On the lonely planetoid Azair, the reclusive mathematician Oridin receives a visit from Caddo Velexis, a ruthless conqueror who believes he has come for the secret to ruling the universe. Calm, amused, and far more prepared than he first appears, Oridin invites the armed intruder inside and turns the threat into a contest of intellect, pride, and ambition. What Caddo wants is not a weapon in the usual sense, but a mathematical formula for certainty itself—a discovery he imagines will make him unstoppable. Oridin leads him to an unlocked safe and lets him discover the formula, but the explanation is deliberately abstract and deceptive, a trap hidden inside the promise of absolute power. As Caddo becomes obsessed, scribbling furiously and trying to master the impossible logic, Oridin quietly leaves him to collapse under the weight of his own greed. Three days later, when the patrol arrives, the once-feared warlord is a babbling wreck, mentally shattered by the very certainty he sought. Oridin hands him over without regret, then returns to his solitary life, waiting for the next would-be master of the universe. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.