The friends were left speechless from shock, disbelief, and confusion. Lee Han calmly advised them.

“Control your expressions. If you want to get out of here alive.”

“Y-you...!”

Asan, who had been preparing to bombard him with questions moments earlier, looked stunned, but Anglago beside him was glaring at Lee Han with outright resentment. His eyes were filled with betrayal.

“Why are you acting like that again?”

“To think Stedal was fake...!!”

“...”

Out of all the second-year drama club students, Anglago had been the one most captivated by the character called Stedal.

Since he himself came from a knightly family in a coastal region, Stedal’s story had deeply resonated with him.

He had genuinely wanted to ask how Stedal stole treasure maps from pirates and built up his fortune, but it had all been fabricated.

“Is that really the important part right now? Besides, you only heard the story less than an hour ago. Why are you this attached already?”

“Shut up! What would you know?!”

“Quiet, Alpha. That’s not the important issue right now.”

Salco immediately shut his friend down. Lee Han looked at him curiously.

“You were in the drama club too?”

“Ah, yes. But I don’t particularly like theater.”

The other students immediately booed him. Nillia even gave him a thumbs-down.

Salco remained completely unfazed.

“If there are people who enjoy theater itself, there are also people who enjoy the palaces, halls, theaters, and stages where plays are performed. If I want to build structures like these later, it’s useful to see as many as possible.”

“Indeed. Very much like you, Salco. In that case, you probably don’t know much about theater. Let me explain a few basics. The lovers from House Alkarumata and House Ilhon—”

“I know that much. Wardanaz... I said I don’t particularly like theater, not that I’m some idiot without basic common sense.”

Salco looked at Lee Han as if he were ridiculous.

But Lee Han found Salco even more absurd.

‘This bastard loves theater so much, and he still claims he doesn’t like it?’

Lee Han silently vowed never again to trust anyone who claimed not to like theater.

“Now then, listen carefully. Like I said earlier, I came here to help you escape.”

“B-but leaving without telling the upperclassmen feels a little...”

“The upperclassmen are the ones who asked me to do this.”

“...”

The second-years experienced profound enlightenment.

There truly wasn’t a single trustworthy person in Einroguard.

The upperclassmen who had publicly insisted, ‘We came here honorably to watch the play, what do you mean escape,’ had been secretly making arrangements behind the scenes.

‘We need to learn from this.’

“Stedal! What are you doing over there?! Hurry back!”

While they were talking, the nobles called out to Lee Han.

It was the kind of enthusiastic welcome reserved for a friend of ten years.

Yonair asked in bewilderment,

“How did you become so close with them?”

“While I was talking about how I escaped from the pirates, people just kept gathering around. I’ll head back for now. Share the information with the other club members who still don’t know yet. Don’t make it obvious. The moment a commotion starts, be ready to move immediately.”

Leaving only those words behind, Lee Han—no, Stedal—hurried back toward the nobles.

The remaining students stared at one another blankly.

“...What kind of commotion is he planning to cause?”

“He’s not going to blow something up, is he? Even so, he’s still Wardanaz, right?”

“Mentioning a family infamous throughout the Empire for causing magical disasters doesn’t really reassure me...”

***

“The pirates, you ask. It wasn’t pleasant. We survived on hard bread and rice balls, and sometimes they made us dig traps or raid lodgings.”

“Oh my goodness...”

“There was a punishm— no, a prison. If you disobeyed orders or made mistakes, they locked you inside.”

“How dreadful!”

“The pirate captain also had subordinates constantly watching everyone...”

The reason Stedal—who was neither eloquent nor refined and had only recently arrived in the city—became so popular was simple.

His story moved the nobles deeply.

Even the nobles who initially thought, ‘What ridiculous nonsense is this? Could he be a fraud?’ ended up wiping away tears after hearing Stedal recount his story in person.

To escape such brutal conditions and even discover treasure in the end.

Perhaps divine providence truly did exist.

“Stedal! Stedal!”

“Lord Stedal, would you visit my estate next month? Please allow me the honor of hosting you and my family!”

Once someone earned favor, even their flaws began to look charming.

The rough and taciturn Stedal had become established as a rugged noble with a tragic and fascinating past.

‘Hmm. Next time I should go with a more ordinary background.’

Lee Han escaped from the nobles tugging at him, inwardly regretful.

He had prepared the role carefully to avoid suspicion, but he never imagined he would become this popular.

He deliberately gave short answers and behaved gruffly, so why exactly had this happened?

‘Hmm. The palace rear gate isn’t a good escape route. It’s too open. We’d be spotted immediately. We need nearby hiding places. Flying transportation might be useful too. Could we dig a tunnel and escape through that? Salco would probably be good at it.’

Pretending to stroll casually while inspecting the routes around the palace, Lee Han suddenly stopped.

Among the nobles chatting in small groups nearby, one person felt strangely out of place.

‘What is that?’

Something alien had embedded itself into the other person’s soul like tangled branches.

Looking around, it seemed nobody else sensed the unease.

Which wasn’t surprising.

Detecting souls was far more difficult than detecting mana, and even among mages, very few possessed such ability.

Moreover, the traces within the man’s soul were faint and blurred. Without deep perception, they would be impossible to notice.

Simply distinguishing soul colors was difficult enough, let alone peering deeper into the details hidden inside.

However, after experiencing soul collapse, Lee Han’s sensitivity toward souls had grown tremendously.

Because of that, he could notice traces others would normally overlook.

‘It feels sinister.’

Lee Han considered it for a moment.

Truthfully, he could simply ignore it and walk away.

There were more causes for strange traces inside souls than one might expect.

Perhaps the man had participated in dangerous magical experiments or questionable research in the past. Or perhaps he regularly consumed certain potions or magical substances.

Besides, Lee Han himself was currently hiding secrets. Causing unnecessary trouble would only hurt him.

‘Why is that bastard staring at me?’

Madpre felt uncomfortable beneath the gaze of the unfamiliar noble.

From what he’d heard, the man supposedly belonged to some southern Imperial family.

House Nago, was it?

If Madpre had been an ordinary noble, he would’ve ignored the stare.

Unfortunately, he was not an ordinary noble.

‘I need to spread Prahgal’s name. Hopefully he won’t become an obstacle.’

Since Madpre had entered this place carrying evil intentions and schemes, even a brief stare was difficult to dismiss lightly.

“Are you Lord Nago? Greetings. I am called Madpre. This is your first visit to Granden City, correct?”

“Greetings.”

Stedal’s voice was rough and his attitude stiff.

Ordinarily, Madpre might have been offended.

Instead, he felt relieved.

If the man was this rude by nature, then the earlier stare probably hadn’t meant anything.

“Do you know much about theater?”

“A little.”

“Indeed. I know very little myself. Do you have a favorite play?”

“...You’re probably familiar with the stories surrounding House Alkarumata and House Ilhon.”

“I know almost nothing about them. Please enlighten me!”

Naturally, Madpre already knew the stories well, but he deliberately pretended ignorance.

People loved explaining things everyone already knew. If Stedal became enthusiastic while explaining, perhaps he would develop a favorable impression of Madpre.

“I’m not very good at talking. That would be difficult.”

“Oh my. What a shame.”

But Stedal answered as though lengthy conversation annoyed him and immediately turned away.

It was rude behavior again, but Madpre felt completely reassured.

‘So it really was my imagination. He’s not the # Nоvеlight # type to chatter excessively.’

***

“He’s extremely suspicious and gives off a sinister aura. Security needs to be strengthened.”

“Hm?!”

The Death Knights were startled.

To think the noble currently attracting all the attention at the theater gathering would personally come to report another suspicious individual.

“But we cannot investigate or search guests without evidence. Were there any other suspicious signs?”

“I sensed evil traces within his soul.”

‘He must be quite an accomplished mage.’

The Death Knights realized this noble named Stedal was no ordinary mage.

To notice something unsettling hidden inside another person’s soul amidst this crowded chaos...

“Understood. We’ll summon the knights stationed outside, increase the alert level, and begin checking the guests.”

“Please also pull some of the knights currently guarding the Einroguard students.”

“That’s a little... We still need personnel to guard the students.”

The Death Knights shamelessly made excuses. Lee Han cursed internally.

Guarding, my ass.

“I’m not telling you to remove all of them. Leave enough behind and have the rest inspect the surroundings.”

“...Tch. Understood. If there truly is a suspicious person, that takes priority. But Lord Nago, I am curious. Strange traces inside someone’s soul aren’t necessarily proof of wrongdoing, so what made you judge him suspicious?”

“...”

Lee Han hesitated briefly.

If he answered, ‘Because he didn’t know anything about theater,’ the Death Knights might immediately slap handcuffs on him and declare, ‘Isn’t this bastard the suspicious one?’

“...I felt it the moment I saw him.”

“Indeed!”

After finishing his report and leaving, Lee Han heard the Death Knights talking among themselves.

“I’d heard rumors, but he’s impressive. And his instincts are beastlike. Did you see his eyes?”

“He escaped from southern pirates. He’s clearly no ordinary person. Perhaps he sensed the danger instinctively. We need to stay even more vigilant.”

They had only heard rumors before, but after seeing him in person—with his magical skill and wild instincts—they realized he was extraordinary.

Where exactly had such a person come from?

“But strangely enough, doesn’t his name sound familiar?”

“It does. I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before...”

***

“The Death Knights are pulling back!”

“Shh! Watch your expression!”

As the Death Knights passed by, the students pretended ignorance and acted naturally.

Adenart desperately attempted to whistle despite being terrible at it. Rowena, who had accompanied them as a guard, pitied her enough to quietly advise her to stop.

“Students of Einroguard. Since we trust you, we’re reducing the surveillance slightly. Surely you won’t betray that trust?”

“Of course not!”

The students answered with completely hypocritical sincerity.

Then, the moment the Death Knights moved away, they immediately whispered among themselves.

“Did Wardanaz start a fire somewhere? An explosion? I didn’t hear any explosions though.”

“He might’ve caused a flood elsewhere.”

“A poisonous cloud...”

“...Lee Han wouldn’t do something like that.”

Fortunately, Yonair defended Lee Han.

Nillia had been about to suggest, ‘Maybe he summoned some gigantic monster!’ but stopped after hearing Yonair.

“Did everyone deliver the messages?”

“War— Stedal!”

When Stedal—no, Lee Han—returned, his friends greeted him warmly.

“What happened? Why are the Death Knights moving around?”

“It’s a long story. More importantly, good work delivering the messages. I’ve checked the escape routes. Now we need to divide responsibilities. Anglago. Asan. The two of you prepare potions until the play starts.”

“Poison?”

“Monster summoning potions?”

“...I meant calming potions.”