The Status Window Opened on the First Day of School (4) “…After filtering them down, there are three…
is that it?” It had taken three full days to narrow the list this far.
Ivan stood up, pressing hard against his dry, aching eyes.
His filtering criteria had been simple: People who had suddenly begun to stand out.
People whose personalities or behavior had changed drastically.
People who displayed strange speech or actions.
Without the support of the Counterintelligence Command, gathering this information would have been impossible.
After all, it required digging directly into the Academy of Nobles.
“The problem is…
these three.” One was an orphan who had entered through the practical-skills scholarship program.
The other two belonged to the Academy of Nobles.
In other words, they were members of the Crown Prince’s faction.
They’re difficult to touch.
No matter how much Ivan’s employment here was under a false identity, if anyone traced his background far enough, it would inevitably lead back to the Counterintelligence Command.
And the Counterintelligence Command was Elizaveta’s right hand.
If he recklessly provoked the Academy of Nobles and got caught, it would damage Elizaveta’s political influence.
“…Would it be a problem if I just kidnapped all three of them…?” Ivan tapped the table as he muttered something that would have made Dmitry foam at the mouth.
(Along with Elizaveta.) One was the famous freshman who had entered on a full scholarship.
He might be an orphan, but talented people from every major institution already had their eyes on him.
Provoking him carelessly would only bring trouble.
The remaining two noble students both came from Upper House families within the Academy of Nobles.
Naturally, he couldn’t simply abduct them without thinking.
If they truly were Possessors, he would act far more boldly.
But at this point, all he had were suspicions.
There was still no concrete evidence.
Therefore…
“I’ll keep all three under surveillance and watch them for now.” Killing them could be done at any time.
Kidnapping them wasn’t particularly difficult either.
But if he wanted everything to proceed cleanly, without leaving loose ends, preparation would be necessary.
Thus, after three days, Ivan finally decided to report to the Academy.
And from that day onward…
Rumors began spreading throughout St.
Jansk University that a mysterious stranger had begun appearing on campus.
*** For Esidisi, who had been trapped in the curse of becoming an outcast by some incomprehensible stroke of malicious fate, there weren’t many options left.
Fortunately, the semester had only just begun.
No matter how important first impressions were, there had to be ways to turn things around.
For example…
Finding someone even her uncle wouldn’t dare provoke.
Dad’s friend’s daughter…!
Whether it had been a promise between their parents or simply an incredible coincidence, the children of the Hero’s Party had all ended up in the same year.
No matter how reckless her uncle was, surely he wouldn’t dare approach the Hero’s child carelessly.
That was how this lunch gathering had come to be.
“It’s nice to meet you, Miss…
Einarsdottir…?
Is…
is that how I should address you?” “Ah, that just means ‘Einar’s daughter.’ Between friends, just call me Esidisi.” “Umm…
but…
you’re still…
a princess, aren’t you?” “Hahaha…
a princess?
I’ve never been treated like this before.
I’m honestly about to cry…” Her eyes glistening dramatically, Esidisi vigorously shook the pretty girl’s hand.
“Ah…
was I being rude?
I’m sorry.
I already knew Isabelle…
You’re a freshman in the Knight Faculty too, right?
May I ask your name?” “I’m Yuri Frank.
Miss Esidisi.
Just call me Yuri.” “Esi, quit embarrassing yourself and back off.
What, is she some incredibly important noble or something?” “I-I’m sorry!
I don’t know the list of Krasilof court nobles…!” “W-What are you talking about?!
No!
I’m not a noble!
Please don’t say things like that!” Isabelle poked Esidisi while quietly laughing.
Seriously…
what bloodline could possibly be more precious than royalty?
Esidisi hesitated, unable to understand everyone’s reaction.
Blushing, Yuri explained, “I’m just an orphan.
And…
honestly, Frank isn’t even my real father’s surname.” “Besides,” Isabelle added, “Yuri is a boy’s name.” “But it was hard to survive on the streets with a girl’s name.” Yuri answered with an easygoing smile.
Isabelle chuckled before turning back toward Esidisi.
“She’s our department’s full-scholarship student.
She’s seriously amazing with a sword.” “Wow…
better than Isabelle?” “Better than me—and even Oscar.
Honestly, I was shocked.
Where did someone like her even come from?” “You’re flattering me.
I was just lucky.” “If luck was enough to beat us, then that’s called skill.” Warmth spread through Esidisi’s heart.
Yes…
This is it.
This is how it’s supposed to be.
A lively spring day.
Warm sunshine.
Eating together.
Praising one another’s abilities.
Growing stronger through friendly rivalry…
This was exactly the kind of life she’d dreamed about.
Without realizing it, she sniffled as she desperately pushed the image of her uncle—who was probably fooling around with the Knight Faculty students somewhere at that very moment—out of her mind.
*** Isabelle.
Esidisi.
And…
a freshman.
Perched atop a tree, Ivan flipped through his notes while watching them chat below.
He hadn’t approached closely enough to hear their voices.
But he possessed lip-reading skills of extraordinary precision.
Their conversation appeared perfectly ordinary.
The name was either Yuri…
or Yulia.
Both names appeared on the freshman roster.
But among the names on his suspect list, Yuri was far more likely.
That created a problem.
The “suspect” was interacting with the Hero’s Party.
And on top of that…
The name was Yuri.
Naturally, within Krasilof culture, Yuri was a man’s name.
However…
In Korea…
And more broadly throughout East Asia…
Yuri was commonly used as a woman’s name.
If a woman called herself Yuri…
Then the odds of her being a Possessor increased significantly.
Ivan drew a single red underline beneath the name on his suspect list.
*** “What the hell is that idiot doing?” Enrique, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, stared blankly at her disciple.
Normally, he was so perceptive that getting this close would have been impossible.
Yet he was concentrating so intensely that he hadn’t even noticed her approach.
She followed his gaze.
Far away, several freshmen sat chatting on a bench.
An utterly ordinary sight.
“Hmm…That’s Isabelle…That one looks like Esidisi…Those two have always been close…No idea who the other one is.” The Counterintelligence Command had begged her to check on him for a moment.
Instead, she’d found him stalking freshmen as though he were some undercover field operative.
“Doesn’t seem like he’s completely lost his mind.
Maybe everyone was just overreacting.” His emotionless eyes.
His nearly flawless concealment even while off guard.
This was the Ivan she knew.
Someone almost pathologically obsessed with hiding his presence.
Shrugging, Enrique slipped back into the shadows.
*** “Yevgeny!
Wait up!
What class are you taking this afternoon?
I-I’m going to the Orientation for Biblical Hermeneutics!” “I’m taking Classical Gospel Language Studies.
Sorry.” “O-Oh…It’s okay!
See you later!
Have a good class!” After smiling and waving goodbye to a student whose name he had already forgotten, the young man called Yevgeny walked down the lecture hall corridor with a gloomy expression.
This was annoying.
And confusing.
If he’d known there would be this much to study…
He never would have chosen the Theology Department.
But at the time, it had seemed like the best option.
There’s no way I can make a living fighting.
It was only natural.
He’d never even held a kitchen knife properly in his previous life.
Now he was somehow supposed to fight monsters and members of the Demon Race with a sword?
Impossible.
But choosing a profession completely removed from combat wasn’t an option either.
At minimum, he needed a class that could still operate on the battlefield.
So…
The Theology Department.
After completing the priesthood course, he’d gain buffs, healing skills, and even Holy Strike-type spells.
Besides…
this body is gifted with the sword.
Yujin, the protagonist of The Northern Grand Duke’s Good-for-Nothing Sword Genius, was a genuine sword prodigy.
The system itself proved it.
While every other freshman hovered around Levels 8 to 10 with unimpressive combat skills…
This body had started its very first day after possession with the incredible achievement of [Sword Mastery Lv.5].
That placed him roughly one step below a first-year instructor in the Knight Faculty at St.
Jansk University.
In other words…
He was already beyond ordinary freshmen.
The problem was…
Knowing swordsmanship technically and actually slaughtering people with it were two entirely different things.
For a modern Korean who had never even wrung a chicken’s neck…
It was simply too much.
“So being a priest really is the best…” A rear-line support who never had to stand on the front lines.
Just cast healing spells and buffs.
And if he also happened to be unusually skilled with a sword…
That was the very definition of an overpowered protagonist.
People always said your greatest talent should stay your side job.
After all, wasn’t it natural for an idol who’s also a great actor to become even more popular than actors themselves?
The only two problems were: First.
The Theology curriculum at St.
Jansk University was every bit as brutal as modern Korean universities.
Second.
That crazy, catapult-wielding Santa Claus with the insane eyes was still chasing him.
Seriously…
what the hell is that guy?!
There had never been an event like this in the original novel.
In fact…
This world was completely different from the original story.
The original wasn’t some vaguely communist empire.
There was no Demon King.
No Hero’s Party.
It had simply been an ordinary noble-family fantasy where the protagonist spent roughly a thousand chapters fighting an evil family of mages.
The only things this world shared with that novel were the familiar skill tree…
The familiar Status Window…
And the familiar situation within his family.
A Northern Grand Duke?
The entire nation of Krasilof was already in the north.
How could a Northern Grand Duke even exist?
And why can’t I see that guy’s level…?!
He knew that once the level difference became too great, the displayed level would simply change into ???.
But there had to be limits.
Why was the Academy gardener’s level like that?
He even remembered that his own family head was only Level 59.
Despair washed over him.
Turning his gaze away…
He noticed, at the edge of his vision…
A bearded monster of a man staring directly at him from the top of a tree.
No one else seemed to have noticed him.
He had tried his best to ignore it.
But through [Enhanced Intuition Lv.3], even at this distance…
He could still vaguely see him.
*** “He’s tailing three people.” Enrique became certain.
At first, she’d assumed he’d been ordered to protect the children of the Hero’s Party.
But after following him a while longer…
Something felt off.
The problem was…
Those three had absolutely nothing in common.
One belonged to Theology.
One to the Knight Faculty.
The last to the Magic Faculty.
Their backgrounds were just as different.
A duke’s son.
An orphan.
The youngest daughter of a viscount.
Nothing matched.
And then there was that killing intent.
He glared at them like a tiger crouching inside the bushes…
As though he were staring at sworn enemies.
“…Shouldn’t he absolutely not touch those kids?” The orphan had practically smashed open the scholarship entrance exam and was already receiving recruitment offers from everywhere.
The other two noble students both came from the Academy of Nobles.
Clearly members of the Crown Prince’s faction.
Nothing good could come from messing with them.
And, as if that weren’t enough…
One belonged to the Magic Faculty.
The other to Theology.
The one thing those departments shared was that neither dean was from Krasilof.
The Theology Department was, naturally, headed by the Saint.
The Magic Department was overseen by the elves of the Kalion Archipelago.
Meaning…
If anyone attacked one of their students…
The consequences would be enormous.
“Ah, come on.
No way.
Surely…Surely he wouldn’t go that far…” Enrique laughed quietly.
Yet deep down…
She couldn’t shake the feeling that if it were that madman…
He might actually have some insane reason to do exactly that.
The Hero’s Party’s Thief.
The vampire who had ruled the back alleys of Prizhenkaya for an entire century.
She quietly stalked the student stalker…
Ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.
*** He saw my eyes.
Ivan had been following him from quite a distance away from the Theology building.
Yet…
That boy had noticed him.
With dry, expressionless eyes, Ivan stared at the young man listed among his suspects.
Yevgeny Novikov Karamzin.
Yevgeny was an ordinary name.
Nothing special.
But in Asian cultures…
Yevgeny could also be rendered as Yujin.
Naturally, this had nothing to do with the Catholic saint Eugenius.
It was simply a name recognized in both Asia and Europe.
Therefore…
The possibility that this one was also a Possessor was high.
Ivan drew a second red underline.
Detected concealed presence.
Suspicious movements.
Suspicious name.