After getting Rune Tech from what was essentially someone he was living with, and for the sake of hanging out with another who doesn't fall to their feet after learning his identity, 'Smol Chad' and his little harem went to get ready into nice clothes.
The amount of Chad in that small body of his went through the roof...! So much that those virgin- Oh what am I even saying...? It's not like this Second Prince had ever gone past the first base anyway.
Why was that exactly? Even the person in question didn't understand why his girlfriends would break up with him without exception, some of them even moving on to other guys, but what puzzled him the most wasn't how they moved on, as the most surprising thing about all his relationships was that no one exactly 'hated' him. There wasn't any negativity expressed by any of the girls he dated.
They kept in contact and even though it was awkward at times meeting these new guys they'd found, he was happy for them. It was to the point he sincerely congratulated them on their luck in finding the right life partner for themselves.
The girls saw him as a 'little brother' they could always rely on even without knowing his true identity, and one of the reasons he was going to this specific party was to meet up his extended network of friends that worked in various roles.
Warriors, or those who were State Guards, Knights, Fashion Designers, Salesmen, Bards, Fighters, Singers, etc. As long as that Job Class existed in the Human Empire, he had probably dated someone who worked in one of those crafts.
On top of that, he had also became a 'Jack of all Trades' of sorts from learning various things from them in order to get to understand them. It was a rare occurrence where one Gaia Human actually found it necessary to go learn new things.
It was natural to dabble in a lover's Class in order to better understand them, and Vhalen took this part of relations very seriously due to his views on love as a whole. It was how he cared for people.
Rather than getting all horny and trying to move to new bases with each interaction, he took the time to understand the many girls he dated and figure out what would make them happy. All this while keeping an acceptable distance between them.
He wasn't a 'beastly' type, nor the one who expected too much from the other person. All he did was shower his affection on his partner, which was so heartfelt that it gave them a feeling of bliss.
In the end though, he was still unable to keep the girls he 'loved' from leaving him. Something that would give others the wrong impression, as the girls who knew him hated breaking up too.
Despite being a shorty, Vhalen Lancelot knew of his own charms as he stood in front of the mirror and basked in his own handsomeness for a spit-second. He put on a fedora, buttoned up his black jacket, fastened his golden bowtie, and got ready for the party hosted by none other than his older sister. The clothes he wore only made him stand out more... What can one say about his looks?
Handsome. Absolutely nothing less than that!
Despite the many breakups, he didn't experience any heartbreak. The shorty managed to bring out a dazzling smile. One wouldn't be able to guess how a guy like him could have such a great figure...!
It wasn't that he thought himself to be different from the others, rather, instead of dwelling on the past, he liked moving towards the future. There was nothing more satisfying than moving on.
Who cared if he was friend-zoned multiple times?
At least, friendship is something he treasured...
Whelp, I guess it's time to talk about the others. A lucky midget like him really scored big time...!!!
Putting that to the side: Within the mental link between the quintuplets, an ominous feeling arose.
It's finally time for a little backstory on the five girls who seemed mysterious to those of the mansion. A cute voice rang out within the heads of all the five Beast girls at once, unknown to everyone else:
"We gonna go our own damn ways, right?"
"Don' say'it like dat!"
"Mind ya own business...!"
"Screw you!"
"Sisters, behave!" Within the mental link between the sisters, they exchanged information with each other. Alex wouldn't be surprised by this as he already saw their 'stats' and their abilities.
I would bring up what he saw but the details matter less than their implications. As one could guess, a connection existed between the psychotic Berserk Killer and the forgotten 'Empress' Quintuplets.
They didn't have names, only numbers: All ranging from ME01 to ME05, from oldest to youngest.
Those who saw their 'numbers' would think the first two letters was just a bad pun made by the Author about them all being a 'me' in some sense of the word. You could say the first step to sentience was recognising that you had a 'self'.
That you weren't just a clone, and that from your own eyes, from now and forever, you recognise your existence and say 'me' when someone is talking about you; not ignore yourself altogether.
It was basically the 'I think, therefore, I am' theory.
Regardless, the true reason they are lettered with the initials of M and E was because of they were different from DL01 (Malice), rather than being created from the genes of the self-proclaimed Demon Lord, they were clones created from a woman Alex would recognise, the Godlight Dragon of the Dragon Family. Or as she was called in this fantasy world: 'The Mist Empress of Scarlet Blood'.
The second and third sisters of the quintuplets scooted their booties together in their maid outfits after being persuaded by their eldest sister. As a way to pass the time until their 'Master' (Alex) called to them, they leaned on each other while playing cat's cradle with a red string using their opposing hands. Their skills were quite amazing.
The second sister (ME02), who now had a blue hair ornament and new hairstyle, didn't mind how their bodies were melding into each other as she focused on the red string in her left hand, and synchronised with ME03's right hand perfectly.
They could do this not because of some 'quintuplet' bond they had, but due to having the Innate Skill of Mental Link to their most dear eldest sister (ME01) like their younger sisters. In fact, the sole reason numbers 2 to 5 were created was solely to be of use to the original prototype of an artificial Transcendent Burst user. They shared cognitive capabilities to dilute her 'Divine Mind'.
"Will you two be okay?" Asked the eldest sister as their 'Link' would become weaker with distance. It wouldn't really break, but their voices wouldn't be able to travel far if she moved away from them.
"Heck, don't ya worry 'bout us!"
"Absolutely fine! Get'it?"
The two of them replied to as they didn't want to chain their eldest sister down. They wanted to become independent, which was why the two chose to even choose different coloured hairstyles from now on. It was a statement to their sister.
ME02 liked the colour blue while ME03 liked the colour red, and even went as far as to secretly choose new names for themselves that they wanted to share with Vhalen later... after the party was over. Their names was the following:
ME01 chose the name 'Violet'. She liked different colours and especially this particular purple shade.
ME02 chose the name 'Tart', ME03 chose the name 'Peach', ME04 chose the name 'Mint', and ME05 chose the name 'Marma'. Since she liked marmalade she decided to take the first four letters and turn it into her name... and her other sister had similar reasons to why they chose their names to be edible stuff.. They were all simple people with a little lack of self-awareness when it came to others.
The eldest sister (Violent/ME01) was worried about them, but trusted her new 'Master' enough to leave them in his care. Alex didn't really seem like the type who would lay his hands on young girls just because they were cute. He was too dense.
It was to the point that he felt a little like their saviour, Vhalen, in that aspect of his personality.
No, it was more accurate to say the scholarly freak didn't seem interested in dating and things that sounded intimate or 'romantic'. He was more of someone who liked relaxing on his own
Only the person himself knew that he was still stuck on Samantha Turner, his first ever 'love' in life. Unless he felt that same natural attraction towards another girl, he refused to date anyone.
But to get back to the main point, Violet (ME01) was finally thinking about her future together with her sisters after coming to this place. The reason she and the others stayed with Vhalen wasn't merely because they liked his personality, but also due to desiring his protection... After all, who else could protect them from those of the Prison Laboratory other than the greatest Royal Family?
She zipped on her leather leggings and slid on purple dress that didn't have that long of a skirt connecting to it. Her sunshine blonde hair and purple hair ornament stood out as she put on the heels she had brought after going shopping.
This was her first time wearing them, but her sense of balance and intuition allowed her to easily learn how to walk in them without any trouble. She liked the soft feeling of the cotton-like dress as she proceeded out to see if the others were ready.
Once she met up with them, she saw Mint (ME04) and Marma (ME05), her youngest and most delicate sister, also dressed to stun. She liked the more open dress her fourth sister wore that showed a little of her back as well as the long skirted and sleeved dress Marma wore.
Together, no man would be able to stop themselves from approaching and asking for their contacts while they were there (even though they had yet to buy a Aqua Phone...). It was at this moment that the shorty joined up with them.
Sure, he was really Smol, but his 'Chad-ness' and handsomeness melded together to create a figure that wouldn't feel ashamed even when met with an even taller Chad. He was confident in himself!
The three girls couldn't help but clap in amazement as he made a clean entrance with a spring in his step. He acted like a gentleman for laughs and held out his hand, which Violet grabbed unconsciously.
"Pretty lady, may I ask your name?" They had come this far even without asking each other this once.
"...Sorry. We'll tell them to you all together."
"Really?"
"Really."
"I'm looking forward to it~" Vhalen left a light kiss on top of her glove before smiling at the trio.
Even though Violet was the only one to not get a Mech Armament out of the four of them, she didn't feel jealous and instead surprised by how they managed to hide the things Alex had gave them.
Her little sister's managed to ask for holsters they could wear under their clothes without drawing attention, but Vhalen was probably feeling hot after wearing the thick Soft Armour under his suit.
"We should go now, right?" She spoke thoughtfully as she noticed a beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He didn't say anything, but not even the coldness of night stopped him from feeling hot.
Outside, the carriage driver felt his jaw drop as he saw his customers come out of the mansion.
As someone who took his role as the person who drives people to high-class parties in a luxurious carriage at night, he had seen many people of different styles and looks. However, he was unable to stop his heart from feeling envy as he saw them.
One shorty (of whom the man didn't know was the kingdom's prince) was being surrounded by three beauties who resembled Spirit Queens. Their devastating looks and elegance made one feel inferior... They stuck close to the guy they liked.
How close? Violet was already leaning her bountiful chest on his fedora from behind while the other two held one arm each. When Vhalen noticed the look of envy on the driver he hired, he winked mischievously while getting into the carriage.
'...Woah, what did I just see?' The man inwardly before deciding to just do his role dutifully.
"Can you make it colder?" As he got off to close the door, he heard the customer from inside.
"Of course." The driver nodded his head.
Although the Human Empire's technology may not be 'futuristic' despite being mystical in nature like a certain youth's Rune Tech, the empire's technology was still up to date and convenient as modern day.
The carriage may look like something out of a fairy tale, but it was essentially a kind of limousine for those of Gaia. The driver smiled at the fedora-wearing playboy who was laying down in the arms of the girls he came with as if to say: 'Be jealous!'
And oh how that worked! The kind carriage driver scratched his head and wondered if he should also go to some mixers or get a blind date... He wanted a girlfriend too! (He wasn't dumb enough to have the delusion he could have any more than that...)
'Oh Lord, please grant me a girlfriend as well...! I won't mind if you add more than one.' He prayed an impossible request to the Holy God before getting on to take them to the Silver Spoon restaurant.
Little did any of them know that tonight won't be peaceful, especially after a certain trio banded together to screw over the Radiant Sword Mirror Cult. There were three shadowy silhouettes who watched the Vhalen and the three quintuplets leave before fading into the night. The secretive trio had banded together pretty quickly after a certain time-traveller chose himself to be their leader.
Tonight will be one for everyone to remember...!