With heavy shackles around his ankles and a pair of reinforced, Gift-powered handcuffs that suppressed his strength, Ryo was enjoying the kind of treatment reserved for the Heavenly Army's most dangerous prisoners.
He sat inside a gigantic birdcage.
And outside the cage was a massive subspecies of Ouryu (yellow dragon), stretching for several thousand kilometers from head to tail.
At the moment, Ryo was being "securely" detained in the birdcage hanging from the Ouryu's claws.
Beyond them was nothing but the dark, silent expanse of outer space.
The Ouryu was carrying him across the void from Mars, heading for Little Garden.
"So why exactly am I getting this kind of treatment? Weren't there supposed to be beautiful big sisters waiting for me? Weren't we supposed to get a nice scenic route? We don't even get to use a Boundary Gate? Come on, at least let me save on travel time!" Ryo crouched inside the cage, sounding thoroughly speechless.
Sitting sideways on the Ouryu's back, Mata rolled her eyes. "Use a Boundary Gate and get intercepted by Ouroboros' rescuers? You really think Hercules and Loki's movements can be kept secret from us?"
She clicked her tongue in annoyance. "I really have no idea how many bribes you took. You actually helped Ouroboros impersonate Kalki? You've got some nerve."
The moment Shiva had run her fingernail across Ryo's skin, everyone present had already figured out who this so-called "Kalki" really was.
The intelligence report described Kalki as a shy boy. The person standing before them was a loudmouthed brat. His strength had also gone from the elite level expected of a Four-Digit to something on the scale of a legend.
Then there was Ryo refusing to appear in person and having Leticia relay his words instead.
He had practically spelled it out for them.
Even an idiot could tell something was wrong.
On top of that, Ryo had casually spoken the True Names of two Two-Digit existences earlier, yet suffered absolutely no consequences afterward.
That immediately told Shiva and Mata that the matter had the tacit approval of the Two-Digits.
They had no idea what those Two-Digits were actually trying to accomplish by having Ryo impersonate Kalki.
But since the Two-Digits had chosen to play along, the Heavenly Army could only cooperate.
Especially after Ryo had even spoken Shakyamuni's name without being punished.
There was no way the Heavenly Army could simply ignore that.
After all, the Buddha was the Heavenly Army's biggest financial backer!
Without his full support from behind the scenes, the Twelve Devas would never have ended up in charge of the Heavenly Army.
Hearing Mata complain, Ryo spread his hands, making his shackles jingle. "Can't be helped. Ouroboros offered too much."
"That part is true." Shiva, dressed in a black layered dress, nodded with deep conviction. "Their pay is really good!"
"Exactly."
Ryo sighed in agreement.
One Sun Authority, plus the repayment of a favor owed by Queen Halloween.
That was an absurdly high price.
Even someone as "hard-hearted" as Ryo had been tempted by it.
"You two..."
Mata covered her face.
Whenever she stood next to these two, she felt like her own reputation was dropping by association.
And the funny thing was, Shiva was actually considered one of the more normal "people" in the Heavenly Army.
As for Ryo, aside from enjoying screwing people over and being a little too fond of women, his character was actually pretty decent.
At the very least, the fact that he had single-handedly held Arcadia together and brought it back to prominence had earned him considerable praise within the Heavenly Army.
Of course, as for why Ryo was only described as "a little too fond of women"..... With Zeus and Indra setting the bar, who in Little Garden would dare claim the title of Number One Pervert?
"Anyway, what exactly did Ouroboros offer you?" Mata looked at Ryo with considerable curiosity. "And just so we're clear, I'm not trying to steal your business. I'm only curious."
Ryo gave her a long look before raising one finger. "One Authority?"
Mata's eyes widened. "That's a lot!"
"Too little." Shiva lazily chimed in. "After our Heavenly Army operation, Kalki's identity is already public knowledge. I'd bet quite a few old monsters are preparing ambushes as we speak, waiting to seize Kalki's Spirit Rank."
She yawned. "Given that level of danger, you should be demanding at least three Authorities as payment."
Ryo calmly replied, "One Sun Authority."
Mata: "..."
Shiva: "..."
After a brief silence, Mata stared in astonishment at Shiva, who had suddenly appeared in front of Ryo and was already reaching for his clothes.
"What are you doing?"
"Changing identities. I'm taking this job."
For once, Shiva was full of energy, and there wasn't even a hint of laziness in her voice.
"Forget it." Mata sighed. She appeared beside Ryo and pressed down on his shoulder. "Shiva, the waters here are too deep. You can't handle them. Let me do it."
Ryo, whose collar had already been pulled wide open: "..."
He silently raised his hands and slapped both of theirs away. "Knock it off. The Queen is involved in this."
"Tch!"
Shiva clicked her tongue unhappily.
"The Queen..."
Mata let out a regretful sigh.
Queen Halloween really wasn't someone anyone could afford to offend.
Thinking about it, Mata muttered, "Looks like I need to start thinking about when I should quit. I wonder if Ouroboros is still hiring."
Ryo stared at the two of them with a dark expression, straightened his clothes, and stood up. "It's about time we jumped ship."
"Hm? Are you sure?" Mata looked at Ryo in surprise. "While we can confirm your identity, those damn old monsters who can't stand to see someone else succeed aren't going to be nearly as reasonable. Kalki's Spirit Rank is incredibly valuable. Are you sure you don't want to wait until we reach Heavenly Army headquarters before breaking out?"
Ryo rolled his shoulders and said irritably, "And then have Zeus waiting at the door when I escape?"
"Ah..."
Mata suddenly fell silent.
Nobody in Little Garden was unaware of the conflict between Zeus and Ryo anymore.
Even though Ryo was currently wearing Kalki's identity, did she really think Zeus wouldn't know about it?
It wasn't as if he didn't have people planted inside Ouroboros.
And if he knew, then there was a very good chance he'd be lying in wait at Heavenly Army headquarters, hoping to kill Ryo in the upper layers, where Three-Digits could fight without restraint.
"I knew it..." Shiva added quietly. "I knew he'd run away halfway."
She carefully sensed the surrounding area. "One, two, three... Four old monsters are lying in ambush."
She looked toward Ryo. "Confident?"
Ryo smiled as he flexed his fingers. "I can handle them."
"In that case..." Shiva looked at Mata.
The meaning behind that gaze was so obvious that Mata immediately looked utterly dejected.
"I get it... We throw the match and let this little bastard escape, right?" Mata sighed helplessly.
Then she gave Ryo a playful wink. "Go easy on me, okay? It's my first time."
"I will."
The corner of Ryo's mouth curled into a smile.
The next instant, a resounding voice echoed through the silent depths of outer space.
"As the King of End, I summon you, Divine Blade of Salvation...!"
"White Star!"
In the next moment, a mini-sun suddenly appeared above the Ouryu.
Under an endless radiance of white-gold light, it transformed into a gigantic divine blade stretching for tens of thousands of kilometers.
The blade trembled slightly and let out a low hum.
The entire surrounding space seemed to resonate with it as it drew upon the power of countless stars and planets.
An endless torrent of light converged from every direction, transforming into an ultimate cutting force along the blade's edge.
Then... the divine blade swung.
It came crashing down upon the Ouryu as it crossed the void!
White-gold radiance illuminated Mata's face.
Before the massive blade could reach her, she only had time to shout one word: "Shit!"
The next instant, light erupted in every direction like a star going supernova.
.
.
.