1st Pov Xicor Samiel:
I stepped through the other side of the portal, with Kuusetsu hugging my armoured arm with a pleased smile on her face.
Our feet touched the grassy earth at night as stars gleamed in the sky, the moon shining down on the area, giving it a luminescent glow.
We stood in the middle of a forest as the distant sound of cars reached our ears. I retracted my helmet to let the soft, cold winds sweep across my face, taking in deep breaths to engrave the feeling I once forgot was my birth planet.
It's been quite some time since I've been here. The smell of the woods mixed with the sweetness of the goddess next to me.
The sounds of swaying branches and distant car honking and humming carried through the wind, and also what appears to be the ocean.
It was something that filled me with nostalgia, that put me in a daze.
I was broken out of my dazed state when the portal shrank in size before disappearing entirely, leaving only Kuusetsu and me.
"It's so beautiful" I heard her murmur beside me, before she released her hold on my arm and took several steps forward.
She then spread her arms wide and took a deep breath, "Such a perfect world for us to conquer"
She looked over her shoulder at me, her eyes glazed with affection as a sweet smile spread across her lips, "Don't you agree, Xicor~"
"Indeed, a world for us to rule and further develop your people" I replied stepping up next to her.
Cruel, but I didn't care what people said since it was the Gods of Thunder who showed me genuine protection and the purpose of my skills instead of playing the political games which would be a waste of the destructive techniques I possess.
Though there was that time at the village, my memory is vague but I do remember some of it, mainly Kyouka and that Oni I killed.
Even if I chose Kyouka's side of protection, who knows how long it would take for someone to bribe her into selling me out to those hunting me, or just outright kidnapping me.
I was snapped out of my thoughts of Kuusetsu hugging me, burying her face on my shoulder.
"I'm glad you're here" She whispered.
I wrapped my arms around her waist, responding to her sudden hug, "Well I'm not gonna let you head into a dangerous world without protection"
She giggled lightly before pulling back, her arms moved to wrap around my neck, "Thank you, my champion~"
She pecked my cheek with her lips and stepped away, "Now where do we go?" she asked looking in different directions in quick succession.
"We first need to find a temporary base of operations" I said, crossing my arms in thought, "Preferably, an abandoned building or somewhere isolated"
Should I summon Nue to transport us? No
He'll be noticed by the shadow he casts from the moon and our secrecy must stay hidden as long as possible.
Best to stick with Sky manipulation to make us invisible and fly through the sky.
"Change" I muttered, swapping Kashimo's template to Uro's.
I enveloped both of us with the technique before grabbing the space in front of us as it twists and warps from my contact. Sweeping my fist around us, the space around us shifts before stabilising itself.
"There, we should be invisible to the people of this world now, and they shouldn't be able to hear us as I dampened the sound that leads to the world around us" I said, gazing at the small warps that slither around us like a snake coiled around us in a comforting embrace.
"Oooo~" Her eyes sparkled with interest at the technique I displayed.
"Shall we get going?" I asked as she broke out of her trance.
"Don't worry about me, I can fly" she said confidently, placing her fists on her hips as she puffed out her chest.
"But I will accept you carrying this goddess to her rightful place" she said, pouncing at me.
I managed to catch her and hold her in a princess carry before dashing up into the sky, the scenery grew more vast the higher we went.
I stopped myself until we stopped at a city in the distance that seemed to be close to the coast. We took in the scenery for several minutes before pushing myself forward, towards the city to see if there were any structures at the outskirts of it.
If we gain control of someone and threaten them with their life, mainly keeping a clone beside them in case they try to call for aid, then it would be easier to live there.
The distant city lights shimmer in the night like fireflies, and I find myself entranced by the sight as I slow our pace.
"Xicor, what about that one" Kuusetsu jolted me out of my trance.
My eyes followed where her finger was pointed to see a two-story mansion resting comfortably close at the edge of the city in a small street like a town mayor.
I'm not too sure about that one but would there be a better one, especially one with more practicality to it than fashion?
Kuusetsu could read my mind as she pouted, "C'mon, please~ you said it would be a temporary base and we will be causing chaos so it won't matter" She batted her eyelashes at me.
That's kind of true, it's not like we would be keeping it for a month, it would only serve as a place for Kuusetsu to consume her victims and properly assimilate them into her power.
Screw it.
"Fine, but we keep the owners alive as if we kill them and people show then it's completely over, so we keep them alive" I said as her cheeks puffed out more.
I sighed internally, "For now" which rewarded me with a bright smile and a peck on the cheek.
I decided to slowly go to the roof of the mansion before a thought came to me that Kuusetsu would think outside of what I said, "And no assimilating any of them"
"How did you know!?" She yelled, it's a good thing I dampened the sound otherwise the whole neighbourhood would've woken up.
"Because you're easy to read, especially that hungry grin you have when you're thinking of assimilating someone, or when I give you food" I said.
"You're just imagining things" She waved her hand dismissively.
Sighing, I continued to descend until my feet touched the roof tiles as I lowered Kuusetsu so she could stand on her own.
She arched her back as she let out a contented sigh. I kept the invisibility and sound dampening over us until we were inside.
Walking over to the edge, we spotted a balcony with a glass double door. Kuusetsu and I glanced at each other before sharing a nod.
We leapt down in front of the door as she looked inside, pressing our faces against the glass. We spotted a singular king-size bed with the silhouette of a person resting on it.
Any details were too difficult to make out as the moon's light didn't reach that far in.
I held onto Kuusetsu tightly as she responded before we sank into my shadow and appeared inside the room in a dark corner.
I released my hold on the goddess as she lingered a little longer before letting go as she walked over to the light switch leaving the invisible and sound-dampening space I placed around me.
Kuusetsu looked back at me with an amused smirk as her finger hovered under the switch. I immediately got the silent message she was sending as I crept over to the bedside, and I dismissed the invisible and dampening space as I took in the look of the person.
It was a middle-aged woman with tousled brown hair, which was the most likely option since men in this world don't really have that much status to own or have enough to maintain such a place.
I spread my senses around the building before detecting a second presence in the next room, likely a servant or offspring.
My helmet covered my head before I gave Kuusetsu a thumbs up, signalling her to turn on the lights. Immediately, the lights flashed on as the woman reacted instinctively by covering her face with her arms.
But she didn't get far as my armoured hand shot down to grab her mouth preventing her from waking up the neighbourhood.
Her eyes shot open, revealing their brown colour that flashed with panic. Her hands grabbed my wrist to try and pull it off with her legs kicking around in panic.
Her muffled yells filled the room, "Scream and I'll remove your limbs and throw you into a pit of Shuuki"
Her brows furrowed with fury, which was enough for me to tell she was not convinced.
Swiping my other hand down, her left hand came flying off as blood sprayed the sheets and my armour.
Her screams increased, coupled with sobs of pain as tears began to form in her eyes. I heard her breathing grow heavier as she now looked at me with fear.
Good, the fear of death is perfect for controlling an individual.
"You will listen to her and me from now on" I started, pointing at Kuusetsu at the side who waved at the woman.
"We do not need money, nor do we care about any political power you hold" I said, already guessing what she was thinking, "You will keep our presence hidden from the public, mainly the law enforcement and the Demon Defence Force"
"If you try to alert them, then you will die a slow and painful death" I said, my other hand coated in the dense power of cursed energy.
She nodded repeatedly as I healed her hand, using RCT, if anyone discovered her missing hand it would be a massive red flag.
Before I healed her hand, I somewhat infected her bloodstream by pumping a portion of my blood into her, these blood cells will travel around her body and rapidly clone themselves until they are around her body.
This will give me control of her heart and among other things.
I slowly removed my hand as the woman carefully watched me, slowly shifting away from me. Her hand held her once-severed hand as she tested her new hand.
Her eyes carefully analysed me before shifting to Kuusestu, noting the horned crown on her head.
Her eyes shifted back to me, "W-What are you?" she asked slowly.
"That is something you will discover soon" I said creating a clone with the explosive flesh technique.
"He will watch over you every second, and if you try to contact anyone in secret, then he will explode, killing you, the other person here and this whole area in a 1km radius will die" I threatened as fear grew even more in her features.
"Y-Yes, I understand m-my lord" she said bowing her head.
"First order is to clean this mess up" I said picking up her severed hand before flames consumed it, turning it into ash.
"Turn the lights off" I ordered Kuusetsu, who immediately did so.
The middle-aged woman picked up her bloodied sheets and prepared to leave the room to quickly clean it and get as far from us as possible, though that would be a problem as the clone constantly followed close behind and monitored her.
"Before you leave" I said, her hand inches from the door as it shook at the sound of my voice, "Who is the other occupant in this mansion?" I asked.
"M-My maid, h-her name is S-Shirayuki Retsu" She stuttered out, keeping her face away from me.
"I see, when you are done cleaning your blood off your sheets, bring her here so we can introduce ourselves to her new masters" I ordered as the woman nodded weakly.
Without another word, she exited the room with the clone close behind. I let out a sigh of relief at how well this was going.
I seated myself in a chair with a small table in front of me, retracting my helmet as I leaned further into the leather seat. I rested my eyes before Kuusetsu plopped down on my lap.
The goddess rested her head at the crook of my neck as she let out a contented sigh, "So comfortable~" she murmured.
I wrapped an arm around her waist as she nuzzled closer into me.
My thoughts drift to the next step, since we now have a temporary base, I'll have some clones here to keep watch over the place while I go do my own personal task of storming that lab.
If my main body dies, somehow, then one of the clones would be my main body so that's still reassuring.
"Hey, Xicor" Kuusetsu said quietly.
Opening my eyes, I find her expression filled with anticipation and hope, "Yeah?"
"Tomorrow, can we explore the city, just the two of us with that invisibility thing you did?" she asked, her voice growing quieter as she looked at a distant wall.
"So you want to go out on a date?" I summarised.
She nodded slightly, "Y-Yeah, a-a date, just me and you, no one else" She looked back, her hands shaking on my armoured chest.
With my other hand, I held one of her clenched fists as I pressed my forehead against her, "Who am I to deny my goddess" I grinned cheekily.
A bright smile spread across her lips as she shot up and pressed her lips against mine, we held it for several minutes before she pulled back with flushed cheeks and glazed eyes.
Her free hand cupped my cheek as I leaned into the soft and warm touch.
Before anything else could happen, the door to the room opened as Kuusetsu instantly got off my lap with me standing up, reequipping my helmet.
The middle-aged woman walked in with a clean sheet and the clone behind her, but an extra person was walking in with them, more cautious and fearful as she shrank from mine and Kuusetsu's stares.
Her hair was a deep, glossy black, falling in waves around her shoulders and framing her delicate face. A white maid's headband rested neatly above her bangs.
Her eyes were a clear, icy blue that held the gentleness of a young woman who would pull at the hearts of men with a simple glance.
She wore a traditional black and white maid uniform, carefully tailored to bring out her elegant and youthful charm.
She walked up to Kuusetsu and me, under the nervous gaze of the middle-aged woman, before doing a professional bow, typical of maids greeting honoured guests.
"Greetings, new masters, I am the only maid of this mansion, Shirayuki Retsu, but you can call me Retsu, at your service" She greeted.
Did I just get my own personal maid?
"Our names will remain anonymous, but we are the new masters of this mansion, tell me maid, do you possess an ability?" I asked as the maid shook her head.
"No master, and neither does the madam" she replied honestly as the middle-aged woman stared at Shirayuki in shock.
"How dare-" She didn't get to finish her sentence as the clone light pressed her shoulder, instantly shutting her up.
This maid seems more willing to serve than this hag, does she have ulterior motives?
"Are you lying to me?" I questioned as I applied some gravity to Retsu as she staggered, almost falling to her knees.
"N-No master" She stuttered out as I pulled back the pressure before she fell to her knees, breathing in laboured breaths.
"Good, I'll be gone for a few hours, you will be this woman's personal maid until I return" I gestured to Kuusetsu.
"Yes master" she replied.
I created two extra clones, one containing the missile fist technique, and the other having blood manipulation.
I walked over to the balcony doors before Kuusetsu grabbed my hand. Turning to her, she had her cheeks puffed up in a pout, "You better come back before our date mister"
"Yes, Ma'am" I said with a two-finger salute before she let go and allowed me to open the double glass doors and fly off into the night sky, towards the human lab my birds located.