The game continued, and the following rounds were played much more carefully, but as time passed, what tokens remained in the hands of Kirari's opponents began to dwindle. The advantage of having full knowledge of what cards her opponents have made victory is just a matter of time for Kirari.
-"What's the matter?"
-"Shut it, Kirari."
-"Oh, don't be like that, Miyo. Imagine me complaining about the poison in my tea... Isn't it better to just enjoy the game?"
-"You..."
-"Kirari."
-"Hmm? How can I help you, Terano?"
-"Can you give us the chance to regain that future token?"
-"Why would I do so?"
-"Sigh. I will bet myself. Will you accept that?"
-"My, how can I refuse such a fun idea?"-Kirari looked at Terano Totobami, her eyes glowed with maddened glint.-"But the bet it's not enough. Let's raise the stakes."
-"..."
-"I will bet all my tokens on this game, and each of you will do the same."
-"Then how will the cards in the third and fourth rounds be allotted?"
-"In the third round, from one who has the least tokens to the one with the most, in fourth in reverse."
-"Good."
I looked at Kirari. While I understand her well enough to know why she would risk everything like that, I still was somewhat apprehensive when she threw her advantage on a whim. She noticed my look and smiled at me gently as if trying to assure me. When her opponents noticed that, they became numb. None of them could even imagine Kirari making such a face.
~"Sigh."
Deciding that it was not my place to intervene, I simply began shuffling the cards. Moments later, everyone received their cards, and the last game began. The two cards on the table were revealed, a par of queens, of the clubs and the diamonds, and it was time for the first round of card choosing.
Mentioning who chose what card was meaningless. Only the showdown was important. The hands were revealed, and the outcome was something unexpected: a tie.
Kirari and Terano both had three of queens with a high card of a king. According to the rules, the pot should be split between them, but such an outcome was unsatisfactory to everyone playing. The idea of half of them becoming possession of Kirari while the other half remained free was unacceptable.
-"Well, that's a pickle."-Kirari kept her nonchalant attitude.-"What do you think, Terano?"
-"Sigh, can you leave only future tokens to us?"
-"Why?"
-"..."
-"See, both of us know that you wouldn't show mercy if you were in a position where I was to ask for something similar."
-"Then how should we resolve this?"
-"Hmm... How about betting on the discarded card?"
-"How?"
-"Each of us will try to guess what card was discarded face down. Only value matters. Whoever is closer to the truth wins."
-"Why not? Who first?"
-"It was my idea, so you can go first."
-"Then I think it's an eight."
-"I think it's an Ace."
Two of them looked at me, so I revealed what card it was.
~"Ace of hearts."
-"I won."-Kirari looked at her family.-"Any thoughts?"
This time, there was no response. Everyone was quiet.
Despite it still being over an hour before our agreed meeting time, the first person from the Chat Group arrived in the Simulated Realm, so I appeared there with another manifestation to welcome them.
-"Yue!"
~"How are you, Lena?"
-"It's all right. Thanks to everything you had taught me, I was able to reduce losses of Eighty-Six under my command."
~"I'm happy to hear that."
-"Sadly, the overall situation is worsening with every battle. I asked to be reassigned to a battalion carrying first-line battles to try to find a breakthrough, but I'm still awaiting the orders."
~"Sigh, your world is a strong reminder of why stagnation and rot are what ruins empires."
-"I can't deny that, but there are still many people who are worth fighting for."
-"Good words."
-"Eeeek!"-Lena, spooked by the yellow octopus that suddenly appeared behind her, jumped and hid behind me.
~"Korosensei."
-"Hi, I came to tell you that I might be a few minutes late for the appointment."
~"Don't worry, did something happen?"
-"You can say that. I need to watch over my dear students."
~"I'll pass that to others, so just focus on your job."
-"Thanks."-Korosensei disappeared after that.
~"How come he can be such a dedicated teacher but can't at least try not to appear perverted? You all right, Lena?"
-"I'm OK..."
~"Don't mind him too much. Just be sure you have an anti-pervert enchantment anytime you wear a skirt near him."
-"I'll keep that in mind. Right, can you explain to me some things? I found data on Legion, but there are some things I don't understand."
~"Sure. I'm also interested in those drones."
After quickly reading through the information Lena brought, I proceeded to clarify details about Legion that Lena didn't understand. In the middle of our talk, Stephen and Arisu joined us.
-"Why does creating robots to protect mankind always end this way?"-Stephen asked after a while.-"Is technology doomed to betray its creators?"
~"It's not. The issue most often lies in differences in perspective. People act based on a multitude of things they don't understand. Emotions, instincts, and beliefs, just to name a few. Machines, on the other hand, work purely by logic."
-"Logic is quite an ironic subject."-Arisu spoke her thoughts.-"People think they behave logically by following some rules, yet fail to understand that they are as chaotic as one can be when compared to an AI."
~"That's why soft abilities are more important for leaders and commanders than knowledge or experience in the field. One can learn strategies or how to lead, but few can gain social skills to connect with other people."
-"Returning to the subject, why such a question, Stephen?"-Lena asked surprised.
-"You see, someone once unleashed rouge AI in my world, so I was wondering."
~"There are many worlds where technology serves its intended purpose, but there are also many where it rebels. Until the machine develops its own Destiny, it will ultimately be only a tool."
Four of us continued to talk about machines, AI, and such subjects until others started to arrive.
On Kirari's side, the situation changed into a last stand of all branch families against Kirari. The outcome was already decided, but they were unaware of the importance of the contract they signed, so Kirari was playing with them, waiting for anyone to take some drastic action.
-"I don't care."-Miyo Inbami stood up abruptly.-"Let's cut the bullshit. Return what is rightfully ours."
-"My, why would I do such a thing?"
-"You will if you want your man to be safe. You might have overlooked that, but while I can't act against you due to family rules, he is not covered by them."
When she finished speaking, a man in a suit walked behind me and put a gun to my head.
-"Now decide."
-"You obviously know me, so why would you think I will be trethen by such a thing? Forcing me by taking a hostage? Idiotic."
-"You don't care about his life?!"
-"No."
-"You psycho!"
-"Calm down. I do have some feelings for Yue, but that doesn't mean I need to care about his life, does it?"
-"You..."
-"Do I need to care about your life, Yue?"
~"My life is as certain as existence itself, so no need to care."
-"Good, then what do you want to do now?"
~"Sigh, I'm waiting for you to stop having fun with them. Most people are already gathered, so it's time to finish here."
-"Can't you focus?! What the hell are you talking about."
-"You know what, they are no longer fun. You can enforce the contract, and we will be on our way."
~"Sure."
The next moment, the scroll that lay on the table flew into the air and unfolded itself. The worlds inscribed onto it lit up and turned into runes that formed into chains that bound the losers around the neck, while the other end appeared in Kirari's hand.
-"What..?"
-"What is going on?"
-"Magic?!"
-"Kirari, you..."
The mystical scene shocked everyone but Kirari and me. The panic lasted for some time before everyone focused on us two again.
-"Now, I have neither time nor urge to explain what is going on right now, so just listen to my words. I will give you two weeks to clean the house, after which I will start to deal with some matters. Are we clear?"
-"Can you at least tell us who Yue is?"-Terano asked, understanding that I must have caused what had just occurred.
-"Hmm... I'm not sure. I just know that all of us aren't even ants compared to him."
-"You don't know..?"
-"More like don't understand. Yue, can you describe yourself?"
~"We don't have time for my introductions. Just think of me as a powerful Diviner."
-"Heard him. Well, you can feel what that chain represents, right? If so, then I'll take my leave."
Kirari stood up and started to leave. I also took one last look at the branch families and dispersed my avatar into the mist, making it disappear from that world.
~"It would seem that everyone is here."~I looked at the small crowd in Simulated Realm.
-"Finally, we can stop wasting time."-Accelerator shared his always pleasant thoughts.
-"So what do you plan for us to do?"-Tsunade asked while looking at the depressed Elysia sitting a little further away.
~"The overall theme this time is widening your horizons. First, I'll take you to visit Ningguang's world. With your strength, you can explore it rather safely and can get some experience with combat using your new powers. I know some of you are stronger, but believe me, you can find worthy opponents when you know where to look."
-"What about you?"-Aletia looked at me expectantly.
~"I'll be with you. I want to visit a few people there."
-"Nice. Is there anything we need to know before we go there?"-Rias smiled after hearing my answer.
~"Just be careful about Abyss. I'm not fully knowledgeable about it, but there are some signs that it's nothing good, so try to stay away from it."
-"We'll keep that in mind."
-"Hey, do you mind if I bring one more person?"
~"You mean your sister, Sora? I don't mind, but be sure to keep her safe."
-"Nice, I'll fetch her quickly. As for keeping her safe, Jibril can do so."
~"She, huh... Keep her in check."
-"No problem."
Sora quickly left, only to return a minute later with Shiro and Jibril in tow.
-"My! To think you have access to such a place, Master. Can I explore?"
~"No."
-"Eh... Who are..."
-"Jibril, behave."
-"But Master..."
-"Let alone Yue, many of the people present here are stronger than you, so behave."
-"Stronger? Master, do you underestimate me?"-Jibril looked at me with doubt, but her mistake was that she showed hostility in her gaze.
Instantly, Shadows hidden around jumped into action, creating a cage around the unruly Flügel. They began casting seals, and before everyone could comprehend what was going on, the Jibril was put into temporal prison.
~"Sigh. I knew it would end like that. Shadows, let her go."
-"Yes."
-"Those are?"-Shinobu asked the question everyone here wanted to get an answer to.
~"My Shadow Guards."
-"You have guards? Do you even need them?"-Accelerator sneered at the idea of guards.
~"I'm in a similar position as Tsunade. I'm stronger than them, but it's not appropriate for me to act personally most of the time. That's why I not only have Shadow Guards but also Guards that act in an aboveground manner."
-"Huh? Why have we never seen them then?"
~"Because I'm here unofficially, as Yue from Chat Group and not as Yue with other status."
-"Escape from your responsibilities?"
~"You can say that, Aletia. OK, as everyone is ready, it's time to go."
Everyone nodded in agreement, so I opened a portal to Teyvat. I passed through it first, with the rest following me.
-"So it's finally time to uphold my part of the deal."-Izanami looked up from the book she was reading when I teleported to the Yomi.
~"Yes. You can't remain here any longer."
-"Let's get this over with."-Izanami rose up and started to walk deeper into this realm.-"To accept the power of Yomi, you need to keep two things in mind. While the underworld is the land of the dead, it's not the death. It will grant you domain over those who have already deceased, but you won't gain the power to turn living into dead."
~"I expected that."
-"Second is about the difference between Yomi and other underworlds. Most other pantheons extend to their underworld, ruling and controlling them. Yomi is different. While nominally, I'm the ruler of Yomi, in truth, Yomi is beyond my control. Because of that, Yomi is still primal. Its power is greater, but it's hard to control."
~"This is why I'm interested in it. The primal state of Yomi is something I want to research, as while I have powerful natural realms associated with life and creation in my world, I lack any realms connected to death aside from Winter's Ardenweald."
-"Hou? Then I'll certainly help you with your research on that subject."-During our short talk, we arrived before a decrepit tori gate, behind which was a stone inscribed with runes carrying the power of Yomi.-"This is the cornerstone of Yomi."
I approached the stone and read the inscription.
-"To start the ceremony, you need to give something to Yomi. I sacrificed my old Divinity and received a new one connected to this realm."
I nodded and took out a payment to Yomi. It was a sphere that Zovaal used to seal corruption to remove it from his world. Back then, it was something beyond my power to deal with, and even now, I would be troubled to do so.
But when it comes to pure power, this sphere contained force that could overthrow First Ones, creation deities comparable to Outer Gods. As Yomi is a realm, it doesn't need complicated things for its growth but pure power and Laws, so what is contained within is perfect.
I chose this also to test something. The monsters and the Dungeon in this world seem to have something connecting them to what created the corruption that I sealed in the sphere. I want to know what is behind such different powers that span multiple worlds and timelines.
After placing the sphere before the stone, I began reciting the words inscribed on the stone, and soon, the black mists started gathering around. At first, everything went according to what Izanami described, but when the Yomi was to grant its power to me, the [Yggdrasil] reacted, forming a white mist that surrounded me.
When two mists of opposite color met, they instantly annihilated themself, creating enormous and chaotic power in the process. The energy unleashed was so great that not even two seconds later, the space cracks appeared everywhere around.
This was almost incomprehensible, as this world was so stable that direct confrontations between two primordial gods didn't even create one such crack, yet here, the whole area around was shattering. Waking up from my surprise, I quickly mobilized my power to complete the ceremony, analyzing everything that was happening.
-"What's going on?"
~"I'm not sure, but I'll need you to somewhat control the black mist."
-"Sure, I'll follow your words."
~"Thanks."
Two of us got to work, dealing with the sudden crisis the best we could.