Part 8[แก้ไข]
Upon returning to the Headquarters after wrapping things up on the other end, Izayoi, Asuka and Jin had made a beeline to the Community workroom to confirm Yō’s situation. The workroom that Yō was warded in was a ritual ground that drew upon the power of Gifts for treatment.
Fortunately for them, the Demon Lord who had laid the [No Name] in shambles years ago did not bother to lay a hand on the treasury that hoarded the Gifts collected by the Community. And that left them with various Gifts stored within the workrooms. But due to their unique nature that required a lot of conditions to be met in order to be wielded, most of them were too troublesome to be operated and as such, made it difficult to find a buyer on the market who would take an interest to such high requirement equipment. Hence, they could leave them to lie and collect dust in the Treasury workrooms.
After paying a visit to Yō, Izayoi who was lying on the sofa in the lounge asked Kuro Usagi with disbelief in his voice:
“I heard that Kasukabe’s injury will just require two or three days to be completely mended. Is this where they would say ‘as expected of Little Garden where the Gods reside’?”
“Yes. It’s just that she had lost quite a bit of blood so Kuro Usagi helped to perform a treatment to increase her red blood cell count. After all, if a blood transfusion were to be required, we would have to ask for another specialized Community to handle it.”
“Well, I guess it’s a good choice since that wouldn't require us to pay any fees right? Oh I almost forgot. What's the situation like for the Game you talked about the other time?”
Izayoi and Kuro Usagi were alone in the lounge on the third level of the Headquarters and they were discussing the Game where their comrade had been offered up as the Game reward.
Upon learning of Izayoi's willingness to participate in the Game, Kuro Usagi had happily gone to submit an application, but her expression upon her return was one that looked close to crying.
“The Game was delayed?!”
“Yes……Kuro Usagi had only learnt of it when she tried to apply for it. Looking at the way things are faring, it would seem that there’s a possibility that it will be delayed indefinitely.”
The rabbit ears on Kuro Usagi's head drooped while her face seemed to look disheartened and regretful as she pulled a long face.
Having propped himself up a little while earlier, Izayoi now fell back to the sofa seeming to regret having worked up his anticipation for nothing.
“To actually do such a silly thing as that. Can’t we just talk to Shiroyasha about it and ask her for some other way?”
“There shouldn't be any way by now, for it’s the talk of the town that there’s been a buyer who has taken interest and has made a generous offer.”
Izayoi scowled at that, clearly displeased by what he heard. But this unhappiness wasn’t caused by the sale of individuals.
Instead, the unhappiness was due to the notion of the Host redrawing the offer of the Game reward due to the appearance of a buyer with a generous offer.
Izayoi clicked his tongue in irritation:
“Tch! In the end it’s just an organization of traders?! From the perspective of what Hosts should actually do, that kind of act can only be called a despicable act! Isn’t [Thousand Eyes] a large group of Communities? How can they stoop that low?”
“There’s nothing we can do about it. After all [Thousand Eyes] IS A LARGE GROUP OF COMMUNITIES. With more than half of the Organization being directly under Shiroyasha-sama, but there’s still another portion that is under the control of the Communities under that Flag. And the Community that’s supposed to be in charge of hosting the Game is a cadre under the Flag, a Community by the name of [Perseus]. So long as the sum of the offer or Gift offered up to exchange for it is attractive enough, they wouldn’t bat an eye about putting a stain on the flag of the Twin Goddess, such as being bold enough to redraw the Gift Game.”
Although Kuro Usagi’s words may have sounded like a reluctant acceptance of fate, her regret and hate were definitely many times greater than what Izayoi felt.
Even so, the reason for her composure was due to the fact that Gift Games were the absolute law of Little Garden.
To retrieve one’s comrades who had been taken as trophies from the loss of a Gift Game was definitely a difficult task.
But Kuro Usagi was also clear that the only way to regain her former comrades would be through the winning of Gift Games. Hence, it could only be counted as an unfortunate event where luck wasn’t on their side and obediently give up on the thought.
“Forget it, let’s just wait for the next time then. Come to think about it, what kind of person is that comrade?”
“Well……To put it in one line, she’s a gorgeous woman with beautiful silky golden hair that feels just like flowing silk if you use your fingers to run through them while combing. And when she takes a bath, the wet hair glistens like the light of the stars as it sparkles.”
“Oh? I don’t really get it, but it sounds like something that’s a worth a look.”
“Of course! Plus she’s very thoughtful about others, having taken a role as a Guardian[1] for Kuro Usagi. If only she were nearby, Kuro Usagi would really want to talk to her a little……”
“Ara, those words really make me happy.”
The both of them were shocked as they immediately turned to look at the windows to see a golden haired teenage girl smiling while standing in mid-air outside the windows that were rattling quite noisily.
“Le…Leticia-sama!” Kuro Usagi who jumped up in surprise immediately rushed over to the windows.
“Don’t call me sama anymore, I’m now just a possession of another person. As a [Highborn of Little Garden], if you were to regard a [possession] with respect, you would be mocked, you know?”
Having opened the windows, the golden haired teenage girl who was named Leticia wore a bitter smile as she entered the lounge.
Her beautiful golden hair had a special custom-made ribbon fastened behind her head while a red leather jacket was pulled over the long dress. Although it was said that she’s an elder to Kuro Usagi, she appeared to look quite young.
“Excuse my rudeness for entering through the windows, but I just wanted to see you, Kuro Usagi without letting Jin know about my visit.”
“Is…Is that so? Ah! Kuro Usagi will get tea for you, please wait a moment!”
Perhaps it was the happiness from seeing a former comrade who had been lost for a long time, Kuro Usagi skipped lightly to the tea preparation room.
Noticing that Izayoi was also present and the fact that he was using a strange look to stare at her face, Leticia tilted her head as she returned the gaze.
“Is something the matter? Or is there something on my face?”