Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

With the dawn of a new day, Vahn felt refreshed and ready to take on the entire world, quite literally. He had spent part of his evening thinking about various solutions to his problems, ultimately coming to the conclusion that they just needed to speed up progress on their hypothesized projects.

In order to ensure that humans were able to thrive, without harming themselves and others, Vahn and Da Vinci had come up with a plan to establish massive colonies on each Continent. These would be megacities capable of housing well over a hundred million people without any major difficulty, all within a relatively confined space, relatively speaking.

To house the remainder of humanity, and any spirits that wished to call them home, Sanctuary Cities would be constructed approximately 500km from each other. These would be positioned, not just on the land, but even in the middle of the ocean. This was in order to facilitate the advancement of one of their largest projects, the Global Defense System.

While the massive network of Companions would be able to deal with most planetside threats, Vahn was very aware of the fact that the Universe was host to several powerful entities. Not only were the planets themselves Tier 5 beings, home to various unknown races, but other civilizations existed in other areas of the Galaxy. He had even purchased various star maps through the system shop, all in preparation for the Empire's rise as an interstellar and, ultimately, intergalactic civilization.

To protect against external threats, the various colonies and Sanctuary Cities would form a global magic circle, one capable of empowering the existing Bounded Field to convert it into a barrier that covered the entire planet. This would require the cooperation of Gaia but, after everything that had happened, Vahn wasn't worried about her acquiescence. Even without his status as Type Omega, he was certain she could be convinced to help after seeing the steps he had taken to protect the planet, Gaia herself.

The only problem with moving forward with these global-scale projects was the very real chance that they would be interfered with by various forces. They may have functionally infinite resources at their disposal but, unless he suddenly weaponized the Companions and Micro-Golems, the Empire was in dire need of additional manpower.

Since he didn't want people to fear the Companions, Vahn would need to forcibly seize control of the required territory, stationing forces to protect the Empire's assets. In other words, going against his original intentions, he would need to effectively conquer the planet. This wasn't the result of his desire to rule, ironically, but more of a necessity derived from the current situation. What made this ironic was the fact that, with his knowledge of history, Vahn knew that many Conquerors had set out with similar sentiments in mind...

Fortunately, rather than rebuke him for his decision, Artoria supported him with a resolute heart and an understanding mind. She knew, better than most, how difficult it could be to establish order and rule over others. During her time as King, she had spent literal decades defending the borders of her home, all while quelling rebellions and uprisings from within a populace she dedicated everything to protect. At times, humans could be very selfish in this pursuit for individual happiness, incapable of seeing the grand pictures that qualified leaders were forced to account for.

What mattered the most to Artoria was that Vahn didn't want to conquer, he was compelled to do so in order to save as many people as possible. The quicker order was established, the sooner the chaos would subside. Though it would take time, once people experienced life under the Common Law of the Empire, they would begin to forgive and forget. All that really mattered to most people was their individual happiness and well-being, two things the Empire directly promoted. Once they realized the need for menial labor and other mundane tasks was no longer required to 'purchase' happiness, the vast majority would readily fall in line.

Thus, far from rebuking Vahn, Artoria was fully prepared to lead a Battalion and seize control of the region where the first Supercolony would be built. Once the first had been established, they would know what to expect in the construction and defense of the rest. Since Vahn couldn't be the one to head the conquest, she was fully willing to raise the banner of the Empire and share in his burden as the world's enemy. It was for reasons like this that Vahn couldn't help but love Artoria. In fact, had they not been in the company of several others, he might have whisked her away to their bedroom then and there...

After making a mental note to express his gratitude towards Artoria later that evening, Vahn had his Court openly discuss the matter of the Empire's conquest of the world. At the very least, they would need eight experienced Generals to defend each territory and, when the time came, each Sanctuary City would also need a force to protect it from both internal strife and external threats. The defense of the Sanctuary Cities could be handled by the various Heroic Spirits they made agreements with but, as the primary components of the Global Defense System, the Supercolonies would need much greater protection.

In response to this, it was none other than Nobunaga who suggested, "History has known many Conquerors, capable Generals, and prodigious Rulers. You have your pick of the litter so why not just summon people you think are suitable to the task? So long as you avoid anyone with a legend that depicted cruelty and wanton violence, there shouldn't be any issues. If you want, I don't mind taking over Asia and holding the fort. The heavens know my Ancestors would certainly get a kick out of the idea."

Hearing Nobunaga's suggestion, Vahn was very tempted to laugh as he could easily imagine her taking over Asia and hoisting the Japanese flag as a joke. Since it really wasn't a bad suggestion, and he knew she really wanted a chance to show off, Vahn seriously considered the proposal, moving the discussion in the direction of viable candidates. Boudica was suitable for defending Europe so, even if he let Nobunaga and Karna deal with Asia, they would still several candidates to protect the other five Continents.

What surprised Vahn was the fact that Artoria immediately suggested two candidates, the first being Iskandar, known by most as Alexander the Great, and the other, Attila, a name which, for reasons he quickly came to know, garnered a reaction from Alaya. He had to raise his hand, stopping Artoria in mid-sentence, as what Alaya had whispered in his ear wasn't something he could ignore. He gave his tolerant Empress an apologetic smile before urging Alaya to repeat what she said, this time so that everyone could hear it...

Alaya wasn't fond of manifesting herself before others but, as she had become more obedient as of late, she didn't pout like she used to. Instead, she appeared sitting in Vahn's lap of all places, a mask of calm as she explained, "Attila may have been famous during your time, King of Knights, but they are not the person you believe them to be. While summoning them would greatly aid the Empire's agenda, their presence would invite a greater catastrophe in the future."

At first, Alaya's words seemed rather vague but, before anyone could inquire about what kind of catastrophe they would invite, the petite blue entity beat them to the punch by making a three-dimensional projection for everyone to bear witness to. It showed a lithe woman with olive-brown skin who, discernible due to her extremely revealing outfit, was covered in platinum-white hair while, at the center of her forehead, a diamond-shaped gemstone was set directly into her flesh.

As soon as they saw the woman in the projection, Vahn could feel mild annoyance from many of the women in attendance. Had he not been in his 'Emperor' mode, his face probably would have heated a bit as he knew the cause of their exasperation. Fortunately, Alaya continued her explanation before any of them could interject, adding, "The being known by many as Attila the Hun is a remnant of the Great Calamity, an event that took place shortly after the Children of Gaia, the first generation Gods, turned against their Creator. As penance for their treachery, Gaia exposed the existence of life to the forces that observe and regulate the Galactic Network. This event led to the destruction of nearly all life on the Surface, requiring those that remained to construct a new home from Gaia's vessel, the entity referred to as Tiamat..."

While all of these details were interesting, what Alaya explained next stunned everyone present, Vahn included, as she revealed, "Attila is an alien fragment, a piece of the entity that, alone, nearly wiped out all life on Gaia's surface, Gods, Spirits, man, and even microbial life forms. She may not be a danger in her current form but, upon summoning her, the sealed fragment, known as Velbar 02, will awaken from her slumber. Due to the Cycle of Causality, events that set her release in motion will begin to transpire. If you intend to summon Attila, contracting with Type Moon and seizing control of the Moon Cell will become necessary."

Hearing Alaya's revelations, the entire Court was at a momentary loss for words until Vahn broke the silence, issuing a wry yet amused laugh. His Karma had recently eclipsed five-hundred-million so he wasn't even remotely surprised by the sudden revelations. Rather, he already knew a bit about the Moon Cell, even if the fact it sealed away some monstrous entity was news to him. Thus, while others may be surprised, he couldn't help but internally remark, ("If something like this didn't happen, that would be infinitely more surprising...").

In response to this internal remark, Sis's laughter coincided with his own, musing, (*It seems you are starting to understand the machinations of Karma a little better. This is good, Vahn. Remember, even if things seem hectic, you are always in control of at least your own actions. It takes going against the current to reach the top of the mountain...*)

With Sis's words cementing his resolve, Vahn's laughter suddenly ceased and, with a resolute tone, he stated, "I doubt any of you are surprised by these revelations. As a force intent on changing and protecting the entire planet, we should not be afraid of what the Universe at large has to throw at us. This being, Attila, we will see exactly what kind of entity she is. In fact, in the years to come, we are certain that even more ridiculous entities will make their presence known. Thus, here and now, we decree that the Empire's ultimate goal lay not in maintaining order on the planet, but spreading our influence to the entire Galaxy...!"

As the final words left his mouth, Vahn rose from his Throne, preempted by Alaya hopping out of his lap and floating next to him. Then, without waiting for anything like an ovation or rebuttal, he looked toward Artoria and added, "With the known exceptions, we vow, as an Emperor, Husband, and, most importantly, a Father...from now until our goals have been met, we will not extend our hand to those not currently affiliated with the Inner Sanctum. If any exceptions are to be made, it will be the result of a unanimous decision by the Inner Sanctum's current residents, dictated and moderated by our Empress, Artoria Aldrnar Pendragon..."

With the recent inclusion of so many new women to his harem, even as potentiates, Vahn knew he needed to put his foot down, primarily on himself. His empathy was one of his greatest traits but, if he wanted to achieve his goals expediently, restraint would be necessary. Eva was already going to rip him a new one once he brought a small army of girls with him into her world so it was better to nip the problem in the bud, even if said bud had already bloomed into a garden...

Needless to say, Vahn's sudden announcement had taken everyone present by surprise. He did note, however, that some people seemed genuinely relieved by his words, Gawain being the most obvious example. What really troubled him was the fact that, for a brief moment, Mordred had furrowed her brows slightly while, at his side, Alaya gave him a pointed look that seemed to convey, 'I had better be one of the exceptions'...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Artoria is bae status for a reason','Time for some bad civilization!?','Did...did Vahn just break...?')