We were surrounded the second they took notice of Freya's bound state. "Elsa, be on the lookout, we don't want them doing anything stupid."

"We should have never trusted you, human!" I hear one of them say, which is soon followed by a chorus of agreements.

'Are these women serious?' Scanning the ever growing crowd, I am unable to find the only person who can answer what I need to know. '...Wait, trust me? Wasn't I betrayed? Unless this is something that only the top brass knows…Shit. Am I overthinking this? …Screw it, I'm just going to go with the flow.'

With their weapons at the ready, and continuing to increase in number by the second, I feel a slight bit annoyed.

'What do they hope to achieve here? If I can theoretically beat their Commander, what chance do they have?' Clicking my tongue, I grab Freya by the back of her neck. "I'd like to speak with your Queen!" I leave out the 'Or else', but I imagine they understand the implications.

"Like we'd let you!" A stupid soldier among them yells out, releasing the arrow in her grasp.

Soaring through the air, I notice just who it is directed at. "Furina! L-" Catching it out of the air, Elsa snaps it in half, before quickly throwing it away. "Nobody moves! Or, I will-"

"There's no need for threats, Ren." Turning to face the aged queen, a very serious look meets mine. "You wished to speak with me?"

Removing Freya from my grasp, she falls to her knees as gravity's effect on her increases significantly.

Observing my surroundings briefly, I count roughly fifty women, all with varying attack methods. Their numbers would surely continue to increase, but it didn't matter.

"I'm not here to fight, but I will defend myself." I make sure to say this loud enough, so that everyone can hear.

Turning back to face the queen, I notice the presence of the princess at her side. "Queen Rose, and Luna. It's unfortunate we meet again like this."

"It is." Rose responds, before her verdant green eyes land on the commander. "May I ask why Commander Freya is being held?"

"She…" Stopping myself, I look over to Beatrice. "Lighten the effects." With a sigh from my spirit, Freya's downed state is now able to recover enough so that she can kneel. "I imagine it would be better if she answered."

There was a moment of silence, as we all waited for her to speak, but it wasn't long before she spoke up. "Your Majesty! This man has attacked the prince! If I hadn't interfered, Prince Silven would likely be dead!"

"Comma-"

"Before I could intervene, this man had already cut off the young master's fingers!"

"Frey-"

"We must not allow him to live! What if he attacks Princess Lu-!"

"Enough, Freya! I've heard enough." The Queen finally stops Freya's crazed rant. "...Prince Silven has been dead for a century now. Let it go, Freya, please." She sighs, a sad look in her eyes as she meets a now defeated gaze from Freya.

"...No, she was completely honest, Queen Rose." I interject. "I attacked a boy going by Silven Wyndell, defeated him, began to interrogate him, and was then interrupted by Freya." I reveal, much to the surprise of everyone.

"Why are you-" Freya starts, but I quickly begin to reveal more.

"I got little out of him, but what I do know is this. He was sent to kill me by someone, and that he commanded the orcs." I finished, which led to more disbelief, as the soldiers began to murmur questions of their own.

Looking back at the Queen of the Elves, there seems to be a million questions going through her head, so I give her the time to pick one to ask. "...What did he look like?"

That's an odd first question, but I guess she's making sure he looks how she remembers. "Blonde, dirty blonde actually." What else… "Oh, right. He also had dark skin and violet eyes." Which was really odd at the time now that I think about it.

Queen Rose looks like she has eaten a lemon after she processess my words. "...I see." Murmurs and gasps begin to spread all around us, but I ignore them as Queen Rose directs her gaze to me. "Ren, what would it take for you to forget about this incident?"

…Oh man, finally. "Three things." I say holding up three fingers. "Money, Fame, and Power…" I grin, and there's a collective groan from my side.

Receiving a smack to the back of the head, I hold my head in pain as I pout to the blue demon in my group. "Ren, be serious!"

"...Ugh, Fine…" Looking back at Rose, I notice the bemused look in her eyes. "Sorry, sorry, that was just to lighten up the mood. In all seriousness, I want answers, and a nice bed to sleep in."

"Those are two things, Ren-kun, but they are easily done." Rose smiles, as she waves towards the elves all around. "Back to your posts everyone."

Looking towards Beatrice, I nod. "Release."

…Yet, Freya's form hadn't changed. Approaching from behind, I release her bindings, but even that doesn't change anything. She doesn't move one bit, as her arms hang uselessly at her sides.

"...Know what? I don't care enough right now." Removing myself from her vicinity, I turn back and face a sorrowful queen and her very confused daughter. "My last "demand" is…can we all bathe and have a change of clothes please?"

"Of course." Rose nods, before turning to a still lost Luna. "Luna dear, if you could? I have a few things to discuss with Freya."

"Y-Yes, Mother! Right away."

Bath House

"What? …There's only a woman's section? What ever happened to equality?" Ren complains, much to the amusement of Meili.

"Heheh, looks like you have to wait until we're done, Nii-san." She blows a raspberry at him, before running straight into the changing room.

"Brat." Pouting, Ren finds a spot and sits himself down. "Hmph."

"I'm sorry, Master, but the men's section hasn't existed for nearly a century now." Luna apologizes, with genuine regret in her eyes, as if it were her fault. "Ah, but you could join us if you'd like." She offers, quickly brightening up.

"How about no? Furina already looked two seconds away from a panic attack, and my presence there probably won't help." Only for it to be shot down immediately. 'I'd also like to have some privacy…' He thinks to himself.

"I understand…" She sighs disappointedly. "I'll be sure not to take long, Master!" She rushes in ahead, leaving the contracted duo and older assassin behind.

"Master? Fufu…" Elsa contains most of her laughter, but fails from throwing a knowing look at the boy.

"Oh, shut up." He crosses his arms, unimpressed. "Just go already."

"Of course…" She walks in after her sister, already in the process of removing her outfit.

"That woman has no shame, I suppose."

"Ugh…" Ren groans, leaning his back against the wall behind him.

"What is it, I suppose?" Beatrice asks curiously, as she finds a seat on his lap, much to Ren's ever growing discomfort.

"Why…Why won't you join them?" He asks, with a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Betty believes she's made herself clear on the matter." She pinches his leg, unhappy with her contractor's desperate attempt to get rid of her. "She will not allow anyone but you to help her clean her hair. After all, you feel as though you are responsible for Betty's current unclean state, correct?"

"Yeah, but this? …I mean we haven't known each other for long, and I don't want things to be weird between us." He tries to reason with her, but unfortunately, his spirit was far too stubborn.

"Betty does not understand why "things" would be "weird" among us, as we are only bathing together, and this is an inevitability."

"Wait, what? Why would this be inevitable?"

"M-Must Betty spell it out?" Yes, she does, because Ren decided to turn off his brain earlier. "…It is because…because Betty is your one and only."

"I…Huh?" Ren.exe has stopped working.

Furina De Fontaine

"Fuu…" Breathing out, I try to maintain my composure, but to no real avail. 'Oh man, this isn't good. I knew these types of establishments were common in Inazuma, but I never thought they'd be here too.'

Hearing the sliding door open and shut behind me, three sets of footsteps on the stone floor are what snap me out of it. "Ah, there you are, Miss Furina! You must be really excited to get in the water!" The princess runs up to me, and smiles as she takes my hands in hers. "Oh, but is this your first time?"

'Gah, close! And what's with that phrasing?' Trying to weasel out of her grasp, I find that her grip is far stronger than I imagined. "Y-Yeah…"

"Okay, that's great! I already explained it to the sisters, but if you want, I'll just show you!" She suddenly begins to take off her towel as she approaches a line of seats and mirrors.

'P-Public indecency!' Dragged into a seat by the now indecent princess, she takes a seat next to me, and begins to explain how things work. "Okay, so you can't get in the water without cleaning yourself first, and that's what these are for!" Right below each mirror was a small table which held jars filled with… "They say it was the Hoshin of the Wilderness who taught us how to make shampoo and soap, and I honestly can't believe we lived without it before that."

"Who? No, not important. So these are hair products?" I ask, grabbing the one furthest to the right, and look at it curiously.

"Well, that one is the soap, it's usually used on the body, but you could use it on your hair. Not that I'd recommend it, because your hair tends to get really dry." I know that!

"So these ones are shampoo?" I ask, pointing at the other two jars.

"Yep! The one on the left has a subtle floral scent, while the other has a strong appa like smell. If you want my opinion, the floral one is better."

Taking her advice, I grab the jar with the purple viscous liquid, and pop the cork out. Taking a few whiffs, I find her words ring true as a faint smell of flowers reaches my nostrils.

Dipping both my index and middle finger in, I scoop out a good amount. Rubbing it onto my palm, I spread it out equally between both hands.

Reaching for my hair, I freeze in place as my towel falls to my waist, exposing everything. "Ah."

"Ahhh…" Sinking deeper into the hotspring, I feel most of the past week's stress dissipate.

Opening an eye, I see my three new hydro summons enjoying themselves on the water. "This is great…"

"Tell me about it." The bubbly princess comments, leaning back onto a rock, causing the two mountains on her chest to resurface. 'I thought Clorinde was blessed, but even she couldn't compare to this girl.

Feeling two hands on my shoulders, I shriek in surprise. "Feeling envious? I can certainly see why." Removing myself from her grasp, I glare at Elsa.

"D-Don't do that! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" My question doesn't get a response, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end.

"Huh? What's that? Why would you be feeling envious, Miss Furina?" Luna leans closer, curiously looking at me.

"I wonder." I roll my eyes, crossing my arms.

Ren Fujimura

Running the shampoo through my spirit's golden locks, I see her meeting my eyes through the mirror. "Is something wrong?" I ask.

"You're deep in thought, I suppose." She answers, but also makes it obvious she wants to know what's on my mind.

"Not really, I was just…focused, yeah."

"Regardless, Betty would still like to hear her contractor's thoughts, even if they are…idiotic, at times."

"Oh, thanks. Now, I don't even want to tell you." Running my arm across my brow, I wipe away any water falling down my forehead. "...And, I was just thinking about…life, I guess. If someone had told me I'd be inside a giant tree filled with elves alongside a great spirit, my childhood friend, and two assassins, I'd question their sanity. Yet, here I am."

"Do you regret doing so?"

"Regret doing what exactly?"

"Meeting that girl, arriving at that clown's mansion, and all that has happened after."

Not responding immediately, I try to come up with a good answer, but a thought interrupts me before I can formulate one. 'I didn't get a choice, did I? If I hadn't been there with Emilia, the world would have ended. Even before that, I never chose to come here.'

Regret…

"There's nothing for me to regret, Beatrice." I replied. "Now, close your eyes, unless you want shampoo in your eyes."

Ren's Soulscape

Sitting up, I find familiarity in my surroundings. "Oh god, what happened now?" I ask the familiar blindfolded woman next to me.

"Nothing happened."

"Huh? Then why am I here?" I ask, my confusion beginning to brew.

"You dozed off in the bath."

"Huh." I dumbly respond. "...I'm not going to suddenly drown, right?"

"Not unless Beatrice lets it happen."

"Oh, right."

2B just sighs. "Anyway, it's good that you're starting to relax every now and then."

'I didn't already?'

"You didn't."

'Damn it, forgot she could hear me.'

"I still can." Redirecting most of my important thoughts away, I instead play a joke on her. "Seriously? Are you twelve? Why are you just shouting penis in your head? …Stop it, Ren!" Suddenly receiving a smack to the head, I stop.

-1 MP

"Ow…" Huh. MP? Is it because I'm not actually here?

Laying back down, I glance in 2B's direction. "2B?"

"No, Ren, I'm not giving you any free Gacha Coins, yet."

"...I wasn't going to ask that, wait, yet?"

"Oh? What is it then?" She casts a curious look my way as she ignores my question.

"...Does the phrase, "Glory to Mankind", mean anything to you? Actually, do the names 9S, A2, or Commander ring a bell?" I ask, but don't get an immediate answer.

2B for the most part has not acted like I would have expected. Instead of the cold, aloof android, I got a surprisingly kindhearted mother hen who seems to genuinely worry about me, she'd even crack jokes with me every now and then.

"They do." Her response, …I find no satisfaction in receiving it.

"Would you like to-"

"So, about those changes I made!" Ah, I see.

I shouldn't pry. "Finally telling me, huh? Let me guess, you nerfed a skill of mine?"

"What? No, of course not. I can't make skill optimizations to skills you already own, unless they are upgrades or are bugged." She waves away my concern, and instead makes a screen appear in my face.

25 Gacha Coins Have Been Refunded Due To System Mistakes! (Any Items Received From Gacha Coins Will Not Be Taken Away)

Common Gacha Coin x 25 Received!

"Huh?! What?!" For free? Am I dreaming?! …Well, now that I think about it, sorta.

"The Gacha Coins system has now been "fixed". They start at Common when you receive them in your daily quest, but can reach EX if you go through some steps." 2B is suddenly engulfed in smoke, much to my surprise. Only for it to clear, and to reveal her in a stereotypical school teacher outfit…

You know, the white blouse and the black pencil skirt? Along with the black Yorha blindfold/Visor? Wait, no, she always wears that.

With a whiteboard at her back, she holds a ruler in her hands, and I soon notice my change in position. "Goddamn it." I curse, as I find myself seated at a school desk.

"If you were to head into your inventory and select the Gacha Coin, you will realize that there is a new option available to you."

Doing as I'm told, I raise an eyebrow at the new prompt in my inventory. "Combine?"

Common Gacha Coin x 31

Rarity Rates:

Trash [.01%]

Common [50%]

Uncommon [25%]

Rare [15%]

Epic [9%]

EX [.09%]

Use? ()

Combine? (X)

"Correct! Extra marks for Fujimura-kun!" 2B praises, but I can't help but roll my eyes at her continuing to play this teacher character. "If I had to use words to explain how the Combine feature works, It's designed to be very similar to that of the Resident Evil games. So, if you were to combine say a Common Gacha Coin with another…"

Following those instructions, a new screen appears before me.

Combination Successful!

Gained Uncommon Gacha Coin!

'I'm guessing the rates are better?'

Uncommon Gacha Coin

Rarity Rates:

Common [39%]

Uncommon [30%]

Rare [20%]

Epic [10%]

EX [1%]

'Higher chance to get mid-tier items, but high-tier rates only got marginally better…' Repeating the process multiple times, I upgrade a coin to its max rarity.

EX Gacha Coin

Rarity Rates:

Rare [10%]

Epic [40%]

EX [50%]

'These are crazy good rates, but…it costs me 16 Common Coins, which isn't a lot right now, considering the fact that I just got a few of my used coins refunded…but-'

"This feature isn't exclusive to the gacha coins either!" She moves on, interrupting my thought process. "Unfortunately, you don't have anything else to combine at the moment, but the basic principle is the same."

"So long as I have the option, right?"

"Yep. Now, wake up." I suddenly lost sight of her.

"Huh?"

Wake up.

Feeling my eyes grow heavy, I feel the desk beneath me disappear. Landing on a soft, and warm pillow, I notice this pillow has a soft pair of blue eyes.

Trying my damndest to keep my eyes open, to absorb the sight of my system admin, I fail spectacularly. "I'm doing what I can,

So, do your best, Ren."

To Be Continued…

Alright let's do some math. 16 Common Gacha Coins are needed to make an EX Coin.

Let's assume Ren gets 1 Common GC a day from his daily quest. 365 days, divided by 16, giving us an ugly 22.8125(.)

Let's round up in this case, bcus Ren will definitely be getting more than 365 Common GC in a year. 23 EX GC.

Man, Ren is gonna be so busted. Too bad, I'm going to make him suffer to earn it.