Ares returned home and, for the first time in a long time, didn''t immediately head for the cultivation room! Ah sweet sweet freedom. He could breathe in the fresh air coming through the window instead of being locked inside one of the padded cells. Ironically, cultivation rooms were where you cultivated in seclusion and padded cells were occasionally referred to as seclusion rooms! It all came full circle! Ares wasn''t exaggerating, these places were strictly for the mentally ill who could devote thousands of hours to sitting around doing nothing! He wasn''t the weird one! Or at least that was what he told himself anyway. Unfortunately those rooms were necessary sometimes but, at the very least, Ares didn''t plan on spending much, if any, time in them from now until he left for Xasca. he might fiddle around with pressurising the Backfire Bindings and the Primordial Blade a tiny bit but, other than that, he was not going anywhere near them. Of course plenty of people in this house other than him used the rooms otherwise he might even consider demolishing them when no one was looking... Although Rud would inevitably get on his case if he did that... Screw Rud! Ares hadn''t even seen him as of late! Rud only ever showed up now to berate Ares for destroying sect property before disappearing back to work. He''d figured out the key to dealing with Ares, avoid him! He was like a joy-killer Beetlejuice. Ares missed the good ol'' days when annoying Rud was a mere few minutes away from happening at any given moment!


    Although Ares might not get a chance to see Rud, and verbally bully him up and down the wall, there was someone else Ares wanted to go check on. Hans! Or should he say, mayor Hans. With Maro deposed there was now negotiations to be taken care of with the new mayor as Ares had some proposals and plans to go over. He hadn''t expected to have a chance to discuss this with Hans for a long while but Maro poking his beak around where it didn''t belong got him into a spot of trouble he could have easily avoided if he had just minded his own business. Regardless, Ares was going to take over the sect at some point and it was a part of this town so establishing a proper relation between the sect and the city was important. There already was one, sure, but, given what Ares had in store for the place, Hans really needed to be made aware so he could make his own preparations and either go along with Ares'' grand design or reject it and prepare for that as well. Regarding Ares'' plans for the sect, he needed permission from the mayor to start work so he''d been holding back on that while Maro was still in charge. He wasn''t going to get an answer from Hans immediately, as this was no doubt a pretty massive decision that he alone couldn''t make. Hans would need to discuss it with the locals and the major clans in the city before he could come to a conclusion and even then there would be a whole host of issues to sort out. Still, it was better to get the ball rolling on this sort of stuff sooner rather than later. When it was time to kick things off, Ares wanted to just be able to do it and seamlessly continue his journey from Sheryashka to Vraizon.


    Ares wasn''t going to leave the sect just yet though, he was curious to know how Aejaz'' assassination went first. Until he returned, Ares chilled with Bellona and Enyo as he started cooking up some dinner for everyone. Today was a rare day in that no one else seemed to be paying them a visit for food so Ares almost tricked himself into thinking he had a light load. That was until he remembered that there was a whopping eight people living in this house! And that wasn''t even including himself! Enyo, Bellona, Appa, Leo, Lacy, Aejaz, Trixie, Allie! Had he really been making food for nine people, at minimum, daily?! That realisation hit both Ares and his wallet like a truck! No wonder it was so damn expensive... Thankfully he hit a bit of a windfall what with the transition realm cultivators he turned into stardust back when he transformed into Garmr. Ya Ye had kindly brought him back the stardust when Ares had cooked them some food so he was good to go on the stardust front for a long while. It would definitely last up until he got his winnings from the international bet at least. The more stardust the merrier as he could treat the sister wives to some fine dining and maybe buy them some gifts here and there before he left for Xasca. Ares himself didn''t really mind being broke. If he was living by himself buying food would be cheap and it''s not like he really had many material wants. However, that being said, he lived with Enyo and Bellona now and he wanted to spoil them here and there so his lack of stardust had actually been bothering him a little bit. It''s not like he didn''t benefit from this either as he could see them wearing all sorts of pretty new dresses!


    Win win!


    Bea probably had some goodies in stock too but Ares figured it was for the best if he never set foot in that store, or at least avoided it for as long as he could. Bea was a crafty woman, great at figuring out what made men and women alike tick, and would direct his attention to all sorts of racy lingerie that would drive him wild. He would go back to being dirt poor in a matter of mere moments, especially now that Bellona was in the picture. Ares absolutely wanted to get some special garments for her too so if he wound up spending on both wives at once... Yeah, no, it was probably better to just let Enyo do all the shopping there... Or maybe even Bellona herself. Apparently Enyo wanted to take her there at some point and have her try on a selection of stuff. Ares wished Bellona all the best, though it''s not like he could fault Enyo for whatever highly inappropriate comments she would make and all the groping she would inevitably be doing. Ares would 100% fold in that exact scenario himself and give in to temptations as well.


    Bea''s store was a horrifying place...


    Bea had been doing well recently though, and not just thanks to the Legion women''s involvement even if it had been a massive part of her success. The international had brought her a surprising amount of revenue and reputation thanks to her impressive selection so she was going to be able to further expand the shop and maybe buy the buildings next to her. She might even be able to get some help to keep the shop tidy and aid in restocking the shelves every now and then. Honestly, if Enyo wasn''t tied down as a cultivator, that would absolutely be the kind of place she wanted to work at... Spending all day surrounded by heart pumping toys and underwear while chatting away with her bestie? There wasn''t a doubt in Ares'' mind she''d love that, silly minx. As for Bellona... What kind of quiet life would she live?... Well she''d certainly play a lot of games and watch a lot of films, that was for sure... But what kind of job would she do?... Ares had no idea. He could see her doing well as a professional sportswoman or martial artist maybe but, really, she loved her magic. Cultivation really did seem to be the only thing she truly wanted to be doing with her life. Still, Ares was curious to see what she thought about the matter so he directly asked her instead of beating around the bush. "Blo Blo dearest?"


    "Hm?" Bellona cutely tilted her head and looked at Ares with a questioning gaze. "What do you want from me, punk?"


    "Eh?"


    "Don''t play dumb with me! Every time you call me ''Blo Blo dearest'' you always want something from me! No handjobs right now, I''m busy making some more bubble tea to refill my stockpile!"


    "Well I''ll be! Is that what you think of me?! And here I just wanted to get to know more about you! Hmph! Hmph I say!"


    "... I''m not entirely sure I trust you but I feel guilty enough to hear what you have to say. Go on then... But I swear if you just want a cuddle or something I''ll rugby tackle you!"


    "Well, depending on how you look at it, that could be seen as an aggressive cuddle no? Also I know you''re a softie! If I wanted a cuddle you wouldn''t say no! Ah whatever that''s not the point. I was just wondering what kind of job you would like to do if you weren''t a cultivator."


    "Huh, you''re actually asking about me and my preferences for once? I''m touched... Hm, what would I like to do if I wasn''t a cultivator? Is mooching off you and being a loving wife who plays video games and watches films all day an acceptable answer?"


    "I mean yes, I would allow that if you really wanted to, I''m a bit of a pushover when it comes to you two, but that''s not really in the spirit of answering the question! Actually, I kinda already guessed that anyway. I was asking because I wasn''t sure what you''d do if you had no choice but to find a job. Can be anything in your wildest dreams but it had to be considered ''work''. Even if you don''t get paid for it because you''re a volunteer or something that''s fine too.


    "Hmm." Bellona pondered the question deeply as it really wasn''t something she''d ever considered much before. She''d always just assumed she would be a cultivator and never had any reason to doubt that so this talk was out of her wheelhouse. Ares had hit her with a real humdinger! "I think saying I would want to run a bubble tea stand or shop is pretty obvious and a bit of a cop out... So how''s about a professional racer?"


    "Racer? What vehicle? And have you ever even driven anything before?"


    "Dunno about the vehicle. Our family has records of people in higher domains who used to race motorbikes, cars, boats, and even jet planes. We don''t really have those kinds of vehicles in Vraizon, or they aren''t common at least, so no I''ve never been behind the wheel or cockpit of any the things I''ve listed... Well apart from one time I stole Deimos'' bike but you can''t tell him that! I had a lot of fun joyriding it... I''ve always wanted to give it another go and ever since then I''ve been reading all the books we have that mention racing. I mean I might not even be good at it or anything but you said it could be a pipe dream, right? I got excited going at high speeds on Deimos'' bike so I think I''d really quite like to experiment with it some more and maybe even make a career out of it."


    "Wow, I really didn''t expect that as your answer. The more you know! Speaking of knowing things, you seem to know a decent amount about racing but, as you mentioned, it really is a rarity down here in the lower domains. Some people race via flight or treasures but vehicles? That''s almost impossible due to lacking technology so I''m not really familiar with the sport. Tell me more!" Was Ares secretly gathering information to try and help Blo Blo achieve her dream one day? Absolutely! Enyo''s dream life was already right at her fingertips so that didn''t really need to be addressed but Blo Blo''s was currently not in the cards. Ares would need to ascend to higher domains before he could even find any vehicles being used regularly let alone being raced. Still, when he did, he wanted to be able to buy Blo Blo some high speed wheels and let her take them for a spin if that was what she thought would be fun for her.


    Just because Bellona was dedicating herself to cultivating that didn''t mean she wasn''t allowed to have free time and become a superstar racer if she wanted to. She had more than enough talent as a cultivator to take breaks and not fall far behind everyone else, not that it mattered as Ares would always be willing to help her catch up. If the thought of it made her happy, then Ares would take the dream she conceptualised and actualise it. Even if she changed her mind after, at least having a chance to explore the things that made her curious and piqued her interest would be good for her! And if all else failed, films, games, and bubble tea were always an option!... Also, Ares'' mind was admittedly still residing not quite in the gutter, but close to it thanks to the whole Bea''s shop train of thought... Ares wasn''t one to get excited over cosplay like Enyo was but... Race girl Bellona? Mmmm, now that was an idea he could get behind! Literally! And it seemed like Enyo was on the same wavelength as she subtly gave Ares a thumbs up of acknowledgement so this was definitely happening at some point! Although how Enyo knew exactly what Ares was thinking right now was a bit questionable... This woman''s horny radar was way too good at its job... Or rather, surely it was being overworked by Enyo no?!


    Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Meanwhile, Blo Blo, who had no idea of the perverted fate that had been set for her, had just started explaining the basics of racing as a sport. "Like pretty much every sport out there, there are two versions. One for mortals, and one for cultivators. Mortal racing is just kinda standard affair and depends on the type of tournament you''re running. Grand prix? Knockout? Head to head? Still the main goal is to reach the finish line quicker than everyone else and that''s what it all boils down to. Mortal racing is... Polite... At least in comparison to cultivator racing anyway. It doesn''t really matter what vehicle you''re using, if you''re looking for a way to test your raw racing skills then this is the sport for you. There''s no funny gimmicks or anything so it''s just about how much time you spend practicing and how talented you are. Of course things like weather, and other racer''s decisions, might spice things up but what most people care about is cultivator racing.


    Cultivators can take part in mortal racing but the fact they aren''t allowed to make things interesting with their magic typically turns them away. Cultivator sports are usually preferred by the wider populace because of how bat shit insane they can get. Crazier environments, like football pitches with lava or electric fences, basketball courts with rocket launchers and bounce pads, or even shooting ranges with targets that fire back at you! And that''s just miscellaneous hazards in some of the less whacky rule sets. Generally, at a base level, cultivators are allowed to attack each other as these sports take place within a Training Field. Magic and violence, none of it is off-limits so, combine that with the ever-shifting environments these sports take place in, and you get some real nail-biter matches supposedly.


    In racing, specifically, using your magic to increase your vehicle''s speed actually isn''t allowed, funnily enough. See magical engineering is hella advanced in the upper domains so they already travel at ridiculous speeds and planet wide races are considered short due to how quickly they can move. Sometimes lower speed vehicles are intentionally used but, at the highest level of play, only the best engineering gets a chance to shine. Speeding up these top tier vehicles would just make matches way too short and uninteresting so, instead, your only allowed to use magic to attack other racers and defend yourself from them. You can even mess with the track and create shortcuts if you''re clever enough. Races and tracks with multiple laps can be entirely different on second go-arounds due to the unpredictable nature of how magic interacts with the course. There is a limit to how far off-track you can go but it''s generous and it all just sounds so cool to me. Travelling at hundreds of miles per hour, clashing with magic and bumpers, tearing through obstacles, and coming out on top of the competition in insanely hazardous tracks? Aw man, I get excited just thinking about it! I wanna I wanna I wanna! Of course other sports sound fun too but I''m really drawn to racing. Not sure which vehicle but, hell, maybe even all of them!"


    "Haha." Ares chuckled to himself as he snuggled up behind Bellona and gave her a hug and a kiss on the neck. "You''re cute when you get excited. I never seen you look forward to anything quite like this so I promise I''ll do everything I can to make it come true. Whenever we get outside the Primordial Blade''s barrier I''ll be sure to keep an eye out for whatever opportunities come our way. You know, the more I think about it, the more I think that racing suits you. I have a hunch you''ll do well for yourself. I look forward to watching you compete one day, hell I might even join you! I still want to steal Deimos'' bike at some point and give it a whirl..."


    "There actually is a scene for tag racing... We could combine our magic and destroy the competition!"


    "You can do that?! I thought it was just like, you know, hitting them and making them go off-course for a little bit or making them spin out... You can actually full on kill people and blow up their cars?!"


    "Yep! Even when it comes to violence there''s options. Some races are hardcore and others are standard. In a standard race you''ll be brought back to life and your car will be regenerated after a short delay. Basically you can never be fully kicked out of a race. Hardcore is the opposite, if you die you''re out for good and your race is doomed. There''s so many different rulesets that you kinda have to look around and see what piques your interest as there''s tournaments running for all of them.


    Standard is probably the most watched and competed in, however, because it''s familiar to most people. Decently long and complicated tracks, a grand prix style point system, your favourite racer is never truly out of the fight, etc... There are apparently even some street races with no rules or limits and people can even use their magic to speed up their vehicles in various ways in those. The world of racing is vast! I mean that''s all the info I got out of just a couple of books that mentioned it in passing, I''m sure there''s a lot more to go over that I just don''t know about. Also, the book''s pretty old so there must have been a buncha new stuff happening in the sport that I can''t wait to find out about!" Bellona was happily wriggling side to side in Ares'' arms as she dreamed up all sorts of ideas about where racing was right now in the wider world in terms of how far it had progressed.


    Ares had rarely, if ever, seen Bellona this merry and it clearly meant a lot to her. She''d have probably been a lot more invested in racing, and talked about it way more, had it actually been something that existed within these domains. It''s a shame that she could learn about it but never experience, or even at least watch, it. Now Ares was determined! His wriggly wife deserved to race! Although Ares would inevitably have to deal with the fundamental organisation shortly after leaving the barrier, he knew what was next on his to do list after that!... Although Blo Blo would probably need driving lessons first and foremost. Ares would not be shocked if this woman got behind the wheel and tried to steer with her head... But getting lessons or practice in ought to not be too hard before then as it''s not like vehicles outright didn''t exist in the lower domains. You could find them here and there but actually acquiring them was another matter given how rare and sought after they could be. If Ares could get his paws on one he would make every effort to do so and then he and Blo Blo could mess around with it... Although... Ares had a sneaking suspicion she might get a chance to drive a vehicle even sooner than she thought. Not only did the simulated planet exist, and vehicles would almost definitely be present there, but the legacy realm wasn''t too far away from everyone''s current cultivation. They were roughly half way there already and it wasn''t impossible for Bellona to straight up get an entire vehicle treasure, personally crafted for her! If she was lucky, Santa would give her a vehicle for Christmas and not coal. The cultivation world could be cruel sometimes but it could also be equally generous on occasion and Ares'' cultivation senses were tingling!... That or Enyo was fiddling with his groin again... On second thought, it was definitely the latter! The skank in question was pouting off to the side for some reason so Ares went over and hugged her too. That didn''t seem to quell her issue, whatever it was, so he had to outright ask.


    "What''s got your knickers in a twist? If you''re even wearing any..."


    "Hmph. I see you''re very curious about Bellona''s preferred life style but you don''t really seem to care about asking for mine! No no, that''s ok! Really! I''m just a brute with a shield who''d be working as a warden or a police woman or a guard or something, right? That''s what you think, isn''t it!"


    "... Enyo, I didn''t ask because I already know what you''d do and it has nothing to do with any of that justice stuff. I know you well enough to know you''d keep doing that in your spare time instead of treating it like a job anyway. Lemme guess, you''d work with Bea in My Fair Lady, right?"


    Enyo looked down at the floor in embarrassment and mumbled ''damn he''s good'' under her breath. "Fine, you win! But ask me anyway next time! I like being part of the conversation too!"


    Ares scratched his head with a wry smile. He''d been sleeping around with Enyo a lot but he hadn''t casually spent much time with her recently so she was acting needy right now. The delicate balancing act between Enyo and Blo Blo was hard damnit!... And he still had even more wives to add to that balancing act in the future... Ay caramba... "I see... Well how about we have some more conversations tonight over some nice dinner? I''ve done a lot of prep work but I can still store all of this for another day so how about I treat you both to a great place I know that''s a little more pricey than usual? It can be like a double date... Kinda? Anyway, you get my point. Just a pleasant evening for us three to enjoy ourselves, maybe get a bit drunk, and have a fantastic time chatting away like we always do."


    Enyo nodded with puppy dog eyes because if Ares was saying the food at this place was great then she wanted to try it! Also, she hadn''t been to a fancy restaurant with Ares yet and a double date with Bellona was also a fresh idea! Win win win! Like a jackpot of triple sevens! Bellona also seemed pretty giddy about the idea although she may still have been elated about the race talk... She wasn''t opposed to going out tonight though and nodded shyly... Ares wondered why she looked embarrassed but he quickly realised and laughed while shaking his head. "We''re not going to be dressing up all fancy or anything. It is that kinda place usually but I can get us a separate booth if I have a chat with an old friend of mine who runs the place, allowing us to eat in a more relaxed way. Ah but, if you want to wear a dress that''s cool too... But you know what will happen to you after if you do right? If you wear a dress I''m not holding myself back, Blo Blo."


    Bellona breathed a sigh of relief as she wasn''t mentally prepared to go all the way just yet and shook her head. "No, that''s fine. I''ll get some nicer clothes but nothing too eye-catching. What kinda place is it and when do we leave?"


    "It''s not really anything specific, it''s just damn good food no matter what you order. There''s a pretty sizable selection on the menu so finding something you''ll like ought to be real easy. As for when we leave... I''d like to wait for Aejaz before anything else. Also, I want to visit Hans today and clear up some stuff with him so maybe we can go a little bit later than when we would normally have dinner? I also still have to make some food for the other freeloaders in this house otherwise they might actually starve. If you''re worried you might feel a bit peckish before we eat I can make you some small snacks now if you want?"


    Seeing both wives nod meant Ares knew precisely what needed to be done and he went back to cooking. So that was his schedule for the day sorted then! Aejaz, Hans, date. After that, time would probably fly real quick and the day of Mako''s match against his family would be upon him. That was the prelude to the real big hoo-ha, Ares vs Mako.


    Mako... I wonder what that guy is up to? Haven''t seen him around in a while... I''m sure he''s fine!


    And in fact, Mako was fine. Better than fine, actually, as he felt like he could take on the world right about now. Ares had seriously underestimated how ''fine'' Mako was by a considerable margin. Oh well, he would find out for himself just how ''fine'' Mako was when he watched the guy beat up his family!


    Knock knock


    Speaking of family, that was probably Aejaz returning from his outing. Lacy, Trixie, and Allie had all come into the living room in preparation for Aejaz'' return so he was going to have quite the audience hanging on his every word. Did Job escape by the skin of his teeth or had he been gutted like a fish? It had been a quick affair either way but it was time to find out!