"Are you Darkness? The blonde beauty one." Kasumigaoka Utaha looked over the maid-uniformed Darkness—her hair tied in a single ponytail, tall and shapely, even better than Utaha herself.
Despite the frilly outfit, Utaha could feel a sharp aura from Darkness; she wasn't some ordinary person. The name already said as much. Still, that wasn't what bothered her most. Like Megumin said, the girl's voice sounded exactly like hers—like listening to herself talk.
"And you are?" Darkness studied the pretty girl in front of her and also noticed something was off. For a second she thought it had been her own voice just now.
"I'm Kasumigaoka Utaha—your senpai; I got here before you," Utaha introduced herself.
"Senpai? Nice to meet you." Darkness nodded, not taking Utaha's hostility to heart.
"Ah, um, hi…" Darkness being this obedient left Utaha unsure how to respond.
"Shichen, what's going on? Why does Darkness sound so… so…"
"Just call me Utaha," she cut in.
"Okay. So why does Darkness's voice sound the same as Utaha's?" Megumin asked Shichen.
"What's strange about that? It's just the same voice; that happens. It's not like you look the same," Shichen said with a smile. Voices matching is possible—and of course he knew exactly why Darkness and Utaha sounded identical. He just wasn't about to explain.
"Um…" Kanna suddenly raised her hand.
"Kanna? What is it?" Shichen looked over.
"This girl called Megumin sounds the same as Ai."
"True!"
"Now that you mention it!"
Illya and the others caught on at once.
"Huh? Ai is…?" Megumin looked at the little ones, puzzled.
"Hi, Megumin-nee, I'm Ai—Hoshino Ai~" Ai stepped forward with a playful grin.
"Whoa! It really is the same!" Megumin was shocked.
"Amazing! Two pairs with matching voices—what's even happening?" Yatogami Tohka asked curiously.
"I keep saying, matching voices are normal. No need to freak out. It just means you're linked by fate or whatever—don't overthink it," Shichen said helplessly. There might be more matching voices later; they couldn't be gasping in surprise every time.
"Ah!" Megumin suddenly stared at Yatogami Tohka.
"What's wrong?" Tohka tilted her head, confused.
"Y-you're…"
"My name is Yatogami Tohka—Shichen picked it for me. Isn't it pretty?"
"Yatogami… Tohka?" Megumin blinked and looked at Shichen in confusion.
"Don't rush. I'll explain everything over dinner."
Dinner took a while. Shichen had to introduce Megumin's group to everyone—and everyone to Megumin's group—plus each of their worlds. Still, it was worth it. By the end, everyone felt a lot closer.
"So, Megumin, your world is basically like an RPG? You level up and can just learn skills and magic?" After hearing Shichen out, Utaha couldn't help asking.
"What's an RPG? But yes, when we level up we can spend skill points to learn skills and magic," Megumin said.
"That strong…? You don't have to master anything? You just… know it?" Utaha asked, skeptical. It's fine in fiction, but when fantasy becomes reality, it feels off. No study, no understanding—that makes no sense. Turns out manga and novels really are "realistic."
"Yup," Megumin nodded.
"Shichen! Take us to Megumin's world already!" Utaha looked at him, excited. "If we go, can we be like them too?"
"You can—Frieren already tried it," Shichen replied with a smile.
"Then—?"
"No rush. We just got back; we're not heading out again that fast. And you're not on break yet."
"School isn't more important than this!"
"No way. There's time. You're only students for a little while—don't waste it," Shichen said, shaking his head.
"…Why do you sound like an old man?"
"You'll get it. When winter break comes, I'll take you—okay? We can bring everyone and sample another world together."
"What about the shop?" Tohru asked.
"We'll close up. I opened it to give you all something to do, not to tie you down."
"Shichen-dono! Love you!"
"Heh~ eat up before it gets cold. I still need to prep rooms for Megumin and her friends."
"Okay!"
The wonder of Megumin's world made everyone ignore the fact that Shichen had brought back four girls at once. And with that promise, all they could think about was the coming isekai trip together.
The only ones who stayed quiet were Aqua and Artoria. Once their heads cleared, the embarrassing memories made them want to crawl into a hole.
One thought, I'm a goddess—how could I do that with someone else there, and be seen like that? The other thought, I'm a king—the King of Knights. To fall that far, and with someone else? How could I?
What can you do—losing yourself in the moment isn't a joke. Why do so many people jump from a little rubbing to the final goal? Because when emotion runs deep, you can't help yourself. No one can wholly resist the body's urges.
That night, Shichen slept peacefully—no one came to bother him. Mostly because he stayed up late gaming with the little ones.
By the next day, though, Tohru and the others snapped out of it and realized how off it was that Shichen had brought back four girls in one go. One or two at a time, sure, but four was pushing it—and all four clearly had a close relationship with him.
Still, it wasn't a big deal. In the morning, when Shichen and Tohru were dropping everyone at school and buying ingredients, they slipped into the sky to stir the clouds and make it rain. The rain evaporated before it reached the ground, and the moment they left, the clouds vanished. Shichen didn't want Tohru's "squirt" raining down on people—he hadn't even tasted it himself.
True to being a dragon, Tohru's body was frighteningly tough; she handled Shichen's rapid "whipping" all morning. She dragged herself back to the shop exhausted, recovered quickly, and dove right into work.
At noon the shop was quiet, so Shichen took Chisato to the old broadcast tower for a bit. She belted out songs inside the tower, though no one outside could hear. Thanks to Megumin and the others helping, Chisato didn't need to work that afternoon. With the extra hands, more customers came, and the "mascot" Shichen wasn't needed.
So he headed to school to hang out with Utaha, cut class with her, then went out to sea to enjoy the rolling waves. Utaha's singing voice actually sounded a lot like Darkness's—she just didn't spout pervy lines like Darkness did.
That evening, Shichen finally had time to rest and went back to gaming with the kids. He realized something: even with a near-immortal body, he didn't have endless stamina. Powerful regeneration is just a curse; it doesn't mean limitless energy. Handling three in a day was fine, adding a few more was okay—there aren't that many girls with high stamina—but if it was everyone, he might not keep up. And there would be more family in the future.
Looks like he needed to find a way to have infinite stamina. Otherwise, how could he give everyone perfect happiness?
[Hey, is there a world where I can boost my stamina?] Shichen couldn't help asking "her."
But "she" didn't answer.
[It's really important to me. Tell me—pretty please~]
[Beat it!]
Even when he turned on the cutesy pleading, all he got back was an angry "Get lost." It figured—whether she knew or not, she wasn't going to tell him. She'd get jealous because of other people; why would she hand him a stamina upgrade—unless she could enjoy it herself. And she still couldn't show her face.
Shichen had guessed she wouldn't tell him, but he hadn't expected her to be that mad. Looked like he'd have to figure it out on his own.
After a month in this world, once everyone had bonded and Megumin's crew had fully blended in, Shichen got ready to leave. He didn't bring Est this time. Reuniting with Megumin and the others had suddenly reminded him of someone, and he planned to go see her. That world wouldn't need Est; even if she went, she still wouldn't have anything to do. Better for her to stay and play with Kanna and the rest.
~~~
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