Tatsuki suddenly reappeared in the clubroom, startling Yukino, who was waiting anxiously for his return. When she saw it was him, she finally relaxed.
"Everything handled?"
"Yeah, it's done."
Yukino looked as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. Amused, Tatsuki asked, "Is there something you want to ask?"
Pressing her lips together, Yukino looked at him earnestly. "I want to know if there's anything I can do for you."
She truly wanted to help somehow; her feelings were obvious. Tatsuki pondered for a moment, but with Yukino's current abilities, there wasn't much she could do. So he joked, "How about becoming my maid at home from now on?"
Who would have thought the school's ice queen would actually take him seriously? Though her earlobes reddened, she seriously considered it. After a brief pause, she gave Tatsuki a huge surprise:
"All right."
"Mm?"
Tatsuki stared into Yukino's eyes… 'she was completely serious.' Feeling his gaze on her, she turned away, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as if to feign calmness and quietly asked, "Do… do I need to move over to your place? It's not convenient going back and forth for school."
Yukino had thought it through so thoroughly. She was entirely serious about this. Tatsuki, certainly not one to refuse such a wonderful opportunity, agreed on the spot. "No problem. I've got plenty of room at my place."
"Mm." Yukino responded softly, saying nothing more.
She suddenly felt she was no longer herself. The words she spoke, the things she did—definitely not the old her. She'd even decided on moving out without consulting her mother or sister. In the past, she felt both respect and fear for them, but now, that fear had vanished.
Recent experiences had changed her world. She was both scared and excited by it. All of it stemmed from the day she tried to stop Tatsuki's "daddy-life" behavior.
Tatsuki didn't disturb her train of thought. He truly appreciated Yukino's offer and saw no need to refuse. He liked when someone straightforwardly raised such suggestions. The more, the better, in fact. But at present, there was another problem to address.
In the chat group.
Esdeath: "@Tatsuki, come to my world and show me your strength."
Exusiai: "Esdeath must be a battle maniac."
Nami: "She's made it pretty obvious."
Shinobu Kocho: "@Tatsuki, @Tushan Honghong, how are things on your side?"
Tushan Honghong: "@Shinobu Kocho, Tatsuki-oniisan saved Rongrong and me, then took us back to Tushan before heading off."
Shinobu Kocho: "That's wonderful."
Ainz: "So big boss is free again. Will he respond to Esdeath's challenge?"
Aqua: "Oh oh oh! Let's see a fight!"
March 7th: "That… might not be good. We're all in the same group, after all."
Tatsuki: "@Aqua, don't stir up trouble, or you'll taste the administrator privileges."
Aqua: "Administrator privileges? Ha, what privileges can possibly restrict a goddess like me?"
Tatsuki: "Heh."
He snickered. He normally didn't want to use these privileges, but Aqua was too arrogant.
[ Ding! Aqua has been muted for 10 minutes! ]
Tatsuki: "Go on, keep talking. I'll watch."
March 7th: "Aqua got muted! That's the administrator's power? Scary!"
Shinobu Kocho: "Is it really that scary? It's just 10 minutes without chatting."
March 7th: "You don't get it. Aqua's super idle every day, and not talking might kill her from boredom."
Shinobu Kocho: "Oh… that does sound serious."
Tatsuki: "@Esdeath, I don't mind fighting you, but either you come here, or you pay me 1,000 Points. I see no reason to wear myself out for nothing."
Esdeath: "…"
Esdeath: "How do I earn Points quickly?"
Tatsuki: "As far as I know, your world doesn't have zombies like Saeko's or demons like Shinobu's. Those 'dangerous beasts' can't destroy your world, so you'll need to look for what's causing your Abnormal Apocalypse. Figure out the factor behind it."
Esdeath: "Tch."
With that result, Esdeath seemed to calm down. Then Tushan Honghong spoke.
Tushan Honghong: "@Tatsuki, Tatsuki-oniisan, thank you for rescuing me and Rongrong and taking us home. I'll definitely repay the 1,000 Points once I earn enough!"
Tatsuki: "I'm not in dire need of those Points. Just try to get stronger so you don't get captured again."
Tushan Honghong: "Mm! I'll do my best!"
Esdeath remained silent after that, simply gazing at the chat. 'He says he doesn't need the Points, yet he's unwilling to come fight me. An interesting man indeed.'
She licked her lips, then rose to exit the military camp. Her tall boots crunched through the snow as she gave a loud command: "All units, prepare to return to the capital!"