Levtor had never encountered a "Marionettist." His demanding military duties also left him little time to learn about the characteristics of other Pathways. Besides, "Marionettist" could easily be considered an upper-middle Sequence, not one of those common low Sequence Beyonders.
It was perfectly normal for the giant secretary to know little about them.
However, although Levtor did not know that his spirituality threads were being controlled, he still instinctively fought back. Sifa was not a true "Marionettist," and he was not the one manipulating the spirituality threads. The String-Pulling Marionette was.
If Levtor actively resisted and tried to break free, he should have had a chance of succeeding. Unfortunately, Midnight Dream eliminated that possibility. The forcibly controlled giant could not avert his gaze, and the instant he saw the ring emit an eerie glow, he was subjected to Forced Sleep.
Only then did Sifa finally breathe a sigh of relief.
During his previous attempts to control animal marionettes, Sifa had discovered that controlling the spirituality threads, deepening that control, and ultimately transforming the target into a marionette were all carried out independently by the String-Pulling Marionette.
He only needed to supply the item with spirituality and keep some part of his body moving to avoid the marionette's gaze.
Meanwhile, he could do other things and operate other mystical items.
When he decided to use the String-Pulling Marionette against Levtor, Sifa had already thought of pairing it with Midnight Dream. The former would forcibly control the target, while the latter would put the target straight to sleep, leaving him unable to resist.
Taking advantage of this, the String-Pulling Marionette could deepen its control without concern. About three minutes later, Levtor, who had been lying asleep on the floor, climbed to his feet and bowed slightly to Sifa. "Good morning, sir."
*It