Chapter 7: Separation Anxiety

Though he made sure to lock his door the previous night, Benienma still managed to pop up within Thomas's room as if she had teleported inside. Fortunately, unlike the previous morning, Thomas made sure to cover his crotch with a pillow, so he didn't have to suffer the indignity of a little loli commenting on his morning wood.

During Benienma's original life as a human, before she had wandered into the mountains and died, she had been a young girl living and working in a brothel. She had apprenticed under an Oiran, a high-ranking courtesan, and the Enma-tei she operated offered various 'services' to their more prestigious clientele. As a result, she was scarily blase regarding matters of a sensual nature.

While he may have delved into some dangerous tags on websites such as nhentai, Thomas 'vehemently' refused Benienma's offer for assistance. He might become a pirate in the future, but he had no intentions of becoming a 'monster.' Even if Benienma was a demonic loli-baba with a three, maybe even four-digit age, it didn't change the fact she looked like an 8-10-year-old girl. If Thomas gave into her 'temptation,' he was absolutely certain he would go to one form of Hell or another...

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Before Thomas had even finished eating breakfast, Drake had weighed anchor and set the Hind on a course with their destination, a small Port City known as Coniston. The increasingly futuristic-seeming ship had a literal auto-pilot mode, so unless they encountered a storm or needed to navigate rough terrain, the Hind could operate independently of a crew. The only requirement was that it had enough Mana within its engines to sustain its many mystical functions.

Since she didn't want Thomas wandering off and getting shanked by a random thug, Drake said, "When we enter the port, try not to wander off or leave my sight. The current you might die if you get mauled by a stray dog, so do us all a favor and stay on your toes. If you do as I say, I'll take you to a tailor once we've finished our resupply. I would normally charge 300% interest for any money I lend out, but I'll make an exception for you since you're essentially our fuel source."

Though he assumed Drake was teasing him, Thomas took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose. At the same time, Astolfo remarked, "Hey, don't be too hard on our Master, Drake. He might be super weak and next to useless right now, but my instincts tell me he has a lot of room to grow. We should be helping to build his confidence, not break it down."

Nodding her head in approval, Benienma added, "Lady Astolfo is correct, dechi. To sustain three Heroic Spirits without any obvious signs of fatigue, Master's Mana Capacity is already beyond the scope of an ordinary Mage. Once he learns to control his power, he will make a fine Lord. Benienma is certain of it, dechi."

Hearing Benienma's supportive remark, realization donned on Thomas like an epiphany. He had forgotten about it, but there were actually a number of instances where Masters lacked the necessary Mana to support even a single Servant. Even Tohsaka Rin, a genuine prodigy and the heiress of a prestigious Magus family, needed to supplement her Mana with expensive gems. Yet, even after pumping Mana into the Equivalence Engine for five and a half hours, Thomas never felt exhausted...

Noticing the glimmer of realization in Thomas's eyes, Drake adopted a teasing smile as she said, "Don't get too excited. While it's true that you have an abundance of Mana, it's not a power that belongs to you. If you encounter someone with the capacity to strip it away from you, you're not even remotely special."

Though Drake's words were a little harsh, Thomas gave an approving nod, asserting, "I may have been given this power, but I'll work hard to make it my own. I finally have the chance to make my dreams come true. There's no way in Hell I'm going to remain weak..."

Clapping 'her' hands together, Astolfo exclaimed, "Well said~! Brava~! Magnifique~! As expected of my Master~!"

Smiling wryly, Thomas was about to reiterate that he didn't want to be called anyone's Master, but he was a little too slow. Immediately following Astolfo's words, Benienma gave an affirming nod, adding, "As Servants, it is our duty to ensure our Master has everything he needs to reach his full potential. Benienma will do her best to ensure he has adequate nutrition and never succumbs to an unhealthy lifestyle, dechi. Captain Drake and Lady Astolfo must support him in ways I cannot."

Understanding the 'implication' of Benienma's words, an enormous grin developed across Astolfo's face. However, before she could 'volunteer' her services, Thomas interjected to say, "For now, let's wait until the rest of our crew has assembled before making any important decisions. I've yet to decide on the 'path' I intend to walk, be it brawling, marksmanship, swordsmanship, magic, or a combination of the four. Until then, my main focus is getting healthy and trimming away my excess body fat..."

Nodding her head yet again, Benienma firmly asserted, "Leave it to me, dechi! Benienma won't tolerate unhealthy and destructive lifestyles as long as she's around! The key to happiness is a wholesome and fulfilling lifestyle, dechi...!"

Emulating Benienma's vigor, Astolfo jumped to her feet, shouting, "That's right, dechi! We may only be together for a short while, but that shouldn't stop us from making the most of things~!"

Though even Drake nodded her head in approval, Thomas's mind blanked as another realization donned upon him. Everyone seated around him was a Heroic Spirit seeking to have their wish granted by the Holy Grail. Once they reached Laugh Tale, their crew was fated to disband. In other words, even if he grew close to the people in front of him, their time together was limited...

Noticing the change in Thomas's expression, Drake raised her brows and asked, "What's got you so gloomy all of a sudden? Need to take a shit...?"

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Shaking his head, Thomas confessed, "I just realized how short our time together would be. I don't think Zelretch will pull me out of the world the moment we obtain the Holy Grail, but I can't imagine many of you sticking around once you're presented with the chance to make your wishes come true..."

Rolling her eyes, Drake stated, "Fretting over separations and departures is pointless. People come and go; it's a natural part of life. Even close-knit members of the same family must separate to pursue personal aspirations and form families of their own. Unless you still lived with your parents and siblings back in your previous world, you shouldn't expect that 'everyone' you come to care about will stay at your side. You're not the center of the world, Tom. You're barely in control of your own life."

"..."

Losing his appetite, Thomas rose from his chair and said, "I need some fresh air..." before turning around and walking away. In most of the stories he read, especially fanfiction, the protagonists would be given more than enough power to make their every dream a reality. They could collect girls like Pokemon, outsmart Gods that have lived for millions, if not billions of years, and never had to worry about anyone leaving or abandoning them. Even if their harem reached into the hundreds and the protagonist could no longer feasibly spare time for the girls he initially collected, they rarely, if ever, departed the harem...

As someone who hadn't been in a committed relationship ever since his fiancee cheated on him, Thomas would be happy to have even a single woman he could entrust his heart to. Sure, he might dream of having a harem, but that was just part of being a guy. As a seasoned Otaku, he had more waifus than he could realistically name, and, if given an opportunity, he would probably have sex with each one of them. However, that wasn't love, and, in many cases, his fantasies only made sense if he removed the woman's agency and she behaved according to his desires...

After hearing Drake's words and coming to the realization it was only a matter of time until he was left 'alone,' Thomas began rethinking each of the plans he had drafted the previous two nights.

While it was exceptionally scummy to consider, Thomas had 'assumed' he would eventually be able to have sex with each of the female Servants he summoned, excluding Benienma. Many of Type-Moon's series were eroge, Japanese porn games, so many historically male characters, such as King Arthur and even Drake herself, had been converted to females. There was also a concept known as Mana Transfer, a process by which the Master of a Servant empowers them through intercourse. Thus, even if he ordinarily wouldn't have a chance with someone as beautiful as Drake, Thomas was fairly sure they would eventually have sex.

Now that he knew it was only a matter of time before Drake and the rest of his Servants left his side, Thomas needed to consider what he would do following their departure. He would eventually lose his entire crew, so unless Zelretch yeeted him away to carry out whatever unspecified task he had in mind, Thomas would eventually need to depend on his strength and the fellowships he forged during the journey.

With the Strawhats scheduled to reach Laugh Tale within the next five, maybe six years, Thomas had a 'very' limited amount of time to achieve his goals. There was a reasonably high possibility that he could make a wish upon the Holy Grail, but, as he had already been given a chance to transmigrate, it wasn't an exaggeration to say his dream was currently in the process of being actualized. Being too greedy could spell his end, so he made a decision that would invariably shape the rest of his life...

While he would probably have sex with his Servants if presented with the opportunity, Thomas resolved to settle down with just a single woman. He would readily jump at the chance to sleep with others, but the moment he managed to woo someone like Nami, Yamato, Robin, or just about anyone from the central cast of characters, he would focus all his efforts on them. Any one of them would ordinarily be out of his league, so if he could reach the end of his journey with one of them at his side, he would be more than content...

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After reaching the Port City of Coniston, Thomas silently accompanied Drake ashore, observing as she made a fool out of various merchants and haggled shopkeepers to the point they were practically handing over their merchandise at the manufacturing cost. Afterward, she all but picked out his clothes for him, focusing on apparel and equipment that would hold up during expeditions and long trips at sea. This included a dozen breathable white shirts with open collars, several pairs of brown pants, two pairs of leather boots, a pair of sandals, and a vest. Nothing special, but infinitely better than the t-shirt and boxers he had been running around in...

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(A/N: For those that would point fingers, feel free to search the Type-Moon wiki, specifically the articles related to Benienma and her adoptive mother, Datsue-ba. The former mentions that she was a young girl living in a brothel, while the latter directly states that she was a prostitute. This is possible as, before 1903, there were no consent laws within the penal code of Japan. Even today, the age of consent in many regions is only 13 years old, so, being from an era at least 500 years in the past, Benienma being a prostitute isn't surprising. It was the only way many young and orphaned girls could survive and elevate themselves above the status of a commoner within Japanese society...)

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