Chapter 30

Chapter 29

Villain? Yeongae - 3

Damian Conner, the current president of the Imperial Academy Student Council, was born as the third son of the Conner family, one of the many baronial families. Born into the ambiguous position of a third son in a baronial family, Damian was merely an ordinary noble youth who dreamed of a bureaucratic career from a young age.

Since the eldest son would inherit the family, the third son had to find his own path. That's why he chose the path of a bureaucrat and joined the Student Council.

Unlike clubs that serve as social venues, the Student Council was traditionally a place for students aspiring to become bureaucrats. Therefore, students with ambiguous family influence or status often joined the Student Council. As a result, they would experience the rigors of bureaucratic life early on.

However, Damian did not complain about this. It was a path he had chosen, and the current hardships would become valuable experience when he aimed to become a bureaucrat in the future. Graduates from the Student Council often entered the bureaucracy, so the Imperial Administration tended to give some extra points to those with Student Council experience.

However, a red light went on in Damian's Student Council life when he became a second-year student last year.

"Margareta Varenti. Please take care of me, seniors."

A disruptive element appeared in the Student Council, which was composed of colorless and odorless individuals from the noble society. When the unexpected princess appeared, Damian almost collapsed, but he managed to stand firm on his two legs thanks to a year of mental training.

Unfortunately for Damian, he was recognized for his abilities and became the vice president, tasked with mentoring the new first-year students. Realizing this, Damian felt like collapsing and crying.

Frustrated and aggrieved, he even raised his voice to the then president, asking what was going on, but the president, with a dark and sunken look in his eyes, silenced Damian with a single sentence.

"Should I tell you to oppose the princess joining?"

Damian cried in his heart.

Since then, Damian approached the Student Council every day with the mindset of a penal battalion member heading to the battlefield. He desperately prayed that the day would pass without incident and that the princess would lose interest in the Student Council and leave on her own, but unfortunately, the princess attended the Student Council regularly.

Time passed, and during a Student Council dinner, the atmosphere was set to ask the first-year students why they joined the Student Council. Although the atmosphere was spontaneous, everyone gathered there was curious about one person's answer.

"There's someone I know in the administration. I want to see that person, so I thought I might become a bureaucrat too."

Smiling brightly, the princess's response made Damian think: Wouldn't it be easier to just summon the person you want to see rather than become a bureaucrat?

'Whoever it is, I hate them...'

That day, Damian genuinely resented an unknown bureaucrat in the administration.

Still, fortunately or unfortunately, the princess conducted her Student Council life smoothly and showed respect to her seniors. Of course, for the seniors, having a princess as a junior was the most severe form of violence, but it was relatively smooth.

A year passed, and Damian became the Student Council president. Now, he only had to graduate to say goodbye to the princess and the Student Council, which felt like walking on a razor's edge. Imagining himself entering the Imperial Administration after graduation, Damian persevered with determination.

But it seems that his perseverance will end today.

'Your Majesty, Enen, please! Please!'

In front of Damian, a man was reviewing the documents submitted by the Student Council, a sudden harbinger of doom brought by the princess. Damian closed his eyes again as he looked at him.

Karl Krassius, the current head of the Treasury's Inspection Department, who was currently stationed at the Academy as an inspector. Damian, who aspired to be a bureaucrat, could not be unaware of his name.

The emperor's hunting dog, the crown prince's blade, the mad dog of the Treasury. A loyal servant of the royal family who barked when ordered to bark and bit when ordered to bite. The reputation and infamy he had built over the two years since becoming the head of the Inspection Department were astounding.

Especially the Aislinn Marquess family, the most powerful supporter of the second prince and the queen's maternal family, which wielded great influence. The head of the Inspection Department was the one who dismantled this family, which was said to be incomparable to any other family except the royal family and the five dukes.

Even more shockingly, he imposed the humiliation of a demotion in title, a fate worse than extinction for the core nobility, and mocked the head of the Aislinn Marquess family, who had collapsed in despair. The head later committed suicide out of shame.

...And now, this person was inspecting his work.

"Hmm."

'Mother...'

The head of the Inspection Department continued to review the documents. Damian and the other Student Council executives trembled like prisoners on the chopping block. Only the princess remained calm, smiling serenely.

"Not bad."

"Excuse me?"

After what felt like an eternity, the positive judgment made Damian's voice falter. He immediately closed his mouth upon realizing his mistake, but fortunately, the head of the Inspection Department did not seem to notice.

"There are some clumsy marks, but they're not significant enough to be a problem. It's fine. You could handle practical work without any issues."

The atmosphere immediately relaxed with the head of the Inspection Department's declaration of innocence. The treasurer and the accountant were on the verge of tears. Damian finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Damian Conner, right?"

"Yes, yes! That's right!"

The sudden voice made Damian tense again, but the head of the Inspection Department, without looking at him, took out a business card from his pocket and wrote something on the back.

"Take it."

"Ah, yes."

Damian carefully took the business card offered by the head of the Inspection Department. On the back was his name and the head's signature.

"You said you plan to take the civil service exam after graduation? You don't need to. Go to the department you want and submit this, and they'll give you an appropriate position."

Damian's eyes widened. Although he had volunteered for the Student Council, it was not out of choice. His ambiguous position as a third son and lack of connections forced him to take the civil service exam. The Student Council was a necessary choice for extra points.

Now, a golden connection had appeared before him. Although he said it would be an appropriate position, with the head of the Inspection Department's recommendation, the impossible positions would be easier to count than the possible ones. Especially in the Treasury.

"Thank you!"

Damian bowed deeply, expressing his gratitude to the head of the Inspection Department. He realized how much he had been deafened by the exaggerated infamy. Such a person could not be a vicious monster.

"Your gratitude will be sufficient if shown through dedication to the empire."

Look, what a wonderful person.

***

I watched the president tremble as he submitted the documents and quickly reviewed them. In fact, I intended to let it slide if there were no signs of embezzlement, even if it was a bit sloppy. The president had been hit by a bolt of lightning due to Margareta's machinations.

'Oh, not bad.'

But it wasn't necessary. Even though I am not a typical inspector, I have seen and heard a lot over the past two years. I can quickly grasp the documents prepared for the report. The more I looked, the better it seemed.

Of course, there were some clumsy aspects, but these would naturally improve with experience in the civil service. It's really good.

'Damian Conner, right?'

I looked at the president with renewed interest. I've found a good gem. It would be convenient to have someone like this, and he's a civil service aspirant.

So I immediately wrote a recommendation letter for him. I had to, in case this potential gem, no, slave, changed his mind and gave up on the civil service exam. With my recommendation, he would be guaranteed a position. Not accepting it would be considered impolite.

"Thank you!"

The president bowed, clearly moved. No, I'm the one who should be grateful. The more lower-level slaves like him I accumulate, the closer my retirement will be. Turning a business card into a recommendation letter is no big deal.

Wow! A civil servant! Cheaper than a business card!

Thus, the emergency inspection, which satisfied both the president and me, came to an end.

I left the Student Council room, accompanied by the president's respectful farewell and the gazes of the other Student Council members, who looked at me with something like longing. I have a good idea what they were thinking.

Yes, the president didn't prepare those documents alone. Don't worry, I'll give you recommendation letters when the time comes. Even if you don't want them, I'll give them to you. If you run away, I'll catch you and bring you to the Treasury.

"Thank you, Karl. I hope you have a good day tomorrow."

"Tomorrow too?"

"The preparations for the fair aren't finished yet. It would be helpful if you could check any changes as soon as they happen."

Margareta, who had followed me out of the Student Council room, smiled and said. Her light but firm smile made me nod reluctantly. What could I do? If I refused, Margareta might run to Louise, causing me trouble.

"Will the same time tomorrow be okay?"

"I'll wait in the club room, and I'll come."

"Wow, what an honor."

Being picked up by a princess is too much. I chuckled, and Margareta also giggled.

And that night, after the regular classes and club activities had ended.

- I heard you met my daughter.

"Yes, yes, that's right."

Knees bending involuntarily, head bowing slightly. In front of me was the face of a man appearing through a glowing communication device.

- You said you wouldn't see her again, but this is surprising.

"Ha ha..."

The sudden call from the Iron Blood Duke enveloped me in a dazzling light.

...Wouldn't it be faster to drink poison than to hang myself?

Author's Note

This is a bit of a late side note, but in actual history, titles and power did not always correlate. There were dukes who struggled and barons who wielded great influence. Sometimes a count in the capital was stronger than a marquis in the borderlands. Of course, readers are aware of this.

However, considering all these variables might undermine the beauty of the world of this novel, so in this story, titles and power are always proportional. No matter how strong a baron or a viscount is, they must bow to a count, and no matter how strong a count or a marquis is, they are still below a duke.

The five ranks of nobility in this world are solid! So, readers, please enjoy the story with peace of mind!

Thank you for reading this chapter!