Songs in the Void: A Multiversal Score

Hub World, Earth, Japan, Tokyo.

With all the guests having arrived, it did not take long for the food to start disappearing at a worrying rate. Though Tatsuo was not the best cook in the world, he was definitely better than what most of the attendees would ever have the opportunity to eat.

Around the time Tatsuo brought back the members of the [Dimensional Chat], Violet also finished her conversation with Mai. And to everyone's surprise, Mai was smiling quite brightly instead of snarling at all the females around Tatsuo.

On top of that, it did not take long for Violet to disappear with Yakumo after that. Though, their conversation did not last as long as the one she had with Mai.

However, when those two conversations ended, neither Violet, Yakumo, nor Mai would say anything about what they talked about, leaving Tatsuo quite curious. Especially since Mai was being so much friendlier to his female friends.

During the party, Sumire was the most excited, however. She had a great time showing off the house to all the guests. Though, after seeing Tatsuo's room, most of the guests gave him strange looks. He was pretty sure that was because of the stripper pole, though.

It should also be noted that Sumire did not show the training room to the mundane guests. Or rather, those who had no idea about the supernatural. So, although she was aware of the supernatural, Yakumo did not get to see the training room as she was on a tour with her sister and her sister's friends. Everyone else, other than Kenji, got to see it, though.

But Yakumo would have the chance to see the training room in the future. She would still be coming by from time to time to train her psionic powers, after all.

However, the new house was not the actual star of the show. No, instead that position was stolen by Amar'e, Alfonzo's and Elicia's son. The one year old child was just far too cute for most of the females present to resist. As a result, the squeals from the ladies almost never ended, as Amar'e was often seen doing something cute.

The party eventually came to an end, though. And when it did, the guests said their farewells one by one. Yet, there was one who left with a dissatisfied expression. But it was not because of the food or the hospitality. Rather, it was because she did not get answers to any of the questions she had.

But now that the party was over, and the guests were gone, the members of the [Dimensional Chat] were sitting together to discuss the [Mission] now that there were only a few hours left before it started. Meanwhile, the other ladies were all gushing over Amar'e who was sitting in Sumire's lap, about to fall asleep from a day of excitement. {Pic}

"That Emi is kinda stubborn, isn't she?" James asked after Tatsuo returned from showing off the last guest. "I mean, if she wanted answers, a housewarming party like this probably was not the best time to get them, right?"

"Yeah." Alfonzo added with a smile. "I mean, it could have been. But that all depended on Tatsuo. And it was clear that he would be playing host."

"Or the piano." Elicia added. "In fact, I'm surprised you didn't bring Venelana, James. She seems like the type to never miss a chance to hear Tatsuo play the piano."

"Actually, you weren't supposed to be here at all." Tatsuo said with an eyebrow raised. "Didn't you say you had a lot of Satan work to do?"

"Yeah, that was until the [Mission] popped up." James replied with a shrug. "After you left, I went HAM to finish everything last night. That way, I wouldn't have to remember about it after coming back.'

"Contrary to his appearance, James is very competent when it comes to administrative work." Sona said. "He just tries to avoid it like the plague whenever possible."

"Yeah, he even put his manga on hold to get it done." Rias said with a pout. "And I was looking forward to the next chapter."

"What are you drawing now?" Alfonzo asked in a curious tone.

"Demon Slayer- Kimetsu no Yaiba." James said with a smile.

"Hmm… I never read that one.' Lici said while glancing back at Sumire, who was bouncing Amar'e on her lap. "Tatsuo, is that one in this world?"

"Yeah, it is." Tatsuo replied with a nod. "Actually, all the manga he's drawn are in this world."

"Does that mean you've been plagiarizing all your work?" Sona asked with her eyes narrowed sharply.

"Oh, come on, Sona." James replied while rolling his eyes. "I only got connected to this world six months ago. But I've been drawing manga for the last twelve years. Do you really think I could have plagiarized it all?"

"You didn't say you haven't been plagiarizing everything for the last six months, though."  Sona said in a dry tone.

Hearing that, James looked into Sona's eyes. Meanwhile, everyone else was curious about what James would say in response. So, they all watched the two with rapt attention.

"*Sigh* Do you have to act so serious when you're joking around, So-Tan?" James asked in a tired tone. "It's hard to tell sometimes."

"Do. Not. Call. Me. That." Sona said sharply while putting emphasis on every word. A moment later, however, her sharp expression softened into a smile. "But I'm glad you can tell when I'm joking, unlike certain people who have known me just as long."

While speaking the last sentence, Sona pointedly looked at Rias, who could only look away with embarrassment.

"As intriguing as this conversation has been, I believe we have more important matters to discuss." Zelretch said with a smirk on his face. "For example, why are you two, James and Tatsuo, not more scared in this situation?"

"Oh, don't get it twisted." James replied with a bright smile. "I'm absolutely terrified."

"Yeah, me, too." Tatsuo replied in a solemn tone. "Especially with how forceful some of the women in my house can be. I'm almost certain that if I didn't have all those security measures on my room, I'd wake up tied up in someone's bedroom after they got to play with Amar'e."

"What reason do you have to be terrified, James?" Sona asked sharply. "Are you saying you don't want to have children with us?"

"Yeah, what's the reason, James?" Rias asked with her fists planted on her hips. "I suggest you choose your answer very carefully."

"I'm scared for my poor back." James replied while rolling his eyes. "I mean, Devils have notoriously low birth rates. So, I can only imagine the work I'm gonna have to put in to give you girls what you want."

Rias and Sona nodded in approval at James' response. Then, they left the members of the [Dimensional Chat] to discuss what they needed to in favor of going to see Amar'e for a little longer before he fell asleep.

"Alright." Alfonzo said in a solemn tone. "There was something about the [Mission] that confused me once I looked over it again."

"Me, too." Elicia added while raising her hand.

"Yeah, I think we all have the same thought." Akatsuki said while looking at everyone's expressions. "But before we start, do you think we should call Aislynn-San first?"

As she asked her question, she noticed that almost everyone wore the same expressions that suggested they were not sure about something in the [Mission] description. Yet, there was one person that wore a different expression. And that person was the one taking out his smartphone to make the call to Aislynn.

"Tatsuo-Kun, you don't seem to be confused about anything when it comes to the [Mission] description." Akatsuki said in a curious tone.

Hearing that, everyone else turned to look at Tatsuo, as well. Meanwhile, Tatsuo navigated the [Dimensional Chat] to start a video call with Aislynn.

"Honestly, I didn't see anything that was confusing in the description." Tatsuo replied while placing his smartphone on the coffee table in front of him.

A moment after the smartphone was put down, the screen brightened. Then, a holographic image of Aislynn appeared over the coffee table. {Pic}

{"I was wondering how much longer I would have to wait."} Aislynn said while holding a cup of hot chocolate.

"Yeah, the guests stayed a little later than I expected." Tatsuo said nonchalantly. "But we've still got a couple of hours before we're transported automatically. So, things are fine."

"More importantly than that, Aislynn-San, we have a question for you." Akatsuki said, bringing the conversation on track. "Are you aware of what [Mission Note #1] meant when it said our parameters would be lowered to E+ at the beginning of the [Mission]."

"Is that what was confusing everyone?" Tatsuo asked with a dumbfounded expression on his face. "But isn't there a note about that at the bottom of the [Status] page?"

The other members of the [Dimensional chat] fell silent after hearing what Tatsuo had to say. And while most of them were thoroughly confused by his explanation, Aislynn wore an amused smile. Though, she hid it behind her mug of hot chocolate.

"The fuck are you talking about, Dude?" Alfonzo asked after several seconds of silence. "There is no [Status] tab in the [Dimensional Chat] interface."

"Yeah, I know that." Tatsuo replied while tilting his head in confusion. "I'm talking about outside of the [Chat] tab. You know, where you navigate to open the [Chat]."

Once again, the area fell silent with Tatsuo and the other members of the [Dimensional Chat] staring at each other with uncomprehending expressions.

"It would seem Young Tatsuo was granted something different than the rest of us." Zelretch said while stroking his beard.

"Yeah, that's obvious." James replied while rolling his eyes. "Anyway, we can talk about that later. More importantly, can you tell us what this E+ stuff means?"

"Sure…" Tatsuo replied with a somewhat contemplative expression on his face. "Basically, it means the peak of humanity. Most of my [Stats] were at either E or E+ before I went on the first [Mission] to Violet's world. They didn't rise to D- until I unlocked my [Energy Stat]."

{"In terms you would understand, James."} Aislynn interjected. {"E+ would be equivalent to the strongest a human could become before reaching Low-Rank."}

"Yeah, I kinda figured that out." James replied while rolling his eyes again. "I'm not an idiot."

Aislynn only grinned in response before taking another sip of her hot chocolate.

"Why do I have a whole [System] while you all only have the [Dimensional Chat] interface?" Tatsuo asked absent-mindedly.

"Who knows." Elicia replied with a shrug. "But that's probably why you were chosen to be the admin. You're probably special in some way."

"Actually, now that I think about it, what was your original ID in the [Dimensional chat], Tatsuo-Kun?" Violet asked curiously. "You changed it before any of us joined. And since most of our names were rather personal, it might give us a clue about why things are different for you."

{"Yes, please enlighten us."} Aislynn said with a teasing smile. {"I'm sure it would help us understand."}

"You already know the reason, don't you?" James asked Aislynn. "I mean, you said that cryptic stuff yesterday."

{"Hmm? Did I?"} Aislynn asked while tilting her head innocently. {"I cannot recall such a thing."}

Simultaneously, Tatsuo, James, Alfonzo, and Zelretch rolled their eyes, having seen women play innocent far too many times for a retort to even be reasonable.

"Anyway, now everyone knows what the [Stat] means." Tatsuo said, trying his best to change the subject from his former, chuuni, Chat ID. "More importantly, I'm pretty sure none of us will be able to use any of our magic until we get a [Falna]. And that could be a problem since we don't know where or when we'll show up for this [Mission]."

'I can't let them see my [Status], either.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'My Title is just as Chuuni.'

"So, it will be kinda like when we went to Aletia-San's world." Violet replied.

"Hold on, don't just let him change the subject like that." James said with a shit-eating grin spread across his face. "We're still trying to figure out why Tatsuo's got more features than we do. And his original Chat ID is probably the key to figuring it out."

"Dick…" Tatsuo grumbled quietly while glaring at James.

From there, the conversation turned from less of a strategy meeting to everyone ganging up to tease the youngest member of the [Dimensional Chat]. And before they knew it, the timer denoting the beginning of the [Mission] had almost expired. So, in an attempt to make the teasing stop, Tatsuo decisively pressed the [Start Mission] button, causing time around the group to freeze before they were teleported to the [Mission] world.

DanMachi Universe, Lower World, Orario.

*Click!* *Click!* *Click!*

In the city of Orario, commonly referred to as the center of the world, a stunning woman with tan skin, long red hair tied into a braid that reached her knees, golden eyes, and a voluptuous figure wearing a black robe with red accents and gold accessories walked towards the western gate of the city.

Along the way, this woman turned the heads of everyone she passed. And while her beauty played a part in that, most of the attention she drew was because of the aura she emitted without even trying. {Pic}

The aura of divinity.

Yet, not a single person who laid eyes on this stunning goddess fell to pray or prostrate before her. And the reason for that was simple. Seeing gods and goddesses in the city of Orario was a rather common occurrence, as they have been walking among mortals for the last thousand years.

However, that also meant that this woman was not the only deity in the city of Orario.

"Hey! Aislynn, what are you doing in these parts?" A female voice asked while accompanied by the sound of rushing footsteps. "Did you come by to see little ol' me? Aww! I'm touched."

A moment later, the tall, red-haired goddess, Aislynn, was impacted by another woman, also a goddess with light red hair and perpetually squinted redeyes before the newcomer wrapped her arms around Aislynn's with a smile on her face. {Pic}

"I knew I'd see you while I was out this way, Loki." Aislynn said with a grin. "You're just in time. I'm finally going to get the first members of my Familia. And I'd wager they'll be even more impressive than your Ais."

Hearing that, the goddess, Loki, opened her squinted eyes wide with a mix of shock and challenge in her gaze.

"Oh, I definitely have to see them, then." Loki said, her tone a bit sharper, as she closed her eyes once again. "Come on, let's go! Lead the way!"

With that, the two goddesses continued towards the northwestern gate of Orario where a group of ten newcomers just joined the line to enter the city.