Shinkaidan Mansion—-
〈Master…save us…〉
〈Master…how could you abandon us…?〉
〈Your students…your kingdom…you let all of it burn.〉
〈You are no savior. You are a cruel, Broken God. Your time will soon come, Omariro Nyugawa…〉
Itsuki's face flashed but for a moment.
"Your time will soon come."
The moment Omariro opened his eyes, he noticed Rei standing next to him, wearing her brightest smile. "Hi, Master!"
"Girl," he noted.
"I wanted to ask you a question, Master!"
"Speak clear, girl."
Rei sat next to him. "The others wanted to know more about your past students. Did you teach them what you taught us?"
"Children have some overlap," Omariro replied. "Only some."
"Oh, okay! Did you teach anyone before that? You know, back in your…ancient days?"
"Days long gone. Past must not be focused upon."
Rei extended her hands, reaching for Omariro's cup. "Okay, well, I'll take this!"
Omariro effortlessly tossed the cup above his head as Rei dived past him. He caught the cup with one hand, while the girl slammed headfirst into the wall.
"Girl has failed."
Omariro teleported Rei outside the door, where the other students, save for Han, were waiting. The door shut behind her.
"Let me guess," Nonoka remarked. "Didn't go well?"
"Mr. Omariro is very perceptive!" Rei admitted. "And quiet."
"He's very smart," Rika pointed out. "Trying to distract him is like trying to walk a tightrope with your eyes closed."
"Then we try some different method," Zaria proposed. "Move swift, strike hard, and grab the cup from Master the moment we catch him slipping."
Sōshin tapped his chin. "We could use my speed, Friends! Just let me know the time and the place, and I will swoop in!"
"Good idea, Sōshin. Everyone, let's regroup in the living room and wait for Master to refill his coffee."
The kids all headed downstairs, each taking hiding spots while they waited. Zaria hid under the couch, Nonoka and Rika both hid inside a closet in the hallway, Rei hid behind the TV, and Sōshin hid inside one of the kitchen cabinets.
They all waited for a while, and both Nonoka and Rika began to sweat profusely inside the closet.
"Ugh," Nonoka groaned. "It's burning up in here. Is he ever gonna show up?"
She turned to Rika for an answer, but Rika had already begun using nearby papers as fans, trying to stave off the heat. A few minutes later, they noticed movement, and when the girls peeked, they saw Han cleaning the counters and gathering food for Emerald and Emeru.
"Seriously?" Nonoka grumbled. "He's gotta be the one to show up? Not Master?"
"It's whatever," Rika sighed. "We'll just have to wait a little longer."
Han finished cleaning and handed the food to the two slimes. Emeru immediately crunched down on her food while Emerald slapped it aside. "The meat is stale. Find me some new ones."
Han just walked away.
"Hey? You hear me? Bring some fresh meat!"
Emeru pushed some into Emerald's cage from her own. "Here, have some of mine, Brother!"
"Hmph, whatever."
As Han walked upstairs, he bumped into Omariro, who was making his way to the kitchen. Han paused immediately.
"Oh, sir."
"Boy has not partaken in test," Omariro realized.
"No point," Han shrugged. "And they wouldn't even want me to be the one to succeed anyway."
"Boy must not doubt capabilities," Omariro told him. "Trust and merit do not go hand in hand."
Han remained silent as Omariro continued, before heading back upstairs. Omariro reached the kitchen counter, opened the fridge, and made himself some more coffee.
Without hesitation, Sōshin burst from the cabinet and tried to grab the cup, but Omariro easily sidestepped his efforts. Zaria leapt into the air and attempted to swipe it, but he stopped her with one hand, holding her by the head.
"Ow, Master! Ow! Okay! You win!"
He dropped her, just as Rei attempted to use her moon crest to knock the cup out of his hands, but Omariro slashed it in half and erased it with one move.
Rika and Nonoka tumbled out of the closet, collapsing.
"Children failed," he announced.
He teleported away.
"Welp," Nonoka relented. "That's that."
"We can't give up yet!" Zaria insisted. "Figure it out, people! Move faster! Strike harder! Don't falter!"
"Or, why don't we just give up?" Rika suggested.
"Come again?"
"If we make Master think we quit, then he'll stop being so defensive! And once his guard is down, BOOM! We win!"
The others pondered for a moment.
"Huh, that could work," Nonoka agreed.
"It sounds smart!" Rei added.
"Of course Big Sis Rika is smart!" Sōshin proclaimed.
"Okay, we'll go with Rika's idea," Zaria declared. "Everyone, just relax and chill. Don't look suspicious."
The kids all spread out, leaving the two slimes to munch on their food. Emerald watched them with a dismissive look. "I'm a captured enemy, and even I know this fool's plan is doomed to shit."
Emeru slapped his side. "Hey, be nice! They're my new friends!"
"I DO not care."
Later—-
Rika and Zaria were busy watching a horror movie in Zaria's room, with Rika clinging to Zaria's shoulders the entire time.
Zaria gave her an annoyed look. "You're the one who picked this stuff, why the hell are YOU scared?"
"Because I didn't know it'd be this scary!"
Zaria rolled her eyes before changing the channel. Rika pulled out her phone, texting. Zaria peeked over her shoulder. "Who's that?"
"Oh. Just texting some friends. Why?"
"You have friends besides me? And the others, of course."
"Uh. Duh? We can't all be loners, Zaria."
Zaria folded her arms, and Rika gave her a sympathetic look. "If it makes you feel better, none of them are my best friends! Only you are!"
"Yeah, I feel SO much better now."
"Aww!" Rika teased. "They're asking about you."
Zaria quickly jumped up. "What? What are they saying?"
"The typical stuff. You know, how you look, what sport you play, what's your type…"
Zaria's face turned red. "W—what? Tell them it's none of their business! I like what I like!"
Rika giggled. "Really now?"
"Why don't you tell them your type?"
"D—don't shift this toward me!"
As the two girls argued, Han entered the room, setting down a box.
"Here," he said. "Your new outfits."
The two girls stopped in their tracks, looking at him. Han didn't even return their glance before turning to leave in a hurry.
Zaria got up. "Han, wait."
Han stopped for a moment.
"We need to talk," she stated.
Han looked back at her before walking into his room and locking the door. Zaria stared after him, her face clearly irked. "Did he just ignore me? That bastard!"
"That's Han for you," Rika replied. "If you really want to talk to him, you'll have to wait till he comes out. Which at this rate might never be."
Zaria folded her arms. "I just want to get clear whatever the hell is going on inside his head. Clearly, we're stuck with him, even if we only evade the gremlin for so long."
"Who can say?" Rika said. "Those genius-types always have a million thoughts in their heads. I just wish his didn't involve hurting the girls he calls his sisters."
"Yeah, I know."
Zaria lingered on his door for a little while longer. "But…we've been with him for a long time now. Maybe too long."
She waved it off and closed the door.
Downstairs, Nonoka, Rei, and Sōshin were playing chess on the living room table. Rei picked up a king's piece, staring at it. "What do I do with this?"
Nonoka took it from her. "That's what you're trying to protect, girlie. Set it back down in its spot."
Rei put it down, and Sōshin made the first move, easily bypassing her defenses. Rei tried moving one of her pawns, but in only a few more moves, Sōshin checkmated her.
"I win!" he cheered.
"Hmm?" she wondered. "But I didn't forfeit!"
Nonoka slapped her forehead. "Girl, you are seriously out of touch. Have you never played board games before?"
"I don't know what those are!"
"Figures."
Zaria and Rika came down, rubbing their tired eyes.
"Evening, sleepover sisters," Nonoka mocked. "Come to join our little gathering?"
"Not really," Zaria shrugged.
"We just came to get some soda," Rika explained. "But what are you guys doing?"
"Killing time."
The two girls slid in between the others, and Zaria picked up a few chess pieces. "This crap is so boring. Don't we have anything else?"
"We're in a big ass mansion paid for by our leader," Nonoka clarified. "Take your pick."
Omariro came down, putting more sugar into his coffee. When he turned to grab a spoon to mix it, he saw Zaria leaning next to him.
"Girl."
"Sorry, sir. Just uh…watching you, since you're the most interesting thing in the house."
"Speak clear, girl."
"Right," she thought. "He's older, so he doesn't understand stuff like that. Okay, erm…"
A thought popped into her head. "Well, since we have no hope of passing your test, we just wanted to ask you a question, sir."
Omariro lifted an eyebrow.
"Who's your favorite student?" she questioned.
The other kids quickly gathered around her, eager to hear the answer. Omariro looked them all over before sipping some coffee.
"All students of equal value."
"Aww…" they groaned.
Omariro put more sugar into his cups. "Have children given up?"
They all nodded.
"We all understand we have no chance against you, sir. We quit, and accept the fact that we aren't ready for the dungeon," Zaria confessed.
Behind Omariro, a green slimy hand reached for his cup while the others tried to pretend it wasn't there.
"Yep," Rika agreed. "We're gonna go back to our rooms and rest, okay, Master?"
"Hmm…"
Zaria gave a slight nod, and the moment she did, the hand reached for the cup, attempting to snag it. Omariro grabbed the arm without even looking, and once he pulled it, Emeru plopped into his arm. Omariro held her upside down.
"Okay, Mr. Omariro! I yield!" Emeru pleaded. "Please put me down!"
He put her on the table as she regained her breath. Omariro refocused his attention on the kids. "Children cannot deceive the master."
"We're sorry, sir…" Nonoka told him. "We just wanna level up. Getting one up on you is impossible! How are we supposed to do it?"
Han walked downstairs, took a cup of coffee from the fridge, and handed it to Omariro as the kids watched, stunned. "Here, sir."
"Boy has passed the test."
"W—what?" Zaria gasped. "But how?"
"Coffee in hand was not same as yesterday," Omariro told her. "Coffee has been switched."
"And you didn't tell us, sir?" Rika exclaimed. "That's not fair!"
"Dungeons not fair."
Zaria turned her attention toward Han, grabbing his shirt. "Okay, smartass! Where was this when we were busting our asses trying to take that cup! And why did you ignore me?"
"I've learned it's best to minimize my involvement," Han stated. "That way, no one will get hurt."
Zaria let him go, unable to respond. Han left the room as Omariro stared after him.
"Does this mean we advance?" Rika asked.
"Will see if children have what it takes. Lives at risk."
Omariro began to head upstairs. "If children wish to succeed, teamwork is key."
He left, while Sōshin clapped. "Isn't this great, Friends? Friend Han got us to the next level!"
"Yeah," Nonoka muttered. "Great."
Meanwhile, Kagoshima—-
On the 10,001st floor of the Kagoshima Dungeon, a priestess walked across the glowing floor, her hand trailing along the opened gates.
"O' Great Master," she called out. "Our greatest enemy remains alive and active to this day. He seeks to stand against you once more, Great Lord. I beg of you, lend me your strength! Allow me to transport my brothers and sisters to the outside world once more!"
A UI popped up, which seemed oddly sentient.
〈…Neraziria.〉
Neraziria stood up, her hands clasped in a prayer motion. As dark energy rose from the ground, another gate formed, this one a nasty shade of crimson.
"Come, my fellow Mujinsha! Let the world bend to us once more!"
The gate grew larger, shaking the entire floor.
—-