For Tatsuki, this world was terribly boring—a world that had almost nothing to offer. Aside from the Iron Fortress, its technology was primitive to the point of painful.
So he used the power of faith to recreate his own home here—a perfect replica.
He had no interest in staying in someone else's quarters.
Then he summoned Echidna.
"Master, do you have any orders for me?" she asked sweetly.
Her eyes swept across the room, lingering for a moment on Mumei and Horobi, who sat stiffly on the sofa beside Ayame Yomogawa.
Echidna smiled teasingly. "Could it be that Master wishes for me to serve you right now? Together with these ladies?"
Serve…
To Mumei it meant nothing special, but Ayame and Horobi—women born of this era—certainly knew the implication.
Ayame lowered her head in flustered silence; Horobi's eyes flickered strangely.
Tatsuki sighed internally. "You really do lean into the role play."
Echidna winked, replying through thought, "Not nearly as convincingly as your lover Pandora."
Pandora, huh… He smirked. If he weren't reading her mind, he might not have been able to tell whether she was sincere or mocking.
Tatsuki didn't bother with small talk. He tapped the table. "I'm a bit thirsty."
That was a hint—and Echidna understood instantly. Her lips curved into a smile as she produced a cup of her signature Donna Tea.
"If Master prefers, I can make a fresh one on the spot," she purred.
"…"
Freshly made Donna Tea—now that's an invitation.
Tatsuki looked her over from head to toe, briefly tempted, but simply took a sip of the tea and praised, "It tastes great. I'll try the fresh one tonight."
Echidna's eyes sparkled—curiosity and anticipation mixing together.
"You must be dying to know, huh? Fine, since you've been so eager, I'll let you indulge your curiosity."
That was exactly what she wanted to hear.
The moment she had arrived, Echidna sensed it—this was another completely different world, and the three girls before her were two humans and something else entirely.
Curiosity. Curiosity! More curiosity! It burned within her like a fever.
"Go ahead," Tatsuki said lightly. "Explore to your heart's content—just don't hurt any humans."
"Thank you, my Master!"
Overjoyed, Echidna kissed his cheek and rushed out the door.
Wiping his mouth, Tatsuki chuckled. "She really would do anything for knowledge."
Then his gaze returned to the three girls. He spent some time explaining the Apocalypse Chat Group to the new member Mumei through a private mind link, so that only she could hear him.
To Ayame and Horobi, it looked as if the two were just silently moving their lips. Mumei's expression shifted rapidly—from confusion, to shock, to contemplation.
After a while, they heard Tatsuki's final words. "That's pretty much everything."
"…"
Mumei fell into thought. She'd believed she was nothing but a pawn—a meaningless existence used by others, her life worthless.
But through Tatsuki's explanation, she understood what the Apocalypse Chat Group really was. Perhaps being chosen meant she did have a purpose after all.
Sipping his tea, Tatsuki smiled faintly. Dealing with an immature girl like her was easy enough; a few words and her mind was nudged in a new direction.
Soon enough, the will to die had vanished entirely.
Another troubled girl saved. What a charitable day.
…
Night fell—or rather, the world's closest approximation of it, for there was no true darkness here.
When Seitenshi, Mikasa, and Vivi returned, they were astonished to find a large house standing where none had been before. But after hearing Tatsuki's casual explanation, their shock faded quickly. If he could stop time, what was a house?
Their expedition had gone well. With the entire world moving at a snail's pace, even ordinary humans like Mikasa could easily slay Kabane. And for a holy being like Seitenshi and a nature user like Vivi, it was hardly a challenge.
Grumble
The sound drew everyone's attention. Mikasa's usually stoic face flushed slightly.
"Hungry?" Tatsuki asked.
"Mm." She nodded shyly.
"Shall I prepare something?" Ayame offered politely.
"No need."
Tatsuki snapped his fingers, and an array of delicacies appeared on the table.
"!!"
Mikasa's eyes lit up, and even Ayame, Mumei, and Horobi couldn't look away—the food was far beyond anything they'd ever seen.
"Go on, eat," Tatsuki said with a smile.
"Okay!" Mikasa answered brightly and immediately started digging in. Her eating style was anything but ladylike—a true glutton, much like Akame.
…
Kusuo Saiki didn't return, but Tatsuki wasn't worried. With his limiters off, the esper wouldn't starve or freeze to death. He even had a power to restore his body to its state from the previous day.
Most likely, he was grinding points to perfect his control over his abilities—something he'd wanted his whole life.
Tatsuki's house was a one-to-one reproduction of his original home. He shared the master bedroom with Seitenshi; Mikasa and Vivi took a guest room; Ayame, Mumei, and Horobi occupied another.
Later that night, Echidna suddenly reappeared in his room, startling him. The euphoric excitement she'd shown before was gone, replaced by a calm, knowing look—because she had already studied everything about this world: its culture, technology, the Iron Fortress, the Kabane, and the Kabaneri.
Now fully understanding this world, her curiosity shifted again—toward Tatsuki himself. Her eyes gleamed with a new, hungry interest.
Tatsuki arched a brow. "I can't pretend I don't see that look in your eyes."
And with that, he decided to fulfill his earlier promise—to brew a cup of Donna Teapersonally.
…
Anng~
In the other room, Mumei pointed curiously at the wall. "What's that sound?"
Ayame lowered her head, saying nothing. Horobi hesitated, then answered gently, "Rest for now. They're… probably exercising."
"Mm." Mumei nodded, innocently believing her.
…
By the next day—or what passed for it under the slowed time—Mumei, now rested and refocused, joined the team in exterminating Kabane. Inside the house, only Tatsuki, Ayame, and Vivi remained.
Chat messages flickered in his mind.
March 7th: "The demonic cultivators are gone, but your mission's still running?"
Tatsuki: "Yeah. I'm running a time-related experiment, so I'll stay longer."
Tatsuki: "Kusuo Saiki, all fine on your end?"
Kusuo Saiki: "No problems."
Tatsuki: "Good."
Kiana: "Esdeath! Let's fight again!"
Esdeath: "Seeking revenge? Then come."
Kiana: "Heh heh, this time I won't lose!"
Aqua: "A real duel, huh?"
Silver Wolf: "What's the point if we can't watch it live? A first-person duel is no fun without a stream."
Tatsuki: "True enough—if the Apocalypse Battlefield could host live streams, that'd be perfect."
Aqua: "The group doesn't take suggestions. No way it'll listen to you."
[Ding! Detected the majority of members' wish—Apocalypse Battlefield Live-Stream feature activated!]
Aqua: "???"
Tatsuki: "Oh? Looks like it did listen."
Exusiai: "Huh? Could that be Tatsuki's admin privilege again?"
Tatsuki: "Who knows."
Come to think of it, he did seem to have special perks —higher loot draws, full access to system descriptions, and he was always selected for Apocalypse Missions. Maybe feedback requests were an admin-only perk too.
[Ding! Apocalypse Battlefield Live Stream now open!]
[Tatsuki has entered the stream!]
Just like before, a vast grassy plain appeared.
"You've grown stronger," Esdeath grinned hungrily at Kiana—like a predator spotting prey.
"Of course," Kiana replied proudly as the golden Sword of Damocles materialized overhead.
Esdeath raised her hand, launching hundreds of icy spears into the sky—but this time they did not reach their target.
Kiana spread her arms and floated upward, smiling as dozens of black spatial rifts opened behind her. The frozen lances vanished into those voids—only to reappear above, raining back down on Esdeath.
"Not so easy this time," Kiana said with a smirk, snapping her fingers.
Esdeath didn't flinch—her excitement only grew. "Then let's fight seriously!"
A hundred-meter-tall ice mountain burst from the ground—Esdeath had finally decided to go all out.
...
For every 50 Power Stones → +1 extra chapter.
Read 50+ chapters ahead on Patreon! [patreon.com/METARLN]
Use code SANTA for 50% OFF!