To everyone else in the world, it was just an ordinary night.
Akame, Kurome, and their companions from the Akame ga Kill world lay in bed, tossing and turning.
The advanced technology of this new world was utterly magical to them—sleeping felt like a waste of time.
Akame lay on her stomach, carefully navigating a holographic interface.
It functioned like an encyclopedia, offering quick overviews of the capital and its many features.
"They're not human?!"
Upon learning about the concepts of shipgirls, dragon girls, Heroic Spirits, and Spirits, Akame was so startled she almost fell off the bed.
They all looked like beautiful girls—but were entirely different beings.
No wonder their power was on another level altogether.
"So, aside from us and the squad led by Kanae-senpai, the only ordinary people in this city are the little kids?!"
She realized she might soon be the weakest person in the capital.
"Not human... no wonder Yatsufusa doesn't work on them."
Beside her, another black-haired, black-eyed girl in a sailor uniform muttered.
Thump—
Akame lightly smacked Kurome on the head.
"Don't go thinking weird things. The Commander would be mad."
"I was just saying..."
Kurome grumbled while rubbing her head.
Her Teigu, March of the Dead: Yatsufusa, could turn those she killed into corpse puppets.
In the past, she had schemed to collect powerful corpses—including her sister.
But here, she didn't dare try it. She wouldn't even take it out.
If she scared any of the little girls, she could easily find herself being lectured by shipgirls or Heroic Spirits.
And after being disciplined by Belfast once, Kurome never wanted to experience that again.
That head maid might be gentle in front of the Commander, but toward others... she was downright terrifying.
"Hmm... maybe I should go study necromancy instead?"
Kurome muttered, browsing the course offerings from the magic academy via the holographic interface.
"Herbology, alchemy... black magic?! And black magic defense studies?!"
The list of subjects made her dizzy.
"What kind of school is this magic academy?!"
"Why does it all seem so sketchy?!"
...
...
As the first rays of sunlight rose over the ocean and the shipgirls welcomed the second day of the returning expedition—
Onboard the Eternal Snowfall, a full ten days had passed.
Setsuna sat up in bed, yawned, and drew back the curtains.
As expected—after a long expedition, he needed a good reward for himself and the shipgirls.
Time manipulation paired with the Eternal Snowfall was simply amazing.
In some ways, the nickname it had earned wasn't wrong at all.
The thirty-times time dilation turned one night into ten full days. He would definitely consider extending future vacations.
Beside him, Jeanne Alter and Jeanne d'Arc were sleeping peacefully in each other's arms, silver and golden hair tangled across the bed.
If not for their differing eye and hair colors, the two looked exactly the same—identical in both figure and face.
With their eyes closed, they looked like a pair of twins with different hairstyles.
The two usually didn't get along—but now appeared closer than ever.
All thanks to him.
Setsuna liked enjoying things in pairs.
Like Kurumi and Mio, or Jeanne Alter and Jeanne d'Arc.
He could use them together—or savor them one at a time.
Jeanne d'Arc was gentle and sincere, Jeanne Alter was tsundere with a touch of arrogance—each had her charm.
He gently pinched Jeanne d'Arc's cheek. She slowly opened her blue eyes and pushed herself upright.
"Master..."
"How did the mana replenishment feel?"
Setsuna asked with a smile.
"Mmm..."
"Master... you're such a bully..."
Jeanne d'Arc blushed and lowered her head.
"Why do you know so much?! And... there are other ways to replenish mana, right?!"
Setsuna's knowledge left Jeanne d'Arc—a pure and noble saint—completely speechless.
After several days of careful judgment, she concluded that with the Master's ability, simply transferring mana directly like an energy transmission should suffice.
All the stuff about swallowing it, twice a day for better results...
Total nonsense.
Maybe a little effective, but not by much.
"Then which method do you prefer?"
Setsuna rubbed her head gently.
"..."
Jeanne d'Arc bit her lip, hesitated for a moment.
"...deliberate temptation."
She silently repented in her heart.
Saint?
The saint was no longer pure.
Was the Master's hobby to make saints do indecent things?!
After getting up and washing up—
In the Eternal Snowfall's bathroom, there were now twelve full sets of toiletries.
It was a rather majestic sight.
Chen Hai was lazily soaking in the bathtub.
When she saw Setsuna enter, she didn't bother to avoid him.
She calmly rinsed off the soap, then dried off, dressing piece by piece in her usual outfit:
A white qipao with sheer sides and back paired with black thigh-high stockings.
Just one glance stirred the imagination.
Setsuna couldn't help but note that since her retrofit, Chen Hai's outfits had been racing toward the edge of censorship.
But that was exactly what made them his exclusive reward.
"Commander, still not done looking?"
Chen Hai stood before the mirror, brushing her long black hair, a faint smirk playing in her crimson eyes.
"Mm... you're beautiful. I can't get enough."
Setsuna helped pin her hairpiece in place and kissed her on the cheek.
"You really know how to sweet-talk girls..."
"No wonder so many sisters compete for your attention..."
Chen Hai pouted lightly.
"Aren't you one of them? How have these past few days been?"
Setsuna wrapped his arms around her from behind and poked her cheek.
"...Pretty good."
"But you look even more pleased than I do."
Chen Hai thought for a moment.
The Commander's stamina was frightening.
So this is the arsenal ship empowered by dual Wisdom Cubes?
One man could completely overwhelm all of them.
They often needed Kurumi to use Fourth Bullet to recover.
If he ever gained a third or fourth Wisdom Cube in the future...
Well, Chen Hai sincerely hoped more sisters would come help.
...
After dismissing the starship, Setsuna and the shipgirls went to the administrative center to manage city affairs, plan future development, and outline the next expedition.
Jeanne Alter and Jeanne d'Arc returned temporarily to the Chaldea Heroic Spirit residence.
"Whoa?!"
The moment they arrived, the other Heroic Spirits were stunned.
After just one night, the two seemed transformed, overflowing with mana like never before.
"Anyone want to spar?!"
Jeanne Alter cracked her knuckles, brimming with power.
Jeanne d'Arc nodded as well.
"I'd like to, too."
"Whoa whoa whoa, that mana level is cheating! Fight each other if you want!"
Stheno gave them a side glance.
"Fine by me."
The two exchanged a glance and agreed instantly.
They were just as curious to see who had gained more from these days of mana replenishment.
Ten minutes later—
Outside the city, in the training grounds, the two stood facing each other across dozens of meters.
A crowd of Heroic Spirits and Gudako gathered to spectate.
"Then I won't hold back."
Jeanne Alter drew her dragon standard and locked eyes with Jeanne d'Arc.
Though they'd just shared heartfelt moments aboard the Eternal Snowfall, they were now ready to settle things seriously on the battlefield.
After all, neither of them was willing to lose.
"Come on."
Jeanne d'Arc gestured politely, then drew her weapon and assumed a combat stance.
[Roar, O'Rage of Mine!]
Jeanne Alter spun her dragon standard with full force and unleashed her Noble Phantasm.
Boom—
A fire dragon formed of blazing flames roared across the sky, lighting up half the heavens as it surged toward Jeanne d'Arc.
Its power far exceeded what she had used even in her battle with Esdeath.
Nero, Artoria, and the others were stunned by the sheer force of it—they could feel the searing heat in the air even from afar.
This was an all-out boost to her Noble Phantasm, backed by a ridiculous amount of mana.
Jeanne d'Arc remained calm.
She planted her Fleur-de-Lis flag into the ground, and a white shield instantly enveloped an area of several hundred meters.
[Luminosité Eternelle!]
Rumble—
The fire dragon slammed into the shield, flames splashing in all directions, the shockwaves igniting the ground around them.
From the looks of it, Jeanne Alter's Noble Phantasm had long surpassed the rating of an anti-army weapon.
Jeanne d'Arc was even more absurd—her barrier-type Noble Phantasm, which was originally meant to protect a handful of allies, now rivaled the size of a small-scale Klein Field.
And its defensive power hadn't diminished at all. It held firm, unmoving even after taking the full blast.
"Tch, looks like the Master's been giving you some extra sessions, huh?"
Jeanne Alter clicked her tongue.
"The Master has been patiently guiding me. It's only natural that I'm stronger than you now."
Jeanne d'Arc answered seriously.
"Stronger than me? What a joke?!"
The two swiftly clashed again, weapons drawn, engaging in fierce close combat.
Clang—Boom—
Every clash of blades caused magical shockwaves to ripple outward.
Their speed and strength were so immense that even Artoria had to admit defeat inwardly.
As a Saber, she prided herself on physical prowess reinforced with mana, but even she doubted she could outmatch the current Jeanne duo.
Gudako stared blankly at the two powerhouses who had exploded in strength after just one night.
"Did the Commander give you some kind of divine supplement?!"
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