With several hours passing and the sky outside giving way to a stunning panorama of countless stars, Jason and Lillie emerged from their shared room to prepare for dinner and welcome Ellaine when she returned home from work.
"Aaaand, change~!" chimed Lillie, performing an unneeded, but, in her opinion, completely necessary spin before blinding light enveloped her body, fading to reveal her new dress.
"Oh, wow. This situation keeps getting more and more magical," remarked Ellaine, her silvery brows perking to their limits as she sat to Jason's right atop the living room sofa. She hadn't doubted them when they mentioned that Lillie had acquired a magic dress that allowed her to recover stamina and heal injuries at the cost of Bond Levels, but she was still surprised by the latter's transformation.
"Doesn't it~?" chimed Lillie, returning to her previously pajama'd form so as not to waste Bond Levels. Then, nestling into the spot to Jason's left, she wrapped her left arm around him and kissed him on the cheek before appending, "We also consulted the Constellations on the matter, and they explained that a Pactio becomes possible when two people with a strong bond pledge themselves to one another. There are many different kinds of Pactios and four additional levels after bronze, which can be obtained by investing one hundred thousand, one million, ten million, and one hundred million Bond Levels. Mine and Jason's is a Lover's Pactio, which allows us to sense each other's feelings, and, once a day, teleport to one another's sides no matter how far apart we are."
"Did they mention what other kinds of Pactios there were?" asked Ellaine, her curiosity piqued.
"All we know at this moment is that there are twenty-two basic types, but functionally infinite evolutions. The acquisition method for rare variations is a closely guarded secret, so if we wanted to purchase the information, it would have required me to form a contract with a specific Constellation or cost far more AP than I currently possess..." answered Jason, shaking his head.
"Hmmmn...even so, this is a very interesting turn of events..." contended Ellaine, her smile turning playful as she leaned into Jason and questioned, "Shall I try pledging myself to you in a similar manner~?"
"That won't do...!" pealed Lillie, catching Ellaine a little off guard as the green-eyed blonde sat up, held up her clenched hands, and asserted, "I don't mind if you and Jason continue your current relationship since you were with him before me, but I won't permit even his relationships to be turned into an experiment!"
Though she was a little taken aback by Lillie's outburst, Ellaine maintained her composure, her expression easing into a serene, appreciative smile as she nodded and acknowledged, "That's more than a fair place to draw the line. Make no mistake—I wouldn't mind acquiring a Pactio card of my own. But in this particular instance, I was mostly going with the flow and being my usual playful self."
"Then I apologize for my overreaction..." expressed Lillie, the serious look on her face replaced by an awkward smile. As Jason's fiancée, she felt an even stronger desire to protect him than before. So if anyone tried to take advantage of him from then on, she wouldn't restrain herself—even if that person were her own mother.
"No need to apologize. If anything, it's good that Jason now has someone actively looking out for his well-being. He tends to let himself get dragged around and drawn into the paces of others..." hummed Ellaine, glancing at Jason with narrowed eyes and a serene, almost motherly smile. It was the kind of look that cut cleanly through Jason's defenses, causing his face to warm as he smiled wryly and asked, "Am I really that bad...?"
"On the contrary," countered Ellaine, shaking her head, her smile widening as she explained, "You're honest, caring, and hardworking to the point of being self-destructive. Those traits draw people to you. And though I can only speak for myself, it gives me a strong desire to protect you. I imagine Lillie and Korrina feel similarly."
"You do give the impression you would easily be taken advantage of if you didn't have other people looking after you..." muttered Lillie, holding Jason a little tighter than before. She knew about his past and what he had gone through in his previous world, so even if he denied it, she and Ellaine both knew the truth.
"Then I guess I'm lucky to have been found by such amazing and caring women..." responded Jason, exhaling faintly from his nose before kissing both women in turn. His words invariably caused him to think of Korrina, the first to find him and save his life. But since she wasn't there, he could only show his affection and gratitude to those who were. And with Lillie's newly acquired power, he now had a lot more of himself to give—albeit at the cost of approximately 1,000 Bond Levels per recharge...
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"Mmmn...chu...chuppa..."
With Lillie waking him with one of her usual deep kisses, Jason habitually reciprocated, their tongues entangling for nearly three full minutes before Ellaine, lying to his left in a grey tank top and off-white silk panties, asked, "Am I going to get a turn, or should I get up and start getting ready for my day?"
"Oh! Y-Yes! Of course!" responded Lillie, her body jolting at the sound of Ellaine's voice. She hadn't exactly forgotten that the latter was there, but after the splendor of the previous afternoon and evening, even something as simple as a kiss filled her head and heart with bliss.
"Pardon me..." hummed Ellaine, meeting Jason's gaze and licking her lips as she slowly leaned in to give him a smacking, tongue-entangling kiss. It was significantly less enthusiastic than Lillie's, but that didn't mean it was lacking in passion. She just kept her emotions in check.
"Now, before we head out, we should probably discuss what to do about this whole Pactio situation..." said Ellaine, rising to a seated position and licking the saliva from her lips after around fifteen seconds.
"Are you suggesting we should keep it a secret...?" asked Lillie, her eyes shifting to Jason as he rose to a seated position and leaned back against the bed's headboard. Her first instinct was to scoot closer to and nestle against him, but after a moment of consideration, she decided to play the part of a proper wife, sitting upright and poised.
Shaking her head, Ellaine glanced at Jason as she stated, "I can't imagine how that would be possible. As I mentioned earlier, Jason is a very honest person. It would eat him up inside trying to keep this a secret. And, from a purely pragmatic point of view, having more allies with special abilities will benefit you both."
Meeting Lillie's gaze, Ellaine reminded, "If you recall, Jason is going to be forcibly returned to his world when his countdown reaches zero. That may be some time from now, but when the day arrives, it will be better to have more powerful allies than fewer."
Returning her gaze to Jason, Ellaine reasoned, "You simply need to be selective with whom you form strong bonds and Pactios. Trainers like Maeve and Nanahoshi, for example, could become powerful pillars that support the Aether Foundation. In my case, I'm the foremost expert on Ultra-Wormholes and extradimensional planes. And I can guarantee I'll have an easier time opening a pathway to your world if I'm able to study the materials that comprise a Pactio's garments and the energy released by them."
"So you're saying we should proactively seek out powerful or dependable allies to form strong connections with..." muttered Lillie, crossing her arms under her naked breasts and cupping her chin with her right index finger and thumb in introspection. She had been pondering since the previous afternoon about how best to handle Jason's existing relationships. After hearing Ellaine's perspective, she now had a much better understanding of how to address the situation in a way that benefitted everyone—Jason most of all.
Feeling he needed to contribute something to the conversation, Jason expressed, "Honestly, I would be content spending these next fifty years without thinking about my return at all. If I live that long, I will have lived longer than just about every human that has ever existed in my world. If I can spend my remaining time cherishing those I've already formed bonds with, it would be a life well spent..."
"Oh, Jason..." muttered Lillie, her cheeks flushing and her eyes watering slightly as she stared at Jason with a mix of affection and heartbreak. His words had touched her deeply, but while she was certain she could give him a happy and fulfilling life, she had promised to do whatever it took to either help him return to his world or, at the very least, open a channel of communication between their worlds. She appreciated that he was willing to give up everything to cherish her and others, but as his future wife, she couldn't allow him to do so.
Beating Lillie to the punch, Ellaine, sporting a motherly smile, expressed, "How you live is ultimately for you to decide. The most important thing is that you don't live with regrets. So if you truly believe you can follow that path without feeling guilty or haunted by the notion you could have done more to prepare, you have my full support."
'This woman knows me too well...' thought Jason, exhaling from his nose in faint exasperation. If he were allowed to operate independently, he had no doubt he would spend the time he had remaining completing Quests to accumulate as much power as he was able before his return. In that vein, the fact that he had people who cared for and were willing to support him was a hindrance. But since he couldn't stomach the thought of separating from them, he was willing to give up on his preparations so they could live lives unburdened by his circumstances...
"I won't allow it...!" asserted Lillie, holding up and clenching her hands into fists with a decisive expression as she proclaimed, "I have already promised that I would do whatever was necessary to help you, and that was before our Pactio and engagement! I have absolutely no intention of breaking my promise, so this is the last I expect to hear such words from your lips! And that's that...!"
"Then I suppose I have no choice but to continue relying on you from here on..." conceded Jason, a faint sigh escaping his nose, but a look of unbridled appreciation adorning his face. He had reservations about the notion of proactively seeking out powerful allies, as Lillie described it, but it was technically better than his current approach to relationships. At the very least, he could rest assured that those who consciously joined them would be working toward the same goal...
"But of course! Just leave it to me~!" chimed Lillie, her smile brightening the interior of Ellaine's bedroom as she flexed her slender but deceptively powerful arms. Actions like that made her particularly endearing, but just as Jason was going to tease her, Ellaine interjected to state, "Just keep in mind that fifty years is quite a long time. If you go all-out on relationship building now, you would theoretically need to upkeep those relationships for what amounts to a hundred years by Jason's world's standards."
"Mmn...that's a very good point..." affirmed Lillie, once again crossing her arms in deep thought. She had no doubt that they could recruit many girls to their side by simply allowing them to interact with Jason regularly. But even if they managed to recruit powerful Champion-tier Trainers, it would be for naught if most of them retired or perished from old age by the time of Jason's return. In other words, rather than focusing on recruiting allies from the current generation, they needed to recruit allies who would give rise to those who might follow Jason into battle or provide aid to his world when the time finally arrived. In essence, they needed to lay a foundation for their children and their children's children to carry the torch of unifying their world with possibly countless others, not just Jason's...
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