— — — — — —
Three days later
Having stripped himself of the King of End's divine rank (not its power), Ryo spent those three days with Athena and Luo Hao, carrying out the final steps of their plan.
Together, they swept through the Netherworld, hunting down every remaining god and gathering their powers. By now, all lingering divinities had been erased.
Even if a few sleeping stragglers remained, it didn't matter—once the Circle of Usurpation had gone deep enough into the myth fabric, even they would lose their divine rights.
In Ryo's eyes, the plan was reaching its end.
That morning, Ryo looked up at the sky, his gaze distant.
He saw past the veil of reality—into the collapsing worlds and crumbling of the Netherworld, the twilight of the gods.
"…So the myths really have fallen apart, huh?"
He sighed softly, then smiled and shook his head. "Even if the gods die, the world keeps spinning just fine."
"But only for a century or so," came a gentle voice.
Athena appeared beside him in her adult form, wearing a white Greek robe and a wreath of olive branches.
"In another hundred years, once the planet finishes absorbing the energy you left, new elementals will rise—and when they do, a new mythology will be born."
"Who can say what the future holds? I'll just worry about myself." Ryo shrugged, unconcerned.
Athena didn't argue. In fact, she fell quiet for a while.
Yes… just worry about yourself.
She couldn't even manage that much most of the time. How could she worry about the next age of gods? She smiled bitterly.
"You're right. In the end, I still have to face her."
Ryo paused—he knew she meant the Athena of the Little Garden, the other goddess of war and wisdom.
He sighed, reaching out to pat her shoulder.
"Relax. You might share a name, but you're not the same. After our preparations, the odds of her devouring you are pretty low."
Both of them knew he didn't say impossible.
And even if Athena herself survived, her divine rank might not.
Whether the Little Garden would even allow two Athenas to exist at once was an open question.
If not, then one of them would have to relinquish her divinity—or they'd have no choice but to fight to the death.
"I'm not that worried," Athena said with a faint smile. "Even if I lose the Athena godhead, I still have Medusa's divinity. It's better than Metis. Hm? What's that face for?"
Ryo's expression twisted awkwardly.
"Uh… I don't think I ever told you, did I?"
"Told me what?" She tilted her head, puzzled.
He hesitated, then sighed. "In the Little Garden, Medusa is Athena's mortal enemy—and an extremely powerful god in her own right."
"And? What about it?" Athena chuckled. "Don't tell me she's stronger than that Athena?"
Ryo's mouth opened, then closed again.
Her eyelid twitched. "...No way?"
He nodded grimly.
Athena's smile froze, then her expression turned a little twisted.
"Fuck… Am I gonna end up with only Metis's divinity left?" she muttered to herself.
A "four-digit rank-freak" Athena, and a Medusa strong enough to match her…
And if Ryo helped her ascend to the status of the One and Only True God in this world, would she fight the whole Cross pantheon? Will even Ryo survive after going back to Little Garden?
At least, he would end up getting beaten up by Athena and Medusa.
While she was still stewing over that thought, Ryo chuckled. "Forget it. Let's talk about something else."
He threw out a new topic. "How's your power integration going?"
"Thanks to the Authority of Victory I got from you, I've mostly managed to unify all my powers under my Wisdom godhead," she said with a shake of her head. "But compared to the Little Garden's powers, what this planet offers is just fragments. Reaching omnipotence with these shards is basically impossible."
"Don't worry. Once you've got the 'One and Only True God' title, that might change."
Ryo grinned mischievously. "The Little Garden's core system isn't exactly flawless. If it observes your true nature, it might try to 'fill in the gaps'—and you could end up breaking into four-digit rank that way. Ideally, you will be equal to Athen of Little Garden."
He didn't mention the three-digit level. That realm—the so-called "Omnipotence Domain"—had stricter conditions.
To reach it, you needed: A body at the four-digit limit. A soul at the four-digit limit. Every Authority in the Little Garden, fused into a true Sovereignty.
Miss one, and you fail.
And any being entering the Little Garden for the first time could maybe meet one or two of those—but never the third.
No outsider could possibly possess all of the Little Garden's Authorities.
So usually, newcomers were capped at "four-digit rank-freak."
Even someone like Sasha from Saint Seiya, no matter how strong her Athena Cosmo got—even if she could shred a two-digit god—without gathering all the Authorities, the core system would still classify her as four-digit rank-freak.
It was a loophole. One Ryo fully intended to exploit.
"I hope it works out," Athena murmured, clearly skeptical.
Never having seen the Little Garden's central system herself, she couldn't imagine something that vast making such a blunder.
"How long until you undergo observation?" she asked.
Ryo thought for a moment, leaning against a pine tree.
"A few more days after Liliana, Erica, and Alice get back from Europe. Once my Cosmo hits the Sixth Sense's peak, I'll begin."
"I see." Athena nodded, her figure gradually fading.
Time was short—she needed to finish consolidating her powers to be ready for the journey.
Ryo watched her go, then muttered to himself: "The Seventh Sense, huh…"
His Cosmo was already near its limit, unable to ascend further—not even the Hōgyoku could push it higher.
Just then, he turned his head toward the mountain path.
Someone was climbing up—a woman with honey-blonde hair and an amazing figure, holding a platinum longsword with visible cracks.
"…Lancelot?" Ryo blinked. "What are you doing here?"
She looked up at the sound of his voice, surprised. "Ryo Yagami?"
Ryo nodded, eyeing the damaged sword. "What happened? The Divine Sword of Salvation shouldn't be in that state."
Lancelot pressed her lips together before answering with a sigh.
"Prince Rama separated it from his body and name—and took out every divine weapon bestowed upon him."
"What?" Ryo straightened in shock.
She stepped forward, kneeling slightly and holding out the sword.
"He said a warrior without fighting spirit has no need for weapons. He asked me to deliver these to you."
Ryo frowned, hesitated a moment, then accepted the sword with a sigh. "…That man. Really knows how to give gifts."
Even without Rama's core, the Divine Sword of Salvation was still perfect for Ryo, who now bore the King of End's essence.
He remembered that in parallel worlds, there were many different "Kings of End."
Mithra, Heracles, Verethragna, even Sun Wukong—all had become the King of End at some point.
And every one of them wielded the Divine Sword of Salvation.
That weapon was born to match the King of End.
Which explained why Rama would part with his body just to send it here.
As Ryo examined the sword, Lancelot suddenly dropped to one knee before him.
"Wait, don't tell me—"
"Wasn't it you who invited me three days ago?" she said with a gentle smile.
"Even though I've lost my divinity and can't even sustain the power of a god, I still wish to die on the battlefield."
"I never said I'd take you to one," Ryo said wryly. "Honestly, that invitation was… I was just hitting on you."
Lancelot froze, then her shoulders trembled as she laughed softly. "So you were after my looks. You're surprisingly honest, my lord."
Ryo didn't deny it.
Lancelot lowered her head again, performing a formal vow of fealty. "It doesn't matter. I was ready for that when I came here."
Then, with a quiet sigh: "Please—show me the 'unseen world' Prince Rama spoke of."
Ryo sighed back. "I really don't get what you're trying to do."
She smiled. "For a Knight, it's enough to fight—and to protect the weak."
"Is that so?"
He still didn't quite get her logic, but having another capable ally was never a bad thing.
Her lost divinity didn't worry him either.
After all, there was still the Little Garden's core system to lean on.
Maybe he was milking it a little too much.
He chuckled to himself, then looked at her seriously. "Then get ready."
Lancelot's lips curved slightly, and she bowed her head.
"Yes, my lord."
.
.
.