Prologue

Hence───He had come to dream of a world in flames.

And that was by no means a metaphor.

The flames of the blazing city burned up to the heavens, and the blue
sky was dyed by the black smoke.

The flames that burned for seven days and nights without going out,
not satisfied only by the people that lived there, had continued to
spread while swallowing down even the ruins that turned deserted.

The flashes of lightning shining within the dark clouds assaulted the
mountains and rivers, broke the banks of dams and gave rise to
muddy streams. The water current that was great enough to be
uncontrollable, had flooded the river in an instant and proceeded to
swallow the town. The raging stream coming from the mountains,
mercilessly swallowed the houses, and the voices begging for help
had only vanished in the water's surface.

The earthquakes that continued without stop had formed cracks in the
ground, and the ashen city that was coated with the artificial concrete,
had lost its function as a city so easily that it was wearisome. Even if
there were preparations by the disaster powers, the only thing it could
protect was the appearance. The lifelines along the buildings were
broken apart in an instant, and the number one mega city of the world
was reduced to large towers of ashes.

Picture of hell───That’s right, it was a picture of hell.

It would be appropriate to call this sight a scene of hell.

While the infants that had lost their parents wept, though they cried for
their fathers and mothers, there were none to answer their calls, and
they died, writhing on the ground as their skin was scorched black.

Tears vanished from heat before they hit the ground. Blood changed
from red to black the moment it dripped.

Those caught in the crisis scattered to the four winds, prioritizing their
own safety, some who ran were trampled and died.

There was no room for benevolence to sprout within that narcissism

that came out due to the extreme conditions.

They who lost the dignity as human beings, seemed just like a crowd
of animals fleeing from the calamity.

"─────"

Suddenly, he looked up at the sky.

The sea of clouds dyed black by the smoke swirled like a living being,
and the thunders sounded just like bellows of artiodactyls. The
appearance of it as it scratched the atmosphere with its hooves was
worthy to be compared to the bull dashing in the heavens.

However───The great beast that appeared in this devastated city

was not just that one.

The King of artiodactyls wriggling in the sky.

Giant of the Death Eye laughing as he looked at that.

Dragon King creating chaos with its eight jaws.

Monkey God hiding its ashamed face as its golden fur fluttered.

Even more Demon Lords raised roars beyond the clouds of dust,
trampling down the human world.
Demon Lords who could endanger human history even if only one of
them appeared had assembled together and were burning down the
world. If this was not a hellish sight, then what else could it be.

The Demon Lords that were the manifested calamities, just like a
tempest, just like a tsunami, just like a thunderstorm, had bared their
fangs towards the entire world without difference.

On the byroad of hell where there was no hope for people and
everyone had no choice but to cover their faces, there was just one
human───nay.

Just one beast, that vigorously roared towards the canopy of heaven
that there was no such thing.

"───…...!!"

With the war cry that pricked the sky, the Demon Lords stopped their
roars.

The Giant that was laughing with ridicule, as well as the squirming
King of artiodactyls and also the monkey god who was hiding the
ashamed face, all directed their gazes loaded with various feelings
towards that voice.

That which struck at this destruction with 'refusal', was the Demon
Lord with the atypical dragon shape.

The Demon Dragon with three heads───Three Headed Dragon, was

looking at Saigou Homura with his blood-like ruby eyes.

"─────"

Even though this was a dream, it was still a strange sensation.

Within this scorching hell that burned thunderously, without doubt, the
Three Headed Dragon gazed at "Saigou Homura" with resentment.
His ruby eyes weren’t looking at the city of the collapsed civilization.
With his three heads and six eyes focused on him, the Three Headed
Dragon inquired about the whereabouts of the sin.

"───Just how long do you plan to keep watching?"

"───At this rate, you really won't make it in time."

"The end of everything is surely drawing near." His three heads gave
out those words of warning.

The Three Headed Dragon opened his jaws so large that they could
swallow the skies, seas, lands and everything of this world and told
the oracle he had repeated many times.

"O Child of Zoroastrianism! Make haste and solve the mystery "Enemy
of the world”! If you can't solve that mystery───Then my Hero, would
become a dread tree that would continue to smoulder for eternity!"

Fulfill your mission! - The flag of the Enemy of the World swayed.

If you are unable to fulfill it, then at that time, it would be

unavoidable───He said while grabbing Saigou Homura from the top
of the crimson flag and pulling him towards himself as his claws dug
into his body.

The Three Headed Dragon who told the oracle, tore off Homura’s
limbs, gnawed at him and chewed him down.

As Homura was swallowed down the Demon Lord’s internal organs,

Three Headed Dragon continued to spin those words like an echo.

“───Solve the mystery of the Enemy of the World.”.

If you are unable to do so, then there would be no value in Saigou

Homura(Child of Zoroastrianism)’s existence.
 Chapter 1

───German Joint Particle Body Research Center "Ymir".

".........Ouch......!"

Homura realized he had lost consciousness for a short time, after he

had been struck in the back of the head. Surprisingly, he showed no
signs of panic or unease following the nightmare.

That was because he had been seeing the very same dream again
and again for the past couple of days.

He didn't expect to even have daydreams about it, but as he was in

the middle of an experiment it wasn't that strange of a thing.

The explosion that occurred after that flash was powerful enough that
it caused an earthquake.

It was an experiment that was being performed at one of the sectors’

of the research center that "Everything Company" co-founded with
Germany, but not a single person, probably, could have imagined that
the shock it would cause would be to this degree.

Edward Grímnir, the head of the development, fixed his glasses and
overlooked the fallen Homura.

"The tremor was greater than expected, Dr. Saigou Homura. Are you
alright?"

"Y-Yeah. But that surprised me. I never expected that it would destroy
the "Iron Coffin" from the inside and that its shock would reach even
the observation room."
"That's true. The visuals and the measurement result are here. Do
verify them."

The two confirmed the recording of the moment the experimental body
had exploded.

They, who saw everything from the observation room that was
separated from the laboratory where the explosion had occurred, had
swallowed their saliva from those results that could even be said to be
overwhelming. On top of the measured data, they were shocked and
lost for words from the recorded phenomenon.

It was a flash so dazzling that it would disorient one’s eyes and

deprive their vision.

The measurement device that had been installed in the laboratory had
been vaporized by the heat rays being generated inside the room, with
no trace left of it. The fortified alloy had been superheated and was
now sagging.

That scene, with molten alloy flying around and the scattered light
particles falling down as they shone, was something that could even
be called fantastic.

It was a small mercy that it ended with just that section of the facility
blowing apart. Was the plant that acted as the model the cause of
generating this local force, or was this how it was from the start?

After glancing back at Homura who put together the observation

results, Edward looked at the crystallized bodies that had been stored
inside the vacuum capsule.

"So these are part of the crystallized Star Particle Bodies that were
used to break out the "Bull of Heaven"? Albeit we only managed to
collect a meager amount, they are quite a terrific thing. I heard just
one of these can embody all NBCR weapons. I wonder if that is true."

"You mean the Nuclear, Biological, Chemical and Radiological

weapons, right? ......I wonder. I think that would depend on the results
of the current "Genome Tree" project. We are already establishing
radioactivity removal technology using particle bodies, so I would
instead like to advance the technology to neutralizing NBCR
weapons."

"Hmm. You have a high will. In that case, if it carried the ability of both
WMDs and their neutralization, what would you come to call it?"

"Hahah. If that's possible, I'd settle with "The General Weapons" for
the time being. Or if we assume that an ordinary frontline soldier could
use it, it might be better to just call them armaments at that time. ...Ah,
damn it. The data that was sent here is in a mess. The shock from a
while ago might've interrupted the circuit."

"Is that so. Then let's grab it directly from the main server."

Edward connected to the inner line and spoke a few words.

This room wasn't the only room with the purpose of observation. The
use of around three observation rooms were allowed for this
experiment, and furthermore, the observed data was stored on the
main server.

Manager Carla and Director Weser seemed to be on standby in the

second and third observation rooms.

Just as Homura, who couldn't deal with either of them, was rather
unwilling to meet either of them,

The door opened with a clank.

"Hey, pleasure house. I brought the data."

The door to the observation room suddenly opened up and Homura

was taken aback.

Moreover, the youth who entered the room was about the same age
as Homura and had white hair and golden eyes. From the sudden
appearance of the unknown boy Homura lost his words, but it was
different for Edward.

He slightly knit his brows and clicked his tongue.

"......Your Highness. I don't remember permitting you to enter the

room."

"H-Highness!?"

"I don't remember being given it either. I merely came here after Carla
told me to bring the data."

The youth referred to as Highness pushed his way in indifferently

without paying any mind to the surprised Homura.

Homura felt unsettled from the name that went beyond his
expectations.

Just his white hair and golden eyes were rare enough, so after hearing
"Highness", it couldn't be helped that he felt like that.

Homura observed the clothes that the youth called Highness wore. He
wore a white coat different from the white robes that were provided to
the researchers, and his uniform under it was worn out.

The fact that he didn't feel any disagreeability with them being worn
out, was probably because of the youth's natural elegance. His
appearance as he quietly walked as his white coat fluttered behind
him made him think that he was someone of noble heritage.

(Hair with weak pigment......Is it Albino? There seems to be no doubt

about him being a Caucasoid, but......... no, that's not the problem
here. Why is someone the same age as me in "Ymir"? and what's with
"Highness"!?)

Those allowed to work at the forefront Particle Body Research Center

"Ymir" were only the personnel chosen by the "Everything Company",
and no one else. There wasn't supposed to be anyone of the same
generation as Homura there, aside from Ayato.

As Homura was lost in thoughts while staring at him, Edward stepped

forth and started introducing him.

"You are meeting each other for the first time, right? He is Kalki A.
Vishnuyashas. He's the son of my friend. One of the investors of
Particle Body Research. As for why he's called Highness, it's the
nickname that was born from that position."

"........Right, that's right. Nice to meet you."

"I-Is that so. So you were from one of the investor families...... Uhh, I'm
Saigou Homura. I'm the one researching the Particle Bodies as you
can see."

As homura introduced himself, the youth referred to as His Highness

Kalki seemed to be surprised as he opened his eyes wide.

"......Saigou Homura? You are the one?"

"Y-Yeah. Something wrong?"

"I see. I was just surprised because you give off a more mediocre
atmosphere than I thought you would. Since this inhuman guy seemed
to be having fun talking with you, I thought whether you were some
odd fellow that couldn't be called human, or some kind of monster."

"Oi, Highness. Just what do you think I am?"

"To say it indirectly, inhuman. To say it frankly, shitty fiend."

"Shut up you shitty brat. I'm trying to be a gentleman around here, so

talk to me like one."

"Oh? I think you are established as a sham gentlemen. ...What do you

say?"

HIs Highness Kalki looked at Homura after smiling a little.

Homura was lost on how to react to someone who considered him as

an oddball at their first meeting, however he fully agreed with Edward
being a sham gentlemen and nodded his head in reply.

"I'm sorry for being rude, But I also think that you are a sham
gentlemen."

".........Nu."

"Haha, see that! I was instead unable to hold myself back from
laughing at your gentleman act!"

Kalki said it with even more vigor after having earned Homura's
support.

Edward sat down on a chair and faced the other way in agitation. He
probably saw that his chances of winning the argument were meager
after it had turned into a two versus one.

Homura was suppressing his laughter, but they couldn't continue chit-
chatting like this forever.
"The results of the analysis came. I'm starting the video."

"Got it. .........Okay, this is a good chance, Your Highness should see it
as well. It may become a reference for the future."

"What am I watching?"

"The first results of the "Genome Tree" project. It concerns you too,
right?"

From Edward’s words, Kalki opened his eyes wide from the surprise.

""Genome Tree" Project......Hah, what's with that? Is it really fine for it

to be created in this age?"

"What?"

"I'm being anxious about this super technology. Never mind that,
display the results. I'll take responsibility."

Homura was full of question marks, but since he said he would take
responsibility, and being urged by Edward, he revealed the analysis
results. The three of them ended their conversation and directed their
sights at the monitor.

".........This is..."

The video noise filled the room as if to disturb the silence.

In the middle of the laboratory where the two meter tall sapling was
located, the B.D.A. - The Constant Velocity Particle Accelerator
released a frequency of 32.768 kHz frequency, commonly considered
as the "Definition of a Second". This caused the sapling to oscillate
along with the whole facility, even after the B.D.A was stopped. The
sapling evaporated along with the luminous phenomena as the fusion
was happening, or that is how the current process seemed to have
went.

But those surface results weren't the reason for Homura's surprise.
Edward had a smile on his face from the unexpected results of the
experiment.

After cutting off the cigar's tip with the cutter, he pleasantly asked
Homura.

"The fortified armor that has the same thickness of 200 millimeters as
the "Iron Coffin" was instantly fused, huh? ......Now then. Doesn't
seem like this was a complete failure either, don't you agree, Dr.
Saigou Homura. I don't mind if it's within the measurable scope. Can
you explain what just occurred?"

Edward showed a pleased smile while exhaling the cigar smoke.

Contrary to him, Homura had a sour expression on his face as he

answered.

After concluding that it was something impossible, Homura dropped

his gaze at the measuring instrument and continued.

".........Well, this is just me making a guess. But it appears that a heat

wave and mass comparable to the sun's corona was released from
the experimental body in just the fraction of an instant."

"Hah, that of the corona!?!? That's quite the absurd conclusion! So,
what? You're trying to tell me that that measly, two meter sapling had
a mass of millions of tonnes for an instant!?"

It’s too unbelievable!!! How to even write it in the report?!

Spreading his hands, Edward exclaimed in exaggeration and

amusement.

But it wasn't like Homura told him that without proof.

Rewinding the experiment room monitor, he projected the camphor

sapling that acted as the experimental body.

"Please look here. Although it is a phenomenon that cannot be

confirmed because the Particle Accelerator - B.D.A. does not conform
to the target standard, a slight pseudo radiation phenomenon can be
confirmed. "

This time It was Kalki's turn to become confused from Homura's

words.

"Pseudo radiation? What's that, something different from the radiation

phenomenon?"

"Yeah. To begin with, the B.D.A. is the abbreviation for Blood

Accelerator, so it's something that should be used on animate beings
instead of plants. It is an accelerator that allows blood circulation of
about 330 thousand revolutions per second in accordance with
"Definition of a Second" in Particle Bodies taken into the body, and for
example, when used for a human body holding particle bodies—ah,
before that. Does Highness and Edward-san understand time-
resolved particle momentum spectroscopy or semi-permanent
engineering by electron transfer within a substance caused by binding
mitigation of particle bodies?"

"No, don't know it. Unlike that sham gentlemen I'm no researcher."

"While I'm the head of the development I'm not a researcher. I'm
someone who joined in with connections."

"Ah, guessed as much. I'll take that in mind from now on. Then I'll just
stick to the simple explanation that uses a human body."

With a cough, Homura summed it up and started the explanation.

───The "definition of a second" is a field that can be defined in

various ways, but here in this laboratory it is replaced by the 32.768
kHz frequency that's primarily used in clocks.

This frequency points to the one that the quartz clocks use for
measuring one second, and is the frequency that is released when the
crystal embedded inside the clock is given electromagnetic waves.
We confirmed that the "Star Particle Bodies" reacted to this "definition
of a second" and the pathways inside the body of a parasitized
creature rotated at about 330 thousand times at constant velocity. This
wondrous nature is the third engine of the new era that enables the
"Star Particle Bodies" to generate third Energy that's detached from
the first and second.

Constant velocity motion, that uses the new 'Definition of a Second'

that goes beyond the propagation time of light — the relation called
the 'Third Perpetual Motion' that allows the complex-momentum
necessary for Tachyon particles and Ether to be observed in the
material world.

"Complex momentum is not the movement of approaching the energy

from the concept of mass, but the momentum that occurs when
approaching the material world from the concept of time. So the
32.768 kHz frequency is inputted in order to fixate the movement of
Particle Bodies with the concept of time called the "Definition of a
Second"."

".........Mhm. So it's going to exceed the existing momentum of the

universe by performing uniform velocity motion on the space concept?
So then, how would it be used on a human body?"

Receiving Edward's question, Homura answered as he displayed the

human body diagram on the monitor.

"The overall length of the human blood vessels is about 100 000 km. It
could be said to be over twice the circumference of Earth. If we apply
this to the "Definition of a Second" and turn it's speed to uniform
velocity, the calculation would be that it would travel the 3,300,000 km
of blood passageways every second. At this level, it transcends the
speed of light ten times."

With Homura's conclusion, Highness raised a voice as if he doubted

his ears.

"Over ten times......the speed of light, you say!!?"

"......Dr. Saigou. Then, what of the pseudo radiation?"

"Right. It is the movement of "particles closely resembling the nature

of light" that could be observed when the particles that crossed the
speed of light were released from the experimental body. In addition,
despite the radiation phenomenon occurring in this vibration state, the
heat quantity emitted by the experimental body has not changed. In
other words, radiation with no heat source......I won't know for sure
until it's measured in detail, but I'm guessing this is a successive case
of the possibility of releasing complex momentum exceeding the
"Definition of a Second" that we were aiming for. In other words, the
faster-than-light-speed by using Astral."

Suddenly the cigar fell from Edward's mouth.

This man, who was the personification of elusive ironist, was

completely lost for words. It seems these results were unbelievable to
that extent.

While thinking deep down that everything was going as he had hoped,
Homura set aside the excessive explanation from before.

"That said, I don't expect a human body to be able to withstand such

Particle Superfluidity."

"Huh, so it's like that, huh?"

"Yeah. That's how it is with the current experiment. In reality, it only

exceeded the speed of light for a mere instant. Immediately following
that, the Particle Bodies along with the parasitized camphor tree have
dissolved in the atmosphere, unable to retain their form."

"Dissolved in the atmosphere? Then could those things shining inside

the laboratory room be Particle Bodies?"

"That's right. Here, please take a look at the atmosphere composition.

The radioactive materials and fallout in the vicinity can't be confirmed.
Instead, when we measured the atmospheric concentration around it,
it turned out that the "Star Particle Bodies" occupied 12% of the
atmosphere. The "Genome Tree" project that is underlying the
"Environmental Control Tower" is looking good. Given this
atmospheric state, it's also possible to reproduce the "Bull of Heaven"
even if only on a small scale by using the Ether Accelerator – E.R.A.
that changed the structure of the aforementioned B.D.A. Do you want
to try it?"

"No need. I want to first finish up the report for now. I have to contact
Director Weser about this explosion matter."

When he mentioned Weser, which was the name of the manager of

this German Laboratory, Homura started collecting the data in slight
enjoyment.

"That's necessary indeed. It won't be a wise move to anger that hard-

faced director. Are you also having difficulty in dealing with him, Chief
Edward?"

"Not so much difficulty, rather he's my old subordinate. Moreover, he

seems to be convinced that I died. It seems he's in quite a good mood
in his own way now after having met with the pleasant mistress from
"Everything Company" Keiretsu. That being the case, it doesn't seem
like a snake would come out to poke the bushes."

"Hahah. Seems like your relationship is more complicated that I

imagined."

"Indeed. Now before I report, I want to ask one more thing first."

"What is it?"

"About what you stated before. Can I hear what are the conditions for
a human body to withstand the B.D.A?"

Hearing that question, Homura raised his eyebrows from surprise.

Because if you broke down the current conversation, using B.D.A on a

human would be out of the question.

"......What are you even asking? With the current progress of Particle
Body completion, using B.D.A. on a human body couldn't even be
considered. It would only end up with body fusion just like it did now.
The progress of the B.D.A. research may be too low, though."

"I'm simply talking with the assumption that everything was cleared up.
I have to write the report as detailed as possible. All the more if it's
necessary for the planning including the future budget. And rumors
say that by combining B.D.A and Particle Bodies, the human lifespan
could also be greatly increased. That's a good message for drawing in
the sponsors. Don't you think so, Your Highness."

While knitting his brows from Edward's speech, Kalki still nodded his
head slightly in agreement.

At this point, Homura finally understood the meaning behind Kalki,

who was the son of an investor, being present here.

"........."

The Head of Development, Edward's voice, despite being calm, gave

off a strong will that gave no room for argument. But it was only
natural. It wasn't like the research and development was being
performed as a philanthropic work.

Longevity. Prolonging of Life. Perpetual Youth. He didn't know where

he sniffed that info from, but it was actually partly truth.

The Star Particle Bodies that can interfere with the "Definition of a
Second" wouldn't simply stop at sustaining the youth of cells, but by
shifting the passage between outer and inner space they could even
remarkably slow down the aging itself, or so he hypothesized.

No matter the times, there would always be hedonists baited by this

kind of experiment.
They would probably laughed scornfully be it some average results,
but if they heard about the removal of the virus last time, and this
time's results of the research, there would be a lot of researchers from
major companies who would try to move.

What's more, a lot of funds were invested in the research of "Star

Particle Bodies".

It was undoubtedly "Everything Company's" biggest project that had

their fortune at stake. Succeeding in the development of these Particle
Bodies makes it simple to cross the corporate barrier and stand at the
top of the world..

It was a matter of course to request a detailed explanation in order to

draw in the investors, however, at present the B.D.A. shouldn't be
used on human bodies no matter what.

".........Edward-san. Also, Your Highness. If my conjecture is

necessary no matter what, then please write this in the report. "Using
B.D.A. on the current human generation is absolutely impossible.""

"Oh? Impossible to be used on humans you say?"

"No. I'm saying, on the current human generation."

From the way Homura said it, even Kalki, who was listening in silence,
clapped his hands and nodded.

"Ah, I see. So you are saying that it's necessary to raise humans who
would be compatible with Particle Bodies during the alteration of
generations, is it?"

"Yes. To begin with, in order to prolong the life of a human body, at

the bare minimum it's necessary for the blood passageways
necessary for the Star Particle Bodies to be able approach the speed
of light; in other words, it's impossible unless at least 10% of the blood
vessels inside the body are transformed by Star Particle Bodies."
"I see. And so?"

"The "Star Particle Bodies" have the ability to match the cells of the
parasitized body with the Particle Bodies and proceed to alter them,
and it can be conjectured that the false Smallpox from the last event
was something that came from abusing that fact. Though the
overwriting of cells accelerates with each successive generation, it
would still be no more than a one percent variance. Therefore, the
10% barrier that reaches the speed of light is absolutely unreachable
within one generation. Using B.D.A. within the next thousand years is
unrealistic."

The 10% barrier that reaches the speed of light.

Homura strengthened his voice to emphasize it. Even if the

"Environmental Control Tower" plan goes smoothly and it starts
spreading the Particle Bodies, there would be an extremely few who
would actually cross this 10% barrier..

For him, this was one line he wouldn't yield at any cost. Because were
he to concede on this point, then not only "Everything Company" but
some other organization might also start doing human experiments.

Their opinions clashed, giving off sparks between them.

Among the heavy silence, Highness raised his hands.

"Homura. I hate to say this, but isn't that a bit too late?"

".........Why is that, Your Highness?"

"Try giving it a thought. Even though they don't possess the "Origin",
the enemy organization has progressed farther than the Particle
Bodies that you created, right? In that case, I believe it would be
logical to think that they used some kind of shortcut. If human
experiments were done, the Particle Body research would progress
rapidly, am I wrong?"
"T-That's......"

From Highness' advice, Homura received a blow as if he was hit by a

blunt weapon. He tried to argue back reflexively, but he managed to
hold back seeing as there were no points he could straight up deny.

It was highly likely that this organization that created the "Bull of
Heaven" was performing human experiments.

Unlike E.R.A. that acted on the Star Particle Bodies in the

atmosphere, the B.D.A. that acted on the Star Particle Bodies inside
the bloodstream would yield far better data when tested on living
humans. Normally, such inhuman experiments were unthinkable, but
the organization in question was one that caused calamities and
Smallpox without giving it another thought. It was quite unlikely that
they weren't involved in human experiments. Setting the morality
aside, for Homura's side to overtake this organization that was
researching it, they would also need to perform the human
experiments and keep inspecting and verifying things.

However, something in Homura screamed that crossing that line was

one thing that he absolutely must not do.

".........Kh......No, even so, I can't. I can't permit using living humans for
experiments!"

"Why? At this rate, would we not be technologically left behind by

those terrorists? You can't dispose of the threat just by sticking
through with the morals and justice as a human being."

"No, we will compensate the shortcoming in technology by

strengthening the facility! We can just complement the wisdom we
lack with numbers! I thought it was supposed to be the way of modern
researchers to achieve that by gaining the support of the world,
gathering a lot of cooperation and walking along the path of mutual
prosperity!"

Homura, with his hand on his chest, appealed to Edward and

Highness.

Behind his driven up impatience, there were traces of that dream of a

world in flames.

".........Edward-san. Highness. I'm not saying to share Particle Bodies

with the world before they produce results. But it is also the truth that
in Star Particle Bodies, in this research, the whole of mankind’s
potential lies dormant. It is that future potential that opens up the
possibilities of reforming the desertified lands, preventing calamities
by controlling the weather, removing radioactivity, and even space
development. If a single wrong step is taken, I'm certain that humanity
will come to regret it one day.........!!!"

Urged by the heat and emotion that was similar to conviction, Homura
spoke those words.

Success that didn't follow justice. Ruin that lay at the end of blindness
and compromise.

The original sin to be done for the sake of new generations, would one
day become an obstacle that would threaten the survival of humanity.

".........I see. If you are going that far, there's nothing else I can say. I
won't spread today's matter either."

Highness took a step back and withdrew his opinion.

Rather than being convinced of Homura's words, it was more probably

because he saw some kind of reason below his desperation. Or
perhaps he judged that it was disadvantageous as an investor to let
go of these favorable terms, now that the Star Particle Bodies have
earned international status with the "Bull of Heaven" incident.

Moving his gaze from Highness to Edward, Homura asked for his
opinion.

Edward Grímnir produced a ferocious smile and narrowed his eyes as

if appraising him.

"Heh......To think a day would come when a researcher would talk

about the original sin. Is this the so-called ethical evolution? I
remember when you spoke sharply to me. If I'm not mistaken..."

"Please stop, thinking about it now, it was quite an embarrassing

speech!"

Edward held down his laughter; it seemed he didn't immediately deny

his determination. After walking towards the storage where the
crystallized bodies of Star Particle Bodies were stored, he took out
one vacuum capsule and displayed it as if proposing an alternate plan.

"I don't think they were that embarrassing though. At the very least,
those words of yours definitely marked a hit on my diaphragm. I hadn't
laughed like that in three years. Right, you came at the frontline of
research because of that "Human Stubbornness". Those were quite
the brilliantly thought up greenhorn words that we adults can't easily
say. However, if you are going to yell about that, I want you to fulfill
that responsibility. Won’t you agree?"

"........."

"Now, let's have an engaging chat. The "Star Particle Bodies" stored
inside this are the very first ones that Mikado Tokuteru brought to
"Everything Company". Did you know that?"

Suddenly, Homura jumped up as if he didn't believe his ears.

"Huh? .........Eh, what!? Tokuteru brought them here!!?"

Homura’s voice raised in disarray. Looking at his reaction, it seems he

thought his deceased father left them in the custody of "Everything
Company".

But if he recalled how Tokuteru acted, such behavior wasn't surprising

from him.
The one who recommended Saigou Homura to "Everything Company"
was no other than Tokuteru as well.

It was probably because of that recommendation that they made an

absurd choice of letting the young Homura join the laboratory.

"I-I see. Thinking about it now, it makes sense. No matter how big of a
client he was for "Everything Company", there was no way his
recommendation towards me would've turned out so simply.
.........Ugh, what to do. I feel depressed being indebted to him more."

"Now, it seems you don't mind it that much. Even that man should be
making good things out of this. You are too hasty with giving him a
favor. And so, to the main question. Do you know what is the source
of these Particle Bodies?"

He threw at Homura the vacuum capsule containing Particle Bodies.

By default, they were stored inside the special amino-acids that make
up the protein, but these particular Crystallized Bodies appeared to
have been preserved as is.

Homura caught it in fluster, but became strangely confused as he

confirmed the contents of it.

"Red Crystallized Bodies.........Is this material the "Origin"?"

"That's not it. Those aren't Crystallized Bodies but a blood clot. It's part
of a cell sample assimilated from a Human that concealed the “Origin”
Particle Bodies inside their body."

That fact made Homura widen his eyes and hold his breath.

Raising the capsule and holding it up to the light, Homura observed

that red crystallized body, the clot of blood taken from a mysterious
person, as if he was seeing something unbelievable.

If this was indeed a blood clot, it would overturn all current hypothesis.

With current research, the parasitically multiplied Particle Bodies were

only accompanied by half degraded abilities.

This was the law that was taken as absolute in the Star Particle Body
research. And yet, if there existed an idiosyncratic human who could
carry the non-degraded "Origin" within their body, then it would solve
all problems.

"A human who carried "Origin" inside them, and the Particle Bodies
flowed as far as to even reach the internal organs......? No, that can't
be! If that really is the case, not just 10% of their blood vessels, even
part of their heart would be altered by the Particle Bodies in high
likelihood, and such transformation in the current generation is..."

"Then, what if they were experimented on ever since they were an

embryo? Or, there's even the possibility that the person themselves
are the second generation Particle Body carrier. That way everything
would fit, right?"

For a moment, Homura was speechless from the inhumane words

Edward spoke.

"T-That.........might indeed be possible. If the fertilized egg was

parasitized with Particle Bodies......No, it's still impossible! It's only
been a few years since the research on Particle Bodies began, even
for the outside organizations, it would be no more than ten years if you
count back from the leak of the thesis! Even if such a inhumane
method was used, it would still be impossible to gain the results of it if
the research wasn't started at least twenty years before that!
Someone who could research alteration of genetics or embryos twenty
years back, someone like that-"

Shouldn't even exist, When he was about to say that, he suddenly

swallowed his words.

This was the first time he arrived at that possibility.

It was because he remembered someone like that. Someone who was

able to observe the process from the fetus after generation
modification of the Star Particle Body carrier, and started researching
more than 20 years ago.

Edward smiled in full amusement towards Homura, who got reminded

of the one and only person that fit that.

"That's right, there is only one such person in the world. Only a single
person who could do that. Would you not agree, Dr. Saigou?"

".......... But still, please wait. That person is supposed to be dead."

"And he is indeed dead. That fact is definite, Saigou Homura. Your

father is dead. Even if there was an almighty existence in this world,
even they wouldn't overturn that single fact. But what if even now,
those experimental results remain within the son, no, two sons that
leading person had left behind?"

Edward with a snake-like glint in his eyes, looking as if he was about

to hunt for his prey, had directed a gaze at the speechless Homura.
Edward sat as if he knew everything of this world, just like a storyteller
that narrated legends.

After lighting the second cigar, he spoke to Homura as if giving him a

warning.

"Let me tell you a little story from the past. The story of a man who
dedicated his whole life to the Particle Body research, and two of his
sons who were raised in a certain orphanage after his death."
 Chapter 2

───South America, Federative Republic of Brazil.

A wind of intense humidity was blown towards the sea of trees.

Today, as usual, the world’s largest rainforest, Amazon, was engulfed

with heat. This sea of trees where one couldn’t see an inch ahead
without getting obstructed was like a natural fortress for those
unfamiliar with the land.

Once lost in it, it would be incredibly difficult to get out of there.

At daytime, all sorts of snakes and beasts began to wreak havoc. To

the world, this place would be referred as a wonderland. Wiping away
his sweat, Sakamaki Izayoi spoke to the person beside him, Prithvi
Mata.

“The Amazon is so damn hot!”

“Complaining won’t help the matter.”

“I know, but I couldn’t hold those complaints in. Look at this

thermometer.”

Izayoi presented a simple weather detector held by his hand to Prith.

It displayed the temperature to be 34 degree celsius along with

humidity of 82%.

Izayoi’s annoyance index was also estimated to be reaching 120%.

Looking at the sky in the distance, the clouds were gradually gathering
above the rainforest. If rain was to start now, it would really be a
collection of irritating elements. To Izayoi, who had tendency of getting
soaked, that was an unbearable development.

“This is where a modern hell would be. Even if it’s just once, couldn’t
you do something with the power of the ‘12 Devas’, Earth Goddess-
sama?”

Izayoi carelessly asked for compassion. But Prithvi Mata, The Mother
Goddess, wasn’t the one to depend on her power so easily.

'Twelve Devas'───Also called, Juuniten, were a group of various

gods who were feared as the strongest out the entire heavenly army
that defended the world's peace.

The divine group was made up of various gods from the Middle East,
Ancient India, and East Asia, most of its members being ancient war
gods. Hence, it was considered to be a group of gods with one of the
strongest war power. And as far as Izayoi was aware, more than half
of them had descended to the outside world.

Among the ‘12 Devas’ led by Tokuteru Mikado, 7 of them have made
an appearance, including himself.

War God, Indra (Taishakuten)

Mother Earth, Prithvi Mata (Jiten)

Sun God, Surya (Nitten)

God of Creation, Brahma (Bonten)

God of the Far East, Izanagi (Izanaten)

Iron-fan Princess, Rakshasa (Rasetsuten)

Guardian God of Wealth, Vaisravana (Bishamonten)

However, due to the sheer power they possess, it would be impossible

for all of the 12 Devas to appear in the outside world at once, no
matter how much they lower their spiritual power.

The number of gods a single world could naturally bear was three at
best.

Once the number of gods exceeds that maximum number, just their
existence itself could alter the laws of nature, make oceans go wild,
open a fissure, and cause the sky to blaze up in deep red. Hence, if a
god wanted to interfere with the outside world, they would usually
send an organization which they shared their spiritual power with, or
their own avatar down───yet, for some reason, this Mother Earth had
manifested herself instead.

Even among the earth goddesses, Prithvi Mata who had entrusted the
agriculture to humanity was a great goddess whose Spirituality was
leagues above the rest. She was a goddess who possessed a unique
authority, holding the achievement of humanity’s explosive growth.
There was, theoretically, no greater earth goddess than her, whose
deeds towards the advancement of Humanity was second to none.

The true goddess standing above all as Mother Earth, Prithvi Mata.

Although the words from Izayoi were full of hope of seeing miracles
that would be made by this goddess among the goddesses───Prith
shook her head with a gentle smile.

“We shouldn’t use Little Garden’s standard as our basis. The change
of weather could cause great damage to Earth. And if it’s hell we are
talking about, Tokyo is no different isn’t it?”

“Is it?”

“Of course. Heat surfacing from the ground, natural water with
temperatures higher than human skin, spoiled air conditioning which is
useless even if it was activated to its highest output. Having to work
and study while exposing yourselves to these pains, that’s the sin
humanity is bearing right now. What’s ahead as we continue to work
and study, where’s the end of life. At last, even I wondered as a deity
on whether I should’ve strived for nirvana.”

Prith looked afar as she squinted her eyes.

It’s hard to return to how it was after experiencing the convenience of

having air conditioning. Even Prithvi, who was resistant to heat,
wanted to finish her job quickly just to return to her air-conditioned
room.

“That aside, we’ll be reaching our destination soon. Wouldn't there be

more meaning in verifying the content of the delegate in order to
return to Japan as quickly as possible?”

“Well, I have no problems with that. But did they really conduct the
Nanomachine experiments in this forest?”

“If Saigou Homura’s prediction is correct, that’s how it turns out to be.
Although I am having doubts as well.”

With dubious faces, the two changed their line of sight to the weather
detector.

Speaking of the current job, there was a reason why the two had
come all this way to the Federative Republic of Brazil in South
America.

The reason for that was that the place where the ‘Bull of Heaven’ had
an outbreak had been confirmed to be the coastal city of Brazil, Rio de
Janeiro.

The city of Rio was famous as a bustling city of southern countries,

and it was also the world’s largest megacity with a population of over 6
million. Fortunately, the damage caused by the typhoon was not
extreme, but the extent of the damage caused by the spoilage virus
was unclear.

After leaving France, the investigation team of the ‘Everything

Company’ was sent here to the country with the world’s largest
rainforest, the Amazon, and had just started to investigate the virus.

───But Izayoi and the others knew.

The pathogens were also spread from the island of Crete in the Greek
Republic.

In order to attack Europe, the toxic particles were mixed up in the

storm.

From this extremely despicable move, western countries have

suffered severe damage from an economic perspective. The
turbulence of stock markets and the buying of wheat flour where still
comparatively meager things, compared to the fact that Brands with
over a hundred years of history have been forced to temporarily
suspend their business in a mere two months. It can be said that the
Western European market had completely collapsed.

It was at this moment that ‘Everything Company’ introduced the Star

Particle Bodies.

For Europe which was on the verge of ruin, it was truly a godsend.

“It would be more appropriate to think of it like this; Crete Island is the
site where the pathogenic bacteria spread, and the Amazon
Rainforest is where the ‘Bull of Heaven’ incident took place. A forest is
the best place to hide it. But if you were to conduct Particle Body
experiments in this kind of hellish heat, wouldn’t they just go crazy?”

As she swept away the reflective sweat, Prith smiled bitterly.

“Totally. No doubt they were insane. Hence, that’s why they thought of
using human technology to create something like ‘Bull of Heaven’. For
this, we have your Excellency, the Head of Accounting.”

“Wait, hold right there. Can you stop calling me that ‘Head of
Accounting’ already.”
“What are you saying? You only took two months to take care of our
company’s rough and unfathomable accounting. It would be wrong to
not properly address you as the Head of Accounting with gratitude and
respect!”

Prithvi smiled and gave a thumbs up while fanning her chest with her
other hand. She came into this kind of forest while wearing a suit;
Izayoi couldn’t really get whether she was just diligent or an airhead.

After all, it has only been two and a half months since he met her.

As he couldn’t find his way into Little Garden, he gradually got

involved with the Security Service company that Mikado Tokuteru
managed.

The principle of ‘no work no food’ is universal regardless of the world.

In age, he could no longer be considered a student.

Because while he was physically 19, according to the family register,

in the outer world he was 21. If he was to live in the orphanage without
a job and live a life of self-willedness, he may not have a foothold in
front of the children.

As such, the job of a secret agent employed by a company operated

by the ‘12 Devas’ would surely satisfy Izayoi’s passion of labor and
curiosity. So, after accepting the job with high expectations…

He was met with a headache; the disorganization was far beyond his
imagination.

Cooperative contracts scattered in the company's lobby, reports

written in multiple languages, inaccurate compensations, receipts for
unknown purposes and so on...

With that being the case, it would be appropriate to say that the
satisfying feeling of enthusiasm completely disappeared.

Although Izayoi easily displayed an impression of crude and rudeness,

even he had a rigorous side of him.

If there was no appropriate compensation for the properly done work,

even he would be troubled by it.

"There were proposals for accounting employment before, but

regrettably our line of work has many things we can’t disclose to the
public. Although the many conveniences in this era has made me very
happy, it becomes difficult to move when money is tight. After all, we
are war gods who protect the law, not wealth. Thanks to the kind Head
of Accounting, who gathered all the data within the scope of
explanation, even the useless embezzlement done by President
Mikado has come to light. I have to thank you."
Prith continued to nod in gratitude.

Although it was totally unexpected in Tokuteru Mikado’s case.

“Yeah...I guess it can’t be helped after all. Bishamonten is tentatively a

god of wealth, but it would be unfair to demand such a delicate skill
from that Uesugi-chan.”

“That’s how it is. That girl is serious, hard-working and a genius when
it comes to battles, so if she could just quietly focus on physical labor,
we could also relax. ”

“It was exactly how it is this time. When I was told to fly to Brazil due
to the commission of ‘Everything Company’ I was looking forward to it.
But I did not expect to actually be decentralized to the center of the
Amazon. And here I wanted to see that hot carnival in Rio after all this
time.”

“Hey, don’t whine about the work. You were appointed by the client by
name, and also getting a referral fee. Be more compromising here.”

While whining about work, they continued their advance through the
clusters of ivy.

However, the path, or what could be called a path, ended here.

Beyond this point was the unexplored land.

Although they weren’t in any danger, they had to advance carefully but
quickly or the day would grow dark on them.

As the two put down their luggage to make preparations, the phone
rang suddenly with a simple beeping sound.

Izayoi could only think that the caller estimated that the forest
entrance was where the electromagnetic waves would barely reach.
Unpleasantly, he answered the phone.

“Hello, thank you for your call. This is the secret service. At this
moment where we are working our asses off, is there anything I can
help you with? Client Saigou Homura-sama.”

As he answered with sarcasm, a sigh came from the other side.

“... Why are you so irritated? Also, the client is not me, but Ayato
ojou-sama, you know?”

“I don’t see the difference.”

“There’s a huge margin of difference. I’m not the one paying Iza-
nii the retainer fee...sigh, forget about it. I have just returned from
Charles de Gaulle Airport in France to Narita Airport.”

“You returned from France? Weren’t you in Germany?”

“I was there two days ago. I left immediately to France after

obtaining a lot of experimental results, whereby to confirm the
procedure of virus removal. Since the process moved on
smoothly and the result was successful, I am planning to return
home temporarily for a holiday. Are there any leads on your
side?”

Saigou Homura’s voice was projected from the phone.

Izayoi waved his hand due to annoyance.

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The world is at peace, with no incident

whatsoever. Say, since there's nothing for me to do here. May I leave?
Not to mention there's an erotic nudist carnival in Rio that I want to
see in a manner of grace.”

“....No, didn't you said that you were busy previously? There will
be no reward if there's no result, that's what Ayato-Ojousama
said before wasn't it?”

Homura’s jokingly reply caused Izayoi’s expression to become more

silent and depressed.

To Izayoi, whom could not find a way back to Little Garden, not getting
his pay was a bad problem.

Coming all this way to Brazil in vain would have to be avoided at all
costs.

“How stingy. Now that ‘Everything Company’ has established itself as

an international spot due to the Star Particle Bodies, it has gained
enormous benefits that competes with the culmination of today’s
world. Someone from such a zaibatsu shouldn’t be so stingy with
money.”

“You are the one talking nonsense. No matter how rich the
company is, or even poor, those who have not achieved results
will not be rewarded. For now, just work and earn some money
like how an older brother should….Oh right, I didn't call you just
for jokes.”

Cough cough. As Saigou Homura cleared his throat, Izayoi shrugged

in doubt.

“Oh? If this wasn't a prank call, does that mean you have gotten clues
about the criminal?”

“That's about right. While the criminal has not yet been identified,
the parsing result of the Particles Bodies has finally come out…
though, something feels odd.”

“And that is?”

“The components of the two Star Particle Body types are far too
different. It doesn’t seem like the particles were made by the
same organization.”

Hearing Homura’s concise yet dangerous conclusion, Izayoi gave a

truculent laugh.

“Heh…? Two particle bodies of different components, huh? If that's

the case, then the situation certainly changes. Which means the
creators of the smallpox ‘Minotaur’ and the typhoon ‘Bull of Heaven’
were two totally different organizations.”

It could be assumed that there were at least two organizations that

were researching the Particle Bodies, if not more. This information
was truly indispensable, so he understood the need for this
emergency call.

“That's right. Being comprehensive is one of the few good points

you have, Iza-nii.”

“What kind of rubbish are you talking about. I have more good points
than there are stars.”

“Yea, yea, whatever you say. So, about the Particle Bodies that
caused the virus, it seems that they were made through a similar
process to mine—that is to say, created through a parasitic
growth development with plants and animals. Well, there's no
problem in this regard since I can make them powerless, but the
other one, the ‘Bull of Heaven’, is a product of another level.
Sorry that I can’t explain it in detail, but I have confirmed the Star
Particle Body crystallization phenomenon from part of the
particles of ‘Bull of Heaven’.”

Izayoi became puzzled after hearing that.

Hearing him say “Star Particle Body crystallization phenomenon”

didn’t give him much of an idea about what it was.

Even if the person in question was Izayoi, he was no specialist so that

outcome was natural. Moreover, he had been living in a different world
until recently, so Homura’s words were a little difficult for him to
understand since the science had steadily progressed in his absence.

“Ah, sorry. It’s not particularly clear to me how big the difference is.
Just tell me directly. In short, just how amazing is it?”

“What are you, a child? Although it does not matter. Roughly

speaking... the parasitic growth created the pseudo-smallpox that
is the cause of the disease. That is still within the margins of
what medical science can do. The ‘Bull of Heaven’ on the other
hand is entirely in the domain of energy conservation theorems
and mechanics. I remember hearing that you knew ‘Maxwell’s
Demon’? ‘Bull of Heaven’ is something that was created by
putting that to practice.”

Izayoi doubted his ears upon hearing that unexpected name.

Izayoi didn’t ‘just knew’ about it.

The demonic personification of the thermodynamic paradox—that was

the existence known as ‘Maxwell’s Demon’. The great demon
Maxwell, who ruled the realm of warmth and cold, was one of the
demons who once fought Izayoi and the others.

He was a very powerful devil who could make unrestricted thermal

replacement possible by manipulating the + and - boundaries. Yet, a
certain thing had led him into becoming mad with affection towards his
loved one, before finally ending up slain by Izayoi’s power. That being
the case, Izayoi knew a lot more than Homura regarding this
‘Maxwell’s Demon’.

“So the ‘Bull of Heaven’ was created by rearranging the environmental

data with Star Particle Bodies, and Maxwell’s Demon was the source
of it all?”

“Yes, though the feature they used is not just that. Considering
the fact that it had been moving along the coast, it can be
considered that the typhoon maintained its body by separating
the moisture of the sea surface and operating on the air pressure
alone.”

“Hah! So anything goes, huh? I’m kinda feeling pity that such an ability
lies in a perverted stalker like him.”

Homura got question marks from his comment.

“....Pervert? Stalker?”

“I am just talking to myself. Forget about it. ...Anyway, this rainforest

where the ‘Bull of Heaven’ occurred could be dangerous, so I have to
be extra careful, is what you are trying to say, right?”

“Well, there’s also that, but there is something that I would like
you to find no matter what. The Ether Accelerator───or as we
call it, E.R.A medium. If you don’t retrieve or destroy it, another
‘Bull of Heaven’ might be created. Even I don't know what it looks
like, but the fact that I can’t disclose much about its functions is
an issue of its own…”

As Homura’s voice became more and more awkward as he spoke,

Izayoi shrugged his shoulders bothersomedly.

“Ah, I don't need any special information. It will waste the enjoyment,
plus you researchers can't go around revealing secrets left and right. If
it's an unknown danger that's coming, that’s what I would have hoped
for. So, for the orphanage’s sake as well, keep your mouth shut.”

Izayoi laughed jokingly. Homura on the other hand had become so

speechless that it was apparent even over the phone, and then
heaved a short sigh.

“...... You have changed, Iza-nii.”

“Think so?”

“Yeah. You’ve grown overall.”

“As in, my body?”

“Yeah, yeah, your bo-, that's not what I mean you dumbass! Can
you please stop making fun of me all the time. The international
calls cost quite a lot, so focus on the matter.”

“Hey hey hey, what's the pettiness for, Mr Billionaire. I heard that
‘Everything Company’ had given you a rather impressive ‘bonus’.
Can't you let your older Brother envy or admire you slightly?”

As Izayoi laughed, Homura fell silent.

In regards to the reward, the ‘Everything Company’ gave him a

considerable amount of money. It was originally granted to Saigou
Homura’s father who was the original developer, but his Father had
passed away. However, Homura did not develop the particle bodies
from scratch.

Homura only completed the degraded products that only imitated the
3S. Nano Machine Units. As such he had faced quite a bit of trouble
when he was applying for a license.

The amount of investment used for analyzing the Particle Bodies was
of course astronomical, and there was also funds for the orphanages
which were unrelated to the research.

Saigou Homura was compensated 200 million yen for his work, with
an additional 500 million yen given for the repair and management for
the orphanage. In addition, 2.5 billion yen would go towards the cryo
electron microscope that Homura had requested. Instead of it being
loaned, the latest model would be provided for him.

Furthermore, if Homura were to uncover the mystery behind the

rumored perpetual motion machine that Particle Bodies concealed,
Homura in particular could yield 0.75% of the profits from the energy
industry. If it could be used for practical purposes, interest which
surpassed even the oil and nuclear industry could be obtained. It was
hypothesized that even 1% of it would exceed the national budget of
Japan, and that amount of money would be given to an individual
annually.

This was the so called exceptional from exception, a broken

assessment.

If he could uncover the mystery of the 3S. Nano Machine Units,

Saigou Homura could receive authority on par with the world leaders.
“You can practically be considered pretty famous now. On the side of
wealth, you have pretty much reached the pinnacle right? How is the
view from the world’s summit, my great little brother.”

“...Idiot. That's only after the Star Particle Bodies are completed.”

“Okay, okay. So then, was this all you had to tell me?”

“That's pretty much everything… Ah, no. There's still one more
question I would like to ask… or should I say that's the main
reason I made this call… how should I put it…”

Homura’s speech came to an abrupt end and fell silent in just that
moment.

Izayoi crooked his head, hiding in the shade to avoid the sunlight.

“What happened? If there’s something troubling you, I can at least

listen.”

“No, that's not it...I mean, saying it might make you

uncomfortable...”

Hah? Izayoi gave a puzzled reaction. Homura was a young boy who
was polite to others, but would be frank when it came to Suzuka and
Izayoi. Hence, it was rare for him to adopt this attitude.

Homura hesitated with his words for a while.

Then, starting with a cough, he decided to get to the point.

“Iza-nii… What do you think about your real family?”

“......Huh?”

Izayoi responded with a voice weirder than before towards that

unexpected question. Anyone would give that kind of reaction when
such an embarrassing question was asked all of a sudden..
Feeling annoyed, Izayoi scratched his head and didn’t answer
immediately.

“What happened so suddenly? Did the kids in the orphanage asked

anything? Or did that kind of thing appear as a subject in school?”

“Ah..actually, forget what I said! Just forget about it. Anyway, I

just wanted to say to be careful when investigating that forest!
You must never touch the crystallized particles with your bare
hand! Never touch it! There's no guarantee that it would be fine
even if it's someone like you!”

Beep. The phone hung up.

Hanging up the phone just after saying a few words of concern, how
roundabout.

Overhearing the conversation, Prith suppressed her laugh while

gathering the luggage.

“Hehe, how surprising. You brothers are surprisingly close with each
other.”

“How was it? I originally planned to spoil this little brother of mine a
little since he has been taking care of the orphanage in my place. But,
didn’t he seem too gloomy?”

“It’s nothing like that. If he did not harbour any feelings for you as a
family member, he wouldn't have kept the room of a hedonistic brother
like you.”

A hedonistic brother───Izayoi couldn’t help but smile when being

called that.

The fact he, who ran off to another world while disregarding the
predicament the orphanage was in, was still welcomed by his relatives
was something kind to a painful degree

“But…… A real family, he said, huh? Who is the one that taught him
about these?”

“Hm? Is it not about the orphanage?”

“It would be much better if it was. …...Say, Earth Goddess-sama, do

these kids absolutely have to join the Sun Authority War?”

Izayoi asked in a displeased manner, and Prith widened her eyes from
the unexpected question.

“What, you still haven't acknowledged them?”

“It's not that I haven’t. I have fully recognised their efforts. After
hearing the content and scale of Homura’s research, even I felt a little
happy for him. ...and that's exactly why, Homura and Suzuka should
live in this world, there's no need for them to take part in and win the
Sun Authority War.”

Regardless of how big the issue is, there are talents that the world
needs.

No matter if it was Saigou Homura who became a particle researcher,

or Ayazato Suzuka who acts as the older sister of the orphanage.

They who have established their own places and reasons of existence
were now stepping into another world which exposed their lives to
danger. That's what Izayoi was worried about.

Prith who sensed the worries that Izayoi had, replied as she scratches
her cheek.

“I see. So that's what you were worried about. How cute of you,
Izayoi.”

“Stop joking around.”

“I am not joking. Rather, didn't you know about the rules of the
Authority War? The Gift Game this time forbids killing among the
contestants, you know?”
Eh? Izayoi gave out a strange voice.

“...Killing actually became forbidden? This is the first time I have heard
of it.”

“That's how it is. Since the number of deceased in the previous

Authority War reached an astronomical number, from this time on,
participants are strictly prohibited from killing each other. If they are in
danger, the hosts will force a defeat and provide aids. This is the rule
of the current Authority War.... Are you relieved now?”

Prith revealed an impish smile.

But that being the case, Izayoi couldn’t make sense of it. If it was just
a Game held in the streets, that could still be fine. But the Gift Games
he loved so much were not so forgiving.

Gift Games were the games of gods and demons which only those
who have reached the extremes could challenge.

They weren’t made in a way where you had to worry about naive
things like human rights. If there's a guarantee of living, there must be
something that the Host has planned within this rule.

And that would be a challenge equivalent to the ‘guarantee of life’.

(......Hah. It's to be expected that I couldn't just keep on playing in this

world.)

Izayoi glared towards the depths of the tropical rainforest as he lightly

clicked his tongue.

Since the Star Particle Bodies have a close relationship to ‘Everything

Company’, there was a possibility that he could get in touch with
‘Queen Halloween’ after solving the mystery in due time.

Or perhaps, those who used the Particle Bodies for evil deeds could
be from Little Garden too. By forcing them to reveal a way back,
everything would be solved.
Izayoi reached out his hand towards his luggage, preparing to make
depart, however…

Beep. The simplistic ringtone rang again. It was a second call from
Homura.

…That guy sure seems to have a lot of free time, doesn’t he? While
thinking so in wonder, he answered the call.

As he did, there was a voice similar to a hellish earthquake coming

from the other side.

“IZA-NII! IS SHITTYTERU THERE?!”

The angry roar has caused Izayoi to block his ear.

“By Tokuteru...you meant President? If I remember correctly, he

stayed in Japan, saying he had something to do.”

“Thank goodness, so he hasn't escaped overseas…!!! By the

way, I will ask you too just in case, Iza-nii. You didn't mess with
the orphanage's account just because I received a huge amount
of money have you?”

Due to the impolite questioning, Izayoi finally frowned from

annoyance.

After being asked such crazy thing out of the blue, it's obvious that he
would be pissed.

“...Huh? What the hell are you talking about? You’ve been quite rude
for a while now. I haven't fallen so low that I would need to steal
pocket money from a brat like you.”

“That’s true. Rather than stealing the orphanage’s money without

a word, you’d instead boldly extort it.”

"I wouldn't deny that sentence. Sorry for being a good-for-nothing

brother through and through.”

“You are mostly pardoned. This orphanage was originally built by

Iza-nii and Canaria-sensei, so I wouldn't mind anything if it was
you. In that case, the main suspect is Tokuteru after all….That
bastard, I won't forgive him this time…!!!”

Beep. The phone hung up once again. The unilateral call and
unilateral hang-up, there was a limit to how rude one could be. It must
be the fault of the brother and loved ones who raised him.

Although Homura’s ghastly voice has made Izayoi puzzled, he

decided to let it go after thinking about it for a while and not arriving at
an answer.

Izayoi turned to Prith who was beside him, and asked about the future
plans.

“So, what are we supposed to do now?”

“First, we will have to talk to the guardian of this land. Then, you will
begin to investigate the forest using the particle detector you’ve got. I
will investigate as well as I talk to the gods and spirits of this forest. I’ll
come to meet you when the sun starts to set.”

“No problem with that, but can you find me in a forest of this scale?

“Fufu, I am still a Mother Earth you know. Not to mention your

Spirituality is ridiculously large, finding you will be easy. There should
be no problem as long as you don't go further than the the mountains
ahead.”

Okay, let’s go then. Saying so, they started moving towards the forest.
The two had been unusually slack, simply wanting to get it over with
as soon as they could. Perhaps they were also a bit self-conceited
that there wouldn’t be anything in this outer world that could prove to
be a threat to them, given they experienced the battles of Little
Garden.
However, it was only a few hours after this when they realised that
they have been taking this experiment far too lightly.
 Chapter 3

"...All things aside."

As they were walking through the woods, Prith suddenly looked up at

the sky with a grim expression.

"There's quite a lot of pollution here. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to

call this place the planet's Aorta, and for it to become this impure. I
wonder, in the end, just what in the world were they experimenting
with here?"

"The Aorta is...polluted? Is it something like what happens to the

cardiopulmonary system after long periods of smoking?"

"That's quite an interesting and accurate example. If you look at this

woodland from the biological perspective, it should have maintained a
perfect equilibrium at this point in its development, and yet it has been
polluted to the degree that even I can notice the deviation.
......Basically~ I'm saying that the Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide
production ratios have become rather strange. In a bad way, that is."

The Oxygen production has declined - apparently, that was what she
was trying to say.

With that being the case, calling these magnificent woodlands the
planet's Aorta wasn't exactly wrong either.

This was the most prominent oxygen producing place on earth, and
combined with the tropical animals that consumed said oxygen, it was
in charge of the planet's most essential cardiopulmonary function.

"Izayoi, have you heard about the natural world's cycle amplification
and the ‘Terra Material(Planet's Gift)’?"

"Yea, I've heard a bit about it from Porol. I think it was 'The cycles of
natural phenomenon are there to increase the cumulative amount of
‘Terra Material’ or something?"

"That's right. Divine Spirits gain power by faith, but Demi-Celestial

Spirits and Spirits increase their powers by the local cycles. It wouldn't
be an exaggeration to say that the Amazon Tropics, famed for being
the biggest oxygen production and consumption center, is the most
unique and an enormous cycling bundle of spiritual veins within the
natural world."

"Heeh? ......So that's how it is with the scale of the cycle. What other
Aortas are there?"

Izayoi's eyes gleamed. It appeared that the story had stirred his
curiosity.

Prith continued the conversation with a serious face.

"Well, with that said, there aren't that many places that you would call
the planet's Aorta. In terms of earth veins───‘Yellowstone’, of the
Great volcanic belt of USA, and the ‘Siberian Traps’ from the
prehistoric age fall under the classification of Aortas. Other than that, it
would be everything on the Solar Equator, and......ah, that's right.
Japanese islands are the world's biggest Aorta."

"Huh?"

Izayoi leaked a shocked voice from the unexpected development.

Prith, looking amused by his reaction, explained the reason behind it

while raising her index finger.

"There's nothing that surprising in that, you know? Japan is, after all,
the world's most seismically active country. That country, being born
on the earth's cracks, suffers up to a thousand earthquakes every year
due to the problem with the flow of earth's crust, and the typhoons,
known as the heavenly disasters, happen up to an average twenty
times a year. In both the earth and the sky, it's the biggest and most
important land among the planet's cycles. It can unmistakably be
called the largest Aorta of the earth."

"Hahah. Indeed, that does seem to be the case. Although, whether it's
something to be happy for is another matter altogether. ...Still, that
surprised me. Are you saying that there are close to none of those
Aortas in Europe?"

"Rather than close to none, there are none. Not a single one. It had
been lost when the Atlantic, located in Greek coastal waters, had lost
its original shape due to the eruption and vanished, and since then,
Europe had been a region that Divine Spirits had declared as 'the
Land Where Mankind Prospers.' As a result, while many cultures and
ideologies had originated on those lands, it developed its ideology in a
way that completely contradicted the Terra Material. So while there
are many holy grounds of Divine Spirits there, there's not a single one
of the planet's spiritual grounds."

Divine Spirits have always preferred the west side more and had
implemented the planet's remodelling over countless years.

It was a land with few disasters and brimming with prosperity, an area
where it was easy for mankind to prosper. Thus it brought forth many
countries, and they went through the cycles of warring, merging and
dividing, and continued to develop.

This was also the reason why one of the mythological systems was
called 'Cycle.'

But since the West had been altered in a way that it was difficult for
disasters to occur, it was only natural that the disasters would go
elsewhere.

And with that, the West developed through the cultural cycles while
the East through planetary cycles.
And that was the origin of the seismically active country Japan───the
easternmost nation, situated at the other end from the western
standpoint.

"That's where the main difference comes from between Japanese

myths and foreign countries' myths and royalties. The concept of King,
‘one who governs the country’, in western countries is in contrast with
the vastly different Japanese concept of Royalty, ‘one who opposes
the disaster.’ There weren't many who could be called invaders by the
Japanese, either. And that resulted in constitutionalism in the oldest
country of the CE and also the living god ideology."

"Hmm......smooth words make smooth ways, is it? So, putting it

differently, as the East was burdened with the Western debts and had
pushed itself to the limit, it developed in a way that gods didn't expect
it to, is it?"

"Haha, that's harsh, but it's exactly as you say! But pardon us. Even
our eyes couldn't perceive that the Far East would have developed in
such a grand way. ......And the West will sooner or later pay the price.
The West had its share of hardships in the past when polytheism
suffered an almost complete extinction, so please just think of it as
there being a balance."

They cut through the forest’s ivy branches with knives and jumped
over the marshland.

While imagining the world map in his mind, Izayoi decided to ask
about something that stood out to him.

"......Hm? Then what about the Chinese and such? Do those cultures
fall under the planetary too?"

"No, they are yet another one, different from both. Chinese people are
the descendants of Dragonkind, but to explain about that, I would first
need to explain the difference between "Dragon" and ‘Long’[1]
species....but let's save that for another time. ───I smell blood."
Prith's voice suddenly turned tense.

Izayoi quickly checked behind them and covered the blind spots. They
didn't sense any hostility from their surroundings. Was it the aftermath
of someone's fight or perhaps it was due to fight between the forest
animals.

The two continued to advance through the marshlands in a slow pace

while carefully watching their step.

If it were animals, they were no opponents for them.

No, in the first place, no wild animal would even consider approaching
these two.

They were like walking mountains, oceans or storms even.

While they strolled through the place, most of the animals simply fled
for their lives. That was the reason why they hadn't sensed any living
presences nearby. Even the spirits and the forest sages hid and
shivered as they held their breaths, desperately waiting for the storm
to pass.

Since the spirits were so frightened of them, it was better for them to
accept that getting the information out of them would've been
impossible.

They exchanged glances and advanced.

As the two arrived at the middle stream of a river that crossed the
tropical rainforest, they started to check their surroundings while being
fanned by the wind that blew from the forest gaps.

A moment later, they received an attack from underwater.

"Move!"

"I know!'
The two of them jumped left and right and avoided the buckshot that
flew out from the water. Considering their reflexes, that attack was no
threat to them. Instead, what was more important was the nature of
that buckshot.

Those shots didn't seem like solid objects, but instead, they were
more like compressed balls of air. And their speed wasn't something
to look down on despite coming from the water. While they were a bit
inferior to bullets, they were still beyond the limit of what human
reflexes were able to react to. While it was a trivial matter for these
two who had fought many battles in Little Garden, they both
understood well enough that it wasn't something brought forth with
legitimate physical laws.

Judging that the assailant was hiding in the river, Izayoi jumped
towards it. Seeing that, Prith’s expression changed and she grabbed
his arm.

"Don't rush in! We are withdrawing, Izayoi!"

"What the hell are you saying? It's damn clear that we were attacked
from underwater!"

"That's not what I mean! That attack contained a combustible gas! If

we keep on fighting like this, the gas throughout this place will catch
fire, and this whole place will be blown apart!"

Taking in her warning, Izayoi stopped his legs. As if aiming for that,
the air balls were randomly fired from the river.

Clicking his tongue, Izayoi jumped back and tried to confirm the gas
by its scent.

However, he couldn't smell anything of the sort.

He assumed it was an odourless gas that only Prith, who was the
mother earth goddess, could sense. Since they were attacked with
combustible gas, before talking about its flammability, it was more
important to confirm whether it was poisonous or not.

Clasping his mouth, he concentrated his gaze towards the depths of

the water.

He estimated that he could easily trace the air balls with his eyes at
that speed. But he changed the thought the moment he saw a large
amount of foam gushing out from the water.

Seeing the rapidly declining water level, Izayoi finally understood the
origin of that gas.

(Are they......dividing the river's water into hydrogen and oxygen!?)

He recalled Homura's report from earlier.

He was told that the 'Bull of Heaven' separated the sea water and
manipulated the atmospheric pressure.

The odourless combustible gas and the rapidly declining water level...

Even though Izayoi realized that the foam and compressed balls
scattered in the surroundings were produced by separating the river
into hydrogen and oxygen, he was still a bit too late.

"Oh, crap...!"

He covered his particle detector in a hurry.

Seconds later, along with a flick, that gas of hydrogen and oxygen
caused a blinding light and then a gigantic explosion. The hydrogen
explosion, created by dividing dozens of tons of water, had split the
great river into two parts and made it overflow, blowing everything
around it with a force that made one question whether it would blow
apart the entire mountain itself.

The woodlands that got wrapped in smoke after the hydrogen

explosion had momentarily turned dead silent. While the river
temporarily steamed due to having been boiled after the blast, it was
now returning back to its natural flow. What suffered a real disaster
was without a doubt the animals that happened to be present in the
surroundings.

All the reptiles that made the river surroundings their home had been
ripped to pieces, their flesh and blood splattered across the woodland,
and the birds that were resting their wings on the trees around were
blown away by the storm.

The explosion contained enough firepower to change the terrain itself.

It was an explosion that didn't take into account the damage it would
cause to the surroundings and had utterly destroyed the environment.
If anyone saw it from above, they were sure to see a vast crater
centred around the river.

The river regained its stillness after a moment.

And before long, the ripples appeared on its surface, and a human
silhouette showed up from within.

"......"

That person–seemingly a young girl–had stood up on top of the water

the moment she surfaced. With a leisure walk, like that of a water
strider, she walked to the riverside.

It didn't seem that the reason she stood on the water was because
she was floating. It appeared that she hid in the river during the
explosion, but she was clearly submerged far longer than humanly
possible. And her appearance suitably deviated from an average
human.

Her long white hair was rough like that of an animal's, and her red
eyes shined like melted rubies. Her constitution was similar to that of a
Congenital Albino.
As the white-haired girl surveyed the surroundings with her sharp
eyes, she suddenly heaved a relieved sigh.

On closer look, she had childish sunken cheeks and was severely
fatigued.

Beyond being an Albino, her exhausted condition highlighted the girl's

specificity. She looked even younger than Homura's group but seeing
that she had become so thin, it couldn't be helped that she seemed
more immature than she actually was. Her clothes only consisted of a
tattered white robe and white gloves worn as if to hide her hands as
well as handcuffs. Perhaps she had escaped from where she was
bound by those cold chains. There were evident traces of cuts on the
chains of her shackles.

As the Albino girl walked to the shore atop the water, dragging her
shackles behind her, she held her mouth from surprise as she realised
that the previous explosion caused the coastline to heat up.

Walking above it when it was that hot was not an option. Not knowing
what to do, the Albino remained where she stood.

"───Hah! I was wondering whether it would be a demon or a snake

that would come out, but it was just an Albino brat."

"Eek!!?"

The girl twitched up from the shock.

As she started to check her surroundings, a human figure appeared

from the debris with a speed she couldn't even follow with her eyes.
Izayoi, with a displeased look on his face, appeared suddenly and
glared at the girl.

"But after all that grand display, all that came was a hydrogen
explosion. Since I heard what kind of thing the particle accelerator
was, I expected something like a hydrogen nuclear explosion. ......How
are you going to deal with all these build up expectations of mine?"
Throwing away the broken particle detector, Izayoi looked at her with
a faulting gaze.

Unbelievable, the Albino muttered with her mouth half open.

But no one could blame her. That last attack should've settled
everything even if the whole army was there.

There couldn't possibly exist a human who would come out unhurt
after getting hit by a hydrogen explosion of such a degree that caused
the river levels to decrease. The scale of the blast was enough to
pulverise a mountain.

"M-Monster...!"

She dashed above the river, making her hair flutter in every side.

Izayoi followed her with his eyes while recovering his posture,
wondering how she managed to run on the water.

"Water walk, huh? I'm not sure if that's also thanks to the Particle
Bodies, but───"

She chose the wrong opponent. There were no people who could walk
on this dark red, molten riverside, but if we were talking about that, it
was more unbelievable for someone to withstand that hydrogen
explosion.

The Albino ran just like a leopard and quickly grew distant.

But Izayoi quietly leaked a sigh,

"Here we....go!"

And caused an explosion underfoot.

"H-Hya......!?"

A small voice leaked from the girl's mouth.

Describing it as an explosion was in no way a metaphor.

Izayoi literally blew up the ground under his feet while dashing forward
as if he was a human cannonball, leaving afterimages behind. The
strength put in his legs far exceeded the realm of what humans could
do. With enough power behind his every step to leave craters on the
ground, Izayoi quickly overtook the girl.

"W-W-Wha...!?"

Unable to endure, she stopped her legs and stared at him wide-eyed
in disbelief.

Izayoi seemed to have found her reaction amusing and showed her a
wide grin.

"Now then, little snow white, what will you do now? If you have any
other ways to attack me you can go ahead and try. You won't have
any regrets if you use up all your power before I can catch you."

The Albino's eyes filled up with intensity.

Izayoi only intended to provoke her a little, but she became far more
vigilant towards him than he had expected. He laughed with his hand
on his waist, feeling that the situation would turn a bit more amusing
that way, but at that moment───

Suddenly, her shackles came into his view.

"...Chained shackles? What the, are you actually a fugitive?"

He said in surprise. He didn't notice it due to the girl's long white hair
covering it, but now he was able to confirm that she was weakened.

If she really turned out to be a fugitive, then the situation would

drastically change.

If they had both mistaken each other as their enemies, it would be

meaningless to continue fighting. She was instead someone they
should protect and ask about where she ran away from.

But as the girl trembled before Izayoi, this time she was assaulted
from yet another side.

"Hey there. Considering that this is not Little Garden, don't you think
your little prank has gone a bit too far?"

"H-Hya...!!?"

Prith firmly grasped her shoulders and lifted her up.

It seemed Prith failed to avoid the blast and part of her clothes had
gotten burned. Unlike Izayoi who escaped faster than the explosion,
she probably received a direct hit from the hydrogen explosion. Her
right side was mostly exposed, but perhaps it came with the wisdom of
age, she didn't look particularly embarrassed and boldly constrained
the girl.

While laughing, Izayoi fixed his eyes at her exposed chest that was
like a feast for the eyes.

"It's not like she will understand it if you mention Little Garden. From
the way she looks, there's a high chance that she's from this world."

"......Eh? But wasn't she the one who caused that explosion?"

"Probably. As Homura said, she probably divided the river water into
hydrogen and oxygen───ah, I see. Are you the true identity of the
'Bull of Heaven'?"

Izayoi recalled part of the Epic of Gilgamesh from his previous theory.

The 'Bull of Heaven' was supposedly a Celestial Beast of drought that

dried up the river that was like a thread of life for the Mesopotamians.
In the end, everything was settled before he could come up with the
explanation as to why it manifested as a storm monster.

And that wasn't surprising. Last time it was mixed up with the
Minotaur, and everything became complex, but now that he thought
about it separately, it wasn't such a hard problem to solve, after all.

"The reason why the 'Bull of Heaven' turned into a storm monster was
due to the atomic dissociation of the river? Assuming you were
dissociating the water into hydrogen and oxygen......hmm? Could it be
that you can not only dissociate, but also create steam by chemical
combinations?"

If that was the case, then the 'Bull of Heaven' could very well be
something partly close to perpetual motion.

Izayoi became slightly more vigilant.

Meanwhile, the Albino girl was once again frozen in fear.

If the Star Particle Bodies could dissociate and combine elements

without expending the energy, then the situation was far more
troublesome than he had suspected. The earlier hydrogen explosion
was a trifling thing compared to it. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to
say that said deed would be an ultimate ritual comparable to the
secrets of Alchemy.

(Homura told me not to directly come into contact with the Crystallized
Particle Bodies, but is that related somehow?)

Izayoi gazed at the girl with narrowed eyes.

He judged that they still couldn't be negligent with her.

But the Albino herself didn't seem to understand what was even
happening and didn't understand anything Izayoi was saying. She was
flapping her limbs in panic while Prith firmly held her in place.

Looking at the situation, the pitiable one was that girl who didn't
understand anything.

The two who should've been blown to smithereens appeared before

her without having a scratch, not to say anything about the fact that
just about anyone would've fallen into a panic if they were held up in
the air.

However, the two otherworlders who were outside of such common

sense merely looked at each other and nodded.

"Whatever is the case, she's a precious source of information. Let's

change places for now and listen to what she has to say."

"You are right. However, before that......we have to teach this whitey
here that destroying the environment is a bad thing."

Hah? Izayoi asked suspiciously.

But Prith was quick to act.

She grasped the Albino by the neck and gave her a big swing through
the air───flinging the girl horizontally.

"Wha.......Hold it, you idiot!"

"Wahyaaaaaaaaaa───!!!"

Izayoi was too late to stop her, and the Albino flew away with a
scream.

She who was turned into a human skipping stone drew an arc and
flew towards the downstream of the Amazon river that she had
damaged. Before she could understand what happened to her, she
bounced on the water for the third time and lost her consciousness as
her life flashed before her eyes.

───The Federative Republic of Brazil - 'Favela' slums.

Several hours passed after that incident.

Both of them returned back from the forest to the capital and were
now nursing the Albino girl. By nightfall, the woodlands were visited by
heavy rain, and they decided that any further search would be quite
tricky.

Looking at how weakened the girl was, it was safe to assume that she
wasn't even provided decent meals. It wasn't a good idea to let her
wear those soaked clothes in such a weakened condition. She was
the primary suspect for producing the 'Bull of Heaven,' however they
feared that her condition would worsen if they left her remain the way
she was.

Not to mention the fact that her appearance clearly suggested that she
had escaped from some kind of establishment.

They decided that they would first prioritise waiting before her strength
recovered and then question her about where she had fled from,
however───

As Izayoi searched for a doctor, he couldn't help but question whether

the 'Twelve Devas' were actually just a group of problem children.

Hiding in the slums alley, Izayoi chose the right moment and criticised
Prith.

"Good grief...... You sure are something to make even someone like
me retort, earth goddess-sama. Here I heard you guys were supposed
to be the experts when it came to problem-solving in the outer world,
you know?"

"Of course. But at the same time, I'm a deity that guides the humans.
All the more if the last explosion was caused by that white girl. If she
were to cause that big explosion within the human habitation, she
would have to face a fitting punishment. So before something like that
happens, it's basic discipline to teach her to differentiate what’s good
and what’s bad through painful punishment."

Prith replied to his sarcasm with a slightly off-mark argument.

It wasn't like Izayoi didn't understand where she was coming from.
Even he recalled receiving similar discipline from Canaria when he
was a kid. But in her case, it wasn't the physical but emotional pain
that she utilised against him.

When it came to physically educating them, there wouldn't be many

who wouldn't reform after experiencing being tossed like a skipping
stone.

With all that considered, Izayoi understood that her method wasn't
wrong, but he would've preferred if she considered the time and place
for it.

"An Albino kid......huh. What kind of inhuman experiment were they

conducting, I wonder."

"That is something unrelated to us. It's not like I don't want to properly
protect the kid, but the investigation is what we should prioritise right
now."

"You say that, but we are already in a stalemate. Our detector is

broken, and we did the opposite of what Homura told us. Didn't he say
that there was some device that operated the Particle Bodies? After
seeing that explosion, it seems to me that the 'Bull of Heaven'
appeared with this girl's power."

"I'm not so sure about that. If she really was able to create 'Bull of
Heaven' she should've shown something similar to it in the last
encounter."

Izayoi nodded after seeing her point.

"There are three possibilities I can think of now.

① She was so weakened that she couldn't muster enough power for
'Bull of Heaven.'

② She couldn't use the power because the environmental conditions

were unsuitable.

③ It's impossible to muster enough power for the 'Bull of Heaven'

with just her alone.

And that's about it. What do you think? It will be bad news if there's a
cooperator somewhere."

"No way. Even if we assume that there is someone like that, they
won't amount to a threat anyway. I agree that it's an interesting power,
but it's at around the seventh digit in terms of rank."

"Well... you have a point, but..."

"In the first place, that Snow White had the power to separate
electrons, didn't she? I'm still not sure if it's restricted to hydrogen and
oxygen, but atomic compounds are the necessary power to make the
dissociated atoms turn into water vapour, right? Separately they
wouldn't amount to anything big."

───Is that how it is? Prith said in wonder. Izayoi continued his
speech.

"Rather than that, the main point is the physical condition of that Snow
White. She's too weakened, so it's better if we just wait and see for
now. Either way, I find it hard to believe that there would be a research
facility in the dead centre of that forest. It would be more problematic if
we lose a valuable source of information."

Izayoi proposed that they should temporarily go back to the city and
threw firewood into the fire.

Prith knit her brows in dissatisfaction. She was also worried about her
condition, but it was too illogical to just conclude that there wouldn't be
a research facility in the forest.

Even if they prioritised her protection, dividing into two groups–one

staying back, another heading to the forest–would've been a good
compromise plan. It was unlike Izayoi to not even consider that
compromise.

"......What's wrong? It's not like you to be skimping on work."

"Skimping you say?"

"That's what it looks like. No, if I had to say, it's like you have your
priorities backwards. Are you perhaps sympathising with her
circumstances?"

That's not it, Izayoi laughed mockingly and shook his head.

"That's not really it. Rather than her circumstances, it has something
to do with the fact that the Albino kid was used as an experimental
subject."

"With albinism? What, did you know someone who was an Albino?"

Prith raised a slightly surprised voice. Albinism was indeed a rare

symptom, but it wasn't something this guy who was a self-proclaimed
hedonist should've cared about.

Izayoi ignited the fireplace of the abandoned building and stared into
the empty space for a bit.

"......Yeah. Long ago, there was one Albino of my age."

"Oho? Were they a friend of yours?"

"I considered them my best friend."

This time Prith was extremely surprised.

That shocked state was an unthinkable reaction for her who usually
carried herself in a composed manner. But that was only natural. Even
if she was a deity, never did she expect words like 'best friend' to
come out from Sakamaki Izayoi's mouth of all people.
Brimming with curiosity, Prith drew closer to Izayoi with an impish
smile.

"That was surprising. I never thought you of all people would ever say
that word."

"Now that's a surprise even for me. Was it so strange of me to call

someone my best friend?"

"For Sakamaki Izayoi, that is. The word 'close friend' is among the top
three words in the 'even if I feel that way deep down, it's too
embarrassing to actually say it' word rankings, am I wrong?"

"....... I feel like that's a god's prejudice there. While we are at it, what
are the other two words?"

"'I love you' and 'I'll kill you'. Saying them is too embarrassing for you,
and they require courage. ...But putting that aside, what about this
best friend of Sakamaki Izayoi. What kind of person were they?"

Prith's curiosity knew no end. The look in her eyes was just like a
female leopard that had found her prey. But for Izayoi, the person in
question, it wasn't a topic he could speak of while messing around.

He scratched his head awkwardly and returned back to the topic.

"Leaving that aside... why did the researchers of the Particle Bodies
use Albinos as experimental subjects? That's the main question."

"......Ugh. That was quite a blunt way to change the topic. But you
have a point, it's indeed strange."

Prith stopped smiling a bit regrettably and pondered with a hand on

her chin. There might have been some reason for using Albinos, who
were more prone to illnesses than ordinary people, as experimental
subjects.

But for these two who were basically outsiders, there was no knowing
what that reason was.
Izayoi continued his speech.

"We might find a lead if we examine this little Snow White. Even more
so if she is the subject of Particle Body research. It will be better if we
ask 'Everything Company' to safeguard her."

"......You have a point. It can't be helped. Let me hear about your best
friend some other time."

"Just forget about it. That was just your imagination, you got it?"

"Fufu, sorry to say but you better give up on that. This Mother Earth
Goddess here is a huge peeping tom, being a mother and all. ...For
now, let's focus on safeguarding her for the sake of investigation.
Though we are assuming that she would know the location of the
research facility."

"Taking her condition in mind, it would better if we assume that she

knows something. On top of having special powers, she has shackles
and chains on her. Don't you think that it's perfectly normal to think
that she escaped from that facility? It would be best if we could get in
touch with Homura and give her a proper medical───no, wait a
minute."

Izayoi's relaxed expression tensed up.

He approached the Albino and touched the chains attached to her

shackles.

"......Prith. Take a look at this chain. It's been severed."

"What?"

Prith leaned forward and took the chain in hand. Those cold steel
chains weren't destroyed as they would be with the previous explosion
but instead were severed with something sharp.

If she didn't escape by her own efforts, it would completely change the
situation.

"It's cut...... which means, it wasn't this girl but someone else that let
her escape?"

"What's more, it wasn't someone with similar power to hers like we

believed before. Since the chains were cut, the cause was completely
different from in it."

The two exchanged looks and tried to understand the situation.

It was no doubt at this point that she escaped from the facility and was
loitering in the forest.

The real question was whether she escaped by her own effort or if
other experimental subjects helped her escape.

Or was it a third party that let her escape?

"Maybe there was some trouble inside the research facility, and she
used the chance to escape......or maybe a third party attacked the
facility, and she escaped in the chaos."

"Yeah. After all, there are at least two organisations that are
researching the Particle Bodies. ......This is troubling. If we knew it
would turn out like this, we would've asked for more details───"

Right at that time, they heard a plain ringtone ring.

As Izayoi grabbed his vibrating chest pocket, the two exchanged

glances.

"......Incoming call? Is it from Homura?"

"......Yeah. That brat's actually monitoring us via the satellite isn't he?"

Speak of the devil or whatever, but his timing was too perfect.

Even if the satellite thing was a joke, he couldn't help but be

suspicious on whether they were being monitored in some way. Even
if Homura himself didn't have such hobbies, there were more than
enough people around him who did.

Feeling unpleasant omens, Izayoi answered the call with a displeased

face.

"───Woah, I can't believe it. It actually connected, Tokuteru!"

"As expected of Queen! Last time was the same, but for her to
even send out the electromagnetic waves from Little Garden, it's
like there's nothing she can't do! Anyhow, we have a light hope
with this!"

Homura and Mikado Tokuteru's cheers came from the other side.

Izayoi raised a brow from slight surprise and then turned on the
speaker mode so that Prith could also hear it.

"What, are you two already in Little Garden? There's still some time
before the opening ceremony, isn't there? Isn't that quite cunning of
you two getting a head start on me."

"It's not like that. I have an overall idea about the Particle Body
research and the cure of the illness, and since the summer
vacation starts today, I thought I'd go and enjoy the otherworld
trip a little───"

"There's no time for that, Brother!!"

This time Ayazato Suzuka's voice came from the phone, who
snatched it away from Homura..

"Listen to me, Iza-nii! We had one foot in the grave due to the
debts Mikado has made! Or rather, we are in quite a pinch even
now! As matters stand, Aya-chan, Uesugi-san and this Suzuka-
san will be sold off as the beauty maid set!!!"

"...You what?"
The two exchanged doubtful gazes. As expected, they didn't get what
she was trying to say.

Prith who stood next to Izayoi asked again in a calm manner.

"Suzuka. It's me. Prith."

"Eh?───Ah, Prith-san, you are with him too. You both work in
the same field, after all. Our Iza-nii had been in your care."

"No no, it's me who's in his care. That aside, please calm down and
explain. Are you two, along with Tokuteru in Little Garden now?"

Izayoi suddenly opened his eyes wide. That was quite unnatural
indeed. If they were in Little Garden together with Tokuteru who was
supposedly hiding his identity from them, that left several questions
unanswered.

At that point, Tokuteru took over the phone.

"Prith. Let's save that for later. I want us to exchange information

for now. According to Queen, you have some questions for
Homura too, right?"

"That's indeed the case, but I'd like to hear from your side first. If our
president was troubled over loan problems and finally decided to
resort to beauty trafficking, then it seems it's time for me to visit a
certain place."

Prith's chillingly cold voice made Tokuteru leak a little shriek and
swallow his breath.

"No well... I'm also troubled. It's like I'm not directly at fault....or
should I say I'm also a victim."

"Huh!!?"

"Haah!?? Are you seriously saying that now! If you don't stop
screwing around I'll drown you in Sumita river along with
Shibamata Buddha statue, you shittyteru!!!"

"......Father of mine. It might sound odd coming from myself, but

that was too thoughtless of you."

Hearing Suzuka and Homura's, as well as an unfamiliar youth's voice,

the two bent their heads in wonder.

In any case, Sumita river in question was in the territory of Shibamata

Taishakuten. If one were to throw the Buddha statue inside that river,
the War God's honour would be completely ruined without a doubt.

That was something even the 'Twelve Devas' needed to avoid.

The only person with common sense there, Kudou Ayato, took over
the phone, perhaps realising that the conversation would get nowhere
as the matters stood.

"Prith. Also, Senpai's big brother. Can I talk about our business
first?"

"Hm? ......Ah, is it the masked ojousama. If it's you, you should be able
to calmly tell us what's going on."

"Well, yes. But please stop with that nickname."

Ayato seemed a bit embarrassed due to the name Izayoi called her.

Izayoi wanted to say something, but he decided that it was time to get
to the point already.

And so, Kudou Ayato started to tell them about this morning───about
the incident that occurred after Homura had returned home.

1 Chinese dragon (龍) as opposed to western (竜). While both are read as
Ryuu in Japanese and mean the same in most cases, I choose to go with the
Chinese reading for one of them here. ↩
 Chapter 4

It was the height of summer.

The rays of the sun that were burning the skin strengthened by each
passing day and exhibited their menace to its fullest. In Tokyo where
the top temperature was constantly being updated for the past three
days, many people had collapsed from heat stroke.

While sweat dripped down from her gorgeous golden hair, Kudou
Ayato, who looked utterly drained due to the suffocating heat inside
the car, called out to the female driver.

"......Uesugi-san."

"Yes?"

"Modern hell......is probably something appropriate to call the

summers in Tokyo. The heat haze rising from the roads, tap-water
that's warmer than even a person's skin, as well as broken air
conditioners that are useless even if you set them to their maximum
output. Having to attend school or go to work every day while being
crippled by this triple handicap is truly the karma of the human world.
After studying and working on and on, just what lies at the end of it
all? Just where is humanity headed to? What I'm trying to say is, uh,
can't you do anything about this just this once with your divine power?"

Ayato unfastened the first button on her blouse and gave a truly
exhausted sigh.

For her who grew up while being taught ladylike manners, this was
unusually careless of her.
Her voluptuous chest that was way too developed for her age, with
slight sweat trickling on it, looked so alluring that the eyes of the
opposite sex would be glued to it.

Despite the fact that the school she went to allowed regular clothes,
she would undoubtedly be summoned by the student counselling if
they were to see her in her current appearance. It was a mystery how
one could look so improper despite having only a natural body.

In contrast to her, Uesugi, the woman with a black ponytail, who was
sitting in the driver's seat, was wearing her full suit in this terrible heat.

She mercilessly answered without a shred of hesitation.

"Sorry, but I can't do anything about it."

"Can't you somehow make an exception?"

"I can't. Endure it."

She replied immediately. Again, she was quite merciless. She was the
very definition of unapproachable.

Her iron will to keep silently driving in this murderous heat without
batting an eye was probably an example that even Ayato should have
followed.
But that was that, and this was this.

It was suicidal to spend the summertime in Tokyo without using even

an air conditioner. More and more people were collapsing from heat
stroke every single day, and the media was making a fuss about the
matter.

While exhausted, Ayato looked out the car's window.

"If it were Prith, she wouldn't have neglected the car’s

maintenance......but it can't be helped I suppose. It wouldn’t be wrong
of me to say that my skills have grown dull because I’ve been spoiled
by the convenience of the modern civilization. . This will be a lesson in
self-discipline, I suppose."

"Would enduring this heat even serve as a form of discipline? If you've

grown blunt, you simply need to reforge yourself. I don't mind keeping
you company as a distraction from this heat."

It appeared that even she was annoyed by the heat. Her tone and the
way she spoke was rougher than her usual self too. However, Ayato
lifted her face with apparent surprise plastered on it.

"Uesugi-san, you will help me with my training?"

"That's right. Although I'm acting as a substitute for Prith-sama, this

matches with my actual line of work more so than playing attendant
like this."

"That's...a great idea indeed. I couldn't ask for anything more. I would
definitely like to have a match with you whenever you have time."

Uesugi had said it over her shoulder out of desperation, but Ayato had
unexpectedly clung to the proposal.

If Ayato understood who she really was, she wouldn't have been able
to carelessly say something like wanting to be kept company with in
training.
As she stopped the car at the red light, Uesugi looked at Ayato
through the rearview mirror and asked.

"I'm sorry if I raised your expectations, but I have never trained

someone. Are you still fine with it?"

"Just having a match with you would be an honour. If The Dragon of

Echigo - Uesugi Kenshin, member of the world-famous group of war
gods, 'Twelve Devas', and the bearer of 'Bishamonten's' Divinity, were
to help me with my training, that would be the best that I could ask for.
I also wanted to vent in regards to my family issues."

Ayato said Uesugi’s name with respect.

If anyone heard what she had said, they would have no doubt jumped
from surprise.

Ayato crossed her legs in amusement.

"Ever since we first met, I've had my suspicions about you, Uesugi-
san. Although I've happened to hear a rumour about Uesugi Kenshin
being a woman, when you appeared before my eyes just like that, I
couldn't help but be shocked. With this chance...I would like to hear
about the various heroic tales regarding the Battles of Kawanakajima
in detail and experience them for myself."

"Oh? So in the end, you have an eye on my secrets too?"

"That is true, but it's also true that I wish to have a match with you."

Ayato proudly answered while disregarding appearances.

Uesugi responded with an unusually amused voice.

However, even if she was told that she was Uesugi Kenshin, she
couldn't help but be curious.

There was not a single Japanese who hadn't heard of The Dragon of
Echigo and the Avatar of Bishamonten, Uesugi Kenshin.
She was the one who had her name first spread as the strongest
military commander of the Warring States period.

It was said that Uesugi Kenshin, who fought against the leading
military commanders of the Oda, Takeda and Houjou families, had
been through seventy battlefields and had only lost no more than two
of them.

She, who made a name for herself as the peerless general, took the
name 'Bishamonten's Avatar' for herself and adopted two flags as her
own; one that depicted the character ‘Bi', representing 'Bishamonten'
and one that depicted the 'Warring Dragon', representing the
'Immovable Wisdom King'.

Her being in charge of 'Bishamonten's' Divinity wasn't something too

unsettling. Instead, the main issue was her gender.

Just like Ayato had said, there were indeed theories about Uesugi
Kenshin being a woman.

Especially in the report written by the Spanish special envoy which

had specific evidence supporting the 'Uesugi Kenshin is Female’
theory. There were still songs that doubted Uesugi's gender remaining
even within the country itself and they couldn't just be disregarded as
mere folklore either. That said, the main issue was that just one look
and it would be understood that an intervention from the gods was
essential for protecting her secret.

Because even if she merely just sat there, quiet and unarmed, she
looked every bit like the perfect Japanese woman.

If she untied her long, glossy hair, coupled with her transparent skin
that was like pure-white snow, just about anyone would be fascinated
by her.

The way she looked in a kimono on their first meeting was still
profoundly etched into Ayato's mind.
When she stands, she's like a white peony. When she sits, she's like a
tree peony. When she walks, she's like a lily flower───so much that
those words appeared in her mind. She had a physical body - the
outer appearance of an 18 year old girl and was close to her in age,
so she had long been someone Ayato wanted to talk with.

Perhaps she had been charged with some sort of mission, and had
manifested as a Divinity Holder, naming herself the representative of
the guardian god 'Bishamonten'. Ayato was probably too curious
about it.

"Fufu, alright then. I was also interested in the martial arts of Western
Europe. When Prith-sama manages to return from her overseas
business trip, my guard mission will also come to an end. After that, I'll
keep you as much company as you like."

Uesugi pushed down the accelerator with a bit more strength and
accepted the match while revealing a slight smile.

It wasn’t long until they reached their destination, 'Canaria Family

Home'.

Remembering that her chest was in full view, Ayato’s cheeks tinted
red, and she fastened the button on in a flustered manner as she
reflected on her current mannerism.

"By the way......which country did Prith head to?"

"What, you haven't heard of it?"

"I wasn't the direct employer; it was my mother. I was told that she
was heading towards America along with Senpai's brother.....err, with
Izayoi-san, but..."

Ayato continued with a serious expression on her face. If one were to

speak of America, it was the place where the ‘Bull of Heaven’ had
originated from. She was probably wondering whether a new incident
had occurred there.
As Uesugi hesitated on how to start the topic, they had just arrived in
front of the orphanage.

"I understand. Let's talk about that matter together. It seems Tokuteru
also just came back."

"Tokuteru-san came back?"

Ayato looked at the orphanage garage in surprise.

Tokuteru's beloved car was undoubtedly parked there.

Stopping the car, Uesugi lightly wiped the sweat off her face, then
opened the door to the escorted Ayato.

"Since that incident three months ago, we have also changed our
outlook. Now that Saigou Homura has learned about Little Garden,
there's no point in us hiding our existence from him. So we concluded
that it would be better to clear everything up and cooperate with him."

"I-I see. But I wonder if Senpai and Suzuka will accept it?"

Ayato knit her brows from unease.

After all, it was hard to imagine that they would just believe it all if the
person who had raised him since childhood suddenly said something
like "You know, I am actually Indra!". They would probably just laugh it
off.

However, Uesugi replied proudly.

"Tokuteru will make them believe him by any means. Despite how he
looks, Tokuteru is a garbage like man made up of human pus, on top
of being a womaniser and a drunkard. There aren't many who are so
similar to Indra's Divinity. Rather, they would definitely see the
connection when he declares his real name."

Uesugi nodded with confidence.

Divine Spirits whom subordinates called useless gods without a shred
of hesitation weren't many in number either.

He didn't look that useless of a god from Ayato's perspective.

However, she would probably see his faults the more time she spent
with him. At any rate, today was the important day where they would
map out their course.

Homura, Ayato and Suzuka were also free now that summer vacation
started.

There were plenty of matters that needed to be settled before the Sun
Authority War began. Even if Tokuteru's group didn't present
themselves as Divine Spirits, just calling themselves people from Little
Garden would be fine too.

Straightening herself, Ayato pumped herself and opened the door to

the orphanage lobby───but at that moment...

The loud screams of both Homura and Suzuka came from the
orphanage.

"───And now, let's begin the twenty-fourth trial of "beating Mikado

Tokuteru to death"!!!"

"Wait just a bit! That's not something that calls for a court!"

"Shut your shitty mouth, defendant!!!"

"You bastard, even a saint's patience can last up to twenty-three

times!!! This time even this Suzuka-san's patience has burned out!!!
My anger meter went beyond the limit now. God damn you!!! Just stay
still and accept this fair and generous witch trial!!!"

The voices of three people striking the desk were heard.

The two of them were directing a gaze filled with scorn and anger
towards Mikado Tokuteru. Their expressions looked demonic due to
their sheer rage.

Ayato and Uesugi exchanged shocked looks in front of the orphanage

lobby.

"It seems there's quite some tension going on there......w-what should

we do?"

"Entering like this would be awkward, I suppose. Let's check what's

going on first."

Putting their ears on the lobby door, they listened in on the situation
inside.

It appeared that Homura and Suzuka were one-sidedly delivering their

judgment.

Homura wasn't giving Tokuteru a chance to defend himself and

smacked his face with the bankbook.

"Charge!! Someone has embezzled the cash bonus, as well as the

support money in the orphanage's account book! The only people with
access to it while I was in Europe to investigate the epidemic were
Suzuka, Ayato, and Tokuteru!!! Thus, the prosecutors conclude that
these crimes were due to embezzlement by Mikado Tokuteru!!!"

"Straight to conclusion!? W-Where's your proof!? Proof that I'm the

offender!?"

"Evidence number one! The total amount of money that has gone
missing is 500 million yen! Naturally, withdrawing that amount from an
ATM is impossible! Prosecutor Suzuka!"

"Based on this evidence, the prosecutor who accepted this appeal

from the accuser has sought information from the neighbouring
affiliated bank! In response to the questioning, the receptionist lady
provided this testimony, "Orphanage money you ask? If it's that, the
usual uncle came and withdrew the full sum~♪", with a smile on her
face!"

"And now, the judgment!! He is Guilty!!!"

"Guilty!!! Guilty indeed!!!"

"W-Wait a minute! Objection! That evidence is insufficient!! Where's

your evidence that the ‘usual dandy uncle’ in the employee's testimony
is me!!?"

""The regular who embezzled the money from the SAME bank twenty-
three times in a row has the nerve to say that? You human scum!!!""

The two screamed as they both drove flying knee kicks right in
Tokuteru's skull.

Tokuteru, who was kneeling beside the sofa, bounced away and hit
the wall, no longer able to move. It appeared that the time for him to
defend himself had ended.

While breathing heavily, the two heaved the biggest sigh they could
manage and shrugged their shoulders in unison.

Among all that───there was another youth who hadn't participated in

the conversation and was merely staring blankly at them with his
mouth partly open.

He was Asterius - the youth who was in the custody of 'Canaria Family
Home' ever since the 'Bull of Heaven' incident that had occurred three
months ago.

He currently lived in the orphanage while working at the nearby

French food restaurant 'Don Bruno'. He was suddenly dragged along
without any explanation and was now sitting in the judge’s seat in his
restaurant apron.

After fixing his breath, Homura turned to the confused Asterius and
asked.
"Now, Chief Judge Asterius. Your fair judgment and the guilty verdict
please."

"C-Calm down Homura. You suddenly dragged me here from the

middle of work and told me to be the chief judge...Sorry to say, but in
the first place, there was no concept of money in the period I was born
in. That's why I don't really understand the charge or even the reason
that made you so angry. If I may add, I feel more guilt towards the fact
that I slipped out of work at lunchtime when it's the busiest time of the
day."

He was probably brought along as a third party, seeking for the

minimum discretion, but he didn't really understand the situation and
so he picked up the now mostly empty bankbook.

He understood labour obligation, but it seems that he still couldn't fully

comprehend the equivalent exchange of this age. He probably thought
of money as nothing but the extension of bartering.

Homura furrowed his brows towards Asterius who seemed lost and
troubled.

"Ah, that's right. There was indeed no money system in the bronze
age where the Minotaur lived."

"Asterius-kun is someone who lived in BC 2000, isn’t he?"

"That's how it is. If we are talking about a simpler version of bartering

compared to now, there was one back then too...but I guess they
couldn't use food stocks for fair trial as well."

"T-That's right! The evidence has no meaning if the judge can't

understand it! Also, I as the accused wish to call an advocate! I'll call
someone skilled from my company right no-"

"Very well, then I shall take on that job."

Uesugi flung opened the door with proper timing.

Ayato became flustered from being found out that she was
eavesdropping on them.

Tokuteru's face turned pale as he screamed.

"Geh, Uesugi! Wait a sec I didn't call you!"

"Don't be modest. I was about to call King Enma, but he is in the

middle of a business trip. I swear upon the name Uesugi that I would
be fair in my judgment."

"No way in hell! I called for an advocate! No one called a shady

muscle-brain judge like you!"

That was precisely the case. However, no one raised any voice of
compassion.

Uesugi took out the fashion glasses that she used for work and began
to summarise all the provided evidence.

"Let's summarise the evidence proving that the accused is the

supposed offender.

① The bank account that was harmed could only be operated by

Mikado Tokuteru, Ayazato Suzuka and Kudou Ayato.

② The person at the bank counter has testified that the withdrawer
was a man.

③ Furthermore, since Mikado Tokuteru had taken a massive debt in

Kabukichou last month, he had an adequate motive too."

"Wh-, How do you kn-"

"AGAIN!? You made another debt!!?"

"What kind of woman did you get tangled up with this time!!? Was it a
poor young girl who was sold off by her parents in a foreign country!!?
Or was it a widow who was tricked by an emerging religion!!? Or
maybe...or maybe this time it was an illegal immigrant who was
purchased for organ resale!!?"

Ayato clapped her hands as if she had guessed something.

"......Ah, embezzling the subsidy for such reasons......."

Ayato had no idea about the embezzlements until this day, but if there
were such unspeakable reasons behind them, it couldn't be helped
that they stayed a secret. If they had gotten the police involved and
told the full truth, then even those girls who he ended up saving
would've been called to the court. As Homura and Suzuka also
understood the situation, they stopped at just personal
punishment───but that was one thing, and this was another.

"Guh......I guess It's useless to play dumb now if you know that
much......!!!"

"No, you've already been busted for quite a while now. Just stay still
and accept your judgment."

Uesugi calmly showed a thumbs down, revealing a guilty verdict. No

mercy at all.

"......And so? How much is left?"

"None. I ended up spending all of it to save a pair of siblings who got

rolled up in a certain incident."

"Are you an idiot!!?"

"It's 500 million...500!!! It's not 500 thousand, or even 5 million... it's
FIVE HUNDRED! Just what did you do to spend all of that in such a
short amount of time SHITTYTERU!"

The siblings with furious expressions kept shouting "you are guilty!!!".

They wanted to hit him a couple more times, but there was no time for
that.

This situation left them with no food for tomorrow.

It was decided that Homura would be paid his individual cash reward
in half month after the Europe expedition. In other words, they were
now penniless. As matters stood, the orphanage would dry up
completely.

"Damn it......what should we do? If he used it to repay his debts, I think

he's not lying when saying that he has no money on hand now. What
should we do, Brother?"

"It looks really bad, Sister. This is the second biggest pinch ever since
the founding of this orphanage. If it were the usual, we'd let him off
after a punch, a kick and 3x refunding of it, but the money involved
this time is on another level. There’s no time to go to another world. In
this case, I can only think of evening it out by selling Tokuteru's
organs..."

"S-Senpai. Suzuka too. Tokuteru-san could have been in an

unavoidable situation. I'll pay up the living expenses in advance this
time, so can you settle the matter with just that?"

Saying so, Ayato took out a card from her bag. Seeing the black card
Suzuka's expression brightened up, but Homura's stayed dark.

"No......I have already borrowed a lot from you, Ojousama. I don't want
to borrow any more than I already have humanely. If you add it to
Tokuteru's tab, then the talk is different, but I don't want to trouble you,
to be exact, I can't ask for two million yen...."

"It's okay. I'll split the bill with Tokuteru-san and Senpai with 9:1 ratio.
Pay it back not with money but with your actions, okay?"

"......Ah, so in the end, Homura was also affected by that loan."

As expected of Aya-chan, Suzuka said in admiration.

Asterius, who was sitting in the seat of a chief judge, confirmed the
time...and quietly sighed to himself, seeing that lunchtime was about
to end.

───Three months after the rampage by the 'Bull of Heaven'.

The pandemic that was caused by the infectious disease had settled
down after the distribution of the 'Star Particle Bodies' that 'Everything
Company' had manufactured, and it was safe to assume that the
losses were kept to a minimum.

Their developer, Saigou Homura, also went to the affected region

overseas and observed the conditions of the patients there and the
removal of the pathogens that were spread in the soil. The two kinds
of Particle Bodies that he had discovered there were confirmed to be
very close in nature to the 'Star Particle Bodies' that he himself had
developed.

Everyone present, who had helped to wrap up Mikado Tokuteru in a

bamboo mat and hang him up, asked for details from Uesugi.

She who got an invitation from Little Garden, as planned, tried to

reveal their───the 'Twelve Devas' identity. However, Mikado
Tokuteru's desperate pleas made her think otherwise.

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, Homura processed her words.

"......Hmm. So, Tokuteru and Uesugi-san are from Little Garden, huh."

"You don't seem to be surprised."

"Well, yeah. When I heard that Ayato was from another world......from
Little Garden, I already had more or less figured it out. Besides, that
call I got from Tokuteru on the day of that Typhoon seemed way too
suspicious no matter how you look at it."

While scratching his head, he recalled the event over two months
prior.

That day when they were summoned to Little Garden───there were

two people who contacted Homura and asked whether 'something
unexplainable' had occured.

First one was Kudou Ayato, the young lady of ‘Everything Company’.

And the other was this president of an international security service

and secret agent employment company───Mikado Tokuteru, who
was now wrapped up tightly in a mat. Although that was his current
state, he was in fact quite famous in that industry, enough that even
Homura had heard about his fame.

After all, it was a mercenary group of choice for 'Everything Company'

that was among the top five fanatical conglomerates of the world.

From an escort of an important person to advance elucidations of

terrorism, he had such an extensive information network that it was
hard to imagine from such an individual.

Many came to refer to his group as 'War Gods' due to their combat
power that, if turned hostile, they would be able to erase the target
without letting them even raise a single shriek.

......Such a nickname was quite unimaginable to be referring to the

same guy who was now tied and hanged up.

"I'm aware that Prith-san is a superwoman, but I just can't see

anything amazing when I look at Tokuteru. He easily makes debts.
And embezzles."

"So, what kind of monster is this useless guy connected to? Is it a god
of poverty or something?"

"Well, I'll keep that a secret for his sake. But well, his true name is
something that you'd find quite fitting if you heard it."

Uesugi looked at Indra with a scornful glare.

His weeping voice was heard from within the mat, but no one
sympathised with him.

Ayato cleared her throat and got back to the topic.

"With that said, Uesugi-san's true identity───"

"I mean, that's pretty obvious without needing to spell it out."

"Her name, 'Uesugi Kenshin', says it all. I don't know if she's a

representative of the Uesugi family or what, but I think she should've
put a bit more effort into hiding her name, don't you agree?"

"......Ugh."

Uesugi pouted in objection but stayed silent.

It wasn't as if she chose to go with her real name because she herself
wanted to.

Divine Spirits or Divinity Holders raised the density of their Spirituality

with faith, and just the act of lying about their name made it decrease.
Also, for her, who got resurrected as Bishamonten's representative,
lying about her name would be equivalent to showing disrespect
towards her chief god. She used her real name because of such
circumstances, so it was a bit hard for her to stomach the way he
worded it.

Not taking notice of her displeasure, Homura and others continued

talking.

"But still. It's great that the Game is held during the summer holiday.
But what exactly should we do?"

"If you open this invitation, you will be resummoned into Little Garden.
You guys are allowed to move between the worlds as an exception,
but please leave all questions for when you get to the ceremonial
opening hall."
Uesugi took out the invitation letter marked with the banner of 'Queen
Halloween'.

Last time it came as an email, but this time it seems that it was an
envelope.

It was a notice of the event that may change depending on the

Queen's whims, but it was still better than it being too erratic, suffering
inconvenience.

"Then, without delay..."

"Ah, w-wait a minute! Before that, I have something to say!"

As they were about to open the invitation, Mikado Tokuteru's scream

came from within the mat.

Although he turned silent when everyone directed cold gazes at him, it

seemed the situation didn't allow him to falter here. He forcefully tore
off the bamboo mat and escaped, then took out two shining cards
from his bag and passed it to the siblings.

"I'll give you two these Gift Cards. You don't have them yet, right?"

"Gift Cards? What are those, Bon festival gifts?"

"Year-end gifts?"

"They aren't...New Year Gifts, are they?"

Ayato followed along the sibling’s jokes a little embarrassed.

Tokuteru continued without minding them.

"If you have these Gift Cards, you can carry all your weapons and
daily emergency items with you at all times. Be sure to put the Gifts
that you manage to obtain in these cards."

"......Oh? So in short, they are 4D cards with a take-out function."

"You can think of it that way. Moreover, based on my assumption of
how the next Game will be, I've stored all the Gifts in them that might
be necessary. As long as you don't lose them, they'll prove to be
useful in various situations. ......Well, they turned out to be more
expensive than I thought. I didn't think it would reach nine digits."

Tokuteru scratched his head awkwardly.

Everyone widened their eyes in shock as if they took a sudden hit, not
believing what they just heard.

"Nine digits....then the 500 million you spent was for..."

"Sorry, I spent it all on these Card contents! I thought they'd be

cheaper, but I was kind of sized up more than I thought, or maybe my
general conduct was to blame, so yeah, what I'm trying to say
is.......I'm really sorry about that. If I knew you'd be summoned to
participate in the Sun Authority War, I would've made more useful
Gifts for you. The fact that I've been out of touch with the Game's
organizing committee for a long time had backfired on me. I'll definitely
return the money I embezzled so, please, forgive me for this."

He shrugged his shoulders with a sigh. It seems that the 'Siblings who
got rolled up in a certain incident' that he mentioned earlier referred to
Homura and Suzuka.

He tried to prepare the Gifts for winning through the Sun Authority War
in this world, but he was forced to spend unexpected expenses. It
seemed that was the whole truth of this incident.

"Ayato. Your new arms that the Queen prepared for you are also
included in Homura's Gift Card. Please confirm it later."

"F-For me too?"

"Of course. You are the biggest battle power among the three of you
no matter how I look at it, so it's best to strengthen your power further.
Suzuka, you can store the "Kaitenjuu" you stole from Shen Gongbao
in them as well."

"I-I see. That seems quite convenient. I'll go grab them!"

Suzuka ran back inside her room.

Moving on, Tokuteru now faced Asterius.

"Asterius. Your situation is quite complicated. You are currently

treated as a 'Property' of Homura's group. It's also possible to treat
you as a player, but with the Gift Card, there's more useful way. For
that reason, are you okay with being treated as their property this
time?"

"I don't mind, but can you explain?"

"I'll explain that after the Game starts. So just stay in the orphanage
for now. If my predictions are correct, you remaining here will prove to
be more useful for the predicament."

Hearing Tokuteru's proposal, Asterius send a questioning glance at

Homura.

Homura's group, with Asterius included, had only four participants. It

was hard to say if decreasing that number even further would be a
wise move.

However, Homura nodded unexpectedly easily.

"Isn't it fine? Besides, you can't just skip the work at Don's restaurant
without even giving him prior notice, right? No other shop would hire
someone with unknown origins like you."

"......Are you sure?"

"If Tokuteru says he has a plan, it's better to go along with what he
says. Uncle Mikado is quite reliable when it comes to things other than
money."
Right? Homura said jokingly.

But Tokuteru didn't reply to those words.

Then, as he finally looked towards Homura, he asked with a serious

expression unlike any before.

"......Homura. Finally, there's one thing I have to ask you no matter

what."

"W-What is it so suddenly?"

"Are you really sure you want to participate in the Sun Authority War?
Do you───Saigou Homura, fully understand what it means to take
part in this Authority War?"

From the words that he spoke, everyone held their breaths. Those
weren't words the usual him would ever say, but ones that were full of
dignity befitting the one who carried the name of a 'War God'.

Tokuteru asked that to Homura......with a face that he had never

displayed to the children of the orphanage in these five years since
their meeting.

───About Homura's reason for participating in the Sun Authority War.

Queen, the one who summoned him into Little Garden, had promised
a generous reward, but that was close to ex-post-facto acceptance. A
hindsight bias, so to speak. Albeit he cleared the Labyrinth of the
Minotaur, Saigou Homura was far from being the directly related party
even to this day.

Tokuteru was asking about his reason for fighting, the requirement to
become a true Player in order to compete in this Game of Gods and
Demons.

"......My reason for fighting, huh?"

He hesitated for a bit. He understood that it was something that he

needed to clarify. A reason for fighting, for taking action, if there were
no such thing, then it would become difficult to motivate himself when
he gets caught in a dilemma.

Homura himself thought over that matter considerably over the past
two months.

For Saigou Homura───There was no real reason for him to fight in

the Authority War.

But there was one to participate in it.

Although the 'Bull of Heaven', the source of Taurus and the monster
called 'Minotaur', both originated from Little Garden, the reason behind
his summoning was the Star Particle Bodies. And the previous battle
was the result of the abuse of said Star Particle Bodies.

Tens of thousands of people suffered from just one battle over an

Authority.

Saigou Homura had to take part in the Authority War, even if just to
find out the enemy that had caused such a calamity.

"There's......no reason. I feel bad for Queen, but I'm not aiming for
anything like fame in another world or the overall victory. But I think
that I will try my best anyway since I'm participating after all."

"......So you are still going to participate, anyway?"

"I have no other choice. At the very least, monsters like 'Bull of
Heaven' were all summoned due to the abuse of Star Particle Bodies.
I can't overlook an organization like that. ......It's just that, I've focused
more on thinking about finding out the true identity of the enemy, so I
didn't really think about other matters. That's why I won't do anything
too unreasonable. If I die the orphanage would be out in the cold, I
have to avoid that at any cost."

Learning everything about the organization that abused the Particle

Bodies.

He was taking part in it for that reason and hadn't considered

achieving victory at all.

Tokuteru nodded several times as if processing those words, then he

eased his expression and nodded once more.

"To find the enemy that abused the Star Particle Bodies, huh......that's
right. That is the best reason to keep your motivation at its maximum.
Above all, it suits you."

"I think so too. ......But well, if I had to ask for more, I wanted to have a
match with Iza-nii at least once."

He showed a bitter smile and shook his head.

If what Scáthach said was true, Izayoi would lose his right of
participation when he turned 20.

He wanted to seriously compete with him at least once before that

happened. These were unmistakably his true feelings. When this
Authority War comes to a conclusion, the point where Saigou Homura
and Sakamaki Izayoi's paths intersect would also come to a definitive
end.

But there's nothing to do about it if their circumstances strayed from

each other.

They had surely cut their ties on that day five years ago and lived on
planets that were completely separated from each other.

"If it's possible, I want you to tell me about Iza-nii's investigation

results even if it's just when you are free. I think I might be able to
guess who the enemy is from that, and if all goes well, Iza-nii and I
might be able to get them with a pincer attack."

Sakamaki Izayoi, from his homeworld.

And Saigou Homura, from Little Garden, would pursue the mystery of
the enemy.

Accepting the conclusion Homura reached, Tokuteru stood up while

patting his back with a smile.

"If you've thought through that much, there's nothing more I need to
say. ......Well, It's a Game without the risk of death. So finally, have fun
and come back. After all, it's a journey to another world that doesn't
happen every day."

"Yeah, that's the plan. The first stage of the research is also
completed and it has entered the next one. Now, if the ‘Genome Tree’
project goes smoothly, then we can also start talking about the
concrete construction plan for the Environmental Control Tower. I'll go
enjoy the brief holiday."

They bumped fists with each other.

With this, he heard everything Mikado Tokuteru had to say.

Finding the opportunity, Uesugi raised a hand and said.

"With the current summoning, Tokuteru and I would also be

accompanying you up to the Spirit Train. In reality, it wasn't me but
Prith-sama that was invited, but she was given a job to accompany
Sakamaki Izayoi."

"Ah......well, it's a reasonable selection. There should be no one aside

from Prith-san among Tokuteru's subordinates who would be suitable
for Iza-nii. Are you fine with that, Uesugi-san?"

"It was a command from my chief god. It's inevitable. Besides, I often
show up in Little Garden as a special envoy. I'll at least take care of
the reward part."

Although her way of speaking was a bit overbearing for someone who
was hired, she was still reliable nonetheless.
When Suzuka packed up her bags and returned to the lobby, they all
touched the invitation together.

"Okay then......let's go!"

She then broke the seal with high spirits.

The moment the wax seal on the invitation was torn, the surroundings
were covered in light───

───And they were dropped from 4000 meters in the sky.

 Chapter 5

───'Underwood', the City of Water, under the Great Tree and

Waterfall.

In ‘Underwood’, one of the stages for the Sun Authority War. A ‘Cait
Sith’ land governor, Porol Gundark, had come for the maintenance of
the Spirit Train.

Today, as always, the Spirit Train's steam whistle reverberated

throughout the Aquatic City.

The townscape that had been destroyed by the 'Bull of Heaven' was
splendidly repaired and the scenery had regained its former beauty.
The riverside covered with red bricks was full of people who came to
watch the departure of the Super Gigantic Spirit Train, 'Sun
Thousand'. Porol, together with his sister Sharol, had been running
back and forth, greeting all the important guests who were boarding
the train.

"Haah......I'm beat. How many greetings are left?"

"One more and we are done for today. Arriving tomorrow will be: Fire
Dragon 'Salamandra', Saurian Demon King 'Great Sage who
Devastate Seas', Roc Demon King 'Great Sage who Leaves Heaven
in Disarray'...and Livelihood King 'Shuten Douji'."

"That's one amazing list. The Eastern side is rather loaded."

"Indeed. It's no wonder it seems like that, especially now when the
Onihime Alliance had been divided and absorbed by 'Shuten Douji'
and 'Great Sage who Leaves Heaven in Disarray'. There’s even
'Sanat Kumāra', who is participating as an individual, and the group
most likely to win, Sun Alliance 'Avatara' ."

"So how about the West?"

"First would be 'Queen Halloween'...... or so I'd like to say, but it might

be a bit problematic for her, don't you think? Since the 'Book of
Invasions' is missing, it seems that she can't summon the Celtic
Pantheon’s strongest fighters. And the Norse Pantheon is pretty much
ruined, leaving only 'Argo' of the Greek Pantheon that can be called a
winning candidate. That community is something else."

"Ooh, they are really famous, even I know about them...!!! That
Demigod Hercules and the Poet Orpheus belong to that community,
right? It feels nostalgic to hear those names again!"

Sharol’s eyes sparkled as she clapped her hands together.

In particular, the Demigod Hercules was a Divine Spirit with a direct

relation to the Sun Authority War.

Cancer and Leo were the basis of Hercules' legend, 'Ten Labors,' and
although both of these Sun Authorities were supposed to be owned by
Hercules, now Izayoi was the owner of the Leo Authority.

"Yup, that's right. Incidentally, Poet Orpheus is also a hero of the

Dystopia War. It's been about seven years since he last appeared on
stage."

Porol answered, while turning over the guests of honor list.

The Sun Authority participants were divided into three groups:

Hosts who managed and controlled the Gift Games.

Players who competed in said Gift Games.

And Sponsors who supported the Players.

'Six Scars', the Community these two were in, was in charge of the
Spirit Train that would transport everyone to the stage grounds. To be
entrusted with the transportation of Players where the most famed of
War Gods gathered, it was both a great honor and the heaviest
responsibility. The little boss had a strained face, but his cat ears
twitched in a somewhat excited manner.

"Most of the names that have been revealed are acting as Hosts and
Sponsors. There are many Communities whose Players are hiding
their identities. Someone from them might very well turn out to be a
dark horse."

"Oh? The pre-final gambling den seems to be overflowing too. Who is

your favorite?"

"Favorite for what? The finals? The exhibition matches?”

"Either of them! The exhibition matches will be full of big shots, unlike
what you’d expect from a skirmish! Especially now, I heard that
someone from that famous 'Twelve Devas' will be participating too, so
a lot of guests are coming a long way to watch!"

"...Ah, that's right. Indeed, that person is also taking part as part of the
security to pay the loan."

Porol scratched his head with a complex expression.

The 'Twelve Guardian Devas' that brought together the gods of the
Heavenly Army, as its name suggested, was the most prominent
group that protected the world's order. In the end, it was hard for him
to say whether it was really a smart move to treat people like them as
attraction sources.

Nevertheless, there was also a part of him that wanted to witness the
battle of those who were feared as the strongest war gods.

As someone born in the world of Little Garden, he desired to

challenge the true Gift Games at least once. And those Gift Games
were trials made by none other than such War Gods.

A Divine Spirit that usually only acted as the one giving trials had
descended into the world and took an existing shape.

Even that alone was no less than a miracle, but he also had an
opportunity to witness them in action. Putting the morals aside for a
bit, there were no other problems.

"Exhibition matches are where Players and Hosts gather, so no one

can really tell who would win. Though I think it would turn out to be an
interesting Game."

"You are right about that. So in the end, who is your favorite?"

"Well, our esteemed allied Community 'No Names' are my absolute

favorites. After all, only the participants of 'Avatara' can rival Master
Izayoi in power, at most."

Porol said proudly, twitching his nekomimi.

'No Names', was the popular name that the community where
Sakamaki Izayoi belonged to was called.

It was a rising Community that had overcome countless trials on its

way, and was in charge of the eastern side of Little Garden that was
divided into four directions. Rumors were going around that they
would likely be the winners of this Sun Authority War too, and there
were also many War Gods who had gathered in their support.

But Sharol dropped down her nekomimi and asked in doubt.

"'No Names' is it... No, wouldn't that be a bit too hard?"

"Why is that? And it's natural to cheer for your allied Community."

"You have a point. But Master Izayoi hadn't come back since he left
for the outside world, so I think that would be pushing it, don't you
think so too? And there are even talks about Leticia-sama and Croix-
sama having gone missing on top of it. Besides, did you check the
lineup of 'Avatara'?"

Porol responded to Sharol's question with a bitter face.

"...I did. They had some amazing members there."

"That's what I mean! What the heck is up with that super overpowered
battle squad! On top of being full of Heroes and Divine Spirits, there
wasn't a single name on the list I didn't know! Their average battle
power is on a divine level... are they planning to destroy the world a
few times over or something!?"

Such overly unreasonable difference in war power made her snap in

rage.

That was just how powerful the community she spoke of - Sun Kings
'Avatara' - was.

Just like with the 'Twelve Devas' who were deemed as the strongest,
they were also a mixed group of gods consisting of world-famed
Heroes and Divine Spirits. Or perhaps it was better to call them a
group of kings.

They had gathered together from the Indo-European sphere, and not
only spread through Europe, they even enrolled a member of the
Giants from the Northernmost parts of it. After all, 'Avatara' was made
in order to welcome the 'Savior of the Future', and it even had the
founder of Buddhism among its members.

Their fighting power was by no means normal. If all their members

gathered at once, they could even pose a threat to this Little Garden
of gods. In addition to that, the rumors had that they even had the
cooperation of famous Demon Lords and heroes, the likes of Bull
Demon King and Shen Gongbao.

When even the Demon Lords and Divine Spirits from the Chinese side
backed them up as Hosts, the lower communities there were bound to
follow along too.

They were truly an invincible force. They firmly sat on the seat of likely
winners.

"I wonder just how far 'No Names' can go when they are lacking their
main fighting force. Maybe they'll even have an unexpected loss in the
very first match."

"As if. That won't ever happen. ...Did you forget, Sharol? That there's
another humanity's biggest problem child, aside from Master Izayoi in
'No Names’?"

Saying so, he tapped on the Players list with his index finger and
gazed up towards a certain flag.

It seems that they had arrived at their destination while they were
caught up in the conversation.

Having arrived before the wagon where their final guest of honor was
waiting, Sharol ended up holding her breath.

Hoisted there was a red flag, gilded at the edges. Its banner depicting
a girl standing atop the hill of hope, belonged to one of the
Communities that were nowadays deemed as heroes in the Little
Garden.

And among them, who didn't yield to the adversity of being

"Nameless" and fought countless battles to arrive in the present, there
was a girl who had power rivalling the Sun Heroes despite not having
her name recorded in history.

"Ahh... There was indeed another one, huh. There might certainly be a
chance if elder sister Kasukabe makes an appearance. I'm more
mweorried about our supplies! We might run nyaout of food!"

"You have a point there. I'll appoint a veteran gatekeeper to the Spirit
Train's food warehouse, just in case. If Calico Cat persuades her,
even elder sis Kasukabe shouldn't attack it... I hope."

The two exchanged worried nods.

Why they worried more about their food supplies rather than the
community's course of action was still a mystery.

"It's been a while since we met with elder sis Kasukabe. The last time
Sharol met her was back when she went to help out the Unicorns, was
it?"

"Uwaah! Don't mention that in front of me. Your big sis here almost
died there you know! I swear, the freedom elder sis has with her
actions nowadays is even beyond Master Iza───oh?"

While she was speaking, the sky of 'Underwood' gave a shine.

Looking towards the distant sky, the two muttered to themselves.

"A summoning light... Did someone open an 'Astral Gate'?"

"That's been a common occurrence lately. It's the Game Players, I

guess?"

They confirmed the buffer water veil repeatedly spread throughout the
sky as the silhouettes kept piercing through them with their fall.

One of them had a familiar pair of giant breasts.

"Oh my? Could that golden-haired girl with huge breasts be..."

Sharol's cat eyes brightened up as they fixed upon the falling figure.

They raised a big splash!, even louder than the Spirit Train's whistle
along with a pillar of water as they fell into the water, more than
enough to drown out the tumult in the city.

While the riverside sightseers started making noises about it, the
fallen person, Kudou Ayato, timidly got up on the ground. With her hair
soaked from the river, she confirmed the safety of Suzuka next to her.

"A...Are you okay, Suzuka!?"

"......Yeah. After all, we bumped into several of those net-like water

veils on the way this time around. Though it still hurt a lot. Actually, is
there a rule in Little Garden saying you can't summon people
anywhere below four kilometers above the ground or something?"

Naturally, there was no such law.

Doing so was probably just a hobby of Queen, who summoned them,

or perhaps just something like a beauty of style.

They safely landed thanks to the good work of the buffer Gift that was
unlike the last one, however it was reasonable that she wanted to
avoid being summoned the same way again and again.

Having been soaked down to her toes, Suzuka shivered from the cold.

"I-I'm freezing...! We better find someplace to warm up first!"

"T-That's right! It's unseasonable to wander through the city in these

clothes! Senpai, let's head towards the Spirit Train for now!"

Ayato turned around, with her wet golden hair shining and fluttering
along.

However, there was no one there to answer her back.

"...Senpai? Tokuteru-san?"

"Eh? We are the only ones here?"

The two recalled the moment they were summoned.

They were summoned the moment Homura opened the invitation

letter.
───However, it seemed that it was only these two who were
summoned here.

Suzuka instantly turned pale.

"Could it be... that there was an interference with the Queen's

summoning...!?"

"Hey, miss big boobs and flat board-chan over there! Welcome to
Little Garden!"

"It happened faster than planned, huh. Were you urged to hurry up on
the debt repayment?"

Sharol approached while waving her hand and tail, while Porol
followed along with a cynical smile on his face. Ayato and Suzuka
turned towards the two and repeated the strange words they spoke.
"...debt repayment?"

"Eh, what? What do you mean?"

The two spoke with pale faces. Porol and Sharol exchanged looks
with surprised faces.

"Did you two not read the invitation?"

"Huh, that's strange. I'm sure there was a proper permission from
Queen. You didn't hear about it?"

"Ugh, was that person responsible for this again...!"

Ayato ground her teeth as she glared towards the Great Tree.

Queen Halloween, who ruled the All Souls' Day of the Sun, was a
Celestial Spirit in charge of the star boundaries. There was no one
who could possibly interfere with her boundary manipulations. When
Ayato's side was separated from Homura's, it was without a doubt
caused by the meddling of Queen with this prank of hers.

"So then, where is Queen? In 'Underwood'? Or Spirit Train? No,

before that, where did Senpai go!?"

"R-Relax there, miss big boobs."

"Homura's group was supposed to be invited inside the Spirit Train

where the exhibition match is held... but it would be troublesome if you
don't have a written invitation. All the tickets in the auditorium have
been sold out, so it would be difficult to meet with the Players now,
unless you request to be let on the Spirit Train by one of the VIP
guests."

"I-Is that so?"

"Yeah. Would you like to see the pamphlet?"

They looked at the diagram drawn on the Spirit Train pamphlet Porol
took out.

Super-Gigantic Spirit Train 'Sun Thousand' was the main operational

headquarters which carried a function to transfer the Players to the
stages of the Sun Authority War. They were largely divided into three
classifications: pocket stage wagons, Player living wagons, and
special guest wagons, and the rest of the wagons were assigned to
the management and amusement facilities.

This gigantic Spirit Train was 200 meters in length, being likened to an
iron fortress. It was understandable that Asterius mistook it for a
mobile fortress when he first saw it.

If it was indeed used for military purposes, its usefulness would be

immeasurable for certain too.

A Spirit Train travelling on Ley Lines could travel without being bound
to the concepts of the material world, and it was said that it could even
push through the submarine and underground water veins too.

The journey on such a splendid train sure sounded nice to the ears,
but the train was clearly overqualified for the job.

Looking over the diagram, Suzuka swallowed a small breath.

"Wow... What the hell, this is too amazing. So this train can even cross
the seas. But where is its destination anyway?"

"Well, it's going to be travelling all over Little Garden! Be it the depths
of a volcano, or the continent lost in the sea, or the temple of the
moon world. Basically, it can go wherever it's requested to, that's one
of its good points!"

Porol proudly declared with a snort. It appeared that the Spirit Train
held a special significance for him. It was certainly an essential Gift for
transporting the Players to the gathering stages of the Sun Authority
War.
Ayato quickly memorized the diagram, and looked over the timetable.

"It departs at noon...! This is bad, there's no time left!"

"H-How about we sneak in? My space transfer can quickly transfer us

in the passenger wagon."

Hearing Suzuka's suggestion, Ayato clapped her hands.

"Ah, there was also that method...!"

"Hey there, at least hold back on your smuggling discussion in front of

the Spirit Train manager here. I really can't overlook that much, you
know. Rather than that, don't you have any acquaintances in the
VIPs? Maybe ask Queen herself?"

"It would be useless. I don't think she'd be offering us a helping hand

in such an amusing situation for her."

"What about her head butler, Scathach, then?"

"No way, are you telling me to die!!?"

That was a harsh remark. But somewhat true nonetheless.

Scathach was her teacher, so she would gladly lend her a hand after
she tried her best with it. However, saying it in another way, she
wasn't someone who would forgive a failure for not trying her best. If
she troubled her for such a trivial matter now, there was no doubt that
a sword, arrow, spear, or a fist would be flying her way.

However, if they missed the Spirit Train and failed to appear at the
opening ceremony, they would also be facing another hell of its own
kind.

If that happened, it would not just be the safety of Homura's side, but
even they would end up in a tough position.

Just as Ayato started to wonder whether it was better to just grab

these two as hostages to infiltrate if worse came to worst, suddenly, a
girl called out to them from across the window of the VIP wagon.

"...Oh? There seems to be someone with a familiar scent."

The four reacted to the voice and turned towards the VIP wagon's
window.

The window with a small crack became fully open.

And along with it came a wind that carried a faintly sweet fragrance.

Perhaps the owner of that VIP room wanted to replace the air within
before the departure. There was an incense burner placed on the
window, but it appeared that the girl in question didn't regard it as
important.

It was commonly said that in the spring, one sleeps a sleep that knows
no dawn. It seemed that she had indeed succumbed to the warm rays
of the sun, coupled with the fresh wind of the riverside, and was
having a nap.

Like a small animal that had just woken up, she popped her head out
of the window and warmly gazed towards the four.

Ayato froze in place the moment she saw her face.

"...uh...!?"

Looking from the window was a lovely girl, seemingly sixteen to

seventeen years of age.

Her hair, just long enough to reach her collarbone, made her look like
an adult, but her young features overshadowed that impression. Her
clothes were quite nice looking too, so she had to be a VIP guest.

With her nekomimi facing down, Sharol greeted her with an awkward
smile.
"I-I-It's been a while, elder sis Kasukabe You!"

"Yea, long time no see, Sharol. About half a year, I suppose."

The girl she called Kasukabe waved back with a small smile.
Suzuka silently approached Porol and asked who she was.

"Hey hey, Porol-kun. Is this little animal-like adorable young miss your
acquaintance?"

"Yeah. She's the leader of an alliance that our Community is a part of.
And she's also the leader of the 'No Names' where Master Izayoi
belongs."

"Iza-nii's community!? Damn it! He probably troubled her a lot, and I

here didn't even bring a cake or anything!"

I messed up! Suzuka hit her forehead. Boisterous but honest, that part
was her good point.

You looked around outside the VIP wagon, and then she suddenly
bent her head in wonder.

"...Eh? I thought for sure that Asuka came back... but it was just Porol
and Sharol?"

"Yes. We came to your room to finish up our round of greetings, elder

sis Kasukabe."

"I see. Seems like we will depart soon. And, who are those two?"

"This is Master Izayoi's stepsister and her friend. Haven't you heard
about them?"

You focused her attention on the two with a bit of a surprise on her
face.

"...Izayoi's stepsister? So the Japanese girl over there is Suzuka-

san?"

"Eh? Ah, yes! I'm Ayazato Suzuka! Thank you for taking care of our
Izayoi in this other world! Sorry, I came empty-handed! I'll bring a box
of cakes with me next time!"
"Eh? Ah, sure. I'm Kasukabe You. And I've been in his care too.
...Also, I'd be happy if that box of cakes would be wagashi. It will make
my day."

Suzuka straightened up in surprise due to the sudden introduction,

while You got surprised that she received a more polite greeting than
she thought she would. Perhaps she was surprised by the fact that
Suzuka was more diligent than the impression she got from Izayoi's
story.

While holding down her hair that was fanned up by the wind, You
looked towards Ayato this time.

"So, who is that European-looking golden-haired girl?"

"......"

Being asked for her name made Ayato stiffen in place. She was lost
for words, with her eyes opened wide as if she had seen something
unbelievable. It was hard to tell what bewildered her to this point, but
such an attitude was surely impolite towards someone she was
meeting for the first time.

Suzuka elbowed her from the side and reproached her attitude in a
small voice.

"Aya-chan. You have to introduce yourself. Manners are important

even if your ages look similar!"

"...Eh? Ah, right! My apologies! I lost my head there for a bit..."

Suzuka bent her head in wonder. She agreed that You looked really
lovely, but Ayato was also the same in that regard. Or perhaps there
was something other than the appearance that made her uneasy.

When she was going to introduce herself again, the Spirit Train's
whistle started to blow.

That whistling sound made Porol jump in surprise and he suddenly

clapped his hands as if he had remembered something.

"Ah, right! This must be some kind of fate too, so maybe elder sis
could shelter these two in your VIP wagon? It seems they got rolled up
in Queen's prank and aren't carrying the written invitations."

"Sure, I don't mind. The door is quite far though, so wanna get in
through the window?"

"Ah, yes please!"

Hearing her, Ayato became a bit curious. When Ayato was about to
ask why couldn't they just teleport inside with Suzuka's skill, Porol
handed a pamphlet to her and moved away.

"The pocket stage wagon where the exhibition match is being held is
the seventh one from here. Going through the VIP wagon might be a
bit dangerous, but good luck."

"Eh?"

"Huh?"

Ayato and Suzuka simultaneously raised their voices. Could just being
inside the VIP wagon bring about danger? Whatever the case, Porol
and Sharol headed towards the staff wagon at a fast pace.

The Spirit Train blew its whistle for the second time.

"Oops, we gotta hurry! Let's explain our situation to that miss and
meet up with Homura's side!"

"R-Right! Doing that is most important right now!"

While still having some doubts, they remembered that the train would
depart on the third blow of its whistle, and thus, they decided to hop
inside You's VIP wagon.

＊
At the same time, in a different place.

───'Spirit Train Sun Thousand', Pocket Stage Wagon.

While reading the Little Garden invitation document, Homura called

out to Mikado beside him with a quivering voice.

"...Hey, Shittyteru."

"What's up?"

"Answer me honestly. ...You knew it would turn out like this, didn't
you?"

Hearing Homura's question, Tokuteru used his right to remain silent.

Besides him absentmindedly stood Uesugi.

Currently, the three were in the centre of the special arena, which in
itself was located inside the Spirit Train, and they were being drowned
in the cheers of the audience while basked under the bright
illumination. Kuro Usagi who was acting as a moderator, confirmed
the appearance of the summoned trio and declared in a loud voice
with her usamimi perking up.

"Everyone, sorry for the long wait! We will henceforth commence

the Sun Authority War exhibition match! Now, let me introduce
these pseudo-Authority War participants!"

OOOOOHHHHHHHH!!! The audience raised a loud enough cheer to

even shake the Spirit Train. Since the Gift Games held an aspect of
entertainment, it was good to entertain the audience. That much was
fine.

The problem, however, was the fact that Homura and Uesugi who
were summoned as Players had no idea of what was going on. He
predicted that they would be thrown down from high above like last
time, but his guess was way off. At first, he wondered whether Queen
was the one who did it, but judging from what the invitation letter had
to say, Queen wasn't the only ringleader here.

Homura once again lowered his gaze towards the invitation in his
hands.

『 ─ Sun Authority War First Exhibition Match ─

・Game Overview

① Drive away the countless monsters that appear and defeat the
monster related to the Sun Game. (Allowed to bring back).

② The period of the exhibition is once per day. Twenty four times
in total.

③ There is a time-limit. If you can't clear it within half an hour, it

will carry over to the next day.

④ For as long as the Sun Authority War final selection continues,

it can be held any number of times.

・Winning Condition: Participate every day in the Game, and the

team that defeats all twenty-four monsters will be the first victor.

・Reward Clause: You will receive a reward for every monster

you defeat. Victor can make an advantageous transfer to the final
selection once.

・Participating Condition: Everyone can participate. You are

welcomed to jump in and take part.

・Obliged Participants: Those with debts must participate in the

aforementioned Gift Game as a team to repay the debt.

Oath: We swear upon our glory and flag to Host the Game in
accordance with the aforementioned rules.

Seal of 'Sun Authority War Steering Committee' 』

───Gushaa!!!

"A DEBT HUH...?!! However many times I read this, the debt holders
here clearly refers to US, doesn’t it!? Why did I become a debt holder,
huh!? AND IN ANOTHER WORLD AT THAT!!!"

"Wait, calm down, Homura. Let's all think about this first. There must
surely be a profound reason in-"

"There's no need to even ask. Move aside, Saigou Homura! He

befuddled us with that sweet talk earlier, but there's no need for
explanations this time, you useless god! I will remove your head in
place of my chief god!!!"

Uesugi pulled out her favorite sword and cast aside its scabbard
without asking any questions.

As expected, even Tokuteru got nervous from such snap judgment.

"No, wait, stop! Listen to what I have to say, you muscle-brain! What
the heck was written in that invitation!!?"

"Debtors are forced to participate! Repay the debt with the reward!
That’s what!"

"Okay, he's guilty!!!"

The sword flashed along with the shout of execution. Tokuteru barely
continued to dodge the deadly sword flashes, coming seven times in
an instant. This was exactly what it meant to not lend an ear to
sermons of a useless god.

The spectators were delighted from the sudden sword fight, but the
moderator, Kuro Usagi, was unable to bear watching it. She
surprisingly jumped down on to the Stage.

"W-W-Wait a second! It will be bad if the internal discord breaks

out before the Game starts! The four of you are one debtor team!
If you don't even defeat a single monster, your debt will increase
even-"

"What the fuck is that underhanded game!! You bastard, just how
much debt did you make!?"

"T-That's not it, calm down! Please, calm down for real! I'm not the
one who made it! It was just pushed onto me by that fourth one
keeping silent over there!!!"

...Fourth one? Homura and Uesugi said in doubt.

In fact, Kuro Usagi did say there were 'four people in one team'. If the
debtors were supposed to be four in number, there was a spot left for
another person...

"...My apologies. Would you be so kind as to release that father of

mine?"

A tranquil voice reached the two's ears.

And they were surprised for different reasons.

"'Father of mine'....? This? You mean this guy?"

"Yes. I am referring to that. That is the father of mine...is what I'm

saying."

The blue haired young man pointed at Tokuteru with an even more
displeased face.

Homura showed wonder towards the person he was pointing at, and
raised his voice.

"You... You are Tokuteru's kid!? Tokuteru, you were actually

MARRIED!!?"

"W-Wait a minute! Just calm down already!"

"That is not correct, boisterous young man. I will say this to clear up
any misunderstandings, but my mother and father are not married. My
mother has a different husband."

"SO HE'S AN ILLEGITIMATE CHILD NOW HUH!!?"

"Noo! I can see why you would think so, but that's wrong! Aghh, damn
it, this is becoming a headache to explain so just stay quiet there for a
bit, Arjuna!"

The moment Tokuteru spoke his name, the audience of the pocket
stage wagon all raised their voices in wonder one after another.

Even Uesugi standing beside him was shocked to see the young man
calling himself Tokuteru's son.

That was just how unbelievable of an existence that young man -

Arjuna was.

He had blue hair reminiscent of lightning. And a peaceful pair of eyes

that reminded one of a still ocean. His appearance that made it
obvious that he was a well-bred individual had spread the aura of
nobility around him.

Even the Divine Bow he held in hand had undoubtedly held enough
power to massacre every army.

"Did you just say Arjuna...!!?"

───In the Epic of Indian Pantheon, 'Mahabharata', Arjuna was a

great hero who was the centre of it.

Blessed with countless Gifts, he had once climbed the ladder towards
the level of strongest warriors.

The legitimate child of the God King Indra, the very same Prince
Arjuna, looked towards the two with a displeased expression on his
face.
 Interlude

─── 'Spirit Train Sun Thousand' - Pocket Stage Wagon.

Exclusive lounge for the Divine beings.

It was a pocket wagon of the highest class, brightly illuminated by the

dazzling candle lamps and filled with smoke rising from an incense
censer. Tiny fire spirits drifting around the candles were spreading the
smoky haze throughout the wagon’s inside turning the atmosphere
slightly eerie, more akin to serpent’s abode than a divine peach
blossom spring.

That smoke wasn’t there just for its enjoyable fragrance but also to
help obscure the passengers’ identity from the surrounding people.
Those who, due to various circumstances, shouldn’t be seen by others
in Little Garden, where gods gathered, were not a few. Not to mention
that this was the central part of the amusement center where
competition for the Sun Authorities took place.

Meaning, this was a location where Hosts and Sponsors, those who
bestowed Gifts on their chosen heroes and heroic individuals before
having them compete, gathered.

This unearthly section of the Spirit Train was where ‘Queen

Halloween’ and her lord-butler Scathach were quietly enjoying black
tea.

“It appears to have begun, Queen.”

“So it does.”

“Was that really fine? Dividing Ayato’s group like that? I thought it
would be better to have that girl regain some of her battle senses
through combat.”

Homura and his group, having been summoned into the stage wagon,
were being projected inside the viewing crystal at the center of the
lounge. Naturally, Ayato and Suzuka were not among them.

Queen took the teacup away from her lips and turned her gaze
towards the VIP carriages.

“All is as it should be. After all, there is someone those kids have to
meet first.”

“Someone they have to meet? Would that be Kasukabe You?”

“Indeed. They shall not lose a thing by encountering the owner of the
Genome Tree as soon as possible. And she is one of the winning
candidates as well... One that is not completely unrelated to either
Homura or Ayato.”

This drew a chuckle out of Scathach. “You have not seen it fit to share
any of your knowledge of that so I can say nothing. I will trust the
judgment of Queen. ...Oh, it is starting.”

The starting gong sounded the same moment Scathach raised her
face.

Queen, on the other hand, didn’t spare a single glance to the scene in
the crystal, opting instead to resume drinking her rather pleasantly
smelling tea. It was likely she had no interest in the outcome of the
bout. It was just an exhibition match after all, hardly anyone would go
all out in one of those.

Scathach, however, had a serious expression on her face and was

watching intently.

The games started with bronze-winged monster birds popping into

existence one after another and then rushing in the direction of the
Players, Homura’s group.

The butler could hear the Saigou’s frustrated scream from inside the
crystal.

“W-wai... Tokuteru! You better take responsibility and do

something about this mess!”

“I know, I know. Uesugi! Deal with the birds, please. I’ll take care
of finding the essential beast we need for a clear!”

“I shall not.”

“Okay. Let’s... Wait, what?!”

“I am under no obligation to participate in the repayment of your

debt. No matter how weakened you may be, you should still be
able to sweep them away in one blow, so deal with this by
yourself. I will stay here and protect Saigou Homura.”

Uesugi punctuated her answer with a hmph and then looked the other
way.

Perplexed Tokuteru, seeing that there would be no way around it,

faced the enemies and groaned in frustration.

“Fine then! Homura! You start searching for the beast instead!”

“Hah?! Me?! How!?”

“Use your ‘Proto Idea’ and you should find out quite quickly!
...Here they come!”

Tokuteru took out his Vajra and challenged the bronze-winged

monsters, the Stymphalian birds out of the Greek Pantheon that were
famous for the deadly poison in their breath. It didn’t seem like that
would be used here though. This was just an exhibition so no deadly
force would be employed.
That being the case, Tokuteru too decided against lethal weapon and
made the Vajra extend into the shape of a longstaff.

Not like a sword would help, the hard metal wings of the monsters
would repel any normal blade anyway... Tokuteru, however, simply
smashed one end of the staff down on a bird’s head with a fluid,
relaxed motion.

"Gya!!?"

There was a fierce sound, a shriek of the bird, and the bronze wings
bent under the force of the blow. It was a simple, strong swing, no
fancy techniques involved. The Stymphalians, normally using their
metal wings for protection, were not adapted to dealing with strong
blows to their actual bodies.

So he merrily continued to knock down the birds one after another in

this manner.

Then there was Arjuna who rained down arrows of lightning from his
Divine Bow.

Seeing how he hunted his targets with rapid attacks that used the
minimum amount of movement, Scathach judged that the archer
wasn’t even using a tenth of his true power.

( Hmm, so it ended up being a match of the parsimonious as it was

always going to. As expected, the true power of the Indian god’s son
is not something I can measure. )

While the butler brooded, Arjuna continued to take down monsters

with his highly efficient movements.

In actuality, the Stymphalians were not an easy to handle opponent.

Not that easy, at least.

The belonged to the domain of Ares, the God of War of the Greek
Pantheon, and they traced their ancestry all the way back to a Divine-
Bird-like eudemon. If they started to employ their trump card, the
poison breath, even the Demigod Arjuna would find them a challenge.

This being the exhibition match sealed that ability and made all the
difference.

( Well, sealing their poisonous breath was the correct decision either
way. It would be impossible for Stymphalians to fight against that War
God and his son in a battle to the death. )

Indra’s Spirituality may have been diminished, but it wasn’t to the point
that he would be having trouble with those birds.

The same was true for Arjuna. He seemed to be still in the middle of
adjusting to his new body after a long slumber but he was easily and
effortlessly seeping the opponents away.

If he felt like it, he could wipe out all the monsters in an instant.

Since he did not, they were merely falling down one after another
under the incoming bolts of lightning.

That being the case, the audience’s attention shifted to the process of
clearing the game.

The Stymphalian Birds were unrelated to the Sun Authority and no

matter how many of them fell, the game would not be cleared. The
beast that was the actual target should be lurking somewhere outside
the crystal’s field of view.

If the Players underestimated this game as some sort of

demonstration, there would be in for serious pain.

( This may be a Pseudo-Game, but it is not something that can be

solved just by defeating some monsters. Without the knowledge of
Sun Authorities, one is not going to manage a clear. )

The thought left the butler amused and she folded her arms.
At that moment, a lively voice of a girl could be heard from beyond the
curtains of smoke.

“S-So... Much... Smoke! It’s too much! Bull Demon King, there’s too
much smoke in the air here!”

“Do calm yourself Kurma. The haze feels quite on point.”

“This Dragon in the guise of the beautiful Kuu-chan doesn’t share that
feeling at all! Where is this place, actually!? Is there no one to bid us
welcome?! To be treated in a such cruel manner after I traveled all this
way due to Shiroyasha’s invitation... Makes me feel like spitting poison
as I have done in the days past!”

The girl, now half-crying, kept whining about the haze. The smoke that
was supposed to obscure the patrons’ identities had lost its purpose
now and Scathach was quick to notice who was approaching.
However, she had ignored the newcomer and focused her attention
back to the viewing crystal.

Only to be startled by Queen smacking her teacup down onto the

plate with a very inelegant noise.

“...Shiroyasha? She has already returned then?”

“Hmm? Ah, indeed. She is the champion of the previous Sun Authority
War after all. You would be able to meet her if you just went to the
administrative headquarters wagon, but...”

“Do tell me such things faster next time.”

Queen followed those words by standing up, her long, golden hair
fluttering elegantly around her. Seeing someone who usually treated
everything beyond the tea time with disinterest stand up made
Scathach open her eyes wider in surprise.

The butler didn’t manage to say a word though, Queen had more to
say.
“Scathach. You, Lord Butler Scatach, should go to Ayato’s side. It
should not take long to have them join up in the stage wagon from the
VIP carriage.”

“That can be done, but what about you, Queen?”

“I will play with Shiroyasha for a bit.”

Having said that, Queen disappeared with a quiet “be seeing you.”

Scathach had an astonished expression on her face, as she watched

her go.

Not many a person could meet Shiroyasha, the feared King of the
White Night and the most recent winner of the Sun Authority War of
the far past.

After all, the person in question was the highest-ranking Celestial

Spirit of the material world, one in charge of the revolutions of the Sun.
Even if both of them were Celestial Spirits of the Sun and Demon
Lords, King was in most aspects a polar opposite of Queen who
governed the Celestial Boundaries.

Going out of her way to meet a supposed natural enemy was an

unusual way for Queen to initiate one of her games. Unless she
happened to have another goal in mind.

Regardless of the reason, Scathach found the development highly

amusing and hid the smile under a hand.

( Shiroyasha and Queen... To think that those two were actually close.
)

It was a relief to learn that, given her nasty personality, Queen actually
had a friend. Usually, people with no power would not dare approach
her carelessly as her immense Spirituality caused fear in them.

This was not a problem when it came to Shiroyasha though.

It also put Queen’s habit of occasionally disappearing from the castle
without a word in a new light. It made the butler a little glad to know
that she could have been meeting with her friend at those times.

( If I recall correctly, the time limit of this game was thirty minutes. As
things stand, they might still be there tomorrow. Well, it seems they
weren’t prepared at all. I guess I’ll just overlook the day’s events )

And so, Scathach started walking towards Ayato.

The gong signaling the end of the Game followed right in her
footsteps.
 Chapter 6

After taking down the 30th Stymphalian, Tokuteru clicked his tongue.

(...There’s just no end to them, huh.)

He observed his surroundings without releasing his Vajra.

Usually, he wouldn't go out of his way to summon Vajra and shower

these kinds of opponents with lightning. After all, with a War God like
him as their opponent, fighting was simply out of the question,
regardless of what kind of mythical monsters they were.

And the same could be said for Arjuna.

The two were taking down the monsters one after another without
getting serious.

However, that was not their true goal.

While mowing down the Stymphalians with Vajra's handle, Tokuteru

stood back to back with Arjuna.

"Hey now. It's a Game, so at least try to enjoy it, you stupid son."

"...Please don't joke. Even if it's a game, I'm not a battle junkie who
enjoys fighting."

"That's not what I meant. This Game also has a purpose of

entertainment. What are you gonna do if the audience isn't enjoying
themselves? If that happens, our debt won't be repaid. Don't forget,
you are the one who made it!"
"Kh......I understand that much!"

Arjuna drew his bow in a vexed manner, let the arrow fly out of
frustration. If it was his usual self, it would’ve been unthinkable to even
consider such an action. However, given how all of this started, his
behavior couldn’t be helped.

In the Indian Pantheon where Arjuna belonged, there was a

hierarchical society in the form of a Caste system.

Brahmin (Monks Class), the sacred position in charge of the rituals.

Kshatriya (Warriors Class), where nobles and warriors belonged.

Vaishya (Middle Class), for the ordinary citizens.

Shudra (Workers Class), who were forced into slavery and agriculture.

Arjuna was born in the age ruled by these four Caste systems, and
had his name left in History as Kshatriya, the second class on the list.

Kshatriya was a blessed class indeed, having the right to command

over war and politics...

However, when it came to Little Garden, which was ruled by Games,

they were bound to one fatal rule.

Which was, 'if they were challenged to a dice game, they were not
allowed to reject no matter what.’

Tokuteru sighed and smiled as if poking fun at him.

"Good grief... When I spoke with 'Avatara's' spy, I couldn't believe

what I heard. Falling into a debt of 200,000 'Thousand Eyes' gold?
Just what kind of crushing defeat did you experience to build up such
an amount, huh? Even my top bill only goes up to 190,000 gold."

"You are not much different than I Father!"

Arjuna couldn't endure it and yelled back. With the difference being so
scant, that was one thing better left unsaid.

Like father like son. Perhaps they needed someone else to tell them
off. Uesugi, who listened to their conversation from afar, almost went
crazy from hearing such an unbelievable amount of money.

"B-Both of them have a total debt of 390,000...!!? Just what kind of

loss made them squander so much money!!?"

"No, Tokuteru just said that was his top debt. If we were to add all his
lifetime debts to that, I think that will multiple by a hundredfold."

Homura sharply pointed it out while holding a hand to his jaw. Hearing
him, Tokuteru suddenly looked the other way, which meant that
Homura had hit the mark.

Even if it's just a dice gambling, it shouldn't be taken too lightly.

This kind of game existed since ancient Assyria of 8th century BC,
sometimes being used as a form of a ritual, and sometimes even used
to overturn a final sentence during trials. It was such a rigid game.

There were nobles who had bet their territories on a roll of the dice,
and there were also kings who had bet their very kingdoms on it.

It was an ancient game on the same level as board games like 'Senet'
of ancient Egypt and 'Nine Men's Morris' that spread in Rome.

But whatever the case, it still wouldn't change the fact that Uesugi
couldn't understand any of it.

Arjuna, whom had everything exposed, looked at Homura with a truly

apologetic face.

"...I'm sorry young man from the outer world. I was playing a Game
against the previous winner with Sun Authorities as ante’s, but before I
realized it, money became the replacement. When I was at a loss, not
wanting to burden our comrades with the debt, my father offered to
take over my debt... But never did I expect that he would be pushing it
off to you Players from the outer world."

"Neither did I! I didn't expect that I would be dragging a huge debt with
me when I took my first step into this world! I never even imagine
that!!!"

I'm truly ashamed, Arjuna dropped his shoulders.

But Uesugi raised her eyebrow as if she had finally understood

something.

(...I see. Making him lose the dice game just like the legend says, and
putting him in Homura's care after temporarily separating him from
'Avatara', huh? That might be too brilliant of a move, considering it's
Tokuteru we are talking about.)

In Indian mythology, Arjuna did suffer a heavy defeat once in one of

these unrefusable dice games, causing him and his siblings to be
exiled from the country. Thus, Tokuteru must have thought that, given
Arjuna's fair personality, he could separate his son from 'Avatara'
based on that defeat.

"I suppose it can't be helped if that's how it is... All right, let's hear the
details later. Speaking of which, Saigou Homura. Is it possible you can
solve the puzzle? Actually, do you even know anything about Sun
Authorities?"

"I studied them beforehand more or less. After all, studying is where I
shine the most."

"I see. Then, how should we deal with this?"

Homura stared at the Gift Game details that had been written on a
parchment, Uesugi watching over him from behind. She, too, stared at
him in an imposing stance with her arms folded.

Even though he rejected Tokuteru's request a while ago, it seemed

that she still didn't leave Homura all by himself. Homura opened up
the legend wiki app that he used before and asked to confirm a few
things.

"First comes the principle. We have to start solving this game by

deducing what the monster in question is, right?"

"Indeed. After all, though the text does say it's a 'monster', those who
are called monsters are a dime a dozen in Little Garden. When it's
written by its general name rather than its actual one, we must first
deduce the individual name of the monster."

Deduce the individual name.

Based on that principle, Homura glanced down at the Gift Game's

paper.

『 ─ Sun Authority War First Exhibition Match ─

・Game Overview

① Drive away the countless monsters that appear and defeat the
monster related to the Sun Game. (Allowed to keep).

② The exhibition period is once per day. Twenty four times in

total.

③ There is a time-limit. If you can't clear the exhibition within half

an hour, it will carry over to the next day.

④ For as long as the Sun Authority War final selection is

commencing, the exhibition can be held any number of times.

・Winning Condition: Participate every day in the Game, and the

team that defeats all twenty-four monsters will be the first victor.

・Reward Clause: You will receive a reward for every monster

you defeat. Victor can make an advantageous transfer to the final
selection once.
 ・Participating Condition: Everyone can participate. You are
welcomed to jump in and take part.

・Obliged Participants: Those with debts must participate in the

aforementioned Gift Game as one team to repay the debt.

Oath: We swear upon our glory and flag to Host the Game in
accordance with the aforementioned rules.

Seal of 'Sun Authority War Steering Committee' 』

"Since it's being held every day, I guess it's a kind of daily special
Game."

"That's how it seems. Don't think about Tokuteru's debt for now. You
should just focus on clearing the Game. Especially if it gives you an
advantage in the final selection."

Indeed, that was what he had to pay the biggest attention to.

If this Game was just to clear Tokuteru's debt, both of them would've
probably given up on the spot. But that specific reward for this Game
couldn't be disregarded.

"So the victor will have a single advantage in the finals, huh? While
they haven't provided the specifics, it still can't be overlooked. It will be
too late to regret it after some other Community snatches it from us."

"Exactly. ...Now then, I'll lend you my assistance. Have a go at it, as

you like."

Receiving her encouraging words, Homura nodded back.

He then opened the pamphlet that had been given to him along with
the invitation.

"Since it's a sham battle of a Sun Authority War, it's should be a

monster that is related to the Sun Authorities. But these bronze
monster birds are not related to it, are they?"
"You mean the Stamphylians? ...No, you can't say that they are
completely unrelated. If I'm not mistaken, didn't these birds appear in
the 'Ten Labours' that the Demigod Heracles performed?"

"Ten? Weren't there twelve trials?"

"That's the official name, yes. I don't know the details myself, but was
it not said that if ten trials were completed then that was enough?"

Without even thinking about it, Uesugi sent the oncoming Stamphylian
flying with a backhand blow, its wings crushed as it crashed into the
audience seats.

The way it crashed was less like an arrow and more like a cannonball,
which made the audience flee in terror.

Seeing that, Homura checked the surroundings as if he suddenly

remembered something.

"That reminds me, there doesn't seem to be any Players intruding on

this Game. Does the reward not interest them? Or maybe they just
don't want to display their cards here?"

"Quite possible it's the latter. There's no Player who wants to flaunt his
true power before the finals. ...However, it's still strange indeed. The
advantage in the finals should be an attractive reward. There
should've been some intruders..."

Catching Homura's point, Uesugi looked towards the auditorium.

And at that moment, they suddenly heard Suzuka's voice from the
Wagon's linked door.

"I...I thought we were goners...! Really, just what were those monsters!
We really are inside the train right!!?"

"T-That seems to be the case. Perhaps it's because it entered the

earth vein after the departure? Though it had become quite stagnant
here compared to the average monster field..."
It seemed that Suzuka and Ayato had finally arrived at the pocket
stage after going through the VIP wagon, completely out of breath. As
the two stepped inside, the audience burst into loud cheers.

Just as they entered the audience seats, thin bronze feathers started
fluttering down from above.

Homura approached them from the stage and yelled.

"Suzuka! Ayato! Are you okay!?"

They simultaneously turned towards the shouting voice.

Ayato still couldn't fully understand what was going on, but seeing that
Homura and the others were at the centre of the stage, she bent
forward from the seats and yelled back.

"That's what I should be asking, Senpai! Why are you there!?"

"Anyway, I'm glad you are fine, Brother! We'll be there in a-"

"No, tell me what you were saying just now! What's going on in the
other wagons!?"

"I can't even fully describe it! There was a mountain place with an
absurdly huge wild boar, and a perverted plant that persistently
chased Aya-chan, there was also a forest with an unbelievably fast
deer, and a riverside hut that smelled so bad it almost rot our noses!
There has to be something wrong with this place if those are
supposed to be VIP wagons!"

"T-That's true. Kasukabe-san opened a path for us, but it would've

probably been very difficult to arrive here by ourselves. That tentacle
plant, in particular, was a bit too much on the psychological side...."

Suzuka snarled in anger while Ayato scratched her cheek with a

strained smile.
Understanding the situation, Homura and Uesugi clicked their
tongues.

"We've been had...! So it turns out that the entire spirit train becomes
a Game stage during this exhibition huh!?"

"So that's what it meant by a 30 minute, once-a-day event. It seems

we'll be having an aggravating thirty minutes from now on as well."

It turned out that it was not just this stage wagon that had changed
into different areas, but the VIP and all other wagons as well. Homura
was made to walk through various rooms before by Queen's power.

If she, who could manipulate the boundaries, was cooperating with

this Game, then they could've indeed prepared for such an
exaggerated gimmick.

Just then, Kuro Usagi pointed towards the giant crystal hanging above
the stage and announced.

"Now then, since all the Players have started to realize it, let's look
here for a moment! Lapko III-san in charge of the rear VIP wagon,
show the video if you please♪"

The crystal displayed a wagon that was just before the pocket stage
wagon.

The rear wagon displayed in the spectating crystal had turned into an
even bigger monster world than the stage wagon itself.

───In fact, there were mountains inside the wagon.

To say it bluntly, a boundless wilderness spread out inside there.

The wagon entrance looked extremely strange in the reflection,

standing isolated in-between the wilderness and the mountains,
causing clamor among the audience.

Inside the wagon with mountains, there was a big wild boar with a
giant plant on its back fighting against Kasukabe You.

Chills ran down Kuro Usagi's spine when she saw that plant, rather
than the boar itself.

"E-Ehh...? That tentacle plant, could it be the Black★Rabbit Eater

MK II!?"

"B-Black★Rabbit Eater MK II, you say!?"

"What's up with that tentacle plant that's obviously there to attack Kuro
Usagi!"

Ayato and Suzuka responded to Kuro Usagi's report. Kuro Usagi's

usammi twitched as she replied to them.

"YES! That was originally a plant that a certain idiot made to

tease Kuro Usagi... but now that it had been revised, it had
gained a nature to attack not just Kuro Usagi, but any voluptuous
girls!!!"

"That's a truly ridiculous plant weapon!"

"So that's why Aya-chan was attacked!"

"Moreover, the big boar itself aims towards the girls with modest
chests♪"

"It's truly a ridiculous big boar!!!"

"So that's why Kasukabe-san was attacked!!"

Even stupidity had its limits. The audience was divided into the girls
that threw complaints with their firsts raised, and the foolish guys that
got excited and wanted to watch the assault instead.

You, on the other hand, was completely oblivious to what was going
on in the neighbouring wagon. While nimbly dodging the tentacles,
she was inspecting the surroundings as she fought the giant boar. She
didn't display even a bit of what could be considered her Gift, and was
dealing with the boar with just her own physical prowess.

If she became serious, both the giant boar and the plant weapon
would be no match for her, but she somehow sensed that she was
being observed and decided to not display her power.

She was hindered by the feeling of wanting to hide her true power at
any cost before the finals came.

(...There are too many eyes on me. Are there spies hiding here, or is it
a farsight Gift? Whichever it might be, I want to avoid showing my
power to other Players.)

She turned her back towards the observers and wondered how to
handle the situation.

Truth was, it was just the lewd stares of the foolish male audience that
she was receiving from the spectating crystal, but since she didn't
know the circumstances, it was natural for her to misunderstand.

Unable to bear that, the mini-sized farsight Demon, Lapko III,

appeared on top of her shoulder.

"Kasukabe You-san. The reflection of this battle is being shown across

the Spirit Train."

"Ah, so that's how it was. Then I'll just quickly deal with it bare-
handed."

"No, let's go flashy instead!"

You bent her head in wonder. She couldn't accept that request, and
Lapko wasn’t one to suggest something like that usually in the first
place.

"...Why? Are you troubled over something?"

"It's not like that... But the Players with debts have been cutting
corners too much in the Game and we weren't able to take any good
recordings. If it goes on like this, the excitement will die down. So, we
have to rouse up the stage with your flashy Gift Kasukabe-san."

"Eh, don't wanna."

Came an immediate reply.

".... Then let's do this. If you show me a flashy finish here, then I will
give you the egg of a Basilisk, which is among the big five delicacies
that are legendary even in this Little-"

"Okay, I'll give it my all!"

An immediate reply, again!

You grasped a wooden pendant on her chest and faced the giant
boar. The beast was rumoured to be as big as a mountain in legends,
but in reality, it wasn't that big. For her who had experience fighting
against Giants, it wasn't an opponent to be afraid of.

Transforming her unique Gift, 'Genome Tree' she donned a shining

armour of steel.

The released light converged into a pair of shining wings and lifted her
body up.

However, she didn't fly in order to flee. While rotating and accelerating
herself, You drew an arc and flew above the big boar's head, and then
swooped down on it with all her accumulated force.

"Heave... ho!!"

Raising a slightly out of sync shout, clad in a shining wind, she rushed
towards the boar.

The plant monster - Black★Rabbit Eater MK II that was parasitizing

the big boar's back, compromised and extended its tentacle towards
You's modest chest. However, that wasn’t a problem for her.

The shining gale that imitated the Gift of 'Pegasus' had decimated the
plant weapon, leaving no traces of it, as well as blown the giant boar
off to the distant ends of the wilderness.

By skillfully manipulating the sparkling winds, You drew a banner in

the sky, and then turned towards Lapko III and raised a big victory
shout.

"...Victory!"

And took a victory pose while making a V-sign.

The audience raised loud cheers because she won in a flamboyant

manner as requested, save for one part of the male audience, who
became depressed that the tentacles' attack never came.

Suzuka, who watched the same battle from across the crystal,
widened her eyes in surprise.

"Woow! Kasukabe-san is so strong. She ended it with one blow!"

"Indeed. But I believe even you can defeat something of that level by
yourself, Suzuka."
"Hmm... Well, yeah, but let's leave that aside. If Kasukabe-san
defeated it for us, there's nothing better than that."

Suzuka said with her finger raised. Although, since they could
advance favourably in the finals if they accumulated achievements, it
should've been quite severe to have a victory stolen by someone else.

Suzuka wondered if that was really ok, but since the person in
question had no desire to fight, it was something that couldn't be
helped.

Kuro Usagi happily resumed her reporting from the stage.

"As expected of 'No Names' winning candidate, Kasukabe You!

She got the point from exterminating the big boar! We 'No
Names' have achieved the first point of the exhibition matches!"

Kuro Usagi puffed her chest in pride with her usamimi perking up.

With that announcement, Homura finally saw the big picture.

"She got a winning point when she defeated a big boar... I see now!
So the target beasts are the monsters from the 'Ten Labors' that are
related to the 'Twelve Ecliptic Constellations' and 'Twelve Chén of the
Equator', huh!"

Within the 'Twelve Ecliptic Constellations', the twelve Celestial Beasts

were: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio,
Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces.

And within the 'Twelve Chén of the Equator' there was: Mouse, Ox,
Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog
and Pig.

Those that matched with these twenty-four Celestial Beasts that exist
on the Equator, and also appeared in the 'Ten Labours' were: Lion,
Sea Bull, Dragon, Crab and Boar.

The lion was the 'Nemean Lion' with impervious skin, on which the Leo
constellation was based on.

The Sea Bull was the 'Poseidon's Sea Bull' from the legend of the
Minotaur.

Dragon and Boar were the Celestial Beasts of the equator and
unrelated, but since this was an exhibition match they were probably
loose with rules. The Crab appeared to be from Heracles' Hydra
extermination, when he crushed it underfoot.

Now that You had defeated the big boar, that only left four remaining.

Although the mystery had been solved, there was regretfully almost no
time remaining. They might have been able to defeat the Crab, but
they didn't know which of the wagons it was in.

Arjuna lowered his Divine Bow and said with a bitter expression.

"...With this, we have no more reason to be in this wagon. There is

also little time left. Maybe this is a good place to stop today."

"Stop being all depressing there! You are the one who made that debt
with Shiroyasha!!! And you were told to at least hunt one beast per
game as a quota to repay the debt, weren't you?!"

Arjuna ignored Tokuteru's intimidation and looked the other way.

While they were just rolled up in his debt, if they couldn't even defeat a
single beast like this, its effects would even involve Homura's side. He
wanted to avoid that at all costs.

However, as heartless as it was, Kuro Usagi announced the news of

clearing the Games one after another.

"Oops, I have received another clearing report from the powerhouse

chief engineer Lapko-san! It seems that the shadow of Nemean Lion
that was lying in wait had been attacked! The subjugator is a self-
alleged representative of Germanic Pantheon, Vidar! With this, only
the Dragon, Bull and crab are─eh, the Hydra and Crab had been
exterminated too? Player Vidar defeated all three of them, you say?
Wow, that's amazing, but this is unexpected! There's only Bull left!
Debt team, please hurry!"

Kuro Usagi gave a supportive shout towards Tokuteru and others with
the pole of the gong in hand. She might've known what was going on,
but she couldn't do anything for them as she was the judge.

Meanwhile, Homura confirmed the time in a flustered manner. There

was less than two minutes left!

"Shit, there's no time! Is there nothing we can do!? I don't want my first
step to living in another world starting with a huge debt! And not even
my own debt at that!!! BUT SOMEONE ELSE'S!!!"

Homura yelled loudly. Hearing that, Arjuna dropped his shoulders with
even more guilt.

Tokuteru finished exterminating all the Stymphalians in the stage and

looked up in wonder if this was it.

"Can't be helped...! Homura, we are using our trump card!"

"Trump Card!? You mean, like, selling Tokuteru's organs!?"

"Shit, you have no faith left in me! Just summon 'Proto Keraunos' from
your Gift Card already! If you knock down that guy who will get
summoned alongside it, we should win!"

Homura was in chaos, unable to understand what he meant... But in

the next moment, the meaning behind his words became clear.

Homura didn't understand why he was left in the outer world, but now
that it had come to this, everything had clicked together.

"Y...You really are the lowest of the low...!"

Homura understood what Tokuteru planned, but his response was

weak due to the feelings of guilt tormenting him. Indeed, if he had
summoned that boy and defeated him, he might have cleared the
winning condition. While he wasn't the actual monster in question, he
was said to be the son of the Water Bull. In fact, that perfectly
matched the legends.

───However, was that really fine?

He was currently supposed to be in the outer world's French

restaurant 'Don Bruno', where he spent his days in peace. Thinking
about it timewise, there was a chance that he was now helping them
with the dinnertime rush hour. He hasn't lived more than 15 years, but
this was undoubtedly the calmest and gentlest time for him in his
entire life. Would it really be fine to suddenly summon him, and on top
of that, beat him down? Would that really be a rightful thing to do as a
human? Would there be any justice in that action? Not to mention, the
shop manager, Don, was really strict when it came to obligations. It
seemed he had been feared as one of the elite mafia members when
he was in Europe, and even now when he had been betrayed and
abandoned by his comrades, he still had that scar from when he had
made an oath of blood. Because of that, there were even rumours
going around that he was making blood oaths when he was employing
the workers. And if he was made to play hooky at the store of
someone as uptight as him, the outcome would be quite scary. Above
all, the boy was poor. It was far too unreasonable to forcefully
summon him to an unfamiliar place on top of forcing him to skip work,
and even have his master beat him up. Even the black companies
didn't go so far. In the end, he just couldn’t to that...

"Just do it, Homura!!! If we can't clear this, the debt will double, you
know!!? Are you still fine with that!!?"

"Ugh......Just drop dead, Tokuteru...!!!"

Saigou Homura fell down into an evil path.

As he raised his Gift Card high up, the son of stars and
lighting───Asterius materialized.
He had been happily eating a freshly-baked pumpkin quiche with his
apron still on, and the sudden summoning caused him to raise a
strange voice.

"Wha-What in the...!?"

"Uesugi-san, if you will!"

"What a scummy settlement!"

She said and boorishly raised her sheathed katana aloft.

And Asterius was blown off to distant ends with her monstrous
strength.

And the next moment, the final gong of the Game had rung.
 Chapter 7

A dreary sound of rain reverberated throughout the slums.

This was a region where storms rarely happened, though the heavy
rain itself was the continent’s special trait.

With no money to rebuild them, the slum buildings had their paints
peeled off and seemed to have severe roof leaks, and their residents
running around to somehow deal with the heavy rain that would come
any moment now. The abandoned building where Izayoi was currently
taking cover was also wrecked here and there by the wind and rain. If
he wanted to safely pass today's heavy rain, he needed to search for
another abandoned building. This area that was close to the
mountains also held the possibility of a landslide occurring.

He would've chosen to spend the night in a safe hotel somewhere in

Rio, but he wasn't able to book the hotel when he had a girl of
unknown origin with him.

While these slums had terrible public order for something being so
close-by a Mega City like Rio, it was perfect for people like him who
wanted to keep themselves hidden.

As the drug dealing and trafficking, much less weaponry, was a

natural occurrence there, doubtful anyone would question him bringing
a girl.

Prith and Izayoi wanted to leave before the downpour hit, since the
weakened girl needed a doctor examination immediately.

However, the two became speechless by the disastrous situation that

Ayato spoke of.

"......"

"......"

"U-Um... That's the current situation of Team Little Garden. Any

thoughts on the matter?"

"Are you guys complete idiots or something!"

He immediately answered back. And mercilessly at that.

This dealt a critical damage to everyone involved.

Even though Ayato herself was not the target of those words, she still
dropped her shoulders in dejection.

However, Izayoi's tone seemed to contain neither anger nor

exasperation. Rather, he was just admiring Tokuteru for managing to
create a situation like that.

(Hmm... Though it's just temporary, he managed to weaken 'Avatara's'

fighting power and add it to his own side. Huh, I suppose he plans to
use the pretense of the debt and those daily exhibition matches to
train Homura and Suzuka since they lack combat experience. I'm not
sure just how far he has thought this through, but it's quite a good
development.)

Tokuteru was probably thinking of removing Arjuna from ‘Avatara’ with

this as an opportunity if he could. That was why he had him tag along
with Homura's group.

(He even went so far as to conspire with Shiroyasha. I suppose even

a war god adores his kid, huh.)

He was a war god, who was a womanizer, a drunkard, a muscle-brain,

and loved the goodness of people.
A more humane Divine Spirit than the modern humans themselves -
that is who Indra was.

It was said that he was the fastest to take action against 'Dystopia' and
'Azi Dakaha' in the distant past, lending his power to secure mankind
and the future.

For someone like him, who tried to associate with mankind like a sole
compatriot, the Demigod child Arjuna must have meant a lot.

Sympathizing with such sentiments, Izayoi heaved a heavy sigh.

"Well, if you give it proper consideration, it's not so bad a situation. It

would be good for Homura to take part in exhibitions and learn more
about Gift Games. If you are having trouble with the current Game, it
will get tough for you later on, you know?"

"......Oh, shut it. Then how would you have cleared it?"

"I would've summoned Asterius right from the start and beaten him
down no questions asked."

"I was an idiot to even ask you!"

He heard a shout coming from the other end of the phone. However,
Asterius was obviously left in the outer world for that exact purpose,
no matter how he thought about it.

After all, in order to choose how you won a Gift Game, one had no
choice but to become strong.

"...Now, let's stop the chit chat here. Guessing from the story so far,
Kasukabe should be in the room nearby, right?"

"Hm? I'm right here."

You answered after her name was suddenly mentioned.

It appeared that she was sipping her tea in the corner.

Hearing the nostalgic voice of his companion, Izayoi's expression
loosened a little.

"Oh, so you were in the same room. Rather sociable there,

considering it’s you."

"That's not the case. If it weren't your siblings, I don't think I

would've helped. And Suzuka-san didn't even bring me the box of
cakes."

"Eh!? So you were angry, after all!?"

Suzuka jumped to her feet and You gave her a small laugh.

"I'm not angry. Just sad."

"Ugh, that raises my embarrassment even more. I'll definitely

bring it with me next time...!"

"Hey now, don't tease my Suzuka there. And Suzuka, you don't have
to mind that. When it comes to Kasukabe, I've cleaned after her mess
more time than she did mine."

"I don't think that's true. Since you and Asuka haven’t sent
remittance to the community, I've been working for my food all
the time."

"Well, sorry about that. By the way, remember the present from the
pumpkin forest that Kuro Usagi and I sent there? Well, I heard it
suddenly disappeared one day without a trace. Maybe you have an
idea?"

"......Well, it must've been the work of some fairy."

"Also, those headphones Homura made for me were stolen by Calico

Cat and bro-"

"Okay, let's end this topic right here!"

Okay, stop, You raised her hands in defeat.

Coming out as the winner, Izayoi started laughing with his hands on
his waist.

"Good grief... 'Food before romance' is still your motto, huh. Well,
that's the kind of person you are. It's great that you haven't changed.
So, did you become a bit more like an adult woman?"

"We haven't met for two whole years, of course, I've grown a bit.
How about you?"

"Regretfully, I'm still the same. Only my height has changed a bit. If
there's anything else that has changed, it has to be───No, let's leave
that for later. I want to have a bit of a secret meeting. Everyone aside
from Homura, Kasukabe and Arjuna, sorry but move somewhere else
or enter a bath or something."

"That's fine... but Arjuna should stay, too?"

Homura glanced towards Arjuna.

"......Understood. I also had something to ask of Sakamaki Izayoi."

"Oh, now we are talking! I wonder if I should be delighted that I have

the greatest honour of having my name known by the strongest
Kshatriya of the Indian Pantheon?"

"You should stop with that fake humility. The achievements you have
gained in the Little Garden have also reached my ears. In particular,
the biggest of them was the achievement of defeating the 'Last
Embryo', Three-Headed Dragon Azi Dakaha. After all, that was not a
Demon Lord a human could have possibly defeated. I am curious as
to what means you have used to achieve that."

Arjuna's words, mixed with slight cynicism, resulted in different

responses from Homura and Izayoi.

Homura raised his head after hearing the name of the monster.
(......Three-Headed Dragon? 'Last Embryo'?)

The scene from his dream floated up in his mind.

The dragon that tore him to shreds and devoured him amongst the
approaching blazing flames was also a three-headed dragon.

He pricked his ears to ascertain the relationship between the two,

however, Izayoi's voice from the other end had completely erased his
curiosity.

"...Hah. Of all things, you had to ask something so boorish. I shouldn't

have expected much."

"What?"

"He was a Demon Lord that a human couldn't defeat? Stop

bullshitting! Is there such a thing in this world? I thought you who was
spoken in legends would understand that much... But yeah, I get it
now. The Great Hero Arjuna was, after all, someone who triumphed
by breaking an oath!"

Oathbreaker Hero───The moment he heard those words, Arjuna

erupted with rage, the peaceful atmosphere in the room washing away
like a tsunami pouring down on everyone present.

You instantly entered into battle mode, while Ayato immediately took
out her linked sword and shielded Homura and Suzuka behind her.
Even these two, who didn't have much battle power, were pressed
down by Arjuna's boiling anger and their legs gave in.

This couldn't be compared to something like incurring your boss'

wrath.

The intimidating air he now gave off made it clear just how unserious
he was in the previous battle. If it was his current self, he could kill
those Stymphalian Birds with just a glare.
Izayoi’s provocative statement was a forbidden trail he shouldn’t have
tread with this calm young man.

"......You said something interesting there, Sakamaki Izayoi. If we

weren't divided by worlds, I would have pulled the true meaning of
those words from your mouth in exchange for your life."

"There's no other 'true meaning' to it. It's as literal as it can be, oh

Great Oathbreaker Hero. That act which rose you up into the ranks of
Kshatriya is considered the most despicable victory in the entire Little
Garden."

"......Games and war are two separate things. If you can't even
understand that..."

"No, that's wrong. Even if there are no rules on a battlefield, there

definitely are in war. There are rules when competing for life! It's
because justice is based on such rules that the losers can swallow the
defeat along with the pain that follows. Obtaining a flawless victory,
suffering an unquestionable defeat, without these, humans can't truly
move on towards the future. Those rules exist to make that happen."

Conflict without any rules was no different from fights between

animals..

Because they were humans, the primates, they had a path of duty
they shouldn't stray from.

"After securing a victory by breaking an oath, what could you possibly

say about Demon Lords? What can you even boast of? After causing
the worst kind of outcome with your deceitful victory, you-...!!!"

"Izayoi. You are going too far."

You's calm voice interrupted Izayoi who had snapped beyond control.

While Arjuna trembled with rage, he clenched his fists and endured it
with all he had.
It was a misfortune that they couldn't see each other's faces now. If it
was the normal Izayoi, he would've held back a bit more. Or perhaps
he would've spoken with fists instead of words.

Moreover, it was strange for Izayoi to condemn someone like this.

The heavy atmosphere made both ends of the call tense.

The first to speak was Arjuna inside the Spirit Train.

"......Sakamaki Izayoi. I understand your point now."

"Oh? And what are you going to do about it, Mr. Great Hero?"

"There's nothing to do about it. After all, what you said was the
complete truth. I have certainly... Done something that makes me
deserve to be called the Oathbreaker Hero."

Saying so, Arjuna headed out of the room with a self-deprecating

smile on his face.

Seeing him off, Homura couldn't bear it and reproached Izayoi.

"Hey, Iza-nii. Why are you so angry?"

"Angry? Who, me?"

"You are definitely angry. Or at least irritated. I'm not really sure who
he is, but he didn't seem to be that bad of a guy, you know?"

"You are right. Between good and evil, he is unquestionably a good

guy. ......Ah, my bad, I really said too much. You guys are going to be
fighting under the same Community from tomorrow on and here I went
and thoughtlessly worsened the mood."

Izayoi apologized unusually obediently. In fact, Homura was more

surprised about his apology.

Homura almost said that a devil succumbing to sunstroke was more

realistic than Izayoi apologizing, but he held back.

"...Well, I'll leave dealing with that Arjuna fellow to Tokuteru. Rather
than that, you have something to tell me right? Did you annihilate the
organization in question by chance?"

"If that was the case, even I would be in a good mood. It seems that
the situation has become more complicated than we originally
thought──Uh, sorry. I want to move somewhere else before we
continue this talk. Call me again after an hour."

Got it, Homura casually replied and ended the call.

The windy rain had started gaining strength with each passing
moment.

Izayoi looked at the girl soundly asleep on the bed.

He lifted up the Albino he met at the forest and called out to Prith who
was standing near the wall.

"Hey, Jiten-sama. Let's move somewhere else for the time. A landslide
might happen here."

"That's fine with me... But, Izayoi. I've noticed something troubling."

"...Something troubling? More than this rain?"

"Depends on the situation. Please take a look at her chains once

more. They have evidently been severed, right?"

Hm? Izayoi turned his head back and confirmed it.

"....Yeah, they've been cut. We've already discussed that earlier, didn't
we?"

"Well, yes. But, just think about it, isn't it strange for the chains to be
cut? This is the outer world we are in now, you know? Don't you find it
strange that they haven't been ripped apart, but severed instead?"
When Prith pointed that out, Izayoi was taken aback. What she said
was true.

This place was not Little Garden.

If there was a confrontation between organizations, it should've been a

modern battle mainly with guns. If the chains were destroyed in the
height of such battle, it made no sense for them to have been severed
when she escaped.

On the contrary, this would've been quite natural if it happened in Little

Garden...

"......Tsk, this is bad. We might've been beaten to the punch by

someone from Little Garden."

"That's how it turns out. Even if we do find the facility, I don't think we'll
discover anything in it. We were a step too late."

"That said, even if it was an assassin from Little Garden, just where
did he come from?"

"I have no idea. Maybe he was from Sun Kings 'Avatara' or Demon
Lord Alliance 'Ouroboros'... Or perhaps some other participants.
......Either way, we have no other leads anymore aside from what this
girl has to say. So now we have a reason to prioritize her aid, right?"

Prith moved away from the girl and winked as she took out a black
card from her wallet.

Her smile contained traces of sarcasm towards Izayoi.

He would've preferred to pay that back a hundredfold, but this was no

time for that.

He put the girl on his back and started walking towards the building's
entrance with a light shrug.

"Stop saying stupid things and let's go. Unless you are saying that you
want to get caught up in a landslide."

"What are you saying. I'm a mother goddess. Do you really think I
would choose a place where a landslide would happen? Of course, if
you still want to move somewhere, let's go with some high-class hotel
in Rio!"

"You 'Twelve Devas' are really materialistic. But what should we do

about her visa?"

"No problems there. With the way things currently are, even
'Everything Company' will readily shelter her. They will get the
information and provide her with a───wait, before that, we seem to
have a guest."

The calm atmosphere suddenly vanished from the two like a mist.

There was a presence approaching them, as if cutting through the

dreary sounds of the rain. A gaze mixed with both hostility and killing
intent was directed at them like a sharp blade from outside of the
building.

Since they didn't attack right away, there could've been a chance for
discussion, however, with such a hostile intent coming from them,
there was obviously no use to talking.

Izayoi and Prith sensed the opponent waiting outside practically at the
same time and clicked their tongues.

"...They seem strong. Someone you know?"

"Their presence is close to us Divine Spirits, but I'm not sure. It should
be physically impossible for any more Divine Spirits to appear in the
outer world. Three of the Twelve Devas descended for that very
reason, but..."

"But Tokuteru is back in Little Garden now isn't he? Doesn't that mean
there are just two genuine gods left here?"
───Ah! Prith raised her voice.

"S-So that's how it is! That guy returned to Little Garden without even
having someone from Twelve Devas take over for him!?"

"As expected of our Mr. President! The infamous Indra known for
'when he makes a move, he always does needless things'! Thanks to
that, we've been fucking had!"

"You said it! Let's deduce whatever they cut off of our remuneration for
this job directly from his salary!"

"And don't forget the hotel expenses!"

The two nodded in strong agreement.

According to Prith, it was only possible for three Divine Spirits to

descend in a single world at the same time.

The Heavenly Army had summoned the Divine Spirits in order to steal
those three seats in advance. Those Divine Spirits who couldn't grab a
spot needed to send in a god's avatar instead, like how it was with
Uesugi.

It was quite possible they had seen through Tokuteru returning to Little
Garden back at the time of 'The Labyrinth of Minotaur'. It could be
presumed that it was a perfectly planned offence.

Hearing about the situation, Izayoi sighed from vexation.

"It is hard to please both worlds I guess...Oh well, can't be helped. I'll
leave this snow white to you. I'll play with that enemy."

"You sure you don't need my help?"

"Yup, leave it to me. I need the workout anyway. If the opponent is a

Divine Spirit level, that's all the better. Time to have my long-awaited
entertainment."
Izayoi passed the Albino to her and headed outside while waving his
hand. Prith followed a step behind.

(Now then. Who would be waiting for us outside? Let's look forward to
it.)

Thus, Izayoi left the building and proceeded to where the enemy
waited.
 Chapter 8

───Spirit Train 'Sun Thousand' - Panorama Wagon.

Large bath with a view on the Ley Lines.

One of the wagons of the Spirit Train was used as an outside scenery
viewing spot. Right now the train had only just departed and was still
merely travelling on the surface of the river. When it would finally start
travelling through the sea and earth veins, however, people would
have the opportunity to admire the scenery of the Ley Lines from this
wagon. The dining hall and a big bath inside this carriage were used
as relaxation spots for entraining Players and other guests.

Homura and others learned about this place and decided to treat their
fatigue in the public bath until it was time to contact Izayoi.

After all, this day had been filled with too many surprises.

Such as when the recognition money was embezzled by Tokuteru.

Or them being forced to participate in a Gift Game. Because of

Tokuteru again.

And even being saddled with the debt of Tokuteru's son.

Without a doubt, the day had been too eventful. Mainly because of
Tokuteru. He would've been found guilty for this in the outer world for
sure. There was no compassion for a useless god.

But now, their turbulent day had finally come to an end.

The veil of darkness had completely covered the sky. This was their
trip to another world, something that didn't just happen every day, so
they were surely allowed to enjoy their share of fun moments.

"...Wow, this is great."

Homura's first impression of the panoramic room was summed up in

that single phrase devoid of strong emotions. He was a scientist, not a
poet, so it was somewhat understandable, however, his reaction was
too dull even with that taken into account.

Girls' group, on the other hand, was devouring the brilliantly decorated
room with sparkling eyes.

The intricate candle lamps made out of glass were honed to the tiniest
of details with exquisite skill. Their stunning craftsmanship asserting
itself so strongly, that it made one worry that they would lessen the
scenery outside.They were, however, barely giving off a glow of a heat
haze so as to not obstruct the view of the stars.

The tiny spirits gathered in the meshing light of a lamp and a star were
bustling about as if to fill the place with colour.

A feat they could achieve only by the virtue of being pure beings with
pure souls.

The spectacle made Suzuka lose her weary expression, replacing it

with her best smile of the day.

"Ohh... A lot has happened. Things finally start to look like a proper
trip to another world, don't you think?"

"Yeah, we have really been through a lot... Most of it was related to

Tokuteru's debt, though!"

"N-Now, now. I'm sure Tokuteru-san's favour will prove to be useful in

future. More importantly, let's head for the panorama wagon bath. Will
you be coming along, Kasukabe-san?"

"Yup. Taking a bath before a meal is good for digestion."

You nodded with her eyes glued fixed in the direction of the dining
hall.

Ayato responded with a strained smile and walked through the bath
curtain.

"Well then, Senpai. See you later."

"Have fun. I don't mind if you stay late. Just take your time."

Leaving those words behind, Homura disappeared behind the

curtains.

Ayato and the others headed for the girls' bath and reached the
changing room. She touched her clothes which reminded her about
the climate of the daytime.

"It was midsummer in the outer world, so Little Garden's climate feels
really nice."

"You are right. It's a season of seduction during which you can faintly
see Aya-chan's pink bra through her sweaty blouse."

"...Uh, please just stop with these kinds of jokes. I'm not even sure
how to react," said slightly embarrassed Ayato while covering her
chest.

"Well, I was holding back with these kinds of jokes around you, Aya-
chan, but I decided to increase the dosage bit by bit so you can build
up some resistance!"

Suzuka’s reply was followed by an uncanny smile. You, who was in

the middle of undressing next to them, stared at Ayato's chest and
gave a small nod.

"Yeah...you really are just someone else with a similar name."

"Wait a minute, Kasukabe-san. I'm not going to ask who exactly were
you comparing me to just now, but you judged it based on my chest,
didn't you?"

"Having big ones is a good thing."

"That's not what I'm asking about!"

"Mind if I touch?"

"Yes I do!!"

Ayato quickly swatted away the devilish hand reaching for her. Again,
again, again, and again, the encroaching hands were knocked down,
and You frowned in dissatisfaction.

"...Stingy. You are stocked with boobs, it wouldn't hurt to share a bit
with me, would it?"

"I don't have a lot of them, don't word it in a way that would invite
misunderstandings!"

Hearing her retort, Suzuka swallowed her breath in realization.

"A lot of boobs...a lot of big boobs...? The likelihood of Aya-chan's

previous life being the one of a milking cow remains non-zero...?"

"Absolutely not! Okay. That does it. Suzuka, if you don't drop this
topic, I'm not going to treat you even if you follow me the next time I go
to an all-you-can-eat cake buffet. Enjoy losing your weight."

"Gah, are you going to betray me now, sister! Aren't we the sworn
friends who signed the Search and Devour contract! And it was you
who begged me many times to go in together because you had
trouble going in alone so... looks like it's not this Suzuka-san who'll be
troubled by it. Sure. Go and gain excess flesh by yourself."

"Huh!? No, that's not what I was trying to...!?"

Alas, it was impossible for a Kouhai to win against her Senpai in a

quarrel from the start. Angry Suzuka's seemed to suddenly lose all her
warmth. I can't mess this up, Ayato thought as she quickly tried to
patch things up.

Meanwhile, You put her hand on her chin, gazed up at a distant star,
and muttered, "...An all-you-can-eat cake buffet... Yeah, that has a
nice ring to it. I also wanted to try checking it out at least once when I
was in the outer world."

"Why not? Let's just do that here in Little Garden! It seems the
cafeteria of this panorama wagon is an all-you-can-eat place too!
Actually, Suzuka-san is famous as the Cookie Monster back in her
hometown!"

"I see. A nickname quite unlike mine."

If Suzuka was a Cookie Monster then You was a chef’s doom

incarnate. If they ever had a showdown, the kitchen would
undoubtedly turn into a scene from hell.

"...Hmm? Wait, doesn't that mean that You-san is a person from our
world?"

"Yup. Izayoi, me and another girl called Kudou Asuka were

summoned together."

Hearing the explanation, Suzuka tilted her head in wonder.

"...Kudou? Is she someone related to "Everything Company"?"

"Nope. Besides, isn't "Everything Company" a big conglomerate

centred around Europe? She is a pure Japanese person. The kanji of
their names are probably just pronounced the same."

"I see. Is that person going to show up in these Sun games?"

"I'm not sure. At the very least, it seems to be possible to join midway,
so she might."
"...Is that so. So she hasn't applied yet..."

There was no emotion in Ayato’s voice, however, the other two didn't
catch her muttering and obliviously continued to put their folded
clothes on the shelves.

"By the way, Suzuka-san."

"Suzuka is fine. Both I and Homura would find it very unsettling if Iza-
nii's friends started calling us with honorifics."

"I see. In that case, why were Suzuka and Homura summoned here?
Do you two have a history of being competitive eaters?"

"I just followed Homura. Brother is actually researching something

amazing even if he doesn't look that way."

"Researching? What kind of thing?"

"I'm not really sure, but it's some kind of Particle Bodies. What was it
again, Aya-chan?"

Hearing Suzuka's question, Ayato compose herself and spoke in a

boastful manner with her hand to her chest.

"Saigou Homura-senpai is researching the third perpetual motion —

the 3S Nano Machine Units. His achievements as the lead researcher
have been recognized and he has been permitted to participate in the
battles of this Little Garden of Gods. Suzuka and I were probably
allowed to tag along as people related to him."

You, wrapped in a big towel, frowned for the first time hearing that.

"Researcher...of Particle Bodies? And moreover, 'Saigou'?"

"What about it?"

"Uhh, hold on. Homura's surname is written with the ‘Sai’ of west and
‘Gou’ of hometown, right?"
"...? Well, yeah?"

"So...it's not ‘Karma’ of ‘West’...it's not that ‘Saigou’, right?"

The two girls affirmed with quick nods. Neither Ayato nor Suzuka had
any recollection of the name "Saigou" she mentioned, and moreover,
Homura didn't have any relatives. They had never heard anything
about him having relatives outside of the orphanage.

Kasukabe You still didn't relax however and remained for a while with
her arms folded, until she suddenly recalled a past conversation and
clapped her hands.

"...I see. Ayato and Asuka also have homonymous surnames by

chance. I suppose these kinds of coincidences do happen. Besides,
he doesn't look like a Demon Lord no matter how you look at him."

"D-Demon Lord?! That Senpai who wouldn't even harm a bug?!"

"What the, that sounds hilarious!! If Homura was a Demon Lord, I feel
like he'd get one-shotted by a Hero's punch!"

"Well, now I understand what you meant by Homura being a total

opposite of Izayoi."

You smiled faintly and faced towards the bath.

"Now then... Let's jump in, shall we? There are several kinds of them,
but let's start with the standard one. Let's go, you two."

"Aye aye, sir!"

"Suzuka. In this case, the correct word is not ‘sir’ but ‘ma'am’."

The three made their way to the large public bath with Suzuka
reflecting on Ayato’s off-hand remark.

＊
Meanwhile in the men's section of the bath...

Homura disrobed and entered the bathhouse quickly. People around

him had him for someone who earnestly devoted everything to his
research and lacked any hobbies but, in reality, he was a boy that
could take an interest in and enjoy just about anything. And if that
something was a public bath of another world, that fascination would
know no ends.

But rather than the bath itself, it was the realization of the fact that he
was actually here that had him shocked in the first place.

(Wow... There are barely any humans here...!)

It wasn't only the Players that had come to take a bath.

It went without saying that the bath was full of races like Demi-
humans, Demons, Demi-Dragons and such, but the most shocking
was the fact that the Giants, clearly bigger than the entrance door,
were taking a dip here as well. Homura didn't know which retort to go
with first.

Incidentally, according to the information board, it appeared that there

was also a Eudemon-exclusive bath too.

As he was trying to figure out which side should he enter from, a

Unicorn that just happened to be there lightly pushed his back with its
horn from behind.

"Wha-, h-he-, what the!? What business does a Unicorn have with
me?!"

"No business, really. Your presence simply resembled someone I

haven't seen for a long time. Could you be related to "No
Names," virgin boy?"

"I don't understand what you are saying at all, but I'm somehow sure it
was quite rude!"
Though, it would've been more problematic if a boy his age wasn't a
virgin.

The Unicorn realized that its words weren't being understood, so it

tapped on the bulletin board with the tip of its horn instead.

To Homura’s surprise, the creature seemed to be recommending a

particular bath to him.

"...? You are telling me to go there?"

"Indeed. Humanoids gather primarily in this area. And it gives

you a beautiful view of the starry sky above. One wouldn't enjoy
it during daytime as it tends to be occupied by Spriggan Fairies,
but now's your chance, virgin boy."

"I see. Since you are recommending it, then I'll check it out. ...But for
real, stop talking as you please just because I can't understand you."

Homura parted with the Unicorn and proceeded towards the

panorama bath at an easy gait. That said, it took quite some courage
for him to walk side by side with what could only be described as
carnivorous beasts.

(Crap...If I knew this was going to happen, I would've come with

Tokuteru or Porol.)

Homura was a human who wouldn't harm a fly. Therefore, even

though he wanted to believe that the Eudemons wouldn't attack the
Players out of the blue, he still wanted someone to be here with him
right now.

That made him visibly jumpy and, finally, one of the bystanders could
no longer bear to watch him look out for danger at every step. Homura
felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Hey, you. You are the one who appeared in the exhibition, right? Are
you here alone by chance?"
"Eh? Ah, yes. What about it?"

Feeling the tap, Homura turned around. The owner of the unfamiliar
voice was someone taller than him but their ages seemed to be about
the same. He could see an unreliable-looking smile under the
stranger’s longish bangs.

However, judging by the fact that he dared to call out to someone in

this bath, the guy must have had some steel in his backbone.

"Right...If you like, would you like me to show you around? I doubt you
can relax with all the various races that are present, right?"

"That would be a big help. I just arrived from another world, so I'm a bit
out of my depth. This bath is clearly bigger than it appears, what's
going on here?"

"Well, I don't really know the inner workings of its structure. Maybe
Queen lent her talents to make it happen... Oh, right, I forgot to
introduce myself. I'm Jin Russell. I'm a Player of the Sun Authority War
just like you. Nowhere as important though."

The boy calling himself Jin Russell scratched his head with a helpless
smile.

Enticed in by this pleasant smile, Homura also introduced himself

once more.

"I'm Saigou Homura. Though I suppose you would know that since
you watched the exhibition... Let's get along."

"Pleased to meet you. While we are walking, mind telling me a bit

about the exhibition? 200,000 "Sun Thousand" gold coins sure is
something, huh?"

"Ah, so it came down to that after all…. Well, this is a good

opportunity. I wanted to complain to someone about it anyway and
vent some of the frustration while it still burns."
Homura agreed to tell the story and they proceeded towards the target
bath.

Jin heard about Homura's situation with Tokuteru and others.

He heard how a youth called Arjuna made a debt, and that he was
related to Tokuteru. That, as a result, Homura had no choice but to
take part in every exhibition from tomorrow on.

The part-story, part-rant conveniently finished as they finally arrived at

the bath the Unicorn indicated.

Jin took in Homura's story with interest and when it finished, he put a
hand to his chin.

"...Heh. So you aren't exactly participating in the Sun Authority War

out of your own volition, are you?"

"Well...My participation has already been decided before I realized it.

Regardless of how dangerous a situation it was, opening Queen's
invitation letter makes me the fool."

"I wouldn't exactly say that. At the very least, your life was saved and
as long as there is life, there is hope too. So be thankful for that. Let's
talk about that Arjuna if you don’t mind? Think everything will go well?"

"I wonder about that. I haven't talked to him that much, so I can't say.
And I'm not really that familiar with his legend."

"...I see. You might want to be careful around him. He is not called the
Oathbreaker Hero by mistake. I think rejecting him, even by force if
necessary, is a choice too."

Perhaps you are right, mused Homura while soaking himself in the
bath.

For some reason, Jin kept the conversation on the subject of Arjuna.

"If you don’t mind me doing it, I could tell you about his legend."
"You know it, Jin?"

"It is famous, after all. There is even a familiar theme in his legend
regarding debt. At that time, his entire country was swindled from
under him in a game of dice."

Hearing that fact so abruptly shocked Homura so much that he leapt

up from the bath.

"A c-country?! He lost a country in a gamble?!"

"That's right. He's a gambling maniac, so to say. Because he couldn't

stop himself until he won it all, he crossed the final line and lost
everything. In the end, even his wife was snatched away in a bet."

Seriously!? Homura went back to submerging himself in water with a

strained smile. He couldn't understand Arjuna's logic at all. What could
go so wrong for him to become like that?

Actually, he was married at that age? Homura's mind was a jumble of

conflicting thoughts and he couldn't digest the new facts fully.

Jin averted his gaze in a sympathetic manner and continued once

more.

"I can also explain why he came to be known as an Oathbreaker Hero

if you want... How about it?"

"Hmm... No need. While it does sound like an interesting story, it

doesn't seem like it would be of any use."

Homura started to swim in the spacious bath.

Jin’s eyes went wide. He was not expecting that answer at all.

"...Why? Are you going to unconditionally trust him even after hearing
what I just said?"

"I mean, that's just a legend, right? The truth might be quite different."
"There is no smoke without fire."

"Perhaps.... But, you know, those tales are created from someone's
subjective point of view, aren't they? It's one thing if it's necessary to
solve a game, but it's rude to judge someone based on rumours
someone else started."

Homura continued to float in the bath. There wasn’t much emotion in

his voice.

The monster Minotaur that he had met just recently had turned out to
be a completely different child than what the legends said.

Thus Homura judged that being influenced by legends that were built
on individual prejudice and misplaced self-righteousness was
dangerous in Little Garden.

"Besides... And this is just my intuition speaking, I don't think he's that
bad of a guy. He might have created a debt, but that's because he lost
in a game, right? I'd smack him if it was done out of delinquency, but I
don't think he did anything that outrageous considering this Little
Garden is made up of games. That's why, I can't say anything until I've
had a good talk with him. I'll think about him being an Oathbreaker or
whatever after that."

"...Oh? That’s quite an unexpected view to have. It seems you are

quite fair towards others."

"Because I want them to be fair with me too. ...So, yeah, it's

meaningless to try to rile me up."

Homura looked at Jin with a big grin. Jin also returned a troubled smile
while scratching his head.

"Ah. So you realized it, after all?"

"You are like an open book. Besides, you are a Player too right, Jin?
There's no way I would just swallow an unsubstantiated tale from an
opponent just like that."

"It as you say. But well, I saw the chance so I thought I'd try my luck
once."

What a cunning fellow you are, thought Homura as he also smiled in

satisfaction. This little chat was particularly enjoyable for him since,
having devoted his life to Particle Body research, he never enjoyed a
time where he could trade pointed remarks like this with someone of
the same age.

He sat cross-legged inside the bath and suddenly looked at Jin with
curiosity.

"I explained my circumstances. Now it's your turn, Jin."

"Mine?"

"Yea. Since you came to stir trouble right from the start, it’s obvious
you knew that Arjuna belonged to our — no, in this case, it's better to
say — Queen's Community, I guess? Anyway, it means you knew that
he was in the same Community as us, right? Who told you that?"

Whoops, looks like I stirred up a hornet's nest, thought Jin and looked
away. Indeed, he couldn't arrive to that conclusion just by watching the
exhibition match.

Thus he could only have called out to Homura while already fully
aware of his circumstances.

"Well, will you tell me now? Just who told you that?"

"Hmm...well, I don't mind answering, but…," he said, playing up his

reluctance. Since Jin was able to have a fun conversation for the first
time in a while, he wasn't against divulging some information. But
answering that particular question required him to expose the
information provider.

Eventually, he just looked without a word towards the shade of a pillar.

Homura followed Jin’s gaze. And just as expected, he caught a
momentary glimpse of a boy's silhouette. Jin stifled a burst of laughter
with a hand.

"It can't be helped. Just give it up. All things said, in the end Homura is
your benefactor who paid off your debt as a loan to you."

"...So be it. As you say, it is not my intention to burden him any more
than this. And I also want to correct your lies, Jin."

A very apologetic blue-haired youth emerged from behind the column.

Seeing Arjuna show himself, Homura sighed in extreme

displeasement.

"...Right. So that's how it really was, huh."

"Did you predict this?"

"More or less. In that case, the Community you belong to would be..."

Jin grinned and waved off Homura, as if trying to say “Don’t finish your
thought.” After all, this was a large, publicly accessible bath. A fair
place where anyone could face anyone with nothing but a loincloth to
their name.

Bringing outside disputes here is extremely boorish, postulated Jin

Russell, the tactician, in his mind with a smile, conveniently turning a
blind eye to his own faults. He couldn't help but laugh at his frank
cunningness.

Arjuna closed the distance to them with big steps and glaring at Jin all
the time, the more displeased the closer he got.

"Jin. Since you already revealed my past, I want you to correct what
you said."

"Correct? What exactly?"

"I'm talking about the story of me losing a country in a dice game! I've
been saying all this time, haven’t I? That I was just caught up in the
events?! That the actual gambling maniac was my brother, not me!? I
don't remember ever becoming too addicted to dice gambling!"

Hearing his heated complaints, Homura and Jin exchanged glances.

It seemed that that was the reason why Arjuna looked so dissatisfied
all this time.

Homura offered him a pitying gaze. Having heard that the blue-haired
boy had a gambling maniac of a brother, made him relate to Arjuna a
bit.

"Alright! I got it! This is a good opportunity, so let's go have a talk at

that sauna lounge over there. And it's just the time to fix Jin's forked
tongue."

"I'm hurt. That was the only lie I told. Besides, Arjuna is at fault too.
Knowing that you squandered 200,000 gold coins, I don't think I can
believe your protestations of not being a gambling addict."

"A-As I said, that was supposed to be staking Sun Authorities, but

before I noticed..."

"Yeah, yeah, sure. You were swindled. Since this is a rare opportunity,
though, why not celebrate with a game? There should be some card
games in the sauna lounge..."

The three made their way inside the sauna lounge while chattering.

It was about an hour later when the broadcasting started in the entire
panorama wagon.
 Chapter 9

The silent drizzle of rain had, suddenly and without warning, turned
into a violent downpour erasing the sounds of footsteps and presence
of the citizens.

This region was known for its soft ground and it would not be strange
for a devastating landslide to happen with this much water falling from
the sky.

Hence, fighting a bit more seriously would not cause problems in the
future.

Worst coming to worst, Izayoi could always move towards the forest,
but for the time being, the location was a blessing.

This place, an abandoned section of the slum, was filled with derelicts
as is, there was no need to worry about causing pointless damage.

It was also convenient that the residents were nowhere to be seen

either.

In other words, this battle was quite convenient for Izayoi too.

"─────"

Exposed to the elements, Izayoi calmly pressed on through the bullet-

like rain. The hostility was undoubtedly coming from straight ahead.
And that hostility was actually a bigger impediment than the curtains of
water.

Mother Goddess Prith had previously described the Amazon forest as

"Stagnant," but the heavy pressure Izayoi was now feeling was also
very fitting that description.

The hostility and killing intent were obstructing his way as if entwining
around his body. He felt very heavy, as if he was forcing his way
through the ocean. Honestly, the scale of the enmity defied common
sense.

How was it possible to direct so much of it towards someone one had

never met?

Be it friend or foe, it was probably better to deem them not to be a

stranger.

As far as Little Garden was concerned, there were more than enough
individuals happy to bare their fangs at both Izayoi and Prith.

It would not be so strange for one of them to show up here, however...

"......Strong. This guy is really strong. Just who are they? They are at
least as strong as Kouryuu and Karyou-chan. If not stronger."

"I don't know. Their presence is similar to a Divine Spirit but also
resembles an Avatar. We should treat them as quite the unique
individual."

The open hostility was making the location known. There clearly was
no intention of hiding power. These two would never have forgotten
someone this strong. But when they searched their memories, no
name came to mind.

One thing was very clear, however.

Whoever was waiting ahead equalled a Demon Lord in status.

Izayoi considered these ruins a convenient location but, were he to

clash with that somebody here, the entire slums would be turned into
scorched wasteland.

Finally, the pair could make out the opponent's silhouette within the
storm.

(......A woman?)

The person unleashing such hostility was a woman with white hair and
red eyes. Just like the girl they were safeguarding.

Given the skin that lacked pigment and red eyes, she seemed to be
another albino.

The woman was of a considerable height, but with still visible traces of
youthfulness in her face suggesting that she was not yet an adult. The
white clothes suggested a research specimen, or something of the
kind. One belonging to the same place as the girl that was sleeping
soundly on Prith's back.

"Izayoi,” said Pirth suddenly, “something's not right. Her presence is

that of a Divine Spirit but her body is clearly human. At a glance, not
one being possessed by a Divine or Evil Spirit either. She might have
assimilated with a higher spiritual life form due to some kind of a
trigger."

"Seems so. This clears up one part of the puzzle, though. That woman
destroyed the Particle Body research establishment," Izayoi declared.

Honestly, anyone would come to the same conclusion if they saw the
white-haired girl's appearance.

While the pouring rain had easily washed her hair and skin clean, the
same couldn't be said for her clothes that were still smeared in colour.
That colour.

The rusty-red of blood. And that girl was soaked in it.

It seemed that she hadn't even given a thought to getting rid of the
bloodstains.

She definitely paid no heed to the fragments of human flesh that

dirtied her fair skin.
She would slay the enemy. Slay all who opposed her. Lay bare her
boundless resentment, and annihilate them all.

This girl was not directing her hostility towards Izayoi or Prith. This
heavy pressure was not a force directed at an individual.

She was, quite simply, cursing the entire world with all her being.

She stood there, her body looking like it had come back from the
depths of hell, waiting for Izayoi and Prith in this deteriorated district,
so that she could wield her blade of resentment and grudge towards
the entire world that had ravaged her soul.

Finally, the pigmentless eyes focused on the two of them, pale white
hand rose to the chin, and the girl spoke.

"......Well, well, well. This is something even I did not expect, even
though I was resolved to cut down anyone, be it Surya, Vayu, or Indra.
To face the great mother goddess, Prithvi Mata, thought? Beyond my
dreams. Should I pay my respects now that I am against the deity that
cut through the planet's placenta?"

The bloody girl looked at Prith and laughed in amusement.

Judging from her words, if Izayoi showed up here all by himself, she
would've started battling with him to the death right away.

She also knew who Prith was.

With that in mind, Prith stepped forward and spoke.

"Cut through the planet's placenta, huh. That's quite some way to say
it. While it's true that I did teach agriculture to people, it would be polite
to use less... direct words, no?"

"Nonetheless, it is the truth, is it not? The proxy of Celestial Spirits of

Earth that slumber even now. After all, you, the goddess Prithvi Mata,
are the one whose Spirituality was the first Celestial Spirit candidate."
Prith listened to the girl’s words with displeasure.

But at the same time, she managed to ascertain one fact.

Whoever assimilated into this bloody girl undoubtedly belonged to the

Indian Pantheon.

"......Oh? And where did you hear that, pray tell?"

"Anyone would realize it if they gave it some thought. Breaking up,

cultivating and nurturing are forms of Gift of the smallest unit. When
mankind unravelled that blessing and system the Celestial Spirits had
changed from "The givers" to "The robbed". it is reasonable to dub a
goddess who worked to rip out the source of life form the mother
planet someone who cut through the planet's placenta!"

The bloody girl burst into a loud laugh with her hands folded.

However, that laughter didn't contain a trace of happiness. Far from

that, it was a mixture of clear anger and a hint of righteous indignation.

When she turned her gaze towards Izayoi, the smile waned and
turned cold.

"Hey, you, boy over there. Child of this age. Would you like to hear
about what this girl, what my vessel had gone through... What she had
seen? Would you risk having your ears rot listening to the filth of her
story? After all, she was treated viciously enough to awaken this me. It
is hardly something a boy of this sweet age could hope to bear."

"......? Awaken?"

The phrasing brought a sense of discomfort to Izayoi.

But the bloody girl didn't pay any heed to his state of mind.

The entity leaned forward and embraced the body of its host with all
the sorrow, all the love it could muster, before saying in an
apologetical whisper:
"It would be a final act of mercy to sever this girl’s life and succumbing
to sleep alongside her after killing those present-day magicians. But
now that I came face to face with the mother goddess, the mother of
mankind, I can not simply withdraw. As the Avatar that erodes all the
world's aggression and injustice, I am of a mind to vent this anger of
mine. Forgive me, black girl, I will be borrowing your body for a little
longer."

The voice was filled with affection, the eyes with compassion.

Anyone who saw all that would have deemed this monster Righteous.

However, that love vanished the moment the avatar raised her body.
There was no longer a trace of affection in her eyes that pierced
through Izayoi and Prith.

They were full of undying resentment.

Her body was overflowing with resentment.

She had now turned into an Avatar of their mortal enemy and, using
the blood that soaked her clothes as a catalyst, she summoned and
shouldered an equally bloody battleaxe.

With that, Prith finally realized who the enemy was and trembled.

"A bloody battleaxe... Eroding war and injustice... Don't tell me... Are
you the "Hero Slayer" Parashurama!?"

"Indeed! I am she! The sixth Avatar of "Avatara"! The sage of

slaughter who annihilates all royalty and heroes!"

The bloody girl, Parashurama, howled.

Facing that raging anger, Prith had a premonition of death. It was one
thing that the enemy was part of "Avatara" but it was their true identity
that made her tremble with fear.

(Damn it......! Izayoi and Parashurama have the worst affinity.)

Prith, still holding the girl on her back, grit her teeth after realizing how
bad of a move this was.

"Avatara's" sixth Avatar - The "Hero Slayer" Parashurama.

The words "Hero Slayer" might make her seem like a vicious Avatar.
However, tracing back the schools of their martial arts, it was said that
many of the famous heroes of Indian Pantheon were her disciples.
Above all, the hidden techniques, worthy of being called a top secret,
that she passed on to her disciples, were also the very same deadly
techniques that had saved heroes from countless predicaments.

Even Izayoi and his friends had used a portion of those techniques to
defeat many Demon Lords. Perhaps a distant relative, but she was
nonetheless someone who had such ties.

However that was never her intention, merely the end result.

What Parashurama accomplished as the sixth Avatar was not the

nurturing of the heroes. By no means did she polish her blade so that
it would be passed down to the future. Rather, her true nature and
goals were the total opposite of such a legacy.

Her Karma was to "erode all aggression and injustice of the world."

"Aggression" meant all Kshatriya and royalty.

“Injustice” those who broke agreements and those who tried to curry
favour with her by deceit.

She had been hurt by these things in the distant past. And it was not a
simple wound, for she was hurt and betrayed by someone she loved.

First wound came from the king and country she should have saved.

And the second from her favourite pupil who asked her for guidance.

She was betrayed, deceived, used, and the family she loved
massacred.
Therefore, she responded by massacring all the heroes and royalty.

And that is by no means a metaphor. She repeated such massacres

twenty-one times, depriving an entire era of Indian Pantheon of all its
heroes.

She was an Avatar of a god that would fall into slumber after she was
done with her massacre, only to start it all over again once she woke
up.

The "Hero Slayer" dispatched to stop the endlessly growing arrogance

of mankind - that was the sixth Avatar of "Avatara," Parashurama.

"Goddess that had allowed the limitless propagation of mankind, and

the boy born in its twilight hour. I, the Decayer of all aggression and
injustice, condemn you. I shall manifest my boundless wrath for all the
lives that were needlessly consumed here. As chosen by "Avatara" of
salvation, let my karma be fulfilled!"

With a thundering roar, the bloody battleaxe traced an arc. Izayoi and
Prith leapt away, but the ruins behind them were blown away like trash
by that single attack.

It appeared that the avatar had no intention to go easy regardless of

the presence of houses or people.

They couldn't fight against such an opponent without taking special

measures.

"Izayoi! Buy me some time, I'll back you up soon!"

"Sure, leave it to me!"

Izayoi rushed straight towards Parashurama. However, considering

her "Hero Slayer" attribute, even Izayoi was at a disadvantage. If he
was not backed up quickly, the situation would turn into something
bad.

(Protecting the town and the girl comes first......!)

This Albino girl was a precious source of information after all.

In the worst case, she at least had to survive.

Prith took out a seed of the Sacred Fig from her coat and made it grow
quickly.

It did just that and, in the blink of an eye, became a barrier to protect
the girl on her back. She didn't think that Parashurama would kill her,
but she had no confidence that she could keep her alive if she got
involved in the battle.

The Sacred fig, being granted the Divinity of the mother goddess, had
surpassed the limit of its growth and started to cover the slums. There
would certainly be witnesses, but it was better than having the scars in
the ground to grow bigger leaving evidence behind.

In the meantime, contrary to her expectations, Izayoi was engaged in

an even battle amidst the disintegrating derelicts.

He readied his fist as he charged. It would be his domain once he

closed the distance to his opponent. If the girl got hit by his fists, with
their impact comparable to power of the continental drift, even she
wouldn't come out unscathed regardless of what kind of Avatar of a
god she was.

However, Parashurama did not move. She just stood perfectly still
watching the approaching Izayoi.

Once in range, the boy let his fists fly.

"Ho......Now, this is quite dull," laughed the Decayer. Facing fists that
could shake a planet, Parashurama simply kicked the ground and fell
back a little bit.

Izayoi's blows triggered a violent gale that ripped buildings apart and
carried them onwards.
If he unleashed that attack in the middle of the brilliant Rio, its
buildings would've been wrecked in the blink of an eye, their residents
blown away like insects caught up in a tornado. The boy, who had
once fought against the Demon Lord that governed the calamity,
carried in his fists power that could shift continents. And that was not a
metaphor.

But the girl. The Decayer...

Parashurama just shrugged it off, left uninjured by that attack that

could shake the planet.

(Kh......!)

Izayoi's punch caught empty space and stopped just short of the tip of
her nose.

The way she dodged the blow was not normal. Miscalculating even by
a single inch would result in her skull caving-in, but this girl had
employed that way to dodge without a hint of fear. She would only
have chosen this action because she had the perfect grasp of the
timing of Izayoi’s charge.

In short, she dodged like this because she had absolute confidence in
her martial arts, and wanted to display the difference between them.

(Unbelievable...! She is at least above Kouryuu in terms of martial

arts!)

Izayoi laughed merrily as cold sweat broke on his skin.

Then, he prepared himself to receive the counter and grit his teeth.
There was no avoiding the casual slash of the bloody battleaxe aimed
at Izayoi's side.

"Gah......!!!"

The impact almost sent his insides the other way. Holding back the
urge to vomit, Izayoi put power into his fist again.
Izayoi stopped the merciless follow-up with his arm, but at a cost of
dull pain all through his limb. The battleaxe was not able to cut him,
however, that didn’t get rid of the force behind the blow.

Seeing the manner in which her battleaxe was stopped, the bloody girl
spoke in admiration.

"You possess an interesting physique, boy. You are the first person
whom I could not cut with my battleaxe that is known for its "Hero
Slaying"."

"That's natural! There's no one better at me when it comes to not

getting cut! Not allowing any exceptions is proof of being at the
summit, so just give up on trying to cut me!"

"Fair enough! I'll just bludgeon you to death then!"

Seeing that she could not cut Izayoi's body, the girl turned the axe flat.

Meanwhile, Izayoi calmly analyzed her condition once more.

(She doesn't know that I possess the Gift of Leo. As I thought, her
waking up has nothing to do with the Sun Authority War.)

While she was the Avatar of "Avatara," she did not know about the
Authority War. That meant that she was not a Gift Game player.

Even so, she was not someone he could go easy on.

He swatted away next two strikes of the bloody axe with his fist.

Originally, her "Hero Slayer" Gift sealed off the Gifts of hostile heroes
and turned their defences useless. Therefore it would be difficult to
win against her unless one bested her with pure martial prowess or
possessed an exceedingly high divinity that rivalled the Avatars of
Gods that surpassed the kind of heroes.

However, with his Gift of Impenetrability, Izayoi who was protected by

Nemean Lion that Leo was based on, was invincible against any and
all slashing attacks. Even if it was something that could cut the
mountains, split the seas or pierce the heavens, the Gift of Leo would
repeal it all without a question.

It was the apex of its kind exactly because it didn't allow any
exceptions.

To surpass this concept, one needed to own similar Celestial Gift, and
something like a Gift of Absolute Severance or a Gift to slay Celestial
Spirits. Just "Hero Slayer" was not enough.

But due to that advantage, the contest between the two settled into a
pattern.

The being who adopted the name of the Decayer of Aggression, had
naturally mastered the martial arts to a divine level. Izayoi was slowly
being cornered, his resistance solved like a shogi problem.

(I can't handle it all...! Shit, it's turning worse and worse! In that case...)

Izayoi suddenly stopped the blade and used the momentum to attempt
to close the distance.

He judged that it was better to not open up the distance against a

long-handled battleaxe, but his opponent was not someone against
whom those established tactics would work on. She swung down the
axe while drawing a circle like a spinning top, pulverizing and blowing
off everything immediately around her.

I can't close the distance so easily… thought Izayoi with a click of his
tongue as he rode the shock wave. The enemy was the Avatar
standing at the pinnacle of martial arts. He could not deal with her with
something he learned as a stopgap. Fighting directly put him at a
disadvantage.

What a problem child would do in such a situation was to taunt the

enemy into a mistake and look for an opening.
"Bring it on......! If you are someone that refined their martial arts to the
extreme, then I'm a bad boy that lived a carefree life thus far!"

Faced with a strong opponent after so long his excitement started to

rise. Someone whom he could fight seriously with had awakened in
his homeworld. Not in Little Garden, but in this world.

It was doubtful whether he would get another chance like this in future.
Surrendering himself to the inexpressible emotions he was feeling,
Izayoi packed all his power into his fist... and brought about a tsunami
of earth.

"Mkh....!?"

This could be bad... muttered Parashurama, raising an eyebrow at the

unexpected action.

The wave of earth and sand rose up so high one would wonder
whether it would swallow the entire town, and then assaulted the
slums, carrying with itself so much mass not even the bombing raid
could match the devastation.

It was a supermassive attack that, depending on circumstances, could

make a town lose its function.

There was no way to escape from the slums that had been walled in
by the sacred tree trunks. And even if one did escape, there was no
avoiding a serious injury. The bloody Decayer stabbed her battleaxe in
the ground and let go of it.

Then she spoke with a brutal smile:

"Not allowing exceptions is the proof of being at the summit, was it

not? ......Alright then. Let me see whether the Gift dwelling in your
body is truly impenetrable."

Putting her hand on her chest, she closed her eyes.

She made a gesture as if she was offering a prayer.

And then she directed her words towards the power sleeping within
her host, the Albino girl.

"───Corrupt, my Astra."

In an instant, a bloody spear was produced on the other side of the

earth wave, clad in aurora lights.

The whole body of the Decayer was wrapped in heat comparable to

the centre of the planet, far down the earth's crust. The earth and sand
that came in contact with her instantly turned into lava and scattered
about, dispersing like a splash that hit the cliff of the ocean.

Remembering that brilliance, Izayoi realized the move she was going
to use and a chill went up his spine.

(Kh......?!)

He swallowed his words at what he was seeing.

After all, Izayoi knew about that Blood Spear.

Prith was behind him, so he couldn't dodge it. No, to begin with, given
the amount of heat it was releasing, he could not fully protect her just
by stopping it.

What the avatar was about to release was a secret technique that
saved them many times.

It was the strongest strike that was awakened by the mantra that was
lost during the time when the Indo-European world was still one.

The symbol of the pinnacle of military arts that left the deeds of Divine
Spirits in the hands of man.

"Pierce......"Brahma Astra Origin"───!!!"

The Blood Spear approached Izayoi, illuminating the night sky all
across the continent with its red brilliance.

That attack that the heroes of Indian Pantheon pursued, burned

through the barrier of the holy tree, rushing on to turn the slums into
ruins.

Its red brilliance shredded the night veil of the outer world and dyed
the heavens dark red.
 Chapter 10

The sixth Avatar of "Avatara" - Parashurama, the Rishi who had

reached the limits of divinity for whom the concept of gender no longer
existed.

Perhaps this being had even transcended the context of life itself. Its
human body had long since perished leaving behind an essence that
would manifest as the Avatar whenever the elites of society became
too drunk with self-interest.

Then, Parashurama would annihilate all the aggression of that era.

As she was called the "Hero Slayer," it would be almost impossible for
anyone other than Avatars of Gods, or Demigods, related to the sun to
defeat her. Therefore, now that she had manifested in this decadent
age, the only way to defeat the Decayer was for the representative of
the Heavenly Army to descend into the outer world.

Because of that, she had even hoped for an unintended reunion.

In the distant past... when the Decayer was still a human. There was a
person she took up as a disciple for fun.

The only person to whom she had passed down the supreme rituals
out of her own will.

Someone who, even if only for a while, had made her feel at peace
amidst her vengeful life.

A grand liar who let her forget a bit of her resentment with their sun-
like warmth.
When she heard that her disciple had joined the "Twelve Devas,"
Parashurama couldn't help but laugh at the irony of fate. After all,
when she had taught them, they had shown a strong sense of duty.

Deep in her heart, a faint feeling of hope still lingered that... if her
disciple Surya came to destroy her one day...

However, seeing the face of the Mother Goddess, she laughed in self-
deprecation, thinking that there was no way she would be that
fortunate.

Perhaps this too is a revelation of God telling me to fulfil my karma,

thought the Decayer, giving up on that silly hope. However...

...she could not believe what she was seeing right now.

"......What...!!?"

She threw the Blood Spear without any mercy.

And yet, it had been stopped by a dazzling Divine Spear.

Izayoi, with that Divine Spear in hand, called out its name.

"Kh......Stop it, "Brahmastra Replica"......!!!"

He resisted being pushed back by the Blood Spear with all he had.

The white hot Blood Spear and the Divine Spear clashed, turning
earth below into lava. This was a complete gamble, Izayoi didn’t know
whether he could match the attack. However, he had judged that,
given how similar the Gift was, there was a glimmer of hope to bet on.

This divine spear was one of his trump cards entrusted to him by Kuro
Usagi in order to win the Sun Authority War.
Its name was "Brahmastra Replica".

Along with "Chandra Mahal", it was a symbol of devotion, one of the

Divine Arms that the "Moon Rabbits" had received.

This spear had defeated "Black Percher" and "Azi Dakaha" with Izayoi
and his comrades… A legendary Divine Spear that Parashurama's
disciple was given in exchange for the Sun Armor.

"Impossible......!!? Why do you possess such a thing, boy!?"

demanded Parashurama in dismay.

Seeing the spear of her disciple, a weapon that could overturn the
destiny, her eyes were wide open from shock. Quite a natural reaction
for someone who had no knowledge of the circumstances.

Prith standing in watch behind him thought about Kuro Usagi, the
current owner of that spear.

(They really did something crazy there......! If you tear off a divine level
Gift and give it to someone else, it might cause the owner's Spirituality
to weaken, and yet...)

Prith smiled nervously while protecting the Albino girl.

In reality, Kuro Usagi's Spirituality was carried by a piece of

descriptive poetry. That spear was originally summoned by using that
piece as a medium and now she was keeping it in a continuously
summoned state and lending it to Izayoi. This was why Kuro Usagi
had turned into a loli to preserve her Spirituality.

That said, this Divine Spear was not something that you could simply
make full use of just because it was summoned.

(Fuck......!!! I really can't handle it after all, huh......!!?)

Raising its output itself was not a problem, but when it came to holding
down opponents, there was a problem with its application.
Additionally, even though Izayoi had the Gift of Impenetrability, that
did not offer heat resistance.

Because they didn't have legends connected to the Sun, he could not
draw out any other Gifts. Izayoi desperately endured the burning pain
from the heat of the Earth's core, but he realized he could not hold the
spear back any longer.

Judging that to be the case, he gripped the blazing Blood Spear with
his right hand… and threw it towards the heavens as if to pierce them
straight through.

"Don't...fucking use this kind of weapon of annihilation in the world of

others───!!!"

The blazing Blood Spear cut through the heavy rain clouds, and
punctured the firmament. The moment it did, leaden-gray curtain was
wiped off the sky.

It left behind a trail of heat haze and its residual heat continued to
oxidize the atmosphere.

Had it been released not there but on the surface, the damage caused
would have been unprecedented. Perhaps it would have affected the
fate of the country.

Izayoi leaned on the Divine Spear that ceased to shine and glared
angrily at Parashurama.

"Hah......you've done it now, Decayer. Just because it's the middle of

the Authority War, you have some nerve to start Indian-style nuclear
warfare here......!!!"

Izayoi breathed heavily, almost completely out of stamina. The heat

he had faced was originally more than enough to destroy its target just
by proximity. However, rather than succumbing to fatigue or pain, he
was driven by his anger.
Who knew just how much damage it would have caused had he not
changed its trajectory.

Since this was the half-ruined slums by the beach, everything was still
fine, but had it been launched in a slightly different direction, the
consequences would be irreversible.

Tens of thousands of lives had been put into danger because of a

private grudge. Izayoi hadn't been living such an insincere life that he
could forgive something so unreasonable.

However, Parashurama paid no heed to his anger and merely laughed

with her arms folded.

"Well then. I thought this would have been just the right stimulus for
the lot living in this peaceful age. After all, while they are spending
their days in peace, there are people like this girl here that are going
through hell in the dark corners of the world."

"That has nothing to do with this. The people living in this age, this
town, have obtained their peace through the rules of this world. The
war simply changed, people now fight within society, not between
tribes."

Unconditionally calling the present situation “peace” was the gravest

of insults to the winners.

When the era changed, so did the morals. If you went to another
world, even laws would change.

The Avatar was just looking down on this present age where the form
of war and the format of competitions had changed.

Everyone in this world and age was fighting a war, winning their way
forward through this proxy conflict. It was completely unforgivable that
a person of another world and age had appeared and tried to
annihilate everything.
"Decayer Parashurama. If you are going to force your fucking ancient
values and judge everything with your own sense of good or bad..."

Izayoi pushed his fist above, filled with righteous indignation that did
not lose to the fury of the Decayer.

"Then even I… will show no mercy. I will stop viewing you as the
Decayer of Aggression, but as a mere fiend, a ghost of the past. I will
get rid of you here."

He had not been serious in the previous fight. For his true trump card
lied elsewhere.

He simply refrained from using it as it was simply too powerful and he

did not know what would happen if he used it in the outer world.
However, this opponent didn't allow him such leeway.

He did not use it with Bull Demon King because of his sworn brother,
but if the opponent was a fiend, there was no reason to hesitate.

As the foremost hero, Izayoi would destroy the Decayer.

The bloody Decayer, being on the receiving end of his indignation,

narrowed her eyes and stared at him.

"......Hmph. Rules of this age, you said. Indeed, the rules seem to
have developed quite a bit compared to my age, and human ethics,
too, seem to have improved. However, are you aware that on the
other side of the coin the abyss is also steadily becoming deeper?"

"Who knows. But go ahead and say what you want. If my ears rot and
you feel better, go back to heaven and return that body to its owner.
And if you can't do that, then just surrender."

───Aah.

Aah, I see. So that is why he did not use that Divine Spear of Victory
from before.
Though she understood it, she still wholeheartedly laughed at Izayoi's
indignation.

She actually wanted to roll around in laughter, but she found

something more enjoyable now.

What her host has seen, what kind of environment she was raised in,
and what kind of despair had summoned her, the Decayer. She now
wanted to have them listen to all that.

Would that boy be able to endure the truth?

What kind of face would the Mother Goddess who opened up the
planet make?

She could not wait to see what would happen.

"So be it. Then I shall tell you one. Listen and be prepared."

She put her hand on the bloody clothes of her chest and, full of fury,
spoke of a singular tragedy.

"You see, this girl... She is a black Albino."

Shouldering her bloody axe, she started speaking of that tragedy with
a malicious smile. But Prith standing behind them did not understand
the meaning and knit her brows.

She could not see what part of that was supposed to be a tragedy.

It was indeed quite unique to be born with a lack of pigment as a black

person. But that was the limit of what Prith knew, as she was not too
familiar with the circumstances of the present age.

But then, just as she tried to call out to Izayoi to see if he understood
it───

She saw Izayoi recoil in pure shock and swallowed her words.
His former burning fighting spirit was nowhere to be seen, and he
merely repeated her words with a half-open mouth.

"......Black......Albino......?"

"Indeed. They were being consumed here. And not simply consumed
either. They were robbed of their dignity as humans, forced to breed
before they were eaten. Compared to that, it would have been better
to get killed by a monster and die as a human. ───Now then. Have
you solved this puzzle, boy?"

She folded her arms as if playing a guessing game.

Izayoi stood blankly and started to tremble, shaking stronger and

stronger, and eventually roared like a volcano.

"Don't......Don't fucking mess with me with that bullshit!!!"

The earth trembled from his roar that came from the depths of his
soul.

The atmosphere visibly shook from that vibration.

Izayoi glared with trembling fists at the pure white Decayer, as if he

was seeing something impossible.

"Impossible! That alone is impossible! That a big organization that

turned black Albinos into food still remains should not-"

"No, it is the truth. This girl was being raised on these lands! They
kidnapped her along with her fellow Albino patients and forced them to
breed and multiply. ───Haha. They even took the time to engrave the
shipping number on her chest, you know! After seeing this, do you still
plan to feign ignorance, oh hero of the present age!!!"

The Decayer roared in anger and ripped off the clothes on her chest.
Displaying her white skin that had a number branded with a hot iron,
she wailed in place of her host.
───What she was ridiculing was sorcery that utilized black Albino
patients and had continued to remain even in the present age.

That sorcery had slowly twisted its significance to arrive to the present
age and was often used as a way for the influential people to enjoy
their hobbies together. For that reason, black Albinos fetched a high
price.

One of their kind was cheaper than a cow but pricier than a pig. In a
highly civilized society, perhaps because it was a highly civilized
society, the brutality that was happening behind the scenes could be
covered up.

Saying that they were falling deeper into abyss was not a metaphor of
any kind.

And she had now bared her copious resentment against the cruel
libertines of the elite.

"This girl, too, is someone they took from a certain town. Just how
many times she was betrayed, just how many atrocities she went
through… just how much despair she withstood, do you have any
idea!!!"

The Decayer of Aggression and Injustice was truly enraged now.

She was burning with fury for this girl who was disregarded by
everyone.

She lay bare her resentment for this tragedy of a single girl that
unfolded here.

"I can understand her!!! I can understand this pain, this despair and
this fury because I'm the Decayer!!! Thus I must express my anger!!! If
not me, then who would condemn this tragedy!!? If the Avatar of God
does not rage......then who in the world will respond to her
tears────!!!"
Gently......

A drop of tear flowed down from the Decayer's eye as she roared in
rage.

The bloodstains soaking the battleaxe burst into flames that

enveloped the Avatar. Those flames turned into an attack filled with
the scorching fury and assaulted Izayoi.

Izayoi came to his senses, grabbed the spear next to him and
received that blow.

However, the furious Parashurama did not stop. No one was allowed
to stop her resentment. She did not stop even after destroying three
deserted houses with the force of her charge.

───She was the Decayer of all aggression and injustice of the world.
The Avatar of resentment who heard the laments behind the peaceful
times.

She, the member of the kings of salvation, could not settle down
unless she condemned the goddess that opened up the planet's
placenta and the present-day hero.

The tears spilling from one of her eyes was for this girl who had seen
the present-day hell.

Parashurama addressed the foremost hero, her eyes filled with

copious lament and fury.

"The result of moral progress───was that not what you said, boy!!!
Was this girl, this hell, that result!!? Are you saying that sacrificing this
girl was needed for mankind to carry on!!?"

"......Kh!"

There was always something to fall to the wayside in the life of

mankind.
As long as winners and losers existed, the scales could never be
perfectly balanced.

Izayoi understood that, and had no objections, for as long as there

was life, that was unavoidable. That was the original sin that burdened
not just mankind but every living thing in the world. Only a fool would
object to that fact.

However, saying it in other way───any lives that were consumed

beyond that were nothing but victims. The lives like this black albino
that had simply been consumed had no fault in them.

Izayoi was pushed down by the battleaxe of fury without finding any
words to return.

The Decayer thrust her battleaxe and asked the final question.

"Ghost of the past......you did say that as well, boy. Then let me ask
again. Let me ask you, who fight at the forefront, as someone who
lived in the past, as one of those who laid the foundation for mankind."

To the darkness deeper than her own age.

To the sin more sinful than her own age.

To someone living in the present age, the Avatar of God told as if

wishing for a confession.

"You who are close to "Kali Yuga". Just what have you
achieved───until you arrived at this age?"

The tranquil moonlight illuminated the three. The heavy rain had been
blown away by the wailing and the Blood Spear.

An enchanting amount of silent starlight dominated the place.

The girl who raged with so much anger that it reduced her lifespan,
laughed in a cynical manner while breathing heavily.

"......Are you unable to answer?"

"...───"

"Fine then, I shall forgive that. A hero is someone who opens up a

path, not someone who builds up achievements. The similarities
between the two are a lie. That's why it should not be you but
someone else who should answer that."

The Decayer smiled in disappointment.

Seeing that lonely smile, Izayoi understood what her karma was.

She was someone who would awaken for those that experienced a
tragedy, condemn the act, rage and then simply disappear. However
to end her condemnation, one had to provide the answer.

Someone who would bear the responsibility for this victim. Someone
who would give meaning to this victim.

The Decayer had branded Sakamaki Izayoi as Unqualified.

"......Now then, next is my personal question. Boy. Why do you

possess that Divine Spear? Is that not the spear that my Disciple
received?"

"No......No, wait, answer my question before that! Does the

organization that was selling her still remain in this world!?"

Aah? Parashurama knit her brown in dissatisfaction.

"I do not mind answering that, but there is an order to things. Answer
my question first."

"No, mine comes first!!!"

"So fussy! There is an order to things! After seeing that failure of a

thrust, I, the originator, cannot stay quiet! Depending on the
circumstances, it could affect my good name! In the first place, that
should be something that could not be put into motion without knowing
the mantra that was lost in the Indo-European world!"

Parashurama puffed her chest and said proudly. But Izayoi

disregarded her question and continued muttering something with a
hand to his mouth.

"No......But, that organization shouldn't remain......After all......Didn't I

and Canaria destroy it before......!!!"

What? Parashurama and Prith said at the same time.

"Izayoi. What do you..."

"Hahaah. I can now see the general picture."

Parashurama laughed mirthlessly.

"That boy seems to have the same thing as this girl lurking inside. It
seems this girl's internal organs had been tampered with while she
was alive and had received some kind of improvement before
shipment."

"Wha......!?"

Prith looked at Izayoi and the Albino girls in turns.

There was no doubt that the researchers in this establishment were

researching the Star Particle Bodies and used the black Albinos for it.
She also understood that the way their lives were consumed was
extremely blasphemous. Perhaps they were trying to achieve some
results by feeding on the flesh that contained the Star Particle Bodies.

Experimenting and fundraising. It was certain that they did both.

But for the same Star Particle Bodies to be present in Izayoi's body
meant───
(I see......So that's the reason why Sakamaki Izayoi is the hero of this
era......!)

She did not know just how many were aware of this fact but Tokuteru,
at least, should have known of this.

After all, he was the one who delivered the "Origin" Particle Bodies to
"Everything Company". There was no way that the instigator did not
know the full story.

Parashurama, as wise as she was, had more or less seen through the
circumstances and bared her fangs.

"In other words, you are related to this matter, is it? ......But to think
that the libertines were not entrepreneurs but sources of money and
laboratory animals. Kuku, I feel that Kali Yuga is drawing ever so
closer."

Parashurama readied her bloody battleaxe and prepared for combat

as she gazed at Izayoi. But as if to stop her, someone suddenly
called.

"───That's enough, sixth Avatar. That guy is my prey. I won't allow

you to steal him from me even if you are a fellow member of "Avatara".
Make haste and fulfil our agreement."

What? Parashurama asked apprehensively.

At this point, she did not think this could be called stealing their prey.
Now that she had become so worked up, she could no longer back
down. Moreover, to call this stealing, there was a limit to how biased
one could be.

Just as she was about to complain about their nonsense───three

invitations suddenly fell from the sky, ignoring her intentions.

"Little Garden invitations......!? Just who would───!!?"

The invitations opened up by themselves without a touch from their

recipients.

Thereupon, it burst with the summoning light. Izayoi came to his

senses and yelled.

"Wait! I'm not done-"

───with this talk. Those words ironically disappeared without the

world to hear it. The battle in the southern country's slums had finally
concluded, and the silence gently covered the town.

The only one that remained on the silent coastal slums was the
sender of those invitations.

"......I suppose forestalled this time. After all, it would have been
intolerable if even the sixth Avatar was stolen."

It was a youth with white hair and golden eyes. That youth who
possessed unearthly features and a noble aura looked up at the now
tranquil night sky and laughed quietly.

"It is about to begin, huh? But I still can't act. I'll be leaving the
Authority War to you for a bit longer, Jin."
 Interlude 2

───Spirit Train "Sun Thousand".

The most extravagant VIP room - The Sun Room.

"......The summoning was a success, I see. You have my thanks,

Queen."

The voice floating with the smoke of the censer belonged to a woman,
a kimono-clad beauty with a dazzling silver hair who had watched
Izayoi and Parashurama’s fight from the corner of this super-
extravagant VIP room. The fan in the woman’s hand was covering her
mouth - a clear sign of annoyance.

Judging by outward appearance alone, this was without a doubt a

lovely and dazzling young girl. But if you looked into her eyes, you
would see them shine with cunning.

The silver-haired and golden-eyed girl presently tapping her smoking

pipe against the ashtray… was the previous winner of the Sun
Authority War - the King of White Night, or the Demon Lord of White
Night to those who feared her.

Shiroyasha.

A rather displeased Shiroyasha that was staring at the viewing crystal

with a sour face.

“I didn’t expect the Sixth Avatar to awaken before the First, especially
since this isn’t the time for it to do so. What are your thoughts on this?”

Shiroyasha turned towards her neighbors - Queen Halloween,The

Golden Queen responsible for summoning Izayoi’s group, and the
leader of “Twelve Devas”, Indra.

Queen answered with an apathetic tone.

“...Ultimately, Sixth is of no import,” replied the Queen with obvious

disinterest. “Nevertheless, its personality is akin to yours, no?”

"You just had to point out something so stupid! No, well, I can see
your point, but still!"

Biting her nails Shiroyasha glared at the viewing crystal. She finally
had the chance to appear at the Opening of the Authority War, but that
dense being had to show up and make her feel horrible for no reason!

Queen smirked, amused with Shiroyasha’s reaction.

Tokuteru, on the other hand, didn’t say a word and simply stood there
in silence.

"Well, there are no problems for the time being. So far everything is
going as planned."

"Hohou? Are you saying you knew that Decayer would appear?"

"No, I just knew one of them would awaken. My return to the Little
Garden left an opening for a Divine Spirit to use and materialize in the
world. It’s actually fortunate that the Decayer took it first."

“Think about how this bothers me though! I went to the trouble of

making myself young to match the Players, so the last thing I want is a
competition with that dunce!"

Everyone completely ignored this rant by the former kimono loli who
now looked every part the adult beauty. In other circumstances
Tokuteru would have amused himself with teasing her, but now was
not the time for such things.

"So, where exactly did you send Izayoi’s group?” he asked Queen with
a docile expression. “It’s not easy to summon them to the Spirit Train
while it’s traversing the Ley Lines, right?"

"......It's not difficult. Just a bother."

"Okay, okay, I got it. So, where did you drop them?"

"...At the first battle stage ahead of time. With some pamphlets. They
may be attacked by local humans and Eudemons, but that should not
be a problem for those people."

I see, nodded the two.

Queen probably judged that it was better to send them to the

destination rather than the moving vehicle that served both as the HQ
for the tournament and a mean of transporting players between the
stages.

"It's regrettable that I won't be able to see Izayoi's

astonishment───but the problem now is the sixth Avatar,
Parashurama. Rather than calling it a God's Avatar, it would be more
accurate to call that a "Last Embryo"."

"Yeah. Since she awakened, it means that "Kali Yuga" is steadily

drawing near. We better hurry up with the Authority War before it is
too late."

All three of them nodded in agreement.

But then───a young girl cheerfully yelled from beyond the smoke.

With an excited shout of, "White Nightyyyy♪ Come drink with Kuu-
chan────!!!" she jumped into a flying tackle aimed at Shiroyasha,
ready to slam her entire body down into the seemingly flatfooted King.
However, Shiroyasha was no longer in the mood to play around and,
in a great display of reflex, intercepted the newcomer with a timely
high knee.
"Take this!"

"Yelp!"

The so called World King screeched as she was sent flying into the
nearby wall, slamming into it hard.

"Uugh......You are horrible. Sending your old friend hurtling through

the air with a flying knee kick is just too much. What would you do if
my cute face got hurt?"

"You are annoying. If you were a young girl I would have hesitated.
But you are not. You are a World Dragon from the same generation as
me. Getting crushed by you would be painful! "

Shiroyasha dusted her hands complaining as Kurma scratched her

head, not feeling any sense of shame for her behavior. All of a
sudden, Shiroyasha smelled strong liquor.

"......Hm? Oh, were you drinking something there?"

"Yup I was, I was~ "Shuten Douji" and his girls arrived and gave me
lots of drinks, you know~?"

"All right, cut it out and drop your drunk act! Alcohol that can even
make Dragon’s get drunk isn’t just lying around able to be picked up
from--"

"No, wait, Shiroyasha. Since "Shuten Douji" brought it, perhaps it's the
sacred sake or something similar?"

Shiroyasha froze in her tracks.

Normally the Sacred Sake referred to the special rice wine that was
used in festivals in the lower world. However, Little Garden had a
different variation. The Sacred Sake brewed in this world used clean
water and a God’s Blessing, meaning it was a brand specific for
beings that couldn’t become intoxicated on normal alcohol, such as
war gods and dragons. There were other brands that used special
nectar and soma for a similar effect, but that wasn’t the point.

Feeling that something was amiss, Shiroyasha quickly approached

Kurma and grasped her by the collar.

"Hey. By any chance, was this alcohol distributed in the lounge of the
VIP wagon?"

"That's right~♪ It was really something! Everyone got drunk, hic!

Aaand they bumped their shoulders together! Then they traded fists!
And when blades started flashing it was... hic! ... a really nice mess!"

Kurma’s happy laughs were followed by hiccups and the strong stench
of alcohol.

Being able to effortlessly imagine just what kind of disaster this would
make, Shiroyasha and Mikado Tokuteru pinched the bridges of their
noses.

"......This is bad."

"Very. We wouldn’t be able to play this off as a joke if the Hosts begin
to rampage on board before the first game begins."

"I know, right? Let's pray that they are only rioting inside the VIP
wagon."

Many of the Hosts on board were mutual enemies, ready to fight with
one another at the drop of a hat. As such, special preparations were
made to help the Hosts relax in the lounge without inviting conflict.
Preparations like the enchanted censer that would calm the folks, or
the special barriers separating the seats so that no one would see
other patrons’ faces. All of this to avoid any unnecessary brawls. That
work would be for nothing if the Hosts would go on a drunken
rampage now. There was no time to waste, Shiroyasha and Tokuteru
had to settle the situation now!

"Sounds bad,” said Queen reclining back in her chair, clearly not
bothered in the slightest. “Shall I send you off, perhaps?"

""You come and help too!!!""

Eh, no, Queen ignored their request.

Before Shiroyasha could say anything, the flustered conductor barged

in.

"S-Shiroyasha-sama! It's a disaster! Kouryuu-sama and Vayu-sama

are drunk! They destroyed the lounge gate during their fight and they
are now wreaking havoc in the front wagons! At this rate, they will
destroy the operation and power carriages and the Spirit Train will go
berserk!"

"W-What did you say!!?"

As expected, Shiroyasha panicked.

Tokuteru facepalmed even harder and stared at the heavens.

"To think it was the youngster from our side of all things......Ugh, sorry
about this, Shiroyasha. The way I am now, I can't handle those two."

"You really are useless when it counts! Queen, send me off!"

Whatever you say, thought Queen, slightly amused by the situation.

She snapped her fingers.

Not too long after Shiroyasha disappeared from the room a sound akin
to a volcano eruption reverberated throughout the Spirit Train.
 Epilogue

───Spirit Train "Sun Thousand" - Observatory Wagon.

At the Large Bath with the view of the Ley Lines..

"In other words......Big brothers often view their little brothers as either
pets or property."

"I know where you are coming from."

"I can see your point."

Jin and Arjuna nodded with empathy as Homura discarded his set of
cards. This brought the latter’s hand down to five, while Jin and
Arjuna had three each. They were playing a game from the outside
world called Old Maid.

"It could still be tolerated if the brother in question truly were superior
to you,” said Arjuna, staring intently at Jin’s cards. Wearing nothing
but a loincloth, he was enjoying the game, and a cup of Indian chai
tea. “But when that’s not the case, it’d be better if they refrained from
stepping up. Don't make a face that says - Your brother protected you.
Where is my thanks? - when you are actually weak. And make debts
in the process."

"Hahaha, at that point they are already past redemption."

"It sure is hard being an excellent little brother."

Arjuna had no objections there. He pulled a card with a sigh.

Regretfully, it did not make a matching pair. Jun suddenly frowned, as
if he recalled something unpleasant.
"But still. Isn't it also quite painful being doted on by an excellent big
brother? Well, in my case it's not my actual brother but "someone I
considered my brother". Given my current standpoint, I honestly
wonder why isn't he seeing me as an enemy? I feel like he's simply
ignoring me instead."

"Ah, I totally get that too. Well, in my case it was more like "someone I
considered my stepbrother turning out to be my actual brother",
though. ───Really, I'm not even sure what to say. It's like, despite
running ahead of his little brother, he worries about him and keeps
glancing back, I guess? When he is actually able to run so much
faster, fly so much farther beyond, but as his little brother enters his
view, his output drops by 30% out of worry, that kind of type? And
seeing that makes me wanna kick him in the ass."

When a top runner looked behind out of worry, that was insulting to
those who chased after their backs. It seemed that Homura, the little
brother, could not forgive that fact.

Hearing Homura's comparison, Jin vigorously voiced his agreement.

"Yeah, that's what I mean! I totally get that! I'm trying my hardest to
catch up to him in my own way, so he also should run with all his
might! That always made me so frustrated!"

Jin vigorously pulled Homura's card and got the matching pair.

With this, Jin was holding his last card. All he had to do was wait for
Arjuna to pull the final card for his victory. With only one chance left,
Homura carefully chose a card from Arjuna’s remaining hand.

As he listened to their conversation, even Arjuna couldn’t help but

become extremely bitter.

"Yeah......I think I understand that too."

"Oh? You experienced it too?"

"Yes. There was one moment in my life when I fought alongside my
bro...my bitter enemy. When I was young, I would watch him press on,
becoming stronger, cutting down vanguards while still looking at those
he surpassed and left behind. I thought it was anger when I saw his
back. Rather, It was antipathy. ."

Arjuna could see the distant past play out amongst the stars. A past
that could never be undone. Despite knowing the hero’s past, Jin
could only cast his eyes down in silence.

But Homura was ignorant of his past. Eating a half-melted chocolate

chip cookie, he spoke out brazenly.

"Sounds like he was making light of you. Think you can settle the
score with him?"

"......I......don’t know. I'm not even sure whether there would be a

chance to."

“Idiot, you’re too thick skinned. There's no way an opportunity will

happen if you just wish for it. You have to put effort into it sometimes
to get a chance. If you don’t you’ll just regret it later.”

Arjuna’s eyes widen in shock. What Homura said was irresponsible.

He didn’t know of the circumstances of Arjuna’s life. But his words
struck a chord in Arjuna. Homura’s approach was on the opposite end
of how Arjuna had been handling the problem all his life. And so, with
a slightly tense expression, Arjuna asked Homura an important
question.

"───Saigou Homura. Are you saying Fate isn’t something given to us,
but something we must grasp for ourselves?

"Hm? Well, yeah. A man's life of 50 years is but a fleeting dream, or

however the saying goes. For example, If I hadn’t started the Particle
Body research, my orphanage would have been demolished. I don’t
know what kind of life or achievements you had accomplished as an
Indian Prince, but if you desire some kind of future, you have to work
hard to make it happen.”

"Even if turned out to be a future you did not wish for?"

Arjuna asked as he leaned forward.

Homura looked up from his cards and said with a hand to his chin.

"───"Life is a noble thing.

A person polishes the gem they are bestowed by nature.

Until a shining light rewards that effort." ......Have you heard of

this poem before?"

"......? No, this is my first time hearing it."

"I see......Well, this poem, it was said by someone called “The

Merchant of Death”. Someone who was looked down on for their
creations, and yet, it was because of those creations that humanity
was able to move forward. His words were a beacon for scientists, a
summit for us to reach out to. You could say he is our main
influencer.”

Just the way Homura explained the poem so proudly was proof of how
special it was to him.

“During that person’s lifetime, he accomplished many things, like

reclaiming a large river to country contributions. But, by chance, he
understood that, in the end he would be called a “Merchant of Death.”

"He learned of what happened after his death... while he was still
alive?"

"Indeed. He was a chemist who wanted to cultivate lands, yet he

couldn’t help but lament how his creations would be used as weapons
to rob many lives. That was his final regret.."

The wish he had to be of use to humanity, was instead used to rob

many lives.

Who knows how much pain and grief that fact brought him.

How much agony it was.

"Even after becoming the world's leading multi-millionaire, his heart

was not satisfied. It was natural, he created for the sake of others
happiness. Mourning the fact that his life, his will and his wish that he
polished would leave nothing behind───thus, he invested his entire
fortune, wishing to pass on hope to the next generation."

"The merchant of death"───It was a dark life where he earned money

in exchange of people’s' lives.

Then at least, I wish to repay the lives I robbed. Those were his
thoughts when he established a certain award ceremony.

Jin clapped his hands together as he recalled the name of the certain
someone Homura spoke proudly of.

"───Alfred Nobel. You mean the person that created the Nobel Prize
later on, right?"

"That's right...Wait, don't steal the best part from me you outsider!!”

Homura angrily retorted at Jin, whocasually apologized and continued.

"My bad, my bad. But the "Nobel peace prize" was built upon that
wish, then."

"Yeah. I suppose saying he worried about the rumours doesn't make it

a special story......But, come to think of it. . Going by the poems he
wrote, you expect him to be a rather pure person. Also, his pure wish
acted as a guide for humankind’s future didn’t it? His deeds managed
to overcome the after death rumors.

"......Meaning?"
"I mean that since we are alive now, we have a chance to change the
rumors about us. If you hate being called the Oathbreaker Hero, then
you just have to sincerely follow the rules of this Game and win!"

With those words, Homura grabbed the card from Arjuna’s hand.

Placing his final pair down, he proudly raised his fist.

"YES, this time it's my win!!! I can handle them if they are games from
my world!"

"Eh. But you know, this game is highly reliant on luck."

"Nonsense, I had my strategy. Especially when it comes to Arjuna,

you can basically tell everything from his expressions."

"That's what I meant by relying on luck. Whoever pulls from Arjuna

has the overwhelming advantage."

It was a mean way of putting it. Yet, Arjuna wasn’t disappointed with
the results.

The Joker remaining in his hand was drawn with an angel and demon
halves. It was similar to him in a way. Leaning back in the chair he
couldn’t help but laugh in his normal self-deprecating way.

"A victory without breaking the rules, huh? ───That's right. In this
Sun Authority War at least, I should give it everything I got. Or rather,
that may actually be my true wish."

"Hey now, don't say it like that. You have to follow the rules down to
the letter during the time we fight together."

"Fufu, I got it. I’ll give you my full cooperation up to the day we may
part ways.”

Oh? Jin Russell raised his eyebrow in surprise.

While Arjuna was joined with “Avatara”, he was constantly tense, like
a drawn out string of a bow. But now, that string had loosened,
enough for him to be able to smile.

The similarities between Homura and Arjuna brought a little humor to

Jin’s heart.

(......I see. Perhaps what he needed was a normal friend like this.)

He felt ashamed that his judgment had been wrong all along. After all,
it was he who awakened Arjuna from his slumber on the sacred
mountain of Little Garden.

Since "Avatara" sought powerful individuals to win through the

Authority War, Arjuna, Indian Pantheon's strongest warrior and a
Demigod on top of it, was someone they wanted to have by all means.

After all, the rules of this Second Authority War said that only those
with human blood could participate.

And as Arjuna simply slept for thousands of years, his Spirituality

hadn't been fully transformed into a Divine Spirit, so he was truly a
perfect Player for the job.

And if a human known as Saigou Homura was useful in keeping his

reins in check───

(Telling him about our circumstances......doesn't sound like a bad deal

either.)

About the group of kings, "Avatara"; Their goal and the mission they
had to accomplish.

And also───their common enemy that could not be allowed to win

the Authority War, no matter what.

───Pin pon pon pon!

Just as they were exiting the bath, they suddenly heard the pre-
announcement sound.

The fact that it was coming not from the speakers but a giant shell was
quite fitting for this other world, but in that case, one would wonder,
couldn't they have done something about that intro as well?

After a bit of silence, a voice belonging to the Game Committee

echoed from the shell.

“Err...Testing, testing! This is the Spirit train administration HQ!

God Ukanomitama-sama asked us to convey his message, “I
wish everyone to have a pleasant trip on the Spirit Train!”
Ukanomitama-sama was also gracious enough to deliver some
rice, so we shall be serving it in the Cafeteria later today! We
hope everyone enjoys this delicious rice!”

The broadcasting shell gave off a 'hyokon!' sound similar to that of

perked up fox ears.

“We also received extra news from other Divine Spirits, but I will
be keeping it brief this time. If there is a chance, Kuro Usagi-
oneechan will read it out later, so her fans have something to
look forward to♪"

Rather, who are you young lady?!

Tell me your address!

Do you have a boyfriend?!

───such foolish voices echoed from every part of the Spirit Train.

If this was any other situation, these fans would have been judged
guilty, but fortunately the fox ears didn’t catch wind of their comments.

"Well then───Now we will have the previous winner, Shiroyasha-

sama, provide the information about the first match. Everyone,
please pay attention and listen carefully."
With that, the Spirit Train was once again covered in silence. It was
not because they heeded her words or anything. It was because the
name she spoke brought about a tremendous atmosphere.

The winner of the Sun Authority War, in other words, meant that it was
someone who stood at the top of this Little Garden of Gods.

One of the strongest Brahman that had been protecting this world
since its dawn.

With dazzlingly burning silver hair and a pair of golden eyes, the great
Demon Lord───the King of White Night herself, took up the
microphone in hand.

"......Indeed! Everyone, I have kept you waiting! I am Shiroyasha,

the "Demon Lord of White Night", and the one whom had been
entrusted with the management of the current Sun Authority
War!"

Welcoming applause came from every part of the Spirit Train.

Pleased with the response, Shiroyasha continued her greetings.

"With that said, I don't think anyone would want to listen to the
ramblings of an old lady, so I'll get straight to the point. Players,
Hosts, Sponsors, as well as the audience, please take out your
invitations."

Everyone inside the Spirit Train collectively took out their invitation
letters.

Once they did, all the Players couldn’t help but hold their breaths in
shock of what they read.

On the written invitation, there was a single sentence, and it said:

"Gift Game name: "The Lost Continent"

"That's right! The first stage of the Authority War, the destination
of the Spirit Train───is the land that was once summoned along
with the entire continent to this Little Garden! There we have
prepared a wondrous stage for the Authority War!"

Enthusiastic cheers enveloped the entire Spirit Train. It was not just
Humans, Eudemons or Divine Spirits that were summoned to Little
Garden. The role of Little Garden was to observe human history and
correctly guide it from a third person point of view. As such, even parts
of the planet would be summoned for the sake of that purpose.

Kudou Ayato, Ayazato Suzuka, and Kasukabe You all exchanged

glances after reading the Gift Game title.

""The Lost Continent"......does it mean Atlantis?"

"Wahoo, finally an adventure-type Game! You-chan, have you been

there before?"

"You-chan?"

"Hm? Uh huh, have you been there, You-chan?"

I am the older one here though, You thought while looking at the
invitation sentence.

"I haven't been there. But I have heard that there are countless
dangerous Eudemons. Mainly Greek Eudemons, monsters, Giants
and such."

"G-Giants too? ......Can this Suzuka-san survive there, I wonder?"

"Don't worry. Your teleportation is a really strong Gift. Worst case

scenario, you can simply take their weapons and run. They won’t be
able to catch up to you easily. "

"Right. Okay, I will obediently run when that time comes!"

Suzuka clenched her fist in determination. You continued about the

next plans while munching on the fried fish.

"I'm going to take it easy until Izayoi and everyone from "No Names"
returns. So I will be watching other Players' battles. ......One more
thing, Ayato. We are rivals during the Game. It's not good to expose
someone's gift so casually."

Realizing her tongue slipped, Ayato reflexively closed her mouth. She
hasn’t taken to mind that You hadn’t reunited with Izayoi, so she
wouldn’t know about Suzuka’s Gift.

Since Suzuka understood that fact and took it to mind, she did not use
her teleportation powers recklessly in You’s presence.

Within this peaceful atmosphere, both Suzuka and You were still self-
aware that they were mutual rivals, but she ended up wasting all that
effort.

"S-Sorry Suzuka! To think that I of all people would......!"

"It's fine, It's fine, don't worry about it, Kouhai! It was just a matter of
time before it was found out. Besides, for us outsiders, it's all until we
lose!"

"It can’t be helped due to your circumstances and Ayato being an

amateur.. The most important part is to avoid getting hurt. If you get
into trouble, don’t hesitate to rely on me. I'm the big sister here after
all."

A splendid big sister, Kasukabe You repeated once more in

exaggeration.

But that slip of the tongue wasn’t something so easily forgiven. At first
glance Teleportation seemed like an invincible gift. But if someone
knew the weakness they could overcome it. Kasukabe You was
among those who could do such a thing. Ayato understood this, and
yet she still made that mistake to reveal Suzuka’s Gift.
The Ayato of the past would never have made such a huge mistake.

(I need to focus......! My only goal is to keep Suzuka and Senpai safe.

But the way I am, I'm not sure I can even do that.)

She slapped her cheeks to get a grip on herself. Once again, Ayato
realized that it wasn’t just her body that was out of practice, but her
own diligence as well. This kind of carelessness would definitely invite
trouble in the final selection.

It was good that she realized it before it actually began.

She swore in her heart to fix this mistake in the first stage.

"That aside, take a look you two. Something else appeared on the
invitation."

"It looks like a map, but what is it actually?"

A map of the continent seemed to have appeared on the invitation

letter, accompanied by an engraving of three sun seals.

Shiroyasha waited for the Players to read the contents before nodding
and continuing on.

"This time, let me explain how to look for the Games. There are
many exceedingly difficult Games among them, so please choose
the Game that suits your individual abilities."

Understood, nodded the Players.

But that wouldn't be any fun, the Hosts living in the Divine domain
chuckled.

Hearing those mocking tones, Shiroyasha glared at the Host seats

and laughed sharply.

"───Ah, I almost forgot! I have to announce this beforehand!"

The sound of her opening her fan resounded from the other side of the
speakers.

"Well I doubt I need to say this to our players from the outside
and those great people and Heroes that live here, but I feel
obligated to say this. After all we have many crafty fools amongst
the divine Spirit folks. . Both Players and Sponsors, engrave
these words into your souls!"

Her tone which had been mischievous yet informative, took on a

serious tone that captured everyone’s attention. With bated breath,
everyone in the Spirit Train readied themselves for her next words.

"The Twenty Four Sun Authorities───Are prohibited from

pillaging another’s Authority without the agreement of both
parties!

Individuals residing in Three Digits (Almighty Domain) will

remove all restrictions on their powers and judge whomever
breaks this rule!!!"

"Wha-......!!?"

"Wow!"

Shrieks and yells followed her words one after the other from the
participants. Even Bull Demon King and World King Kurma couldn’t
help but raise their voices to that declaration.

Those who truly understood what Shiroyasha meant couldn’t restrain

themselves.

If there was a sole exception, it would be Queen who was leisurely

drinking black tea in the VIP seat.

While she was quietly drinking her tea, a slightly hesitant thought
occurred to her.

"......Scathach. Do I have restrictions?"

“Ah, right, you remain autonomous Queen. The restrictions don’t apply
to you, so you can simply be as carefree and violent as you wish.”

You are indeed right, Queen gave her consent and requested another
cup of tea.

Unfolding her fan, Shiroyasha amusedly explained the Game Rules.

"Naturally, those who clear the final selection Game will be given
the privilege to obtain a Sun Authority! However, taking part in
the Game is not the only way to earn it! What I mean is, you are
able to win it from another Player by means of a mutually agreed
Gift Game!”

The one who gathers the majority of the Authorities at the end will be
declared the winner of this Authority War!"

The Gift Games would continue as many times as necessary until

someone obtained the majority of the Authorities. The reason Arjuna
and Shen Gongbao decided to participate at adolescence was
because of the possibility of the war lasting for a long time.

As every Player was deliberating the best course of action Shiroyasha

declared loudly.

"Let's go then, shall we! Towards the first stage of the Sun
Authority War───"The Lost Continent"!!!"

Thudnerous applause encompassed the entire Spirit Train as it

advanced towards the ley line. Using the World’s lifeline as a railway,
the train accelerated at hyper speeds that made it seem like a
shooting star, vanishing without a trace. it

The hearts of all the Players pounded with excitement, ready to

challenge the mystery of “The Lost Continent.”
 Afterword

Hello everyone, It’s been a while. It’s me, Tatsunoko Tarou. It’s been
about half a year, huh. I started with a similar introduction as the last
time as a desperate attempt to fill up the page. Please forgive me on
that.

This time I really did cram all sorts of things in this volume.

I’m compressing things one after another, but if it's the readers that
have been with me until now, I’m sure they will be able to follow it.
This is the third volume where I tried to write without being constrained
by something. Just between you and me, but this Tatsunoko Tarou
still has three transformations left.

This June marks one year for Last Embryo.

Five years in total if we count from the first part of the Mondaiji series.

I think the big mysteries of the story that had been piling up all this
time are starting to be solved. If that three-headed bastard died
quicker, this would’ve appeared faster. Good grief, there really exist
characters even authors can’t easily kill off…! I thought of it as nothing
but an urban legend until I met one myself.

And now, it’s finally begun, the “Atlantis Arc” full of fierce fights!

It was one of the stages that I always wanted to write about, so I’m
also looking forward to it. The game now would be focusing more on
the clearing strategy rather than their difficulty itself, so I hope you
would get yet another form of enjoyment compared to the first part.
Please wait a bit more until that red girl appears on the cover.
Little Garden is this kind of world, so each of the stories that I want to
deliver to readers will be built upon this giant gift game. I wonder if I
reached the volume where I release those pieces in large quantities. If
you go back and read the first part once more, you might have fun
making a lot of interesting discoveries.

…...Then in what form will you present those answers, you stupid
idiot!

I keep answering my own questions every day like that. When authors
with no worry of discontinuance create an incomplete story, they get
lost on the way to Hades. I would like to avoid doing stuff that I would
grieve in shame about in my dying moments.

As I face-off against both parts of the Mondaiji series, I often wonder if

just this story alone is sufficient to enjoy the story at 120%, to answer
all the questions about the world. Out of the pessimism due to the
publishing slump and such, I wish to overcome this situation by a
foolhardy breakthrough plan.

What would the future the world of Little Garden is striving towards
look like? I keep searching for the best kind of way I can to present
that.

To Momoco-sensei who provided wonderful illustrations for the

growing characters for this volume.

To the editor Ｏ-san who waited until the very last moment this book
would go on sale.

To every person who assisted me with releasing this book.

And, to all the readers who bought the third volume of Last Embryo, I
give my thanks.

Tatsunoko Tarou
Side Story
 Flying Western Restaurant

I got some money so it’s on me.

Saigou Homura, Ayazato Suzuka and Kudou Ayato had readily

accepted Izayoi’s offer and just arrived at the western restaurant ‘Don
Bruno’, near the ‘Canaria Family Home’.

The three of them exchanged glances as they strolled towards the

door, having just heard the gist of his windfall.

"Eh? So what? You were managing the finances of Tokuteru's

company, then discovered someone was embezzling their
money...and then got paid for reporting it, did I get that right?”

"That's right. All the embezzlement and even some other things came
to light, it was pretty serious."

"Haha, that's a job well done, Izayoi. After all, their accounting is pretty
messed up."

"That's right! ...By the way, Senpai’s Onii-san, I’m also acquaintanced
with a shameless researcher who tried to do something along those
lines and decided to use research funds on a large TV, what do you
think?"

"Oh? Now that’s something unforgivable. Let me hear the full story
later." Izayoi ginned, prompting Homura and Suzuka to look the other
way.

Izayoi opened the door of the restaurant on the heels of this

interesting piece of information, and the bell atop it rang clearly. As he
did so, a cheerful woman’s voice came from within.
".........Oh? Oh me oh my! I was wondering who it was and it turns out
to be you, Izayoi-chan!"

"Yo, Madam. You seem to be in good health."

"That's my line! Oh dear, that mini superboy has turned into such a big
man..."

"Who are you calling a mini boy? Our ages aren't that different, you
know."

"I mean, you were pretty tiny when I met you..."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it already. Anyway, we'll be borrowing this place.

Also, the usual quiche please," said Izayoi, casually placing an order
which Madam accepted with a smile and returned to the kitchen.

The girl, nicknamed Madam, was a beautiful South American waitress

as well as Mr. Bruno's wife. She spoke as if she were in her fifties, but
was actually only twenty-three years old, only two years older than
Izayoi.

Izayoi sat in the middle of the restaurant as he saw her off. He then
spotted a shining ring on her ring finger and gave a small laugh.

".........I see. She is a true madam now, huh?"

"Why are you stating the obvious?" Ayato asked quizzically.

"Look, Iza-nii disappeared five years ago, right? She wasn't married
then." Suzuka was the one to respond.

"She got married three years ago. It was before grandfather

Ushimatsu died, you see...We still had to meet back then, right?"

"Yes. When I showed up in this restaurant, Madam was already a

madam, after all." Ayato responded while hiding a small chuckle with
her hand.
Homura started looking around, apparently remembering something,
and searched for someone who should have been working at "Don
Bruno". Noon being lunchtime, customers were coming in without an
end. They were quite lucky to have managed to get inside.

After some time, the boy in question, Asterius, left the kitchen wearing
an apron and came to the crowded restaurant with his hands occupied
by quiches.

Holding the well-balanced, 8 plates of quiches in each hand, Asterius

sprinted through the restaurant without even noticing Homura’s group.

"Sorry to keep you waiting! Pumpkin quiche for two, early summer
seasoned bacon quiche for four, smoked meat quiche for one and the
new dried plum quiche for nine! All sixteen portions have been
finished! Customers, please clear the table within three seconds and
wait!" Together with Asterius' yell, all the customers moved aside.

Izayoi, Homura and others wondered what was happening, but the
next moment, everything became clear.

"Hi...yah!!!"

Asterius swung both hands with a roar, and the quiche plates in his
hands danced through the air and arrived at their destination.

Applause sounded for those acrobatics that delivered them to the

guest seats with perfect accuracy.

Asterius put his hand on his waist and proudly puffed his chest, but an
angry voice came from the kitchen.

"Hey, how many times have I told you, Ox brat!!! Don't throw cuisine at
the customers!!!"

"It can't be helped right!? No way me and Madam alone can deal with
this amount of people! If you have complaints, then hire someone, you
hear me? Hire someone!" With a yell, Asterius headed back to the
kitchen.

The entire group had witnessed the scene from start to finish and
were agog, but somehow ended up bursting into laughter.

It appeared that the Minoan Prince had adapted to modern times.

".........Apparently, entrusting him to Don was the correct decision."

"He is loaded with work in a good sense eh. His performance was also
well-received! Will the food come flying to us as well, I wonder?" Ayato
enthused with sparkling eyes as everyone else just sweat dropped.

Thus, the company rested their wings as they waited for the Authority
War to start.