Ynsara studied Nova for a moment. Jasmine, her daughter, had already briefly introduced his character. She had also mentioned that he was the one who had participated in the final round of the tournament. Still, this was Ynsara's first time seeing his real face and talking privately with him.

Descriptions rarely lived up to reality, but in this case, Ynsara found herself nodding inwardly in agreement. The way Nova had strolled into her office—like he owned the place rather than properly addressing her, the Dean, spoke volumes.

Gracefully standing up, she crossed the room and sat back down on the sofa opposite him.

Nova remained silent after his initial question. His gaze wandered casually across the room. He neither fidgeted nor feigned politeness. He simply waited.

Seconds passed before Ynsara finally broke the silence with a low chuckle.

"My daughter was right," she said, her eyes still on him. "You really don't care about titles or formalities, do you?"

"I doubt many people still care about those two," Nova said, his tone cool and unconcerned. He leaned back slightly. "But I assume you didn't call me here to discuss titles and formalities. Am I wrong?"

"Not at all," Ynsara replied, shifting into a more relaxed posture on the sofa. "Since my daughter chose to join you, there are a few things you ought to know." She paused, letting her words hang for a beat. "Aren't you curious about what Jonathan is planning?"

'She wants to talk about him? Why?' Nova's brow lifted slightly, but he remained silent. The thought had crossed his mind more than once. But with Shira absent, he had chosen not to dispatch his captains to dig for intel—the risk of exposure was too high. If they were caught, Jonathan would quickly find out everything Nova was doing.

Ynsara noted his silence with interest, the corner of her lips curling into a subtle smile.

"You see…" she began, "Jonathan has been scheming ever since you nearly seized control of the Federation."

"How do you know what happened? I don't remember seeing you in that room," Nova said, meeting Ynsara's sharp green eyes.

She scoffed lightly. "I'm the Dean of one of Earth's four major cities. My authority is second only to the President—at least on paper. Within Quarath, it might even surpass his. If I can't find out something that significant with all my connections, then no one can."

Nova considered her words and found himself agreeing with her.

'Her influence might not be as absolute as she claims—not yet—but there can't be many people above her. Maybe in a few years, when her students start filling key roles in the government, her reach will be just as much as she said.'

He remained silent, but Ynsara took his silence as agreement and pressed on.

"At that time, you came dangerously close to taking the Federation for yourself," she said, her tone unreadable. "You're ruthless enough to occupy such position. But you made a mistake—and that misstep is why we're in the situation we are now."

Nova frowned. "What mistake?"

Ynsara didn't answer immediately. Instead, she continued speaking, her tone taking on the calm, measured cadence of a teacher instructing a student.

"I don't know what happened behind closed doors, and frankly, it doesn't matter. The fact is—you trusted Jonathan. And because of that, you didn't get rid of him when you had the chance."

She glanced at him, her expression unreadable.

"Did he put you at ease? Pretend to be an ally? It shouldn't have mattered. How do you plan to conquer a kingdom without removing the king?"

'Does she want to overthrow the president? Bold.' Nova lowered his gaze, thoughts churning.

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She spoke without pause, fingers idly threading through her hair, as if discussing the weather rather than a man's life.

"Did you truly think someone could rise to become the most powerful figure on Earth without being a schemer?" she asked, voice soft. "I can't entirely blame you. Jonathan is a sly old fox—cunning enough that most people gave up on challenging him. And you… as intelligent as you are, you've never played in this kind of arena before."

Lifting his head, Nova spoke, his voice as calm and composed as ever. "That's all in the past. What about now?"

If Ynsara had previously answered his questions in a roundabout way, this time she didn't even acknowledge it. She kept talking, smooth and uninterrupted, as if he hadn't spoken at all.

"You know," she began, her tone shifting into something almost casual, "the moment Jonathan found out you were gone, he dispatched a dozen scouts to every academy tasked with finding the top student in each one. I'm sure he prayed you'd return late—if at all—so he'd have time to observe, analyze, and handpick the best for his own elite squad."

Nova narrowed his eyes slightly. "So… does that mean Jasmine wasn't the best student Quarath ever had?"

He didn't appreciate being ignored, but he still asked another question. His curiosity got the better of him.

Maybe it was because he'd brought up her daughter, or maybe she had been planning to answer anyway, but this time Ynsara responded directly.

"You're wrong," she said, her voice softening. A caring smile touched her lips.

"She's the best Quarath has ever had Ynsara said without hesitation.

Nova tilted his head slightly. "If that's true, then why didn't Jonathan choose her?"

Ynsara shot him a sidelong glance. "Before the tournament, only a select few even knew she was my daughter. As for her true strength? I was the only one who knew."

She chuckled to herself, remembering the expressions from that day in the grandstand. Fenric's shock, and Jonathan's carefully neutral face—it still made her laugh.

"But the funniest part?" she said, the amusement growing in her voice. "You ended up also recruiting the top students from both Univara and Altura without even realizing it."

Her laughter rose, unrestrained now. "Jonathan still thinks he handpicked the best of the best, when the only real number one he got was from Tritus. Isn't that hilarious?"

Nova's eyelid twitched almost imperceptibly. 'This academy might be the strangest place on Earth. Even the Dean acts like a madwoman. Is Jasmine the only normal person here? What if she's the same as her mother?'

His face betrayed none of his thoughts. Calm as ever, he asked, "You mean Wesley?"

Ynsara's laughter slowly faded as she nodded, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with a fingertip. Once composed, she glanced at Nova and offered a knowing smile.

"Someone looked out for him," she said simply. "That's how he managed to stay at the academy—and eventually end up with you."

'That explains why he was hiding his strength and refused to speak to anyone but me…' The more Nova thought about it, the clearer it became: everything that had happened was, in one way or another, suppressing or isolating Jonathan's power. 'He must believe he's secured the best—when in reality, he only has one. So then… was what he told me at the ceremony out of confidence in his victory? Or was it just a way to buy time?'

A smile played out on his lips as his thoughts reached there.

'Does he really believe he can train people better than I can? Is he relying on something—or someone?' After what Ynsara had revealed, Nova doubted Jonathan was naive enough to depend on conventional methods, especially after the fights Jonathan had witnessed at the tournament.

His smile deepened. 'Besides… what I showed at the tournament is already outdated.'

Pulling himself from his thoughts, Nova spoke, voice steady and measured.

"I don't believe Jonathan is counting on just a few individuals to maintain his position. I'll admit I may have made a mistake months ago, but conquering Earth was never my top priority."

He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.

"The fact that the academies have prevented so many from accelerating our civilization's entry into the larger universe… Just slowing that down is already a victory in my book."

"I knew you weren't stupid," Ynsara said with a satisfied nod. "What Jonathan relies on are the Gold coins he siphons from the academies."

She leaned back slightly, her tone matter-of-fact.

"You studied at Univara, even if only briefly—so you should know how it works. The academy collects most of the Gold coins earned by students who clear portals, then stores them to use as prizes for internal competitions and public events."

She paused, waiting for a sign that he was following. Nova gave a slight nod.

She then continued. "Jonathan treats those funds like a tribute paid by the academies to him. He hoards them, funneling the majority into equipping his elite team with the finest weapons and armors available. And then—just to keep up appearances—he tosses out a mere 500,000 Gold coins as the grand prize for the tournament and gets praised for it by the public."

She held his gaze at the end, watching him closely—clearly curious to see what he would make of it.

A heavy silence settled as Nova sank into thought, his expression unreadable. He hadn't imagined anything like this—hadn't even considered the possibility. While he'd been content with the 500,000 Gold coin prize, Jonathan had likely been diverting millions for his own purposes, outfitting elites and consolidating power behind the scenes.

When he finally organized his thoughts, he looked up, calm but with a sharper focus in his eyes.

"I have something to ask," he said.

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