"This sort of thing isn't impossible. After all, those memory projections were just that—projections. They weren't the same as the life experiences of group members that I personally confirmed and released later. So, it's normal for some discrepancies to appear."
"I see." Kyoko nodded in understanding. She knew well that her own memory projection had been uploaded in anime format, completely different from the latest batch of group members like Natsuki Minamiya, whose projections had a different format.
Eriri's conversation with Kyoko piqued the curiosity of Eu and Seraphim, who sat nearby. Eu stayed silent due to her personality, but Seraphim, sitting beside Kyoko, directly voiced her doubt.
"Lady Eriri, what were you just talking about?"
"It's nothing much—just that we met someone very different from what we expected."
Eriri didn't hide it and directly explained the matter of Ayumi Aikawa and Ayumu Aikawa. After listening, Seraphim immediately nodded in realization, while the curiosity in Eu's eyes also faded away.
Meanwhile, in the classroom kitchen, Kanami had already asked who had taken Eriri's group's order.
"Ayumi, the table that ordered just now—leave it to Taeko and me." Kanami spoke to the somewhat bewildered Ayumi Aikawa.
Though puzzled at why Kanami wanted to do this, Ayumi still nodded. "Alright."
But as soon as she said it, a strange sense of regret welled up inside her.
After Kanami and Ayumi's short exchange, Taeko Hiramatsu, who had been curious about Kanami's sudden appearance, finally asked: "Kanami, why aren't you out front welcoming guests?"
"Because Eriri and the others are already here—they're sitting inside." Kanami smiled as she replied.
Taeko's face instantly lit up with joy. "What? Eriri's here already?! I have to go see her!" Without waiting, she impatiently pushed aside the curtain and dashed out, so quickly that even Kanami couldn't react.
"Honestly, what's the rush? It's not like Eriri will run away." Kanami muttered with a helpless smile, forgetting that she herself had been just as excited when she first saw Eriri in the hallway.
"Never mind. Looks like Taeko can't be counted on. Ayumi, you'll have to help me serve their food later."
Serving four people's meals alone clearly wasn't easy. At Kanami's words, Ayumi's eyes lit up. She quickly nodded, afraid that someone else might seize the chance first.
...
When Taeko rushed out of the kitchen, she immediately spotted Eriri's group not far away and hurried toward them, brimming with excitement. At that moment, Eriri had just finished telling Seraphim about Ayumi.
"Eriri, Kyoko-chan, Eu-chan, and Sera, welcome!" Taeko greeted them happily.
"Taeko, long time no see. And… your outfit is really cute," Eriri said with a smile, giving her a once-over. Taeko was also dressed in a waitress uniform with a pair of cat ears on her head.
Hearing the compliment, Taeko felt both shy and happy. Afterward, Kyoko and the others also greeted her, and since no new customers had arrived, Taeko decided not to go back to work for now and instead stayed to chat with them.
A few minutes later, Kanami and Ayumi arrived, each carrying a tray. On Kanami's tray were three plates of omelet rice, while Ayumi's held three glasses of water and one steaming cup of coffee.
"Thank you for waiting. Here's your order~"
Kanami smiled cheerfully at Eriri and the others, while Ayumi Aikawa, standing on the other side of the table, politely bowed to them. "Thank you for waiting!"
She set one edge of her tray on the table and placed the three glasses of water in front of Eriri, Eu, and Kyoko, finally setting the cup of coffee in front of Seraphim. "Here's your Monster Instant Coffee!"
After finishing, she hugged the tray to her chest and stood to the side, lowering her head shyly. She could feel the strange gazes from Kyoko, Eu, and Seraphim fixed on her, leaving her puzzled but too timid to ask why.
Meanwhile, Kanami, with her tray balanced on the table edge, handed out the three omelet rice plates one by one. "Here you go, Eriri—your Monster Omelet Rice~"
At that moment, both Taeko and Kanami noticed Kyoko and the others' odd behavior.
"Kyoko, I know Ayumi is cute, but do you really need to stare at her like that?" Kanami teased.
Kyoko, grinning mischievously, joined in: "She is cute. That chest, that waist, that butt… tsk tsk…"
"Hey, hey, none of that has anything to do with 'cute.' That's called sexy."
Hearing Kyoko and Kanami's exchange, Ayumi grew even more embarrassed. "Um… there's nothing else for me here, so I'll be going." Without waiting, she hurried off, abandoning her earlier thought of trying to get closer to Eriri.
Watching her fleeing figure, Kyoko put on a mock-serious face and said to Kanami: "See? You scared the poor girl off."
"You're the one talking? That's totally slandering me!" Kanami shot back.
Among Eriri's group, aside from Eriri herself, Kyoko was closest to Kanami and Taeko. Thanks to her lively personality, she often chatted with them on LINE and even met up with them more often than Eriri did. Their relationship could truly be called that of close friends.
And so, Eriri's group stayed in Class 1-C's café for about twenty minutes. Near eleven o'clock, they finally left. Taeko and Kanami, eager to accompany Eriri around the school, handed their duties over to classmates and followed along.
Rather than visiting other classes, they went straight to the gymnasium, where Sarasvati was scheduled to hold her concert at exactly eleven. Eriri had already promised to watch her performance.
As a well-known net idol, Sarasvati naturally wouldn't miss the cultural festival. At that moment, she was holding her very own concert inside the gymnasium.
By the time Eriri and the others arrived, the gym was already overflowing with people. Though the concert hadn't yet begun, thousands had packed into the vast space, with at least ninety percent being male students. Almost everyone held a glowstick, white headbands tied around their foreheads, and many waved light boards with "Kirara Hoshikawa" or ☆★ written on them.
Clearly, the crowd consisted of Sarasvati's devoted fans.
Instead of squeezing into the audience, Eriri's group went directly backstage. When Sarasvati, dressed in a little devil costume, saw Eriri, her usually cool face instantly lit up with joy, stunning the nearby staff.
But when those staff members caught sight of Eriri herself, their expressions grew even more frozen.
"Lady Eriri, you really came! I thought you wouldn't make it."
Sarasvati leaned close to Eriri's face. Though she was a centuries-old vampire ninja commander, right now she behaved like an innocent girl. After nearly two months together, her attitude toward Eriri had shifted from reverence to obsession. If someone asked her whether the vampire ninja village or Eriri was more important, she would choose Eriri without hesitation.
The same was true for Seraphim.
"How could I not come? I promised you, and I never break my word."
Eriri reached out and gently stroked Sarasvati's soft cheek. Instead of resisting, Sarasvati leaned into the touch like a kitten, rubbing her face against Eriri's palm.
"Alright, your performance is about to start. Go get ready—we'll watch you from here." After giving her cheek a playful pinch, Eriri withdrew her hand.
Beside her, Kyoko raised a hand in encouragement. "Saras, do your best! We're looking forward to your performance~"
Taeko and Kanami, who had tagged along, also cheered for her. When they first met Sarasvati through Eriri, they had been stunned. They had only known her as the school's famous idol—beautiful, with an amazing singing voice, and to them, an unreachable presence. They had also heard that she was an aloof ice queen.
But seeing how she acted in front of Eriri completely overturned their impression.
"Hmph, who do you think I am? I'm Kirara Hoshikawa, ranked second on the net idol charts!" Sarasvati declared proudly, casting a confident glance at them.
Soon, eleven o'clock arrived. Music began blasting through the gymnasium, accompanied by the synchronized cheers of the fans.
"Lady Eriri, I'm going on stage now. Please watch me carefully!" Sarasvati looked firmly at Eriri before striding out, guitar in hand, her steps brimming with confidence.
"Let's go, you shut-ins!" she shouted coldly as soon as she appeared on stage. The audience below didn't get angry at the insult—instead, they grew even more frenzied, their cheers climbing higher and higher.
The moment she struck her guitar, her voice filled the gymnasium.
During the performance, Sarasvati would occasionally glance toward Eriri, standing near the stage entrance. Just knowing Eriri was watching made her emotions soar, and her singing became even more powerful.
Her concert lasted a full two hours. Sarasvati didn't take a single break, performing song after song. Of course, for a vampire ninja like her, this level of exertion was nothing. Even ten times the length wouldn't have been a problem. But for the thousands of fans in the gymnasium, her tireless dedication was incredible. After brief rests, their support only grew louder and more passionate.
By the time Sarasvati returned backstage, it was already one in the afternoon. At that point, the cultural festival was nearly at its end for the day. Since Soryu Academy's festival lasted two days, Sarasvati would perform again tomorrow. But Eriri had no plans to come back—one day was enough for her. She had only three goals for attending: honoring Taeko and Kanami's invitation, watching Sarasvati's concert, and meeting the strongest Magiclad Girl.
The first two goals were complete. Only the last remained, and now she was ready to see it through.
Eriri originally wanted the others to head home first, but Eu gripped her hand tightly, determined to follow wherever she went. Seraphim and Sarasvati, as her servants, had no intention of leaving her side. Seeing this, Kyoko naturally refused to return alone either.
As for Taeko and Kanami, they had already gone back to their classroom after about an hour of the concert, since they still had their own responsibilities to attend to.
—
—
40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:
Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven