Crossover: The Problem Human of [Arcadia]

Water splashed softly into the teapot, clear streams rising over the plump tea leaves until a delicate fragrance filled the air.

Athena lifted the pot and poured Ryo a cup before saying leisurely, "So, Hera made contact with you?"

Ryo glanced around the room. Or rather, at the endless emerald prairie surrounding him.

The grass was short, barely six centimeters tall, stretching as far as the eye could see. There wasn't a single tree, flower, bird, or animal anywhere. It was nothing but an empty sea of green.

"We talked a little."

He accepted the teacup, then looked toward the open doorway.

Beyond it lay the corridor of Arcadia's castle. Inside was Athena's room.

"...Nice place you've got here," Ryo said politely.

'Seriously, though... Who puts a grassland inside their bedroom? What are you, a rabbit?' he grumbled inwardly.

"I've only just begun renovating it." Athena looked over the endless plain and shrugged. "If you were hoping to discover something... more private, I'm afraid I'll disappoint you. Gods don't need sleep."

"..."

Ryo wisely kept his mouth shut.

After all, he couldn't exactly admit he'd been wondering whether her bed was comfortable.

Athena, meanwhile, had already moved on. "Hera wants to remain Queen of Heaven?"

Ryo nearly spat out his tea. "How do you know everything? And could you please stop saying things like that so casually? It's kind of creepy... You're giving me serious Aizen vibes."

"Aizen? I've met him before. He was with a girl whose eyes were practically filled with hearts whenever she looked at him. He seemed like a good person. He was kindly guiding Jin and the other children the other day." Athena smiled faintly.

Ryo's eye twitched at the words good person. Then his eyes lit up when he remembered the girl following Aizen around. "Oh! So he took Momo to Little Garden? Hahaha! And he said he had no feelings for her. Tsk, I knew it!"

Whether in the original story or after Ryo entered the world of Bleach, one thing had always been certain: Aizen had stabbed Momo, yes, but he had been remarkably careful not to kill her or leave her with any permanent injuries.

Only Momo Hinamori received that kind of treatment from Aizen.

Athena ignored Ryo's sudden excitement and calmly returned to the subject of Hera.

"Given the circumstances, the most likely reason Hera would seek you out is because she wants to secure her position as Queen."

"Actually, the office of Queen of Heaven is both important and unimportant. It depends entirely on how that particular cosmology is structured."

She set down her teacup. "For example, in the Second Greek Generation, or even the First, where everything existed only as incomplete forms, the system was built around the smallest common denominator: one King and one Queen. It doesn't really matter whether either position is held by a man or a woman."

Ryo immediately understood. "So you're saying... you'd accept Hera as your Queen?"

His expression turned rather strange.

King Athena and Queen Hera... From a human perspective, that was one bizarre royal couple.

"I think you should at least accept part of Hera's offer." Athena calmly sipped her tea. "What did she promise you?"

"Life. Knowledge. Fertility. Nature. Protection. Time." Ryo listed them one by one.

"And which ones do you need most?" Athena asked again.

"Time first. Then Life. Nature after that."

He had already thought it through.

Time was the highest priority.

Life Authority came next, since it directly strengthened him.

Natural Authority was valuable too, but less immediately useful.

"Then take Time," Athena spoke as if the matter had already been decided. "Treat it as the down payment."

Ryo almost laughed.

She hadn't even become the new God King yet, and she was already distributing the spoils.

Still, since he was the one benefiting, it wasn't exactly his place to complain.

After all, it's hard to argue when someone's handing you gifts.

Just then, Athena produced a small box and slid it across the table.

"What's this?" Ryo accepted it without opening it.

"The Authority of Life." Athena explained, "Lakshmi delivered it while you were away. I accepted it on your behalf."

"...Life?"

He blinked before realizing what it was.

The Authority he'd asked Lakshmi to purchase using his Ouroboros contribution points.

"How much did it cost?" His first instinct was to ask the price.

Athena gave him a helpless look.

Only then did Ryo remember, "...A joining bonus?"

Lakshmi had told him that Ouroboros was determined to recruit him and that he should ask for as much as possible.

So he'd submitted quite the shopping list of powers: Time, Space, Fate, Causality, Creation, Destruction, Life, Death, Soul, Reality...

Apparently, they had actually started buying it.

Ryo honestly didn't know what to say anymore.

'These guys are almost too sincere.'

He was starting to feel guilty.

Athena smiled. "There's also one for Death, though gathering it will take more time. Lakshmi has also set her sights on an Authority related to Soul, but the seller is asking an extremely high price."

"You should be prepared for the possibility that the entire one million contribution points won't be enough. You may even have to pay extra."

"I figured."

That made sense.

Authorities weren't all worth the same. Some naturally commanded much higher prices.

And Soul Authority was obviously one of the expensive ones.

Thinking about Lakshmi's efficiency, even Ryo couldn't help but admire her. "She really gets things done."

It had only been a few days, and she'd already tracked down multiple targets. She had real talent when it came to acquiring rare resources.

Athena set down her teacup and looked at him with an amused smile. "Now that everyone else's business is settled... Let's talk about yours."

"I figured I couldn't hide it from you." Ryo shrugged. "I'll be heading to the world Aishelia visited last time."

Athena frowned slightly.

Tiny runic symbols flashed across her eyes as countless pieces of information flowed through her mind.

"The conceptual world known as the Crimson Realm? That makes sense. You're exactly at the stage where you lack that sort of foundation."

She knew little about the Crimson Realm itself. But that didn't mean she hadn't read Aishelia's reports.

In just one hundred years there, Aishelia had successfully condensed two entirely new Authorities.

That was practically unheard of. Even among Four-Digit powerhouses, producing a single Authority in a century marked someone as an exceptional genius.

Back when Aishelia was only ninety-two years old, she had already attracted Athena's attention simply by condensing one Authority so early.

Now there existed a world that doubled that efficiency. There was no way Athena wouldn't take notice.

And for someone like Ryo, who had never personally gone through the process of condensing Authorities and lacked fundamental understanding, it was the perfect training ground.

After thinking for a moment, Athena nodded. "I'll erase the relevant memories and transfer the world's coordinates to Arcadia."

"...Isn't that a bit much?" Ryo sounded slightly uncomfortable.

There was no helping it. When a rich benefactor kept throwing gifts at you, it became hard not to feel overwhelmed.

Athena answered with only four words. "I can afford it."

Every objection Ryo had died in his throat.

"Before you leave, though, you'll spend some time here." At some point, a pair of black-rimmed glasses had appeared on Athena's face, making her look every bit the scholarly professor. "I'll be teaching you everything I can about conceptual condensation, how Authorities are formed, and how Authorities evolve."

"I'll compress as much knowledge as possible into your head in the shortest time available. Prepare yourself."

Looking at Athena now, Ryo's mind was immediately flooded with terrifying memories.

'Damn it. I came all the way to Little Garden, and I still can't escape studying...'

The corner of Ryo's mouth twitched.

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