Although the dire circumstances of their community had been laid bare, instead of being abandoned, the bonds between companions grew even stronger. At this moment, Black Rabbit felt deeply fulfilled.
Unfortunately, that joy didn't last long—it was shattered completely.
"EHHHH?! What do you mean you casually agreed to a Gift Game like that?! And why—why did you make contact with the leader of 'ForesGaro' in such a short time and end up provoking them?! And the game's TOMORROW!? And you're fighting on enemy turf?! What were you two thinking?! I'm talking to you, young ladies!!"
At sunset, they had finally regrouped at the fountain plaza. After hearing the whole story, the once-excited Black Rabbit's expression darkened dramatically. Her rabbit ears shot straight up as she launched into a furious lecture.
"That couldn't be helped. That kind of scumbag just really made me want to teach him a lesson," Kuon Asuka shrugged indifferently in response to Black Rabbit's outburst.
Beside her, Kasukabe Yō remained silent while holding a calico cat.
"Seriously… You problem children!"
Enraged, Black Rabbit whipped out her trusty folding fan and gave Kuon Asuka a punishing smack.
"And you too, Master Jin! Why didn't you stop them?!"
"I wanted to, but…" Jin, the current true leader of the 'No Name' community, gave a bitter smile. Everything had happened way too fast.
Although the leader of the community 'ForesGaro,' Jard Gaspard, had started the provocation, Kuon Asuka and Kasukabe Yō had swiftly escalated the verbal spat into a physical one.
"Ugh… What do we do now? We finally summoned new members and solved the water issue. I thought we could finally begin rebuilding properly, and now we've picked a fight with such a powerful community!" Black Rabbit slumped into a chair outside a nearby drink stand, tugging at her hair in exasperation.
"What's there to be afraid of? We've already signed the contract, so let's go beat them down. Scumbags like that deserve a good thrashing," Kuon Asuka said casually, shaking the contract document in her hand.
"Well then, I'm looking forward to the performance of our two young ladies," Izayoi said, grinning wickedly as he rested his head on his hands.
"You can't be serious! We're part of the same community—we're supposed to help each other!"
"That's not the same," Izayoi said, wagging a finger at Black Rabbit. "Listen carefully. They started this fight. And the other side accepted. If I jumped in now, wouldn't that be rude?"
"Oho, you do know the rules, huh? That doesn't really match the reckless image you first gave me," Kuon Asuka smiled, flicking her hair with satisfaction at Izayoi's reply.
Sitting quietly off to the side, Yoru finally raised a question after everyone had finished speaking.
"So… what kind of community is this 'ForesGaro'?"
"Oh, that's a community under the command of the upper-tier Demon Lord group '666 Beasts.' Just like us, they're based in the East District of Little Garden, Outer Gate 2105380. They're one of the dominant forces in the area, so crossing them is definitely a big deal."
"Wait… 2105380?! Are there really that many Outer Gates?!" Yoru asked in astonishment.
"Yup! Black Rabbit mentioned it before—Little Garden is unimaginably vast. It has seven layers, and our 'No Name' community is at the very bottom, at Outer Gate 2105380. The smaller the gate number, the stronger the community."
"So you're saying… we're ranked 2,105,380th in all of Little Garden?" Izayoi asked.
Black Rabbit awkwardly shook her head.
"Not exactly… That number's just the gate designation. Each gate has multiple communities, so our rank is much lower than that."
"Ugh… That's kind of a depressing thought."
"Definitely…"
Even Yoru, who had been relatively unfazed until now, gave a wry smile.
"Uuu… I'm sorry…"
Black Rabbit muttered dejectedly, her rabbit ears drooping limply.
"Well… Let's not dwell on that. Let's think about something positive instead."
"Right. Thanks to Lord Yoru's help, we defeated the Water God and claimed the Water Sapling. We don't have to worry about the community's water supply anymore!" Black Rabbit said, hugging the tiny sapling tightly against her cheek like a treasured gem.
"Seriously?! That's the Water God's sapling?!" Jin, who was sitting nearby, looked ecstatic.
"Yup, that's right. Lord Jin, please head back first. Since the Gift Game is tomorrow, we need to get everyone's Gifts appraised at 'Thousand Eyes.' We'll also need their help to properly store the Water Sapling."
"'Thousand Eyes'? That's the name of a guild?" Yoru and the others asked in confusion. Black Rabbit nodded firmly.
"YES! 'Thousand Eyes' is a guild made up of Gift holders with special 'eyes.' It's a massive commercial guild with branches all over Little Garden—from the East, West, South, and North, even across all the layers. Luckily, there's a branch nearby."
"What does Gift Appraisal mean?"
"It means assessing the abilities and origins of a Gift. Only by understanding your Gift can you truly bring out its full potential, right? I'm sure you're all curious about where your powers come from too."
With that, the group set off for the nearby branch of 'Thousand Eyes.'
As they walked, Yoru and the others were overwhelmed by what they saw. This fantastical world had sights far beyond what they could imagine in their own world. Just the sheer variety of non-human races like Black Rabbit left them dumbfounded.
"All right! We've arrived!" Black Rabbit suddenly stopped in front of a building.
"This is the headquarters of 'Thousand Eyes'?" Yoru looked up and asked. Before them stood a rather unassuming storefront. A blue flag hung at the entrance, painted with two goddess statues facing each other. That had to be the symbol of 'Thousand Eyes.'
But just as Black Rabbit was about to lead everyone inside, a female staff member wearing an apron stepped in front of her.
"Sorry, customers. The store is currently closed. You may not enter right now."
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