Charles Patricius

The excuse behind Miko's casino trip had little to do with her new physique, actually. She had an associate who gambled, so she was dragged along. That same night resulted in Kaguya's company as well. Given the speed of Anya's birth after a single session, Kazu found himself looking toward Soma, then Kaguya. "Sou ka. That explains one thing, I guess? Must've been a really busy night," he commented. When he spoke of her exploitative behavior, Miko once again decided to box something mentally. He hardly had to wonder what she was talking about. "You know that wasn't an innuendo... but I guess there's that too. Sounds fun," he added. With that, he began focusing on the array of clothing options ahead of him. Kazu saw a great number of pieces he took interest in. He'd have to invest in some very baggy pants henceforth, but that was fine. He picked up a backpack, a shoulder bag and a body bag each, deciding to fill them all with different types of apparel. Underpants and undershirts were simple enough, so he filled the shoulder bag with those in equal numbers ─ adding a package of socks. "Not much point advising a start from the inside. It's not like guys have a ton of underwear options, or even styles," he commented with his smallest bag already full. His backpack was going to be in danger, based on the sizes of pants he'd have to look into. Either way, pants were more important, and would thus fill the largest bag he had. "Not sure if I can pull off the baggy look too well, but I'm willing to give it a shot," he mused while browsing.

Meanwhile, Yuuya didn't seem to have any intention of making a purchase, merely standing by and looking around. Seiichi had a single bag he intended to fill with simple items until Sena spoke. He nodded, accepting the offered kindness of assistance. Soma was having the easiest time of all, having most work done on his behalf already. There was even Konomi to give advice to the two who went browsing for his sake. "Oh? You think tight underpants are going to help? I should hold you responsible for the magic to make those work more easily, or maybe... you should be the one helping make sure it gets in. What's the harm in another dressing room scandal, after all? You were really excited during the last one."

The explanation of a night spent gambling made legitimate sense when one considered how Miko came to be in that situation. "Yeah, it was a very busy day. Though admittedly that doesn't seem to be slowing down much at all," Miko stated honestly. She'd decided Kaguya could use a good night and called her to join, but the truth of the matter was, she would have easily consumed all of that man's attention for way too long herself in any situation. Whatever the case, they were moving towards a different point in the conversation one which noted the lack of innuendo meant by Kazuhiko. "How you meant it doesn't matter, my brain took it one way... and since it sounds fun, I will casually take it as permission~" Miko said lightly, though she meant it with the full weight of such statements for her. 'She's still extreme.' Angelica decided but she wouldn't be commenting. Apparently there was something lamentable about men's clothing options and the lack of style choices presented by it. While Kazuhiko shopped Miko and Angelica tagged along. "No men don't get as many style choices, which is why the splurge for something non-standard is worthwhile, get some A-shirts too!~" Miko added knowing what he looked like under his clothes. And knowing she and all the women would appreciate the look. As for pants, apparently he didn't know if he could pull off the baggy look and Miko thought about it for less than a few seconds before deciding. "You can definitely pull it off. If you are worried about the excess fabric, just go for smaller t-shirts. You're fit enough to pull off that sort of look~" Miko mentioned, knowing that one other person she knew had such a look going for him her brows furrowed in confusion. "Box it," she murmured while shaking the thought away. That singular thought would find itself shoved into that ever building box concerned one Mikami Takao. Angelica seemed to think about it for a second and nodded her agreement. "Not quite sure about the language but these clothes will definitely make hiding it easier than the pants you are wearing right now..." she concluded.

While Yuuya didn't seem to have any interest in making a purchase, Kaguya was soon at his side nudging him along. "Come on Yuu-kun, let's find you something nice~" she claimed in her typical way. She knew that Miko wouldn't be letting this go and would interject if need be, so better to find out if there was anything of interest to the lad before hand. Seiichi had Sena's help and all was well among those kids, but what bout Soma. Well, his shopping was being done by the girls in his group, mostly Anya and Emirie were picking out a few pieces he might enjoy. Anya chose a black bag which would sling over the body. And Emirie helped her decided on the graffiti snake motif as well as a few other more practical pieces as the young girl seemed infatuated with bright colors. As for Konomi she once again found herself in a strange position. She found herself shaking her head. "Still a human by my own account, can't just do magic. Though I could see that kind of thing being useful. I just know how fabric works because of my former job. Is it fool-proof, unlikely. Will it help a bit... probably. Also I try to limit my craziness to understandable things... can I take some time to continue processing. I am trying not to have a psychaoctic break here," Konomi mentioned earnestly. Even that bus trip hadn't actually calmed her nerves at all, she also still felt intoxicated as well, she needed some time.

"Yeah, same. At least it's fun instead of just hectic though, right?" Kazu replied about the ridiculous pace of life lately. At some point, he and Miko would probably be discussing all the craziness in detail again. Of course, that seemed to be something likely to come at a very specific time between them. As for his earlier statement, Miko would apparently take permission regardless of the original intent. Kazu thought that was fine; it was something he'd already gotten used to with Sakura. "Whatever works. Whenever you're ready to do that, just let me know," he commented casually. Moving on, Kazu was urged to acquire A-shirts in addition to his other purchases. He couldn't immediately get why that was a recommendation, but he did grab a pack anyway. "Not sure why, but... alright," he agreed. Kazu then moved on to scanning pants again. He picked up a few pairs of baggy breeches, mostly black as most articles in this store seemed to be. "Some cargos might be good. I could fit extra deck boxes!"

In the meantime, Soma was keeping a loose eye on Anya and Emirie while checking on Konomi's advancement once more. She was still so very human, almost rejecting the idea of deviance outright so close to the previous incident. Her alleged lack of ability to use magic was absolutely untrue, however. One of those two matters would not be allowed continuance. Either she advanced her magical ability to something tangible, or she fell to the more natural way of things as dictated by the will of souls. Soma did not accept stagnation of any sort. "You have two choices. Use magic, or have mana pumped into your body. I'm going to keep moving forward, and you're coming with me. There's no room for idling, but you can pick the lesser of two evils as long as progress is made."

Miko and Kazuhiko had more than a human lifetime worth of shared experiences, so she could definitely understand what he meant when speaking about the fun nature of the current rush of her life. "It is definitely more fun than hectic. And oddly enough every experience is helping me manage myself a bit better... which is kind of a miracle really," she stated honestly. She'd been off the rails basically since her fall from Aincrad. Even so, she'd been learning to manage her impulses, figuring out how she felt about herself and even making more friends, it was kind of odd if she was being honest. Whatever the case, she could let Kazuhiko know when she was ready to take advantage of his weaknesses, "Aye, sir♪~" she said in a voice that was ever so lightly teasing. Much to her own happiness there also wasn't a question about the nature of A-shirts, which she appreciated. 'Hm, I should make sure Soma gets some too,' she thought given she'd been close enough to have a light inspection of that young man's physique. Whatever the case, it seemed that Kazuhiko was fine with cargo pants due to the extra space it would allow his hobby. "You know what, I should have expected that one... but given my own oddities I understand the need for space. As long as you're happy Charlie~" Miko mentioned. At the same time, Angelica had been mentally understanding the limitations of human storage. "Right, I meant to ask, why are pockets on these shorts so small. Like my phone doesn't fit," she asked but that was a whole conversation which would lead to a massive gathering of the women of this world.

Ah, but now was Anya's time to shine. She'd been figuring out that she couldn't just listen to some people's thoughts, it made her quite dizzy. Still that very obvious thought from Miko after the A-shirts caught her attention. While Emirie picked out comfy sweatpants for Soma, Anya pointed to a package of maroon colored A-shirts. "Sou ka, that's a pretty good choice, very nice, Anya-chan!" she praised the girl, but her mind was still working. She could have had the same kind of hyper-hearing as Emirie's mother, but she also could have been mentally extrapolating the need for two people to have the same types of clothing. Or there was also a more magical option, she'd have to observe more to be sure... but she was betting on the latter considering the interest of Soma in the young girl. At the same time, Konomi was being told about her apprent demand for progress. "And I thought my bosses and professors were slave-drivers..." she mumbled. Still, if progress was the name of the game without her just being subject to more sex she supposed there was at least a goal in mind she could work on. "But, I guess with a clear goal, it's less terrifying than it could be..." she finally said.

"Lucky. I don't think it's helping me manage anything. No complaints still, but... yeah, you know," Kazu babbled. Enjoyable as life was lately, he couldn't say his life had been made any easier. Well, there was nothing wrong with a bit of chaos. Unexpected turns of events made things more exciting, and he was all for a bit of excitement. Such would come in due time again, as Miko agreed to state whenever she wished to... infringe upon his freedom, as it were. Doing so in the manner they had indirectly agreed to as a special exchange between them, she even essentially advanced their next 'outing' of sorts. "Right. Gonna consider that the first button press and move on," he said, deciding to bag at least three pairs of cargo pants for a reason he'd always consider valid. Angelica expressed her curiosity about pockets, or rather... women's pockets and their lack of size. "Guys get big pockets, girls get purses. Blame James... or Victoria... or whichever old English monarch it was. One of the not me ones!"

One thing Soma expected to come about eventually, particularly when dealing with Konomi, was a comparison to working bosses in this world. He had a minor sense for how such things worked, but the comparison she made was surface-level at best. "A slave-driver and a boss have one thing in common with each other, but not with me. You don't get to leave because you aren't up to par. You're going to reach and exceed expectation even if I have to personally quadruple your mana supply," Soma assured. While speaking, he extended one arm and raised one forefinger. "You felt me do something like that earlier, too, didn't you? My mana works like an alcohol ─ a strong one. You're not drunk now, at least not drunk enough to make decisions an inebriated person wouldn't think twice about, meaning you've processed it at an alarming rate. That means... you can evolve. You can use magic enough to ascend yourself instead of birthing that child, even. Unless the child is too much like me, that is."

Kazuhiko apparently wasn't learning from his rapid descent into debauchery. "Iia, I think that is probably more normal than anything... I am definitely the weird one here, but I am also not complaining, not yet anyway~" Miko said in a light tone. Whatever the case, that chime of 'aye, sir' was given acknowledgement as the first button push. It wasn't in Miko's original desire to push buttons but... she wouldn't avoid it either, since the outcome was in her favor. As Kauzhiko picked up more pants, the conversation would shift to one which seemed to be about the nature of pockets. Kazuhiko's grasp of history was a bit faulty, but he wasn't technically wrong or anything as he claimed it simply wasn't him. "Definitely King James fault, that guy is on an absolute no list for me. Everything about him says he hated women. Queen Victoria, just needed to lighten up a bit, at least that is what the books say," she gave more details while Angelica just sighed. "I really don't understand how a king can decide women can't have pockets, but apparently need to buy a different sort of bag to carry stuff in. And I feel like I'm going to get yet another answer I am not going to like..." Angelica mentioned while pinching the bridge of her nose. Well, if anything she didn't need to be told it wasn't Charlemagne's fault, that man definitely wouldn't do something as uncool as taking away people's pockets.

Meanwhile, Konomi was finding out how oddly Soma took her addition to his little group. Not only was he aiming for some unknown goal, apparently even if she didn't live up to his expectations he had no intentions of letting her walk away from this 'job' listing. No, instead it was his intention to force her development whether she wanted it or not. "That's excessive." she mentioned. This might have been one of the oddest things she'd agreed to in her life, but she definitely didn't understand what this boy's rush was, she was a 22 year old college student, who'd gotten enough credits to graduate on time, but still wasn't so certain of her own life's direction. Soma becoming part of her life, seemed to take away part of the equation, but it was so drastic a shift that she wasn't quite done mentally processing the change. "You know half the time it sounds like you're speaking a foreign language? It is taking all my mental processing power just to make sense of the crazy shit you are saying..." she said now also pinching the bridge of her nose. "Video game logic is being used most of the time. Mana is energy, but this is more like an erogame, so... bodily fluids and magical energy seem to be interchangeable. I can evolve don't quite know what that means yet, but it's somehow impressive? Going to ignore that part about potential babies, I am way too young to have kids," she was tryng her best to work through all he was saying but mostly she was just trying to take a normal amount of time to adjust.

"No, Annie. We're a gang now. The weird ones are the people responsible for this. Not that I'm pointing any elbows or anything," Kazu argued while very conspicuously pointing an elbow in Angelica's direction. "But, you know... certain types of people who think all the stuff we've been through is normal," he added. Another pair of pants was thrown into Kazu's backpack, totaling seven pairs. He'd soon move on to inspecting some shirts while determining the blame for lack of women's pockets. Miko insisted King James was to blame over Queen Victoria. Kazu gave it some thought, his hand hovering over a shirt he intended to claim. "Hmm. King James... was that James Stuart? That kid who latched onto me because we shared a name?" he wondered aloud, not even realizing no one present was there for the recalled event. "It can't be, right? That kid was Scottish. Was King James Scottish?" he wondered further.

One more person would own the moniker of 'excessive' without a second thought. Demons and their ilk relished in such descriptors, and Soma sought all manner of notoriety as a source of his own strengthening. Regardless, Konomi was encroaching upon a proper understanding of the world whether she realized it or not. Comparing magical mechanics to video games was an excellent start. "I am speaking a foreign language. Mana is energy, and bodily fluids carry it. How do you think children are born? By the way, it's not something you should ignore. My soul achieved consciousness while being ignored, and eventually... I didn't give my mother much of a choice. You're many years older than me, but given what a lack of experience seems to cause... I'd suggest finding a way to convert it into evolution instead of letting it become conscious. It could kill you."

"Hehehe! Together again♪~" a giggle escaped Miko. If nothing else, Kazuhiko was good at lessening a bit of tension and doubt. At the same time, Angelica was picking up on subtle hints, and at least one of them made her gasp. "Hey, I'm not weird!" she stated as if it was an absolute fact. Of course Miko could only laugh more, because quite frankly goddesses as she'd met them were all very odd individually. She saw nothing wrong with this, but she was certain all of them fell far away from the category counted as normal. As for Kazuhiko's commentary about the normalcy of their current situation, Angelica could only scoff. Miko had a little something to add, "I mean... growing pains in a lot of things are normal. I just don't think it's normal at all to have a human two decades of sexual maturation in a week. I've become way too comfortable, at a speed I would have considered way too quick even last week," she mentioned almost casually. Eventually though they were oddly discussing 'King James' the one who advocated for the newer version of the bible that was used in the Church of England according to historical texts. "Chuck, we have no idea what you're talking about... you're aging yourself," Angelica mentioned. "King James is James Charles Stuart though... King of Scotland as James the Sixth. King of England as James the First... European history is full of ruler swaps across countries after the Church became a power that could declare a king," Miko said, it was a rather hard sticking point of one her more annoying teachers. "Ah, shit... it's not just fantasy stuff either, real history is different too..." she said slapping her hand against her forehead that was going to be annoying.

While the oddities of history were being discussed between Kazuhiko and his camp, a discussion of magical biology was happening between Soma and his human recruit. Soma admitted to speaking a foreign language to her, and explained the nature of mana, claiming that i made babies. Konomi was trying to remain open-minded, given the already outrageous things she'd been witnessing and part of, but there was still a level of difficulty to be taken into account. "Wait wait wait... I am 22, I can't be that much older than you. And I know how babies are made and what you are describing is horrifying for multiple reasons. Like you are sounding like you consciously chose your own birth which is fucking crazy. And... I really need someone normal to explain this to me right now... " she said pinching the bridge of her nose. Why were all the answers and explanations coming out like a language she'd never heard and every set of words more ridiculous than their previous ones. Konomi had already committed to a lot of craziness in her future of this she was certain. But she was Japanese and would do her best regardless but things still needed some kind of rationale and what was coming out of Soma's mouth was breaking her brain.

"Like always," Kazu confirmed. A close bond of approximately 300 years was nothing to take lightly. On the other hand, neither was a disagreement that transcended millennia. Angelica insisted she wasn't weird, while Kazu would continue to claim she was. "Well you're not the most weird one. The 'princess in the castle' trope does some heavy lifting... but does that make you not a weirdo? Nope," he countered. Moments later, he'd be agreeing with Miko again. The amount of sexual deviance they'd both been thrown into over a short period of time went well beyond even expectations based in dreams. "Mm, yeah. And there's the taste of everything. That part's been getting even crazier recently," he mused absently before starting an entire mental tangent regarding King James. Angelica didn't know what he was talking about aloud. Maybe he was too old. Whatever the case, Miko had some facts to give about King James as history understood him. "Wait, those were the same James?! I thought those were completely different guys when I heard the lectures..." he mumbled. Kimura Kazuhiko was one who very much struggled through history classes in his current school. If that was the identity of King James, though... "So that was him after all. Unless something happened to him afterwards, I don't think he hates women at all. He seemed really appreciative of them when we met," he commented thoughtfully.

Meanwhile, Konomi decided to state her own age as if she didn't believe a massive difference could exist between herself and Soma. She had no idea how wrong she could be. She may have known how babies were made, but certainly not the whole of it. As a prime example of the supernatural, Soma's birth was 'allowed' lest he produce himself by whatever means necessary. What she needed wasn't someone 'normal' explaining these things, in Soma's opinion. She needed to experience ridiculousness firsthand, to be thrown straight into the fire, as it were. "You're 22 years my senior. The same goes for those two over there," he said, nodding toward Emirie and Anya. "And those two," he added with another nod toward Sena and Seiichi. One more nod went in Kaguya's direction to complete his clause. "That might look like my sister, but she's my mother. If it's too much to believe, you should just think back to that dressing room. I was using magic the entire time. Did you ever notice?"

A small smirk came to Miko's face. Together like always... that was a rather comforting thought. The more Miko gave it real consideration, the more she realized that Kazuhiko in the form of Charlemagne had been one of the most present individuals in her life for most of what she remembered of it. Given this face, it only felt right for it to continue, in whatever manner it did. Angelica for her part in this refused to be described as weird, but she was quite weird nonetheless. The talk of tropes and the like which covered her 'issues' seemed to only be a basic cover. "Definitely not weird... you're projecting," she said her nose turned up in the air. Speaking of Kazuhiko's weirdness, there was the matter of the boy he remembered only partially between this world's history lessons and actually meeting him in the other world. "Yeah, they are the same, it was some weird succession thing... he ended up in charge a bit after Henry the Eighth," Miko mentioned. She remembered those two for the opposite reason that she remembered people like King Solomon. Beyond this, Kazuhiko claimed that James hadn't been bad when he'd known him, "I was just thinking I might have to withhold a bit of judgement... history is a bit more complex than just the fantasy stories," she said while wondering if her list would be growing or shrinking when actually meeting certain people. 'Doesn't matter, Seimei-sama is still supreme!~' she thought in a manner of pure devotion.

In the meantime, Konomi was getting way too much information about the nature of birthing children in the magical context. According to Soma himself and five others in this group were apparently all born today. And a girl who by Konomi's best approximation was a bit younger than her, was apparently his mother and not his sister. She was 22 years old, and this young man was apparently, only a few hours old. The moral implications of having this information was a bit too much for her heart to bear. "So... she's your mom. And you're a literal infant along with five other people in this group. And I am supposed to just... roll with that?" she said while holding her head. There was a headache developing and it felt like a hangover. "Did I pass out... is this the weirdest fever dream ever? I'd be willing to believe that..." she murmured. "Believing anything else means, I got seduced by a magical infant into quitting my job and becoming a member of whatever random goals he has going on... Probably magically seduced, because why would I notice magic being used, that doesn't make sense. I mean it's a bit weird that I went against everything normal to me, but I am young enough to make a few bad decisions in my life... maybe working all those extra hours broke me? That's be pretty reasonable. I'd be far from the first person to crack under pressure..." she said building a logical explanation for the outlandish while she processed way more information than she needed to, but if course, she could see it now. The likeness between that little pink haired girl and the guy talking to the other two. And the likeness between the blonde lass with the glasses and the dark haired boy with the purple haired girl. Also the likeness between Soma and his mother was a bit too... linear. He was beautiful as a man that wasn't normal. And obviously that dick of his wasn't normal either. Actually looking at that brown haired lad who'd introduced himself as Kimura Kazuhiko he was also attractive beyond reason... if he wanted to do something she'd... "Those thoughts are invasive," she said while shaking her head from left to right. If that wasn't magic then she was definitely on drugs or something.