Several seconds passed.
The glow dispersed.
Edelweiss no longer looked like she was on the verge of death.
Once again, her eyes were bright with vitality as she gazed up at Rei Ao from below.
One would have expected her to say sothing grateful.
But…
Edelweiss's lips parted, her voice clear and quiet.
"That thing pressing against doesn't feel comfortable—like a sword."
" … "
Saikyo Nene instinctively lowered her gaze to the "sword" Edelweiss was talking about, and her face imdiately darkened.
She strongly suspected that even if Rei Ao let go now, Edelweiss still wouldn't fall—
That thing alone could probably support her entire body!
It was… outrageous!
No. More than outrageous—downright scary.
She couldn't imagine how Kurono and the others could handle it "all in one go."
"Ah."
Rei Ao simply said, "You're calling it uncomfortable now. Just make sure you don't beg to continue later."
[Ding! Trade Complete!]
[Ding! Congratulations, you have obtained the abilities "Swordsmanship" and "Inherent Device: Testant"!]
[Ding! Detected that "Sword Aura" can be fused with "Swordsmanship," resulting in the ability "Sword King"!]
[Ding! Detected that "Inherent Device: Twin Swords" can be fused with "Inherent Device: King of Myriad Forms," resulting in "King of Myriad Forms"!]
A straightforward fusion of abilities.
Rei Ao was in no mood to be concerned with these minor details at the mont.
"Esdeath, it looks like you two need a handshake to make peace, so let act as the bridge between you, all right?"
"!!!"
Saikyo Nene assud he ant a magnanimous gesture of reconciliation after a fierce battle.
Who would have thought…
Shortly afterward—
Saikyo Nene looked on as one woman perched on that part of him and another woman sat on his waist.
All around them was a group functioning as the "mood setters."
Rustle, rustle.
A gentle breeze stirred the leaves.
Saikyo Nene simply felt that the world was cold and heartless.
She lifted her head.
A single tear slipped from the corner of her eye.
"What… kind of 'bridge for communication' is this?!"
…
"Knock, knock!"
"Co in."
Click.
Kato gumi looked curiously toward her bedroom door, which had just opened.
"Sis?"
It was her older sister, Kato Hiromi, poking her head in.
"Why are you here so late?"
"Haha, can't I co spend so sisterly ti with you, gumi?"
"Really?"
Kato gumi didn't think her sister had co just for so sibling bonding.
"Ahem…"
Feeling self-conscious under gumi's gaze, Kato Hiromi's eyes darted about. "Actually, I wanted to ask about you and… Rei Ao."
"In what sense?"
Kato gumi blinked calmly.
She suddenly asked, "Could it be about the sa sort of content currently in the livestream?"
"Uh…"
Kato Hiromi's cheeks turned pink, clearly embarrassed.
Admitting it would be like confessing she'd secretly been watching gumi's man.
Just then—
[Ding! The chat group has unlocked a new feature: 'Livestream Cinema'!!]
'Livestream Cinema': When turned on, if you and those around you also turn on this feature, you share a single, larger, clearer screen for the livestream!
Rei Ao noticed the effect of this new feature, but for his current "painting" endeavors, it wasn't much use, so he didn't pay it any mind.
anwhile, nobody in the chat group truly understood what it did yet.
So people tried it out on instinct.
At Yukino's apartnt—
On the sofa, both Mabel and Yukino were dying of awkwardness.
After activating the new feature, they saw a gigantic, cinema-like livestream screen appear before them.
They stared, dumbfounded, at the onscreen Rei Ao, who was "clapping" with gusto.
They could hear everything clearly.
Neither of them dared speak.
Eventually, Yukino's ears burned with embarrassnt, and she abruptly shut off the feature, leaving behind a quick, "I'm going to bed," before getting up to return to her room.
" … "
Mabel watched her retreating back and muttered, "So Yukino enjoys watching this stuff too, huh."
Izawa Shizue: "This new feature is really strange…"
Frieren: "An interesting feature."
Frieren: "Now Aura and I can watch the livestream together."
Seeing Aura start trying to cuddle up, Frieren snapped, "Hey, not on my bed! Move!"
"You won't join ? I could help you."
"I don't need your help—I have Rei Ao."
"Tsk."
Many in the chat who happened to be with soone else finally understood the aning of secondhand embarrassnt.
Kato gumi and Kato Hiromi were no exception.
"Gulp…"
Seeing Rei Ao's overwhelming vigor as he simultaneously handled multiple opponents, Kato Hiromi sat there in gumi's bedroom, too restless to stay still.
"Sigh, I'll be going now—I'm fine!"
She intended to flee the scene.
As soon as she stood—
Kato gumi spoke softly: "…Sis, don't you think you owe an explanation for secretly watching my boyfriend?"
"Uh…"
Her body froze.
Busted!
Kato Hiromi realized she couldn't escape.
Resigned, she sat back down, looking grim. "gumi, don't bla . I only planned on watching the livestream, but I didn't expect Rei Ao would just… be out in the wild… embracing natur—"
She spoke while gauging gumi's expression.
But gumi was stoic as ever!
From that calmly appealing face, Kato Hiromi couldn't read anything.
Her heart pounded anxiously.
What in the world is gumi thinking?
She didn't want this to cause any rift between them as sisters.
While she wondered how to explain herself further, Kato gumi lifted a slender finger and pointed at a spot on the screen.
She asked, "Sis, do you think that's big or small?"
Kato Hiromi's mind went blank for a mont. By reflex, she nodded. "B-big. Shockingly big."
But only after saying it did she realize what she was describing.
That thing—Rei Ao's, um… size.
"Ugh! gumi, I, I, I—"
Flustered, Kato Hiromi tried to explain.
Kato gumi interrupted her: "Sis, you don't have any experience with that, do you?"
"Huh?"
Another bizarre question, and Kato Hiromi's mind practically shut down.
She had no such experience, but did that an gumi was mocking her?
Not at all.
Kato gumi stepped forward, took her sister's hands, and said calmly, "The next ti Rei Ao visits, let's do it together."
…
The room fell silent.
After a while—
"Huh?!"
Kato Hiromi's startled shout burst from Kato gumi's bedroom.
~~~
600 Powerstone Bonus Chapter!
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