章 263: Returning to Arifureta World
When Eriri entered the Einzbern Castle, all the homunculi she encountered bowed respectfully to her.
To these silver-haired, red-eyed maids, Eriri was their true master, her priority surpassing even that of Illya and Irisviel.
Before long, Eriri came across Illya wandering around the grand castle, with Irisviel following closely behind her.
Unlike the emotionally detached homunculus maids, Illya was full of life, and while Irisviel was gentle, she also had a playful streak.
"Illya!" Waving off the maids, Eriri called out to the little girl not far away.
Hearing the familiar voice, both Illya and Irisviel turned their gazes toward its source.
The moment they saw Eriri, dressed in her Yumenosaki Academy uniform, standing less than ten meters away, they lit up with excitement.
"Eriri-nee!" Without hesitation, Illya let out an excited shout and dashed toward her, throwing herself into her arms.
"Eriri-nee, I missed you so much! Why haven't you come to see me in so long?" Illya pouted as she looked up at Eriri, her puffed cheeks making her look particularly adorable.
"My bad, my bad, it's all my fault. So, what should I do for you to forgive me, Illya?" Eriri lifted Illya into her arms and kissed her soft, smooth cheek.
The intimate gesture immediately replaced Illya's pout with a radiant smile.
"Hmm... You need to play with me for a few days and promise to visit me often!" Illya tilted her head as she made her demands in a sweet voice.
"Of course! And this time, I can take Illya to other worlds to play."
Eriri had never hidden the truth about her origins from Illya and Irisviel.
"Really?"
"Of course!"
"Yay, we have a deal then!"
Eriri had planned to take Illya and Irisviel back to the Saekano world anyway. After all, staying in the Einzbern Castle served no real purpose for them.
With ten months left until the Fourth Holy Grail War, there was no need for them to make any further preparations. The relic required for summoning a Servant—Excalibur's scabbard—was already in their possession. They merely needed to wait for the war to begin.
Although Eriri could use the relic now to summon the King of Knights, she chose not to.
By the way, since Kiritsugu Emiya no longer had any connection with the Einzbern family, Irisviel would be the Master participating in the Holy Grail War.
Irisviel joined them shortly after, and the Command Seals on her right hand could be clearly seen, shaped like a crimson inverted cross.
"Eriri, long time no see," Irisviel greeted warmly, her face brimming with joy.
Though she was less than 160 centimeters tall, Irisviel had a voluptuous figure that belied her youthful appearance.
"Long time no see, Iris. Have you missed me?" Eriri said with a smile.
She gently placed Illya, who reluctantly let go, on the ground before opening her arms to Irisviel.
"Of course, I have." Like a homing bird returning to its nest, Irisviel stepped forward and hugged Eriri tightly.
To Irisviel, both Illya and Eriri were the most important people in her life, and she harbored a deep sense of reliance on Eriri.
"Mommy, that's not fair!" Illya puffed her cheeks again, unhappy with the sight of the two embracing.
Hearing her complaint, Eriri and Irisviel let go of each other. They each took one of Illya's small hands and continued their stroll around the castle.
After spending a few more hours at Einzbern Castle, Eriri brought Illya and Irisviel back to the Saekano world.
In a moderately comfortable apartment, Yuzuru Hanyu lounged leisurely on a soft couch, watching an anime on TV.
On the coffee table in front of her lay a sleek, futuristic white pair of transparent glasses—the device she used to log into Sword Art Online.
Over a month had passed since the release of A Certain Magical Index. As the Saekano world was in the midst of a rising trend of superpowers, the novel, centered on magic and psychic abilities, had become extremely popular.
The book's success had brought Yuzuru immense wealth, lifting her out of financial difficulties. She had used the royalties to rent a much nicer apartment, where she now resided.
Originally, Yuzuru had planned to enroll in school after receiving her first paycheck. However, the advent of Sword Art Online had completely captivated her, leaving her with little interest in attending classes.
That said, her gaming lifestyle was about to end. Yuzuru had decided to report to school next Monday. After all, the person she liked was at school, and staying home would only hinder her goals.
Missing two months of classes didn't bother Yuzuru in the slightest.
In her past life, she had been a high-achieving senior preparing for university entrance exams, and her academic skills were top-notch. She had no concerns about catching up with the curriculum.
Recalling the last time she saw Eriri—how dazzlingly heroic Eriri had been when rescuing her from a group of delinquents—a faint blush spread across Yuzuru's delicate face.
Although she knew many girls were close to Eriri, including Megumi Kato and Utaha Kasumigaoka, she was determined not to give up so easily.
For Yuzuru, this was also good news. At least she knew Eriri liked girls, eliminating any gender-related obstacles between them.
If not for Eriri, Yuzuru might never have considered going back to school. The Plagiarism System in her mind was enough to guarantee a life of financial stability.
Moreover, about half a month ago, she had finally awakened her psychic ability, which was remarkably similar to Railgun Misaka Mikoto's electricity manipulation.
Currently at Level 2, her power was modest—barely capable of generating a small amount of electricity, with about the same impact as a taser.
However, Yuzuru was confident that as she advanced toward Level 10, her capabilities would far surpass Misaka's.
According to the superpower level classification and performance criteria established by the Sawamura Group, a Level 10 offensive esper could destroy an entire nation with a single full-power attack.
With powerful superpowers and the wealth generated from her literary works, Yuzuru was undeniably living the dream.
Strictly speaking, skipping school for over two months without paying tuition fees should have resulted in her expulsion, especially in a high-standard school like Yumenosaki Academy.
However, her circumstances were unique, and the school showed leniency.
While she wasn't outright expelled, to officially enroll, she would need to undergo a test of similar difficulty to the one she took during admissions. As long as she passed, she could begin attending classes.
The test was meant to confirm whether Yuzuru had engaged in any self-study during the two months she was absent. If she had forgotten most of her junior high education and spent the time solely playing around, Yumenosaki Academy would not accept her.
Two days had passed since Illya and Irisviel had moved into Eriri's home. During this time, Eriri had taken the two of them out for sightseeing.
For Illya and Irisviel, who had never seen the outside world before, these two days were filled with excitement and joy.
Although Illya was two years older than Sakura and one year older than Reina, the three of them looked similar in age. Hence, Eriri decided to have Sayuri arrange for Illya to attend the same class as Reina and Sakura.
As for Irisviel, she stayed at home. Though she was only a year older than Illya, her body was created with the appearance of an adult. Her knowledge and memories had been artificially implanted.
While Eriri had modified these implanted memories and removed unnecessary ones, Irisviel's mental maturity was undoubtedly that of an adult.
Perhaps it was because she had recently reunited with Rin, Illya, and Irisviel, but Eriri suddenly found herself missing Myu, the adorable Dagon girl from the Arifureta world.
Recalling her promise to visit Myu after some time, Eriri decided to return to the world of Arifureta. It was perfect timing since she had nothing pressing to do over the weekend.
Moreover, Eriri remembered her long-standing promise to take Megumi Kato on a trip to another world. It seemed like the right time to fulfill that promise, and they could use the opportunity for Shea to visit her father and her people.
Thus, after breakfast on Saturday morning, Eriri took Arifureta, Shea, and Megumi Kato to the world of Arifureta.
As for Reina, ever since her parents passed away, she had been on the periphery of the fox tribe. She felt no sense of belonging to them and considered Eriri and the family at home her true family.
Thus, Reina had no desire to return to the world of Arifureta to visit the fox tribe.
When Eriri and her companions emerged from the dimensional portal, they found themselves directly in Verbergen, the capital of the Beastkin.
More than two months had passed, but the city hadn't changed much. The central square, however, was gone, replaced by a colossal statue over dozens of meters tall. The statue depicted none other than Eriri herself.
"I remember you saying the people here worship you as a goddess. So this is your statue? Amazing," Megumi couldn't help but marvel at the towering sculpture that seemed to pierce the sky.
Arifureta, too, was taken aback by the grandeur of the statue. Building such an enormous monument required a monumental effort, a testament to the beastkin's devotion to Eriri.
Still, she couldn't help but tease, "It's beautifully carved, but it doesn't fully capture Eriri's charm. But then again, no one in this world could possibly depict Eriri's beauty accurately."
"I agree." Eriri nodded confidently without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
Shifting her gaze from the statue, Megumi admired the scenery of Verbergen. "So this is the world where Arifureta and Shea grew up? It really has a fantastical vibe."
Having grown used to modern skyscrapers and bustling streets, the sight of a magical city built among massive trees was a refreshing and soothing change for Megumi.
"Well..." Arifureta almost revealed her transmigrator identity but decided against it.
Her soul had fully merged with the original body, blurring the line between the two. Saying she grew up in this world wasn't entirely wrong, even though her memories of events three hundred years ago were hazy at best.
"Hehe, isn't it pretty? Megumi, let me take you to meet my people!" Shea said excitedly, unable to hide her enthusiasm.
She had already sensed the presence of her father and other kin, making her all the more eager to reunite with them after two months apart.
"Sure, I'd love to meet them." Megumi smiled, not refusing Shea's offer. The past two months had brought her and Shea closer, and their friendship had deepened.
Although she felt a little guilty for thinking so, Megumi was curious whether Shea's people were as delightfully eccentric as she was.
It wasn't long before Eriri and her group were spotted by the residents of Verbergen.
Upon seeing Eriri, the beastkin immediately dropped to their knees, their faces filled with excitement as they completely forgot her previous command to forgo bowing.
"Welcome, Goddess!" The beastkin prostrated themselves in reverence.
Thanks to Eriri, the Kashiwagi Eiri Sect had spread worldwide. The beastkin were no longer slaves but revered as "messengers of the divine."
Every beastkin in the world held an unshakable faith in Eriri, far surpassing their reverence for humans.
"Stand up. Didn't I tell you—" Just as Eriri was about to repeat her earlier directive, a voice suddenly echoed in her mind.
"Onee-sama, I've detected a new system in this world. It's at the High-Level Intermediate System. Should I issue a group mission?"
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