Ever since the griffin had appeared, Yō Kasukabe had been visibly buzzing with excitement. Now she stepped forward eagerly, raising her hand.
"Let me go first."
She had said before that she loved making friends with animals more than anything. Seeing a legendary "fantasy species" like a griffin in the flesh—it was only natural she'd be this thrilled.
Asuka didn't object.
To be honest, she felt a little intimidated by this Gift Game.
Riding on the griffin's back wasn't the issue. But since this was a Gift Game, the creature would obviously do everything in its power to shake its rider off.
Asuka's Gift was powerful, but her physical abilities were average at best. She had no means of flight. If she were thrown from a great height…
The consequences would be unthinkable.
As for forcing the griffin to obey her with her command-based Gift—that was another problem entirely. Setting aside whether her ability would even work on a proud fantasy species like a griffin, even if it did, that wouldn't fulfill the conditions of "Strength," "Wisdom," or "Courage."
The Gift Game began.
With sparkling eyes, Yō climbed onto the griffin's broad back.
The griffin blinked in mild surprise. The girl clinging to it wasn't trembling in fear—instead, she looked… delighted.
Still, as the trial subject of Shiroyasha's Gift Game, it would not go easy on her.
With a powerful beat of its wings, the griffin launched into the sky.
Its lion-like body surged forward, talons slashing through the air as if grasping invisible footholds among the clouds. Though it was flying, it almost looked as if it were running across the heavens.
As a fantasy species, its speed was extraordinary.
Just remaining on its back meant enduring violent wind pressure and the freezing air of high altitude. An ordinary human would have been overwhelmed in seconds—hands numb, body battered by wind, then flung off into open sky.
Yet when the griffin glanced back—
It saw a girl biting her lip, face pale from the cold, but eyes blazing with determination.
"Little human," the griffin called out over the wind, "if you cannot endure, you would be wise to surrender now. I have not yet reached my top speed."
Truthfully, Yō had already surpassed what the griffin considered a passing mark.
Few humans could cling to its back against its will for this long.
But as the first challenger, the griffin felt that if she cleared the trial so easily, it—and Lady Shiroyasha—would lose face.
"I'm not giving up," Yō shot back, a hint of teasing in her voice. "If you keep this up, I might be the one who wins."
The provocation earned a sharp screech.
The air trembled.
Until now, the griffin had only been running through the sky on all fours. Now its massive wings beat once—
Its speed exploded.
Distant mountains vanished behind them in a blink. The griffin began executing sharp dives, spirals, and sudden vertical ascents—acrobatic maneuvers meant to fling the girl from its back.
But Yō's Gift seemed to grant her something beyond human limits.
Even under crushing wind and dizzying motion, her grip remained unbreakable.
After a long series of dizzying aerial loops and violent twists, the griffin had no choice but to concede.
In both strength and courage—
The girl had earned its acknowledgment.
And somewhere during that struggle, a bond had formed between them.
As they began flying back toward Ren and the others, Yō suddenly leapt from the griffin's back.
Gasps erupted from below.
Instead of plummeting, she stepped—
Onto the clouds.
Just like the griffin had done earlier.
With steady steps, she descended through the sky as though walking down invisible stairs.
Only then did everyone realize—
She was using the very same power the griffin had displayed moments ago.
Facing the stunned looks, Yō scratched her cheek and explained.
"As long as I become friends with an animal and earn its acknowledgment… I can gain its traits."
Many animals possessed physical abilities far superior to humans.
And Yō's Gift allowed her to borrow those biological traits—once acknowledged.
If it were just ordinary animals, that would already be impressive.
But this was Little Garden.
Fantasy species like griffins—and far stronger beings—existed in abundance.
If one day Yō befriended a top-tier existence and gained its recognition…
Ren couldn't help but let out a quiet, incredulous laugh.
These three problem children really were outrageous.
Their personalities might be a headache, but their abilities?
Each one was more absurd than the last.
Yō could communicate with animals and inherit their biological traits.
Asuka wielded a form of command-based authority akin to kotodama.
And Izayoi—
Izayoi was the most ridiculous of all.
Not only did he possess power capable of shattering heaven and earth—
He could even destroy Gifts themselves.
Two fundamentally contradictory powers, somehow coexisting in one person.
Since Yō had already passed the griffin's trial, there was no need for Asuka to attempt it.
The easy mode Gift Game concluded.
Shiroyasha then turned her sharp golden gaze toward the only two men remaining.
Ren Kuroda.
Izayoi Sakamaki.
"I did not expect the girl to clear 'The Griffin's Reins' so easily," Shiroyasha admitted.
She folded her fan with a snap.
"But what comes next will not be so simple."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"I will ask one final time."
"Are you certain you wish to challenge the hard mode?"
"If you surrender now, I will still grant you the reward for clearing 'The Griffin's Reins.'"
Neither Ren nor Izayoi stepped back.
Seeing the two stubborn boys refuse to retreat, Shiroyasha sighed faintly and produced the twin-goddess-emblem card once more.
A new glowing parchment descended from the sky.
Gift Game Name: The One Who Faces the SunParticipants: Ren Kuroda, Izayoi SakamakiVictory Conditions:– Survive for thirty minutes against the Star Beast summoned by the host, Shiroyasha.– Overpower the Star Beast in either Strength or Endurance, and remain conscious within the allotted time.
Defeat Conditions:– Voluntary surrender, or failure to meet the above victory conditions.
Oath:In accordance with the above rules, this Gift Game shall be conducted under the honor, banner, and authority of the host.
Seal: Thousand Eyes
Ren and Izayoi both stared at the parchment, then looked at each other with identical expressions of confusion.
"Star Beast?"
They had no idea what that meant.
But the moment Black Rabbit read the rules—
Her face drained of color.
She rushed forward immediately.
"Ren! Izayoi! Please withdraw from this Gift Game! If you don't, your lives will truly be in danger!"
Yō and Asuka looked confused by her panic.
The griffin, however, lowered its voice and explained.
A "Star Beast" was a type of Star Spirit—though lacking strong self-awareness.
But the Star Beast Shiroyasha could summon was no ordinary one.
It was a manifestation of a Sun Authority.
Little Garden possessed twenty-four Sun Authorities in total.
If one were to describe them as Gifts, they were undoubtedly among the highest-tier powers in the entire world.
Each Sun Authority represented the power of a sun and carried immense divine blessings.
At its most basic, it could serve as a medium to summon or awaken Star Beasts or even the strongest species.
It could manifest a corresponding lineage or complete a spiritual status (as in the case of Heracles or Kalki).
If one possessed the proper lineage, one could draw blessings directly from a Sun Authority.
Collectively, the twenty-four Sun Authorities contained enough power to interfere with human history itself—gather enough of them, and one could even alter the Akashic Record.
In short—
Sun Authorities were among the most overpowered forces in Little Garden.
Whenever one appeared, upper-tier communities would fight desperately over it.
And Shiroyasha?
She possessed fourteen.
The most of anyone in Little Garden.
No Name had once possessed a Sun Authority in the past—which was precisely why Black Rabbit was so shaken.
Even without using the blessings contained within it, simply summoning a Star Beast through a Sun Authority would produce a being at four-digit level.
And such Star Beasts bore the same properties as the sun itself.
They were not opponents ordinary communities could contend with.
Black Rabbit trusted Ren and Izayoi's strength.
But facing a Star Beast awakened through a Sun Authority?
In her eyes, it was far too reckless.
Ren and Izayoi were, at best, five-digit level.
To contend with a peak four-digit Star Beast?
That was impossible.
"Well?" Shiroyasha asked lightly, hiding half her face behind her fan.
"Now that you understand what you are about to face…"
She tilted her head.
"For Black Rabbit's sake—and for No Name's—I will allow you to surrender."
"It is not too late."
Ren stepped forward first.
"I won't withdraw."
His gaze was steady.
"Even if it's a so-called Sun Authority… even if it were the real sun itself."
"If I don't have the courage to face the light—"
"How could I ever claim to walk in the darkness?"
Izayoi grinned beside him.
"I'm not surrendering either."
"Peak four-digit strength, huh?"
He cracked his neck lazily.
"I've been wanting to see whether Black Rabbit's evaluation of me was accurate."
Then he glanced at Ren.
"We never settled our last match."
"How about we decide it here?"
"Let's see who's still standing at the end."