Although Kiri was eager to return and help her teammates, there was no doubt she didn't want Ryuji to end up dying a pointless death in this world either.
If both she and Lux left, then what would happen to him?
What if that demon woman came kills him? What if more trouble showed up during the next Blood Moon? There were too many possibilities to ignore.
Even though considering all this was probably useless — especially after seeing the overwhelming power Rias displayed — Kiri couldn't help but worry.
Because no matter what... she cared.
Kiri didn't want him to just randomly drop dead the moment she left.
"You don't need to worry about my safety," Ryuji replied casually.
Of course, he knew Kiri didn't realize he could travel between worlds. If the energy cost for doing so wasn't too high, he could easily leave this place anytime he wanted — there was no need for him to stay here waiting for the Blood Moon to descend.
"You say that like it's nothing, but I really don't want to come back and find you turned into something weird," Kiri sighed deeply.
Not far away, Lux tightened her grip on her staff. She instantly understood what Kiri was trying to say — that she wanted Lux to stay here for a while longer.
For Lux, this was like being stuck in a trolley dilemma — no matter which option she chose, it felt like the wrong one.
But Ryuji didn't give her the chance to struggle over it for too long.
"Well, it's not like we have much choice anyway," he shrugged. "The fifth day is the Blood Moon. When that time comes, even leaving might not be an option. So let's not waste time talking about stuff we can't change."
He stood up, stretching his body casually.
"By the way, Miss Lux, Miss Rias... you've both reached level 50 by now, haven't you?"
He looked at the two ladies, and both of them nodded in response.
After all, with how many zombie birds they had fought, there was no doubt both of them had already reached level 50. Rias even spoke up, directly revealing her current level.
"I'm at level 78 now. Does this level actually do anything? And those skill points... do they really make us stronger?"
She sounded genuinely curious.
"They do increase your power," he explained. "Right now, I've got stamina and recovery speed about ten times that of a normal person. But it's not a simple, direct boost to your strength — it's more like a percentage-based enhancement."
He could feel it very clearly — probably because he was still weak compared to them.
"I see... Let me give it a try."
Rias tapped the air in front of her, interacting with the system. In the next moment, the expression on the beautiful redhead's face shifted slightly.
"It really does make me stronger... but just like you said, it's not purely physical. It's like... a conceptual enhancement."
Rias focused on sensing the changes in her body. She had always been someone deeply attuned to power, so she quickly grasped what Ryuji meant — even more clearly than he did.
When she used what felt like half her strength, her arm responded with a force equal to what used to require her full power. Yet, strangely enough, it still felt like she was exerting herself completely.
It was a bizarre sensation — as if this power wasn't truly coming from within her, but rather being supplied by the rules of this world itself.
Curious, Rias tried adding a point into endurance. Instantly, she could feel her mana, stamina recovery rate, and even her body's natural healing speed double.
"Interesting..."
She raised her slender fingers and casually conjured a fireball. What surprised her was that even though she only used half the mana she normally would, the fireball still formed perfectly — no weaker than before.
Under the gaze of everyone around her, Rias casually tossed the fireball in her hand.
The next moment, they all watched as the fireball exploded brilliantly in the distance.
"...Its power doubled. And the source of that power—it just appeared out of nowhere. It's like... I've become the ruler of this world."
Rias let out a small, admiring sigh, then turned her gaze toward Ryuji.
"These skill points are ridiculously powerful... but considering the dangers of this world, I suppose having this kind of strength is only natural."
Ryuji looked at the massive crater left by her attack and couldn't help but nod. He could more or less guess what Rias had done. But clearly, even though he had also spent points on his stats, the effects weren't nearly as overwhelming as what Rias experienced.
"I think I'm starting to like this world," Rias said with a soft laugh.
Without hesitation, she dumped all her remaining points into strength. And just like that, she summoned another enormous fireball in her hand — even larger than before — and hurled it into the distance.
Boom!
The fireball exploded on impact with a force at least twenty times greater than her usual magic! And yet... she had only used the same amount of mana as she would for an ordinary fireball.
A violent shockwave swept across the area, rippling through the surroundings.
And it didn't stop there — her mana and stamina were now recovering at twice their original speed!
This was completely different from Ryuji's experience.
Sure, he had added points into endurance too. He could feel it — tasks that used to take all his strength now only required half the effort. But the problem was... his "strength" itself was still limited by his human body.
For people like Rias, however — those who wielded supernatural energy — it was a whole different story.
Halving her energy consumption didn't just mean less strain. It effectively doubled both her output and her ability to sustain herself in battle.
And after adding just a few points into strength on top of that? Her destructive power and burst strength practically doubled again...
Rias had only spent two points so far — and already, her combat potential had skyrocketed by nearly four times!
"This world is fascinating... If I max out both strength and endurance," Rias mused aloud, "then assuming a single spell normally has a power level of 10... the final multiplier would be 10 × 11 × 11 — that's 1,210 times the original power! That's insane!"
At that level, even a basic fireball spell could completely obliterate everything in its path.
And if she added her power of destruction on top of that?
Wiping out an entire continent wouldn't even be a challenge!
Such exponential growth could easily elevate her to a level comparable to her own brother — a being of overwhelming might.
And the craziest part?
It all seemed so simple to achieve.
All she had to do was keep hunting zombies... do a few straightforward quests... and steadily rack up more skill points.
"This world really is something else," she said with a smirk.
Ryuji had no idea just how ridiculously powerful Rias had become, especially with the added factor of magic in play.
As far as he knew, he was still just that unlucky office worker who happened to have strength about eleven times greater than an average white collar worker.
Honestly, if Rias hadn't mentioned it, he would have kept thinking he only had about ten times normal strength... After all, the increase near the end didn't feel all that noticeable.
The truth was — with Rias here, the balance was completely broken.
"However..."
Rias clenched her hand, the joy on her face slowly fading away.
"This power… comes with a price."
She looked down at her palm. Thanks to her familiarity with contracts, she had noticed it immediately after spending her skill points — a new contract had quietly settled onto her body.
"The more I use the power of this world, the weaker the mark of my original world becomes. If that mark disappears completely... I'll no longer belong to my home world. I'll become a part of this world — and I won't be able to go back. And..."
Her eyes closed slightly as she focused, sensing what Ryuji could not.
As a devil accustomed to dealing with contracts, she could clearly perceive the contents of this particular one.
"This world is broken — that's why it's become so twisted. It's crying out for help, desperately seeking a new ruler to guide it back to stability.
But unfortunately... it's already beyond saving.
This place is saturated with malice, soaked in the aftermath of countless tragedies. The original powers meant to help humanity overcome their crises... have all been destroyed by that damage.
What we're using now… are just leftover fragments — remnants of what once was."
Her voice grew quiet, tinged with a hint of melancholy.
"And this power... once we leave this world, it will completely disappear."
Rias opened her eyes, calm yet unwavering.
"In other words — as long as I stay here, I can keep growing stronger, perhaps even infinitely so. But if I choose to return to my original world... everything I've gained here will vanish without a trace."
She turned to look at Ryuji, her gaze clear and resolute.
"This is the price of power — to gain strength, you must become a part of this world. And if you want to leave it all behind... you must be prepared to lose everything you've obtained here."
When Rias finished speaking, Ryuji and Kiri exchanged a glance.
Neither of them had felt anything like what Rias described.
He figured it probably had something to do with Rias being the current strongest "Master of Dimensions."
But the more he thought about it... he realized that when he had become a Master of Dimensions himself, he'd never felt anything like that either.
"Maybe it's a level thing?"
Ryuji wasn't sure. But in the end, he guessed it was probably because Rias had climbed to a level of power far beyond his own.
"That's why I'm not really interested in spending skill points anymore," Rias said with a relaxed smile. "If I fully accept the power of this world... I'll be stuck here forever. But doing quests together with you guys should still be fine. Better to be prepared, after all."
Ryuji didn't want to dwell on complicated stuff like that either. So, without further thought, he led the group to the nearest store to pick up and share a few quests.
The quests were ridiculously simple — so simple that he didn't even need to lift a finger.
The moment they encountered zombies, the hyper-motivated Rias and Kiri had already taken them down effortlessly.
Meanwhile, Ryuji happily teamed up with Lux to scavenge supplies from nearby rooms.
And then—
"HAHAHAHA! Look at these three dumbasses!"
Kiri burst out laughing without holding back, leaning on her rocket launcher like a queen of chaos.
The reason?
One of them was holding a roll of duct tape, another gripping a magazine, and the last one clutching a first-aid kit.
Kiri howled with laughter like she'd just seen the funniest thing in the world.
~~~~~~~~
Bonus chapter target: 100 PS.