"All right, so what did you want to talk about with me?" Ivica inquired.
I informed Ivica about the release of the demon lord that Irethiel had told me about earlier.
"This is going to be troublesome because we don't know where that demon lord is or what he is planning right now," Ivica said.
"Do you know which demon lord has been released?" Ivica inquired, casting a glance at Irethiel.
"I believe it's the demon lord Belphegor," Irethiel said.
"Belphegor?" Ivica furrowed.
"Yeah, Demon Lord Belphegor may not be an imposing and terrifying demon, but he's known for his cunning and deception," Irethiel explained.
"Belphegor, 'The Demon Lord of Sloth' is well suited for manipulation and deception; he transforms into various forms, selecting whichever he believes will persuade his victims to do his bidding," I muttered.
"H-Huh, yes, you're right, you know about him?" Irethiel was perplexed as she agreed with my statement.
This will be even more challenging, because I've read about him in the novel and am fully aware of the cunning ways in which he tricks people into creating brilliant inventions that will make them wealthy, eventually leading to them signing a contract with him and his puppet-like control over them.
Following that, he will manipulate people and incite conflict so that he can watch as people slaughter each other without getting involved.
"...."
"We shouldn't go out of our way to find him because he'll change forms frequently, but we'll learn about him once he makes his moves.
We only need to keep an eye on people who have become famous and wealthy overnight" I stated.
"Yeah, I'll do what I can, and I'll also notify the Adventurer Association about it," Ivica said, pausing for a moment to face me.
"But you should concentrate on improving your strength, Ares, and avoid getting involved with the demon lords until you're strong enough," she said solemnly.
"...."
'Should I tell her I'm already involved in this because of Irethiel?' I turned to face Irethiel, thinking to myself.
"W-what now?" Irethiel exclaimed as she felt my gaze.
'If I abandon Irethiel, no demon lords will come after me, right?' I had this idea before shaking my head and coming out of my thoughts.
"I'll keep that in mind," I replied to Ivica, with an awkward smile and averted my gaze.
Ivica simply stared at me because of my untrustworthy expression.
"Oh and I'll send Irethiel to see if the strengthening fruit's dungeon has appeared or not," I stated.
When Ivica heard me, a small smile appeared on her pale face.
"I will be grateful," she replied.
"Huh? Why are you sending me for such a thing? And strengthening fruit will be beneficial to you as well, so why give it to her?" Irethiel inquired.
"Well, the strengthening fruit might make me a little stronger, but it has the potential to save Ivica's life, so of course, I'll give it to her," I explained with a smile.
'Wow really? Saving her? He has been a saint since when? It's possible that my bastard master is plotting something else against her as well,' Irethiel thought to herself.
'Wait, why did I refer to him as my master again?' Irethiel suddenly realized.
"...."
Ivica was very taken aback by Ares' response because she knew how advantageous a strengthening fruit could be for him as well, but he is ignoring it for her.
"I will definitely return this favor one day, I will do everything in my power to help you, and I swear it on my dragon heart," Ivica promised.
When Ares heard Ivica, he simply smiled and stated,
"Oh, you don't need to promise it on your dragon heart because I believe you, and I already know that you'll help me as well if I'm in any trouble in the future,"
'What's the point of saying it now, when she's already promised?' Irethiel thought to herself as she knew very well that Ares might be grinning evilly inwardly.
"Yeah, just call me and I'll be there to help you," Ivica said with a bright smile on her pale face.
When I saw her smile, I smiled back as well.
In a world where strength is everything, passing up an opportunity that could help you gain even a small amount of strength was idiocy.
Even saints will have second thoughts about passing up an opportunity to gain strength in order to help someone else.
...And I'm far from a saint.
If I could, I would have used the strengthening fruit myself, leaving Ivica to kick the bucket after she had used her strength when I needed her.
However, one thing they don't know, at least for now, is that not everyone can benefit from the strengthening fruit.
Strengthening fruit will raise your body above the human level, but you must also have enough mana to provide it.
It will work wonders for Ivica because she has an abundance of mana.
But if I used the strengthening fruit with my meager amount of mana, I wouldn't even be able to sustain it.
It's the same as purchasing an expensive item but having to pay for its maintenance on a regular basis.
Though it would not bother the wealthy, but it will be difficult for someone like me.
I was thinking to myself when I heard Ivica question me.
"Oh, Ares, are you going to participate in the upcoming tournament?"
"Yeah, I'll be participating, and I also wanted to be the Academy's representative as well," I explained.
"...I didn't think you would be interested in participating in this tournament, You are free to do whatever you want to become the representative, but please don't go overboard," Ivica responded.
"Yes, of course, I won't go overboard...maybe I'll just send a few students to the infirmary," I said, smiling.
"...."
*Sigh
"At the very least, don't injure them seriously," Ivica sighed and spoke.
"Don't worry, nothing serious will happen," I replied with a smile.
'Now that I have Ivica's approval, I can begin the first part of my plan, which is to form a faction.
And, of course, the first person who came to my mind was Livia Frostine.
I don't think she'll refuse my invitation...right?
Well, I'll find out after I ask her about it, but even if she doesn't join me, the best-case scenario is that she won't participate in the tournament.'
I came out of my thoughts after a few moments of deliberation.
"I'll be on my way then, as I have a class to attend," I said, getting up from the sofa as Irethiel returned to her crow form.
"All right, you can come see me whenever you need anything," Ivica stated with a smile.
I simply smiled back hearing her and walked out of her office.
***
"How do you think he enslaved the infamous 'Dragon Slayer' Irethiel?" Ivica spoke up as she sipped her tea.
"...."
"...He is not as innocent as he appears to be, but I have no idea how that demon signed a slave contract with him; he may have used some deception." Someone answered her.
"Though she is not as powerful as she once was, if she regains her strength, she will be his great strength in the future," Ivica said.
"...hm, Do you think he'll give you that strengthening fruit?" The mysterious voice Inquired.
"Yeah, I don't think he lied about that," Ivica said.
"Hm, if you say so," The mysterious voice replied.
"And what should we do about this demon lord thing?" Ivica stated.
"...I'm not concerned with that, so you take care of it yourself," The voice said and then faded away.
"...Seriously?" Ivica exclaimed.
***
"Are you scheming something against that Half Dragon as well," Irethiel inquired.
"She isn't that naive for me to easily plot something against her, and she still doesn't completely trust me," Ares explained.
"She seems pretty dumb to me, as she didn't recognize me, I know I'm not as strong as I used to be and my appearance did change somewhat, but if she was smart, she would have picked up on the minor details," Irethiel stated.
"Irethiel, you're the gullible one. Did you honestly believe she didn't recognize you?" Ares remarked.
"Huh?" Irethiel was perplexed.
"She recognized you the moment she saw your actual appearance. But I'm not sure why she was doing her best to appear ignorant.
And there was someone else out there as well;
she was nodding and pausing in her conversion as if she were telepathically communicating with someone else, similar to how we communicate telepathically," Ares spoke out while moving toward the classroom.
***