Eternal Saṃsāra: The Wanderer of Worlds [240] Encountering Problems After Problems

[240] Encountering Problems After Problems

Chapter 240: Encountering Problems After Problems

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The Hoshino household felt almost like a different world as we slipped into it through a portal I had opened. The familiar scent of ho greeted as I stepped out into the courtyard, Ai and Ranefer at my side. I could hear the faint chatter from around the house, coming from the exorcist girls and the tiger cubs.

Quetzalcoatl shifted beside , her chains clinking softly as she stretched her arms out. “Cutie, undo these, would you?” She raised her wrists, bound by the divine restraints Tezcatlipoca had slapped on her.

Her tone was casual, but I could sense the frustration behind her words. I guessed she hated being shackled, even if she didn’t say it out loud.

“Yeah, hold on,” I replied, placing my hand on it and reaching into my Void Storage. Undoing divine restraints wasn’t exactly a walk in the park, but this wasn’t my first ti dealing with this sort of thing. With so effort, I pulled the chains into my storage, feeling my Qi drain. It was not enough to be a problem, but it was still a lot.

Once free, Quku let out a loud yawn, stretching her arms above her head like she didn’t have a care in the world. “Ahh, finally,” she muttered and then looked around, turning to face . “So, what’s next? The world’s going to hell, and we’re about to see so crazy shit out there. What’s your plan? You did promise to make stronger, so I wanna move my fists already.”

I frowned slightly, considering her words. She wasn’t wrong. Because of the Icons that descended recently, the gods started getting serious about their power plays. I had a bunch of enemies among those said gods. I had to establish myself as a strong force to keep them at bay. I couldn’t spend every day fighting one pantheon after the other, so it was high ti I took this sect seriously.

“The next step is to establish a na,” I said, looking at her and then the other two won. “Not for , but for the Sect.”

Truthfully, my na had spread far enough. Killing Thor, pissing off multiple pantheons, wrecking half of Vedas in one night—I’d made my point. But that wasn’t enough. A single person’s na alone wouldn’t secure the future I was building.

My Sect needed to rise, and that ant gaining more power, more allies, and more influence. To begin with, Nexus of Eternity wasn’t just about surviving; it was about creating sothing that could stand the test of ti. Sothing… bigger than .

Well, my na, I an. I doubted there could be anything bigger than .

I envisioned a Sect that could rival the gods and their pantheons, with people like Ranefer and Quetzalcoatl already behind it. I wasn’t stupid—I knew we’d have to fight our way to the top, and that was why we’d need even more people.

Quku raised an eyebrow, her lips curling into a smirk. “A forr Chief God on your payroll already, isn’t that enough na backing this sect thingy?”

“Well, it helps,” I chuckled, “but I need more. More like you.” She scoffed, amused that I wasn’t satisfied with having a literal chief god on retainer. But that was the minimum kind of influence I needed to have if I wanted to survive in the coming storm.

“You already got more,” Ranefer, lounging casually beside us, chid in with a sly grin. “Don’t forget the super satan you’ve got hanging around~ I’m probably stronger than her at this point,” she looked at Quetzalcoatl who grinned with her sharp teeth.

I looked between the two, making sure they didn't break into a fight. Regardless, she was right that I did have so heavy hitters already, but I really needed more. I had a few elders in the sect, naly Ai, Ranefer, and now Quetzalcoatl—but they weren’t enough. At least double this number would do.

But before I could add sothing, Ranefer's gaze turned more serious. “Speaking of which, don’t you think I should head back to the Underworld? My people probably need there with everything going on.”

She had a point. As much as I wanted to keep my allies close, the Underworld was in chaos. Egypt’s Ogdoad wasn’t a weak pantheon. Serafall and the other Satans were probably doing their best to hold things together, but they couldn’t be everywhere at once.

“You’re right,” I admitted, nodding. “But it’s dangerous down there. You sure you want to go back now?”

Her gaze flicked to , and she sighed dramatically. “Ahhh, I really should, but I don’t really want to…” She paused, her eyes locking onto mine. “Unless you’re planning to co with ?”

“....” I considered it for a mont. The idea of visiting the Underworld didn’t seem as aningless as it might have in the past. Serafall could use help. I owed her at least that much for helping during hard tis. But…

“As much as I’d like to, I can’t,” I said after a mont. “I’ve got enough on my plate here, Japan is dangerous. And I’m pretty sure Sera and Sirzechs would be happy to have keep their sisters safe, too. Oh, and I pissed off the Norse yesterday. Pretty sure they’re going to be knocking on my door any day now.”

“You did what? You didn’t tell ,” Ai, who had been quiet this whole ti, looked at shocked. I shrugged.

Ranefer let out a nervous laugh. “Odin’s going to smash our front door down? Sounds… fun.”

Ai shot her a look when she said ‘our,’ but didn’t say anything. She turned to glare at , and I cleared my throat. “So yeah… I’ll be staying in Japan for a while,” I added. “Besides, I’ve got so personal things to handle. Akane ssaged earlier. She wants to et.”

Ai frowned upon hearing that part. Her gaze softened. I could tell she understood what that eting ant. She might have even known this would happen given the situation between and Akane.

“It’s fine,” Ai finally said, patting the back of my head. “You should go see her. But call the others back first. m-Cho’s been dying to et Quetzalcoatl, you know.”

I nodded, appreciating how easily my mother understood things. She didn’t need a long explanation to know what was going on in my head. I’d deal with Akane soon enough, but first, I had to make sure things were stable here.

“I was wondering why my mmy hadn’t gone to save ~” Quetzalcoatl made a dramatic sound, falling onto a couch.

“I’ll go et the girls,” I ignored her and said, pushing off the ground and flying up into the sky. Ai and Ranefer waved off while Quku just stretched out lazily, already making herself comfortable in my ho.

The flight to Kuoh didn’t take long, and thankfully, the place was still in one piece. No surprise attacks, no gods crashing the gates. I found the girls where I expected them—m-Cho, Ruby, and Tsubasa—working to keep the area secure with the devil girls around them.

They were doing their job, and it felt good to know that I could rely on them.

****

Later.

Akane Kurokawa sat quietly in the corner of the café, her hands cradling a warm cup of coffee. The bitter scent of the liquid filled the air, but she barely noticed it. Her eyes were glued to the empty seat across from her, her mind wandering far from the café.

It had been months since she’d seen him, and the last few weeks had felt like years. He hadn’t bothered to reach out, not even when she knew he was back. She had to reach out to him first, as always…

A faint chi echoed through the café as the door opened. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked up, keeping her expression in check.

[Image Here]

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