“Wh-What the—!?”
“WhoaaaAAAH!!”
A half-beat late, shock rippled through the crowd.
As the space collapsed, the dragon’s massive body of blue fire exploded into countless fragments—tens of thousands, millions of shards filled the entire set.
“Wha... what... what was that?!”
“What the hell just happened?!”
The duel was over in an instant.
Confused shouts echoed from all sides.
While light engulfed the stage, lines of baffled 【Script】 scrolled one after another.
【 ‘What the...? What just happened?’ 】
【 ‘His illusion shattered! But how...?’ 】
【 ‘The “Camera Orb”! Wait—there’s nothing on it!’ 】
They had no idea how I broke the illusion.
Because all they saw... was a glass butterfly land on a dragon.
Nothing more.
And that applied to our side as well. Even Wilhelm was squinting, clearly perplexed by the outcome.
I had shattered his illusion far too easily.
【 ‘What the hell did he do...?!’ 】
They’d be dying to know.
I slowly approached Chief Professor Horup.
“H-hah... nghh!!”
Kneeling on the ground, he clutched at his # Nоvеlight # throat and gasped for air. When he noticed me approaching, he looked up—eyes filled with terror.
“Y-You... what the hell was that just now...?!”
“Were you fooled?”
I gave him a faint smile.
The method I used to shatter his illusion was simple.
I invoked a new ability unlocked upon reaching 90% mastery—Fusion Forgery of space and perception.
And [Near Death]—was the sensation of dying.
It lasted only ten seconds.
But in that time, half my mana was spent.
And in those ten seconds, Horup likely felt at least twenty-five distinct symptoms:
The sensation of his neck skin being sliced, The trauma of bones being severed, The wet spray of arterial blood, The nerve pain from the cut, The world flipping as his head fell, The sound of his windpipe being torn open, And the thud as his head hit the ground...All of it.
The raw, visceral sensations that form the human brain’s deepest fear response—dying.
In other words, for ten seconds, Horup was dead.
A person flinches from a scratch. A flame against your finger is enough to shock your nerves.
What happens when your brain believes you’ve died?
So, I didn’t shatter his illusion—he did.
Overwhelmed by death, Chief Professor Horup broke his own spell.
“Guh...!!”
And just as I thought—his eyes widened as realization hit him.
“Y-You... that [Illusion] just now, don’t tell me...!”
A Grandmaster of his caliber, struck head-on, might be able to perceive the nature of my technique.
Because this illusion was too real.
Horup stared at me as if I were the monster under the bed, clutching his throat.
“Y-Y-You’re...!!”
But he couldn’t speak.
He had almost died just now—and I was standing within his safety radius.
【 Chief Professor Horup†: ‘That... that was definitely World Forgery......!!’ 】
I narrowed my eyes.
This was what I had feared. He was an illusionist from the age of Abraxas.
No matter. I had already anticipated this.
And now, I decided—I would cross one final line I had kept reserved.
“Chief Professor Horup. Recall what just happened.”
“......”
All around us, shards of light still rained down, masking us from the outer world.
Telling someone not to think of an elephant ensures they think of nothing else.
With one sentence, I invaded his mental imagery.
Then I raised my hand—and poured all my remaining mana into the spell.
⋮
『World Forgery: Memory Forgery [Illusion Duel]』
⋮
[Memory Forgery]—a formula gained upon reaching 90% mastery.
The next moment, his mindscape unfolded in my head.
The duel—seen from Horup’s point of view.
From the perspective of the massive dragon head, looking down on a tiny Dante Hiakapo.
Seeing the finger he pointed with.
And then—all the sensations that accompanied his decapitation streamed into me.
“Wh-What are you trying to do to me...?”
His lips trembled with dread.
“Nothing.”
“...What?”
The formula was complete.
“Nothing happened at all.”
⋮
Memory Forgery: Injected Variable [Fair Duel → Horup’s Mistake]
⋮
Instantly, light vanished from Horup’s eyes.
His focus went distant. Facial muscles froze. His irises contracted and dilated repeatedly. Only then did his eyes regain light.
【 Chief Professor Horup†: ‘......?’ 】
Then Horup collapsed—unconscious.
I had won. Completely.
***
The shoot ended in utter chaos.
The crew rushed up, begging to know what just happened.
Wilhelm waved them off with one line:
“Dante is Cain’s star pupil.”
And just like that, my puppet identity swallowed me whole.
The Assassination Daily staff lost their minds. “Cain Tree” was already a global exclusive at this point.
‘No wonder...!!’ was written all over their faces.
“Everyone, head back to the waiting room and rest. Until I get back, keep those faces tidy. You’ll still be on camera until we leave.”
“Where are you going, Wilhelm?”
“Gonna report to headquarters.”
Wilhelm left after giving us a gag order.
Reasonable, considering our side’s 【Script】 logs were doing mental cartwheels, and even Cheongru—who wasn’t particularly fond of me—smirked and muttered:
【 ‘His illusion skill is... undeniable.’ 】
On the other hand, Rebecca—who couldn’t see 【Script】—was still pouting. But when our eyes met, she gave me a small nod.
My guess? “Not thrilled that Gray is getting this much spotlight—it doesn’t suit isolationist policy. But satisfied that Kreutz got flattened.”
【 Gray: ‘.......’ 】
Gray, meanwhile, had flushed cheeks, lips clamped tight, snaggletooth poking out, and avoided my eyes.
I tried to crouch slightly and make eye contact.
She turned her head away.
Which made it kind of fun, so I tried from the other side.
She dodged again—and scrunched her lips harder.
Her snaggletooth popped out more. Then she shoved my head with her tiny hand.
“...Stop that.”
“What?”
“...Go away.”
Probably doing a little self-enforced gag order.
【 Gray: ‘.............’ 】
And Kreutz?
Pouring rain.
Amulet stomped off the set in heels the moment the duel ended.
“Amulet...!”
“Let her go!”
And finally, the Assassination Daily team?
Mixed feelings.
Because in the end—their Camera Orb had captured... nothing.
They didn’t get what they came for.
And so, everyone scattered.
“Professor Dante! When Senior Professor Wilhelm gets back, let’s all go grab a drink together...!!”
The associate professor was practically bouncing.
Fair enough—no one here was underage.
“Sure.”
“Yesssss! Let’s goooo!”
The hallway had felt so heavy when we arrived.
Now, on the way back—it felt feather-light.
Even Gray’s steps, always a little floaty, were practically skipping.
Until—
“...Why do you think she came?”
Rebecca muttered.
We all turned our heads.
We had detoured into a quieter corridor to avoid the crowd, when—someone was approaching from the far end.
Slow, cautious steps.
“Huh?”
Gray reacted first.
She stepped forward to intercept.
“Who are you? You lost or something?”
A lone figure emerged from the shadows.
“......”
It was Amulet Carolina.
What the hell?
No 【Script】 activation. Just silence.
I stepped in between her and Gray, just in case.
But Amulet’s expression wasn’t confrontational.
Far from the arrogance from earlier—she looked oddly calm.
She bit her lower lip, looked aside, then exhaled deeply.
“...I came to apologize.”
“...Huh?”
Gray wasn’t the only one caught off guard.
I repeated:
“You’re apologizing?”
“Yes. Apology. I’m sorry. About earlier—when I said Hiaka professors weren’t qualified...”
“...What’s up with you?”
“...Honestly, I was just saying what I was told to say. Believe it or not... I don’t actually want our countries to fight. I’d rather things were peaceful...”
“......”
Gray glanced at me—What do we do?
Amulet looked up.
Our eyes met.
Then she looked away.
“...You were amazing.”
I said nothing.
She probably hadn’t seen what I did.
But she could infer enough—some kid had just defeated a chief professor.
“...Of course, I take full responsibility for everything I said. I’m not trying to blame anyone else. I just... wanted to suck up to the Assassination Daily a bit. Didn’t exactly work...”
She shook her hands, embarrassed.
“Anyway—I don’t want to ruin your celebration. This was a friendly rivalry. I just wanted to say... congrats.”
Unrefined words—but sincere.
Totally unexpected.
Surprisingly mature.
And according to 【Script】—she wasn’t lying.
“Hey—you too.”
“...Huh?”
“You didn’t look tacky. You were actually really pretty.”
And with that, she admitted defeat—and turned away.
Gray hesitated, then glanced at me again.
War, rivalry, politics... it’s always the adults that turn into monsters with age. I’m one of them too.
But kids are different.
“...Let’s go.”
I turned.
“Yes!”
“Right behind you!”
As we walked, I let myself think a little longer.
Maybe we didn’t even deserve an apology from Amulet. But still—it touched something in me.
We all live in endless shades of gray.
Amulet... had managed to tint that gray ever so slightly brighter.
Kreutz remained our worst rival. That wouldn’t change. We’d compete again. I might even have to kill her someday.
But I was sure—that one apology would save lives in Kreutz someday.
Because I’d heard it myself.
***
“Confirmed!! Headquarters approved the monthly cover model!”
Thirty minutes later—Wilhelm, who’d been tired and groggy all day, returned with a wide grin.
“WOOOH!!”
“No way!”
The associate professor, Gray, and Lucy screamed in joy.
“Wait—really?!”
“For real...??”
“Insane! Gray, congrats!!”
Rebecca and Cheongru looked indifferent, like it didn’t concern them.
But Layme—Knight of the Shadow Guard—awkwardly shifted side to side, trying to suppress her joy. Her flared nostrils betrayed her.
I was just as happy as Gray—but this dull assassin body of mine didn’t shout much.
I smiled, at least.
“Ugh, I was so scared I’d trip at the end!”
“I knew it’d happen...! This is wild, Gray! Everyone in the continent will see your face!”
“Eh...? What if my expression came out weird? I was so nervous, I don’t even remember what face I made...”
Gray chattered away with the others.
Then her eyes met mine.
And she grinned—snaggletooth and all.
She made a V-sign and poked her cheek.
“Congratulations!”
“......”
Then—she stepped in close beside me.
Leaning in, she whispered in my ear.
So quietly, only I could hear.
“...It was all thanks to you, Professor.”
Then she made a gagging sound.
“Ugh...!”
As if embarrassed by her own sincerity, she clutched her arm and ran off like something was crawling on her skin.
She didn’t look back.
But she kept smiling the whole time.
And watching her—something stirred in me.
The version of her that once sobbed, hunched over a hospital bed—
—was now gone.
And I liked that.
┃ Main Quest [Faculty Advisor]
┃ Reward: Star Fragment ×25 (Completion Rank: S)
.
.
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One week later, the Monthly Assassination Daily was published.
And the entire continent went berserk.