decorator | a stolen fruit; a childish sin has taken root

That's a little much, isn't it?

[ The Nobbus look hopeful...! ]

We've been here way too long for to start drawing it out even more. How much is even long enough to make them a living hell...? It'll be better if you finish it quick.

[ Never mind. The Nobbus are doomed.

Another few false starts of magic, then a spark of mana; definitely not as efficient as their usual method but when Ai calls out to him - ]

I'm watching, so you have to do your best, okay?

[ - it comes rushing through all the same, the sort of energy boost one might associate with some kind of attack buff. you know, hypothetically. ]

[ ...Has he rubbed off on her? Ah well, she has a point, so he won't be questioning it. ]

Good... point...!

[ The boost comes just in time for a swing of Oberon's scythe, mowing down a number of them all at once. Whatever it is, it clearly works... hell, this might even be good practice for her. Not that she has any chance as a mage, but improving the flow of her mana isn't a bad thing.

It really is a spectacle, though, watching a Servant fight. Isn't it? Exactly how many weapons can one make out of bugs...? ]

[ A little part of her feels kind of bad... not bad enough to actually stop with all this, given both that they still need to progress and that they've spent so much of their time being terrorized by Nobbus no matter what's going on in this place... does it make her cruel if she thinks this is a little bit cathartic? ]

Just like that! You just have to keep it up!

[ ... Usually, there'd be a bit of a cooldown after a spark of mana like that, but so long as she's cheering for him it's still going...? Is the mystic code a bit off, or is it Ai herself? ]

[ This would be the first time Oberon could ever say he's heard of a mage being better at magic... via typical idol gestures. It has to be psychological... surely she doesn't have an elemental affinity and/or origin of "Idol", right?

Whatever it is, it's working... the Mini Nobbus start going down faster, resulting in the swift downing of the next wave of Mini Nobbus. ]

Hah... huh, is it just me, or are you getting the hang of that thing?

No idea...! Am I?

[ It's a little flippant but it seems sincere enough. She's still working out what it even feels like to use magic in the first place, let alone how it's supposed to feel or what it might be like to actually get the hang of it. But it does feel... easier, this time around. ]

Maybe it's because I'm not trying to force it as much? After all, this is way more natural for me.

[ She winks at him........... ]

...

[ Before, when they had only recently met, that damn wink of hers wouldn't have been effective in the slightest. Now? Now it... it makes him feel something, that's for sure.

...Is this the charmed condition!? ]

D-Don't do that to me now!

[ ...No, no he's just embarrassed. ]

[ A little laugh comes tumbling out of her, surprised and delighted. ]

H-hold on, was that really a little too much? Sorry!

[ He got embarrassed... cute. Maybe now isn't the time but how is she supposed to resist when he's got an expression like that?

With a smile that makes it abundantly clear that she's not even a little bit sorry, she makes a heart with her hands and beams at him relentlessly. ]

Keep doing your best for me and you can have a reward, okay?

Edited 2024-05-18 09:48 (UTC)

Gah...!

[ That's?? Somehow even worse?? It's so sickeningly sweet, of course it bothers him... but what really bothers him is how it's actually working. ]

It better be a good damn reward...!

[ Said as he kicks his ~~soccer ball~~ pillbug with even more force, annihilating even more Mini Nobbus as a result. That heart symbol seems to have worked wonders... ]

Of course it will! ★ You don't think I became an idol without learning how to do a little fanservice, do you?

[ Of all the ways for magecraft to work out for her... technically, it should be the fans who are doing the cheering instead of the idol herself, but she's always been the type of idol who wants to support everyone, right? Maybe this is just a reflection of that. At least it actually is working! So she won't look a gift horse in the mouth. ]

There's just a couple more, you can do it!

[ God, what the hell does "fanservice" mean in that context!? He's dying to know, but he's a bit too busy deflecting gunfire from the Mini Nobbu's rifles to ask.

Which, at the very least, is finally coming to an end as the final squad of Mini Nobbus arrive... and with the buffs Ai is currently providing him, it's remarkable how quickly they fall, sliced apart by a combination of sharp projectile insects and a large sweep of his scythe. He was even faster than usual... so the method aside, the results speak for themselves. ]

Hah... hah... there. That should be the last of them for now.

[ ...So what the hell is fanservice?? ]

[ For all he complains about... well, doing literally anything, Oberon's a pretty efficient Servant when he puts his mind to it, huh? Or at least, when he's properly motivated. Food for thought for later, she supposes.

Once it's safe to approach, Ai comes over to him with another of those picture perfect beaming smiles - the kind that are a little too bright to look right at. ]

Wow, you cleaned them all up so quick! Heehee, even you can fight like that when you feel like it, it turns out... so I guess I do owe you a reward.

[ Still smiling like that, Ai reaches up with her hand and. . .

. . . pats him on the head. ]

You did a good job. Hmm, is it a little too much to call you a 'good boy'...?

H... Huh?

[ It's... a little silly, the way she has to reach all the way up just to reach the top of his head, but more than that... ]

O-Oi, just what do you think I am? A dog?

[ He's not leaning down to make this any easier, but his frown is very clearly a pout. What kind of reward is this!? He expected something more, damn it!

...That doesn't mean stop. ]

[ Dryly, a little more like Hoshino Ai than Ai of B-Komachi: ] An attack dog, maybe. Come on, lean down a little more. I can barely reach up like this.

[ She's still patting his head as requested, though - and when her voice eases back into the breezy, cheery tone she'd been using a moment before, it softens and sweetens as well. ]

You must be getting super tired of fighting like this... I know, I get it. But you're still doing your best.

[ Pat, pat, pat. ]

Seeing you work this hard for me makes me suuuuuper happy.

Mn...

[ He continues to pout, but he begrudgingly does as she asks... leaning down so that she can actually reach the top of his head. This is ridiculous, he thinks... ]

...So happy that you decided to pat my head? You really are a mother, huh?

[ ~~Maybe he should start calling her a milf...~~ ]

Hey, now. Lots of people like the idea of getting headpats from idols. It's nothing to do with being a mom. ... not that I'm allowed to actually do it, obviously. Handshake sessions are basically as far as we're allowed to go.

[ Her hand stills, still resting on top of his head. ]

So I guess that makes this extra exclusive. I can't give this kind of fanservice to anybody but you.

[ she's buttering him up a little for sure but when she looks at him like that while saying it....... it's so powerful ]

Mngh...

[ God, how the hell is he supposed to resist her? His cheeks are flushed, and she's so close there's no hiding it. ]

...Well, I suppose that makes this a good reward, but...

[ He can only counterattack... ]

It better not be the only reward I'm getting today.

[ Her smile twitches just a bit. It's still sweet, still the infuriatingly pure smile of an idol but all of a sudden, there's something almost catlike to it. ]

Did I ever say it would be? But I can't give you a reward that special right here.

[ She lowers her hand and puts a finger to her lips, eyes dancing with mischief. ]

Something like that would need to be a private, one-on-one fan meet, don't you think?

[ Oh, that grin... it does things for him, but it also makes him feel a little proud. He can't help but wear his own catlike grin in response. ]

Good... I suppose I'll have to work especially hard for you, then.

[ Oh, Eli-chan... you don't stand a chance... Ai even has a scandalous relationship to go with all of her "Idol-power"... ]

Although... it might catch our opponent off-guard, now wouldn't it?

Just how disqualified do you wanna be?

[ She reaches up and gives his cheek a poke. Contain yourself!! ]

If we have to start this all over again, I'll be even madder than you will. [ she really, really will not. ] And even worse, you'll have to wait way longer for your proper reward. You don't want that, do you?

[ If the way she's caught him looking at her in this outfit- uh, 'mystic code' is anything to go by, even waiting this long has been a challenge. ]

So you'd better behave!

Oi, oi, I'm serious! The idea of a scandal seems to be included in that girl's perception of idols... though I suppose you're right, it's equally likely that she'd disqualify us.

[ And god forbid this dragonic idol keep them from their private, one-on-one fan meeting any longer. They might actually throw her off this absurd stack of buildings if that were to happen. ]

Fine, fine... I'll leave that form of mental warfare on the shelf, then.

[ For now, at least... ]

If it makes you feel any better, the fact that you're my Servant and you're a guy is probably pretty scandalous all by itself. There'd be plenty of fans insisting I wasn't safe or that you'd take advantage of me or something.

[ She doesn't say "and they'd be right" but. Come on. Does she really need to? ]

You're not hurt, right? I can heal you again if you need it. Now I've figured this out, it's actually coming pretty easily...

[ They should be able to move up to the next level from here, at least. And they're pretty far up by now, right? There's still a couple floors left to go but they've made a good bit of progress. ]

Hoh? That so?

[ She has god knows how many marks hidden under her outfit right now to prove how unsafe she is and how thoroughly he takes advantage of her, that's for sure. ]

No, I'm fine. Keep practicing, but make sure you have plenty for when we get to the top.

[ They should at least be able to reach the next floor with all of the materials they've gathered... they aren't too far away from finally finishing this, but... ]

...With that said, I do wonder how exactly she intends for there to be any kind of performance at the top.

[ The Honnoji layer is... perpetually on fire, after all. The complaints of Osakabehime, who must now maintain her bounded field so as to keep the fire from spreading to her layer at all times, could be heard the whole way up... ]

That's the part I'm trying not to think too hard about. She does know I'm just a regular human, doesn't she...? I've performed on some pretty out there stages before, but even I don't think I could handle one that's on fire.

[ Siiiiiigh. For the first time since they'd gotten started, her perfect idol mask properly slips out of place and she just looks a little tired. Maybe even a little embarrassed, too. They're only in this much trouble and going through this much trouble because of Ai, after all.

She catches hold of his sleeve - a compromise, since she really shouldn't be holding his hand - and does her best to smile. ]

But I'll figure something out. I can't lose at being an idol, can I?

Either she forgot or she's claiming it as an inherent advantage... either way, we'll just have to cross that bridge when we get there.

[ ...he might be trying to figure out in his head if he can slap together some kind of magecraft that'll fireproof her a little bit, or just work it into her Mystic Code.

In any case, all he can do is grin confidently to give her some kind of confidence with what they're dealing with. Honestly, it's not even really her fault... since Elizabeth would've just found some other reason to make trouble. Halloween is, after all, cursed. ]

Hey, it's not me you have to convince.

[ Is... is that his way of saying she's got this? ]

... Heehee. Thanks, Oberon.

[ At that, she does brighten - and somehow, her smile is all idol and all pure Ai at the same time, bright and pretty but warm and fond even so. It's not too dazzling to look at and even though it's the sort of smile she could never wear on stage, it's even more captivating.

Her hand slips into his, just for a second, so she can squeeze - then lets go. ]

Alright...! Let's head up to the next floor and finish this!

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