"Ren Isana, how much Excelia do you have now? Are you about to reach Tier 6?" Asuna asked, sensing her own progress before turning her gaze toward him, curious about his current strength.
Faced with Asuna's question, Ren Isana checked his status bar and couldn't help but say, "I'm only at 60%. I'm still a long way from breaking through."
His words left everyone speechless. Yukino Yukinoshita couldn't help but retort, "What kind of talk is that? We're only Tier 4, while you're already Tier 5. The gap is just getting wider and wider."
There was a whole level of difference between them, and the same applied to their Excelia bars. Everyone had awakened around the same time and started at the same starting line.
But now, Ren Isana was almost a full lap ahead of them. This cheater was truly ridiculous—comparing oneself to him was enough to drive someone to madness.
The others overheard Ren Isana's words and exchanged glances. The joy of obtaining so much Excelia suddenly felt a bit dull. Compared to him, the Excelia they gained was simply too little.
"The treatment is finished. Class Rep, please send them back!" Mahiru Shiina spoke up at that moment. The seawater inside the two little ones had been completely expelled, though they were still unconscious.
Hearing her, Ren Isana nodded and looked at the group. "Then let's all head back together. The matter is concluded now, and I don't want to spend any more time flying back on a plane just to return."
The group was currently on the other side of the world. Flying back would take a very long time, and Ren Isana was tired of being in the sky. Since all the Tier 5 Gastrea had been dealt with, they could just teleport back directly.
Hearing this, everyone voiced their support; no one wanted to keep flying either. Once the decision was made, Ren Isana directly channeled his Magic Power and activated the [Spatial Mark] on everyone, causing them all to vanish from the cabin.
Before leaving, Asagi Aiba sent a message to the pilots, telling them that the team was heading back first and that the pilots should fly back on their own without worrying about them.
The pilot in the cockpit felt a bit helpless, but his face was filled with relief. He had accompanied Ren Isana's group as they flew all over the world during this period.
He had personally witnessed Ren Isana and the others eliminate the threats that posed the greatest danger to their world, one by one. Now, he felt nothing but profound respect for them.
He knew very well that with the Gastrea wiped out, peace would likely return to this world soon. Furthermore, with the opening of the path to another world, the people here could look forward to a much better life.
As one of the people personally involved in these events, he would likely become a legendary pilot, and his children would receive priority for studying in the other world.
It was a beautiful prospect. Even though Ren Isana and the others had left early, it didn't dampen his spirits in the slightest.
Ren Isana and the group returned to their own world via the [Spatial Mark]. Just as they arrived, Natsuki Minamiya appeared, having sensed the activation of the mark. In her eyes, the activation meant Ren Isana was sending more children back.
When Natsuki arrived and saw it was the whole group, she asked in surprise, "Why are you back already?"
Her gaze then fell upon the children in the arms of Ren Isana and Asuna. "Three of them this time?"
"It's over. I've taken out all the Tier 5s over there," Ren Isana said, explaining the situation as he stepped forward to hand one of the children to Natsuki.
Natsuki quickly took the child. She paused for a moment upon hearing that everything was finished, then looked up at the group. "Since it's over, you don't need to go back. Prepare to return to your classes."
The group was stunned by the sudden instruction. Back to class already? Ren Isana frowned and said instinctively, "We haven't finished our business yet!"
They hadn't brought back many things yet. Were they being sent back to class now? Was someone trying to steal the credit for their hard work? A surge of annoyance rose in his chest—he was ready to fight any well-connected vultures!
"You have already secured that world. Once the Tier 5s are eliminated, the mission in that world is essentially complete. The remaining tasks don't require you to waste your time," Natsuki explained.
Hearing this, Ren Isana finally understood. Thinking about it, it did make sense. It didn't seem like any well-connected people were coming to steal the fruit of their labor. If there were, he would definitely make a scene!
"I see. I thought some people with connections were coming to snatch our rewards," Ren Isana muttered quietly, earning a roll of the eyes from Natsuki.
What well-connected people? You lot are the ones with the biggest connections here! With Director Ken watching over you, who would dare reach out a hand? Besides, this group consisted of top-tier seeds; who would benefit from making them angry?
Ren Isana and the others might not realize their current status, but Natsuki didn't elaborate. Instead, she said, "Just go back to class. Check your phone app's dashboard later; a sum of credits will be deposited for you. You can exchange them for whatever you need. That's your reward for this mission."
The mention of rewards instantly woke everyone up. This was exactly what they wanted! They were all waiting to get their hands on specific items. The new students needed [Spatial Backpack]s, while others needed materials.
Asagi Aiba couldn't help but ask, "Natsuki, will I be able to look into some of the technologies from that world later?"
She had originally planned to find an opportunity to gather some technical data once things settled down, but the plan couldn't keep up with the changes. She hadn't expected they wouldn't need to go back.
"Whatever plans you had, you can continue to execute them later. As long as it doesn't interfere with your classes, you can do what you want on weekends, including traveling to the other world," Natsuki's words made Asagi Aiba's eyes light up. They could still go back?
That was perfect. Asagi Aiba nodded, no longer worried. She already had an arrangement in mind; she would definitely need to make another trip.
After Natsuki finished explaining everything, she departed. She also gave Ren Isana and the others a few days off, telling them they didn't have to return to class until next Monday. Today was only Wednesday.
Knowing they had a holiday, Asagi Aiba immediately looked at Ais Valentia and the others. "Miss Ais, shall we head over there again?"
Ais Valentia agreed without hesitation. It didn't matter to her, and she knew Asagi Aiba's plan was to gather the data she needed.
Once they had settled their plans, Asagi Aiba led Ais Valentia and the others away to start their move. Ren Isana and the rest returned to the school, as there was nothing left for him to do there.
The Cursed Children were being handled by the seniors, and the school would likely send a larger force to manage the aftermath. Ren Isana didn't need to worry about it anymore.
"It feels strange. I can't believe it ended just like that. It feels like we were just sent there to participate in the Tier 5 kills. Once they were dead, our mission was considered complete," Asuna remarked on the way back.
Ren Isana nodded. That was likely the case. Since everyone had the God's Falna, killing Gastrea allowed them to level up. Since it was a newly discovered world, they had simply been sent there for training.
On one hand, they could explore the world; on the other, it allowed them to increase their strength. The children Ren Isana and the others brought back were a pleasant surprise. Even if they hadn't done it, the children would have eventually been brought back when the main force arrived.
However, everyone's harvest this time was quite substantial. They just didn't know how many credits they would receive. According to Natsuki, those credits could be exchanged for all sorts of things.
This was something to look forward to, especially for the students participating in an inter-world development for the first time. Everyone was filled with anticipation.
The group soon arrived back at the school. On the way, Bell Cranel and Haruhime Sanjouno split off from Ren Isana's group to return to their own respective schools. Ren Isana and the remaining group swiped their student ID cards and entered the campus.
Classes were currently in session. Aside from some third-year seniors moving about, the campus was relatively quiet.
However, they could occasionally hear the sound of explosions in the distance—likely students practicing magic. After returning to the school, the group quickly headed back to their dorms.
The first thing they did was wash up and get ready for a good sleep. Ren Isana was no exception. After all, they had spent the entire time on a transport plane and hadn't had a single decent night's rest.
Now that they were back in their dorms and saw their beds, all they could think about was sleeping, leaving everything else for later.
While the group rested, Natsuki brought the three children to a heavily guarded hospital on Nexus Island. Upon arrival, she immediately handed them over to Miach.
Miach and Naaza were already there. They took the three children with practiced ease and moved them into a specialized ward for treatment. The room already contained other children left behind after Ren Isana's group killed the Tier 5s.
Natsuki stood outside for a while, looking at the children who were still in a coma. She didn't say much. With Miach there, these children would likely wake up soon.
She stayed for a moment before turning to leave. It was time to arrange the rewards for Ren Isana and the others—the rewards this time would be very generous!