— — — — — —
A quiet silence settled between the three.
Eventually, it was Ki Juranbarada who broke the silence first, his tone carrying a hint of nostalgia.
"It's been a long, long time since we were all together like this."
"Yeah…" Giada shrugged. She almost mentioned the one person still missing—Cain—but thought better of it. No need to drag down the mood.
"So, you contacted us because something's up?" Aswad asked, glancing over at Giada with his usual calm demeanor.
"Didn't your brat tell you? I got one-shot by the new Fourth Primogenitor."
Giada grinned as she cheerfully brought up the incident that had completely trashed her pride.
"If someone told me the sun had fallen out of the sky and was about to crash into the earth, I'd believe that before I believed you got one-shot." Aswad let out a sigh, clearly unimpressed.
"But it did happen!"
Giada rested her chin on her hands, staring into the open expanse of the Garden of Whispers.
"If I wasn't virtually immortal, I would've been dead before I even realized it."
The other two fell completely silent.
No one on the planet understood a Primogenitor's immortality better than these three. They were, after all, its living proof.
And yet, Giada—one of the Primogenitors—had nearly died in a single blow.
That fact alone was enough to shake even them.
"This isn't April Fools, Giada," Aswad scoffed, though his tone had lost its earlier certainty.
"Oh, and get this—he wasn't even trying. According to him, he's got a trump card that's at least a thousand times more powerful than what he used on me. Crazy, right? Let's just pretend he's telling the truth for now."
Giada leaned back, throwing her legs up onto the long table without a care.
Ki, intrigued now, leaned forward slightly. "You sure he wasn't bluffing?"
Giada laced her fingers behind her head and smirked. "I tried baiting him. I told him that to kill a Primogenitor, you'd have to destroy the planet itself—since our immortality is linked to this world."
"Wanna guess how he responded?"
Ki paused, his voice calm and thoughtful.
"In a way, it really does come from the planet's support system. You didn't lie to him."
"If this Ryo guy has any kind of detection or analytical powers, he probably figured that out too. Anything he said after that is likely closer to truth than we'd like."
"Exactly~" Giada said as she tilted her head back, gazing up at the artificial sky of the Garden.
"That man really could destroy a planet."
"And this information you got… you got it by testing him?" Aswad asked, a bit exasperated. "As absurd as it sounds, it's also terrifying."
Ki began tapping the table lightly, a subtle rhythm in his fingers. "So who exactly is he? What's his goal in replacing the Fourth Primogenitor?"
"His origins? A place called Little Garden—a stage built by true gods."
Giada sat upright and stretched, like she was trying to shake off a nap.
"From what I've gathered, his strength ranks somewhere in the 'five-digit' tier. Supposedly, that's comparable to us."
"We're not capable of planet-destroying attacks, though," Aswad said flatly.
Giada laughed. "Apparently, in that world, the power difference between people ranked in the five digits can be in the tens of thousands. Just being in that tier means nothing if you're stuck at the bottom."
She turned to look at them directly. "I've made up my mind—I'm heading to Little Garden."
"!!"
Both of them stiffened, immediately frowning.
"You sure that's a good idea?" Ki asked, his tone gently cautious. "We still don't know his motives."
"From what I can tell, he probably had a rough time over there. My guess? He's here to recruit followers."
Giada lazily propped her cheek up with her hand and looked at the two of them.
"I've been alive for thousands of years. Honestly? I'm bored. If going to Little Garden means I can finally die, that's a win. If not? Then at least I get to have some fun."
Ki stayed quiet, eyes dark with thought.
Aswad, on the other hand, looked intrigued for the first time.
After a long silence, Ki finally sighed. "How much longer do you plan to stay here?"
"Aw, still playing the responsible elder, huh?"
Giada smiled knowingly. She could tell Ki had no intention of leaving this world. That was just like him—even when he was still one of the devas, he'd always had this frustrating sense of duty.
She figured he wanted to maintain the world's balance before the third and fourth Primogenitors return.
"Two years, give or take," she said casually. "My new boss wants to collect some 'interesting power' from this side and prepare other things before launching a counterattack on Little Garden."
"I get it now."
The Lost Warlord leaned back and let out a deep breath, as if trying to sigh away all the complicated emotions inside him.
"We'll support the new Fourth Primogenitor's actions about his Empire of Dawn."
He understood exactly why Giada brought this up now. It wasn't just to say goodbye. She wanted their cooperation. For herself, and for Ryo Yagami.
"Thanks, old man," Giada said with a casual wave.
It was a light, joking kind of thanks—but between comrades who had fought beside each other for millennia, it landed with unexpected weight.
"If we're lucky, maybe we'll meet again in Little Garden."
"Yeah… maybe."
And just like that, the three shadows vanished from their seats.
The Garden of Whispers was left in utter silence.
— — —
Saikai Academy - Teacher's Apartment Building
Ryo lounged on Natsuki's office chair, sipping the tea she'd brewed for him. Across from him, the usually cool and aloof Aya stared at him with thinly veiled disgust.
"Gotta say," Ryo began, a little too playfully. "Meiga was really going all-out last night. Poor guy must've circled death's door at least three times just to get his job done. Honestly, after that, maybe I'll feel bad after killing him."
"....."
"Only you would think about killing a key contributor right after a mission. You really are the picture of a heartless king." Natsuki sneered.
"Ehh, I'm generous when I want to be."
Ryo ignored her sarcasm and spun the chair lazily, gazing out the wide windows at the city skyline.
"Meiga might be connected to the Cleansing. Just a hunch, but I'm not taking chances. I'll keep him alive for now—bait is only good if it wriggles."
Natsuki rolled her eyes.
"So you're keeping him alive just to use him? You're even worse than I thought. Poor guy. All that effort, and for what? Being your toy?"
She shook her head, dismissing the ridiculous sympathy she felt.
Then she locked eyes with him.
"Alright, Your Majesty—since you've declared yourself the king of the Empire of Dawn, maybe it's time you did some actual King-ing? Like, manage your damn empire?"
Ryo shrugged. "Oh, I'm about to assign someone for that."
Natsuki looked completely dumbfounded.
You're seriously trying to delegate that?
Then Ryo said calmly, "I was thinking of making Asagi's dad, Sensai Aiba, my Royal Chancellor. What do you think?"
Natsuki froze for two seconds, then spat in disbelief. "You call that picking a chancellor?! You're just horny for his daughter, you shameless creep!"
Sensai Aiba—Asagi's father. A prominent member of the Island Council. Choosing him as chancellor? Yeah, it was painfully obvious where Ryo's real priorities lay.
Ryo just grinned.
"I prefer the word honest," he said smoothly.
He raised both hands like a conductor and cheerfully declared. "No one understands honesty better than me! It's what every king should strive for!"
The only response he got was a pair of deeply unamused, deadpan stares from both Natsuki and Aya.
They said nothing—but their eyes screamed: 'What the hell is wrong with this guy.'
.
.
.