Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

With Asuna purporting not to feel well, Vahn dutifully carried her back to their hideout so that she could rest. Her reaction wasn't a surprise, as, unless there was something 'very' wrong them, it was perfectly natural for people to feel queasy at merely the sight of human blood. It was a biological response that generally took years of training to suppress, so, in preparation for Asuna's sickness, Vahn prepared carbonated ginger ale and peppermint tea. Then, for the better part of an hour, he just sat with her on the sofa, hugging her close and sending calming energy into her body through her stomach.

Though she felt Vahn's reaction was a little excessive, Asuna had the expression of a contented cat as she nursed the contents of her cup. She enjoyed being pampered quite a bit, and, though she was well-aware nothing would happening, being alone with Vahn always made her heart palpitate in a pleasant rhythm.

Unfortunately, all good things were enjoyed in moderation, so, after a little more than an hour had passed, Asuna released a small sigh before muttering, "I never expected it to be so 'easy'...life seems so fragile...it's scary..."

Reaffirming his hold on the subtly shivering young girl, Vahn nodded his head, his voice as gentle as he could manage as he said, "It is for this reason that we use our power to preserve life. It takes very little effort to take a life, a fact our enemies are all too aware of...though it can be terrifying to wield the power to decide between life and death, the world would be far more terrifying if there weren't kind-hearted people willing to take up arms to oppose the wicked..."

Feeling comforted by the warmth flowing through her body, a small smile spread across Asuna's face as she rested her hands atop Vahn's. She would continue to protect the world even without his guidance, but, knowing she could rely on him when things got difficult, she felt extremely safe and secure in his embrace. If she really wanted to, she could even set aside her sword, and, rather than blame her, she knew Vahn would silently shoulder her burdens with an understanding smile...

---

While one of his vessels was comforting Asuna back at their hideout, another version of Vahn was idling a few hundred kilometers outside of Vulcan, the Holy Land of Fire.

Though it was located far to the South, adjacent to a large body of water, Vulcan was one of the hottest regions in the entirety of Mundus Magicus. The average temperature, even during winter, was close to 46 degrees, and, if you moved closer to the center of the region, temperatures of 60 degrees, or higher, became relatively common.

Despite the heat, Vulcan was actually one of the more populous Holy Lands, as, with the exception of the Wind Element, Fire Elemental Affinity was the most common. For this reason, many warriors and mages migrated to Vulcan to either increase their affinity or harvest the precious minerals that could be found within the vast underground mines. Many of these were publically accessible, as, unlike other nations, Vulcan was located almost entirely underground.

As could be expected from a world with Mages, Magical Creatures, and Elves, Mundus Magicus also had a sizeable population of Dwarves. Like their counterparts in other Records, the Dwarves native to the magical world were exceptionally skilled artisans, craftsmen, and blacksmiths. They were also notorious and miserly merchants, but, unlike the Dwarves of the Iron Hills, they disdained the use of Slaves. Instead, they made use of the foreigners entering their country, allowing entrance to all but their most important mines in exchange for a negotiable fee.

Vahn had always felt something of a kinship with Dwarves, largely due to Tsubaki and Gareth, but, much to his surprise, the natives of Vulcan were just dark-skinned humanoids with slightly pointed ears. Though they were a bit stockier than normal, their bodies rippling with powerful muscles, he wouldn't have blamed anyone for mistakenly identifying them as 'Dark Elves'. Very few actually had beards, and, with the exception of the children, the average height of a Dwarf in Vulcan was pretty close to 180cm...

Needless to say, Vahn felt a strange sense of incongruity during his short exploration of Vulcan, so, after wandering around for a bit, he ended up departing the peculiar nation in low spirits. They had a number of skilled craftsmen present, but, as could be expected from a world where even an Elixir could cost tens-of-millions of Drachma, even poor-quality items were worth a fortune. This resulted in the skill level of the Dwarves gradually waning as it was simply more profitable to mass-produce mediocre magical armor than it was to invest an inordinate amount of time and effort into an item that would never sell.

Even after exploring the workshops of a few 'Masters', Vahn hadn't been particularly impressed. The only thing he found even remotely interesting was the design of a few Airfish, but, as these were a far cry from even the Custos Rosea, they were more novel than anything. Most of them would never even see production, as, much like the items themselves, even the materials used in the production of high-qualities goods were inordinately expensive.

Blue Orichalcum, used as a bonding agent in various magical alloys, cost upwards of 6,000 Dracha per gram. With even a gauntlet taking upwards of a kilogram of the substance, without accounting for other material costs, purchasing a single suit of 'high-quality' armor could cost over a hundred-million Drachma. Of course, this was only the price if you were a 'normal' person, as, much like the technology spread through high-society, it was much cheaper to purchase such items if you were a member of the aristocracy or the representative of a nation.

With the exception of Ostia, the structure of virtually every nation was designed to prevent 'power' from falling into the hands of the people. A nation like Hellas or Megalomesembria could purchase a suit of magical armor for around 4,000,000 Drachma for a mass-produced model. This was a sharp contrast to the 150,000,000 price tag presented to normal buyers, so, unless you had connections in the Black Market, obtaining such a 'high-quality' piece of equipment required a chance encounter.

Though Vahn could understand the reasoning behind limiting the availability of powerful weapons and armor, he was never fond of systems that one-sidedly served the wealthy, often corrupt, upper class. It always annoyed him to see so-called 'Nobles' selectively enforcing laws and acting however they pleased, not because they were strong, but because they were born into an environment that arbitrarily elevated them over others.

At this point, Vahn sincerely believed that 'people' were simply incapable of ruling over others, no matter how kind, capable, or competent they were. There would always come a time when even the most benevolent individuals acted in their own interests, so, in the grand scheme of things, the only entity capable of ruling over the people were the people themselves.

Unfortunately, people in groups were often exponentially dumber than the average individual, so, rather than a democracy, the only real 'solution' was to entrust the task to an objective system. Only by removing the illusion of choice could a government function wholly for the people, as, no matter how sound an argument, there would always be people for and against any proposed change. As a result, they would elect people to represent and argue their opinions, oftentimes disregarding other qualifications just so they could purport themselves correct.

As the average person struggled to even manage their own household, finances, or health, it was a little strange to think anyone was qualified to represent the 'majority'. Rather, even the concept of the majority was dangerous as it led to a situation where people were suppressed for belonging to the minority, even if they were right. Nobody wanted to become a victim, so, even if they knew they were correct, there were countless examples of people acquiescing and conforming to the majority just to avoid censure or literal violence.

By removing the illusion of choice, as people seldom had an actual say in politics and policy, it was possible to create a system that unilaterally benefitted everyone. This often required relinquishing a few 'freedoms', such as privacy, but, more often than not, such things were also just an illusion. The average government, even if it wasn't actually corrupt, would never allow a system they could not directly monitor and influence to exist. This was especially true when transactions were involved, as, without a way to track money and trace people, there would be nothing stopping foreign countries or hackers from arbitrarily stealing vast amounts of wealth.

Even Mundus Magicus had a global network similar to the World Wide Web, and, unsurprisingly, it was saturated with snooping programs. Just gaining access to the network through normal means drew the attention of several nascent Artificial Intelligence programs. They wouldn't interfere with anything you were doing, but, from the moment you logged in, they would attempt to trace your location, logging all of your keystrokes and keeping track of every site you visit.

Vahn had numerous ways to avoid detection, chief among them being Sis, but, unless they were some kind of computer whiz, the average person had no choice in the matter. Everything they did was closely monitored, and, from the moment they started making transactions, several programs specifically designed to manipulate their purchases would take notice. Some of the more invasive programs even directly tapped into any microphones or cameras you made use of, recording your voice and monitoring your facial expression when you perused various sites.

Though he believed in privacy and the importance of secrets, Vahn knew the absurdity of trying to guarantee such things. So long as people congregated in large groups, they 'needed' to be closely monitored, as, without such things, criminals would run rampant. He could never tolerate things like kidnappings, violent crimes, and ****, so, rather than turn a blind eye just for the sake of something that didn't truly exist, he would rather implement a system that objectively scrutinized everything in order to make the best decisions for the populous.

There would always be some random group of omniscient beings observing everything, so, rather than pretend privacy existed, creating a system to protect and govern the people seemed to be the most sensible solution. Few people genuinely cared about politics, and, unless it directly concerned their livelihood, they didn't really care about what was happening to other people. They just wanted to be happy and protect the things that were important to them, so, even if they had a choice in the policies of their nation, most people defaulted to whatever was most 'convenient'.

Vahn had witnessed the success of the Ark, Mother, and Shadow systems, so, while he was certainly biased, that didn't really affect the truth of the matter. People, regardless of their wealth, power, or intellect simply weren't suited to rule over others. Even he wasn't an exception to this, as, if put in a situation where he needed to choose between caring for his loved ones and the Empire, the former would always take precedence. If he couldn't even protect the things he cared about, pretending he was qualified to rule over an Empire would be completely asinine...

---

While ruminating over various 'truths', Vahn continued to spread his senses through the area, using his domain to keep track of several groups of people.

After his previous display above Lake Argyre, there were a number of groups who had been eagerly trying to track his location. These particular groups, however, belonged to delegations representing both the Empire and Confederation. They were trying to secure trade agreements with the Dwarven nation of Vulcan, as, after having two of their largest fleets grounded, they were in desperate need of capable craftsman and supplemental resources.

Like most nations governed by a Great Spirit, Vulcan was considered neutral territory, often trading with both sides during times of war. For this reason, Vulcan was one of the few nations that hadn't experienced a recession prior to the war. Rather, a large number of people had migrated there for work, as, every time war broke out, they were sure to profit immensely.

Vahn wasn't particularly fond of arms dealers that supplied both sides of a conflict, but, as is wasn't like they were the ones to trigger the war, he couldn't really blame them for wanting to benefit. The only other option was to shore up their defenses and risk antagonizing both superpowers, as, in the pursuit of profit, the Dwarves had literally built Vulcan in between the two nations. This was one of the reasons the two powers chose to fight near Lake Argyre, as, with the heavily fortified Dwarven nation in the way, they didn't have much of a choice...

Even if their main purpose was profiteering, it was impossible to deny that Vulcan was responsible for preventing things from getting too far out of hand. Due to their country's location, Hellas and Megalomesembria were generally forced to kill each other in their own territory. Though this didn't really stop them from fighting elsewhere, the positioning of Ostia forced them to travels thousands of kilometers just to avoid antagonizing the ancient kingdom.

Though it wouldn't have made much of a difference in the original timeline, Vahn was impressed by the efforts of nations like Vulcan, Ostia, and Al Jamila when it came to restricting the movements of Megalomesembria. They effectively forced the infamous industrial nation to fight in the deep South, a sparsely populated region of ice and snow. Their only other option was to travel more than eight-thousand kilometers East, traversing a vast ocean in order to try and attack the Empire by invading Ariadne.

As it simply wasn't feasible to extend their supply line through a massive wasteland, requiring them to circumvent the Noctis Labyrinthus in the process, Megalomesembria had little choice but to play by the 'rules' that had been imposed upon them. This was one of the downsides to being an almost universally hated nation that bullied others into acquiescence. They ended up making an enemy out of virtually everyone, and, if not for the large number of supplies they received from Mundus Vetus, it wasn't difficult to imagine Megalomesembria crumbling under the weight of its own ego.

Vahn was in a unique position where he could greatly accelerate the corrupt nation's collapse by simply putting his foot down and preventing the creation of weapons of war. He could also sever the supply lines of both the Empire and Confederation, forcing them to gradually withdraw until it was simply impossible for them to continue waging war. Then, if he genuinely wanted to act as a deterrent, he could systematically remove the corruption from both sides. The only downside to this was that he would effectively trigger a civil war, as, the moment they thought he was on their side, those who had been lowering their heads would not hesitate to lift their banners and commit even more heinous deeds in the name of 'justice'...

Shaking his head, Vahn repressed a sigh as he lightly pat the tiny wolf cub that had been nestled in his lap. This caused the midnight blue pup's ears to stand on end before she looked up at him with rounded eyes, an unspoken question lingering in their ruby depths. To this, Vahn gave a small nod, and, without needing to inquire further, Fenrir's body rapidly grew to nearly twenty meters in length as she leaped from her perch and prepared to disable or destroy all of the passing vehicles...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Life is fragile...','People and Politics don't mix','Vahn is finally taking action!?')

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