Chapter 32: Destroying a Civilization—Sadly, No Reward

Takumi's robotic army scoured the entire world. Once every corner had been confirmed cleared, the robots began to retreat one by one. The fleet of ships, now filled to capacity with lolis, returned to the Star-Destroyer. These ships moved at incredible speed. Even at full capacity, a round trip took no more than twenty minutes. After all, they were built using technology from the Honkai universe. Transporting the girls wasn't the problem—finding them had been the real challenge. Thankfully, most of them lived in or near towns. Anywhere there was life, there were lolis. The rest were hidden in places like sewers. Even the ones who hadn't known what was happening were quickly brought up to speed by the robots. Once they understood, they willingly agreed to come along. Some caretakers even chose to accompany them. This world didn't have many settlements. But with cooperation from the robotic units, Takumi gathered nearly every cursed child within a single day. Feeding so many was a challenge. Luckily, the robots handled most logistics. And Takumi's Imaginary Space had abundant food supplies. The now-idle Star-Destroyers were returned into his Imaginary Space. When the last ship arrived, Takumi prepared to depart. As the final ships left orbit and the massive Star-Destroyers disappeared from the sky, a wave of relief washed over the population. This day had been pure agony. Now, finally, the terror seemed to have passed. Internet access was restored, and people rushed to speak freely again. Online chatter was flooded with speculation: "Otherworld invaders," "cursed children," "the Holy Empress was taken and hasn't returned." Even the news of the Tendou family's destruction was overshadowed. Nobody seemed to care. Takumi observed this world one last time. His eyes grew cold. His aura thickened. "A parting gift, then\\~" Takumi was in a fantastic mood. He'd probably never return here. Even Miori Shiba had come with him. There was nothing left to hold him back. And so, the Honkai descended. Corruption spread through every corner of the world. The Gastrea would slowly be mutated by this new force. They were already a nightmare. Now, with Honkai energy? Heh\\~ With the cursed children gone, this world was doomed to a slow death. Add in the Honkai? Total destruction was just days away. Too bad he didn't possess a Tree of Imaginary Numbers. If he had, destroying a civilization might have earned him some cosmic reward. But Takumi's End Cocoon didn't come from the Tree—it was entirely his own creation. So wiping out a civilization gave him no real benefit. No matter. Satisfaction was reward enough. Having completed his work, Takumi turned to leave. Rather than linger, he needed to return and begin organizing his new world. Building a proper civilization, becoming stronger—that was his true path. He had only spent one day in this world. But to its people, it had felt like a dream—or a nightmare. Though Takumi had left, the damage he caused would remain. The Gastrea had not reacted during his presence. Animals are far more perceptive than humans. They had sensed Takumi's overwhelming threat and frozen in fear. Even the colossal airborne variants had dared not move. But now that Takumi was gone, the Gastrea—who had played dead all day—finally relaxed. And then... A new power fused with them. One that drove them to crave total destruction. ... The world of Black Bullet would now spiral down a path that no longer concerned Takumi. He had already returned home. Takumi: \\["Made it back safe."] \\["Exploiting system bugs really works!"] He was delighted. With a single teleportation talisman, he had transported millions. Happy\\~! If he had to pay for that many individually, it might've been impossible. But now? Bug exploited! Chika Fujiwara: \\["So jealous\\~!"] Bronya: \\["With that, your world finally has people. Not bad."] Indeed, Takumi's world now had a population. According to Miori's earlier report, it was likely several million. Zhongli: \\["With that settled, I can finally rest easy."] Seeing that the exploit worked, Zhongli felt relief. He could now prepare Liyue in the same way—store everyone inside spatial devices and evacuate as needed. Even if Teyvat collapsed, his people would have a refuge. This brought him great comfort. Miori Shiba: \\["You there yet? Open the portal already!"] Stop chatting, okay? If you're already home, then let us out! They were still stuck in Takumi's Imaginary Space. Seeing her message, Takumi quickly replied: Takumi: \\["On it!"] He stopped browsing the chat and opened a portal. He was currently in his mountain-top villa. Below lay the city he had built. He had designed it like this on purpose. With a flash, he appeared above the city. Then, he snapped his fingers. Instantly, the dark city lit up. Robots across the area activated and began working. Only then did Takumi open the spatial gates. He issued commands to the interior robots—guide the people out. The children inside the portal grew excited. One by one, they stepped out, guided by robotic escorts. Takumi watched them descend and began uploading the data he brought from the other world into the city's system. The robots got to work issuing ID cards and assigning residences.