The Eternal Sanctum (Holy Knight Headquarters)

Solomon's words and phrases implied that he had both foresight and hindsight as powers. He claimed she seemed fond of her pet names and would end up with quite a few... she already had at least three she was willing to answer to, what was a few more when it made her happy? Moreover, he even claimed she could continue being her usual impulsive self, that the Myouou would simply stage interventions to keep her on her path to enlightenment. "Sou ka, so all of you are massive enablers... I got it," she stated summarizing the general point and feeling better knowing that her 'bad' habits wouldn't be something which caused problems.

Moving on from that point, apparently she should think nothing of Solomon's kindness. He was always going to interfere at this point if it was a point he needed to, interesting. There was also the matter of the practical application of her magic and abilities. She'd already learned to make Living Artifacts, that had to be in relation to her clothing which was something she did on a whim but it was something she thought repeatable regardless. Ah, well that was how the world considered things. She got an answer to that which started off pretty clear but became a bit of a technical mess within her head. Her face scrunched up a little and she would soon be found pressing her thumb between her now furrowed brows. "That sounds a bit techy, but just let me..." she gave a bit of thought to his words. 'Ai-chan, where are you... I need my techy-senpai!~' she mused. She needed a comparison to work with evolution, she understood evolution but as a matter of science. "Second class is difficult for me but I can work with it..." she murmured. "So Mystic Code is like the building blocks of the world. So more like... atoms or DNA... I could work with that as a comparison. And you can teach me how to evolve them and that will help me with my practical abilities?" she wondered if her understanding was off somewhere. Though there was also the possibility of that comparison not making sense inside the world at all, but... she had a feeling that wasn't the case.

To call the Myouou a group of massive enablers was, frankly, quite accurate. Solomon would not be the one arguing that point. In fact, he'd been an enabler long before appearing in this world. These apprentices would all be met with the same treatment, left to become far more of themselves than they imagined was necessary. "That could easily be said. We do hold freedom of learning in high regard, and we wish only for all of you to be the most you can be."

Moving on to more immediate matters of learning, it seemed his explanation of Mystic Codes was lost midway through. He knew this girl had issues with technology, but there was always the hope that his words would be sensible regardless. Alas, that was not the case. Yume did, however, have another comparison to offer in exchange. She equated Mystic Code to DNA. That did work, though Solomon also had another backup for her lack of technological understanding. "It does work that way, yes. More detailed and to your understanding, however, would be that you are a character. Your personality, your abilities, everything about you is written down, but the body you inhabit is the sheet. When you develop a Skill, it is added. When you grow, it is detailed and given to the Game Master, which could be considered the 'true' you within in this case. Imagine you've entered a tabletop game, but your entire character is limited to one sheet of paper. What I can teach you, is essentially how to fit more into that single sheet. The same logic applies to Artifacts, but the Living Artifacts... I'm sure you can understand why those are different. A character is only complete when they are detailed enough, yes?"

In Solomon's hand, there appeared a simple bracelet of sorts. He thought it best to show an example of this lesson, so he held it between Yume and himself. With that, his speech continued. "Orichalcum. Ring-shaped. Unbending. Let's imagine these are each details of this anklet. It is just an object in that case. If I were to add lines that added mana circulation, an activatable spell, and any number of other things, this simple object would develop a soul of its own. It is the exact opposite of the Living Artifact you've made, in essence. Kudos for turning a primordial deity into a dress, by the way."

Solomon like the other Myouou that Yume had met, was full of honesty. Apparently he took no issue with the idea that he and the others were enablers and their purpose was to make sure the apprentices became the best they could be. Interesting, they didn't seem to be trying to change their abilities or existing potentially destructive personality traits. No, they were keen to let them grow to be the 'most' of themselves. "Sou ka, interesting..." Yume murmured.

It seemed that Solomon had an even better example to ease the already stressed mind of Yume. He explained the development in terms of a tabletop game. She could definitely understand that... it also helped that she'd likely remember everything this man said for the rest of time, given the smoothness of his voice. His words made more sense than most things and by the time he asked about it, she was more than willing to agree with him. "Hai hai, that's a way better comparison, and it's one I understand completely. I can work with it~" she mused knowing that if she thought about her own expansion like a character sheet she could easily build herself up and learn from Solomon how to advance herself further.

As this point progressed she was given a more visual example. An object which had a defined purpose but that would become more with the addition of affixes and magical abilities. it would go from just an object to an Artifact. In this explanation he explained that this was the opposite of how she'd made her clothing and gave her a bit of congratulations on doing so. She beamed a large smile spreading across her face. "I'm glad that can be appreciated. It was mostly just trying something but after doing it I understand what I did, and... I understand what you're saying too..." she mused. If a plain thing could become more complex it would be easy to develop items to make her magical usage easier or more varied in addition to some other things. She began thinking about the potentials as she waited for Solomon to continue his explanation.

"Ah, good. I'll remember to lead with something like that next time," Solomon said in regards to future teachings. Shinomiya Kaguya was one who would have been better off in this world, as opposed to one so full of technological advancement. As he saw it, her natural magical abilities were far above average. If she'd been given a computer, however... things would have gone quite differently. "Though there is also the possibility of avoiding verbal explanation entirely. I thought only to ease your transition a bit by going about it in a way you'd be more accustomed to. If you'd like me to adjust my methods more toward the standard way of Munetsuchi, I can do that as well."

With that anklet in hand, Solomon offered the fullest explanation he needed to for Yume's understanding. She followed along perfectly, but there was one thing unmentioned: the object in his hand was already a Living Artifact. "What I said was the truth. This anklet has already been given the properties I mentioned. Would you like it?" he wondered. Whether she answered yes or no, the anklet vanished from Solomon's hand to appear instead on Yume's left ankle. If she didn't want it, she could rid herself of it at will. "Whether it is an evolution in yourself, or your ability to evolve something else, I can teach you. Do you have any questions, or preferred form of study? I will adjust myself to either and answer whatever I can."

Solomon enjoyed that she understood his explanation and claimed to lead with such examples in the future to ease her understanding. "Hai hai, I appreciate the consideration~" she mused. Though she would have eventually worked out a way to understand it which applied to her modern life, it was much easier to contextualize the way he'd presented the information most recently. Moreover he claimed that it was always possible to give her the information in a more direct manner without speech and at those words a grin spread across her face. "Munetsuchi is a great place!~ I've been mostly adjusting aside from my current weirdness with other women, that part might take a bit of time..." she said giving it a great deal of thought. "Though, I have already realized the full breadth of such teaching and it's definitely the coolest way to learn so feel free to nourish my soul... Yeah that's the way Ai-aniki put it~" she admitted gracefully. "Though you do still have a really nice voice so you don't have to stop talking to me~" she flirted unabashedly. How much more interesting would school have been with private lessons being implanted directly into brain spaces sexually by attractive teachers who were quite frankly great at sex?

Speaking of great teachers, Solomon's lesson was taken at face value. At the very least she understood fully the information he was offering as well as by the mention of him giving the anklet the properties he'd mentioned its status as a Living Artifact. "Sugoi! Of course I'll take it... souvenirs from you guys are next level~" she admitted, as the anklet settled around her unoccupied leg space. How interesting, it truly had its own sort of feeling as compared to her hat and the dress she wore already. As for what he offered an evolution and the knowledge of it was what he offered, whether it was of herself or something else. He also wished to know if she had any real preferences, or questions. "I am pretty devoted to this path as a full magical girl, so I don't really want a weapon, I'd rather make due with something innocuous but active use... I haven't thought of anything really yet, so I'd take a bit of advice on how to make that happen. I'd also like to know some ways to fully utilize my Living Artifacts, I want to make sure they don't have things that I am wasting..." she said knowing what she was looking for in a general sense. "I am still exploring so I'm not too picky about how... I'd like to experience the way you like it so I can figure out if it's also the way I'd like it~" she said knowing that her sexual experiences were rather limited, but she could clearly tell each of these men were very different in their own approaches and she'd enjoy them as is and then nudge them if she found herself needing a bit more.

Yume seemed very invested in the method of learning utilized in Munetsuchi. For that, she could not be blamed. As for her 'weirdness' with other women, Solomon could offer a clarity most other Alayans could not. "That is understandable. Sexual preferences on Gaia are somewhat confused. Naturally, biology will always win, but that does not mean mana transfer between members of the same gender is to be considered odd. Miwa and your friends are compatible with you. Compatibility is all that matters in this world. From there... it's all about what you could enjoy," he explained. Whatever the case, her interest in learning from Solomon was made perfectly clear. She wanted her soul 'nourished' but urged him to continue speaking. Very well.

While Yume gave her explanation of preferences, Solomon focused on altering the platform they stood on. His throne would soon be gone, replaced by a bed of similar design. On either side, however, there were portals to other spaces elsewhere within the realm. One led to an office, another to a modern Japanese-style house interior, and a third opened to a spring amid forest trees. With that, four options were before Asakura Yume. "To say 'Magical Girl' is potentially disturbingly accurate. Perhaps you'll find yourself taking that quite literally? Whatever your choices entail, my advice is to make your Artifact something comfortable. A swordsman should have a sword, but an artist should always choose the brush or easel instead. It is a Living Artifact, after all; it wants to fulfill its purpose. So long as that criteria is easily met, you will have no issues. Now, the venue. . ."

Yume had been learning a great many things since coming to Alaya, among them various understandings of sex and sexuality. Solomon had a bit of input which would help the girl feel a bit less... awkward in her day to day life. Apparently, nature tended to win out, but... compatibility was more important than parts. Mana sharing and by virtue of that sexual activity, was something which could happen between the girl and anyone she was compatible with regardless of gender and wouldn't be considered odd. "Sou ka... I think I feel less weird about it now... so thanks. I'll explore it at my own pace," she confirmed.

Of course, beyond this point there was the matter of her actual lesson, and where it would be delivered. Solomon's throne turned into a bed and several portals appeared around apparently giving her access to a variety of potential different places to experience him. She looked into the portals, and found them interesting. She could see her friends liking these rooms and she could see herself experiencing them for various reasons. But in the end, the girl stimply slipped into Solomon's former throne now bed and grinned. "I like comfort and in my infinite childishness I always wanted to be a magical girl, I can't help but live my dream~" she mused. There were multiple tiers of meaning to her words, but in this case, it was simply the perfect response. Speaking of perfect responses.... "I think this place is worth the experience. Don't hold me to it though... I could always change my mind later~" she teased gently. At the very least, this man could definitely show her what he had going on for himself. She took the general opinion that all the Myouou would have some interesting personal habits, and she was keen to learn Solomon's for the sake of figuring out her various preferences.

"That would be for the best. You should never do things in a way that is uncomfortable for you. As you've seen by now, it's not good for the soul," Solomon said regarding the girl's pacing decision. Her former boyfriend's primary issue was one of comfort, in a manner of speaking. Regardless, that lesson was one already explored in Mugen's company; Solomon wouldn't harp on it very much.

Now, with four choices ahead of her, Yume only had to select one. Which would she go for? While expressing her dedication to being a magical girl, she moved toward the bed instead of any of three portals. What an interesting decision. Considering the amount of time she was able to spend in this realm, he did not yet do away with those portals. As Yume herself stated, changing her mind was always an option. Even visiting every space was technically possible. "The bed, eh? Your alignment to your friends is very clear," he said, knowing of a particular comrade of hers who would eventually find this same bed. With that aside though, Solomon stepped toward the bed as well. His robes were falling away from top to bottom with every step, initially revealing that the body of a magus was not so neglected as media often implied. "Or perhaps it's an existing compatibility with me. Honestly, there's no telling even for me at times. Mystery is as strange as the name implies, I'm afraid."

There were quite a few words shared about the nature of comfort in this world. Yume was encouraged to do things in the way that was comfortable and reminded of a particular person who'd not done such a thing. She supposed that was the baseline issue of his life given the huge difference between his legitimate virtues and his base personality. "Hai hai, doing who and what I like, when I like and being unapologetically me. Got it!~" she mused knowing full well that this was a rather easy leap for her to make.

Moving on from that Yume was left to watch Solomon ascend to the bed and... speak of her decisions. Apparently she was quite well aligned to her friends. "Lots of things are clear..." she murmured as she took in his visage as he exposed himself. Top to bottom, a gorgeous face, golden magical eyes, dark skin and a massive amount of silvery white hair. Exposed and muscled chest, not quite extreme, but far flung from the 'feeble mage' motif. Her eyes continued to travel as she heard him speaking of Mystery and not being sure if her choice was an alignment to her friends or a compatibility with him. "It's yes. My current observation says that the Myouou and their apprentices are working on very similar wavelengths. I considered earlier that Ai-aniki and Mi-chan were almost interchangable to me aside from their gender differences and slight personality differences. And Mi-chan uses the same phrases to describe me and Mugen-sama... I could make casual guesses about everyone else's apprentices based on that~" she said. Oh that was probably divining at work. Using her own body as a tuning fork and he observations of the men to figure out who their apprentices might be if they were connected to her and Anais was... a rather amusing thought. But... also one for later, given she was now, staring down tall, dark and handsome, well, soon staring up again, though soon up again though she was quite unabashed. "This is without question the best type of schooling~" she teased, as her own articles of clothing began melting away leaving her strangely with only an anklet on around her ankle and that glowing halo over her head.

Ah, Yume had begun inspecting the man. Though he expected as much, her behavior since being Shinomiya Kaguya had become notably less reserved. That sort of shift would serve her well moving forward, just as her understanding of connections would. She expressed her gatherings related to Myouou and their apprentices, surmising that each pair thus far was interchangeable. Mentally, she should have reached a point of assigning her remaining friends to any Myouou she knew. "You're quite the linchpin, aren't you? You're on the right track. These things are all accurate, and that is the level of compatibility expected of our apprentices. It's quite similar to the way twins work, really," he mused.

In a matter of moments, both parties would be without a single article of clothing ─ bar Yume's anklet and halo, if those counted. The girl's dress faded away, and by then, Solomon's were gone as well. Suddenly, there were two very nude, very contrasting people staring at each other's bodies. Yume claimed this process was the best type of schooling, and Solomon had a separate observation to make about her, now that the view was unobscured. "Interesting. You're very similar to Miwa, you know? It's almost uncanny," he said, though what he meant exactly would not be mentioned. Solomon did have a plan in mind for the lass, all starting with something normally selfish in this world. "Lie down. I'd like to first acclimate myself to your specific energy, to avoid any potential clashes between our attributes." Should Solomon's words be heeded, Yume would find his magic at play the moment her body found itself in a new position. Solomon was one who often abused the functionality of mana. As such, a small, magical ring would appear around each of her nipples. Those rings would close gently at first, clamping and vibrating over time. The purpose was one she would have recently become somewhat familiar with ─ one that primed her body to offer mana.