The Silent Deity: Saiki Kusuo in Tensura

Somewhere far beyond sight, farther still from sense, deep in a space where even light dared not linger, Apollyon sat upon his throne.

It wasn't made of gold or obsidian or crystal.

No — it was crafted from thoughts.

The dark kind.

The broken kind.

The kind that people hid from themselves in the deepest corners of their minds.

His eyes weren't normal either. They weren't blue or red or glowing. They were empty.

Because they didn't need to see the world. They could feel it.

And right now…

He was feeling something wonderful.

"…So much hate," Apollyon whispered, his voice curling like smoke in the airless void. "So much delicious rage."

A crooked grin spread across his face as he leaned forward.

Floating in front of him was a translucent sphere — like a crystal ball, but alive. Inside it swirled images, voices, thoughts.

He saw Rudra, alone in the Eastern Empire's grand palace, his teeth clenched, his hands gripping the armrests of his gilded throne.

He wasn't smiling. He wasn't calm.

No, Rudra looked like a king betrayed by the very world he once ruled.

"The Storm Kingdom," Apollyon murmured. "How far they've climbed."

He waved his fingers. The sphere shifted. It showed Veldora — majestic, calm, regal. No longer wild. No longer feared just for destruction.

Feared because of who he had become.

Apollyon grinned wider. "And you, dear Rudra, you can't stand it, can you?"

In his vision, Rudra stood facing a window overlooking his empire. His reflection stared back at him — not with pride, but with resentment.

Dialog — Rudra (alone):

"They call him a king now. Veldora. As if he knows what it means to lead.

As if strength alone grants authority.

I built this world. I forged it with my own hands.

And now… I'm forgotten?"

He slammed his fist against the window frame, cracking the glass.

"He has what I deserve," Rudra growled.

Apollyon's eyes sparkled. Yes, he thought.

"You hate him. You hate them. And you don't even know… that soon you'll hate yourself most of all."

Next, Apollyon turned his attention to a wealthy, polished manor in the south.

The Rosso Family.

He saw them — all dressed in velvet and silk, rings glittering, faces full of pride and lies.

Granbell Rosso, sharp-eyed and colder than steel, paced their private study. Reports littered the table. Numbers. Maps. Lost alliances. Diminished influence.

Lord Cassian Rosso sat in a chair, staring at the fire, swirling a glass of dark wine.

Dialog — Granbell:

"The Storm Kingdom took everything we built in years. Two. We controlled the ports. The merchants. Even the church."

He slammed a scroll down on the desk.

"Now… they don't even take our calls."

Cassian didn't reply. He only muttered, "Because they don't need us anymore."

Apollyon whispered.

No words spoken aloud.

Just... feeling.

Doubt.

Jealousy.

Suspicion.

And it crept into their thoughts like water into a cracked wall.

You were kings in the shadows, he whispered in Granbell's mind. Why do you kneel now?

He grows weaker, he told Cassian. But only if you act first…

Dialog — Viola:

"Maybe it's time we stopped pretending to be allies."

Cassian looked up slowly. His eyes glinted. "With the Empire?"

Granbell nodded once. "We stir the old pride in Rudra. Whisper in his ear. Remind him who the real enemy is."

Cassian frowned. "And Veldora?"

Granbell smiled thinly. "We let Rudra deal with him. When they burn each other down, we rise from the ashes."

Apollyon chuckled, lounging deeper into his throne of thoughts.

"They dance so easily... all it takes is the right whisper."

He flicked his fingers again. The sphere turned dark.

Then flickered.

Static.

He frowned.

It never did that.

He focused harder.

And there — like a shadow standing in the middle of a sunbeam — was Saiki.

He was sitting on a bench eating his coffee jelly, wearing a plain black hoodie and white sneakers. There was nothing special about him.

No magicules.

No aura.

No power signature.

Just… a human.

Apollyon narrowed his eyes. "What… are you?"

He tried to peer deeper, but—

FLASH.

Gone.

Just like that, Saiki vanished from the sphere.

No trace.

No trail.

Not even a presence.

Just static.

Apollyon leaned back, rubbing his chin.

"Hmm… A trick, perhaps. Some anti-detection skill. Cloaking maybe."

He paused.

Then laughed darkly.

"Or maybe just a fragile human with no importance."

He waved his hand dismissively, turning back to Rudra and the Rosso family.

"Let the world break itself."

A cool breeze swept across the rooftop of a tower near the edge of the Storm Kingdom's capital. The sky was streaked with soft pink clouds, the sun dipping behind the mountains like it was trying to hide from the chaos the day had brought.

But for Saiki Kusuo, the chaos never stopped.

He sat casually at the edge of the tower, swinging one leg over the side while holding a small plastic cup of coffee jelly in one hand and a spoon in the other. His expression was unreadable. Blank as usual. His pink hair fluttered slightly in the wind, the green-tinted lenses of his focus-limiting glasses reflecting the setting sun.

He had just finished saving an entire noble family from a demonic mind-warping trap... while also guiding a lost child back to their home, teleporting stolen bread back to a hungry merchant, AND keeping a dragon from accidentally sitting on a village.

All before lunch.

Now, he finally had a moment to breathe.

Sort of.

Saiki (thinking):

sigh

"I was just starting to enjoy the quiet."

He spooned another bite of coffee jelly into his mouth, eyes half-lidded.

Then—

It happened.

A pulse.

Soft. Wrong. Slippery.

Like oil sliding over a mirror inside his mind.

Saiki paused mid-bite. His spoon hung in the air.

His eyes didn't widen.

He didn't gasp.

But inside?

He felt it.

A presence. Something alien. Something old. And worst of all?

Something manipulative.

Saiki (thinking):

"…Tch. So someone thinks they're the final boss of the arc now."

He lowered his spoon and set the empty cup down beside him.

Across dimensions, sitting in his shadowy throne made of lies and secrets, Apollyon continued grinning, completely unaware that someone had not only noticed him...

But had read him like a book in a bargain bin.

Back on the rooftop, Saiki rubbed his temple slowly with one hand.

Saiki (thinking):

"He's using mental manipulation. Influencing people's thoughts, nudging them toward chaos. Subtle. Dangerous. Classic mustache-twirling villain stuff."

pause

"Rudra's already infected. So is that stuck-up Rosso man. He's making them pawns. Trying to make them crash into each other like it's a demolition derby."

He stood up, dusted off his pants, and cracked his neck.

Saiki (aloud):

"Yare yare… why do I even bother hoping for peace in this world?"

He looked at the city below, lights flickering on as the night began.

The nobles, the soldiers, the families. They had no idea what was creeping into their thoughts.

Saiki (thinking):

"Apollyon probably thinks I'm just some extra in this story.

No magicules. No flashy aura. No transformation sequences.

...Which is exactly what makes me the perfect piece in this little game of chess."

He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out another coffee jelly cup. His emergency backup.

Opening the lid with supernatural precision, he took a bite and sighed.

Saiki (aloud):

"I guess this is where the real game begins."

Flash to Saiki's mindspace – a swirl of violet and green, like a cosmic data room

He pulled up everything Apollyon had touched: whispers in Rudra's thoughts, invisible strings tied to Granbell, tension sewn into alliances like cracks in porcelain.

He didn't need to read emotions. He could see the intent behind every change in behavior.

Rudra's paranoia?

Granbell's ambition?

The Emperor's sudden urge to "restore balance"?

All signs of a puppet master at work.

Saiki (thinking):

"If he's playing chess…"

He blinked — a dozen pieces moved in his head.

He already foresaw every move Apollyon was planning two steps from now.

"…I guess that makes me the other player."

He smirked.

Just a little.

Then he frowned again.

Saiki (aloud):

"…But of course, now I have to babysit a bunch of overpowered nobles, hyper-emotional royals, and a prideful Emperor who thinks he's still in charge of everything."

He finished the last spoonful of his coffee jelly and crushed the cup with a soft crunch.

Saiki (sighs deeply):

"Why am I even complaining? This is basically every isekai anime ever.

Weird overpowered villain shows up, tries to take over the world using other people as pawns.

And I'm the silent main character with mysterious powers forced to clean up the mess."

He teleported to the street below with a blink, right in front of a noble's estate.

Saiki (monotone):

"Time to casually dismantle an evil master plan without anyone noticing again."

And somewhere… in the deepest folds of shadow and thought…

Apollyon paused.

Just for a second.

He felt…

a ripple.

A presence.

Someone watching him.

His smile faltered. Only a little.

"Strange…" he whispered.

Then shook his head.

"Must've been nothing."