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Chapter 2204: Stalling for Time

"As much as I enjoy the company of beautiful women, I believe it\'s about time you return to your group. Your father doesn\'t seem to approve of our particular seating arrangement…"

Once the time he had allotted her transpired, Vahn felt compelled to have Eshavi alight from his lap. He didn\'t actually mind attractive women making themselves comfortable on his lap, but, with Kusu, Vados, and Marcarita standing nearby, there were better ways he could be spending his time.

Raising her head from Vahn\'s chest, Eshavi stared blankly into his eyes for several seconds before remarking, "You\'re surprisingly cruel…you have, by your own admission, a beautiful woman seated atop your lap. You also know I\'m upset yet you want me to alight so quickly? And here I thought-"

Surprising both Eshavi and the crowd of spectators viewing the scene with diminishing interest, Vahn used the index fingers of both hands to press her faint yet still visible nipples. The teasing smile on her face immediately faded away. In its place, a cold deadpan reminiscent of a serial killer took hold as she asked, "What do you think you\'re doing?"

With confusion marring his expression, Vahn continued to lightly poke Eshavi\'s breasts as he tilted his head to the side and asked, "What do you mean? I thought now was the time when people got to do whatever they wanted. I asked you to move. You elected to stay. This is the result."

Punctuating his words, Vahn activated his Hands of Nirvana before spreading threads of Source Energy through Eshavi\'s breasts. Her back immediately straightened, and, though she did her best to cover her mouth with two of her six hands, a sonorous echo sounded through the vast, largely empty throne room.

As Rakshasa didn\'t feel sensations in the same way as other races, Eshavi was so startled that she practically sprang away from Vahn\'s lap. When she landed, a dark grey blush could be seen on her face, as, despite her quick reaction, a spiderweb pattern only visible to Vahn could be seen pulsing within her breasts.

"Oh? And here I thought you were fully committed to stalling for time. Shame."

"You…you ba-"

Before Eshavi could finish speaking, a massive red x slammed into her face with enough force to give her whiplash. Vahn had never been fond of being labeled as a bastard. Not because he was upset by his lack of a father but because it was a brash insult that carelessly implicated his mother.

"You have lost your right to speak until the end of this competition…"

Opening her mouth, the only sound emanating from Eshavi\'s throat was an exact replica of the moan she had previously attempted to stifle. Her hands immediately darted to her mouth, but, despite her best efforts, an echo lingered within the hall as she glared at Vahn as if he were her mortal enemy.

Rolling his eyes, Vahn directed his gaze to the last of the sisters present, asking, "So? How do you intend to stall for time? Judging by your hat, I\'m assuming you possess a Gift related to cooking?"

Though she would have preferred it if Vahn continued to torment her sister, Vahida, the Sage of Wisdom representing Gluttony, adopted what could best be described as a carnivorous smile as she brought a finger to her lips and mused, "My, how perceptive. More specifically, my Gift is related to flavor enhancement. Even if it was something as plain and simple as rice, my Gift has the capacity to make it taste like Heaven…"

With Vahida placing extra emphasis on the word Heaven, Vahn had to take a deep breath just to suppress the urge to ask if she was an idiot. Rather than a black and white apron, she may as well be wearing a signboard that said, "My food kills people."

Fortunately, poison was something Vahn didn\'t even need to take precautions against, so, after mentally shaking his head, he adopted his characteristically casual smile and remarked, "Sounds interesting. Though I doubt they can compare with my personal chefs, I\'m interested to see what you can come up with."

Frowning at the insinuation there were better chefs than her, Vahida was half-tempted to challenge Vahn to a Gift Game. Instead, she removed the inordinately large saucepan from her head, taunting, "You really know how to get a girl\'s blood boiling, don\'t you…?"

As he always enjoyed a bit of playful banter, Vahn\'s smile became marginally more sincere as he offered a playful wink and replied, "In quite a number of ways."

Though she felt an almost overwhelming urge to snort, Vahida maintained a predatory smile as she flipped the saucer in her hands. The action seemed rather careless at first, but, by the time the dish had flipped completely, enough curry to feed more than twenty people had appeared within.

"I hear the \'appetites\' of dragons are near insatiable. Please accept this paltry offering as an apology for today\'s events…"

With three of her sisters having made themselves comfortable atop his lap, Vahida didn\'t hesitate to approach Vahn directly. She even extended her tongue towards Kusu, a teasing smile appearing on her shoulder nearly grazed the unsmiling Angel.

Approaching close enough that she could have easily turned and made herself comfortable, Vahida took a knee before extending the large saucer toward Vahn. To the surprise of absolutely no one, he accepted the dish before placing it to his lips without question. This was an incredibly daring action, but, after seeing Vahn\'s performance during each of his Gift Games, daring was probably one of the tamer words that could be used to describe him…

Swallowing several large mouthfuls of the surprisingly spicy, chicken-based curry, Vahn pretended not to notice the foreign energy attempting to invade his body. To his surprise, said energy actually possessed a remarkably familiar structure. There were so few differences, in fact, that it didn\'t even take him a full second to completely analyze it…

To the astonishment of billions, Vahida included, Vahn\'s figure began to change from a muscular and handsome man with tanned skin to a stout, black-skinned pig. Genuine surprise colored the ashen-skinned woman\'s face, as, even in her wildest dreams, she had never imagined her ability would take effect so…seamlessly…

Looking around, Vahida\'s suspicions grew when she found Kusu, Vados, and Marcarita staring at her with tranquil expressions on their faces. Even her father seemed equal parts confused and nervous, so, instead of assuming she had succeeded, Vahida observed the chubby black pig for several tense moments before attempting to pick it up.

"Huff…what the hell…?"

Though she was able to get her hands around it without any trouble, no amount of effort allowed Vahida to lift \'Vahn\' from his throne. He wasn\'t simply heavy; Vahida got the impression that, no matter how many people combined their efforts, they would never be able to move the adorably plump pig from its position. If not for the fact she could stretch his ears and pinch his cheeks, she might have assumed he was completely immovable.

Feeling something was amiss, a smile that didn\'t quite reach her eyes developed across Vahida\'s face as she asked, "You\'re messing with me, aren\'t you…?"

Adopting a toothy, eerily human smile, the black pig promptly replied, "I would argue that I was humoring you. By the way, while your food was surprisingly flavorful, the overall quality places it around a six. You\'re a little too reliant on your Gift. Here, try this."

While maintaining his pig form, Vahn used cleaning magic on Vahida\'s hat before filling it with a portion of curry prepared by Rindo. When Vahida saw, or, more specifically, smelt it, the glower on her face promptly turned to curiosity, as, even from more than twenty meters away, everyone in the hall got the impression the dish was indescribably delicious.

As the worst that could happen was her elimination from the promotional Gift Game, Vahida didn\'t hesitate to manifest a small bowl of rice and a large spoon. She really wanted to ascertain whether or not Vahn was just talking out of his ass, so, after scooping up a spoonful of curry, she dipped it into her rice before placing it into her mouth.

To the shock of many, an \'explosion\' of golden light erupted from Vahida\'s body the moment she placed the spoonful of curry into her mouth. Stranger still, the accessories in her hair and even the clothes on her body promptly burst away, but, thanks to the Law of Modesty, the brilliant golden light exuding from her body made it impossible to make out anything but her silhouette.

While everyone else was marveling at the scene playing before them, Vahida felt as though her soul had departed her body. In spite of this, she felt an indescribable feeling of calm as she stood, naked as the day she was born, at the base of a petrified bodhi tree. A warm breeze caressed her skin, but, rather than paying any attention to herself, Vahida was captivated by a literal ocean of stars gently flowing in and out over a sea of glistening black sand…

Just as Vahida was tempted to throw herself into said ocean, a feeling of loss washed over her mind and body as she found herself standing in front of a smiling black pig.

Seeing the \'smug\' expression on Vahn\'s face, Vahida was nearly overwhelmed by the urge to smack him in the head using her saucepan. Instead, she exhaled a sigh before setting the now-barren pan aside and bringing all six of her hands together in a gesture resembling prayer. Every adult member of the Rakshasa Tribe had been given the opportunity to experience a lesser form of Enlightenment, so, even if the experience was quite a bit different, Vahida knew she had just received a tremendous gift from Vahn.

Raising one of his trotters before Vahida could thank him, Vahn\'s voice emanated seriousness as he said, "You can thank me later. For now, you may want to fix your clothing…"

Confused by Vahn\'s words, Vahida promptly directed her attention to her presently naked body. A grey hue immediately spread through her cheeks, but, instead of behaving bashfully, she returned her attention to Vahn and remarked, "You\'re a lewd little piggy, aren\'t you…?"

With hands to spare, Vahida was able to cover her breasts, front, and back without difficulty. Then, as if their encounter had come to an end, she returned to the side of her sisters and father without further dialogue.

Shrugging his virtually non-existent shoulders, Vahn directed his attention to Attutyaptish before asking, "Are we done here, or do you intend to give the duo waiting outside an opportunity? The little one with all the concealed weapons gives off a very pettable vibe."

Shifting his attention from Vahida, Attutyaptish met Vahn\'s gaze, a hesitant look on his face as he asked, "What is your obsession with petting? There must be a reason for it."

Though he didn\'t reveal the details, Vahn took advantage of the opportunity Attutyaptish had provided by manifesting his [Fragment of Origin: Godhand]. A swell of energy suddenly spread through his body, but, as he was already accustomed to the feeling of being empowered through beliefs, he managed to appear unshaken as he returned to his true form and answered, "Though I prefer being called the God of Infinite Possibilities, I\'m also a God of Petting. Why? You curious…?"

Swallowing the knot the had suddenly appeared in his throat, Attutyaptish reminded himself that his mission took precedence over everything else. He could call in his other daughters, but, fearing they would complicate matters, he steeled himself before answering, "Indeed…after observing the changes in my daughters\' behavior, I would be lying if I said I wasn\'t at least a little curious about your ability. Even now, despite her association with the Sin of Lust, Prurmubhi is behaving as docile as a kitten. You clearly did something to influence her…"

Unamused by her father\'s revelation, Prurmubhi, the vulpine woman that had enjoyed more than half an hour of Vahn\'s headpats, adopted a pouty expression as she asked, "Did you really have to go out of your way to reveal that in front of billions of people…?"

Meeting his daughter\'s gaze, Attutyaptish unhesitantly replied, "Yes. The more people associate you and your sisters with the Seven Deadly Sins, the more potent your respective abilities. You were the one who fought your sisters for the right to become the Sin of Lust. If you\'re dissatisfied, feel free to trade places with Hantemu."

Though she was accustomed to being chastised, Prurmubhi resented the fact her father had gone out of his way to do so during a highly publicized Gift Game. For a brief moment, the urge to lash out of him swelled in the back of her mind, but, before she could muster the conviction, a soothing voice entered her ears, stating, "Don\'t worry. I\'ll be sure to teach him a lesson on your behalf…"

Shifting her attention to Vahn, a look of confusion marred Prurmubhi\'s face. Thanks to an illusion, however, Attutyaptish was wholly unaware of this. As a result, he did his best to appear calm and composed as he floated over to Vahn and stated, "Don\'t expect me to straddle your lap…" before taking a seat on his right thigh.

Shrugging his shoulders, Vahn decided not to dignify Attutyaptish\'s words with a verbal response. Instead, he removed the feathery headdress from the remarkably furry man\'s head to reveal messy white hair. Then, without holding anything back, he nestled his hand between the man\'s large, cat-like ears and got to work…

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(A/N: Alternate Titles: \'Should have brought some Echo Herbs…\',\'This is what it\'s like to chew Five gum…\',\'Bruh, he ded…\')