Ultimate Man [JJK X SOL]: Loading Golden Entries at The Start

The ability to create illusions was an innate feature of the Land of Death Domain.

In other words, as long as Ryuji wished, any being inside this domain would constantly be influenced by illusions.

Breaking free of these illusions wasn't easy. There were only a few ways to do it:

One, be strong enough to outright resist the illusion. Clearly, Tomie didn't meet this criterion.

The other option was to leave the domain entirely. Since the illusions were part of the domain itself, anyone who left it would naturally be unaffected.

But looking at Tomie's current predicament, it was obvious she wasn't going anywhere.

As Ryuji was mulling over these thoughts, the sound of keys turning came from the front door.

The Hasaba sisters, Mimiko and Nanako, walked in, chatting as they entered.

"Ryuji!"

Seeing him at home, the two sisters looked visibly surprised.

No wonder. Recently, Ryuji had been home so infrequently that his presence had become a rarity.

After an initial exclamation of surprise, the two ran over to him, each taking a seat by his side one on the left and one on the right.

"This is great!"

"You're back!"

Their faces were filled with joy.

"I thought you'd forgotten about us!"

Seeing how happy they were, Ryuji couldn't help but laugh softly.

"How could I? You're both so cute, how could I possibly forget about you?"

His gentle reassurance quickly brightened their moods.

Even if they had felt a little upset before, hearing him say that was enough to bring smiles to their faces.

"You always know how to sweet-talk us," Mimiko said, though her tone held no real reproach.

Nanako chimed in, but neither pressed him further. 

"Oh, right!"

Suddenly, something came to Ryuji's mind.

"We're going on a hot spring trip in a few days. You two should come along."

"Really? That sounds great!"

The sisters nodded enthusiastically, agreeing without hesitation.

Of course, they weren't naive enough to assume they'd be the only ones going. It didn't take much thought to realize that there would likely be others joining them.

Some things didn't need to be said, the answers were obvious.

After spending some time with Mimiko and Nanako, Ryuji went to invite the others as well.

He wasn't the type to play favorites, after all.

Though by the end of it, he did start to wonder whether the hot spring would even be big enough to accommodate everyone.

However, when they finally arrived, Ryuji realized his concerns had been entirely unnecessary.

"This place is enormous!"

Even Kaguya, someone accustomed to the luxuries of her prestigious family, couldn't help but marvel.

As the heiress of the Shinomiya family, she had seen her fair share of impressive sights, including many hot springs.

But compared to this one, the scale of those seemed almost laughable.

"Not much we can do about it."

Yukino sighed, sounding slightly exasperated.

"My mom said that lately, there have been so many people practically throwing money at us that she doesn't know what to do with it. Keeping it in a bank feels pointless, so…"

She trailed off, her tone a mix of pride and weariness.

Her explanation wasn't meant to show off, it was simply the truth.

At first, the Yukinoshita family had been thrilled by their rise in status. After all, becoming a more influential household was cause for celebration.

But as time went on, the steady influx of visitors and endless gifts had grown tiresome. They had become somewhat numb to it all.

They had accumulated mountains of money but no idea what to do with it.

"So, my mom decided to build something that could serve as a symbol of the Yukinoshita family—a hot spring resort, to be precise."

Gesturing to their surroundings, Yukino continued, "She bought this entire mountain and started building. The idea is to turn it into a full-fledged hot spring resort exclusively associated with the Yukinoshita name."

She pointed to the open areas nearby.

"Her plan is to develop the entire mountain, but that'll take a lot of time. For now, they've only managed to complete the hot spring itself."

It wasn't hard to imagine that once the project was finished, the Yukinoshita family's name would soar even higher.

"A hot spring resort, huh? Seems like your mother has a good head on her shoulders," Ryuji commented.

It made sense.

The Yukinoshita family had originally been a third-rate conglomerate, barely hanging on. For Yukino's mother to not only maintain their standing but also capitalize on the current situation to elevate their status further was no small feat.

Yukino nodded in agreement but couldn't help shooting Ryuji a wry look.

Sure, her mother's actions were practical, but there were some things a daughter couldn't exactly say aloud, even if they were true.

"Alright, enough about that," Ryuji said with a laugh, noticing Yukino's expression. "Let's not dwell on it. Everyone, let's enjoy the hot springs!"

With a wave of his hand, he gestured for the girls to go get changed.

The group quickly grew excited at his words.

After all, today's purpose was to relax and have fun.

Ryuji leaned back, his thoughts drifting as he watched them head off.

In another life, he never would have imagined his journey leading to this point.

Once upon a time, he had entertained thoughts of becoming a king of the universe, a ruler of dimensions.

But now, he realized how pointless such aspirations were.

To live freely, to do whatever he wanted without restraint—wasn't that the best way to live?

Chasing anything beyond that seemed like unnecessary trouble.