Turning back time briefly to that afternoon.
After class, on the way to Isabelle's house, Ivan felt mild discomfort from the stares following him around.
The military's surveillance was more blatant than expected. Perhaps unlike the counterintelligence command, they weren't accustomed to internal espionage. Their surveillance using students felt almost ostentatious.
I need to wrap up negotiations with the military as quickly as possible. Ivan frowned as he walked.
-Bump.
Just then, a student approached and attempted to collide with him. Quite boldly, obvious enough to see coming.
Ivan quickly reached out to place his hand on the approaching student's forehead, while drawing a dagger with his other hand and pressing it against her throat.
"What is this?"
"Uh, I, um...?"
The female student stopped, looking flustered. Beyond the large hand holding her forehead, she glanced at Ivan's face once and immediately turned bright red.
Then as her gaze dropped down, she saw the cold blade of the dagger. The student instantly turned pale.
"Soniya Blagominovna Vognin. Who sent you?"
"W-w-who sent me...? More importantly, h-how do you know my name?"
"Did you think I wouldn't know a student's name?"
"B-but I've never... never even registered for your class...?"
"That's irrelevant. Was it Count Valika? Or did Grand Duke Volonovin send you directly? The Vognin baronial family should have belonged to the Princess faction. As northern nobility, were you easy to recruit?"
"What are you talking about...?"
The student called Soniya stammered in confusion. Ivan narrowed his eyes as he looked down at her. If this was an act, it was too natural—her training would be beyond what was appropriate for her age.
"I-I just wanted to help if your clothes got wet...!"
"Wet clothes? Hmm."
Following her words, he glanced down and saw coffee clutched tightly in her trembling hand.
Ivan flicked his dagger to take the coffee still held in Soniya's hand. The moderately cooled coffee gave off a pleasant aroma.
Keeping his gaze fixed on Soniya, he raised the cup and slightly moistened his lips. He licked the small amount of coffee on his lips, holding it in his mouth briefly.
She claimed she was trying to spill it on his skin, which would mean the poison could be absorbed through skin contact, yet he detected no poison through smell or taste.
So it wasn't a poisoning attempt? Then why try to spill coffee on his clothes? Mental confusion?
"Tell me the truth...."
"Mister—!! Stop!!"
A shout rang out behind him. Ivan, maintaining his posture, turned only his gaze to find Isabelle. Sure enough, Isabelle was running toward them with heavy footsteps not far away.
She rushed over breathlessly and swatted Ivan's hand. She immediately brushed off Soniya's clothes and spoke urgently.
"Senior, how can you just attack someone just by looking at their face! Do you have a death wish?!"
"You, you are...."
"First-year Isabelle!! That's not important right now! Run away quickly! Before you get dragged to the torture chamber!!"
Isabelle made a fuss as she sent Soniya away. It didn't matter. While it would be difficult to kidnap a noble daughter with so many eyes watching, he had memorized all of that woman's personal information and movements anyway.
"I know you're thinking about secretly kidnapping her right now!"
"Hmm."
"Don't just 'hmm' me! This is truly maddening. You should grow your beard back! How many more victims will there be? Those poor people... They're just trying to be friendly! Like, you know, how men bump shoulders with each other to get acquainted!"
"Do that and you die."
When someone picks a fight without reason, one should check if they have an ax or a gun.
And do women attempt social interaction by spilling coffee on others? He had never heard of such a custom in his 30 years of life in Krasilov.
Isabelle approached, pounding her chest as she spoke.
"Anyway! Anyway, that's a thing. That senior did it without thinking, so don't get all suspicious and try to investigate her!"
"The background check is already complete."
I just need to conduct a face-to-face investigation.
"This is driving me crazy."
Isabelle grumbled as she stood in front of Ivan. She looked at his face, then quickly lowered her gaze to fix it around his chest level and said:
"Um, we still have some time before dinner... M-maybe you could tell me more about the test material. In exchange for the meal."
"I do not extract unfair compensation from individual students for academic grades."
"I'm really going to lose my mind."
A grinding sound could be heard from Isabelle's mouth.
"Then just go kidnap someone and spend your time torturing them!! Come for dinner later if you want to or not!"
"Hmm."
Isabelle disappeared from view with quick steps. Ivan, being a sensible person, had long given up on understanding students of that age group.
He soon made his way to the dean's office. He couldn't ignore the order to report in person every day.
Soniya clutched her still trembling hands tightly as she caught her breath.
Only after running to the bathroom and splashing cold water on her face several times could she finally calm down. Those icy blue eyes with their predatory gleam still seemed to be watching her.
"How did he know...?"
She chewed her lips anxiously as she sank into worry. She had failed Baron Vognin, her father's secret mission.
Spilling coffee on his shirt, then approaching gradually under the pretext of compensation... On the surface, it was just an ordinary mistake, a cute accident, precisely that kind of standardized ploy.
"H-how could all five of us fail...?"
The thought of Grand Duke Volonovin's distorted face made her knees weak. She bit her lips nervously as she left the bathroom.
Upon arriving at the dean's office, Ivan immediately had to raise his hand and kneel.
"I hear you threatened a female student with a knife to her throat on the main road."
"No, Your Majesty."
"Was the report incorrect?"
"It wasn't a threat, but an attempt to elicit a statement."
"It seems the mistake wasn't in the report but in your common sense. You've made an error."
Elizabeta laughed helplessly and waved her hand. As Ivan lowered his arm and sat on the sofa, she pressed her brow and sighed.
"Vanka, how about calming down a bit?"
It had only been two days. That man had only returned to the university for that short period.
During that time, five students had suffered the same humiliation. All were female students, and all had attempted to "establish acquaintance through minor pretexts."
It hadn't been like this before. During the brief time Ivan had taught previously, despite his intense teaching methods, he had never directly confronted students outside of class.
Because he shaved his beard—
At that point, Elizabeta glanced at Ivan's chin and couldn't help but smile contentedly.
'It's definitely not because of that.'
She quickly dismissed the bad thought that had briefly surfaced.
Of course, the students' approaches might have something to do with his change in appearance, but Ivan's unusually sharp reactions must have a different reason.
"I also regret the death of Grand Duke Etakrih."
"...Yes, Your Majesty."
"I understand your mourning. I would understand even if you mourned for the rest of your life. But please don't direct your edge toward others. I, Vanka. I want you to integrate better into society."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
His expression showed no sign of acceptance, so Elizabeta sighed and waved her hand.
"I've heard there are students you interact with. Some even accompanied you to Tilles. In your view, are they the heroes of this generation?"
"Yes, they are."
"And you intend to teach them?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Meaning you think they will be useful."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Elizabeta tapped the table as she fell into thought.
"Is the Demon King coming?"
It was a question without context.
She was a person who collected and received reports on every rumor, hearsay, legend, and gossip in this country. After all, she was the head of Krasilov's counterintelligence command, considered the best in internal intelligence worldwide.
The fact that Ivan might be aware of information even she didn't know made no logical sense.
However, the man before her was one of those who defied Elizabeta's common sense. She never judged the Hero Party by ordinary standards.
So Ivan must have some unspoken plan. If he chose not to mention it, it meant she didn't need to know, and such judgment probably came from his own lack of certainty.
"That is what I believe."
"On what basis?"
"It's not certain yet."
Elizabeta nodded.
"Then do what you must, my lord. I will be the confidence you lack. If you need resources, I am willing to open the royal treasury."
"Your Majesty...!"
The attendant who had been quietly listening looked at her in shock. Elizabeta smiled and waved her hand.
"What is such a small matter if a hero who saved two countries needs something? If Vanka were the type to seek personal gain, would he have risked his life in Tilles in the first place?"
"But the ministers' opposition..."
"Oh?"
Elizabeta smiled coldly at the attendant's words.
"Are you more afraid of the ministers' opposition than my will?"
"N-n-no, Your Majesty!!"
"Is there still someone in Krasilov who would keep their head when I order them to die? I didn't know."
The attendant, who had turned pale, hurriedly knelt and bowed her head. She didn't dare open her mouth and was only sweating profusely.
"Are you unwell? Go out. Rest sufficiently before returning."
"P-p-please spare me, Your Majesty!"
"I told you to rest, what are you talking about? I am not one to speak indirectly when cutting off my limbs."
The attendant left the dean's office, unable to control her trembling body. Ivan, who had briefly turned to look at her, spoke.
"Whose daughter was she?"
"Count Igon's daughter. She was one of my foolish brother's minions."
"Count Igon. The Palace Protocol Officer... Are there remaining loyalists?"
"How would the country function if I beheaded everyone in the Palace Ministry? If just taking care of that daughter can reassure the Palace Ministry, it's a profitable arrangement."
Elizabeta smiled lightly.
The Crown Prince faction nobles were mostly administrative nobles. Cutting them all off would naturally paralyze the country's administrative system.
Therefore, it was right to remove a few key figures while keeping the puppets who had worked under them.
However, a simple loyalty oath was not enough. It was impossible to know how much of Alexandr's influence remained. So it was better to simultaneously warn and appease them.
That was the meaning. Keeping the dead Protocol Officer's daughter right by her side.
Ivan bowed his head with slight admiration.
"I hear Grand Duke Volonovin is coming to Pritzenkaya."
"Making a belated loyalty oath, I see."
"Would that be a loyalty oath? He's probably coming to settle the proper price."
Elizabeta rose with a crooked smile.
"Vanka, could you handle this for me?"
"Killing Grand Duke Volonovin would make it difficult to control the 1st Corps."
"...No, who said anything about killing? Why does everyone assume I'm talking about killing or sparing lives whenever I speak? I simply meant for you to go negotiate in my place and finalize things. As intimately and gently as possible. Can you do that?"
"It will be done as Your Majesty wishes."
Ivan bowed deeply as he stood up. It was almost evening.
He needed to convey future action plans to the Hero Party, organize the education schedule, and crucially, it was time to eat Isabelle's cooking after a very long time.
He bowed respectfully and left the dean's office.
"Heh, hehehe...."
After sending him out, alone in the dean's office, Elizabeta burst into a sinister laugh.
From sending Ivan to negotiate with the Grand Duke, to consistently showing Ivan's presence in internal channels...
So that all nobles would know.
That this man belongs to Elizabeta.
That he is her man, whom she trusts enough to send in her place for the most important positions. The man who will be appointed as a royal consort after becoming the military king of this country.
She laughed as she flipped through the file that had been hidden from Ivan on the table.
It was a report listing the personal details of the Hero Party.
Isabelle, Asidis, Elfihera... At least these three must have significant feelings for Vanka.
But no one would dare steal a treasure from the master of Krasilov.
She was a person more accustomed to seizing what she wanted than losing what she had.
"Eat plenty!"
Isabelle smiled brightly as she placed dishes all over the table. She found it hard to look away from Ivan—the way he held his fork, the way he ate stew with a spoon—it was all too entertaining.
Wow, this is really fun. Just watching him makes me, well, feel fulfilled.
"Master... beard... gone... why...?"
Lundis was whimpering, denying reality. Excluding her, everyone else was happy, so calculating the total amount of happiness, it could be said that overall, everyone was enjoying themselves.
Ivan, who had been quietly moving his spoon, wiped his mouth lightly and surveyed the group.
It was time to tell these kids about reality.