Twenty-plus… what kind of number even is that?
Physiologically speaking, even for an adult man, fully satisfying one woman you genuinely love—consistently, in every way—can already be exhausting.
A person's energy is limited.
So could someone really keep up with twenty-plus?
That thought made Yukino's face burn again. "Um… everyone's there… the ones from school and the ones from other worlds too."
"…"
From what Yukino was implying, Tatsuki had daily contact with them.
Young adults living that close together—Miyuki didn't buy for a second that nothing ever happened.
And then she remembered something else—weren't there… married women too?
Wives.
The word made Miyuki's mind go a little blank.
Based on her own… very real experience, it wasn't hard to imagine what a long-repressed adult woman could be like once the restraints came off.
With that topic hovering in the air, the atmosphere was about to sink into silence again.
Thankfully, Miyuki only spaced out for a moment before asking bluntly. "Yukino… you and Tatsuki… have you two done it?"
"Huh?!"
Yukino jerked her head up—only to meet Miyuki's certain gaze—and immediately panicked and looked down again.
With just that brief eye contact, Yukino understood exactly what her mother was asking.
But why would her mother suddenly ask something like that?!
Yukino wanted to do what Chika did when she got embarrassed—bury her face somewhere and disappear… but she didn't exactly have that option.
So she just kept her head down. That was all she could do.
Seeing Yukino dodge like that, Miyuki felt even more certain she'd guessed right.
"Haaah" Miyuki let out a long sigh, then spoke as a parent, careful but serious. "Yukino, I'm not telling you two you can't do those things."
"But I want you to be sensible. You don't want Tatsuki-kun to burn himself out, do you? Especially when there are—"
She cut herself off halfway through. Even she couldn't finish that sentence.
Yukino's head dropped even lower, and a tiny, miserable whimper slipped out.
Her mother was talking about something that made her want to evaporate on the spot.
Miyuki didn't let Yukino's embarrassment stop her. Some things were a parent's responsibility to say, so her tone sharpened.
"Yukino. Be honest with me—are you being safe? Are you using protection?"
"…"
Yukino went completely silent. Then she nodded… and shook her head.
"What does that mean? Is it yes or no?" Miyuki's brows knit.
"Ugh…" Under the pressure, Yukino made a small, distressed sound—like a startled cat freezing up.
"No! But Tatsuki-kun has abilities—there's nothing to worry about! Mother, please stop asking!"
"Mother? What are you grilling Yukino about?"
Haruno suddenly appeared behind Miyuki, curiosity sparkling as she looked between Yukino and their mother.
And right behind Haruno, the others arrived in the round-table room as well.
The suffocating awkwardness instantly got swept away by a new kind of chaos.
"..." Miyuki's expression stalled for a beat, then she shook her head. "It's nothing."
But inside, her thoughts were in complete turmoil.
No protection…? And abilities can be used for that kind of thing too?
It was… way beyond what she could process, and it left her unsteady.
Yukino finally got rescued. She stood up immediately and hurried to Tatsuki. "Tatsuki-kun—how did it go?"
Tatsuki glanced at Yukino's flushed face, then noticed the help me look in her eyes.
He cleared his throat. "Ahem. Let's hold a quick meeting and summarize what we know."
…
While Tatsuki helped Yukino out of that trap and everyone started exchanging information and discussing what to do next…
Back in the Apocalypse Chat Group, people were staring at the now-closed livestream in stunned silence.
That final moment—the planet erupting and collapsing—had left them shaken.
After a long stretch of nobody typing… the chat exploded.
Momonga: "BOSS!!! THAT WAS INSANE!!! I'M LOSING MY VOICE!!!"
Kiana: "I don't think even the S-rank Valkyries my aunt talks about could do that."
Kurumi: "Power even Spirits can't make sense of… how did you do that?"
Ch'en: "Unbelievable. I watched the earth split and the sky fall—one punch did that?!"
Ch'en: "Even seeing the sea split last time didn't hit like this."
"Pfft—Stupid dragon, you're pathetic. You can't even drink water without spraying it everywhere." Swire held her stomach, laughing while she roasted Ch'en.
Ch'en just shot her a flat look.
She had no idea what she'd actually witnessed.
Ch'en wiped at her clothes with a napkin, still watching the chat.
Mikoto Suoh: "Overwhelming power—and the discipline not to be consumed by it. The Administrator is a true strong one."
Saiki Kusuo: "That's… surprising."
As usual, Saiki kept it short. He was usually a great snarker, but in the group he barely talked.
Aqua: "You know, this goddess can be super strong too!"
Nami: "Nobody asked. Stay cute and weak, Aqua."
Aqua: "…"
Ch'en: "I have a question. Does everyone in this Apocalypse Chat Group have power like that?"
Exusiai: "Uh… yeah, no. That's definitely not how this works."
Mumei: "Compared to big bro, my strength is tiny."
Mikasa: "The gap is… impossible to measure."
Shinobu: "My, it's not just you two. Most people here probably feel that way."
Vivi: "Mm-hm! It was incredible!"
Furina: "..."
Furina, who'd been waiting for dramatic plot twists, wrapped herself even tighter in her blanket.
She was scared now.
"That's way too much… What if he punches Fontaine—no, wait, all of Teyvat—into dust?"
Tingyun: "All I can do is sincerely admire Tatsuki-sama's strength. On the Luofu, only General Jing Yuan might be able to play a game of skill with him."
March 7th: "Uh… I should probably remind everyone—this is still just a tiny slice of what Tatsuki can do. He's said before he could wipe out an entire star system if he wanted to."
Tingyun: "..."
Tingyun: "I retract what I said earlier. Please don't take offense, Tatsuki-sama."
Tatsuki: "It's fine. I'm not offended."
Tatsuki had already shared the important info on his end, and the women were discussing next steps.
Tingyun: "Thank you for your generosity."
Tingyun was smooth and measured as always—respect toward the strong was simply how you survived.
Silver Wolf: "Tch. You really got to flex, huh."
Tatsuki: "You can flex too. Your Aether Editing is pretty nasty."
Silver Wolf: "No thanks. I just want to game."
Tatsuki: "You're dedicated, I'll give you that."
Bronya: "Tatsuki, is the Apocalypse Game over?"
Tatsuki: "Not even close. This is just the beginning. This round is especially weird—like…"
Tatsuki briefly explained how this Apocalypse Game was different…