And so, a bit less than a week has passed. It was a challenging couple of days for me. Why was it challenging? Because I was bored out of my mind, that's why. Even if I accompanied Kugi to the lab, there was practically nothing I could do there, and the pirates in the system have almost been wiped out, so there was no point in heading out with the ship as well.
And so, I spent half of those days having Mei accompany me, and had Mimi and Elma accompany me to the lab as well because they also wouldn't have anything to do there. I had to go shopping with them in the Dauntless in exchange though.
"So, we somehow managed to decipher the contents of the information exchanges between those spheres, Boss."
"I see. It's great that you managed to get some results."
And I had to spend time with Tina and Wiska in turns during the evening until late at night. If they needed to come to the lab during the day, the schedule was reversed.
"We didn't have anything to do with the deciphering process in the second half, so we helped with the research on the sphere's outer shell instead. But Shouko-san sure is amazing. She specializes in nanomachine programming and making algorithms, but she's able to apply her knowledge in things not related to her specialization."
"We have to learn from her example."
The three of us were sitting on the sofa, with Tina to my right and Wiska to my left. They snuggled really close to me, so it felt very warm and cuddly. The room temperature was adjusted to be on the lower side to facilitate snuggling together, so they were quite prepared.
"What about ya and Kugi, Boss? "
"What about us? Uh, let's see... Honestly, it's a bit hard to make a move on her since she's just so well-behaved."
"Ah, I kinda get that. That girl's really well-mannered and stuff."
"It's kinda like she's a delicate flower I shouldn't sully with my dirty hands... Get it?"
"I get the nuance at least, Big Brother."
How should I put it? I won't go so far as to want her to be like Elma or Tina, but I wouldn't hesitate this much if she was at least close to Mimi or Whisker in demeanor. However, that girl was 100% like a flower grown in a carefully maintained greenhouse. She says stuff like doing her best to fulfill her duty or doing anything I want, but I just couldn't bring myself to make a move on her after getting hit dead-on with that pure and earnest aura. I'm not a true love fanatic, nor am I averse to eating what's already served in front of me, but her purity was just so dazzling that I end up backing away instead of getting motivated.
"But that doesn't mean you won't make a move on her at all, right, Boss?"
"Well, yeah. I'll probably get to it eventually."
"I can't tell if you're quick at this sort of stuff or just slow as heck, Big Brother... It took a lot of time before you laid your hands on us after all."
"That can't be helped y'know. So, please cut me some slack."
It took plenty of courage for me to lay my hands on these two. In various meanings. But once we've done the deed, it wasn't such a big deal anymore.
"Don't make her wait too long, okay? It's sad to be the only one left out you know?"
"I'll do my best."
I kinda want a good chance to present itself first though... No, it's because I think that way that nothing ever happens in the first place. You don't wait for a chance to come to you. You have to make it yourself.
I was thinking of how to create a chance for me and Kugi to take the next step in our relationship, but when the other party presented a chance herself, I honestly didn't know what to feel about it.
"My Lord, let us begin your training."
"Training huh."
"Yes, training, My Lord."
Kugi called me over to her room, and now, we were facing each other. And I was sitting in a seiza position for some reason.
Well, it seems that the Holy Vuelzarus Empire's culture was quite similar to Japan's in some ways, so her room's floor was actually covered by tatami-like mats. Naturally, shoes weren't allowed on a tatami mat, and there was a bit of space near the entrance to her room to place shoes on.
When I entered her room, she already had some floor cushions prepared, so I went with the flow and sat in seiza. By the way, Kugi was also sitting on a floor cushion in a seiza position directly opposite me.
"What are we gonna do during training? Meditation?"
"That's an effective method as well. Meditation is very good for training to tap into the power coming from within you and exercise control over it. However, the current you will probably find this method quite difficult, My Lord."
"Is that so?"
"Indeed. You have already developed extremely powerful abilities such as spatiotemporal control and fate manipulation, but they are all activated without conscious input from you. In order to control them consciously, you need to first be able to perceive your own power."
"I see."
I remember being told before that I was in a state of uncontrollably releasing psionic power, which was also known as potential. I wasn't aware that such a thing was going on, but it looks like perceiving this process was the first step in controlling psionic powers.
"I get it now. But I wanna ask a question first."
"Go ahead, My Lord."
"Why did you also prepare futons?"
Also, why are you so lightly dressed, Ms. Kugi? Moreover, the fabric of your clothes is kinda thin and somewhat see-through. Mmm. Well, it's not like I don't have any idea about what's going on. I do get it. I'm not that dense or stupid, so I can already predict what's gonna happen next. Still, I couldn't help but ask.
"If you are an ordinary person, My Lord, then it is rather simple to open your『eye』in order to 'see'. However, opening the『eye』of someone with as much potential as you entails a number of dangers, My Lord."
"Opening my 'eye' huh? Are you referring to the third eye or something like that?"
"Yes, it is something to that effect. To put it simply, it is the ability to perceive psionic power. If one is a regular practitioner, it is simply a matter of using external stimulus to open their 'eye'. Generally, races with inborn psionic abilities do not need such a stimulus, but... in rare cases like yours My Lord, your 'eye' is not open even though you have extremely strong psionic abilities."
"But do we really need to use the futons in order to open my third eye?"
"It will take a long time to explain in full, but basically, yes. I would like you to leave everything to me."
Kugi stared up at my face with a very serious expression. Mm, how dazzling. She was positively burning with a sense of duty.
"There aren't any dangers, right? If there are, then I don't really think it's necessary to insist on training."
"Yes, My Lord. It is very dangerous."
"I see. If that's the case– Wait, there are!?"
I couldn't help but do a spit-take. If it's dangerous, then I don't think we need to go through with this after all.
"Yes. It is indeed very dangerous. Depending on the circumstances, it might even lead to the demise of the life forms within this star system."
"Do we really need to cross such a dangerous bridge?"
"Considering what we are going to face from here on out, I think it is very necessary, My Lord. If you unexpectedly fall into a situation where your『eye』gets forcibly opened without any precautions in place, there is a very high risk of a disaster occurring. And because there is a high risk of being exposed to powerful psionic interference in the star system we are heading to next... this might cause your『eye』to suddenly open."
"...Those spheres huh."
"Indeed."
Because those spheres exchange information through telepathy, it can be said that there's indeed a possibility of me getting subjected to psionic interference. And because of that, my『eye』might suddenly get opened even without me meaning to.
"But I've been fine so far. Nothing happened while we were in the Refill system too."
That special-grade cursed item did latch onto me, but nothing really dangerous happened anyway.
"Just because you have been fine until now does not mean you will be fine in the future, My Lord. At the very least, under my guidance, the chances of any danger happening will be significantly reduced. There is no need for you to worry about me either, My Lord. It is exactly for the sake of these sorts of situations that someone like me has been selected and sent to your side."
"You're being really assertive about this y'know... OK, I got it. I'll leave it to you."
She didn't show any signs of backing down, so I decided to just give up and accept what was coming. I wasn't against it, but I wonder if she was doing this only because of that sense of duty of hers... No, this might be a chance to further deepen our relationship.
Alright, come on! I'll show this sheltered lady exactly how it's done, baby!