Feast.
After resolving the Reincarnator invasion incident from the To Love-Ru universe, Eriri and the others did not immediately return to their respective worlds but instead held a grand celebration in that same universe.
Besides the women who had participated in the subjugation of the Reincarnators, even Sephie, who had been handling the various interstellar issues caused by the invasion, was brought from Debiruk by Lala to Earth to attend the feast.
...
Once the banquet ended, everyone returned to their own worlds. Meanwhile, inside the chat group, Little Skirt began distributing the points obtained from recycling the Main God Fragments to all the members.
A series of system notifications rang out in everyone's minds.
Among them, the one who gained the most points individually was none other than Arifureta, who thus won the competition, claiming the hundreds of millions of points accumulated in Eriri's possession.
[Eriri (Level 8, Stage 9): Congratulations to Yue-chan for winning this round!]
[Arche (Level 7, Stage 2): Congratulations!]
[Ruri Gokou (Level 7, Stage 2): Congrats~ throws confetti.jpg]
[Chika Fujiwara (Level 7, Stage 2): Congrats, congrats~ Yue-chan really is amazing~]
[Arifureta (Level 7, Stage 5 / Group Leader): Hehe, everyone's too kind~]
[Elaina (Level 7, Stage 2): Hmph, Yue-chan, I'll let you have this victory for now, but next time, I'll definitely be the one to win!]
[Asuna Yuuki (Level 7, Stage 2): Elaina-chan, you did really great too! Second place and all~ You killed more than sixty thousand Reincarnators, that's already incredible—way more than me.]
[Keika Kiyotaki (Level 4, Stage 9): So many people died all at once… honestly, it's a bit scary.]
[Aoyama Nanami (Level 4, Stage 9): +1]
[Aoyama Nanami (Level 4, Stage 9): Seeing that kind of scene for the first time… I'm still not used to it.]
[Kaori Miyazono (Level 4, Stage 9): Same here. I couldn't even bring myself to kill anyone...]
Keika Kiyotaki, Aoyama Nanami, and Kaori Miyazono were all auxiliary participants in the battle, barely killing any Reincarnators themselves.
After all, they had only joined the chat group a little over two months ago and were still not fully accustomed to the laws of the multiverse. Unlike Chika Fujiwara and others, they had yet to reach the point where they could kill without hesitation.
Even if they had the resolve, their current strength was insufficient to handle many Reincarnators.
After all, within the million-strong army of Reincarnators, Level 4 ones were already considered rare.
[Eriri (Level 8, Stage 9): Don't worry, you'll get used to it in time.]
[Aoyama Nanami (Level 4, Stage 9): I hope so...]
[Keika Kiyotaki (Level 4, Stage 9): Mm-hmm! I'll definitely adapt!]
Although they still felt resistance deep down, Aoyama Nanami and the others understood that they would have to face such realities sooner or later.
[Eriri (Level 8, Stage 9): Alright, it's time to settle the rewards. There were forty-eight participants in total this time, so that's 480 million points.]
After sending that message, Eriri directly transferred a 480-million-point red packet to Arifureta.
Though this amount was insignificant compared to what she'd earned that week—barely a fraction—Arifureta still received it joyfully.
Points didn't matter. What mattered was the thrill of victory.
However, when it came to total points earned overall, Jibril took the lead. With over a hundred Level 7, Stage 1 Flügel supporting her, her total points far surpassed Arifureta's.
In short, everyone reaped tremendous gains this time. Even those who hadn't personally killed many Reincarnators still earned substantial points with help from allies outside the group.
[Chika Fujiwara (Level 7, Stage 2): The special invitation refreshes in two days. I bet a lot of people are looking forward to it this time.]
[Emilia (Level 7, Stage 1): Of course! I hope I get lucky this time—Sagiri's waiting for me to pull her into the group. She helped me earn tens of millions of points this round!]
[Darkness (Level 5, Stage 6): Megumin and Alice have been bugging me nonstop to invite them to the chat group too~]
[...]
As soon as Chika Fujiwara said that, the chat group immediately became even livelier, with everyone naming the people they wanted to invite as if reading from a list.
Just like that, two days passed quickly, and the new round of Special Invitation Letters finally refreshed.
Under Eriri's supervision, the twenty-sixth Special Invitation Letter ultimately fell into Arelis' hands, and the Sword Maiden Seraphina became the twenty-sixth member to enter the chat group through a Special Invitation Letter.
...
Toyogasaki Academy. In Class 2-E's classroom, right after the last class of the day ended, laughter and chatter filled the air.
"See you tomorrow, Sawamura-san~"
"See you tomorrow, Onee-sama~"
"See you tomorrow~"
After greeting Eriri one after another, the girls who had already packed up their books reluctantly left the classroom.
Sitting beside Eriri, Arifureta and the others were also tidying up their notebooks and stationery, while Eriri herself rested her chin on the desk with a relaxed expression, occasionally responding to her classmates' farewells while lost in thought.
After the incident of the Reincarnator invasion in the To Love-Ru universe ended, Eriri and the others had settled back into their normal lives. There hadn't been any new group missions, and Eriri also had no plans to visit other worlds for the time being.
Meanwhile, Antilene had been pulled out of the Reincarnation Space by Eriri after the event, officially ending her journey as a Reincarnator.
Fortunately, after more than a year, she had fulfilled her wish of experiencing life as a Reincarnator—traveling through many worlds, battling native powerhouses and other Reincarnators alike.
She was satisfied, so she didn't resist Eriri's decision and decisively gave up her Reincarnator status to live peacefully in the Saekano world.
Of course, when bored, she would still travel alone through the World Gate to explore other universes.
...
Now, time had reached the end of January.
Because Eriri had previously planned to visit the Void Space, and since she was feeling a bit bored lately, she decided she would head there in a few days.
...
Two days quickly passed again. After finishing breakfast, Eriri, in front of everyone, tore open a strange-looking spatial passage.
"Eriri, is this passage the one leading to the Void Space?"
Arifureta looked curiously at the hazy portal before them.
Not only Arifureta but also Utaha Kasumigaoka and the others in the dining room wore equally curious expressions.
To them, world portals weren't unfamiliar—in fact, they were very used to them. After all, their villa was filled with many Gates of Worlds leading to different universes.
Normally, interuniversal portals would display an image of the destination world inside the passage. But the one before them now was completely different.
There was no image of another world, nor was it pitch-black or pure white. Instead, it emanated an indescribable aura of mystery—just a single careless glance could make one feel as if their soul was being pulled in and devoured.
At that moment, Arifureta and the others deeply felt that sensation, so much so that none of them dared to stare at the eerie passage for long.
"Yes, that's right. On the other side lies the Void Space."
"It feels so dangerous inside..."
Arifureta quickly averted her gaze, her beautiful face showing clear unease.
"Of course. With your current Level 7 strength, if you were to enter the Void Space, you'd instantly be assimilated by the void and completely erased from the multiverse."
Eriri spoke casually, but upon hearing her words, Arifureta and the others gasped in shock.
"That's terrifying! You'd be erased instantly? Won't it be dangerous for you, Eriri?"
Arifureta grabbed Eriri's hand with a worried look.
Although she knew Eriri possessed invincible power far beyond that of an ordinary Level 8, Stage 9 being, the unknown always brought unease—especially when it concerned someone she loved.
However, unlike Arifureta, the little girls who had also just finished breakfast showed no trace of worry, only curiosity about the Void Space.
Since Eriri had never explained what the Void Space truly was, their understanding of it was limited to the brief information they had just heard from her.
"Don't worry. The assimilation of the void won't affect me in the slightest. Besides, as long as one possesses strength above Level 8, it's possible to slow down the assimilation of the void."
"So, if you ever want to enter the Void Space, you'll need to reach at least mid-Level 8 strength. Low-Level 8 beings wouldn't be able to withstand the assimilation for long."
"Of course, if you're under my protection, you'll still be able to roam freely within the Void Space~"
Eriri reminded everyone gently, never forgetting to show off her all-powerful confidence.
"I see!"
Arifureta and the others nodded, the last traces of worry in their hearts completely vanishing.
Since they had already touched on the topic, Eriri decided to explain everything she knew about the Void Space to everyone. She wasn't in a hurry to step through the portal anyway.
So, she kept the passage open and began telling them about the nature of the Void Space and the beings known as Cosmic Beasts.
After that, she even continued to share how the Main God had personally approached her with an invitation to join the battle against a Cosmic Beast.
"Over a thousand Level 8, Stage 9 powerhouses versus one Cosmic Beast? That sounds awesome!"
Akino Yukino's eyes sparkled with excitement, her imagination already painting the scene of thousands of mighty beings facing off against a colossal monster—a full-on man-vs-beast war!
She had never seen a Cosmic Beast before, so she substituted the image of giant monsters from her previous life into her mind—only on an unimaginably larger scale.
Hearing Yukino's words, Yuzuru Hanyu and the others all nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, that must be an incredible sight. I kind of want to see a live broadcast of that~"
"Don't worry. When I go to watch the battle live, I'll bring you all with me~"
Eriri patted her chest with an air of ease and promised confidently.
"Yay!"
Hearing Eriri's assurance, the girls who were interested in the event all broke into happy smiles.
"Alright then, I won't keep chatting. I'm heading into the Void Space now~"
"Mm-hmm, go on then. Come back soon~"
Eriri playfully pinched Arifureta's cheek, smiling warmly at everyone before turning around and stepping into the spatial passage.
As she disappeared, the rift she had torn open swiftly closed up, vanishing without a trace.
...
The Void Space—as its name implied—was a realm where nothing existed. Everywhere one looked was pure emptiness.
No mountains, no water, no vegetation, no life, no air... Everything familiar within the universe was completely absent here.
Strictly speaking, the so-called Cosmic Beasts that roamed the Void Space could no longer even be considered living beings.
Emerging from the spatial passage, Eriri floated within the boundless void, closing her eyes to feel the universe's energy—so much denser than that of any normal cosmos.
The endless flow of primal cosmic energy seemed to find its rightful owner, surging madly into her body, filling her with indescribable comfort and bliss.
Meanwhile, her progress bar toward Level 9, already more than halfway filled, began to advance rapidly.
76%... 77%... 78%...
If that progress bar could be visualized, it would be exactly as such.
With every breath—or rather, every passing moment, since Eriri no longer needed to breathe—the percentage continued to climb.
Within just a few minutes, the bar had completely filled.
Her body was now on the verge of undergoing an unprecedented evolution.
Sensing the changes within herself, and to prevent Arifureta and the others from worrying about her prolonged absence, Eriri sent a message to the chat group, informing them of her imminent evolution.
The moment her message was sent, the final evolution toward Level 9 began.
There she stood—eyes closed, hands relaxed at her sides—serenely within the boundless void.
One minute... ten minutes... one hour... one day...
Ten days soon passed.
Then, Eriri slowly opened her breathtaking blue eyes.
Rejoice.
Since the dawn of the multiverse, the very first Level 9 being had been born!!!
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