We stepped out of the hall after nearly an hour of talk. The morning air felt thin against my face. I walked between Arkas and Steve, boots steady on the broken ground.
"Where’s North?" I asked.
"Still sleeping," Arkas said, then gave me a sideways look. "What are you planning, kid?" he asked, half-smile, half-warning.
"What do you mean?" I kept my voice calm.
"Don’t play dumb," he scoffed.
"I’m not playing," I said. "Why would I play? Who am I playing for?" I let the question hang and changed course. The mood didn’t need more poking.
Steve laughed low beside me. "So how does it feel having your student outrank you?" I teased.
He pushed a small laugh back. "Happy and a little annoyed. He needs manners." Arkas ruffled his bald head like it needed fixing. I wanted to tap it hard but North was involved, so I held back. One day, I thought. One day I’d get that tap in.
We walked until we reached the edge of camp where ten grandmasters stood waiting. They had been chosen to move into the abomination zones.
I stopped and let my words fall to a whisper. "Come out." Crimson mist surged from my core, and Knight, Silver, Lyrate, and Ragnar unfolded out of it like shadows taking shape.
Ragnar stepped forward first and cracked his knuckles. "So where do I need to go and smash?" he asked, grin wide.
Lyrate just smiled. "I’ll go alone. I don’t want anyone with me, too much chance of friendly fire. If something explodes, it’s on me."
Knight cleared his throat and, in that sudden, mock-serious way he had, said, "Well, I guess it’s my duty to knight them... by smashing first and asking questions later."
Silver’s eyes lit up. "Finally. I’ll get to have a proper fight." He looked like a kid in a market with a new toy.
I coughed to hide the grin their excitement gave me. Then I set the rules. "You follow Arkas’ instructions. He’ll tell each of you which continent to hit. You lead your teams and do what you must, as long as the abominations are your target. No side shows, no wasting time."
Arkas didn’t wait for more. "All right, move out." He leapt into the sky, and the ten grandmasters rose with him. My summons followed them.
Steve leaned close and whispered, "Damn. Must feel good to have so many powerful summons at your side."
I let out a short laugh. "It does. And I’ll keep building this army. Then I’ll sit back and enjoy the quiet."
Suddenly, the space beside us rippled like water, and Dante stepped out.
"I heard you were looking for me," he said, his eyes fixed on mine.
I nodded. "Yes. I found something and thought you might be the right person to judge what it is."
"Oh?" He raised one of his wrinkled eyebrows. He was still wearing the disguise of an old, hunched man, moving slowly as if his back pained him.
"What is it that you found?" he asked.
I rubbed my chin, thinking. "I’ll tell you," I said at last. "But first, tell me why you always wear these disguises."
He stared at me for a heartbeat, then suddenly gave an eerie laugh that echoed faintly in the air.
"Well," he said, his tone almost playful, "it’s not that big of a secret. I wear these disguises because there are people looking for me. Very strong people. People I’d rather not meet until the time is right. So I hide."
I raised an eyebrow at that. If Dante had enemies he had to hide from, they weren’t from our world, which meant they were from outside.
"And who are these people?" I asked.
He shook his head. "Nope. Can’t talk about them. If I do, they’ll know." He chuckled, like it was a bad joke and a warning at the same time.
Steve and I exchanged a look. I nodded. "All right, if you say so."
"So what is it you wanted to show me?" he asked.
I waved my hand and let the maps come out of my storage ring. They floated through the air and drifted into Dante’s hands.
He opened them slowly, like a man handling something alive. There were four maps in total.
Three were clear, Vaythos, Peanu, Sukra, our worlds, drawn with the careful detail the Ferans created. The fourth was different: just a blank sweep of space with a single strange mark on it, no stars, no worlds, only a patch that felt wrong.
Dante’s face changed as he scanned them. His eyes narrowed, his mouth went thin, then his brow lifted. He sent the maps back and I stored them away.
"So what do you think?" I asked.
He was quiet for a few heartbeats, weighing words. "If I’m right and you probably saw some of it too, we need to get to Sukra fast and capture the Ferans there. That’s where we confirm what they’ve been doing."
I let a small smile out. "That’s what I thought. But what is that fourth map? I don’t understand it."
Dante’s laugh was low and close to a rasp. "That patch? It’s not a normal chart. It’s a gap. But the Ferans marked it with a sigil. I have two guesses but I will only speak about them after meeting the Ferans stationed on Sukra. Anyway, Sukra is the world closest to that patch; they must have more information."
"And you also believe that patch is the reason the Ferans suddenly took interest in our part of the galaxy?" I asked.
Dante nodded slowly. "Most likely, yes. It should be the main reason. But don’t fool yourself, kid, there might be others too. The Ferans rarely move for a single prize. Still, until we go there and confirm it ourselves, it’s only guesswork."
I dipped my head in agreement. The blank map weighed heavier in my thoughts now.
Then he tilted his head and asked, almost casually, "Also... when are you planning to rank up?"
I blinked at him. "I’ve already finished my quest. I’m standing at the peak of grandmaster right now. But my laws... they haven’t evolved yet."
His wrinkled face tightened, the false old man disguise doing nothing to hide the real concern in his tone. "You mean you’re stuck?"
I shook my head firmly. "No, not stuck. It’s just... my situation with the laws is a little unique. They don’t behave the same way as others. But I’ll figure something out."
Dante studied me for a few moments in silence.
"If you say so. But if you need help with your laws, reach out to me. Don’t judge me by my rank, kid. Now I’ll go and arrange our trip to Sukra."
He said it soft, almost like an offer. Then he gave that crooked little smile and simply vanished.