Chapter 71: Book 2 Chapter 24 – Snake Girls Forever and Training

It was a wonderful night, but Jake had some spots of memory missing, or some of it was a dream. Didn’t he remember Fhesiah showing up and saying–

[Good morning, Master. Did you have a good time, finally having two girls at the same time? Why, I’m a little upset that I wasn’t there for your first threesome.]

Jake wryly smiled at that, he supposed that it was in fact technically a threesome. Still, he knew she was just jesting based on her feelings through the bond. Jake certainly didn’t know what to do if she had used those mental gymnastics to actually be upset with him, as she had previously made it very clear she wanted to be involved in any threesome activities.

He said back through their bond, “It was a special day and night. Still, there were some strange–”

[Some interesting things have happened. Did you check your notifications?]

Jake hadn’t, so he brought up his menu.

[Summoner’s Bond Lv. 5: Love reached]

This surprised Jake, as he wasn’t sure he was in love with Blood, and her with him. Perhaps his and her desire were enough, or Berri and his love were enough? Jake didn’t know, as even being in love with two other girls and feeling their love constantly, he still couldn’t piece together all the feelings.

Fhesiah snorted, [Oh please, even if Blood is new, you love too easily having been starved for love as you were. It’s a good thing we never actually met Alisara, or we’d now have a mostly useless elf tagging along with us, if you ask me. She was pretty, but I do not think she would have been good enough to be a Hart.]

Jake was somewhat glad to hear that she had standards and wasn’t just going to go pushing every girl they run into his way, but thought she might just be a little elitist. Still, it was certainly true that they had never truly met Alisara, just her body. He had no attachment to this girl and thought Fhesiah was fundamentally right. While he might be able to help her create a mana core, he doubted that she herself was really special enough to go out of his way to meet.

[Well, I didn’t say a concubine or two was out of the question. I suppose she would have qualified for that? We need someone to watch our children while we are adventuring sometimes, after all. Also, I’m currently the only one who can give you a son at the moment. Well, Bloodberri can give one, but both of them would prefer strong daughters.]

Jake sighed and rolled his eyes. The parenthood thing as an adventurer seemed like it was going to be a challenge, but he knew it was not a unique thing in the multiverse. Jake would see about some books on the market, and–

[There you go again, Jake. Focus. Even though I know I was the one who brought that up, you don’t need to go so far into the deep end. We need to improve our skills, and prepare for our arrival, for now. The goddess made it sound like we’ll be coming in hot. Also, check out our new hearth.]

 

Jake was quite impressed with the change. While originally the refuge’s energy density after being upgraded was ten times the energy density, it was only ten times that of a simple T0 world. When they reached Tier 1, it was only double what a normal T1 world would expect. Now, the energy inside their Refuge was approaching what would be experienced on a T2 world instead.

In addition, he could now practice with his new god energy, which was quite welcome. It was clear to Jake that the champions they fought could use the energy in several ways, from shielding to attacking with simple brute force, to summoning their god in a way that matched their class or the god themselves, and even healing damage done to them.

But when Jake had tried to use the god energy in that way, Jake had a tough time even using it as a brute force, or a shield, mostly wasting the energy. He knew the only way he could currently use it was to use a prayer to Hestia similar to the way the original Apophis champion used it, which would have the goddess taking the wheel.

All the champions they fought were higher tiered champions brought down to their level to face Jake’s party, so their skill in using the energy would be much higher. But perhaps Jake could get enough practice that he could do well enough, now that he knew he could safely recover it.

They were brought down to his level when they used that skill, so he should be able to earn that skill at his tier, too. His body’s ability to hold God energy had increased, before he had even gotten a chance to use it. Though, if Jake had known he was going to get this fixture, he would have just used it in his previous battle and stomped the enemy champion.

Blood and Berri began to stir, and they woke up stretching, a satisfied smile on their face. Jake felt her inspect their bond, and her smile grew even wider. Blood said, “Mmm, that was really wonderful, Lord Jake.”

“It really was, Bloodberri.” Jake pulled her in for a kiss, and he inspected their bond directly, as his attention was now drawn to it. Previously, the hearth bond had formed automatically when the skill had been level five and had chosen the class with Ophelia, but he supposed that part of that was their willingness to bond the hearth with–

As he was thinking that, Blood and Berri had prodded the connection and the two, almost three hearths connected. Now, the four hearths were connected, and–

[What…Oh?]

[Hmm…how interesting.]  

Ophelia and Fhesiah both exclaimed. They could feel the change on their side, and Jake continued looking inwardly. Even Ira stirred from their spot, wrapped around Jake’s hearth to look over the change with interest.

Blood spoke, “Hmph, there’s no way I was going to hold my sister back after that separation, being the only one you couldn’t speak to or call to your side. She has always been the most important to me, and keeping her back would hurt her more than any beating. I was wary of betrayal when I joined your family, but both the bond and your actions prove that if I act in earnest with you, I know you will act in earnest with me. You are strong, your wives strong, and I know that if I ask ever so nicely, you will probably give me what I want in the end, whatever it might be. Why wouldn’t I want to enjoy all that you have to offer?”

Jake wryly smiled at that, realizing that Blood had really just proven that, at the very least, her desire matched his. That they would seek and try to love one another, even if they weren’t there yet. As far as Jake could tell, this Hearth Bonding was permanent. Their souls intertwined in a way that made them inseparable.

“Well, I’m glad that no matter what, I’ll never be without my wonderful snake girls. You two are amazing, and it reassures me that you’ll be by my side for whatever is to come.”

“Yay! Together forever! Oh, Jake…It feels so incredible. I can even feel Fhesiah and Ophelia. Even though they’re in their rooms, it’s like they’re right here! We’re really all together now.”

Ophelia laughed, [Welcome, sisters. I’m so happy you joined us! We’re going to have so much fun together, and defeat many enemies.]

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Fhesiah added, [That’s right. It’s wonderful that you girls are now together with us, I look forward to becoming closer and closer.]

Jake did the best he could to ignore Fhesiah’s designs, and he looked inward to see the flames in his hearth had changed. There were flecks of holy light and dark mana within. Jake was a little confused, though. Didn’t Ophelia have holy energy, too?

It was Fhesiah who spoke to everyone over their bond, [No, her soul and magic are not ‘flavored,’ or attuned for holy mana. Ophelia’s technique and spells transform her mana into holy mana, her affinity being strong, thus her efficiency high for it as a valkyrie. That, or the divine flames of Hestia, which follows a similar premise and has a cost of her health, stamina, and mana. You were not precisely watching the battlegroup member that Bloodberri healed, were you? That person was on the verge of death, but her almost-casual heal had restored them to full health. The cost for transitioning her holy energy into the goddess’ healing is much less, not even costing stamina and health.

In addition, while I have Qi, my soul and my Spiritual Sea do not produce it, like these two’s souls collect and produce their respective energies from the void. You can grab some from my hearth using Energy Sharing, but your hearth or mine will not produce any other than that which your vortex draws in, at least until I form my Cultivator’s Core. One might compare a Cultivator’s Core to a reactor that creates energies that match my Path, my Dao. Perhaps at that point you will see the results on our Hearths.]

It was a lot to take in, and Jake could tell even Fhesiah wasn’t entirely sure, but he could follow the logic. So, the holy light energy was Berri’s, and the dark energy was Blood’s. Could Jake use this energy?

[You can, but you are just getting traces of it now. You also have no skill in using the energy, or casting spells with it for anything but general mana. Your hearth core continues to grow, and it should evolve at the next tier. I think that is when you will receive the full benefit of this arrangement. You may be able to play with the energy now. Maybe your Hearth Control can help?

I have Advanced Energy Manipulation which makes me better able to control and use these different energies. I will have to play with it as well, but I think it will take much longer than we have for the upcoming fight to accomplish anything meaningful. I don’t think it will be worth the effort in the short time we have available.]

Jake could see what Fhesiah meant. The small flecks of holy light and dark energy coming through the hearth were just a small percentage, likely adding up to about five percent of his total combined, likely due to the bond and vortex also being linked to the other girls. His and her core were still growing along with the hearth bonding skill, so things could change in the future. Still, he played with the energies a little bit in his hearth core, and found that he could single them out for usage, or combine them or convert them into mana by pulling them out of his hearth freely, just like the plain Hearth mana.

Just playing with his Hearth mana in this way, his Hearth Control finally leveled up to three. It had been stuck at level two for a long time now, him spending time learning the ways he could use this special mana. Still, Jake certainly had a lot on his plate–

Ophelia interrupted with a commanding tone, [Oh yes, that’s right, Jake. You get your butt up here so we can get some proper training before breakfast. You’ve been slacking on your melee training as of late.]

Jake sighed, and gave Bloodberri a wonderful hug slash motorboat and a kiss, which was met with a delightful giggle from her. He got out of bed and got changed, heading to the training grounds as he thought of just what type of training lay ahead. They had been light on the training after they returned, though it’s not like they wasted more than half a day, anyway. There was the celebration in the evening after they returned and met with the goddess, and Bloodberri’s date in the afternoon, the morning having been spent crafting.

Jake arrived and started getting geared up, only finishing getting his greaves on before Bloodberri arrived in her usual clothes she wore under her armor. He looked on with interest as she took out her new armor. It was one large piece and absolutely massive, and as she held part of it up, it looked both dull and like it was a little too elastic. He could see small blades and plates, but he couldn’t see how coverage would be very good. Jake wondered exactly how it worked. She slid her snake tail inside, almost like it was a giant sock for her entire body. As her body finished filling it out, the top was almost put on like a large coat.

Just as she finished putting it on at the top, the armor sprung to life. First, her helmet, that seemed more like a hood at first, wrapped around and latched on and clamped shut. This protected even her face, chin and neck areas, leaving only her eyes visible. The shoulders tightened and the center of the ‘coat’ met and clamped shut the middle, closing where there had been a gap previously. Over where her waist was, a girdle or wide belt covered her important organs both above and below it. Jake thought it almost looked like one of those wrestling or boxing champion belts.

The different sections wrapped and tightened around her tail, locking into place starting from the top to the bottom, a sort of chain reaction. While the armor had almost looked dull and lifeless when she held it up, the colors were more vibrant now. There were hexagonal plates for Jake to enchant that almost looked like mounds or large studs on top of the plate mail instead, making it sort of like a lamellar plate mail, but still with the sharp blades and spikes all over it. Jake noticed Bloodberri was so armored that most onlookers wouldn’t really be able to tell that she was a woman at all. The sort of girdled belt really hid her almost waspish midsection, and he kind of wondered about the goddess’ choice. It was like there was a shield protecting her lower belly and womanly parts.

Jake couldn’t help but feel that the whole reaction was quite cool, and he looked down at his own armor, not being able to help but feel envious of Bloodberri’s new piece of equipment.

Bloodberri beamed with pride as she observed the whole process, absolutely loving the equipment. She had equipped the previous armor hundreds upon hundreds of times, and it was a lot of work every single time just to put on the many straps and buckles. She was very thankful that this chore was now so trivial. She looked at Jake, and she blurred towards him.

Jake almost felt worried, but he knew her intentions. Her chest piece opened up easily, and she hugged him right away. Her armor would no longer get in the way of her wonderful hugs. Instead, it would usually be Jake’s. Still, Jake could take his helmet off, he supposed.

Jake heard the familiar sound of a spear butt slamming against the ground. “Having fun, Jake? Wasn’t someone supposed to be getting ready?”

Jake began to sweat, but sped up, trying to get his armor equipped and ready to go. Bloodberri helped him along with Ophelia, and he was ready in just a few moments. He did think that his armor was quite cool too, but he would need to get it enchanted soon. It was the same as Bloodberri’s for the most part, just minus the blades and spikes, and instead of the instant equipping option, it had the energy orb in the center of the chest, providing a means for storing mana–but he would play with it later, he thought, as he could sense impatience over his bond spike.

Jake activated his Unbound technique and charged the impatient valkyrie that was waiting across the training grounds. She was currently using just her spear, to fight Jake using his spear and shield. He tried to put some pressure on her having superior defense as he did, but her ability to raise or lower herself, along with the spear’s ability to feint high and attack low, he had found himself quickly on the back foot after only a few prodding attacks.

Jake did what he could to push Unbound to its limits, increasing his speed to try to keep up with hers. He finally was no longer on the back foot, able to keep her at bay while being able to try to land some attacks of his own. Her body contorted to dodge one of his thrusts and she spun, her being able to add attacks from odd angles, forcing Jake to abort his attacks, before she blurred towards him. He pushed his strength to the max and tried to slam his shield into her charge, but she somersaulted over the shield, having stopped her momentum easily.

Her boot slammed into his chest, sending Jake flying several meters. Ophelia’s smile was wide as he got up.

“You’ll have to thank that champion I faced for that one. Speed and strength are good, but to use the least amount of motion to deflect an attack is the best, as I’ve taught you. There’s just so many ways to accomplish that, it’ll do us a lot of good to practice some other methods than deflecting with our weapons or shield so much. So put that shield and spear away. We’ll practice avoiding the attacks, without them.”

Despite wearing his new armor, Jake took his beating, her practice spear thudding with enough force on him to cause bruises, which wouldn’t be healed until the training was done. Still, he started to learn that there were definitely times he could avoid the attack in different ways, and if he at least had his spear, he’d be better positioned to counter. Often, he would deflect attacks that might not even need to be deflected. Pain was once again a powerful teacher.

Bloodberri had been busy practicing with her new armor. While her supernatural grace likely helped, it still took some practice to know the limits of her range of movement, keeping in mind her spikes and blades on her tail. It didn’t matter much when moving in one direction, but changing direction and weaving her body around and crushing enemies with her tail, grinding her own blades and spikes on her own armor wouldn’t do. Shredded training dummies lay demolished on the ground, and her face had the look of glee on it.

“These blades are much sharper. I barely have to put any effort into shredding them now.”

Both Jake and Ophelia shuddered imagining her getting that tail around them. Bloodberri really felt like an unstoppable weapon. Ophelia took out her new shield, and the three of them got practice facing one another or as a group. Fhesiah cultivated and practiced her new skills, not being at the level where she was ready to use them in combat just yet.

They had little less than two weeks remaining, their [Refuge] traveling to [Highlands]. They would do their best to push all their skills, teamwork, and equipment to the limit prior to their arrival.

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