There Is No World For ■■

Just before dawn, when the moon began to tilt quietly westward, inside a hotel suite—

Neti stood by the window, gazing down at the glittering city, and let out a soft sigh.

There was something unbearably sad about being the only one left behind in the room where her sister, the Saint, and even Corvus had all departed.

Of course, it wasn’t like she chose to stay alone. Her brother-in-law needed help—what kind of sister-in-law would insist on tagging along at a time like that?

Not that three people could’ve ridden that questionably “borrowed” motorbike anyway.

More importantly, they couldn’t just leave a necromancer tied up and unattended after all the trouble it took to catch her.

And so, Neti remained at the hotel. Not that she minded. She was the weakest one in the group, after all.

Corvus was already a fully realized superhuman and a mage. Her brother-in-law and the Saint? Probably among the top five powerhouses of their generation.

If anything was strange, it was how her sister—who used to be on a similar level—had suddenly grown so powerful that Neti couldn’t even begin to measure ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) her anymore.

What the hell was the secret? It couldn’t just be talent. Her sister and she were basically neck-and-neck in that department.

Was it... love? Could it be that the secret to strength was falling in love with a bicon instead of a unicorn or some ridiculous crap like that?

If that were the case, then the future of their sisterhood was looking real bleak—

Her train of thought derailed as a voice interrupted her from the corner of the room.

“...Do you desire power?”

Neti turned her head. The necromancer, bound and still, stared back at her with an unreadable expression. What now?

She briefly considered using telekinesis to crush the woman’s throat, but instead, she gave her a lazy nod—go on, impress me.

It wasn’t that she was tempted. She was just bored.

Whether the necromancer realized that or not, she took the silence as opportunity, her eyes gleaming like someone who’d just seized her moment.

“I can help you,” she said.

“Oh? And just how would you do that?”

“It’s not difficult. All I have to do is draw out the hidden power in your bloodline.”

“...My bloodline?”

Maybe she mistook Neti’s mild interest for something more. The necromancer leaned in, hissing like a serpent.

“Divinity...! The so-called gifts that the gods bestow upon their chosen priests!”

“...”

“If you could extract that power and master it fully... you’d gain strength beyond your wildest imagination!”

“Oh, really? That was in my blood all along? Weird, I never noticed. Got any reason for thinking that?”

The necromancer didn’t hesitate.

“The fact that you entered his psychic world aboard the train—that’s irrefutable proof.”

“...”

“The trap I set was only capable of catching fallen stars—divine beings who had descended to this earth! So you must be—!”

Neti raised her hand, cutting her off.

“Hold up, hold up. Are you seriously telling me that getting sucked into that hellhole counts as proof I’m divine?”

“Yes! It was originally meant to capture a CIA agent, but somehow, your group got caught in it too!”

“...”

“At first, I thought there was a flaw in the spell. But no matter how many times I checked, there were no errors!”

Neti smirked as the woman went on, eyes alight with certainty.

Called it.

“If you’re going to lie,” she said, “at least make it believable.”

She might not know everything about herself or her sister—but the idea that her brother-in-law and the Saint had divine blood? Not a chance in hell.

She figured the necromancer had no clue who the Saint really was. That explained the delusional confidence.

Neti waved her hand dismissively.

“That’s enough chit-chat.”

“W-Wait! I’m not lying! I swear my magic was flawless! If you go to my colleagues in L.A.—!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure.”

Neti used her telekinesis to shut the woman’s mouth, and thanks to the mana block Seti had already put in place, the necromancer couldn’t resist at all.

She just sat there, eyes filled with frustration, mumbling into the psychic gag.

Eventually, even that energy drained from her. She curled up in the corner, and silence fell over the suite once more.

Until two girls carrying flowers would arrive... bringing with them the dawn.

****

At the crack of dawn, when only the early risers stirred from sleep—

A warehouse on the outskirts of Gemini City, belonging to the Tindamel Trading Company, received an unexpected visitor.

A dwarf, his face ravaged with burn scars, glaring and grim.

The monocle perched on his remaining eye glinted. Anyone who did business in Gemini City knew that face.

“J-Jephun Digarac? At this hour?”

Tindamel sprang up from his seat, stunned by the name the worker had just uttered.

The disbelief was mutual. The courier, equally shaken, said he’d already confirmed it several times.

“What’s the Mafia enforcer doing here...?”

Could it be because we’re detaining that gang...?

The thought alone sent a cold chill through Tindamel’s spine as he hurried to the entrance.

As soon as he and his men opened the warehouse doors, they were met with the eyes of dozens of mafia members.

Suits, ties—and swords and maces.

It wasn’t just any mafia. These were members of the most infamous order in the city: the Mafia Knights.

Not your average La Cosa Nostra thugs. A damn knight order.

Suppressing his fear, Tindamel stepped forward and approached Jephun at the head of the group.

“G-Good morning, Jephun Digarac, sir. May I ask... what brings you here at this hour?”

Jephun gave him a once-over and asked, as if verifying something.

“You’re the Tindamel Company from the south, yeah?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I’m Tindamel.”

“I heard you’re holding the Dodon Gang and some thieves in this warehouse. That true?”

“...”

Should he admit it? This involved the Saint—hardly something he could speak freely about.

A lump rose in his throat. Cold sweat ran down his back.

The other merchants and workers behind him began quietly retreating.

Jephun chuckled.

“Relax. We’re here to help.”

“...Excuse me?”

“Someone asked us to give you a hand.”

“Asked you? Who would—?”

“A friend with golden eyes. Said to pass along his apologies for not meeting in person yesterday.”

Jephun raised an eyebrow, as if to check whether he was understood.

Tindamel stood dumbfounded, staring at the knight order.

“That man? But how could he...?”

“Sometimes, a good deed comes back around as luck. Don’t you think?”

“...”

“As of today, the Tindamel Trading Company is under the protection of our knight order. Do you accept?”

Tindamel gave a dazed nod, and Jephun turned to his knights with a wave.

“Alright then... we’ll be taking the thieves ourselves. No need to trouble the police.”

At his command, retired knights and their disciples stormed the warehouse in full gear.

—“K-Knights?! What the hell are you doing here—wait! Do you know who I am?! Do you know who my father—ARGH! Wait, wait! You broke my—my ribs!”

A truly unfortunate twist of fate for a certain young heir who had been so sure he’d be out by the end of the day.

****

When the sun began to bathe the city in light—

The morning scene in Gemini City looked no different than usual.

Trucks and cars lined up at the dimensional gate, the clatter of cargo being loaded echoed from the station, and countless workers trudged toward their jobs.

The same old routine, day in and day out. A city caught in an endless hamster wheel.

But some people noticed the difference.

First, the dwarves who sold barley bread.

They quickly realized that the Earthling mafia members—who bought barley bread sandwiches every morning—were nowhere to be seen.

And the moment they noticed that? The dwarves were the first to shut down shop and scurry home.

Next were the orcs, searching for day labor.

They saw that their usual rivals—especially the beastkin workers from the so-called Prairie Brotherhood—had vanished without a trace.

Their reaction wasn’t much different from the dwarves’.

Even if they lived hand-to-mouth, no paycheck was worth dying over.

...Anyway.

While the sharp-eyed slipped away from the streets, a small truck rumbled toward the dimensional gate.

It didn’t look like much.

Just some furniture and household goods piled in the back, with a group of weary-looking women in worn clothes sitting on top.

Clearly a bunch of clueless folks heading to Earth. Or maybe just a very good disguise.

Either way, no one in the city really cared.

Except, maybe, the girl riding in the back.

“Brother-in-law... are you sure this is gonna work?”

Her voice was half nervous, half hopeful.

She was staring at the man across from her in the truck bed—a young man with golden eyes.

“Beats me. Probably?”

Not exactly the confidence-inspiring answer Neti was hoping for.

She glanced at the approaching dimensional gate and muttered under her breath.

“I heard the checkpoint is seriously strict... Aren’t you even a little nervous? If we get caught, we’re all going to prison!”

“Just like most of the stuff we did beyond the gate?”

“...”

Neti fell silent, unable to argue. Yeomyeong smirked.

“Relax. The most powerful mafia in this city made these fake IDs. They’re not going to fall apart that easily.”

And he was right.

Seti had barely finished relaying their list of needs when Sancho showed up with a full set of forged documents, tailor-made.

They were now the Cheon family from the countryside.

Descendants of Korean refugees who’d fled through a dimensional gate during the Korean War. Supposedly, they’d made some money and were returning to Earth.

It was a surprisingly believable cover story. Still, Neti wasn’t convinced.

“...I mean, it’s kind of weird though, right? One guy with four women?”

“I absolutely agree with Miss Neti! This is highly irregular!”

The family’s “pet,” a raven, chimed in from beside her.

Then the “wife” of the family—also known as the Saint—piped up from her corner.

“I don’t know, I think it’s fine.” 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

“...”

“Fake IDs are supposed to be ridiculous, aren’t they?”

Neti scowled and glanced her way.

The Saint was beaming like a bride on her honeymoon, eyes fixed dreamily on her “husband.”

Wow. Not even trying to hide it, huh.

Neti bit her tongue and turned toward her sister instead.

Seti was sitting in the front passenger seat, deep in discussion with that Sancho guy. Her expression was so serious, Neti didn’t dare interrupt.

Still... losing the “wife” role to someone else? And she could still focus on work?

Maybe that kind of detachment was her sister’s real superpower.

After all, she had been the first of the two of them to get hitched—even if it was metaphorical.

A petty thought passed through Neti’s head, but she brushed it away.

In her plan, the order of things didn’t really matter anyway.

...Back to the topic at hand.

Neti stared at the nearing dimensional gate and asked, “Brother-in-law, what are you gonna do once we’re back on Earth? Straight to the Academy?”

“Nah. I’ll need to return to the Academy eventually, but first, I’m planning to stay in L.A. for a few days.”

Yeomyeong said this while eyeing Dilla—the necromancer now physically bound to Seti.

“I’ve got business with the necromancers in L.A.”

Dilla swallowed under his cold golden gaze.

Fortunately—or unfortunately for her—Yeomyeong didn’t ask anything further. He simply turned away.

Right then, they arrived at the gate checkpoint.

[Vehicle 8WDG112. Please stop. Inspection in progress.]

A barrier rose from the road with a harsh metallic clang, and a voice boomed from a speaker like something out of a military base.

And it wasn’t just the speaker. Armed American soldiers patrolled a tower that overlooked the entire road from above.

It was a sobering, unmistakable sign—they were really here. Right in front of the dimensional gate.

“Please, please, just let us through...”

Neti whispered, visibly tense.

But the inspection ended far quicker than expected.

The soldier glanced at Sancho’s face, blinked, then immediately lowered the barrier with a nod.

[Clear. Proceed.]

Wait... was that guy actually important?

Neti blinked.

While she was processing that, the Saint took the opportunity to scoot over and sit right next to Yeomyeong—using their “married” status as an excuse.

The truck passed two more checkpoints after that.

One of them even had a mana detection rig. But once again, Sancho exchanged a few words with the inspector, and they were waved through with minimal effort.

Good thing none of the soldiers were paying close attention...

Neti exhaled slowly, her nerves rattled, and turned to Yeomyeong again.

“...Weren’t dimensional checkpoints supposed to be super strict?”

“They are. Even a regular truck like this gets stopped three times, doesn’t it?”

“Well... yeah, but this feels too easy...”

Her voice trailed off uncertainly. Yeomyeong chuckled.

“The guy driving? He’s a major figure in this city. That’s why everyone steps aside the moment they see his face.”

“Wait, major figure? Then why would someone like that show his face just to smuggle us across?”

Yeomyeong looked like he was about to answer, but Sancho beat him to it.

“Repaying a favor. And... sending a message.”

“...A message?”

“That the alliance is over. After I get you all safely across, I’ll make sure the others know what happens when they cross the line.”

Neti looked even more confused, but the Saint simply clasped her hands and whispered a prayer, like she understood perfectly.

“...The wages of sin are slow, but they always come.”

And with that, the truck finally joined the long line of vehicles waiting to cross the gate.

There it was. The dimensional gate, just a few hundred meters ahead.

Everyone fell silent.

The truck rumbled forward, and each person was lost in their own thoughts.

Resolve. Love. Fear. Revenge.

“Back... to Earth.”

Yeomyeong’s quiet murmur hung in the air.

And then, the truck crossed through the gate.