The moment Yakumo Yukari returned to Gensokyo—
She headed straight for Hakugyokurou.
She had good news.
A very good one.
"Even we can grow stronger now… just by hunting monsters."
Of course, the growth was slow.
Painfully slow, even.
But still—
It was a path forward.
A way to evolve.
However…
When Yukari arrived—
She froze.
"…Empty?"
No Saigyouji Yuyuko.
No Konpaku Youmu.
The entire place was silent.
Yukari frowned slightly.
"…Did they go out to eat?"
With that thought, she opened a gap and headed straight to the Dimensional City.
If Yuyuko had gone anywhere—
It had to be there.
But once again—
Nothing.
No presence.
No trace.
Only faint residual energy from long ago.
Yukari stood in the middle of the street, unmoving.
"…Where did she go?"
For some reason—
A bad feeling began to rise in her chest.
Her instincts suddenly flared.
She turned sharply—
And saw them.
At the corner of the street—
Izumi and Yuyuko.
Walking together.
Hand in hand.
Time stopped.
'Crack.'
The folding fan in Yukari's hand snapped in half.
Her smile froze.
"…Bastard."
The air around her trembled.
Without hesitation—
She charged.
Abilities were restricted here.
So she ran.
Like a normal person.
Hearing the shout, Izumi and Yuyuko both paused.
And then—
They saw her.
Yukari rushed forward—
Grabbed Izumi by the collar—
Her eyes trembling with tears.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY YUYUKO?!"
…
Silence.
Izumi almost laughed.
Yuyuko coughed awkwardly.
"Ahem… Yukari, you old hag, let go."
But Yukari didn't move.
Her gaze shifted to Yuyuko—
And in that instant—
She understood everything.
Her body trembled.
"You… you… YOU—!!"
"You bastard!!"
And just like that—
She broke.
Tears streamed down her face.
She was furious.
Absolutely furious.
If her powers worked here—
Izumi would've been dragged through gaps ten thousand times already.
Yukari burst into tears.
Yuyuko panicked.
"Yukari! Why are you crying?!"
Izumi added, completely unhelpfully:
"Yeah, why are you crying? You should be happy."
"Your best friend found a man."
Critical hit.
Direct damage.
Yukari's HP dropped to zero.
She stood there—
Tearful.
Shaking.
Completely devastated.
Looking at her like that—
Izumi suddenly felt an urge.
A mischievous one.
He glanced at Yuyuko.
Then back at Yukari.
A smile spread across his face.
"Well then…"
"Guess I'll take care of you too."
Snap.
With a flick of his fingers—
The three vanished.
...
Not long after—
Angry shouts.
Sobs.
Embarrassed cries.
Echoed faintly in a secluded corner.
No one heard them.
Except—
Izumi.
And Yuyuko.
…
Eventually—
A flustered, furious Yukari tore open a gap—
And escaped.
She couldn't take it.
Not this humiliation.
Not this injustice.
"I'm going into hibernation!"
That was her conclusion.
Between the emotional damage—
And getting completely overpowered—
Yukari had reached her limit.
She wanted revenge.
She really did.
But unfortunately—
She couldn't win.
Not even close.
...
While Izumi's world flourished—
An unexpected guest arrived.
A girl.
Appearing out of the void.
She stared at the massive world before her—
Eyes sparkling.
"Hehe… found you."
"What a huge world… nice."
From under her skirt—
She pulled out a crowbar.
A so-called—
"Sacred Sword of Physics."
She carefully suppressed her presence.
Step by step—
She approached the world's outer barrier.
And strangely—
No one noticed.
Not Izumi.
Not Gaia.
Not Alaya.
Nothing.
She pressed the crowbar against the barrier.
Poke.
Then—
Slowly…
Carefully…
She began prying it open.
Bit by bit.
Painfully slow.
As if trying not to be detected.
She frowned.
"…Seriously?"
"This world is way too defensive."
"If I forced my way in, I might break it…"
"…Guess I'll just open a door manually."
And so—
She continued.
Patiently.
Silently.
...
Completely unaware—
Izumi was inspecting his domain.
Players.
Adventurers.
People from countless worlds—
All leveling up.
Then something caught his attention.
"…Oh?"
Yuuki Asuna.
She was leading a group.
Helping newcomers grind monsters.
But that wasn't the surprising part.
The real surprise—
Was who she was with.
Honjou Kaede (Maple).
And her guild.
From BOFURI.
Well—
Almost all of them.
Except one guy.
And somehow—
Asuna had taken his place.
Watching Maple fight—
Izumi fell silent.
She defeated a monster.
And—
Drop.
A shield appeared.
Not just any shield—
Mash Kyrielight's shield.
Izumi blinked.
"…That lucky?"
This was ridiculous.
Curious—
Izumi snapped his fingers.
A moment later—
A certain useless goddess appeared beside him.
"Hey!! What now?!"
Eris looked annoyed.
"I was having fun!"
Izumi ignored her complaint and pointed.
"Look at her."
"Is her luck stat ridiculously high?"
Eris followed his gaze—
And froze.
"…Yeah."
"…That's insanely high."
She tilted her head.
"Is she some kind of Luck Goddess from another world?"
"…No, wait."
"She doesn't have divinity."
Izumi crossed his arms.
Eyes narrowing.
"…Interesting."