"!!!"
Utaha rubbed her eyes. She dazedly felt the sofa under her, then took in the furniture and items around her.
"This is… my living room!" She cried out in disbelief. "How did you do that?!"
In the blink of an eye, she'd gone from a street still some distance away from her building straight into her own home—and the door hadn't even opened!
"Simple teleportation. Anyway, now's not the time to talk about that. Don't you think you should… deal with your clothes first?"
Tatsuki didn't sound disgusted, just gently reminded her as he pointed at her lower body. "Staying in wet clothes doesn't feel good, you know? And it's pretty cold right now, too."
"..."
Utaha froze.
The moment he mentioned it, her mind went completely blank. She only wanted one thing now—take a shower!
"I'm going to take a bath!"
She didn't care about shame anymore. She spun around, bolted into the bathroom, and slammed the door shut in one smooth motion.
"I'll just—" Tatsuki was about to say he'd head out.
But then Utaha's trembling voice came from inside the bathroom: "Tatsuki-kun, please don't leave… not yet… I-I'm a little scared…"
She meant it.
After seeing a real monster with her own eyes, her brain immediately started replaying every horror movie she'd ever seen. What if all those ghosts and monsters were real too?
That kind of thought just popped into her head on its own.
So yes—Utaha was genuinely terrified.
Her body was shaking even as she undressed. She was afraid some demon or ghost would suddenly lunge out of the bathroom shadows.
"..."
Tatsuki glanced at her graceful silhouette cast on the door by the bathroom light, then agreed. "Alright, I'll leave after you're done."
He walked over and sat down on the sofa.
Hearing that he was still there, Utaha let out a small sigh of relief but the thought of herself in the bath with a man waiting outside the door made her feel oddly self-conscious, her heart beating faster for no logical reason.
Shhhh
Utaha had already turned on the water and started washing.
…
Bored, Tatsuki opened a channel to Echidna.
"Echidna, did you receive the present?"
"Thank you, my dear master. Yet another fascinating creature you've sent me."
"Mm. Study her powers and see if you can merge them with the power of the Titans."
"Our thoughts align, Master. I was just planning to try that."
"Good. I've got a few other strange monsters here too, but I can't bring them into the Chaos Domain. When you have time, come out and take a look."
"Understood."
After a short exchange with Echidna, Tatsuki's thoughts drifted to the fact that Utaha's place was right across from Benio's apartment… No time like the present. He'd just sleep at Benio's tonight.
Still, he pulled out his phone to be sure.
Tatsuki: "Benio, you still up?"
Benio: "Yes. Did you need something, Tatsuki-sama?"
Tatsuki: "Mm. Benio, just call me Tatsuki. Is it okay if I sleep at your place tonight?"
Benio: "Eh?! T-tonight?"
Benio: "Um… T-Tatsuki-kun, do you require Benio's… service?"
Tatsuki: "If Benio is willing."
Benio: "Of course!"
Benio: "Ahem, I-I mean, what time will Tatsuki-kun be coming?"
Tatsuki: "About half an hour from now."
Benio: "Understood! I'll prepare… prepare a meal for you!"
"..."
Tatsuki really wanted to ask whether that meal was going to be decent or indecent.
As for that thirty minutes… He glanced at the bathroom and roughly estimated Utaha would be in there about half an hour.
Girls normally took longer showers than guys, with hotter water too—just basic physiological differences.
On top of that, Utaha had, well, a lot to wash off. She was definitely going to scrub herself again and again.
With nothing better to do, Tatsuki sent a quick notice to the people at home who might be waiting for him, then opened the chat group.
Scrolling through the messages, his gaze quickly landed on Exusiai's bored grumbling.
Exusiai: "So boooring. It's just commission after commission every day."
March 7th: "Didn't you used to be a total workaholic, Exusiai? You were all fired up before."
Exusiai: "Welp, my dream came true, so I've kinda lost my drive."
Exusiai: "Now I can get as many guns as I want and as much ammo as I want."
March 7th: "That's… the emptiness after your wish gets granted, I guess."
Shinobu: "It's probably similar for all of us. After the demons were wiped out and the Demon Slayer Corps disbanded, I didn't know what to do either. I could only focus on self-care—especially on maintaining flexibility."
Flexibility, huh… Tatsuki suspected his thoughts might be going somewhere they shouldn't.
Saeko Busujima: "Indeed. Society over here is slowly rebuilding. It doesn't affect us much, but it's still a long, messy process."
Seitenshi: "Building a new social order is complex, and managing subsequent development is enough to make one's head spin."
Rebuilding society and opening up a new path—The Saint had already deeply experienced just how difficult that was, but she was still pushing herself forward.
Bronya: "Since the end of the Doomsday-level crisis caused by the Eternal Freeze and the Stellaron, Belobog has also become very busy. The surface must be expanded, and new homes must be built. Even Belobog is suffering from a manpower shortage."
Bronya: "It's troubling. I'm not even sure if I'm doing a good job as the Supreme Guardian."
Tatsuki: "Don't sell yourself short, Bronya. Believe in yourself."
Bronya: "Thank you for the encouragement. I'll keep working hard."
Tatsuki: "Don't you have the Creation Engine for geological modification? If you repair the Creation Engine, terraforming and construction should go a lot smoother, right?"
Bronya: "!!! Thank you for the reminder. Honestly, we'd all sort of forgotten about the Creation Engine."
With Tatsuki's reminder, Bronya finally remembered.
Rebuilding a new habitat for humanity didn't have to rely solely on manpower—they could also use the power of the ancients and the Creation Engine was literally a geological transformation machine.
She'd thought they were just venting about their current situations, but she'd actually gotten something useful out of it.
[Ding! Rice Noodle Dragon has joined the chat group!]
[Ding! Spirit of Time has joined the chat group!]
…
Lungmen.
A mobile city under Yan, overseen by the Yan royal, Wei Yenwu.
Skyscrapers pierced the clouds, transportation was highly developed, and its growth rate was nothing short of astonishing. Lungmen had already become one of the most important economic and cultural hubs, not only of Yan but of all Terra.
It was a city of inclusion—people of every race and region lived in this bustling metropolis.
But inclusivity also meant friction. It meant chaos.
Like right now.
Outside a silent factory, a group of people gathered at the entrance, breathing quietly. This was a Lungmen Guard Department raid in progress.
Leading the operation was the senior superintendent of the Lungmen Guard Department and head of the Special Inspection Unit—Ch'en Hui-chieh.
"Everyone, ready to move in!"
Wearing long boots, hotpants, and a black LGD officer's jacket, the dragon-woman Ch'en smashed open the factory door with a single violent kick.
"Lungmen Guard Department! Drop your weapons—now!"
She was the first to charge into the factory, her black regulation sword leveled straight ahead.
Her sharp gaze swept the area.
Inside the factory, every face was vicious and thuggish, every hand clutching pipes, blades, or other makeshift weapons.
"Shit! It's the Lungmen Guard Department!"
Panic erupted the moment Ch'en stepped in.
Behind her, the officers who'd stormed in were all clad in LGD uniforms. Some of the thugs raised their weapons, trying to fight back. Others lost their nerve and bolted.
Ch'en's eyes narrowed; once again, she was the first to lunge forward, cursing under her breath.
"Punk-ass scum! You gutter rats think you can run in my Lungmen?!"
....
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