Back home, the night passed uneventfully.
Eriri still wouldn't see him.
He went to check on Kie and the others.
They had spent the entire day thoroughly cleaning and reorganizing the house, decorating it so it felt nice and homey—truly like a real home.
Seeing that they'd worked so hard, Tatsuki didn't have the heart to ask for anything else that might tire them out more.
After greeting them and sharing a few simple hugs and kisses, he left and returned to his own place.
He took a refreshing shower, then lay down on his bed.
The first thing he did was call for Kanae.
"Kanae, aren't you coming out?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Kanae quietly materialized in his arms out of thin air, resting her slight weight against him.
He hugged her soft, delicate body, taking in the faint floral fragrance from her hair.
Love filled Kanae's eyes, her gaze tender yet laced with passion. She lay on Tatsuki's chest, quietly savoring his warmth, unwilling to part even for a moment.
Though still somewhat worn-out, her first thought was to check on Tatsuki's needs.
"Tatsuki, do you need anything? I can do…"
She assumed Tatsuki wanted to do what he loved doing.
No longer embarrassed by such things—having gone that final step with him—Kanae saw Tatsuki as her lifelong partner.
Her entire being was now bound to him.
No matter what Tatsuki wanted, she would do her best to fulfill it, no matter how excessive the request.
She was a very traditional woman who would accept anything Tatsuki did.
"No, I just want to hold you, Kanae… just like this. That's enough."
Such a wonderful woman—of course he cherished and treasured her.
How could he just ignore her fatigue and have his way with her?
He wasn't some man whose head was ruled only by lust.
Even when facing someone as irresistibly tempting as Marin Kitagawa, he'd still think about the other person's feelings and hold back.
Touched by Tatsuki's care and concern, Kanae's soft eyes sparkled with affection.
Slowly, they leaned in, their breaths mingling, and their burning lips met.
Nothing further happened that night.
They simply fell asleep in each other's arms.
…
The next morning.
Tatsuki was roused by the noise of frantic group-chat notifications.
March 7: "Tatsuki, come out here, quick!"
Tatsuki: "What's going on?"
Ainz Ooal Gown: "A big shot has arrived!"
March 7: "Check Apocalypse Journey —Esdeath's world has an Apocalypse Journey event!"
Exusiai: "Tatsuki, you got chosen again. I guess you really do have some admin privileges."
Tatsuki, still groggy, snapped awake in an instant.
An Apocalypse Journey event!
He quickly opened the prompt.
His sudden movement woke Kanae in his arms, but she stayed quiet upon seeing his urgent expression, knowing better than to disturb him.
[Apocalypse Journey]: Five-person team
[Duration]: 3 days
[Participants]: Esdeath, Tatsuki, Tushan Honghong, Nami, March 7
[Mission]: Eliminate the Plunderer.
"Plunderer?"
He guessed it must be the new minister Esdeath had mentioned—the one who replaced that pig of a prime minister.
Tatsuki: "I see it. Let's get to it."
March 7: "OK! I can't wait!"
Nami: "I'm ready."
Tushan Honghong: "I'll do my best!"
Tatsuki confirmed his participation as well.
A wormhole appeared.
"Our destination is another world?"
Time in his own world froze.
Kanae, however, was unaffected, as she and Tatsuki were considered one existence.
"That's right. Let's go."
Together, they stepped into the wormhole.
…
When Tatsuki and Kanae emerged, the others had already arrived.
It seemed they were inside the Imperial Palace—some part of it, judging by the construction and lavish decorations.
But the surroundings looked a bit damaged, as if a fierce battle had recently taken place.
March 7 and Tushan Honghong looked curiously at Kanae.
"This is Shinobu's older sister, right? Hello, I'm March 7!"
"I'm Tushan Honghong."
Kanae gave a warm smile. "Hello."
Nami, meanwhile, walked over to Tatsuki.
She eyed Kanae, then gently kicked Tatsuki's calf, pouting just a little.
It was obvious she saw the relationship between Tatsuki and Kanae. She felt a twinge—just a tiny pang—of jealousy.
"Let me introduce you properly. This is Nami," Tatsuki said, patting Nami's hair affectionately.
Esdeath wasted no time on pleasantries, cutting straight to the point.
"I've already seen that new minister," she said.
"So you've fought him?" Tatsuki looked at her.
Esdeath's expression held a trace of gravity and frustration.
"Yes. He's got a bizarre… no, I'd call it an uncanny ability."
"How so?"
"He can release some kind of black substance all over his body. When someone attacks him, a wave of negative emotions floods your mind, driving you insane and out of control. He used that to get away."
March 7 guessed. "So, an emotion-based attack?"
"Maybe some kind of energy that assaults the mind?" Tatsuki ventured.
He shook his head, then raised his voice.
"Well, leaving that aside, since we have visitors here, why don't you all come out and say hello?"
"Who's there?" March 7 lifted her icy bow, scanning the area warily.
"Show yourselves!" Nami shouted, eyes sharp.
Crackle!
She flicked her hand, sending arcs of blue lightning striking out in all directions.
Where the lightning landed, figures jumped out from the shadows and behind pillars—eight of them in total—surrounding Tatsuki and the others.
"Sharp senses," someone remarked.
Tatsuki looked them over with interest.
He recognized a woman in black, short white hair, an eyepatch over her right eye, and a green mechanical arm—Najenda.
Then there was the black-haired, red-eyed Akame wielding the Teigu Murasame;
Mine, the twin-tailed pink-haired girl hefting her giant Roman Artillery rifle;
Sheele, the purple-haired, bespectacled woman whose Teigu could cut all in two;
Chelsea, who wore headphones and had orangish-pink hair; Leone, the blonde cat-eared fighter with Beast King transformation; Bulat—the mohawk, whose Teigu was Incursio, Evil-Fiend Armor; Lubbock, the green-haired young man wielding Cross Tail, a string-based shape-shifting Teigu.
Aside from Susanoo and Tatsumi, it looked like practically all of Night Raid was present.
Tatsumi wasn't there, Sheele was still alive, Chelsea had joined earlier, Susanoo wasn't around… everything felt a bit off.
Esdeath noticed Tatsuki looking them over.
Her aura of frigid menace instantly retracted, a hint of dissatisfaction on her face.
"You're interested in these Night Raid members?"
"Huh?"
Najenda was taken aback.
She'd once been Esdeath's comrade but had become her enemy. She knew Esdeath's personality all too well—arrogant and proud.
And yet, Esdeath had just deferred to that man's reaction, almost as if showing weakness?
That seemed impossible.
Esdeath? Bowing her head?
Tatsuki simply said, "I am, in a way—but not interested in the men."
He glanced at Bulat and Lubbock.
"!"
The instant his gaze fell on them, they felt a chilling sense of being stared down by something unimaginably terrifying.
Their muscles shook uncontrollably.
Bulat's muscular body trembled, sweat pouring off him. He clenched his teeth as if enduring some enormous pressure.
"Gulp!"
Lubbock fared even worse, swallowing repeatedly. It was as though a towering, insurmountable mountain pressed down on him, forcing him to his knees in fear.
"Lubbock!"
"Bulat!"
What was going on?
The members of Night Raid gripped their weapons tighter, all on guard.
What had that man done to cause such agony without making a sound or gesture?
Tatsuki drew his gaze away.
Bulat collapsed backward as though a huge weight had been lifted, breathing heavily to relieve the burning pain.
Najenda also noticed something else.
It wasn't just Esdeath—several others around her clearly looked to Tatsuki as their leader.
Who were these people? The woman tossing lightning around at will, the short-haired girl wielding an ice bow, the animal-eared girl who looked similar to Leone in her beastly traits…
None of these powers resembled any known Teigu. She'd never even heard of such abilities in the Imperial Capital.
And this man…
"Who are you?"
"You can call me Tatsuki. But first, why not introduce yourselves?"
He was curious about why Night Raid had gathered in the palace.
After a quick mental calculation, Najenda spoke calmly.
"Where people live, darkness thrives."
"Where darkness thrives, evil arises."
"For those with nowhere to turn, we exist to eliminate the crimes that go unpunished by the heavens, eradicating them in the shadows."
"All of us are professional assassins."
"Night Raid!"
"Wow, an assassin group! That's so cool!" March 7's eyes sparkled.
"And that entrance speech is awesome!"
March 7, pure at heart, truly thought it was cool.
Click!
She even lifted a small camera to snap a photo.
"…"
For some reason, Sheele and Chelsea both felt vaguely embarrassed to hear their usual lines praised so straightforwardly.
"…."
Even Najenda looked a bit awkward. Under March 7's bright, admiring gaze, she forced herself to continue.
"We came here to assassinate the minister."
"Because of him, the entire Empire… no, the entire world… has plunged into chaos. Everywhere, people have gone berserk with looting and murder."
"That really happening?" Tatsuki glanced at Esdeath.
She gave a curt nod, her tone icy.
"On my way back to the Capital, I found hordes of people acting like wild beasts—killing and stealing indiscriminately. Even animals and Danger Beasts have become mindlessly violent."
"Looking back, it seems they were all influenced by that energy released by the minister."
Tatsuki lapsed into momentary thought.
"So that's the core factor of this apocalypse. This 'Plunderer' is quite capable."
Indeed, if he spread that substance across the entire world, it would be a nightmare. Moreover, Tatsuki could sense that the energy itself could drain vitality and expand further.
If left unchecked, once it blanketed the planet, it would start absorbing the planet's energy as it grew.
Eventually, the planet would be drained dry and collapse into oblivion.
"A guy who creates so much chaos—how do we find him?"
Nami hated thieves and pillagers most of all. Hearing about the chaos he'd caused put her on edge.
"Finding him shouldn't be too hard, but I'd rather make him come to us," Tatsuki replied.
He clenched his right hand, focusing his senses. He could feel and interpret the spots all over the planet where an energy called Evil Energy had taken hold—an energy that enticed the darkness in one's heart.
Everyone who had gone insane carried that energy in their bodies.
Acting on his thoughts, he manipulated the Evil Energy in every location on the planet.
All that foul power began pulling away from humans and beasts alike, drifting into the sky. It converged toward Tatsuki's location.
…
Meanwhile, in a certain mountain range…
A man cloaked in black, exuding an aura of shadows, let out a manic cackle.
All around him lay the shredded corpses of various strange creatures.
"Kehehe… I didn't expect this world would have someone who could freeze space," he muttered.
"She looked to be only level 4, yet could freeze space. Good thing I'm more skilled."
This was the Plunderer Minister, the very one who had fought Esdeath.
"But it's already too late! Hahaha! This entire world is being corroded by my Evil Energy—nothing but a breeding ground now."
He ran a dark green tongue over black lips, excitement lighting his features.
"I never thought I'd find sin so rampant here."
"Such a dark kingdom—perfect for cultivating Evil Energy. If I absorb all the Evil Energy I've cultivated, maybe I can break through to level 6?"
He couldn't wait for that day to come.
He spoke of this world as though it were merely a casual testing ground, with humans and other life forms nothing more than experimental subjects at his disposal.
In his mind, everything was under control.
If nothing unexpected happened, this plundering trip would come to a rather dull end.
All he had to do was find a quiet place and wait.
When Evil Energy fully engulfed the world, all life would massacre each other, after which the Evil Energy would feed on the planet's essence.
(Regarding "world," it doesn't necessarily mean an entire universe. It depends on the viewpoint. For instance, in Honkai: Star Rail, from the viewpoint of a Stellaron Hunter, "the end of the world" might refer to the entire cosmos, while from the viewpoint of people on Jarilo-VI, "the end of the world" means the destruction of Jarilo-VI.)