“Alright, then let’s go beat the hell out of that pale bastard right now!” Song Ha-Eun clenched her fist.

She looked ready to swim across the ocean to Italy.

Kwon Oh-Jin shook his head. “No. Not right now.”

Even though they could wipe an entire country off the map, they couldn’t just recklessly charge into a city where Mobius had already fortified his position.

“What do you intend to do, then?” Isabella asked.

“I don’t need to do anything. They’ll reach out to me first.”

“They?”

Speak of the devil, his phone in his pocket began ringing.

Bzzzz.

The name on the screen was exactly who he expected, Han Jun-Man.

“Yes.”

—O-Oh-Jin! Italy, it’s—!

“Yes, I saw the news.”

Mobius hadn’t singled Kwon Oh-Jin out, but had issued this declaration of war to all Awakeners watching the broadcast. Naturally, this caused a worldwide uproar, and the Association immediately contacted Kwon Oh-Jin.

—The Seven Stars Assembly has issued an order to report regarding this incident.

Any Awakener bearing the Seven Stars title was required to drop everything and gather without exception. Of course, rejecting the order was technically possible, but doing so meant forfeiting the Seven Stars title. In practice, the order was near mandatory.

Until now, it had only existed in name. An order to report had never been formally declared since their founding because the Seven Stars did not obediently heed anyone’s command. If even one member defied the order and walked away (unlikely as that was), the Council would face worldwide backlash.

Who would dare issue such an order recklessly?

For them to have issued it now...

It meant this incident had shaken the entire world.

Well, it makes sense.

It hadn’t even been hours since the attack, and a nation’s capital was already in flames.

It would be another story if Italy were like America, devastated by the first rift disaster and half-functioning as a state. However, this was different. The three powers, consisting of the U.S., the China-Russia Alliance, and the European Union, divided the world’s balance of power.

Italy, alongside Britain, was a central pillar of the EU. And now, its capital had been reduced to ashes overnight. Of course, the world would fall into chaos.

“Where do I have to go?”

—The Sanctum, for now.

It was the best place for the Seven Stars, scattered across nations, to meet since the Sanctum’s gates branched out across the globe like roots.

—All the other Seven Stars have already confirmed their attendance... What about you, Oh-Jin?

“I’ll be there.”

He couldn’t resolve this on his own.

Even if Kwon Oh-Jin’s group possessed immense power, they couldn’t possibly fight their way through a city overrun by thousands of monsters with only six people.

And two of them, Riarc and Vega, can’t even use the full extent of their power because of the Law’s restrictions.

Only Kwon Oh-Jin, Song Ha-Eun, Isabella, and Cassia could really fight. Sure, three of them had reached eleven stars. Even just one of them could rival a monstrous party of ten-star Awakeners, but waging an actual war with only four individuals was impossible.

Especially when the goal is to rescue the hostages.

They would need the combined power of all the Seven Stars to attempt such an operation.

—Understood. I’ll see you at the Sanctum entrance by three.

“You’ll be there too?”

—Of course. You may not report to the office, but formally speaking, you’re still part of the Association, aren’t you?

“Oh.”

Right, I am part of the Association.

He had gotten so used to not going into work, but still collecting his paycheck that he almost forgot.

—Don’t tell me... You actually forgot?

“Haha, of course not.”

—Let’s see, how much was your salary again...

“How about we grab lunch before heading over? My treat.”

—Haha. Let’s save that for when this whole incident is over.

“I know a really good spot. The menu has a great variety.”

He wondered if Han Jun-Man had heard of Kimbap Heaven[1].

—Yes, I’ll look forward to it. Then, I’ll see you at the Sanctum at three.

The call ended.

Kwon Oh-Jin glanced at the time on his phone. It was just past noon.

“In three hours, huh.”

The Seven Stars were gathering on quite a tight deadline. Given the gravity of the incident, everyone would rush to the Sanctum.

“Let’s get ready and head out too,” Kwon Oh-Jin said.

Just as he turned around, Isabella grabbed the edge of his shirt and dropped her head. “Thank you, Mr. Oh-Jin.”

“What are you thanking me for?”

“Thank you for agreeing to my stubbornness.” Isabella forced a smile even though she still looked shaken and drained.

“I know full well this is Mobius’s trap, but...”

“I know.” Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled and ruffled Isabella’s hair.

He had an idea why Isabella had begged him to save the hostages despite knowing it was a trap. They had met there for the first time too.

“It’s because of the gypsies, isn’t it?”

Isabella’s eyes widened in surprise. “H-How did you—?”

“After you started living with me, you still went to Italy from time to time for volunteer work.”

A large gypsy village was located in Rome. Isabella ran several shelters there under the Colgrande Family. They provided food and shelter to gypsies who had nowhere else to go. Isabella had claimed that these shelters were nothing but factories where gypsies were harvested for blood under the guise of protection.

If that were true, she wouldn’t still be volunteering since she drinks my blood now.

On the surface, she acted like a cold and regal queen. However, Kwon Oh-Jin knew better than anyone that she had a tender, kind heart underneath.

“Y-You knew?!” she asked.

“Of course, I did.”

“Who told you that!?”

“Mr. Roberto did.”

“R-Roberto, how could you!” Isabella stomped her foot, feeling betrayed by her most trusted subordinate.

Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled.

Cassia shook her head as if she couldn’t help it. “Ha... You really are hopeless. How can someone who’s the head of an entire family be so hung up on a petty village... Doesn’t the Colgrande name deserve better?”

Still, Cassia couldn’t hide the smile tugging at her lips.

She leaned toward Kwon Oh-Jin. “Are you planning to gather and use the power of the Seven Stars?”

“Strictly speaking, I’m planning on using their authority.”

A few high-ranking Awakeners couldn’t solve this on their own. He needed massive authority right now. In other words, an army capable of holding back the thousands of demonic beasts occupying the city.

“Hmm. Which Seven Stars are you close to, Mr. Oh-Jin?”

“Allen, Elder Baek Mu-Kang, and...”

The woman with green hair who bore the Stigma of Gemini.

He hadn’t met her often enough to call them close, but she wasn’t a complete stranger like the other three he had never seen.

“Rebecca Bell. That makes three I know,” Kwon Oh-Jin said.

“That’s Mizar, Megrez, and Phecda,” Cassia said.

She tapped her index finger to her lips. “You said you need authority, right?”

“That’s right.”

Cassia’s brow furrowed as if a problem had occurred. “That’s going to be a bit hard.”

“What do you mean?”

Even if he wasn’t close to all of them, he had ties to at least three of the other six. Why would that be a problem?

“Mizar has some authority, but... Megrez and Phecda don’t have any real power at all.”

“What?”

How could Awakeners bearing the Seven Stars title have no authority?

“Oh, I don’t think you’re one to judge. Lord Oh-Jin, you don’t exactly have that much authority either.”

“Ouch.”

Cassia was painfully right. Kwon Oh-Jin held no real authority of his own. Sure, he worked with the Association, but that didn’t mean he held any final decision-making power.

“I-I have you guys, don’t I?”

“Oh my, what a line straight out of a shonen manga. I used to read those sometimes without my parents knowing.”

“Be quiet.” He sighed deeply, and his shoulders slumped.

Of their group, only Isabella possessed some kind of real authority. However, with Rome’s current situation, the Colgrande Family’s power had been reduced to ashes. He couldn’t tap into her resources now.

For the time being, we’ll have to pull together the authority of the other Seven Stars however we can.

Aside from Allen, Baek Mu-Kang, and Rebecca, he knew almost nothing about the other three Seven Stars. Before awakening, they were basically people from another world to him. He never even bothered looking into them. After awakening, he had been too busy finding his own path to pay attention.

“Hmm. Since you don’t seem to know them well, I’ll summarize.” Cassia held up her index finger. “First, Bianca Bennett, also known as Alioth, from Britain. She bears the Stigma of Aries and enjoys wandering the world like a nomad. She basically has no authority either.”

Cassia raised her middle finger next. “Second, Edward Walton, aka Dubhe, from the U.S. He bears the Stigma of Sagittarius and is a businessman overseeing several major corporations in America. If we’re talking about financial influence alone, the Colgrande Family might fall behind this guy.”

“Then I guess you could say he does have some sort of authority.”

“That’s true, but... the problem is the nature of the U.S.”

“The U.S.?”

“America has the most high-ranking Awakeners in the world, but they don’t have an organized force like the army you want since they value freedom so much. At best, they’re just small-scale mercenary groups.”

“Hmm.”

“And lastly, Alina Vladimir, aka Taiyi, from Russia. She’s the one you need to recruit above everyone else.”

“How much authority does she have?”

Cassia paused at Kwon Oh-Jin's question and sighed. “A nation.”

“What?”

“She’s currently the Supreme Commander of the China-Russia Alliance.”

1. A famous restaurant in South Korea known for having a large variety of cheap meals. ☜