Time gradually passed, and the battlefield's enemies were slowly but surely eliminated one by one.
However, instead of helping Erica, Chika Fujiwara, and the others who were still engaged in their respective battles, the group members who had already finished their fights began to gather around Eriri. They watched the ongoing matches with interest.
After all, they had the defensive buff from Eriri, which meant they could fight recklessly without any risk of injury. Their opponents, on the other hand, were steadily wearing down, with their stamina and strength being depleted over time. Injuries continued to accumulate, leading to their eventual defeat, which was only a matter of time.
Over an hour passed before even the formidable Marquis Voban was worn down and defeated by Erica. The opponent who had relentlessly beaten up Fallen Angel Black Cat (Ruri Gokou) also met the same fate.
For Chika Fujiwara and the others, who had never killed anyone before, their faces displayed visible discomfort. Despite having witnessed many death scenes in the chat group's memory videos and past live streams, actually taking a life for the first time was an entirely different experience. Even though their enemies were all vile criminals, it still left them unsettled. The fact that none of them had thrown up on the spot was already an impressive show of self-control.
This was an experience they had to go through. Showing mercy to enemies could be deadly, but with this first experience under their belts, they would surely grow stronger.
At that moment, a string of notifications sounded from the chat group, and the rewards from the mission began to be distributed.
[Ding! Task completed.]
[Kashiwagi Eri received 100,000 points. Killed a Fifth Level member and gained an additional 1 million points.]
[Archangel Gabriel received 75,000 points. Killed three Third Level members and three Second Level members, gaining an additional 72,000 points.]
[Asuna received 75,000 points. Killed one Second Level member and gained an additional 4,000 points.]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat received 75,000 points. Killed one Second Level member and gained an additional 4,000 points.]
[And so on for the other members, with bonus points for kills.]
Eriri had also received a special 100,000 points reward for setting up the barrier that prevented the villain chat group from escaping and providing crucial defense buffs to the other members. The remaining 900,000 points were evenly distributed among the twelve members of the group.
Everyone was satisfied with the arrangement, and excitement filled the air, especially among the Second Level members like Chika Fujiwara. The joy of receiving their hard-earned points helped ease the discomfort of their earlier battle experiences.
Although they gathered around Eriri, no one spoke directly, choosing instead to flood the chat group with messages.
[Chika Fujiwara: With nearly 80,000 points, I'm definitely breaking into Third Level! Proud.jpg]
[Asuna: Same here!]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: Heh, no more Second Level rookie for me! Please refer to me as a national-level powerhouse from now on! Smug.jpg]
[Arche Eeb Rile Furt: I think once we've used these points, there won't be any more Second Level members left in the group!]
[Chika Fujiwara: Of course! Hehe.]
[Iron-Blooded Hot-Blooded Cold-Blooded Vampire: The opponents were too weak. I killed them with just a few hits. So boring.]
[Kashiwagi Eri: Hey, since everyone's here, why are you chatting through the group instead of talking directly?]
[Chika Fujiwara: It's more fun to chat in the group!]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: Exactly. The chat group's purpose is to chat! Verified.jpg]
[Chika Fujiwara: Exactly. Power-ups are just a side benefit! Verified.jpg]
[Kashiwagi Eri: Fine, whatever makes you happy.]
[Kashiwagi Eri: Friendly reminder—don't forget you can exchange the weapons and equipment dropped by the enemies for points through the chat group!]
As soon as Eriri mentioned this, everyone who hadn't exchanged their defeated enemies' gear immediately rushed back to the battlefield. Gabriel, for instance, had gone on a rampage earlier and had paid no attention to the equipment her enemies had dropped.
Since most members had never used this feature to exchange items for points, they almost forgot about it.
[Ashen Witch: I already exchanged mine. Though, a single weapon only netted me 1,000 points...]
[Flower Hashira: That's still decent. It's extra points we wouldn't have otherwise gotten. My opponent didn't even have a weapon...]
[Lala: The villain leader had a pretty powerful sword, but he put it into the chat group's storage, so it didn't drop when he died. But I did manage to recover a system from him worth quite a bit. Exchange screenshot.jpg]
[Chika Fujiwara: What?! 10 million points?? Jealousy has made me ugly.]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: Suddenly, my 79,000 points don't seem so great...]
[Arche Eeb Rile Furt: What is this madness? It's way too strong!]
[Lala: Hehe, I talked it over with Eriri, and I'll be sharing half of the 10 million points with everyone.]
[Chika Fujiwara: You don't need to, Lala. That's your hard-earned loot, and I'm sure you need a lot of points to level up, especially at your level.]
[Asuna: I agree with Chika. Lala, you should keep those points for yourself to strengthen up.]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: Same here!]
Although they were jokingly jealous of Lala's windfall, none of them truly begrudged her. In fact, they were genuinely happy for her.
[Lala: It's fine, we're all sisters here. Sharing the good stuff makes it even better. Besides, I don't really need that many points.]
[Kashiwagi Eri: Now that's what I call a boss move!]
[Chika Fujiwara: That's what I call a boss move!]
[Arche Eeb Rile Furt: That's what I call a boss move!]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: That's what I call a boss move!]
[Flower Hashira: That's what I call a boss move!]
[Lala: Hehe, I'm about to send out the Red Envelopes. Everyone gets a share, so let's see who's the luckiest!]
[Ding! Lala has sent a Lucky Red Envelope.]
[Ding! The Red Envelope has been claimed.]
Within seconds, the Red Envelopes were snapped up by the group. Unlike Eriri's previous Red Envelope, where the amounts varied widely, this time everyone received around 400,000 points each.
Meanwhile, Eriri had decided to send the 5 million points she had earned from the "Boosted Gear" to Gabriel, leaving it up to her to decide whether or not to share it.
[Ding! Kashiwagi Eri has sent a Red Envelope to Gabriel.]
[Message: This is the points from the equipment dropped by the fallen angel you defeated. You can decide how to handle it.]
Gabriel was overjoyed when she received the 5 million points. Earlier, after exchanging the weapons she collected, she had only gained a measly 10,000 points. The 420,000 points from Lala's Red Envelope had also made her quite happy.
But the 5 million points from Eriri? That made her feel like she had just hit the jackpot.
Without hesitation, Gabriel showed off her wealth in the chat group and then generously sent out 2 million points' worth of Red Envelopes for everyone to share.
[Chika Fujiwara: Thanks, Lala and Gabriel, for the Red Envelopes! I won't have to worry about points for a long time now.]
Though points could be used to power up, it wasn't an instantaneous process. Unlike Eriri, who used her cosmic energy to instantly elevate Arifureta and the others, converting points into strength took time.
The higher the level, the longer it took to use up the points. For example, Chika Fujiwara had spent over a few hours using just over 10,000 points to break through to Second Level, Fifth Stage Now, with over 600,000 points, it would take her weeks to fully convert them into power.
What disappointed her, though, was that the chat group's store didn't sell items that could directly boost the power of others. Otherwise, she would have loved to help her best friend, Kaguya Shinomiya, become a superhuman as well.
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: Why do I feel like a nouveau riche right now? Confused.jpg]
[Kashiwagi Eri: No need to feel confused, Fallen Angel Black Cat. You are a nouveau riche! Verified.jpg]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: …]
[Arche Eeb Rile Furt: Thanks again for the Red Envelopes, Lala and Gabriel. With these points, I can dominate my world. No more worries!]
Albeit cautious in her world, Arche was always worried about encountering the Guardians of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Now, with these points, she could easily break through to Fourth Level and beyond. If done right, she could even upstage her world's main villain, Ainz Ooal Gown, during one of his dramatic displays.
She couldn't help but smile at the thought of humbling such a powerful figure.
[Kashiwagi Eri: These are just small points. Once we recover the 'Villains Chat Group,' the points we'll gain will be astronomical!]
[Ashen Witch: If a single Mid-Level system is worth 10 million points, a chat group must be worth at least a billion! Starry-eyed.jpg]
[Kashiwagi Eri: That's right! The 'Villains Chat Group' is an High-Level Elementary chat group chat group. At the very least, it should net us over a billion points!]
[Fallen Angel Black Cat: A billion… Drooling.jpg]