That night, Takumi and Kaguya stayed at Kuoh Academy, lodging in the old school building.
Though the exterior looked rundown, certain parts were surprisingly luxurious. Rias and the others had prepared quite a few guest rooms there.
Kaguya and Koneko became fast friends over their shared love of games. Kaguya was thrilled to play games from other worlds and even used a small amount of her points to buy a new gaming setup from the system's shop.
Of course, all of this had been uploaded by Takumi.
When Koneko saw the new gear, her eyes lit up—it played so smoothly.
Takumi sat nearby, watching the two girls play.
"When someone from a Sword Art Online-like world joins our group, let's go there and bring back full-dive games."
He wasn't interested in playing right now, just observing.
Rias and Akeno were also watching, sipping tea. None of them were worried about the ranking match tomorrow.
It was Riser who should worry—surviving the next day might be his real problem.
"Full-dive games? Those helmet ones?"
Hearing Takumi, Kaguya's eyes sparkled.
"Exactly. Plenty of worlds have them—just waiting on someone to join."
He shrugged. If one came, he'd definitely get the gear. It'd be perfect for military training, not just games.
"That sounds great. Too bad we can't invite people into the group. Otherwise, I'd bring in Eirin. I wonder if the group will get that feature someday."
She sighed. If only invites were possible. But members joined randomly with no known pattern or timing.
After chatting with Takumi, Kaguya went back to gaming with Koneko.
Akeno turned to Takumi. "Why don't you just make one yourself? You've absorbed so much tech."
"Why make one when I can copy and optimize it?"
He said this with absolute confidence.
Sure, he had the knowledge, but why bother remaking something that already exists?
Rias raised an eyebrow. "Different worlds have unique tech—even yours has elements unfamiliar to us. But sometimes, different paths lead to the same result."
"Some even use tech to mimic magic, or redefine magic as 'superpowers.' The multiverse is full of surprises."
Seeing their puzzled looks, Takumi smiled and explained.
They nodded—though still a bit confused.
"Well then, it's getting late. I'll head to bed. You guys should rest too."
She looked at the gaming-obsessed Kaguya and gave up. If she dropped dead from overplaying, she'd just revive. No need to worry.
"Okay, I'll handle things tomorrow," Takumi assured her.
Akeno and Rias left with the others. Among them, Takumi was only familiar with Akeno. The rest he'd only met today.
It wasn't some harem novel where he'd immediately swoon over every girl and start sharing beds.
Once they were gone, Takumi glanced at Kaguya still immersed in her game, then headed back to the room Rias had assigned him.
Lying down, he opened the group chat.
Raiden Mei:
\[Feeling conflicted...]
\[Can't believe how deep the darkness runs in our world.]
\[Otto is just...]
Takumi:
\[Pure Love Warrior!!]
\[Only dead Otto is a good Otto.]
\[Even if we wanted him to climb the tree again, better keep the coffin lid shut.]
Seeing Takumi chime in, the others got curious.
Fujiwara Chika:
\[You're already in Akeno's world?]
Takumi:
\[Yeah, I'm lying in Akeno's room chatting with you.]
Akeno:
\[????]
\[Don't spout nonsense!!!]
\[You forgot two words\~\~!!]
She meant he left out "assigned to." Typical Takumi, stirring up misunderstandings.
Fujiwara Chika:
\[Emm...]
Even she was speechless.
Raiden Mei:
\[@Takumi, what should I do next?]
Takumi:
\[Report to Bronya!]
\[What else can you do?]
\[If all else fails, go find Alicia in the Elysian Realm.]
\[She'll definitely help.]
\[Alicia is the cutest girl in the world.]
\[love\_Alicia.jpg]
Bronya:
\[Takumi's usual insanity again!]
\[@Mei, don't panic. Save up points and post a task. I'll come along. Maybe I can't help much, but I'll be there.]
Bronya popped in, completely ignoring Takumi's madness, and started comforting the anxious Mei.
Raiden Mei:
\[Alright... I'll try to gather points.]
That was all she could do for now.
Even knowing the future, she couldn't shake the fear.
Is a known future still the future? Would it change now?
She hadn't told the others in her world about the group chat yet.
All day, she'd been brooding over what might happen.
Kiana suspected she'd gone crazy. Even Bronya was baffled.
Maybe not knowing was better. Now that she did, would the future still play out the same?
She hesitated—then typed a question into the chat.
Maybe the others had been through this too...