— — — — — —
"Damn. How many kinds of poison is this guy carrying on him?"
In the void beyond space, one of the God Kings couldn't help clicking his tongue.
"Let's see. First there was the toxin that rotted Zeus's arm. Then Hydra venom, the Scorpion Demoness' poison, those two bottles of strange toxic blood just now, and that bizarre poison attack that causes unbearable pain the moment it hits… That's already six different types."
"Good grief. Did this guy become a four-digit rule-breaker by advancing through the authority of 'poison'?"
"The authority of poison? Hardly anyone develops that power seriously. The few who tried mostly died. The ones left are probably hiding among reclusive demons somewhere."
"This human is a problem. Brutal and poisonous. Better keep our distance in the future."
The various hidden watchers quietly exchanged thoughts while mentally labeling Ryo as someone not to mess with.
Poison itself wasn't particularly frightening to most gods.
But anyone who turned poison into a main authority and pushed it to extreme levels? None of those people were easy opponents.
No need to look far for examples.
Take the scorpion demoness, for instance. That creature's sting had once made The Buddha himself cry out in pain.
A poison that could make a two-digit react like that was terrifying beyond words.
"After that scorpion died, I thought things would finally calm down," one four-digit rule-breaker living in the lower layers muttered with a bitter smile. "And now another poison monster shows up."
Living in the same region as someone who specialized in poison was a serious test of nerves.
If one of your old enemies ever paid that person to prepare a few exotic toxins…
"Sigh. Guess we'll all have to be more careful."
Sighs echoed among the hidden observers.
...
Meanwhile, inside the open-air Hall of the Greek God-King…
The awkward silence was still spreading.
"As I said earlier."
Ryo crouched down to pick up the bottles from the floor, acting as if nothing had happened. "As a human who specializes in poison, it's perfectly normal for me to carry some toxic blood around."
"Totally normal."
Indra nodded repeatedly while quietly stepping a few paces backward. Then he turned and looked at Zeus, who had somehow ended up hiding behind him.
"Brother… could you not do that?"
Indra felt like crying.
Zeus, you sneaky old bastard. Are you seriously using me as a meat shield?
Come on!
We've at least shared a few… memorable nights chasing the same women. Doesn't that make us good brothers?
Is this really how you repay me?
And seriously, backing off in front of a human? What about your dignity as a God King? Aren't you embarrassed?
"Hmph. Cheap tricks."
Zeus snorted coldly and flicked his sleeve. "I'll spare you this time. But remember this. From today onward, Little Garden can't hold both of us. If I'm here, you won't be. If you're here, I won't be."
Just then, Ryo spoke in a calm voice. "Zeus, I think it's better to stop eating food or touching women from now on. You might get poisoned."
Zeus' steps froze.
His face, turned away from Ryo, darkened completely.
After a moment, he gave a cold snort and walked deeper into the palace, disappearing from sight.
Shiroyasha watched the direction he left for a while, then laughed and slapped Ryo on the shoulder.
"Not bad, kid. Getting that old fossil to back down is no small feat."
"Alright, show's over, show's over! The house wins!"
Indra clapped his hands with a grin, like a seasoned casino dealer closing the table, while watching the various God Kings withdraw their divine awareness.
Only after most of them were gone did he quietly set up a hidden barrier. Then he stared at Ryo for a long time before finally sighing.
"Better prepare for a long war."
"How so?"
Ryo frowned slightly, confused.
"Still playing dumb?" Indra rolled his eyes. "Wasn't this exactly what you wanted?"
Ryo looked at him oddly. "Oh? Then tell me what you think you figured out."
"Oh, refusing to admit it now?"
Indra slapped Ryo hard on the shoulder and hooked an arm around his neck. "You planned this from the start, didn't you? You wanted to force Zeus to back down."
"Show your strength, make him think twice. Maybe humiliate him a bit with poison while you're at it. Then keep the relationship between you two at the level of open hostility without triggering a full-scale war."
"You know perfectly well that if two four-digit rule-breakers start a full conflict in the lower layers, the Heavenly Army will intervene. No matter who's winning, neither side would actually be able to kill the other."
"So the only possible outcome is a declaration of war between both sides. The mid-tier four-digit forces fight through Gift Games while the top powers avoid direct losses. In other words, a so-called war that ends up being a middle-tier competition."
He narrowed his eyes at Ryo.
"You must have recruited some pretty strong and aggressive four-digit members recently. Or brought in outside help. Otherwise you wouldn't choose this approach."
"And if I'm right, you've got at least one old three-digit monster advising you. Only someone at that tier would understand these rules so clearly."
"Using poison to disgust Zeus and force him to retreat, while locking both sides into a hostile standoff instead of all-out war."
Indra clicked his tongue. "All that planning just to keep the avatars of Hermes and Ares. Was it really worth it?"
Ryo looked at him quietly.
"What if I told you… I have a way to control them?"
In truth, Indra had guessed most of it correctly.
Before he ever stormed Mount Olympus, Ryo had already envisioned how things would end.
That was why he hadn't even worn his Saint Cloth when confronting Zeus.
If he had truly intended a life-or-death battle, he would have donned the armor, pushed his Cosmos into extreme overdrive, and tried to kill Zeus in a single strike.
But realistically, that was impossible.
The old monster had stayed in the lower layers for ages, and just as Algol had predicted, Zeus had already advanced very deeply into the three-digit domain.
Given more time, Zeus might very well have become the eighteenth two-digit existence, a true giant of Little Garden.
But now, that future had been disrupted by Ryo.
Zeus's hidden strength had been exposed through poison. From here on, the other gods would definitely start placing restrictions on him.
Those gods who just left?
Indra hadn't simply chased them away. He had hinted that they should hurry back and start limiting Zeus's growth.
And among that group of schemers, none were easy opponents.
"Control them?" Indra's eyes widened in disbelief. "You've got a method like that?"
"Trade secret," Ryo replied calmly. "Not for disclosure."
The machine gods Hermes and Ares under his command couldn't stay hidden forever. The Cleansing technique would inevitably be exposed sooner or later, so Ryo didn't mind hinting at it.
"Trade secret?" Indra grimaced. "So that means I could buy it?"
This guy was clearly planning to fleece him.
"Forget it, forget it. I've been gambling too much lately. I'm broke."
Indra waved his hand. "I'll stay out of this."
Then he patted Ryo's shoulder. "Umm... Stay alive."
With that, he turned and left.
After the chaos Ryo had caused, the commander of the Heavenly Army had to go write a report… and probably update a few rules.
A four-digit rule-breaker human humiliating Zeus with poison.
Heh.
The days ahead were going to be lively.
Zeus wouldn't let this go easily.
"..."
Ryo understood exactly what Indra meant. Facing a situation like this, all he could do was brace himself and deal with it.
At least this round, he had come out ahead.
"Well done, kid! You've really grown capable!"
Once Indra left, Shiroyasha pulled Ryo over and pinched his cheek. "Haha! Once you finish sorting things out with your community, I'll take you to meet that Halloween bitch. We're going to rub this in her face!"
She laughed loudly.
"Having a rule-breaking subordinate is impressive, right? She brags about it to me every few hundred years. It's so annoying!"
Ryo rubbed his cheek and stared at her speechlessly.
So my strength is basically just ammunition for you to show off to Queen Halloween?
You're really thoughtful.
Aren't you worried the Queen will start targeting me out of spite?
Just as Shiroyasha was laughing happily, a voice suddenly called out.
"Got a moment?"
Ryo turned his head.
A male god with short red hair, plain features, and a red robe had stepped into the hidden realm.
"Hephaestus?" Shiroyasha said in surprise. Then something seemed to click, and she quickly excused herself.
"Thank you."
Hephaestus gave a slight nod to the departing Shiroyasha before turning to Ryo. "I'd like to talk."
Ryo's expression turned a bit strange, but he nodded.
"Alright."
.
.