Walking Disasters and Me-Choices and Reunions – Ch 41

Walking Disasters and Me-Choices and Reunions – Ch 41

I wake up on my own volition this time, still nicely wrapped up and comfy in the blankets of my still new to me bed. The brief pang of sadness that hits from not having another Sandra dream... Memory... whatever, washes through me as I extract myself from my fabric bindings. Letting out a big yawn as I sit up and stretch out my arms, I see Ios pop back into form in the middle of the room wearing another much more restrained outfit.
In a cute black turtleneck and khaki slacks, white flat shoes adorning her feet, and a familiar pair of thin rimmed glasses, Ios greets me for the day. "Good morning Aims~! It's just a bit before Jun Li will probably show up, if you're quick you'll have time to shower and get ready before she gets here. You excited to try and take a crack at the inscription stuff?"
Her usual bubbly personality is back in full form today, which does make a smile come to my lips as I turn to greet her, "Good morning yourself Ios! Good deal sounds like that's what I'll do then, and I absolutely am ready to start learning it! Even when Akiko just gave me a tease about it when she showed me how to work the jade slip, I felt drawn to it. Can't wait to actually sink my teeth in to it now!" I say while sleepily making my way to the bathroom door, "Oh, if our sweet black furred foxy lady shows up before I'm out, just tell her to hang out for a few, okay? I'll be quick!" Ios chuckles lightly as she gives a small affirmation, letting me get ready for the day.
A quick shower, as promised, later along with the other morning routines and I am once again dressed in a sports bra and spandex pants, crimson colored this time. I quickly realize that I am nearly out of underwear now, I just have one more frilly pair left that I haven't worn yet and I still don't know how to do laundry here. Not to mention I kind of want to wash this dress too. I know it's probably incapable of getting dirty from just mundane wear and use, but the idea of still wearing something day in and day out without washing is enough to squick me out still.
Well, maybe I can ask Jun Li what they do for that when we get done eating whatever she was nice enough to cook for us~ Like a little coal colored angel, she is! I hum happily as I open the door separating the bathroom from the bedroom, cheerfully hopping my way to the table after closing it behind me. Ios gives me a warm smile as she sits next to me as she says, "Well someone is in a good mood today~! Sleep well? Any more dreams about Sandra or something?"
"Nope!" I reply still in good cheer, even if that little twinge of disappointment tweaks at me, "Not this time at least. Maybe I have to be in a deeper sleep or something? Or maybe Sandra has to have done something in between the last event. Like, maybe she hasn't woken up since the last time so there's nothing to 'see'? I don't know, Ios, kinda grasping at straws on that one..." I frown slightly, thinking of all the ways and meanings that could be reason for whatever is happening in my dreams.
I see Ios give me an apologetic look, her eyes holding a slightly remorseful softness in their gaze, "Sorry hun. Didn't mean to rain on your parade just now, I just thought maybe you had another experience like that or something. I know how much she means to you. Well! If that wasn't it then I'm curious what's got you so jazzed! You're usually a little grumpier in the mornings, more subdued at the least~."
I give a mock huff of betrayal, holding a hand dramatically to my chest, "Ios you wound me! I am the model of a cheerful disposition in the mornings! Like a songbird I say!" We both stare at each other for a few moments before I finally crack and erupt in playful laughter, nearly instantly mirrored by Ios' chirpy rapport. After we have our fun, I wipe a fake tear from my eye as I give her the real reason I was actually pretty stoked this morning.
"Nah you're right, I'm not really a morning person. Especially lately with how whacky my mornings have been since we landed here. But! Akiko gets back today~! And Jun Li is gonna stop by again! I think I'll have spent more time with her than Akiko by this point... Regardless, I was just excited to start learning the glyphs and stuff and see Akiko again. Even if that happy feeling quickly turns into nervous anxiety thinking about the conversation I need to have with her." I gently rub the back of my head, a small bit of red coming to my cheeks at the thought of such a daunting task ahead of me.
Giving me a kind look, Ios simply hovers a hand over mine as she chirps back, "Don't worry about that honey, I'm sure you and Akiko are going to work everything out. Just do like you have been, be as forthright as you can with her, listen to what she says, and make sure to express your emotions as best as you can. Oh right! Speaking of emotions, I finished the toggle for
[Otherworldly Beauty].
Want me to go ahead and turn it off?"
"Nice! Yeah let's just disable that active effect for now. Hopefully that doesn't change their feelings for me, or vice versa, but I'd rather know what we're all feeling is real and not being influenced by some sketchy skill." I instantly reply back.
[Otherworldly Beauty]: Your natural beauty is unparalleled and unmatched in almost any circumstance. Your Charisma is permanently set to a base of 100 and cannot be lowered below 100. You can still raise the stat going forward.
In addition, when in calm, intimate environments you will passively generate small amounts of Arousal and Lust to yourself and anyone you deem attractive.
This function can be toggled on or off at the user's discretion. Toggle active effect? Yes / No.
I quickly select 'Yes' and then wait to see if I feel anything different. After a minute or two of no changes, I look back to Ios with a relieved smile, "Well, so far I don't feel anything different. How about you? Still falling for little old me~?" I say with a wink toward Ios as a test. Which, looking back on it, probably wasn't the right call.
The fact that she actually does gain a little bit of a blush tells me all I need to know, at least in her weird circumstance. OB was definitely not influencing her. Unfortunately, that also means I have to deal with a little bit of my own medicine from last night's conversation, "Aims..." Ios voice drops down a bit into her sultry persona, "I thought we
agreed
to not be flirty for now~. If you want to back out of our arrangement, I am
more
than happy to get a slightly slutty vampire outfit ready for you~." By the time she's finished her teasing payback, her projected form is leaned over with a hand pulling at the collar of her sweater to let me peak down at her collarbone hidden underneath, as she then fixes me with a suggestive wink.
Oh good lord. I have to raise a hand to my nose immediately to check for blood, because I can feel all of it rushing straight to my head at her provocation. I stand up and take a couple steps back from this quadruple armed succubus to check my findings and feel relieved that my hand comes back clean. I look back to Ios, not really mad cause I did kind of bring this on myself this time, "Alright, shit sorry! Damn, you are
way
too good at that, you know that right? I just wanted to be sure the skill wasn't affecting you, and in hindsight that wasn't the nicest way to do that... So... Sorry, again."
Ios laughs as she rights herself before giving me another playful smile, "Don't stress about it hun, I knew that was probably what you were trying to do. You're a bit of an awkward goof, sure, but I knew you wouldn't string me along like that. Now then, want to go over those skills real quick before your food arrives?"
I lean back in the chair, recovering still from Ios' very effective counterattack, "Yeah sure, should help me take my mind off of... things...
*Ahem*
Just use Inspect on all of them, we can see what we're working with. She graciously doesn't press further about my state, sounding off with a quick "You got it!" as we look upon the description of the three not supposed to be available yet skills:
[Master Retention lvl 1]: Become a vault of knowledge on the material plane! With this skill, any knowledge you see or experience will forever be recorded in your mind in perfect detail. You can choose to forget any information you desire, and the storage capacity is endless. Further levels increase the speed that the information is assimilated into you.
[Master Learning lvl 1]: The student becomes the master, eventually! You will learn all subjects, skills, language, writing, and martial techniques at 300% the normal rate. Additionally, your memory is greatly improved. Can be leveled up either by usage or with Skill Points, and the percentage rate increases by 20% per level.
[Universal Learning lvl 1]: Nothing is beyond your grasp or your comprehension. With this skill, you will intrinsically know any writing, language, glyph, symbol, or script regardless of previous knowledge or familiarity. Additionally, you will also instantly be able to identify crafting components / materials at a glance, as well as their purpose and use. Further levels in this skill will increase the rate the knowledge is translated into your mind as well as increasing your rate of comprehension of advanced concepts.
Whoa, that's something alright. I bring my hand to my chin as I begin to mull over the choices in front of me. I agree with Ios right off the bat, the Retention one seems decent but lacking compared to the other two. I hum a bit to myself before turning toward the floating projection, "I see what you meant about that first one. Seems kinda meh when you compare it to eventually an almost 500% learning buff on top of my other titles, or just instant knowledge about damn near everything."
Ios nods back thoughtfully, "Right. And it's kind of even more of a letdown than that. As you increase your Intelligence score, your memory becomes sharper and better anyway. When you have stats like Akiko would if she was a system user, you basically already have that skill. Granted, it would be useful right now just to help out some, but I would heavily advise against picking it when stacked against the other ones."
I feel even more convinced after her explanations and summarily discard the Retention version. We hardly knew ye. Now the hard part is deciding between two objectively powerful options.
[Alumni]
already helps out with learning speed, but it isn't quantified so I'm not sure how much or how little that actually adds up to, whereas
[Master Learning]
gives a solid, definable number. And if its predecessor was responsible for how quickly I comprehended Zerian, not to mention how it may be affecting me learning inscriptions just by sight alone or understanding the manuals, then I'm tempted to pick that one immediately.
However, I can't deny that just having instant, whole knowledge of basically every language, crafting profession material, and all that other stuff does sound appealing. Not having to sit through and study some fantasy sci-fy tablet that has 10 billion entries in it really is speaking to my inner lazy Amelia... But no. As much of a nice shortcut as that would give me, I still wouldn't be
learning
the profession, or skill. I would just know all about it, which is still valuable. The real strength this skill would give is the languages and glyphs and stuff, but again, that's a moot point if I already got so far with a weaker buff.
Plus, I know there are extra titles and things out there too, given how
[Polyglot]
showed up as a goal after I learned Zerian. Who's to say that title won't just do the same thing as what Universal said, just maybe in a weaker fashion or something...
No, it has to be
[Master Learning].
I need to learn and adapt as fast as fucking possible, and then eventually share all of that knowledge to Sandy through our bond. The more skills and work I put into this now, the better prepared we will be for the future, and learning everything at a
massively
accelerated rate is the perfect tool to ensure that I get as much done as possible. Just to be sure I'm not missing something, I check in with Ios.
"I think it has to be
[Master Learning]
, right? Like, that is just too good to pass up. Sure, Universal is also nice and may save me some time, but I wouldn't actually learn the skills or whatever any faster than normal at that point. I need to become the very best, like no one ever was, so that Sandra and I and everyone else can live in peace and stay safe. Or, as safe as we can in this universe."
Ios turns to regard me with a pleased look, whether she is happy for me having come to this conclusion or for my resolve, I can't tell. "I think if that's what you want to do, then we should do it honey. I also think that skill is beyond overpowered and will serve you well throughout the rest of your journey. Like you said, I can also see the appeal of
[Universal Learning]
too, but there's just no getting around how fundamentally powerful Master is. One last chance, you sure you want
[Master Learning lvl 1]
?"
I nod without a second thought, confident in my reasoning and her reassurance. With a smile, she nods back as the system pings up a new message:
You have evolved [Advanced Learning lvl 10 (MAX)] to [Master Learning lvl 1]!
I smile in contentment at having resolved the issue and gaining a mega powerful skill for the future. Just as I'm basking in my accomplishments, Ios pops back in to pull me back to reality, "A good choice, dear~ But you should probably clear the table a bit and make the room presentable, I think someone is coming to your room~."
I jump a little at the notification, and also at how correct she is once I look over the table which has all of my cluttered notes strewn about on it, the big Zerian language book still splayed out and opened in the center of the table. I quickly put my new Dexterity to work as I gather up all the errant study materials and stack them neatly onto the little desk in the corner to make the space a bit more presentable.
Sure enough, as soon as I finish tidying up, I hear a knock at the wooden door. A bit of happiness flits to my brain, looking forward to spending more time with Jun Li, as I am about to make my way over to open the door for her. To my surprise, the door begins to open from the other side, which is odd because usually Jun Li waits to be let in. I stand halfway between the table and door as my confusion quickly fades to elation, noticing that the figure behind the threshold of the door is a very familiar and beautiful kitsune with snow colored hair tipped in ice, wearing the same pure white kimono with blue floral patterns that she had on when we first met.
The sudden surge of joy, happiness, relief, and many other emotions quickly overwhelm me, my mind overloaded and sparking and arching with the yellow warmth of elation that balloons out from my soul. Having such an extreme reaction, I simply abandon thought and rush into my surprise visitor. "Akiko!!" I shout as I wrap my arms fully around her, our chests and bodies smushing together as I giggle in delight, "I thought you weren't going to be back until this afternoon! It's so great to see you again!" I feel several of her tails wrap around me or pat me on the back or head as her body shakes in her own laughter, the soft gentle bubble of sound steady and flowing. I didn't realize how much I missed that sound, or her fresh clean scent, or just the way she holds me so
gently
yet firmly. How much I want to drown in all of those sensations now that I've been devoid of them, even for such a short time.
I pull away to look back at her face, the unbridled glee dancing behind my eyes and plastered onto my face as I break out into a slightly manic rant, "I'm
so
happy you're back! Oh man, we have so much to talk about! Jun Li is
amazing
by the way, and she and Ios helped me with learning Zerian! I'm basically fluent now! And Jun Li showed me around the estate a bit more, to that
wonderful
garden you two made, and we cooked some food together while we talked! We ended up spending a lot of time together because she was feeling lonely, well she didn't outright
say
that but I think she was feeling that way a bit, so I made sure we spent a lot of time together and learned about each other and the world and stuff! Oh, and then we-" I can't control my ramblings or my body as I slightly move side to side while I'm holding her, and I'm too wrapped up in the joy of having Akiko back to even notice how off the fucking rails I am right now.
Thankfully, Akiko simply raises one of her tail tips to my lips to get me to pause, which also makes me realize I had forgotten to breathe a bit there at the end as I take a massive mouthful of air. All the while, Akiko's kind, almost loving smile and amethyst eyes shine down on me, making my heart skip a beat every as I stare up at them. She also hasn't really stopped laughing at my animated antics, and as the air once more fills my body, I begin to get extremely embarrassed at my chaotic display.
However, I don't back away from it this time, instead I let go of her with one hand and use it to move her tail tip slightly to the side so that its merely resting on my cheek as I keep looking at her. In a tone still of unfiltered happiness, and a few other deeper emotions that are already welling up inside me, I say softly up to her, "I'm glad you're back, Akiko. I missed you." before embracing her tightly in the strongest hug I can manage once again.

.
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Choices and Reunions – Ch 41