---

"’Your summons is as important to me as the sun is to a planet.’"

Nox mimicked Zeke’s words and burst into laughter.

"You fucking voyeur." Zeke gritted his teeth.

---

The reunion had ended, and Zeke had returned to the academy.

Unlike what Zeke had envisioned, the reunion lasted only that day.

Michael had an organization to run. He had no time to sit for two weeks playing house.

Anton had seven SSS-ranked dungeons to clear. Catherine had secured one such dungeon for him already, and rather than wait until it was snatched by other high-ranking adventurers, Anton had left to clear it.

Yeon had a goal in mind. Staying next to Zeke would not help her reach it. As cartoonish as it might sound, reaching sainthood in nine months was doable for someone of her caliber. She simply needed to clear dungeons and farm as many stat runestones as she could find. The dungeons where runestones appeared were ranked S and above, so she would need to bring her party up to par—or simply go solo whenever the opportunity arose. An adventure and training montage awaited her, one that preceded "family" time.

The trio were all students, and unlike the lazy professor Zeke, they could not skip that many days of class.

These facts made Zeke aware that, in the grand scheme of things, he was quite lucky to be teaching the class of weirdos. Although he had not taken a break in the past two months, he could now take as many days off as he liked. He had told the kids he would be gone for at least two weeks. Who said he could not add more days?

That was what he thought—until he was apparated to the dean’s office the moment he stepped foot in the academy. Which brought him to this point: Nox teasing him for "simping," a line Nox had picked up from the boys.

A boomer who wanted to feel young by copying youths.

Zeke shook his head, smiling internally.

---

"Boomer, why’d you summon me? You know that’s a violation of workers’ rights somewhere, right?" Zeke said dryly. "Or did you call me to mock me? Maybe that’s why you’re single, voyeur."

"I did call to tease you. But something more important as well."

"Wow. You know the word ’important’? You should also know that ’privacy’ is important too."

"Shut the fuck up and listen." Nox rolled his eyes.

"You’re not a young man, boomer. Act your age."

"Hohoho." Nox stroked his beard.

"I should drop you in a volcano."

"It would be ineffective. I’m very much capable of escaping volcanoes."

"Yes, yes. You’re right. You win."

"Heh." Zeke smirked. "Go on. You had something important to tell me."

He found a chair and sat down.

"I heard your discussions," Nox said, "and I thought to myself: now would be a great time to rope you in. Before an angel steals you from me."

"I’m Yeon’s." Zeke deadpanned.

"Calm down, loverboy. You’re not official yet. And when did you fall in love with her? Was it not in my world?" Nox waved his hands dismissively.

Zeke contemplated calling him a voyeur again but relaxed. He had called him that many times, and it still had not stopped the old man from peeping.

Is nowhere safe from this creep?

Zeke shuddered.

"I don’t watch you when you bathe, if that’s what you’re thinking."

"Your words weigh the same as a feather to me."

{Can you let the man talk?} Zero’s voice cut into his mind, exasperated.

Zeke gave a lopsided smile.

"What do you have for me? What’s stopping me from reaching the angels right now?"

"Listen to what I have to say," Nox replied, "and I’ll promise more chaos than the angels. Chaos that would put your immortal life at risk for the first time in a while."

"Actual life-or-death risk?" Zeke’s grin widened.

Nox held his gaze and nodded.

"Don’t make a promise you can’t keep, old man. I’ve held back from becoming a saint because of this." A sharp, foxy grin spread across Zeke’s face.

"Ask what you want to know, kid." Nox stretched out his hands, smirking.

"Let’s start with your world, administrator. What’s up with the wars and peace shit?"

"Language, child."

"The hundred-year peace," Nox began, "is a time of respite that comes when the main storyline finishes. The war between demons and angels—who essentially use humans as soldiers in this conflict—determines its shape. The winner decides how the hundred-year peace moves, and that determines how the next main storyline goes."

"The main storyline is out of our control, but its general trend is always based on the winner of the war and the hundred-year peace. The last war was won by humans. That’s why demons have gone into hiding, only gaining freedom when the war begins. The hundred-year peace was simply humans living in their bastion, enforcing laws that kept the strongest alive for the war—at least until the chosen one was born."

He stroked his beard. "And that has happened."

"The chosen one?"

"Ah. In your terms: the main character. Every world—outside the Tower and inside the Tower—has a main character. But for the purpose of the worlds inside the Tower, every trial births a main character. One who grows faster than the rest of the world. Their existence gives a higher chance of victory in the war. The winner of the war gets to have the main character come from their side.

"The main character could be born immediately after the war ends, or at the start of the war. But they are known for carrying the providence of the world, so time is of almost no consequence to them."

"Providence. That same word." Zeke leaned forward. "How do you guys even calculate it? How do you know of it?"

"Providence refers to a form of divine or fate-driven intervention—a guiding force or will that shapes events beyond mortal control. It is often depicted as the hidden hand of gods, destiny, or the universe itself, ensuring that seemingly random events lead to a greater purpose.

"Unlike simple luck or prophecy, Providence is active and moral. It suggests a benevolent or purposeful intelligence behind seemingly coincidental or difficult turns in a hero’s path.

"So Providence is measured by how the tiniest of pebbles affect a person. And unlike the general term, when Providence is mentioned, it includes one’s fate, destiny, the general trend of their life."

"Take the main character of a world, for example. They carry the destiny of their world on their back. Their existence determines the fate of their world. But the main character cannot be alone, so the world designates certain characters with Providence—term them ’geniuses’—and their role is to help the main character fulfill their destiny."

"Providence is not all and all, however. It simply shows that, unperturbed, you have a great destiny. If you are killed, or if something irreversible that your Providence cannot turn to good happens to you, that is the end. The world chooses another main character. And for Tower worlds, the world chooses another main character when the war is over."

Zeke’s eyes narrowed. "Providence is the reason you met us, right? I don’t believe an administrator is that free to frolic with us."

"Us? I only ’frolic’ with you. Your Providence by association is the largest in your group. You have main characters in your group, all tied to you, alongside your own great Providence. If I had to guess, I would say your destiny is simply meeting people with great Providence."

"Main characters?" Zeke grinned.

I understand Jude—he’s the chosen one, going by common tropes. Anton is definitely a main character. Yeon—her family would have died, and she’s still able to keep up with Jude. Michael—there’s really no need to count that bastard. He’s absurdly strong at his age. Definitely a main character.

He stared at Nox, waiting for the old man to continue.

"Yes, people with great Providence are classified as main characters. But in truth, there is only one main character in a world. Your friends, if placed in other worlds, would be main characters themselves. That’s probably why they want your world. Freaky world."

"They? The mysterious organization from Anton’s future?"

"Hm." Nox nodded.

"Let’s move along. Somethings are better left unknown. You’re too weak to do anything right now."

"Hm." Zeke nodded.

It seemed those guys were really that much of a threat. Heh. The days ahead would be filled with chaos.

"So who’s the main character in my group?" Zeke raised his eyebrows.

"Jude."

"As expected."

"How do you guys calculate Providence? And what do the angels want with us?"

"Heaven has its ways of calculating Providence. As for me, I’m an administrator. Do you think I would not be able to calculate Providence within my jurisdiction?

"As for what the angels want from you—usually, angels choose champions to fight the good fight against demons. They hardly join the fight themselves. They have a superiority complex. If they join, they never exceed five." Disdain filled Nox’s tone.

"If their champion wins, a heavy amount of Providence goes to Heaven. And from countless worlds outside and inside the Tower they influence, imagine a steady stream of Providence. Angels are goated for a reason, my boy."

"Your use of slangs is grating to the ears." Zeke stuck his fingers in his ears.

"So the angel might be the first of the angels using methods to recruit your group. I would like you to turn them down."

"To work for you? What do you gain? And I thought you guys were friends. You have an angel, right? And from what you’ve told me, how are angels doing this? Do they not serve as—what, slaves of sorts—to gods and administrators? How are they having plans? Don’t tell me they’re all Seraphs."

"Seraphs?" Nox snorted. "You dream big, boy."

"And we are not friends. I have an angel because my position as administrator grants me one. But that lore of angels serving as ’slaves’ is an overexaggeration. It is the truth, though. Angels serve administrators and gods. But how many gods and administrators do you think there are, compared to angels?"

"Some angels are entwined in the storyline of the Tower. Not all of them are slaves. One such example is the host of angels in this world."

"My aim?" Nox shrugged. "I don’t like angels. I plan to make them take an L—but not necessarily let the demons win. Although who wins is none of my business, I still prefer humans to demons. I just can’t interfere."

"You don’t like angels? but you brought children of angels—not just anyone, but Seraphs. Nephilim hunted by the host of Heaven."

"You wanted chaos, didn’t you?"

"And my hands were tied. I owe a lot of favors. One was used to bring the children here. I just can’t get screwed easily, so I picked a bunch of main characters and brought them to you."

"Main characters?"

"Of course. You don’t know how happy I was when I saw you on the third floor. A child who lives for chaos. You were definitely the best fit to dump these kids onto."

"You hadn’t talked to me. How’d you know I love chaos?" Zeke sneered.

"Hoho. There’s a wave your Providence carries. It’s the same wave chaos magnets have. Yours was worse. It meant you actively sought out chaos. People like you die early. But lucky me—you’re immortal and surprisingly overpowered."

"Hehe. Thanks for the praise." Zeke scratched his nose, smiling sheepishly.

"So, the life or death you promised me?"

"Keep teaching your students and you’ll definitely come near death, if not die"

"Sorry but I can’t die, I can’t have Yeon sad ya know"

"Get out of my office."

"Yeah, yeah. We have beef. You let an angel near my brother."

"I could not stop them. No interference, remember?"

"So much for an administrator. Just so you know, I’m not showing up for work for a while. Keep up the voyeurism." Zeke smirked.

Nox pinched his nose and waved his hands, apparating Zeke out of his office.