Epic Of Caterpillar

Chapter 2800 - 2801: Whatʼs The Purpose Of This Place?

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”I bought a bunch of snacks for my friends, but there are still plenty left. Would you like some?” I offered them a bag full of treats. Erikaʼs eyes lit up as she pulled out a large bag of chips and a can of soda, smiling brightly.

”Hey, youʼre not half bad!” Erika said, nodding as she immediately began munching and sipping.

”Oh, you got the limited-edition banana pudding?” Harumi asked, picking it up. ”Can I have it?”

”Of course!” I replied, offering the gentlest, most sincere smile I could manage.

”Thanks,” Harumi said softly, digging in with a spoon she apparently carried in her pocket at all times.

”Whoa, you even brought a katsu sandwich?” Frank exclaimed.

”Yes, this oneʼs for you, Frank-kun,” I said with a shy smile, blushing slightly. ”Please enjoy it.”

”A-Ahh! Thank you...” Frank blushed in return, laughing awkwardly as he accepted the sandwich. ”Hm, itʼs still warm, like it was just made. How did you manage that?”

”I have a small inventory ring,” I explained. ”Itʼs an old relic from my family. I found it in my grandmaʼs closet.”

”Huh~ those relics go for millions,” Erika said. ”You should be careful not to show it off, Kireina.”

”Okay, got it! Thanks for the tip, Erika. Iʼm really clueless about this kind of stuff...” I giggled awkwardly.

”Hey, Kireina, what about me?” Matsuo asked. ”Donʼt I get something too?”

”Oh right, Matsuo! How could I forget you? Here, I found this Valentineʼs chocolate they were selling,” I said, handing it to him.

”Ah no, this is for White Day. That was last month, hahaha!” Matsuo laughed, looking a bit embarrassed. ”In Japan, we celebrate White Day in March, after Valentineʼs Day. On Valentineʼs, girls give chocolate to the boys they like. On White Day, the boys return the favor.”

”Oh! I see. Japanese culture is so cool!” I said, clapping my hands.

”H-Haha... Iʼm glad you appreciate it,” Matsuo said, accepting the chocolate. ”Here, you can have one... just kidding.”

”Thank you, Matsuo. Letʼs celebrate White Day anyway!” I said, smiling.

”Weʼre a month late, but... haha, why not?” Matsuo laughed along.

As we enjoyed lunch, I overheard some of the students whispering nearby.

”That lucky bastard Matsuo...”

”I want chocolate from Kireina-chan too!”

”Aaaghh! I never thought Iʼd want to be Matsuo so badly!”

”Seriously...!”

They all nodded in agreement, and I couldnʼt help but chuckle to myself.

After lunch, I returned to my seat. My wives began speaking to me through telepathy.

”Wow, you really pulled that off,” Nesiphae laughed.

”Masta... did you really have to cry like that?” Rimuru asked.

”I suppose it was a good way to sway them,” Zehe said with a nod. ”You even used your popularity to get the other students to pressure those girls into being nicer.”

”Huh, Iʼm not really into emotional manipulation,” Brontes yawned. ”But Iʼm glad it worked out in the end.”

”Haha, I think Kireina-sama has become an expert in emotional tactics,” Lilith chuckled. ”It was adorable how easily they fell for it. This world might be on a higher cosmic level than any weʼve visited—even Genesis—but its people are surprisingly ordinary and gullible.”

”Yeah, though thereʼs a small issue now...” I murmured.

”Hm?” Rimuru tilted her head.

”Itʼs about Mammon...”

I explained what had happened with Mammon and how it might have been partly my fault for letting Nurse Lucy provoke him.

”So thereʼs a chance he became that girl Harumiʼs brother?!” Brontes asked. ”Thatʼs kind of nice. Wouldnʼt it be more convenient?”

”Yeah, it would,” Rimuru agreed.

”But I wonder... when we arrived here, we merged with our parallel selves and became attached to our families. I just hope Mammon doesnʼt forget who we are—or forget about you, Kireina,” Nesiphae sighed.

”I hope so too,” I said quietly.

”Well, if he ever crosses the line, we can always pay him a visit,” Zehe said with a sly smile. ”For now, letʼs focus on hunting down those Yakuza for invitation letters. You handle befriending them and inviting Frank, Kireina.”

”Yeah, Iʼm on it,” I nodded. ”I already sent the coordinates of the Yakuza clans to our group chat. Theyʼre just a bunch of thugs anyway. Chaos Gate would be better off without them.”

”Alright, thanks,” Zehe said. ”So, when are you visiting our families?”

”Ah, yeah! I want you to visit mine too, Masta!” Rimuru added. ”I think youʼll really like them.”

”Okay, how about this week? Iʼll start tomorrow and try to make time each day,” I offered.

”You donʼt have to push yourself. Youʼre busy,” Brontes said. ”And... even though Iʼve grown fond of my family, I still wonder if this world is real.”

”Itʼs supposed to be real...” I replied.

”Yes, but... havenʼt you thought about it? Even if itʼs physical and not a dream, what if it all collapses eventually? If we find the key and ʼclearʼ the dungeon, maybe everything here will vanish,” Brontes said.

”Hm...” I nodded. ”The key is supposed to open the gateway to the next floor. Iʼm not sure if that would destroy the current world or not.”

”A dungeon where each floor is an entire parallel world with billions of people...” Zehe mused. ”Whatʼs the purpose of creating all this?”

”There must be something the creators are after,” Nesiphae said. ”Still, our top priority is finding those weʼve lost in this world.”

”Iʼve sensed a few things myself,” I said, gazing out the window. ”Energy flows... this world, and maybe the rest of the dungeon, might be part of a massive cosmic formation. Maybe theyʼre not just drawing power from it, but also trying to harvest some kind of energy, element, or resource that can only emerge under specific conditions.”

”Like what?” Rimuru asked.

”Maybe... the power of Fate,” Zehe suggested. ”Just a theory, though.”

”Fate?” I echoed. ”Now that you mention it...”

I cycled through various vision modes, trying to detect something.

But since I was still in training, I couldnʼt fully access the Skills and Abilities tied to my System.

Still, I could faintly sense a strange, invisible current—barely perceptible, but there.

Is that what Zehe meant?

”Yes, itʼs just a theory,” Zehe repeated. ”But Fate, and the Attraction Force it creates, is said to bring about miracles and alter reality itself. Maybe, by recreating entire worlds at such high cosmic levels, theyʼre harvesting vast amounts of Fate—generated by the countless interactions of billions of people, all operating at elevated cosmic frequencies. Nowhere else in the universe could produce that.”

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