kscans

Chapter 878 - The Third [Starry Paradise]

And so, the appointed time arrived. For a few seconds, I surrendered myself to the light of the teleport announced beforehand. When the floating sensation vanished and I opened my eyes to the feeling of my feet firmly on the floor...

"Home sweet home. It's been two months."

Reflected in my eyes was a familiar, if not yet completely ingrained, sight.

A log house in the middle of a great forest. Given the limited building materials, it was naturally an all-wood construction. It was overflowing with the warmth of wood—or rather, there was nothing but the warmth of wood.

But... this was a far cry from the first time, when we had simply built a floor, walls, and a roof and called it a day. For starters—

"...A VIP room?"

"Well, it's a private room, that's for sure."

It wasn't designed for us to just pile in and sleep wherever.

Instead of some ridiculously large space born from the idea that just cramming everyone inside was good enough, this was a compact, functionally partitioned room. It was even furnished; the bare essentials that livened up the space, like a bed, table, and a simple shelf, were all there.

It was only natural that Ri-na, who had been teleported here with me as an attendee, would tilt her head and wonder if this was some kind of special treatment. While the standard of living for players in Alvniclo, the Mirror-Faced Sky World, had dramatically improved by the end of the second event, that was only when compared to camping.

Even including the first event, our total activity time was a mere seven days. While setting up the basics of life was one thing, very few groups could afford the luxury of building individual rooms.

Securing food, procuring supplies, and above all, preparing for the nightly raid events that scaled with the size of the player group. There were mountains of other things to deal with first.

So, it went without saying.

"We've got a foreman who's basically become a master builder. A room—or rather, a house—for you will be up before the day is out."

"I wouldn't mind sharing a room, you know."

"Sisters don't normally sleep in the same room as their brothers unless they're in elementary school."

Our group, [Eto Mori], had benefited immensely from our head start during the first event and was still miles ahead of everyone else on the path of development.

With that, I began to drag Ri-na, who was clinging to my arm. As I opened the outward-swinging door—in accordance with Japanese standards—there was a light clink.

On the wooden board hanging in place of a nameplate, my dark, cringeworthy history as an artist was on full display.

◇◆◇◆◇

And so, you see.

"""""—Aaaah, oh, God...!!!!!"""""

"Alright! Familiar faces and new faces, good to see you're all doing well. First off, a little greeting for the latter. Listen up, fellas! There's only one rule you have to follow to join our group: let's all live together happily, joyfully, purely, and righteously! Welcome aboard!!"

When the event begins, there's always one thing to do right off the bat.

During the first event, we had exactly thirty-six people, a full raid party. In the second, when the attendee system was unlocked, that number nearly doubled to seventy. And now, for the third event...

"Whoa... I figured as much, but man, it's a total sausage fest."

"Why is this happening..."

"Hey, Nia, don't run from reality. They're obviously here for you three, the 'Crimson Trio'."

"It's the 'Crimson Quintet' starting today."

"...Can I go home now?"

And that's the situation. Behind me, the four women huddled together are looking out at the delightful disaster unfolding in the central plaza.

Men, men, and more men. Our group had turned into a complete boys' club, friend calling friend until we finally swelled into a massive household of over a hundred people. All in all, our numbers had ballooned to nearly one hundred and forty. I stepped before them to give the same greeting I did last time, but this was probably my limit.

If I'm going to stay involved with the [Eto Mori] base for future events, I'll need to officially appoint someone to take care of internal management. I'll have to think about that during this event.

In any case, Natsume-senpai and Ri-na's arrival was a mixed blessing. The horde of parched men were unlikely to bring any female players themselves, so they would just multiply amongst themselves. So, at the very least, the loneliness of being only two women would be alleviated...

"""God...! Oh, God...!"""

"""This is... Eden... no, Arcadia..."""

"""We offer our thanks to all that exists in this world...!"""

"...What is this, hell?"

"...It's the hell you brought with you. Do something about it."

With the number of beauties having doubled, the voltage of the now-doubled horde of men had exploded beyond all proportion. To put it simply, it was a hellscape.

Some looked to the heavens and began singing hymns, others started a mysterious interpretive dance competition, and it even got to the point where some started chanting the Heart Sutra while others quietly wept.

It wouldn't be surprising if they started a sacred duel, proclaiming they were 'making an offering to the gods.' The vibe of Arcadia players is always so damn artistic.

Well, I get how they feel. I really do, but...

"They're popular, huh, those two..."

"You... haaah. [Thread-Weaver] is one thing, but the other one is... especially popular, you know."

I really, truly, just can't shake it. Since I met them after we were already on somewhat equal footing, the impression of 'friend' or 'acquaintance' comes first, and 'celebrity' comes second.

That's why I can never get used to the hot, boiling admiration that the general public directs at them. I suppose Tetsu-san's sigh was inevitable.

I mean, I understand it on an intellectual level.

Natsume-senpai, the white-cat kitten, had already gained idol-like popularity as a fresh new ranker. Her popularity is certainly a real thing, but the words from Tetsu-san, who was standing beside me because I was too embarrassed to be on the platform alone, said it all.

Almost every single guy here is a fan of Ri-na.

The problem, then, is the fact that she came here not as an idol to console her fans, but as a little sister who just wants to cling to her big brother.

And I know for a fact that Ri-na has absolutely no intention of hiding it.

And the proof of that... here it comes.

"...Are you done?"

"Yeah, the figurehead leader's speech is over. The rest is up to the squad leaders."

A soft thump jostled my avatar from the side.

A small body came pattering over and delivered a tackle—a skinship gesture brimming with intimacy—and more than a hundred pairs of eyes turned toward us.

It's still fine. This much is still within the bounds of the 'usual' stuff that's been shown in past videos. But I know she won't be satisfied with just this.

For now, I'll try to hold her back by gently patting her on the head, but it's utterly futile.

So, in the end, all I can do is—

"Are you really, absolutely, sure this is going to be okay...?"

"Fufu... Yep, it's fine. I'm going to show them who I, Rina Amaha, really am."

This little sister of mine, who had boldly ordered her brother to take her along, promising she would make sure everything turned out fine, is someone I can only trust and watch over.

And so, yeah.

For these four days and three nights, I'm just going to throw my hands up and enjoy myself without thinking about a thing.