Auren's airship is equipped with several large water tanks that constantly collect rainwater and even filter it, allowing the ship to maintain a large supply of clean drinking water even when it does not stop for long periods of time.
Inside his own cabin, which has a large and comfortable bathtub, Auren opens the faucet and places the small snake inside, the water pouring out, quickly beginning to fill the tub.
Satisfied, the snake does not even wait for the tub to fill. It immediately slithers beneath the faucet and opens its small mouth, swallowing almost the entire stream of water with only small parts missing its mouth and landing in the tub.
While it continues drinking, Auren briefly takes off his boots and clothes and washes himself using the sink instead. He then puts on a fresh set of underwear and a new shirt before wearing his familiar Armor. Afterward, he carefully cleans his boots using a set of oils and special organic liquids before putting them back on.
As much as Auren sees his Regalia as mere tools and sources of power, he still cares about maintaining them properly, despite the fact that they are probably ancient. They have already endured for hundreds of years, with the Aura surrounding them preventing any real damage or wear and tear, yet Auren still cares for them with every tool money can buy.
After drinking continuously for almost thirty minutes, the snake finally seems satisfied and happily begins playing inside the now half-full tub.
"I'll... introduce you to my friends," Auren says, staring at his new pet, still unsure what exactly he should do with it.
This one... will always demand a huge supply of water. That could become troublesome... I need to think of something. I also need more training with Heavy Rain. I wish I had some kind of storage tool, but that kind of fantasy is simply too convenient. I also can't create such a Hatsu by myself.
"Uhm... we need to leave," Auren says to the snake. "Drink up, or I'll simply drain the water."
Not understanding him, the snake continues playing in the water. However, the moment Auren pulls the plug and the water begins draining away, it immediately opens its mouth as wide as possible and sucks up all the remaining water within only a few seconds, stunning Auren.
Shrugging, Auren picks up the snake, which remains incredibly light despite swallowing more than a hundred liters of water.
This is beyond illogical... where is all that water going?
Taking a closer look beneath the bright lights in his bathroom, Auren notices that the dark brown 'hairs' along its upper body now have bright green tips, making them look almost like blades of grass.
When he gently touches them, the snake does nothing aside from staring curiously at him.
Soft... as for the rest....
Feeling its skin more carefully, Auren notices that while its underside is incredibly soft and smooth, the upper part feels much harder, almost like tree bark.
"I was wondering whether it was an egg or some kind of seed... initially, I was certain it was an egg, but perhaps the answer is a little more complicated," Auren reasons aloud.
The snake does not understand him and simply slithers up his arm before wrapping itself around his neck again.
Washed and fully dressed, Auren joins the others inside the airship.
Neffi and Vanessa are both present, with the latter looking genuinely drained and tired.
"Working hard, huh?" Auren asks, looking at her. "Did you sleep well?"
"Like a rock," Vanessa says. "That old fossil is crazy. Why am I even going along with this abuse...? It's not training; it's bullying! Maybe he's just a pervert who enjoys seeing me suffer... do you think there are people like that out there? Can you imagine anyone enjoying seeing me suffer? I should be treated like an idol, like a superstar!"
I can imagine quite a few.
"Of course..." Auren replies, causing Vanessa to glare at him angrily. "Not... how could anyone possibly be like that?"
"See! That old man is clearly insane. Neffi agreed with me too!" She reasons.
"Reluctantly," Neffi says. "Out of pity. Don't push your luck; you look so tired and exhausted. I bet I could beat you up quite easily as you are now."
At the same time, Marsha walks towards the table carrying more food, placing it in front of Auren. Of course, the majority of the dishes somehow incorporate the precious rice, just like Auren prefers it.
"Thank you," Auren says, while Marsha smiles at him before swiftly leaving again.
"I expected some kind of reaction," Auren suddenly says, as he begins eating the food.
"Towards what?" Neffi asks, while Vanessa also looks confused, shoving even more food into her mouth.
Auren can still feel the snake around his neck, but at the same time, its presence has become extremely faint.
It's using... Zetsu. Is it shy?
"Are you a shy one?" Auren asks the little snake, as he looks down at his own body. "There's no need to be. These are my friends. You can introduce yourself."
Reluctantly but curiously, the snake slithers from Auren's neck onto his shoulder, then down his arm and onto the table.
Suddenly it stops using Zetsu, and both Neffi and Vanessa stare at it curiously.
"The egg hatched!" Vanessa points out. "A snake egg, huh? That's a little unlucky. Still, I guess it's still better than something like a spider, though. Now that I look at it more closely... It looks more like a worm. Like a mud-worm."
Angry, the little snake uses Ren, unleashing a surprisingly large amount of Aura.
"Heh, that's nothing to me," Vanessa replies, using Ren on her own and causing the snake to despair and look towards Auren as though asking for help.
"Did you really have to pick a fight with a newborn... a newborn snake, at that? And then use your Aura to frighten it?" Auren asks, gently petting the snake.
"... When you describe it like that," Vanessa says, grinning awkwardly. "Sorry, little worm."
"What's its name? Is it a male or female snake?" Neffi asks, showing genuine interest. "Also, it does not look like a normal snake to me."
"It isn't... as for a name, I haven't thought of one yet. As for the gender... uhm, I'm not quite sure how to find out. In any case, the name should maybe be something related to drinking a lot of water. Endless Gulper, infinite stomach, or something," Auren muses while eating.
Obviously not agreeing with the suggestion, the snake hisses at Vanessa for no apparent reason and looks dejectedly towards Auren before curiously slithering towards Neffi's cup and plate.
Neffi gently strokes it and softly raises it up, using her fingers to analyze it.
"It's a girl," she says, placing it back on the table, next to her food and drink.
"Well... thankfully that riddle is solved," Auren replies. "Good job."
Looking inside the cup, the snake notices the tea Neffi is drinking and shamelessly lowers its head into it, emptying the entire cup in a flash.
Liking the taste, the snake's mood immediately improves, and it now slithers towards Vanessa, whose cup is filled with coffee.
Repeating the same process, it empties the cup, only for its face to twist in disgust. A moment later, it spits all the coffee directly into Vanessa's face, covering her in it.
"..."
"..."
Both Auren and Neffi are unable to contain their amusement as they smile at Vanessa, who looks completely stunned.
Immediately realizing its precarious situation as Vanessa glares at it, the snake hastily retreats towards Auren, jumps onto his neck, and then slips inside his Armor, only peeking out with its head.
"You deserved that... probably," Auren comments. "Let's just say you're even now."
"... fine!" Vanessa says. "Marsha, I need more coffee!"
Continuing to eat, Auren tries feeding the snake various things. Meat and even the rice are always rejected, with the snake showing absolutely no interest in solid food.
So only water? But it at least tried to drink the coffee, and it drank the tea... meaning... liquids are fine.
"Marsha, I have a request," Auren asks, as Marsha serves a fresh cup of coffee to Vanessa.
"Yes, Auren?" Marsha asks, smiling at him.
"Do you think you could prepare some rice porridge for me? Make it really thin and watery, or maybe milk mixed with the rice. Or try to create some kind of rice water. Try out a few different things, please. No spices or any other unnecessary ingredients," Auren requests.
"I'll give it a try," Marsha says, suddenly stopping when she sees the snake peeking out from Auren's Armor. "Is that what was in the egg? How cute! I'll prepare some right away. Now that Menchi's gone, I need to do my best."
With Vanessa, Neffi, and Auren curiously watching the snake, it does not take long for Marsha to return carrying several cups.
One by one, the snake stares into them. In the end, as long as the contents are liquid enough, it drinks almost anything, only rejecting the porridge, which turned out to be a little too thick for her liking.
Judging by its expression, it is also fairly satisfied with the different drinks, seemingly enjoying them and happily wiggling its tail whenever it finds one it likes.
"Does that even have an effect?" Vanessa asks while pulling the porridge towards herself and beginning to eat. "It eats, or rather, drinks, like a black hole."
"You haven't seen anything yet," Auren says, briefly explaining what happened the previous night.
"You caused that much destruction? I wanna see... maybe we can compete next time!" she says, smiling excitedly.
"No, thank you. And if you intentionally destroy the estate, I won't protect you!" Auren warns her, shaking his head.
Later, Auren continues his training with Zeno and Illumi, the snake still hiding inside his Armor while curiously staring at them and taking in everything around it.
After a couple of hours, it finally cries out in a desperate manner, immediately drawing everyone's attention.
"What does your snake want?" Illumi asks. "Is it hungry?"
"I wish that were the case," Auren replies, sighing.
"Probably thirsty," Zeno mutters. "After the amount it drank last night, that's a scary thought."
Using Limitless Waters, combined with Conjuration, Auren creates a large amount of Watery Aura, slowly transforming it into real water via the use of Conjuration, holding it in the air above him, shaping it into a broad, hollow cone before using Biting Cold to turn it solid.
He then sharpens the thin end and lets the Nen construct fall into the ground, the Aura surrounding it allowing it to penetrate the ground extremely easily, causing both Zeno and Illumi to watch in amazement as he essentially creates a giant cone out of ice, capable of holding over a thousand liters of water.
Then, he sends more Aura into the sky, drastically increasing the output of Heavy Rain and causing the rain to pour down heavily again.
Doing his best to keep it local so the rain only lands in the immediate vicinity and falls into the large cone, it quickly fills with water. The surroundings still become exceedingly wet, but not in a dangerous manner like last night.
The snake happily stretches its body against the frozen cone but quickly pulls back. Trying to climb it, it slips on the frosty surface and falls towards the ground, but Auren catches it before jumping onto the cone, which is securely stuck in the ground.
He then gently places it on the smooth inner surface, allowing the snake to slide into the water and immediately begin drinking, the rainwater quickly being emptied, even faster than it refills.
"Sorry about that," Auren says, jumping back onto the ground, sighing and breathing a little harder. "That takes a lot of Aura."
"... What exactly is the upside to keeping something like... that around?" Illumi wonders. "Also, Grampa, I've really progressed; aren't we done here already? Not just for today."
"You are lazy!" Zeno criticizes. "But indeed. I'm satisfied with your results. For now, at least. Keep it up on your own."
"We'll soon leave, then," Auren says, looking at the snake playing around in its giant ice-water bath, the rain barely managing to keep up with its thirst.
With the training finished, Zeno and Illumi leave Auren alone, and Auren suddenly receives a call.
"Rakshala..." Auren mutters, seeing the name.
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