—There is no need for concern, Count.

That voice echoed in Baronet Modrio’s mind. A calm voice that once soothed the anxious hearts of everyone in the Count’s household.

—The black sphere that appeared in the sky is nothing more than a trick of the stars, amused by human conflict. There’s °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° no need to respond.

—The wall blocking the domain is a mere threat. It’s just trying to scare us into turning on each other. Ignore it.

—The destruction of the communication tower, in fact, signals our victory. We’re holding firm, and the stars are simply poking out of spite.

A voice that reverberated through the mind.

And that voice had never once been wrong.

Everyone in the Count’s estate—including the Count himself—took those words in with hazy expressions.

This isn’t a crisis.

This isn’t a war.

And furthermore,

—That Dante Hiakapo is nothing of importance.

—Give up a few fortresses if you must.

—You don’t need to worry about him.

......Even the man standing before them now was no big deal.

But unlike the voice that had rung in his ears just days prior, Professor Dante had taken control of more than twenty fortresses across the second stratum. That wasn’t something to be brushed off anymore.

And yet, it was still fine.

“Dante Hiakapo—!”

Baronet Modrio couldn’t hide his voice.

“Did you wash your neck and wait, you cheeky fucking lunatic?!”

The opponent might be nothing special—but he had a great friend at his side.

Kaiser Truman.

A man who, at a young age, conquered the southern territory of the Lewiyan Viscounty and unified numerous minor Black Abyss groups.

But upon meeting him in person, Modrio realized—Kaiser was far beyond someone you could sum up with a mere list of accomplishments.

“Why the silence? Professor Dante Hiakapo! Don’t tell me you’re scared shitless?”

He still remembered their first encounter.

A single sentence, and then without so much as a flicker of mana, a massive meteor streaked down and exploded.

The tremors almost made Modrio collapse.

And those eyes that had looked down at him then—he remembered them.

The Count’s estate had claimed the blast came from the sphere above the sky, but what did those fools know?

He was the one who could call such a man a friend.

It was as if he had a dragon at his back.

Now, he would not only drive out that outsider professor, but seize the power of the first and second strata to challenge his elder brother.

That was what he hoped for.

“Professor Dante! Crawl forward right now and bow your head, and I’ll spare you the death sentence! You, a mere professor, dare to defy the Count’s—”

A staff jabbed into his nape like a spike.

Startled, Modrio turned to his side.

Kaiser was staring at him, dead serious.

...Why?

Did he make some mistake?

“Sir Modrio.”

The heavy voice snapped his thoughts back into place.

“Y-Yes, what is it...”

“Leave.”

“E-Eh...?”

“I won’t say it a third time.”

The knights and retainers who had followed Baronet Modrio looked around, flustered, but Kaiser’s voice was clear.

“Leave.”

Nervously, Modrio bowed and stepped out. He didn’t want to displease his dragon-like friend.

But just as he was about to exit—

Modrio saw it.

A shocking scene.

......!!

A man who felt like a giant—no, larger than even the brother he’d feared all his life—was now kneeling before Professor Dante.

Head bowed.

‘W-What the hell is...!!’

***

“...Professor. It’s an honor to see you again.”

If this had been an emotional family reunion, it might have been nice.

But the delegation from Modrio’s barony was peeking in through the crack in the door.

“The floor is dirty, Kaiser. Get up.”

Like me, who wore gravitas like a passive skill, Kaiser stayed kneeling, but didn’t let the tension fade from his eyes.

As someone trudging through life’s harsh paths, I had once wanted to ask Kaiser about all that had happened since we parted.

How he’d been living.

But with this many eyes watching, that wasn’t an option.

Nor was this the time.

“There’s much for us to discuss. But now is not the time.”

“...Indeed.”

We began by sharing information.

I asked why Kaiser had come here.

He told me he’d come to track Bomiteca—who was, as it turned out, currently watching us from the sky above.

Kaiser narrowed his eyes and shared what he knew.

The intel was astonishing.

“There’s a Chief Professor named Moong here?”

“Yes.”

“That man... he was a legend in the Department of Warfare.”

“He had been in seclusion for a long time. From what I uncovered, he currently resides somewhere in the local third stratum.”

Moong was a great professor. In this world’s setting, he alone could wield a level-9 psychic ability.

‘Moong... and the Hero.’

Until now, I’d been drifting into control without much thought.

But inwardly, I had many doubts.

‘So... can the Count’s domain even defeat Bomiteca?’

But now I had a trump card.

One that could be used in the Bomiteca battle—an incredibly powerful card.

“There’s one more thing I’d like to ask.”

“What is it.”

“I found traces of the Dormant Dragon Cadets on the second stratum. Was it your doing that they stirred up every fortress they passed?”

“Half of it was.”

“...I suspected as much.”

In truth, it wasn’t.

But I decided to say it was.

Because I had just realized it myself.

There was a presence floating in the air by the window, one that had followed Kaiser inside.

● Kwan, 1st-Year Dormant Dragon Cadet

【Script】wasn’t visible, but his [Name Tag] was.

“Do you enjoy spying from the shadows?”

I said casually.

And Kwan skittered away like a cockroach.

Impossible to get a read on him.

“...?”

Kaiser’s irises shifted.

Seems he had no idea.

“...Who was that?”

“Kwan.”

“Ah, that strange bastard...”

If Kwan was here so randomly—

That must mean the entire Dormant Dragon group had been summoned.

The rest of the Dante assassination squad probably came together as a unit.

‘Now it makes sense.’

Apparently, they’d been going around spreading my name and causing havoc in the first and second strata.

So the stars had recognized my achievements as their advisor—and granted me star fragments.

‘I figured they were senior professor level...’

But to shake up an entire territory as a team of four?

Thanks to them, I’d earned a generous amount of star fragments.

It was great.

And also unpleasant.

‘...Will they be part of the Bomiteca battle?’

If they’re there, I’ve got four powerful cards in hand.

But a part of me hopes they’re not.

And then came the truly shocking news.

“...Is it true? War Commander Aemon was cast aside after being used?”

“Yes. It happened around three years ago.”

“Then who is the current strategist of the Count’s household?”

“A man named Carlos. He defected from a foreign Black Abyss unit and brought a [quasi-grandmaster] knight with him.”

No wonder...

Every uneasy puzzle piece in my mind began to click into place.

And I had a strong feeling this might be the 0.5% chance [Demonic Strategist] event triggered by erosion.

A high-tier demon—one specializing in mental curses or illusion magic.

Nothing else could explain such absurd, lukewarm behavior.

Moong. The Hero. Aemon.

I had to bring all three.

After more information sharing, Kaiser reported that he had already brought Modrio under his control.

That meant strata 1, 2, and 3 were now in our hands.

From here on, my task was very simple.

“Would you dance the sword for me?”

“I will.”

It was time to topple the Count’s house.

“Even if it’s with a staff.”

***

Baronet Modrio, caught in the inexplicable current, was dragged by his hair.

Professor Dante encountered assassins wearing elephant masks and exchanged words with them.

Commander Kaiser moved the troops. Modrio had no choice but to obey him.

Under those vertically split pupils, there was no option to refuse.

Who knew what would happen if he rebelled?

And all the while, Modrio’s eyes stayed locked on Professor Dante.

The head of the Dominion Council—Kaiser—had bowed his head to him like a servant.

‘This can’t be real.’

Some nobles, raised among dignitaries since childhood, develop a sense for people’s character.

Even though Modrio had grown up as a money-chasing noble under his brother’s heel, he had that sense.

And after spending two days with Kaiser, he had realized—Kaiser was more capable than even the Count.

If someone like that served this Dante as his master...

Then just how great must that man be?

‘It doesn’t make sense.’

He couldn’t accept it.

Could such a being exist?

And if so—why was he here, in some backwater Count’s territory?

Besides,

‘...What they said in the Count’s estate doesn’t match.’

They’d all insisted Dante was nobody and would be easy to eliminate.

‘Who said that first?’

It was Strategist Carlos.

He had appeared out of nowhere two or three years ago with Sir Bliop, and quickly became the Count’s favorite.

His words had never been wrong before.

—That Dante Hiakapo is nothing of importance.

—Give up a few fortresses if you must.

—You don’t need to worry about him.

Again, that voice, as if humming through his skull.

All of them, including Modrio, had listened blankly.

And yet, Dante’s dominion was...

As night fell, with troops from every stratum assembled, and the four elephant assassins at their side—

Dante and Kaiser entered the Count’s stronghold.

Kaiser moved his assassins like a ghost, and in the blink of an eye, the knights were overwhelmed.

But the Count still had strength.

The house’s strongest knight, ranked 1,254—Sir Bliop—stood in their way with a greatsword.

Even Dante didn’t act recklessly in the face of both the Count and Bliop.

A tense standoff ensued—until Strategist Carlos shouted:

“Count! You must kill the professor!”

The voice that had always soothed everyone—

“Kill that trash professor now!”

—was now twisted with venom, disturbing everyone’s hearts.

“He is a pawn of the stars! A tool to torment humankind!”

“As long as he lives, they will keep attacking us!”

“Kill him! Sir Bliop, kill that man—!!”

Even Modrio, watching all this unfold, felt a chill in his chest.

Was the professor someone who must be killed?

Yet at the center of it all, Dante remained calm.

Looking at Carlos, serene as ever.

Those who had been briefed by Kaiser—including Modrio—tensed.

According to Dante, the Count’s house needed to join forces to fight the monster in the sky.

To do that, they had to fight Carlos.

But the Count loved Carlos more than his own wife.

Killing Carlos here would mean full-scale war between the Count’s forces and Dante’s.

Mutual destruction.

“Kill him!! What is Sir Bliop doing?! Kill that man!!”

Carlos, who had always embraced them like a father or mother, was now screaming.

And then—it happened.

Professor Dante stepped forward alone.

“P-Professor!”

“Please don’t!”

The fortress lords shouted, panicking.

But he did not stop.

“Stop right there if you don’t want a hole in your skull!”

Even the Count’s command couldn’t halt him.

But that slow, steady walk made everyone tense.

Something had begun.

“You...”

Finally, he spoke.

“Did you think you could keep deceiving humanity forever?”

Professor Dante questioned Strategist Carlos.

“What the hell kind of bullshit is that, you star’s lackey! How dare you insult our strategist—!!”

The Count shouted urgently.

Tsrrrng— The knight unsheathed his greatsword.

“Sir Bliop—!!”

But Dante remained composed.

As if that great knight meant nothing.

“Count Kahla.”

“What?!”

“Human eyes are imperfect. They rely on constant correction. That’s why we so often fall for optical illusions. We cannot see reality clearly.”

“...What are you saying!?”

“Eyes that cling to color see false hues. Eyes fixated on shape exaggerate form. Those who’ve only looked inward cannot see what lies beyond.”

His quiet voice pierced ears and took root in minds.

“......It’s time you all opened your eyes.”

Opened their eyes?

Dante continued walking. Bliop stepped in his way.

“Stop!!”

Whoooom!

The greatsword swung.

Screams echoed around.

“Professor! D-Danger!”

“That knight’s a high-ranker!!”

But Dante just asked,

“Do you all still see this thing as a knight?”

What the hell was he saying?

And then—something shocking happened.

Dante passed through Bliop’s body and emerged behind him.

‘Wha...!!’

‘He passed through!?’

‘What in the world...!’

People believe in what they’ve seen for a long time. That’s how the brain works.

They had lived with Bliop and Carlos for over three years.

They had trusted in the space called “the Count’s House.”

Only one thing didn’t belong in that familiar scene—

Dante Hiakapo.

He raised his right hand.

A ring began to vibrate.

Baronet Modrio, who had felt that vibration before during his time in the Empire, realized instantly—

It was the Stigma of Grim Reaper Ω.

A wave burst from the ring, shattering illusions and sweeping through the entire building.

The moment that dreadful tremor tore through the world—

The Count’s House collapsed.

―─┹─━–╈‒—━┲─―

The ceiling, the walls, everything they’d trusted for years shattered like glass.

Revealing symbols drawn in ominous red lines.

It was a [curse] formation.

Even the Bliop they thought Dante had passed—crumbled into fragments.

There had never been anyone there at all.

They had only believed there had been.

Carlos’s pleasant expression cracked open.

Uneven, twisted wrinkles formed across his skin.

A mage recognized it as a side effect of [long-term overload].

Everyone understood instinctively—

That wasn’t human.

‘This can’t be...!!’

‘W-What is this even...!!’

They all froze in shock. Modrio. The Count. Everyone.

And at the center, Professor Dante looked at the Count.

“Do you see now?”

Everyone in the Count’s House was stunned.

The Count crumbled, realizing that his castle, his strategist, his knight—everything he had trusted—was fake.

A battle broke out.

The false strategist was swiftly defeated, his head lopped off.

‘Ah.......’

Then, Baronet Modrio understood.

There had been one question that had haunted him since the start.

If Kaiser served someone...

Then what kind of man must that be?

Not a Count. Not even a King or Emperor.

He hadn’t known the answer—

But now, a perfect one came to him.

Anyone can leash a creature, tag it, and force it to obey.

But to dominate strangers, in unfamiliar places—

Without a leash.

......Only such a man could do that.

Dante Hiakapo.

Only a man with that kind of dominion—

Could make Kaiser kneel.