— — — — — —
After shooing off Shiroyasha, Ryo went down to a bare, brick-floored hall.
This place was part of Arcadia's first basement level. It used to be a gambling room—one of those "allowed as long as you don't get caught" places.
But after the community declined, everything was cleared out. Black Rabbit sealed away all the gambling equipment, saying children should understand the dangers of such things and must never use them.
It was ridiculous, really. Little Garden itself is basically built on gambling, yet Black Rabbit insisted on drawing the line here.
"Alright, looks about right." Ryo clapped his hands and casually admired the brand-new wooden door now standing in the hall.
It was redwood. Not thousand-year redwood, not even hundred-year redwood—just an ordinary five-year redwood door.
But on the Dimensional Forum? This door cost five thousandpoints.
Ryo's savings were now down to twenty-six thousand. Painfully low.
And the door's only special function was... Traversing between two worlds. But its defensive power was about the same as a regular door.
Which is why he'd just spent half an hour pouring Cosmo into it to reinforce it.
Still, the best he could do was make it sturdy enough that four-digits wouldn't break it normally.
Cosmo was terrifyingly good at defense—despite being known mostly for raw explosive force.
"..."
"Dimensional Forum, when it comes to shameless price-gouging, you really are the undisputed champion."
Complaining about his greedy, thick-skinned cheat, Ryo placed his palm on the door once more.
Immediately, Little Garden's system flashed a notification:
[World-Crossing Gate... Activated]
[A mysterious portal crafted by a powerful Shinigami using some sort of primal force. It possesses the ability to traverse universes. At present, only fixed-point transmission is available.]
[Rating: Four-Digit (Elite)]
So now he was the one who made it? The Little Garden core system was willing to lie through its teeth just to hide the existence of the Dimensional Forum?
Did it not realize that the forum was the black-hearted capitalist?
"Uh... It's time."
Sensing that the gate had finished charging, Ryo stepped back. He also felt a bit of heartache for the points he'd burned summoning Athena, Luo Hao, and the others earlier.
But just a bit...
Sure, the World-Crossing Gate was cheap and reusable, but once he used it, it practically broadcasted to every deity in Little Garden: 'This world? Yeah, I was the one causing problems here. Can you hear me? It's me, Ryo Yagami.'
So when calling people from worlds where he couldn't openly stake a claim, he still had to use those thousand-point invitation letters.
And honestly, 99% of those points probably went toward forging a record that said something like, "These individuals were summoned through their own merit by Little Garden."
So like it or not, he couldn't save on that expense. He knew the forum was adding a markup, but this was a seller's market. He had zero bargaining power.
Maybe when life finally got easier, he should write a light novel titled: {My Cheat Is a Capitalist—Am I Guilty Here?}
"Is this Little Garden…?"
A gentle, elegant voice spoke.
Ryo turned toward the sound and saw a woman with long, braided hair—black, silky, immaculate. A calm smile on her face. Shinigami robes. Captain's haori. Unohana Retsu.
"It's even more unique than I imagined," Unohana said softly as she took in the European-style décor.
Behind her, another figure stepped through the open portal.
"We meet again, Ryo-san."
Wearing the white uniform of Las Noches, a flower hairpin tucked into her bangs, was the deceptively fierce-looking girl Orihime Inoue.
She bowed politely, scanning her unfamiliar surroundings with anxious curiosity.
To her, the Little Garden—and Arcadia—was a future workplace. A completely foreign environment filled with strangers. Feeling nervous was only natural.
And here, only one "familiar face" existed. Ryo Yagami.
Ryo looked at her and explained with a gentle tone: "This is indeed Little Garden. Specifically, the first basement level of my community, Arcadia."
"At the moment, we have eight combat members and two hundred trainees. We're still a newly rising community."
He didn't bother bragging about future prospects or hidden foundations.
That was how you treated tools, not comrades.
Besides, these two had already signed "life-binding contracts."
Try to run? Was his God Cloth not shiny enough? Or his fists not strong enough? What gave them the illusion of freedom?
"Eh?!" Orihime gasped—pleasantly surprised.
Fewer members = smaller circle = fewer people to deal with = easier life.
Her brain immediately turned this into a happy little equation.
Meanwhile, Unohana showed an entirely different reaction—a dangerous smile.
Eight combat members.
A man who could squash Yhwach with a stray thought… and he had eight other fighters?
So this was Little Garden. This was the playground of gods.
Unohana pressed her legs together, repressing her rising thrill, and looked gently at Ryo. "What roles will we hold within the community?"
"Healers and support," Ryo said directly.
"Oh?" She opened her eyes wider, legs tensing even more. "And what must I do… to become a combat member?"
Ryo's lips curved slightly. "Become a god."
"…I see." Unohana smiled gracefully and bowed. "Then please assign our first task, Leader."
.
.
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