— — — — — —
A pitch-black, diamond-shaped crystal floated quietly above Kenshin's palm.
Unlike the "Shattering" authority, it showed no obvious signs or phenomena. It was restrained. Completely restrained.
To an ordinary person, it would look like nothing more than a beautiful gemstone—not a fragment of power capable of governing the workings of the universe.
An authority that had reached its limit possessed a kind of self-concealment. Without the right method or the right wielder, it remained perfectly stable, almost impossible to use.
"So beautiful…"
Kurousagi couldn't help but murmur in awe as she looked at it.
The Moon Rabbits of Little Garden were a race designated as judges by the Central System. Their senses were, in a way, extensions of that system itself.
Because of that, the authority's disguise meant nothing to her.
What she saw wasn't a crystal. It was the essence of destruction contained within. A breathtaking glimpse of the world's deeper truth.
Seeing the authority resting calmly in Kenshin's hand, Ryo didn't rush. He leaned back against the sofa and said with a faint smile, "They were quick to pay."
"Well, the information you provided really did pin Algol down," Kenshin replied, her gaze carrying a trace of amusement.
"As long as Algol is excluded from the competition and can't participate in the Godslayer War, their goal is achieved. Plenty of gods and buddhas will be more than willing to show goodwill and cover the cost."
She paused, then looked straight at him, smiling.
"That's assuming they think the deal was worth it."
'In other words, if Algol shows up again in the next second and re-enters the Godslayer War, the deal stops being 'worth it'—and those gods will think they've been played and come after me?'
Ryo thought it over, but his expression didn't change.
He didn't bother responding.
Whether it was a test or not, there was no point answering.
Right now, most people already suspected he was connected to the Tricksters. Fine. Let them think that.
As long as no one had hard evidence, and he didn't provoke the collective wrath of the gods, his position would remain secure.
As for a few radical enemies…
Honestly, he welcomed them.
If no one envied or hated you, you weren't worth much. And in the Godslayer War, enemies were just opportunities—sources of authority he could take for himself.
So the more, the better.
A faint smile crossed his lips. He lifted a hand, drawing both authorities into his grasp before saying casually, "Pass a message that I'm very satisfied with the payment."
Trading Algol's absence from the Godslayer War for a Limit-Authority of the highest quality—just one small step away from becoming a full Ultimate Authority—was, frankly, a massive win. Even Algol herself would agree.
If the "victim" was satisfied, how could he, the one benefiting from it, not be?
As for what would happen later—when the Buddha faction realized that Algol's path to transcendence didn't lie in the Godslayer War at all, but in another world—that wasn't his problem.
They wanted her whereabouts. He gave it.
They wanted her out of the war. He made it happen.
Everything they asked for was fulfilled.
If there were issues beyond that, those were their own.
As long as they were thinking clearly, they'd have no choice but to swallow the loss.
After all, it wasn't his fault their intelligence was incomplete.
Even he and Algol had only discovered her true opportunity in another world after entering the Strike the Blood universe. How could outsiders possibly know?
This loss was something the gods of Little Garden were simply going to have to accept.
'…Though,' Ryo thought with a hint of mischief, 'maybe I could wait until Zeus and the others are about to take that final step… then have Algol break through first and snatch the eighteenth seat right out from under them.'
The idea was deliciously cruel.
But in reality, opportunities like that were too rare. Whoever got there first claimed it.
If he could succeed sooner, he wouldn't wait a second longer. And Algol was the same.
Still… it would've been fun to watch those old schemers lose their minds.
"Since you're satisfied, that makes things easier," Kenshin said, visibly relaxing.
Ryo's stance meant Algol wouldn't stir up trouble next, which was a huge relief for the Heavenly Army.
Two hundred years ago, they had barely recovered from their failed campaign against Azi Dahaka.
If they had to launch another campaign against Algol now, they'd be crippled for real.
In truth, the Heavenly Army's position in the upcoming Godslayer War was already precarious.
A massive divine conflict was about to erupt in the lower layers, yet more than half their gods and buddhas were still recovering from injuries. Even Indra himself hadn't fully healed.
It was a disaster waiting to happen.
That was also why Indra had been so upset about his daughter's attack—not just because it embarrassed him, but because it exposed his weakened state.
At his peak, even if Asura gave it everything she had, she wouldn't have been able to break through his defenses. His divine protections alone could nullify most attacks.
Even if he descended and limited his body to that of a four-digit human, it wouldn't matter.
But now?
He'd actually been injured by a surprise attack.
Which meant the rumors were true—he still hadn't recovered from the heavy damage dealt by Azi Dahaka.
With that confirmed, the Heavenly Army's ability to intervene in the Godslayer War would drop to almost nothing.
And the other god-kings?
They'd definitely start acting up.
Just imagining it gave Kenshin a headache.
At that moment, Ryo suddenly asked, "By the way, has the location for Arcadia's war with the Greek pantheon been decided?"
Kenshin's expression darkened immediately, her tone turning sour.
"It has."
"The time is one week from now, on Fire Day."
"The battlefield is…"
She paused briefly, then said flatly, "—Mars. Little Garden's Mars."
.
.
.