At first, most students didn't believe the rumors and continued with their daily routines, dismissing the exaggerated claims as mere gossip.
However, a few curious students, intrigued by the possibility, rushed back to campus to see for themselves whether the described level of beauty was truly as astonishing as claimed.
By the time these students arrived, though, Eriri and her companions had already finished touring the school and were now with Kei Karuizawa.
...
"Yukino-san, Eriri-sama, it's been so long! I'm so happy to see you both again."
The moment she saw Eriri and Yukino, Kei Karuizawa was visibly excited, eagerly circling around them and talking non-stop.
They were currently in the school's gymnasium. Originally, Kei had been playing volleyball with a group of Class D girls when Eriri and Yukino arrived.
To Kei, sports like this were also a form of exercise. Aside from her daily morning and evening training routine, these high-intensity activities helped accelerate the absorption of the energy seed within her body, allowing her to grow stronger at a faster rate.
This combination of exercise and supernatural enhancement explained why, in just half a year, she had transformed from an ordinary Level 1, Stage 2 student into a powerful Level 3, Stage 9 supernatural warrior, now on the verge of breaking into Level 4.
"It's been a while, Karuizawa-san." Yukino smiled gently at Kei, her tone warm and friendly.
After all, they had once fought through life-and-death situations together. Even though Kei hadn't played a crucial role in their past battles, the bond formed through shared adversity remained strong.
Eriri, on the other hand, stepped closer and observed Kei carefully, her intense gaze causing Kei to feel slightly pressured while also making her blush.
Although she knew it was an odd thought, she couldn't help but feel self-conscious under Eriri's scrutiny. Given her growing admiration for Eriri, this situation made her both flustered and excited.
Thankfully, Eriri's examination didn't last long. Soon, she nodded in satisfaction, a pleased smile forming on her lips.
"Well done, Kei. You've been making good use of the energy seed."
Truthfully, Eriri was quite surprised by Kei's progress.
She had expected Kei to reach early Level 3 at best. While rapid growth was understandable for warriors like Shinobu Kocho, Akame, or Kurome—who were used to rigorous training and battle—Kei had always seemed more like the type to prefer leisure and social activities.
Yet, despite that impression, she had remained disciplined and committed to her training.
Pleased with Kei's determination, Eriri made a sudden decision.
"You've done well. I'm impressed. As a reward, I've decided to give you something extra—so keep up the good work."
"Um… can I ask what the reward is?" Kei asked eagerly, raising her hand while looking expectantly at Eriri's captivating face.
"I'm going to plant another energy seed inside you. This one will push you to even greater heights."
The previous energy seed Eriri had given Kei was a standard one, only allowing her to grow up to Level 4, Stage 1 at most.
In this magic-less world of daily life, without the support of an energy seed, Kei Karuizawa's strength might have forever remained at Level 4, Beginner.
Of course, if she were to be invited into the chat group as a friend by Honami Ichinose, things would be different.
However, their friendship had yet to reach the point where Honami would be willing to spend a million points to bring Kei into the chat group.
"I see, that makes sense."
Hearing that the answer from Eriri wasn't what she had hoped for, Kei Karuizawa felt a bit disappointed. But she quickly hid her feelings and put on a happy smile again.
"Just in time—I've been feeling that my strength improvement has slowed down significantly. Eriri-sama granting me another energy seed really helps me a lot. Thank you so much," Kei said gratefully.
Eriri, of course, could see through Kei's thoughts. After all, she wasn't some dense protagonist; otherwise, girls like Arifureta wouldn't be in her life.
"No problem. The stronger you become, the more chances we'll have to meet. And the stronger you are, the longer your lifespan will be. Given enough time, anything is possible, right?" Eriri said with a chuckle.
"Yes! I understand! I'll do my best!" Kei responded excitedly.
This very obvious hint was not lost on Kei, and an intense determination ignited in her heart. Now, nothing could stop her from getting stronger.
At this moment, Honami Ichinose also smiled and chimed in, "Wow, congratulations, Kei!"
Her eyes showed a hint of envy. If possible, she, too, wanted to obtain one of these strength-enhancing energy seeds.
"Thank you, Honami, and thank you for conveying my request to Eriri-sama," Kei said gratefully.
Ever since Eriri had sent her back to this world, Kei had felt a lingering sense of unease, as if she might never see Eriri and Yukino again.
So when Honami Ichinose suddenly approached her and told her about the chat group and Eriri, the excitement in Kei's heart was beyond words.
"It's nothing, really! We're friends, right? Helping each other is only natural," Honami waved her hands dismissively.
"Alright, let's wrap up this conversation here. Kei, are those people peeking over there your friends?" Eriri asked, stroking Kei's head as she glanced at the small heads peeking out from the gymnasium entrance.
Black hair, brown hair, blue hair, red hair—there was quite a variety.
But upon sensing Eriri's gaze, the little heads quickly ducked back inside.
Since Eriri was a few centimeters taller than Kei, there was nothing unnatural about her patting Kei's head.
And Kei didn't resist Eriri's touch at all; in fact, she looked extremely satisfied.
Hearing Eriri's question, Kei immediately reacted.
"Ah, you mean them? They're my classmates. I suppose you could call them friends," Kei said without even turning around.
She had no intention of looking back and confirming, because she wanted to keep Eriri's hand on her head for as long as possible.
However, just a few seconds later, Eriri still withdrew her hand, making Kei feel a bit disappointed.
As for the identities of the girls who had been peeking at them, Eriri already knew.
With long, straight black hair and a haughty personality, Suzune Horikita.
With shoulder-length brown hair, an energetic yet secretly cunning nature, Kikyo Kushida.
With long, straight blue hair, a high forehead, and a beauty mark near her eye, Haruka Hasebe.
And with long red hair styled into low twin tails, along with red-framed glasses, Airi Sakura.
At that moment, the heads that had been peeking from the gym entrance finally stepped out in full view.
"Yo, Kei, who are these super gorgeous girls?" Kikyo Kushida greeted cheerfully, her eyes full of curiosity. "And they're even wearing our school uniforms! Are they new transfer students? But I never heard of this school accepting transfers."
Though Kikyo Kushida had a scheming nature, she had settled down somewhat under Kei Karuizawa's leadership, no longer causing unnecessary trouble.
"Hmm." Kei chuckled and nodded. "But they're not transfer students."
She then proceeded to introduce Eriri and Yukino briefly to the four girls.
After finishing her introductions, it was naturally time to introduce the four girls to Eriri and Yukino.
"Eriri-sama, Yukino-san, these girls are Kikyo Kushida, Suzune Horikita, Haruka Hasebe, and Airi Sakura. I was just playing volleyball with them."
Kei glanced at each of them in turn as she spoke.
Hearing Kei Karuizawa address Eriri with "sama," all four girls instinctively froze for a moment.
The honorific "sama" was typically reserved for someone of vastly superior status or strength.
In their eyes, Kei Karuizawa was already an almost superhuman figure. If she was referring to Eriri as "sama," then that meant Eriri's abilities must be utterly unfathomable. The realization made them unconsciously tense up.
Suppressing her nervousness, Kikyo Kushida put on her usual bright smile and greeted them. "Eriri-sama, I'm Kikyo Kushida. It's a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Kikyo or Kushida, whichever you like."
For a brief moment, she had considered trying to use Eriri to free herself from Kei Karuizawa's control. However, after seeing Eriri pat Kei's head so intimately earlier, she immediately dismissed the thought. It was clear that Eriri and Kei shared an extraordinary relationship.
After Kikyo Kushida, Haruka Hasebe, Suzune Horikita, and Airi Sakura all took turns introducing themselves as well.
"Nice to meet you all," Eriri replied with a light smile, though she didn't show much interest.
Though all four were considered beautiful, compared to the likes of Yukino or Arifureta, they paled in comparison.
Even Kei Karuizawa and Honami Ichinose, whose appearances had been enhanced by their supernatural energies, now vastly outshone them.
But that wasn't the main reason. The truth was that Eriri simply wasn't that interested in them.
Due to Kei Karuizawa's growing reputation over the past six months, most unrelated students avoided the gym whenever she used it.
This was why, despite Eriri and the others talking at the entrance, they did not attract much attention.
...
"Kei, just the five of you playing volleyball in the gym?"
"Actually, there are others. Shinohara and Satou went to buy drinks, so they aren't here right now."
By now, Eriri and the others had entered the gym, but aside from their group, the place was empty.
The gymnasium's layout was similar to other schools, featuring a basketball court, a volleyball court, and a storage room for sports equipment.
Of course, this gym was just one of many in Advanced Nurturing High School, but it was practically claimed by Kei Karuizawa and her group.
Though some students resented this, none dared voice their complaints.
After all, they still remembered Ryuen Kakeru's miserable defeat. No one wanted to end up like him, beaten senseless by Kei.
Even the school administration had started paying close attention to her performance over the past six months.
"Kei Kei is just too strong! Even when facing all of us, you never lose, and you don't even break a sweat. It's almost inhuman. I have no idea how you gained such insane physical abilities," said Haruka Hasebe, her tone filled with admiration.
Haruka Hasebe was a rather solitary person who generally avoided forming deep social connections and preferred spending time alone.
However, beautiful girls were always popular, and with her outstanding figure, Haruka naturally attracted attention from male students, something she found irritating.
But once Kei Karuizawa took control of Class D, even she couldn't completely stay uninvolved, so she gradually became more engaged in class activities.
Haruka also had a habit of giving people nicknames, rarely addressing her classmates formally.
Thus, "Kei Kei" was the nickname she had given Kei Karuizawa.
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