There was an academic exchange agreement between the Empire and Hiaka. Chief Professor Cain and I were also seated at a corner of the signing ceremony.

It meant that the department was now officially opening up.

After that, countless professors tried to send their assassin squads into the Empire. I followed the tide as well.

“Hohoho...! Dante! Come over here!”

Dean Shaman said he had a special opportunity prepared for me, but I turned him down. I was confident I could rise without favors like that—and I didn’t want to owe the department anything if I could help it.

“Why won’t you accept it!?”

“Because I don’t want to.”

“I don’t like that! Hm?! I said I don’t like it!”

His fingers dug into my jawline with surprising force. I had no choice. If I accepted something like that, Shaman the Stepmother would start meddling in everything.

Anyway.

That morning, I headed to the assassin squad’s training ground as usual, where Professors Leo from White Saber and Eugene were deep in serious discussion.

By the way, I hadn’t seen Eugene in a while, and now his stomach was noticeably bulging. He was pregnant.

“Ah, Professor Dante! You’re here again today?”

Professor Leo waved.

“What were you two talking about?”

“Oh, you know. These days, the mood in the Imperial Royal Court is seriously weird.”

“How so?”

“Well, we’ve been tracking the frequency of dungeon openings lately.”

Eugene, the squarish, glasses-wearing FM-type, projected a graph into the air using [Illusion].

In the past month, the number of dungeon broadcast rights and royal sponsorship funds had exploded by 700%.

The betting table had swelled all on its own.

“Did you already know about this, Professor Dante?”

“I knew the growth was steep. But I didn’t realize it was 700%.”

“It’s a mess. The Empire, who used to only hoard money, suddenly started spending—and the whole world has gone insane trying to follow.”

Professor Eugene’s tone was grave.

“Our guess is... they’re looking for ‘young geniuses.’”

“Young geniuses, huh.”

“You know the ones, right? The teenage prodigies from the [Competitiveness↑ Dungeon]—no one knows what country they’re from.”

“......”

Of course I knew.

They were my kids.

“...Ah. I read in the paper recently that Kreutz’s assassin squad received 200 million Hika as prize money.”

At that, both professors sprang up.

“Exactly! It was Kreutz Academy’s fourth-year dream team, and they’ve been causing an uproar this past month!”

“They’re now getting sponsorships from the Academy, from the Kreutz royal family, even from the Imperial court! It’s like wings on a tiger!”

They were absolutely seething with envy.

Muttering about how they were eating scraps dropped in the wrong places.

But I wasn’t the only one feeling twitchy.

【 Gray: ‘...Fuck.’ 】

Far off in the training ground, the sharp-eared catgirl was grumbling to herself.

【 Balmung: ‘The glory that should’ve gone to Professor... Why the hell is it going to those other bastards...? This is so fucking frustrating.’ 】

The others were pulling faces like they had sweet potatoes jammed down their throats.

【 Elize: ‘Hmm. Why’s everyone looking like that?’ 】

Then again, not everyone cared.

And I was fine too.

Now that the agreement had been signed, I had a valid reason to protect the kids from the Empire.

“Gather up.”

Regardless of this or that, we had a job to do.

“Our first official dungeon run in the Empire is scheduled for one week from now.”

“Huh??”

“Oh! Really?”

“Yeah. So starting today, we’ll begin specialized training to prepare for that dungeon.”

At this point, we needed to go over the Empire’s “Five-Rank League System.”

All combat parties—assassin squads, mercenary teams, and the like—are formed with 3 to 5 members.

They operate within the Empire’s “League.”

They enter dungeons, labyrinths, towers, and fight.

These battles are broadcast to the media and the public via the [Colossal Seer Mark] of the “Observation Fortress.”

In other words, the Empire treats these warriors’ battles as entertainment—like sports.

Outstanding parties start in the Baron League and climb through Viscount, Count, Marquis, and Duke Leagues, eventually reaching the “Capital League.”

This entire structure is called the “Five-Rank League System.”

“Normally, we’d start in the Baron League.”

For reference, even a single county in the Empire can be larger than the entire Hiaka Kingdom.

“But we’re starting in the Marquis League.”

We had received bonus points through the academic agreement.

A special perk from the Empire, just for hearing the name “Dante.”

“Marquis League? Just like that?”

“Uh... Doesn’t it usually take years to get that far...?”

Balmung and Gray asked, understandably surprised. We’d gotten lucky right from the starting line.

“Which means the eyes on us will be brutal.”

“Hmm, why’s that?”

“Why do you think? We’re parachute kids who got showered with privileges. It’s like in a place where you’re supposed to get one bone for running fast, we show up with three bones already in our mouths. How do you think that looks?”

“Gasp.”

Elize’s face grew serious.

Then she stared at me with wide, blazing eyes.

“...Let’s see how fast this mutt can run.”

“Exactly.”

So we had to perform well.

“Warm-up first.”

As the owner of the assassin squad, as their professor, and here in the training ground—as their coach—I began warming up with them.

At the same time, I explained.

“The dungeon we’ll be entering is called the ‘City of Mirrors.’ A strange maze of mana mimics a modern city inside a hollow cave. We’ll be fighting monsters in that fake underground metropolis.”

In short, it was urban warfare.

“The dungeon is rated [A-Class]. The Marquis League run will involve 180 participants total—41 elite combat parties. And the Marquisate alone has over two million people. They’ll all be watching.”

“We need to place at least third. Since we’re from a foreign nation, this first dungeon run has to prove our worth. We can’t even hand over our nameplate to the Marquis League without that.”

“But remember—no injuries. That comes first. You all have too rare a talent to get damaged in a place like this. If you’re going to get hurt, make sure it’s in a place worth getting hurt for.”

From there, I explained the structure of the dungeon, the types and weaknesses of the monsters, and the [Missions] derived from the dungeon’s curse.

After training, I started spending all the money I’d saved to get them gear, one by one.

I even crafted personal development plans for each of them.

“Gray. Your illusions still can’t distinguish between friend and foe. You need to deploy them in isolated spaces.”

“Hmm... So I need to be separated from the others...?”

“Exactly. Also, work on casting smaller illusions for shorter durations—deploy and retrieve quickly.”

“Elize. Relax. Relax your body!”

“Pant, pant...”

“Relax when you run. When you swing your sword. When you ambush. Your shoulders are too tense!”

“But... don’t you have to use strength when stabbing hard...?”

“No. Nearly all movement should be at 80% effort. That way, your mana and stamina consumption only hits 20%.”

“Eighty percent...”

“You ran out of mana quickly in the Bomiteka fight too, remember? You still need to learn how to ration it better.”

“Balmung. You’re the weakest in this dungeon. Snipers suffer in city warfare.”

“...Wouldn’t it help if I got as high up as possible?”

“The City of Mirrors may look like it has a sky, but it’s really just a cave ceiling masked with [Illusion]. You can’t climb that high. Instead, save your strength for the boss fight. That’s when you’ll have your moment.”

“Understood.”

“Ugh...”

“...U-Ugh.”

“Yeah. Let’s give it our all.”

......

After that, we began training tailored to each of our roles.

At first, the kids seemed worried—wondering if they’d learn anything outside their usual fields—but that concern faded quickly.

I wasn’t stingy with ‘Stardust Fragments.’ I used them to gain [Revelation] in each specialty area and trained them accordingly.

“Ugh... Ughhh...”

“Pant, pant......”

“Haah, I feel like I’m dying......”

Every evening, they’d be gasping for breath.

And I would say:

“As you know, reaching the Capital League in the Empire’s Five-Rank League is a realm allowed to only the top 0.01% of combat parties. Normally, it takes five to ten years.”

But for us, it had to be different.

The Demon King War would begin as soon as the Dormant Dragon Cadets graduated. We only had three years ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) left.

We were out of time.

“Six months.”

I said it with firm resolve.

“We’re reaching the Capital League in six months. Before summer break ends in the second year.”

The kids nodded solemnly.

Every warrior dreams of that climb to the top.

“......”

“......”

To stand at the summit.

***

“Danger! It’s a crisis!”

Thunk. A bag of popcorn fell from an Imperial citizen’s hands.

The location: the [Observation Hall] in the Empire’s Marquisate.

A sort of movie theater where league matches were broadcast.

“The mirror mech soldiers are charging! They’re heading straight for the Ludique Magic Division!”

“Ah! Ludique is getting wiped out!”

“The machines are moving again! They’re charging the Harin Party now!”

“Aah, this is bad! The terrain really, really doesn’t favor mages...”

The expressions of the Imperial spectators watching the battle in the dark began to harden.

“Uh... uhh... aren’t they gonna die...?”

“One of Ludique’s mages went down! Ah! The shell—!”

The preset 『Reverse Summon』 spell triggered, and the heavily injured warrior was bounced out of the dungeon.

“They lived.”

But the injury was unavoidable.

“Those mechs are nuts. Why are monsters hiding inside buildings...?”

“No seriously, what the hell? Why are they so strong?”

The watchers were starting to panic. It wasn’t the kind of fight you’d expect in a standard A-class dungeon.

I narrowed my eyes.

“The mech soldiers’ assault is way fiercer than anyone anticipated!”

“Most of the participants were already weakened by the 『Curse of Frailty』 cast on the dungeon and the earlier city skirmish with goblins. Plus, the [Mission] is specifically tuned to slow everyone down—ah! Aah! And right now―”

“Aah! It’s bad! The Harin Party is being cornered, just like Ludique!”

“Oh!!”

“Ohhh!?”

“What?! Harin’s reverse summon isn’t activating!”

“It’s a summoning error!!”

“No way—how is there a summoning error here!?”

On-screen, the popular Marquis League mage ‘Harin’ was driven to the edge. A mech soldier’s massive fist came crashing in.

Smash—

A blow that shattered a wall. Her body flew, hit the floor, tumbled—blood gushing from her mouth.

“Ah! No!! Harin—!!”

“Shit, no, fuck...!!”

“Hey, hey! Harin’s gonna die! Why the hell isn’t the reverse summon working, you bastards!!”

The crowd leapt to their feet in horror.

Harin tried to get up—but collapsed. She staggered, then slammed her head into the ground. She looked like a fly swatted midair. But the monster had no mercy.

The mech soldier’s hand extended again.

A red glow began to concentrate in its palm.

“It’s 『Obliteration Light』! Harin is in danger!!”

The commentator shrieked. The crowd screamed.

“Moveeeee!!”

“Noooooo―!!”

Right then, on the Observation Fortress’s ability status window—a new, never-before-seen ability name appeared.

『 Dawn Wilderness Trail 』

── A single assassin streaked across five rooftops. Like lightning. In an instant, he cleaved the mech’s thick arm. Slice—

“Ohhhhhhh!?”

“Whoa! It’s cut! The mech’s arm is cut!! Was that an assassin?!”

The commentators jumped up, yelling.

“Waaaaaaaah!!”

“Yeeaaahh! What the hell was that―!?”

“Harin’s alive! The assassin grabbed her and is running!!”

The citizens clutched their chests in relief and joy.

“Who was that? We can’t see the face because of the mask!”

“Ah!! Number 71! It’s Number 71...”

“If it’s 71... that’s Dante’s assassin squad from Hiaka Academy!”

“Ahh! Elize! The only daughter of the Shadowless Star○—Elize!!”

As the commentators shouted, the people roared.

Without realizing it, my fists were clenched tight.

Just like that—on their first A-Class dungeon run, Dante’s assassin squad took first place in dominant fashion.

┃ Main Quest [Achievement: A-Class Dungeon 1st Place]

┃ Reward: Stardust Fragment × 25

The next day, the name of Dante’s assassin squad was known throughout the entire Marquis League.