Awakening The Only SSS-Rank Class! Now Even Dragons Obey Me

Chapter 863: A Trap for a Genius

The corridors of the central tower, which just hours ago had been filled with excited whispers and endless debates among professors and students, were now wrapped in a strange silence. A silence that didn’t stem from respect, but from a fear no one could explain.

Every step Daniel took on the stone floor echoed through the tower’s vast space, drawing dozens of gazes toward him.

No one came near, no one asked anything. They only watched from a distance.

Some with astonishment, some with fear, and some with a look as if they were standing before an unknown being, not a human.

A few young students standing by one of the columns fell silent upon seeing Daniel, not even daring to greet him.

One of the senior professors coming from the opposite direction paused for a moment, bowed his head in respect, and without saying a single word, changed his path.

Serys, walking beside Daniel, grew more anxious by the moment.

She tried several times to say something, but each time she saw the surrounding gazes, she fell silent again.

Seeing that no one still understood what had happened just minutes ago, seeing that they still didn’t know the tower’s greatest trial no longer existed, while she felt relief, her fear also grew.

She couldn’t stop thinking: if they found out, what would their reaction be? Would they still show respect? Or would there only be hatred?

Finally, they reached the guest room.

Serys quickly closed the door, locked it, and collapsed onto the nearest chair, exhausted.

She ran both hands over her face and let out a deep breath.

”I think... it’s over.”

Daniel, without even looking at her, sat calmly on the bed, then with his usual calmness asked:

”What’s over?”

Serys raised her head in disbelief.

”Don’t you really understand? The Trial of a Thousand Spells is gone. No one knows what happened there.”

”The Supreme Council will certainly think you destroyed the tower’s most important legacy.” She rose from her seat and began pacing anxiously.

The only reason they had been able to leave that place alive was because the Supreme Council itself didn’t know what to do.

They said they would hold a meeting in a few hours to decide how to deal with what Daniel had done. They first needed to consult the tower leader.

But that didn’t mean they were free. The tower leader had placed a mark on Daniel that prevented him from leaving the island under any circumstances.

Meaning, he was practically imprisoned.

”This means you have no chance of becoming the heir anymore. Lioran will be chosen.”

”In everyone’s eyes... you messed up. More than messed up! They’ll definitely execute you!”

Daniel showed no reaction. He quietly picked up the teapot and poured hot tea into his cup.

White steam rose slowly, filling the room with its warmth. He simply picked up the cup and took a sip.

He neither defended himself nor explained.

That silence only multiplied Serys’s anxiety.

”Say something! At least tell me I’m wrong!”

But Daniel was too lazy to give an explanation. And while Serys was going mad... at that moment, the shadows in the corner of the room rippled.

As if the darkness had come alive for a moment.

Serys instinctively thought it was an enemy, but quickly calmed herself.

From within the shadow, one of the Fallen emerged, kneeling as always on one knee.

”Master.”

”What is it?” For the first time, Daniel looked away from his teacup.

The Fallen paused for a moment.

”I think... we may have found something.”

Daniel’s gaze sharpened slightly.

”About Aurelia’s death?”

The Fallen nodded slowly.

”...Perhaps about all the deaths.”

A heavy silence filled the room. Even Serys stopped talking, completely setting aside whatever mistake Daniel had made and focusing all her attention on this terrifying being’s words.

If they had found evidence, they could stop Lioran from becoming the heir.

The Fallen continued:

”These past few days, we’ve been monitoring one of the mages from the potions and poisons department. On the surface, he’s completely ordinary. No record against him.”

”But we found something strange. This person is one of Lioran’s direct subordinates. He’s too quiet, too low-key. It’s as if he’s trying to keep his presence as limited as possible.”

”We checked the guard shift records. Every time one of the suspicious professors or researchers was killed... this same person was on night patrol around the victim’s residence.”

He opened the next page.

”Not once, not twice. Almost in every file. But surprisingly, his name appears in none of them. Not even as a witness or anything.”

”This... can’t be a coincidence.” Serys whispered under her breath. At the same time, she tried to remember if she could recall Lioran’s subordinates.

She only knew five of them, the most famous ones, but she didn’t recognize any potion maker among them. Her gaze fell on Daniel to see his reaction.

But contrary to her expectation, Daniel remained calm. He thought for a few moments and then said:

”This isn’t enough.”

Serys stared at him in surprise.

”Just because he makes potions and was present there... proves nothing.” Then he fixed his gaze on the Fallen.

It wasn’t that he was ignoring all the connections and signs, but these weren’t enough to convict someone like Lioran.

”What made you follow him in the first place?”

”Because we discovered he has expertise in crafting suspicious poisons. Poisons that don’t kill the victim, but take away their will.” The Fallen answered without a moment’s hesitation.

”What?” Serys’s eyes widened.

The Fallen continued:

”For a few minutes... or even a few hours, the victim would follow any command the poison’s maker wanted. After the effect wore off, almost no memory of that period remained.”

For the first time, Daniel fell silent. Not from hesitation, but from thought. A few seconds later, he nodded very quietly.

”Interesting...”

”So it’s over! This is the evidence! If we show this to the council...” Serys stepped forward excitedly.

Daniel cut her off.

”No. This only creates suspicion. No court convicts someone based on suspicion, especially not someone as important and popular as Lioran.”

”We still have no witness, no confession, no direct evidence, and no definitive connection between this poison and the victims. No poison was ever found in their bodies.”

Serys’s excitement faded as quickly as it had come.

Daniel quietly raised his hand, and the shadows in the room came alive again. This time, four more Fallen emerged from the darkness and knelt before him in silence.

Daniel said in a quiet but firm voice:

”Find someone. I want you to implant thoughts in their mind.” He paused for a few moments.

”Make them think they saw the poison maker during the murders. Make them believe their silence allowed these killings to continue.”

”Then I want them to tell everything to the council. You can use the ones you’ve already implanted thoughts in to help spread this to the highest levels of the tower, so no one can suppress this in secret.”

”And be careful not to get caught.”

He didn’t want to move forward himself. The chance of failure and that Lioran might have a backup plan was high, and he needed to keep that in mind.

”It will be done.” All the Fallen bowed their heads simultaneously.

In the blink of an eye, they faded back into the shadows.

”But... the witness didn’t actually see anything? This is all just a false thought you’re planting in their mind. We still have no evidence, and as you said yourself, the tower won’t act without definitive proof. Besides, this is dangerous.” After they left, Serys immediately said.

Daniel answered without the slightest change in expression.

”I know.” He placed his teacup on the table.

”No one is going to accept their word as evidence.”

Serys was completely confused.

”Then what’s your goal?”

Daniel quietly rose from his seat and walked to the window. The orange light of sunset had bathed the tower’s stone buildings in gold.

He stared at the view for a few moments, then said quietly:

”My goal is not to convict the poison maker. My goal is to force the Supreme Council to interrogate him.”

”At that moment, only one person’s reaction matters to me: Lioran’s.” His voice was quiet, but every word was spoken with confidence.

”If the poison maker is truly innocent and has nothing to do with the murders, he will remain calm.”

”But if he’s involved, if he’s hiding something... and if he truly knows something, Lioran won’t stay calm.”

”That pressure... will make him make his first mistake.”