— — — — — —
"Pay more…"
For a long moment, Highness just stared blankly at Ryo, brain not fully catching up.
Beside him, Scáthach finally broke into laughter.
Her laughter rang bright and sharp in the heavy air. Kenshin's mouth twitched a few times, clearly resisting the urge to sigh, but she still said evenly,
"Kid, think this through. The Little Garden's core hasn't even decided how it'll classify the King of End's godhead yet. It's not something to take lightly."
"Compared to you, that little girl—human, female, with no divinity—has the least compatibility with that divine godhead. Which also makes her the safest choice."
Ryo chuckled. "Maybe. But isn't being too weak also dangerous?"
"That's true."
Kenshin gave him a sideways glance. "The three-digit and four-digit beings wouldn't bother targeting her, but the five-digit ones might. And if something goes wrong, she could easily end up dead."
Scáthach nodded thoughtfully, then looked at Rin.
"This girl hasn't been through any real training. Probably a support-type Gift holder. If that's the case, even a well-prepared six-digit opponent could kill her."
Then she turned her gaze to Ryo, smirking faintly.
"Compared to that, you — a little monster who can spar with four-digit beings — are far safer. In that sense, you both have your pros and cons."
Heracles spoke up, his deep voice steady. "Personally, I don't care which of you takes the King of End's divinity. Either way, I'm willing to pay a fair price."
No one here was stupid enough to let someone else shoulder all the risk for free.
Sure, Heracles could just take advantage and slip away unscathed, but he wasn't foolish enough to think that would end well — especially not with people like Ryo involved.
Highness's connections were murky, possibly linked to Kurma or some other Hindu faction. But Ryo? Ryo had Athena and Shiroyasha backing him.
A debt to someone like that was not something Heracles wanted hanging over him.
After thinking for a moment, Heracles narrowed his eyes.
"I can offer two forms of compensation. One: three divinities. Two: information about the Sun Authorities. Whichever of you takes the risk can claim the reward later."
The three divinities were meant for Ryo, since Heracles knew his community was short on manpower. Those divinities would strengthen his team considerably.
The Sun Authority information was clearly aimed at Highness.
As one of Vishnu's avatars, Highness's heritage was closely tied to solar power. And Heracles, as a Greek demigod only a step below the Olympians, knew plenty about that.
Either way, he was prepared to pay what was fair.
At the mention of "Sun Authority," Ryo's eyes narrowed slightly.
Highness, meanwhile, gave Ryo a complicated look.
He wanted to curse him for exploiting the situation, but deep down he was also grateful that Ryo was even willing to consider taking on that fate in Rin's place.
Still, the plan he'd been forming in secret was now ruined.
He had wanted Ryo's help to escape the control of Ouroboros's upper ranks, taking Rin and a few subordinates with him — cutting ties with the Demon Lord Alliance entirely.
But that plan was now impossible.
Well… maybe not entirely.
After a brief internal struggle, Highness sent a discreet telepathic message. "I'll give you the Leo Sun Authority."
Ryo's eyes lit up immediately.
Originally, Highness had said he'd only hand it over after Ryo helped him with something. Now, he was offering it upfront?
That was an incredible deal.
A Sun Authority — one of the highest levels of power in the Little Garden, the literal foundation of the world's system.
Taking on the King of End's fate and getting a Sun Authority in return? Totally worth it.
He was already half a King of End anyway. What difference did it make to go all the way?
And if any god tried to come after him for the divinity, well… one-on-one, in the lower gates? He'd like to see them try.
Plus, once he officially held the King of End's divinity, he could openly wield the Divine Sword of Salvation and the Old Covenant ritual — no more need to hide those.
Even his "cosmo" power could be written off as a side effect of the divine blade. No one could prove otherwise.
So honestly, this was looking great.
But when Highness saw Ryo still standing there, calm and motionless, he almost choked on his own frustration.
This greedy bastard's really gonna play it cool now?
Grinding his teeth, Highness took a deep breath and sent another message.
"I also have intel on the Pisces Authority. But that one's trickier — I'll need some time to get it, and you'll owe me a favor afterward."
"...Pisces?"
Ryo blinked, genuinely surprised.
There were only five Sun Authorities confirmed to be loose in the world — and Highness had one and half of another?
This guy… was he the protagonist or something?
Ryo stayed silent, and Highness's disbelief only deepened.
Two Sun Authorities! That was a fortune beyond comprehension — and Ryo didn't even blink.
Did this guy… not understand their value?
That couldn't be. Unless…
Unless his perspective was skewed by Shiroyasha.
If your patron goddess literally owned fourteen Sun Authorities, you might start thinking they were just collectible trinkets.
After all, the upper echelons of the Garden had strict orders not to disclose the true power of the Sun Authorities to lower beings.
So maybe Ryo really did think they weren't worth much.
Highness was silently screaming in his head. "You idiot, how do you not know what a Sun Authority's worth?! You think it just powers up your Gift? It can reshape the entire damn world!"
With mounting exasperation, he added one final telepathic message.
"I've also got information about another Authority. It's dangerous, but I can share what I know."
He hesitated, then clenched his teeth and said,
"The Sun Authorities are the highest-grade divine gifts in existence. You might not realize it, but the entire Little Garden universe was built on a geocentric model."
"The Sun Authorities are the governing codes of that model — in essence, the highest level of control in creation. With them, one could even reboot the entire Little Garden."
He took a breath, his tone growing heavy.
"Rin means the world to me. But the people I answer to won't let me trade a Sun Authority for her safety. I hope you understand what that means."
Ryo raised a brow, then gave him a peculiar look.
"Honestly," he said through their telepathic link, "you had me the moment you said 'Leo Authority.'"
Highness froze. "Then why—"
Ryo smiled brightly, almost glowing. "I was just too happy. Took me a while to process it."
Highness almost spat blood. Literally.
His throat burned; he swallowed hard to keep from coughing up a mouthful in front of everyone. The last thing he needed was to make Heracles suspicious — or worry Rin.
Forcing his breathing steady, he looked at Ryo with a blank, deadpan stare.
Then he said aloud, very slowly, "My offer stands."
Ryo's grin widened, eyes gleaming.
"Deal."
.
.
.