Chapter 432. Busyness After the World Merger
When Anastasia left the Sword Saint's estate with a radiant, joyous smile and returned to the Hoshin Trading Company's residence, everyone waiting there immediately knew the plan had succeeded just by looking at her expression.
For a moment, they were all so excited and moved that they temporarily set aside the friction caused by being romantic rivals.
Afterward, Garfiel also noticed the change in his General. When he learned it was thanks to Anastasia's efforts, he was greatly shocked; he muttered and grumbled, finding it hard to believe, but eventually accepted the reality. From then on, he was no longer as repelled by the idea of Anastasia coveting his General, and by extension, his favorability toward Mimi—who frequently sought him out—increased slightly.
Upon hearing the news, Priscilla merely let out a cold snort, commenting that Yukinoshita was somewhat lucky and claiming she had "picked up her life." Since the "blockhead" was no longer fixated solely on marrying Yukinoshita, there was naturally no need for Priscilla to target that "defeated dog" who had tried to sneak away with the prize.
Meanwhile, Vincent, who had hurried to Lugunica, quickly slipped back to the Empire after learning of the Dragon Tablet's prophecy—taking with him "Blue Lightning," who was barely clinging to life after challenging Reid.
...Of course, "barely clinging to life" was the state prior to treatment; after being healed by Ferris, he at least had half a life left.
A day later, the world merger began. The entire process took less than two seconds. In the blink of an eye, the other world seamlessly integrated with Earth. Everything worth preserving on both sides was perfectly maintained, and the points of insertion were just right, causing no difficulties.
This was all thanks to Kawata Osamu.
It was precisely to achieve a perfect merger that wouldn't affect anyone or any place that he had needed to do so much advance preparation. Otherwise, though they could have merged long ago, a rushed merger would have resulted in nothing but widespread complaints and losses for both worlds, leading to violent conflict.
Subsequently, led by Earth's "Big Five" (UN Security Council) and the four major kingdoms of the other world, several efficient meetings were held. They established a tone of friendly exchange, mutual benefit, and harmonious coexistence, forming a brand-new United Nations with participation from both worlds.
...The reason things went so smoothly, with no "bastards" coming forward to cause trouble, was primarily due to Reinhard's universally recognized, invincible combat power and his saintly character. Any ambitious person wanting to break the peace or plot an invasion would first have to glance fearfully at Reinhard sitting there.
At the same time, they cursed Hikigaya Hachiman under their breath.
The reason was simple: while Reinhard was still saint-like, Hachiman had used the example of Felt being poisoned to death in the IF lines to successfully persuade him.
He convinced this saint to make a slight change. He was no longer so pedantic—at least toward enemies—and thus, Reinhard's deterrent power instantly rose several levels.
Following the communication, the people of the other world began to be influenced by Earth's way of thinking, gradually making systemic changes. Although the power of the nobility remained transcendent, they no longer possessed the legal right to easily kill or harm commoners, and human discrimination against demi-humans decreased.
...The reforms went smoothly because Hachiman vigorously promoted and supported them, and Reinhard did not oppose them.
The people of the other world, having seen the future, were well aware that Hachiman was a kind and capable person who wouldn't harm the innocent. Since Hachiman supported it so strongly, it had to be a good thing.
Naturally, they supported it too.
Thus, the systemic reforms were a popular success. In the middle of the process, a dozen or so nobles of various ranks tried to interfere; Priscilla gave them a sidelong glance, and the very next day, someone "accidentally" discovered evidence that every one of them had committed crimes punishable by death.
They were then promptly sent to the execution block.
The "Big Five" provided the other world with various high-yield crops and began introducing modern technology, while the other world provided Earth with instruction in swordsmanship and magic. However, the era of universal transcendence would not arrive so quickly; even though Earth's population was large, those with the talent for swordsmanship and magic were quite rare.
For the past week, Hikigaya Hachiman had been busy as a middleman between the two worlds. He was granted a titular official position; though it was a "hollow" title, its status was very real.
However, he didn't care about that.
What surprised Hachiman was that the two worlds were actually extremely peaceful and harmonious from start to finish. He had been on edge the entire time, yet nothing bad happened.
"That's a given, because I applied a 'friendship buff' to the whole world. Though they were originally people of two worlds, they are all my people now—and under my friendship buff, it won't take long for both sides to view each other as people of the same world."
After obtaining Od Lagna, the center and consciousness of the Re:Zero world, Kawata Osamu's energy reserves began to increase. He calculated the time; in a couple of days, once everyone was less busy, he could release the second world viewing.
After the merger, before they became too busy, Crusch, Emilia, and the others took the time to visit the Hikigaya household. They met Komachi and got along harmoniously with her.
Komachi was all smiles, calling them "Crusch-nee," "Emilia-nee," "Rem-nee," and "Anastasia-nee."
Anyone with eyes could see she was treating them as her sisters-in-law. Regarding her blatant support for her brother's harem, Crusch and the others weren't annoyed; after all, the person making the final decision was Hachiman himself, and his personality made a harem very difficult to achieve.
Everyone sought out Komachi, but no one went to see Yukinoshita Yukino. After all, there wouldn't be much to say even if they met.
Priscilla was the sole exception. She had no interest in Komachi but instead went to the Yukinoshita residence to get right in Yukino's face. The two engaged in a bout of snide, sarcastic remarks, with neither backing down.
The result was Yukino being completely suppressed. By the end of the mockery, she wasn't as uninhibited as Priscilla; she fell into a disadvantage and ultimately lost the war of words.
Watching Priscilla depart triumphantly like a victor, Yukino's face turned green. She went back and holed up at home, looking for books and scouring the internet to further her "studies."
Echidna dove headfirst into Earth's libraries, soaking up new knowledge day and night without rest, finding it extremely fascinating.
Beatrice and Shaula wanted to cling to Hachiman, but since he was temporarily very busy, they couldn't. The two simply decided to hang out together.
Otto and Rem took the initiative to come and offer their services, working alongside Hachiman.
Emilia and the other candidates were also presiding over the affairs of the Lugunica Kingdom. They had all obtained actual power, surpassing the Council of Elders to become the actual leaders.
The Royal Selection continued in full swing, though the judges were no longer the Divine Dragon or the Council, but the candidates themselves.
They all possessed enough virtue that they wouldn't refuse to acknowledge the outcome; when the time was right, whose achievements were greatest would be obvious to all, and the others would concede wholeheartedly.
—Of course, they would only concede wholeheartedly in terms of becoming the ruler. Snatching the man was an entirely different matter.
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