strip down, but she'd not gotten a chance to ask. Just the same the lad seemed more concerned with sleeping than literally anything else. Oh well, that was something she could potentially deal with later. She'd watch is face for just a while before settling into sleep.

[Bloodedge]

Anais claimed she wouldn't think too much about being a bother. Indeed, it was only a pleasure to have her sharing the same space. Naturally, both parties being without clothes was only a boon as well. Anais may not have shared a bed with anyone in this world, but she would surely discover the many benefits as well. Ah, but the girl was not completely without clothes by the time she stopped disrobing. Those... rather interesting undergarments were still in place on her yet fuller form. "Hmm. Well, I'm sure you'll find it insightful among other things. That... really is an interesting thing," he said absently, seeming enamored with what should have been a simple pair of undergarments. There was simply something about those; he couldn't place it. Perhaps further study would be in order. Either way, Anais made her way onto the bed. Ailen followed suit, crawling into the space behind her. His bare form would be pressed against her back, particularly where his lap cupped around her posterior. One arm was to find itself draped over her midsection as he settled, managing to avoid encountering any antler-related issues. "Is this suitable?"

All the while, Charlemagne was slipping further and further into unconsciousness. He hadn't taken off a single thing, but he also didn't have the energy to. Frankly, several hours of sleep was about all he could give proper consideration to. Soon enough, he could give consideration to nothing except whatever dreams passed through his mind. Actually... the first dream appearing to him was not one from his own perspective. There was that woman again ─ the one from that black room. Sadly, Charlemagne wouldn't remember the details of his dream state, for better or for worse. . .

[Apollymi]

Anais would try not to think about being a bother to this man's privacy, and at the same time she would be told about the potential insights to sleeping together. Perhaps this was a thing perhaps it would simply be one of those things one got used to over time. Whatever the case, she knew one thing was certain, her mentor had developed a strange interest in her undergarments. This simple thong was still something he found the need to comment on, and the girl's face flushed just a bit. 'How is he still noticing these?' she asked herself. 'Because it's awesome! We look great!~' her internal voice was a bit of a confidence boost at the very least. 'And this definitely means we can entice him with cute panties, think about it!~' and right back to it. She had nothing real to say in response so she tried to settle. Only settling would involve someone else pretty soon. Ailen joined her in bed, and she found him cupped around her body. He was pressed against her back, her bottom was seated against his lap and then an arm was thrown over her person. He was quite a tall individual and as such he had no issues hanging on to her this way despite her having antlers and all. Interesting. There was a certain warmth involved with such a thing, though she was naturally inclined to be skittish, with his form pressed against hers, the elafia's form found relaxation. She took a bit of a deep breath and her breathing slowed a bit as well. Hm, her eyelids felt kind of heavy too. She didn't think she was this tired. Oh, and Ailen was speaking again wasn't he? Was this suitable. "Hai, it's quite nice actually," she said as if she was surprised by the results. A little yawn escaped her lips and she propped her head up gently on her arm. It was unusual... normally it took a while for her to fall asleep, mostly because she could hear so many things going on. Ah, but here and now there was sweet silence, except for the sound of Ailen's heartbeat and the gentle flow of his mana. Actually... it was relaxing as a sound. "Oyasumi, Shishou..." she murmured as those heavy eyelids of hers found their semi-permanent close.

While Charles dreamed Sakura did the same. Of course it took a bit longer for her dreams to start up, but once they did she could see many things. The girl actively wondered if her dreams would gain more clarity now that she had better clairvoyance? Well, she supposed she'd be finding out. All the while, even she seemed to be a great deal more relaxed while sharing Charles company. She hoped he found sleeping with her pleasant.

[Bloodedge]

With confirmation that Anais found their positioning suitable, Ailen settled further. In such close proximity, he could feel that deep inhale and subsequent relaxation from the girl. All seemed to be well. The heat from their bodies would intermingle overnight, and so too would small traces of mana between them. Before any of that, however, there were a few words shared. "Hai. Oyasuminasai," Ailen bid in the girl's final conscious moments. Three people would sleep, but Ailen was not necessarily among them. His eyes did close, and he entered a meditative state resembling sleep. Alas, a certain amount of consciousness remained on the surface as his mana attuned itself to Anais's fully. One would find Ailen's room to possess a calming aura enough to enable sleep beyond the norm. It was only afternoon when Anais fell asleep, but eight hours was easily a long nap in this space. The expected amount for a full night's sleep was a bit closer to sixteen hours, which would place the average waking early the following morning. And so, the hours began to pass. . .

Shortly before dawn, Charlemagne had not woken even without such additional effects. A silent calm had spread over Munetsuchi, all stemming from... somewhere not far from the palace. What was it? Time would tell. Whatever the cause, Mugen had already returned to the throne room and taken the chair for himself. In doing so, he rested a cheek atop his own fist and sighed. "After all that excitement yesterday, I thought today would have less of a boring start. I keep saying this era has the strangest balance," he chattered.

[Apollymi]

Anais had never been a very heavy sleeper. In fact, it was hard for her to be, between her fearful nature and her super-human hearing any random noise within a certain radius could wake her. But within Ailen's room a certain comfort was taken and beyond that comfort, a trust was placed. The room itself calmed her and so did Ailen's mana, as such she found a sleep deeper than she had even in two lives. Ah, so as the hours ticked by the girl barely moved at all. Breaths escaped her lungs in gentle bursts and her heartbeat slowed to a gentle thump. The only thing to occur ever so often was a gentle shifting of her hips and even that was rather short lived each time it happened. Did she dream? Maybe... if nothing else, her brain took the downtime to convert all that information she'd gathered into firmer memories. Boxes were sorted, organized and filled. All information pertaining to Alchemy was sorted into its own special place and then... the dreams started. Of forests, of places to find ingredients. Of the sun warming her face of many things she imagined she'd experiece, or maybe things already experienced by someone else. The point was unsure but at the very least, her dreams were calm and she could sleep peacefully.

Sakura hadn't slept for quite a while, but when she did this time, it was quite peaceful, but unlike Charles she'd had a decent amount of energy to start with. Her eyes opened gently and she looked at the lad beside her wrapped up in her arms and smiled. He looked so very unassuming while he slept. At the same time, she watched as that candle over his body was flickering near its end, just about to go out. She took a moment to view the lad and realized it was truly connected to his full regeneration. Life was rather interesting in that case. In the meantime, Miwa had been busy sorting through various amounts of energy, and looking into the new information provided. She made sure her new guests would be well looked after by everyone who worked in her palace and then went on to test the limits of her new magical abilities. Finding out the limits of this new Order and learning the truth of Sources. It'd been a night spent burning her brain for the sake of her own curiosity the best sort of night.

[Bloodedge]

Peace. If one word could be used to describe the current state of Munetsuchi, it was... peace. Charlemagne slept peacefully, and Ailen peeled open his eyes in a peaceful state to witness a still-resting Anais. The busiest person within the palace was Miwa, according to Mugen's senses. Qin and Wukong were nowhere to be found, and neither was that pink-haired brat from the previous day. As such, the demon would only sit atop the throne in relative silence. Part of him was disgusted by it all, but another part deep inside had once longed for such a thing. Could he truly hate it? No... though he did hate one thing. Over the course of a night, Mugen did not choose sleep. He'd been awake all along for reasons all his own. Sadly, in none of that time did he sense the progression of a certain student into the next phase of learning. One would think those mortals would be more rushed for development, but no ─ that one seemed to be on a path that was simultaneously safe and dangerous. Ah, but chaos struck all things equally, regardless of the timing. Solomon's exchange must have had something to do with that eventuality, he figured.

Rarely did Mugen stop to think about these things since his physical incarnation. How strange things had become. This world was once a place that none could know silence for a single night. Now however, there were select places that could find solace in the quiet breeze even while hell rained down upon other areas. These segmented lands held so many differences from one another, and many more from the former state of the world. Could this even still be called Alaya? Perhaps it could... "But I've strayed so far from normal now, I'll never find my way back. And the truth is... I no longer want to," he muttered as if speaking to another entity even in an empty room.