CHAPTER 347: TEMPTATION

’Well, that just happened...’ groaned Vahn, his body sent crashing through the arena, which was only graded to be able to weather battles between A-Ranks, and deep into the ground. He had managed to protect himself at the last moment by releasing his Touki, but Bonney’s fist had felt as heavy as a mountain and could likely destroy one.

"Well? Still think I’m a little girl...?" asked Bonney, descending through the ground as if it were empty air, sitting atop and grabbing Vahn by the fabric of his yukata with her left hand, her right reared back, forecasting another heavy punch.

"I think you’re a very big girl..." countered Vahn, teleporting high above the arena as Bonney’s fist tore through where his face had been, causing a sizeable explosion that dislodged boulders and arena fragments as big as houses. Bouts above A-Rank were supposed to take place on a planet far removed from the stadium and its audience. Bonney had only become A-Rank a few months prior, but with the kindling of her vital essence and the nearly 50x power increase she was receiving from being a faux Super Saiyan, her Power Level of 561 had increased to 161,367.

Rising from the arena’s wreckage, her admittedly mature body already dripping with sweat from exhausting her life and stamina at an absurd rate, Bonney, in between heavy breaths, asserted, "I’m going to defeat you...and when I do...you know what I’m going to request..."

"Isn’t that a bit much?" asked Vahn, adopting a slight frown as he pointed out, "You’re already seventeen, Bonney. You can wait five and a half more months..."

"I’m horny now, damnit...!" exclaimed Bonney, the aura around her body briefly intensifying before she moved at nearly relativistic speeds to try and bury her crotch into Vahn’s face and pop his head like a watermelon between her thighs.

’Turning into a Saiyan has made her even feistier and battle-hungry than usual...’ noted Vahn, resisting Bonney’s Haki and dispersing into a cloud of golden light that curved behind her and reformed at light speeds. Thanks to her Observation Haki, Bonney was able to react to this, but now that he had adapted to her speed, Vahn was able to block and deflect her attacks as her Power Level dropped below 150,000. His maximum output was just under 76,000, but with most of her Ki being discharged carelessly into the air, Bonney’s meteoric punches and mountain-cleaving kicks weren’t even a tenth as powerful as they could have been.

Realizing she couldn’t break through Vahn’s defense, Bonney broke free of the exchange and brought her hands together near the right side of her hips, her Ki surging as she shouted, "Ka-me-ha—"

Using his well-trained Shunpo to move forward faster than Bonney could react, Vahn firmly grasped her shoulders, his expression and tone serious as he said, "You can’t unleash attacks like that here..."

As Vahn rarely took a firm tone with her, Bonney was briefly taken aback by his solemnity. The Ki she was channeling immediately dissipated, and though she didn’t intend to, her faux Super Saiyan transformation petered out as she realized what she had been about to do.

Preempting Bonney’s excuses or apology, Vahn adopted a proud smile as he added, "But, damn...you’ve truly become strong, haven’t you? Keep this up, and you’ll be a genuine S-Rank by the time we return..."

Feeling exhausted and uncharacteristically ashamed, Bonney lowered her head and bumped it against Vahn’s chest, muttering, "I feel like I’m going crazy, Vahn...you had better be worth all of this..."

"You’re gifted at making me feel like a bastard..." sighed Vahn, enveloping Bonney in his embrace, apologizing to Tiamat for leaving her to take care of the aftermath, and teleporting with the exhausted pinkette to her room. He genuinely did feel guilty about what she was going through, so while it wasn’t her birthday, he got her to lie down on a massage table to give her a sponge bath and a relieving, deep-tissue massage...

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"The Prodigal God returns..." chimed Merlin, adopting a naturally alluring smile as she stared at Vahn with her body forward to emphasize her bust, her left arm crossed atop the bar, and her right propping up her chin.

"I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long~" hummed Vahn, picking up his usual silver mixing canister to prepare himself and Merlin another round of drinks.

"Before that...that girl, Bonney, was it?" asked Merlin, preempting Vahn’s response by narrowing her honey-esque eyes and questioning, "How was she able to grow so powerful in only a year?"

"It’s primarily the result of her Devil Fruit, but she’s also worked hard to increase her base, growing from a Power Level of 285 to 561 in just the past year," revealed Vahn, expanding, "If she improved her control, she’d be a top contender in S-Rank."

"Still, to grow so much in one year...I’m tempted to join your harem if for no other reason than to ascertain the true cause and whether the results can be replicated..." teased Merlin, punctuating her statement with a slow, seductive lick of her lips.

"I certainly wouldn’t mind, but in the spirit of transparency, you wouldn’t need to join my harem to ascertain the truth behind Bonney’s and many others’ power increase," stated Vahn, pointing to the ceiling with his left index finger as he revealed, "It’s a natural byproduct of learning Bukujutsu and specialized breathing techniques. As long as someone is diligent, has plenty of food to consume, and is willing to pit themselves against strong monsters, gaining the power to destroy a planet or two would only take a decade under the Pavilion’s guidance, maybe two."

"And you don’t see an issue with elevating people to the level where they can destroy planets...?" asked Merlin.

Shrugging, Vahn reasoned, "As long as they’re taught to wield their power responsibly, it doesn’t matter how strong someone becomes. More to the point, you’re well aware of the restrictions placed on Ascendees. A person can’t exercise power beyond the restrictions of their original setting within that setting, so even if Bonney were to attain or even surpass S-Rank, her power and destructive potential would be constrained to that of a mid-tier A-Rank, at most."

"Assuming those restrictions remain intact..." hummed Merlin, tracing her right index finger around the rim of her emptied glass. She got the distinct impression that Vahn was underestimating people’s capacity to break the systems that constrained them, but with the Pavilion’s power, assets, and ability to abuse time compression, they played by a distinctly different set of rules than the rest of Invirtua...

Thinking about how simple it would be to address most of her world’s issues with the Pavilion’s backing, Merlin exhaled a faintly exasperated sigh and waited for Vahn to finish filling her glass before raising it to her lips, pausing at the last moment to question, "Is the position of Head of the Pavilion’s Magical Research and Development still open?"

"Technically speaking, the position doesn’t yet exist," clarified Vahn, his smile broadening as he explained, "I just determined that someone with your immense talent and thirst for knowledge would naturally fit into such a position. That, and many others."

Seeing Vahn wink at her, Merlin exhaled a faint, moderately amused scoff. It had only been a few days from her perspective since she and Vahn last discussed the topic, but after considering the positives and negatives and witnessing how they were able to erect a fully functioning town within just a few days, she began feeling anxious about not knowing the true limits of their capabilities.

"Very well..." started Merlin, leaning onto the knuckle of her right hand as she expressed, "I’m willing to join the Pavilion and enter your harem, but I require some assurance. More specifically, I want to experience what you have to offer without needing to part with my virtue. If I am satisfied with the amenities and resources you provide after one year, then my body will be yours to do with as you please."

Shaking his head, Vahn countered, "I’ve had my fair share of transactional relationships, but as I tell everyone considering joining my harem, it goes against everything I believe to force someone to do something they don’t want to do. As long as you obey our policies and regularly update us with the results of your research, I will provide what you need within reason. If you join my harem at some point, it will be because you wanted and chose to, not because my support hinges on it."

"You should have mentioned that a year ago..." teased Merlin, her honey-yellow eyes narrowing and a mischievous smile adorning her lips. She was originally planning to gauge Vahn’s and the Pavilion’s reaction to her using up their resources and facilities for a whole year and then refusing to stay on as their Head of Magical Research and Development. Now, after Vahn’s ostensibly sincere offer to support her research with few strings attached, she was curious to know how far his support would go as a member of his harem.

Before Vahn could respond to Merlin’s musings, the raven-haired woman abruptly got up from her stool and began walking toward one of the sofas arranged before the slanted viewing window. Vahn followed her curiously with his gaze, doing his best to avoid staring down at her slim waist, wide hips, and perky butt, but Merlin evidently wanted him to do precisely that, as, instead of walking around to the front of the sofa, she abruptly leaned over, rested her elbows on its back, and began provocatively swaying her butt from side to side.

"If this is intended to be a test, I was doomed from the start..." remarked Vahn, teleporting from behind the bar to immediately behind Merlin as he unhesitatingly ran his hands along the satiny and elastic fabric of her tight purple short shorts and up her exposed sides. At the same time, with her ass and thinly veiled mon sticking out, practically demanding attention, he shifted his hips forward and nestled his bulge firmly against her warm and surprisingly squishy crotch.

"Mmn...your suspicions aren’t incorrect, but it wasn’t your restraint that I was testing..." revealed Merlin, glancing back at Vahn with narrowed eyes and an especially alluring smile as she elucidated, "I was confirming your enthusiasm..."

"Did I say or do something to give you doubts...?" asked Vahn, continuing to caress Merlin’s sides and massage her with his thumbs as he subtly but noticeably prodded her mons with his bulge.

"Nothing in particular..." responded Merlin, her tone relaxed as she faced forward and surprised Vahn by using telekinesis on her shorts. He briefly moved his hips back, and as a result, he got an unobstructed view of her fair and voluminous ass and exposed, completely hairless pussy. He had already known, but seeing her confirm that she went commando caused his eyes to flash as her stretchy shorts pulled down to the midpoint of her thighs.

Though he was tempted to unsheathe his cock and slide it into Merlin in a single go, Vahn recalled her mentioning that she had been a virgin for the past three millennia. Thus, prompting the raven-haired to raise her brows, he grabbed her waist like he was holding a large and juicy hamburger and raised her pussy to his lips.

"This isn’t quite what I had in mind..." remarked Merlin, her expression a mask of calm, but her cheeks flushing as Vahn’s long and very dexterous tongue invaded her pussy and began systematically probing every crease and fold. When he didn’t respond, Merlin became thoughtful, her yellow-brown eyes focusing on his crotch for several seconds before she tried to reclaim the initiative by hooking her calves under Vahn’s arms, pulling her inverted upper body flush against him, and freeing his erect cock from its confines with her mouth and teeth. Then, even though it was her first time doing such a thing, she braced herself with her hands on his outer thighs and began boldly and confidently fellating him as he continued mapping her increasingly sensitive pussy with his tongue...

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