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Last Embryo Volume 8 Chapter 3 Part 1

CHAPTER 3

East Gate, Outer Gate

As the 2nd War for the Sun’s Authority has entered a brief period of rest between the end of the first round and the beginning of the second round, members of every Community returned to their home bases in order to recuperate their bodies and souls.

While they were heading towards the headquarters of the 『No Name』Community, Kudou Asuka decided to stop at the old coffee shop located at the end of the Peridot Street for a little bit.

「… After not being here for such a long time, coming to visit sure makes me feel rather nostalgic.」

Asuka said while looking at the coffee shop’s sign while holding a big bag in one of her hands. Then she remembered her first visit here when she and the other two have just been summoned to Little Garden, and she narrowed her eyes at that memory.

When she was first summoned to Little Garden together with Sakamaki Izayoi and Kasukabe You, they didn’t know anything about how this place worked, so they simply participated in the Gift Games whenever and however they seen fit.

(We challenged 『Perseus』, fought against the Celestial Spirit Algol, fend of the attack of The Demon Lord of Black Death at the Fire Dragon Birthday Festival on the North Side, took on the Giant Dragon during the Harvest Festival in the Underwood on the South Side… but between then and now, I’m glad to see that this place hasn’t changed all that much.)

She crossed her arms and then smiled wryly, because there was one more thing that didn’t change ever since they arrived in Little Garden: all three of them were still considered to be problem children. But even despite that stigma, they continued to live, fought and defeat any enemies that dared to appear before them, no matter how huge or powerful the enemy was, and Asuka was sure that this state of being won’t change from now on as well.

After ordering nothing but a single cup of black tea, Asuka sat at her table for a while and enjoyed the nostalgic scenery, after which she left the coffee shop ran by the members of the 『Six Scars』Community and continued to stroll through the Peridot Street, which admittedly got developed a little bit more than it was three years ago, as he headed towards her original destination: the territory owned by the 『No Name』Community along the roads that have been devastated and awful-looking in the past, but now they were all beautifully paved.

When she reached the front gate with light steps and with her skirt gently fluttering to the rhythm of her steps, a female guard who looked like a gatekeeper and a one-horned unicorn were already waiting for her there.

(Ara… now here’s as face that I don’t recognize.)

She met a unicorn before, but it was when she rescued a unicorn from a drought monster a long time ago, so it was very unlikely that this would be the same one as back then.

When the female guard and the unicorn noticed Asuka, they both straightened their postures and asked her about her identity.

「Halt! Beyond this point lies the territory of the 『No Name』Community, the current 「Floor Masters」of the East Side! Before you proceed any further, give us your name and state your business!」

「Ara ara, it looks like things have become quite tense during the time when I was away. My name is Kudou Asuka, a former core member of 『No Name』, although right now I have gone independent.」

The vigilant female guard has suddenly opened her eyes widely and saluted Asuka.

「Excuse me, Ma’am! You are the friend of the leader, right? In that case, we’ve been instructed to let you pass, so please go right ahead!」

「Thank you.」

When she walked past the gate after the guard and the unicorn, she moved to the residential area, but the devastated streets and the barren lands that she once remembered were also nowhere to be seen now.

Rows of houses with stunningly beautiful exteriors were lining up both sides of the street now, and the pastel colors of the buildings and structures that lined the boulevards were all truly vivid. All f the merchants who had set up their stalls there were trading a varied line of different types of products.

Asuka’s eyes sparkled as she let out an admiring voice at the sight of the townscape which she hadn’t seen since three years ago.

「A… amazing! I never thought that things would change so much in just three years!」

All of the local residents were looking at Asuka with surprised faces as she went around clapping her hands happily at everything that was unfolding before her eyes. Once she was done gushing at everything, she calmed herself down, put her hands behind her back and proceeded to go further along the highway.

(The most important thing is that this unsightly barren wasteland is no longer here.)

What she remembered were empty fields filled with nothing but white withered trees and desolate roads, dead farmlands overgrown with weeds and sand and gravel everywhere, but now it was as if they were never there.

Maybe it was all because of the increasing number of residents that seemed to be growing ever since You took her position as both the Community’s leader and the 「Floor Master」? Or maybe it was thanks to the lost members of the former 『No Name』returning back home when they learned that their fallen Community managed to pick itself up from the dirt and recover?

As Asuka was walking around with such thoughts filling her head, she suddenly heard a familiar voice coming to her ears from afar.

「Cheap! This time I am really proud of the quality and the way how it turned out, so it’s going to be worth at least two of the silver 『Thousand Eyes』coins…!!」

「I… If at all possible, then can we make it two silver coin and one copper coin instead of two silver coins?」

「E, eeeh? As usual, you’re trying to overcharge, Ayesha-chan, Willa-chan.」

When Asuka was approaching one of the merchants in a suit, Asuka let out a surprised voice when she saw two familiar girls with blue hair.

「Ayesha! And Willa too!」
「Uwaah! I was thinking who might that be, but it turns out it was Asuka! Looks like you’ve really came back, huh?」

「Of course. It seems like you’re getting along well with each other?」

「Yes. I owe it to Croix-san and You-san. Both of them have been so kind to me.」

The blue-haired girls who received the payment from the merchant were Ayesha Ignis Fatus and Willa the Ignis Fatus. Both of them fought together with Asuka and the others when Leticia turned into a Demon Lord and went on a rampage. Without the help from the two of them and the Jack-o-Lantern, it would have been difficult for the problem children to survive that encounter.

「Well, it’s really been a long time… but there’s no need for us to be standing here. Come, we’ll call Izayoi and You right away!」

「Thank you. I will take you up on your kind offer then.」

The two invited Asuka into the store while doing gutsy poses. And when they invite her to take a seat, they asked her about the 2nd War for the Sun’s Authority with curious looks on their faces.

「So how was the 2nd War for the Sun’s Authority? Did you take part in it?!」

「Well, yes, I did, but truth to be told, I couldn’t do much. I have seen firsthand that the world is indeed a vast and unpredictable place.」

「It’s okay, don’t worry about it. Considering just how big and specific of a place Little Garden is, if you were to worry about not being able to do your absolute best and being in the spotlight all the time, then you’d have to worry about it constantly for the past three years.」

When she said that, Willa looked away as if she was really ashamed. When it comes to her situation, even though she was doing her best, Jack-o-Lantern, who was like a reliable foster father to her, was probably still in the midst of desperately giving it his all to support her as the head of her Community.

Being able to run a successful business was also an important part of keeping your Community afloat, but in Little Garden everyone wishing to make a name for themselves and their Community needs to excel at the Gift Games as well.