Unlimited Ambition

"Why?" I asked, puzzled.

"Because Haruhi Suzumiya should no longer be able to create a subspace of the same size."

"How could that be?! For someone with the power of an entire plane, this should be a piece of cake!" I asked, slightly surprised.

“Haruhi Suzumiya is not a god, but just an ordinary individual who was lucky enough to be chosen to bear the power of a plane.” Yuki continued to explain: “It’s like a child holding the nuclear launch button, which is extremely dangerous.”

“But some changes have happened before that… and there wasn’t a problem, was there?” I was a little agitated, and I sat up from Yuki’s lap, raising my voice slightly.

“It’s probably a difference in degree,” Yuki explained. “Slightly altering the nature of some things and creating a fully-equipped subspace the size of a galaxy are worlds apart in terms of difficulty.” Yuki said this, then poured herself a cup of tea. She blew on it, took a sip, and then…

“Excessive use of this power will lead to the blurring of one’s own existence. To put it simply, it means being assimilated by the power of the plane, losing one’s own existence, and becoming a part of that power. In fact, assimilation has already begun from the moment she obtained this power.” Nagato Yuki said this casually, and then poured me a cup of tea.

"Will I die?"

"will die."

...That's really "good news." My migraine symptoms have worsened.

Yuki looked at me and stood up naturally. Then she took out painkillers and bottled mineral water from the drawer next to her.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

After undergoing self-suggestion therapy, I felt a little better. Then I asked, "Isn't there any way to remedy this?"

“Yes.” Yuki’s words gave me hope: “One is to prevent her from overusing this power again. It’s best if things like this never happen again. According to my calculations, if Haruhi Suzumiya’s tolerance is 100, then what she’s used now should be more than 50. In other words, we must ensure that the power she uses next does not exceed the total amount she has used before.”

"Anything else?" I thought about it for a moment, then decided that this was quite unreliable. Although Kasuga's current behavior was not bad, and she had toned it down considerably compared to before—probably a lingering effect from her time in the subspace—I guessed—it was unlikely that someone as human as her would use such a power. And it wasn't like she could simply choose not to use it. In fact, Kasuga herself didn't even know she possessed such a convenient power.

"Also, we can make Haruhi Suzumiya herself stronger. If her soul becomes strong enough to contain the power of another dimension, then it won't matter," Yuki said, offering her second method.

That sounds pretty good. And that woman seems to have some talent... I don't know if she can reach the angel level in a short time. But at least it will allow her to last longer.

"Are these the only two opinions? Is there nothing else?" I asked.

Yuki shook her head: "These are the only two options for now." Then she added, "If I think of any other solutions, I'll let you know."

"Actually, I've also thought of a method," I said with a chuckle. "Although it's a little difficult, it's a good method that solves the problem once and for all."

Yuki didn't speak, but her face displayed just the right amount of curiosity. It was as if she were saying, "What is it? Tell me."

"It's about—extracting the power of the plane directly from Hou Haruhi's body!" I said.

"Don't worry, it's impossible—" Yuki poured cold water on me: "Unless she dies, you won't get that power—and even if you're ruthless enough, you'll only get half of the power of the plane in the end."

"Huh?! Half?!"

“That’s right. Right after we emerged from the subspace, half of Haruhi Suzumiya’s dimensional power was lost.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Summer Vacation Stay

So, the next morning, Chunri rolled her eyes as she looked at the three books I had written all night: "A Quick Way to Cultivate Taoist Arts," "Easy-to-Understand Modern Magic," and "One Hundred Questions about Soul Knowledge."

"How is it? It's all my hard work. Chunri, cultivate diligently. With your talent and my guidance, you should achieve some success in three months, form your Golden Core in six months, and be able to transcend tribulation in another year—"

"Are you an idiot?" Kasuga finally blurted out, then regretted it: "I mean... no, that's not what I meant... Anyway, I'm so sorry, Kyon, please don't be angry."

"...I'm sorry, it's my fault." I said, putting my hand to my forehead.

It seems that although Haruhi is particularly enthusiastic about supernatural phenomena, she is not the kind of person who would easily believe in the homemade cultivation materials that her childhood friend provides—even though they are all real—and absolutely effective.

"Hahaha... Haruhi, don't take it so seriously. Kyon isn't the kind of man who gets angry so easily—and Kyon too. Don't tease Haruhi like that. Did you receive some kind of toxic radio wave? How could you so confidently pull out something like this?"

The one laughing heartily and smoothing things over there was Tsuruya-senpai, who had replaced Koizumi Itsuki. Incidentally, she is also the heiress of the Tsuruya Group and one of the important executives of the esper group. She is a rather generous and capable woman (according to Nagato Yuki). Moreover, she is one of Mikuru's friends in "this era".

Although I can't recall exactly when she joined us on city patrols, filming movies, or playing baseball, she was definitely a wonderful person. She would be a great girlfriend, lover, or wife. She's the kind of woman who could forgive her husband's infidelity with a smile.

Therefore, even though we only spent a few hours together, my feelings for her have already surpassed those for her ex, Koizumi Itsuki. I'm sure everyone feels the same way. Compared to those squinty-eyed, foxy gay guys, this energetic and cheerful senior is much more likable.

Speaking of which, she was the one who organized this summer camp entirely. The location was her family's private island. Food and lodging were free; everyone only needed to pay for their round-trip boat tickets. Of course, this wealthy senior originally wanted to pick us up directly by helicopter. But Haruhi insisted on paying for it herself.

"I feel so bad because I've received so much help from my senior." I was quite satisfied with Haruhi's explanation; it seems this child has indeed grown a lot.

Of course, in reality, all five of us except for Chunri have some special connections; helicopters and such aren't exactly new. Having just returned from the interstellar era yesterday, I find myself looking down on Earth's incredibly outdated technology.

So, we booked five second-class tickets, which were very affordable for middle school students, and sailed towards the small island where Tsuruya-senpai lived.

"The boat will stop halfway, and then my family's little boat will come to pick us up," said Tsuruya-senpai.

"By the way, everyone, have you all brought your toiletries and changes of clothes? We're planning to spend two weeks there. It's a super-intensive training camp, you know," Kasuga said.

Of course I brought it, that's absolutely a must-have—wait?

When I opened the super-large revised version, I didn't see the clothes, toiletries, or random snacks and comics I had prepared beforehand. Instead, I saw something much more vivid and three-dimensional—my sister.

"Hehehe..." The little brat hiding inside laughed at me with a pale face.

...Oh my god. No wonder this girl was so well-behaved last night after I casually mentioned going to a two-week training camp; she didn't seem interested at all. It actually made me a little disappointed... I didn't expect her to have learned such a high-level smuggling technique! Seriously, are you sure you're okay lying here for so long? I just stuffed my backpack right into the trunk... Don't you feel suffocated? Also, where are my clothes and toiletries?

……

Okay, I admit now isn't the right time to discuss this. Let's get her out of here first.

So, after I got my little sister out, I took her to wash her face and then we went outside for some fresh air. Finally, I needed to buy her a new boat ticket. Luckily, the child ticket wasn't too expensive.

After that, I returned to the SOS Brigade's base. Then my sister became the center of attention. She quickly won over everyone except me and Kasuga with her childlike face and feigned innocence.

Tsuruya-senpai seemed to really like my sister: "Eh? Hidden in the travel bag? What a bold child... Speaking of which, Kyon, you really are something. How could you be so careless?"

I smiled wryly and remained silent. Children don't need punishment for their mistakes; it's entirely the careless adult's fault. Even though my sister will be starting middle school next year…

"But there's no other way now. My sister has already caught up with us here, and it would be too pitiful to send her back. Anyway, she's very cute. Let's take her with us." Tsuruya-senpai concluded.

Haruhi and I exchanged a glance and nodded somewhat reluctantly.

Alright, I'll keep a close eye on this brat. At the very least, I need to make sure she doesn't actually kill anyone. Therefore, I can't meditate as intently as usual. I must keep my eyes wide open and make sure my sister doesn't leave my sight.

So, a few of us bored high school students started playing the tragic game of drawing Jokers. My younger sister clung to me and wouldn't leave. As a result, we got laughed at by Tsuruya-senpai. Later, because she kept making noise, I couldn't concentrate and we lost. After that, we had to buy drinks for five people—no, six people.

Tsk, I kind of miss the days when Koizumi Itsuki was still around. Back then, he, a complete gaming idiot, did all this work.

And so, the boat docked at a small island. We disembarked and transferred to a speedboat sent by Senior Tsuruya to head to her private island.

Speaking of which, among the people who came to greet me, there was one guy who caught my attention—not counting the middle-aged man in a suit and tie with gray hair who was piloting the boat—but the girl in the maid outfit named Izayoi Sakuya seemed familiar... If her hair color wasn't black, then she looked exactly like the Sakuya I remembered.

Even so, I still gave her a light kiss: "By the way, Miss Izayoi, haven't we met somewhere before?"

Then he was mocked mercilessly by Tsuruya-senpai: "Kyon, what's wrong with you? Did you see that the maid is pretty and want to run away? It's easy to have a Nice Boat if you're two-timing. Don't blame me for not warning you."

Is that right?

However, from Izayoi's eyes, I clearly saw the message: "So you're still alive."

Seriously, when did I ever offend her?

Hmm...it seems there is indeed a little grudge. Years ago, I bit her precious young lady, which made her cry—but that's not really a big crime, is it? And before that, her young lady bit me too...of course, she indirectly saved my life, that's true...the blood of a dirty little cat probably doesn't taste very good either.

Forget it, I'll find a chance to apologize to her.

But seriously, this guy's been to so many places. Three dimensions already, it seems like you can see her everywhere—could she also be one of those unlucky souls participating in the Grim Reaper game?

—No, no, that doesn't seem like it at all, because she seems to be doing much better than me, both in terms of physical condition and the level of spiritual corruption. Similarly, her strength doesn't seem to have improved at all.

So, she was brought here by Yukari Yakumo? And like her, a resident of Gensokyo?

Probably so.

So what kind of place is Gensokyo? If you have the chance, you should go there for a visit, just as a way to relax.

As I was thinking this, a cheerful shout came from springtime: "Want to go fishing? I have a feeling I can catch some very unusual fish."

Indeed, if you really "want" to, you should be able to catch a five-clawed golden dragon. But I advise you not to.

"By the way, you're a maid, right? A professional maid, right? Our Mikuru is a maid too... Of course, her breasts are bigger than yours."

It's probably because she didn't bring her tablet. Sakuya looks quite slender—but Kasuga, if I were you, I'd stop talking about this right now. Unless you want to be riddled with silver throwing knives.

"What will the villas there be like? Will they have a fantastical style, like something out of the future? After all, it's a deserted island, so they must use some equipment that you wouldn't normally see, like nuclear missile silos or something."

The most fantastical thing I've ever seen in my life is undoubtedly your brain. Do you really think the Tsuruya family is some evil force secretly plotting to conquer the world?

And so, Haruhi remained in a state of ecstatic daze, while Mikuru kept her eyes fixed on the suddenly appearing Sakuya, seemingly stirred by a strange sense of pride. She intently observed Sakuya's every move and tried to imitate her.

"Actually, there are many types of maids." I tried to comfort her like this: "There's the perfect and elegant type like Sakuya, and the clumsy type like Mikuru. Blindly imitating others is not a good idea."

However, my attempt to comfort her seemed to have the opposite effect. Mikuru's pride was greatly hurt, and she cried out with tears in her eyes, "Anyway, I'm just a clumsy maid, and there's no point in living—I might as well jump into the sea." She then prepared to jump into the sea.

"No! This is the deep sea, almost a kilometer deep! If you fall in, you'll never come back up!" I quickly grabbed her around the waist, stopping her suicidal attempt—and then I was immediately scolded by all the girls.

I'm suffering innocently, and my mood is absolutely terrible. Thankfully, at least I still have Yuki. My quiet, always supportive Yuki Nagato. I really want to hold you in my arms and cherish you. Speaking of which, how about we go on a date tonight? Let's review what we did last night…

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Sakuya, Midnight Snack

After arriving at Tsuruya-senpai's private island, it was already four o'clock. After a whole day of travel, a normal person should be exhausted—just like the little sister I'm carrying on my back right now—but apart from that, it seems like there's no normal person here.

—Let's leave aside the middle-aged man in the suit and tie for now (is this the second time you've ignored him? Is being a man a crime?). Aside from that, I glanced at my group and found it to be surprisingly impressive:

The captain (when did you become the captain?), that is, me, a participant in the Death Game, is almost tragic to the extreme, but I have an extremely high opinion of myself as a shameless killer, ruthless politician, military strategist, diplomat, and ergonomics bachelor.

Team member number one, Nagato Yuki, is also my bed partner: a pre-selected participant in the Death Game, a humanoid life form created from pure spiritual energy with a completely expressionless face, and an extremely excellent intelligence agent.

Team member number two, Haruhi Suzumiya, my reserved bed partner: a host (one of?) of dimensional power, an extremely powerful being capable of creating a subspace as large as the Milky Way—in some ways, even stronger than me.

Team member number three, Mikuru Asahina, my future bed partner (?): A future warrior (?) from the future, burdened with the great mission of repairing spacetime rifts... but recently seems to have completely become Haruhi's (and my) toy. She's an easy girl to bully, and has quite a large bust. And her body is also quite sensitive.

Team member number four, senior Tsuruya, might become my bed partner (Hey! You're getting too much!): A beautiful and intelligent superpowered girl. Her physical age is one year older than mine, but her mental age is 4,658,317,214 years younger than mine.

Team member number five, Sakuya Izayoi, was once my bed partner (really?): a vampire servant from Gensokyo, possessing the ability to stop time. I once analyzed this ability in an attempt to find a way to reverse time. But I failed. This ability seems to be passed down through bloodlines. Perhaps I could try having a child with her (hey!).

Such a combination cannot be judged by common sense. Therefore, after seeing Tsuruya-senpai's unremarkable Western-style villa, which resembled that of any wealthy person, Haruhi immediately started making arrangements to go to the beach.

So, we put my exhausted sister, who had fallen asleep, into a bedroom. Then we told Sakuya to come find us at the beach when she woke up. After that, we went to the changing room to change into our swimsuits.

To be honest, the women's changing room was just separated by a wall. The clear, melodious voices of those girls over there—and Mikuru's adorable screams after being attacked—were quite alluring. It made me feel a little voyeuristic.

Should I peep...? Although there are a few I can usually see. And maybe, even if I openly asked them to show themselves to me, I'd actually succeed (why is that?). But peeping is all about the thrill.

...However, being discovered might cause unnecessary trouble—just kidding, how could someone as powerful as me possibly be caught, hahaha...

Just then, the following conversation came from the locker room next door.

"Do you think Kyon might spy on us?" Tsuruya-senpai suddenly said. "It's true that Kyon is very popular with girls, but he's still a man."