*In German*
["Hehe, I've heard a lot about you from Visha~ You're so amazing, aren't you~?"]
Like a chirping bird, the beautiful, cheerful voice of Erya resounded from the other side of the call.
["From an average high school boy, only known for having beautiful twin sisters, to becoming the most handsome and popular male student in the entire school. Not to mention, having incredible athleticism, absurd learning speed, in addition to gaining immense wealth in such a short time from investments alone… What an amazing evolution~!"]
["Did you get a system? You know, like those protagonists in light novels and anime? Or are you reincarnated person from another world~?"]
["Hey hey, tell me~ I'm Visha's best friend, you know~? You can tell me anything~"]
Yuuji's eyes narrowed as he listened to her words.
To know so much about him… He doubted that she came to know all of it from Viktoria alone.
"...I am shocked. I've heard from Viktoria about her best friend having ears from hell. But it seems like she still underestimated your abilities, hadn't she, Erya Flugel?"
There was silence. Then, a bell-like giggle resounded once more.
["Hehe, interesting~"]
["Visha's pretty dense, you know~ She wouldn't notice the subtle things I do~ But, I love that about her~ It makes super cute, and we're best friends regardless~!"]
Her clear, melodic laughters resounded for a few moments before she continued.
["How interesting~ Fufu~ I was only slightly interested in you before because Visha talks about you a lot. But now… Seems like you're "truly" interesting~ I can't wait to see you~ I might even fall in love with you instantly~"]
["Ah, but don't misunderstand! I wouldn't fall in love with you just because of your face, okay? If that's the reason, then I would've confessed to you the moment Visha sent me a photo she took of you secretly~!"]
"... You just casually snitched on your best friend?"
["Hehe~ Yes, and I'm looking forward to seeing her reaction when she found out her secret's out of the bag~!"]
["Anyway, I don't just judge people by their face. Although you're handsome, what I'm interested is what's in that brain of yours~"]
"My scores are pretty average, though?"
["Tsk tsk~ Not book smart! But true intelligence~"]
["I don't care about what's on the surface. I only care about what's deep within. And you… You're just like me~"]
Her voice deepened, and although slight, Yuuji could sense the sharp coldness hidden beneath the sunny cheerfulness of her voice.
But just as quickly, the chill in her voice disappeared, like ice under bright sunlight.
["You're a really sharp one, aren't you~?"]
"... Not as much as you."
["Fufu~ Of course not~ You still got a loooong way to go~! But you have the talent! Which is why…"]
With a husky whisper, she said…
["Let's get along well, Yuuji. I can't wait to see you and Visha."]
"Haha… Yes, let's get along well, Erya."
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
Nightfall.
After having dinner with his family he hadn't seen for months since the start of the Overlord mission, Yuuji retreated to his room. The two slimes happily hitched a ride on his shoulder and head, before snuggling to his neck while he laid on his bed.
Then, just as usual, Est appeared in her human form, dressed solely in nothing but a white shirt, which was Yuuji's school uniform, and white stockings, and laid on top of his chest, in her rightful sleeping place.
He stroked her beautiful, gleaming white hair as he looked up to the roof of his room, the conversation he had with Erya replaying in his mind.
She was… interesting.
From what he heard from Viktoria, this best friend of hers was supposed to still be in German. But from their conversation, it seemed like she'll somehow be coming to Bonyari to attend the same school as them.
'Mira and Viktoria's mother, Illya, must've pulled some strings to help her transfer so suddenly…'
Calling him directly was unexpected. But, it seemed like she did it to find out more about the "boy Visha's been talking a lot about".
'Well, let's just see how this goes… At least, she seemed to genuinely care for Visha.'
He shook his head and gave the two slimes a kiss on their top, and closed his eyes.
He could feel the two slimes moving, nuzzling closer to him, bringing a smile to his face.
Then, he felt them moving about.
Yuuji slowly opened his eyes, and saw the two slimes glowing in faint light. Alice in prismatic light and Aria in black and sparkling white light. Est similarly opened her eyes, her lips turned into a frown as a sense of unease filled her and Yuuji's heart.
"Alice, Aria! What's wro-!"
Blinding light filled his vision and the entire room.
Then in the next moment, a warm, soft, heaviness fell upon his sides as the light slowly dissipated.
Est similarly felt the presence… the physical presence of two other by her sides and looked to her sides along with Yuuji.
To his right, a beautiful young girl with golden-brown skin and jet-black hair that shimmered under the moonlight lay beside him. Her visage bore no expression, yet a multitude of emotion, from happiness, longing, admiration, and love seemed to just fill the pair of golden eyes gazing up at him to the brim.
In contrast, the young girl to his left had no reservations about expressing her immense happiness, admiration, and love as she gazed up at Yuuji.
She bore a striking resemblance to her "twin sister," yet her appearance was a mesmerizing contrast. Instead of golden-brown skin and jet-black hair, her complexion was a flawless, almost translucent jade white, and her flowing white hair shimmered with prismatic hues at the tips, reflecting the colors of the rainbow.
Yuuji stared at the two girls, both dressed similarly to Est, in shocked silence. But deep in his heart, he felt the bond he had with his twin Yin-Yang Slimes strengthened and reflected in their gazes.
"Alice…? Aria…?"
"Master~!!!"
"Master…"
Alice wrapped her lithe, white arms around his neck, nuzzling her face to his neck. While Aria, more reserved, clutched Yuuji's clothes tightly with her little hands and pressed her face against his broad chest.
And as Yuuji subconsciously wrapped his arms around their tiny waist, he felt their hold on him tightened, and the warmth in his heart grew warmer.
"You two… You evolved again."
"Uhn~! I think so!!!"
"... It seems like it's because we wanted to have human forms so badly. So we can be of more use to you…"
"And so we can hug you like this~!!!"
Yuuji could hardly believe what happened…
The slimes had expressed human behaviors and displayed intelligence on par with young children. But even so, he didn't expect them to truly gain a human form.
He looked down to Alice and Aria. The two magical slimes who had surpassed his expectations again and again… And couldn't help but smile.
Just then, he felt another pair of lithe arms hug him around the chest, and he looked down to see Est gazing up at him, her face still without expression, but he noticed her lips pouting ever so slightly.
She then looked towards Alice and Aria back and forth, and declared.
"Mmuu… I'm the eldest."
The two looked at the human manifestation of the Spirit Sword Sovereign, looked at each other, and back at Est.
"Hehe~ We know, Est onee-san~!"
"Uhn… You can be on top, and we'll be on the sides."
In that instant, an agreement Yuuji couldn't understand, happened.
Est nodded in satisfaction, and laid her head down to his chest, and the now-human slime girls also nestled themselves to Yuuji.
"..."
Yuuji looked at the three little girls who were on top of him, speechless.
Before he knew it… He had two additional little girls on top of him, and now, his movement was completely sealed.
He laid back down and looked up into the roof of his room once again, and sighed.
'What a day…'
He closed his eyes, and let the warmth brought about by the three girls on him slowly drift him off to a comfortable, restful sleep.
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
After completing her mission, Aika returned to her world, right after her classes ended, and returned home after a brief chat with Murayama and Katase.
Then on her way back, she chatted with the group and welcomed Albedo as their newest member, before opening her gacha.
This time, she got quite lucky and got a super powerful SR item, Soul Knife, which gave her an offensive weapon that could bypass physical and magical defenses and inflict damage onto her enemies' soul directly.
Although she lacked proficiency with melee weapons, she could still learn to use one as a last resort if an enemy ever managed to get too close.
Aika mused as a white, ethereal dagger manifested in her hand. It had no weight, no tangible sensation—almost as if she were holding nothing at all. Even its appearance was vague and ghostly, nearly invisible. If she hadn't summoned it herself, she might not have realized it was there.
Then, as she released her grip, the dagger vanished soundlessly, leaving no trace behind.
'This is awesome… A perfect secret weapon.'
With the ability to summon it at will—and how imperceptible it was—she could deliver a surprise attack that might instantly kill an unsuspecting enemy who got too close.
It was the only exceptional item she had pulled from this batch of gacha, but she was more than satisfied.
With it, she won't be defenseless at close range.
Soon, Aika reached her home, and after having dinner with her family and taking a bath, she retreated to her room for the night.
Since Yuuji was having his little basketball "date" with Haruka, she spent the rest of the evening chatting with Erika, C.C, Albedo, Karen, and Mayumi.
As she laid on the bed, the mental exhaustion she felt from the Overlord mission melted away. One by one, she recalled everything that happened during the mission. From the most recent, rewinding back until the moment she first arrived in the DMMORPG world of Yggdrasil before they were transported to the new world.
'Oh right, I had a meeting with Sona-senpai and Tsubaki-senpai this morning…'
Aika recalled their conversation during the meeting.
Her "group" had no interest in seizing control, sowing chaos, or getting entangled in the devils' and other supernatural factions' convoluted politics and wars. As long as they weren't provoked, they simply wished to live in peace.
By stating this, Aika and the rest of the group chat members secured a convenient position—one that discouraged others from provoking them or dragging them into troublesome matters when they inevitably arrived in her world for a mission.
She was certain of this after witnessing Sona and Tsubaki's reactions when she mentioned that, in terms of raw power, she was the weakest among her group.
After all, not even the current Lucifer, Rias's brother, could easily mess with a group whose weakest member was on par with a middle-ranked Ultimate class devil.
Though after returning from the Overlord mission, she was no longer at the level of a mere Ultimate Class Devil, and she was no longer the weakest amongst her group.
She wasn't a specialist, such as Lelouch with his Divination magic and C.C with her holy magic, but rather a well-rounder in the group chat.
She possessed a powerful healing and buffing magic from Mahouka, in addition to powerful magic capabilities. And now, with [Great Sage], her Empress of Evil class, World Disaster, True Primordial Empress race, and various other powerful classes and races she received from the Overlord mission, she might be one of the most powerful fighters within the group chat.
At least, she might be able to win against Tatsuya and Erika even with their SSR, given her SSR gives her resistance to Tatsuya's Decomposition, and avoid Erika's Shura skills by kiting her.
Suzuki-san might be tricky, given his ability to summon Phantoms of all members of Ainz Ooal Gown. But, she might still win.
Fighting against Lelouch would be annoying, since he excels in predicting his enemies' moves. While C.C is literally immortal; even if they were to fight, they'll be getting nowhere.
As for Albedo, Aika would've won before she got her SSR. But with how broken her [Weaver of Dreams and Fate] was, she might lose, especially if Albedo were to use her [Dreams of Reality] ability and lock her in an alternate reality where she's the omniscient and nigh-omnipotent Goddess of the realm.
Then, there's her hubby, who was simply too overpowered. Even before the Code Geass and Overlord mission, he's already extremely powerful.
Now, with his Geass that he could use in conjunction with Elemental Sight, and all his abilities from Overlord, he's undoubtedly the strongest in the Group Chat.
'Well, power ranking in the group doesn't really matter~'
Aika shrugged. They're all close friends and comrades; power rankings didn't matter between them.
Their powers were meant to clear the missions given to them, improve each other's lives, and protect each other while they travel to various worlds together.
But now, with their increasing strength, the missions also became increasingly more difficult. And the next mission… there's a good chance that it'll be in her world, since Yuuji's world seemed to be the only normal one amongst them.
With how powerful they were now, if the difficulty of the missions were truly adjusted with their strength, the mission in her world might be… challenging.
'Hah… I hope it's just my overthinking… I don't want to deal with troublesome stuff when my friends are coming to visit!'
But just in case, Aika began going through the shop to browse for some items that might be useful.
She also browsed through the SSRs to see if there's something that would fit Yuuji or herself.
'Oh? This seems interesting…!'
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AN: I hope you guys enjoy this chapter~! Please comment your thoughts~! I would love to hear what you think about it~!!!!
Also, if you'd like to read additional chapters ahead and get a pdf version (Light & Dark), please feel free to check out my at patr_eon.com/verglasx ~!
Thank you~!