Who is the Master of the School?

While Rebecca might be burning with determination to immediately start investigating the murder case, the truth is I didn’t have much to do.

I did walk around here and there since I had supervisory duties, but besides Anya Crystal and Celine Demetriades gathered in one place playing pranks, there wasn’t much to see. Anya Crystal, with her unique ability to control chalk, was molding chalk dust into a doll that looked exactly like Celine, following Demetriades’ instructions.

“No, no, my nose isn’t that low! Do you think you can fool Zhou Lizhi with this? I told you to mold it more accurately.”

“It’s your unnecessary greed that’s getting you caught. I saw it well. This height is correct.”

“What’s a chalk artist giving advice to a doll artist about doll shapes? I know what I saw.”

“Did you see your face or did I? I’m telling you this is right!”

…It seems Demetriades, thinking that partnering with Hoang Thi Linh alone was insufficient, has brought in another collaborator. Since it’s good if they can find ways to maximize their abilities by building relationships in various ways, there doesn’t seem to be a need to restrict them just because they’re trying to use deception.

In any sense, if the deception succeeds, isn’t it the fault of the instructor who was fooled? These attempts to outsmart the instructor will also be a stepping stone for growth. I learned that way too.

Around evening time, while walking around the campus, I ran into Zhou Lizhi. According to Rebecca, this ambitious woman with the biggest aspirations in China was aimlessly walking somewhere with a wilted face, as if she had been struggling with intense work all day.

Zhou Lizhi, upon spotting me, smiled and called out:

“It’s Lieutenant Gui. Have you finished your meal?”

“I managed somehow. I used to whine about how hard studying and pop quizzes were, but when a day is ambiguously free, it actually feels boring.”

“Just because I’m focused on other work for a day doesn’t mean the tests will get easier. If you have free time like that, you should study.”

“No matter how much free time you have or how bored you are, there are times when you absolutely don’t want to study even if it kills you. Isn’t there a saying not to bring tomorrow’s pain to today?”

“In all my life, I’ve never heard such a thing. If I had lived with that mindset, I wouldn’t have come this far. Well, it’s good that we met. The work is done. I submitted a 60-page report to Nanjing explaining why we can’t arrest a suspect in this case. The Generalissimo’s office’s impression was ‘We understand, but the intention to leave the case unsolved is too obvious.'”

“That doesn’t sound like a good thing.”

“Of course it’s not. But those scumbags in Nanjing. Even if my reputation takes a hit, there’s no one who can lay a finger on this Zhou Lizhi. Except for the Generalissimo himself.”

“But there’s more than one superhuman major in China, isn’t there?”

“I don’t consider anyone weaker than me a superhuman.”

“That’s fortunate, I should be able to qualify as a superhuman even by that standard.”

At my words, Zhou frowned slightly and then burst into laughter. After hearing Rebecca’s reasoning and seeing Zhou’s attitude, it seemed like the possibility that she was actually aiming for hegemony in China was becoming more apparent. Maybe I’m really wagging my tail at an incredibly big shot.

Historically, female hegemons have appeared from time to time, but since the awakening of superhumans, the inequality between men and women in positions of power has truly disappeared. There’s no law saying Zhou can’t aim for China in the current China.

…Should I test the waters a bit?

“By the way, Major, aren’t you particularly busy among the faculty members of this school? Being in charge of all first-year international students, and with no other faculty specifically assigned, you must clearly be the busiest person just with this work alone. The work is so demanding that no one wants to substitute for you.”

“Well, that’s right. Is there any need to mention it again?”

“When it comes to managing international students, does Major Zhou Lizhi also handle diplomatic issues with each government? You must also be in charge of communication with each country’s embassy and the central government in Nanjing. It seems like you’d have a lot of paperwork to do as well.”

“What are you trying to do by figuring out my work content? Are you trying to post a job listing on my behalf?”

As expected. No matter how much she’s opened up, she won’t spill everything easily. For her, I am both an attractive prey and a questionable enigma whose identity is still suspicious.

“But it’s strange. If it’s a job where no substitute can be found, wouldn’t it be better for someone other than you, Major, to be the investigator in charge? The fact that you, who can’t even find a substitute, are taking on the overall responsibility and doing everything…”

“Hmm…”

“Is it just because the prime suspect is a student under your charge?”

“What if I volunteered? Wouldn’t that be the most rational explanation?”

“You deliberately increased your workload?”

“Well, it’s a golden opportunity to get my hands on you, Lieutenant Gui. I personally volunteered to take charge of the investigation. Look at the result. Regardless of the process, you’re set to come to my room tomorrow. Is there a better explanation than that, Shin Eun-young?”

“That statement evokes a strange sentiment in me.”

“If it’s something like pride in being loved, put it aside.”

“No. It’s about the fact that you can freely decide on the appointment of the most important personnel in the school for such a reason.”

At my words, Zhou Lizhi raised an eyebrow. I started to pour out words in front of her without hesitation.

“Huangpu has always had Commander Chiang Kai-shek as the principal since its opening. The second-in-command position was unstable and uncertain. But if the mass dismissal of the Central Executive Committee members is true, the Generalissimo must have been busy focusing on that, so Guangzhou’s affairs must have been left for Guangzhou to handle. I don’t know much about politics, but I can guess that much.”

“I don’t know what you’re trying to say. I mean, I don’t understand your intention.”

“Major Zhou Lizhi. The rumors about your unusual sexual preferences were famous enough for even Catherine Duey to have heard them. The faculty of this school naturally all know too, right? If you volunteered to interrogate me and became the investigator because of lust, it means you can convince… or subjugate everyone in this school for such a reason.”

“If you have something you want to ask, ask directly. There’s no need to beat around the bush between us anymore.”

“Tell me, Major. Are you the most powerful figure in this school?”

Of course, this isn’t about superpowers or individual combat prowess. It’s about power. As Rebecca guessed, whether she is the highest authority in this school. How she thinks of herself. That’s what I’m asking. As soon as Zhou Lizhi heard my words, she chuckled and then burst into laughter again.

“Why do you need to know that?”

“Isn’t it an important issue? Who the real power holder is in the school I’m attending, things like that.”

“No, it’s not important at all. If I really were the monarch of this school, what would you do? I remember we’ve already talked about this. That you’d like it if I really were the emperor of this school. Then, Shin Eun-young. It’s not just you, I’ve already seduced that show-off Churchill first. Although she’s a bit different from my taste, I might have tried with the decent-looking Lieutenant Duey too. No. You know how I am, right? I can’t touch any woman who has even a slight connection to a foreign government. Does this seem like the attitude of the school’s emperor?”

“You could be managing them.”

“What?”

“You might be personally managing them to avoid damaging friendships with those countries when you need diplomatic goodwill later. Isn’t it that the more powerful one is, the more careful they are about such issues? It’s the riffraff under the supreme leader who act without caution, thinking they’re not being careful.”

“Interesting.”

Zhou neither refuted nor agreed.

“So. What if I really am like that? If I, Zhou Lizhi, am the Generalissimo’s representative, whom no one in this school, be it faculty or student, can defy? What would you do? Is it related to your sexual preferences? Or is it related to your interests? Are you prepared to lick my feet with some flattery instead of crushing me in bed because I’m the school’s highest authority? Or are you even more excited by the sadistic tendency of being the only one who can sit on top of the tyrant everyone in the school looks up to? Personally, I’d prefer the latter. I want to embrace a woman with that much spirit.”

“I’m sorry, but this isn’t about the bed. It’s about the desk.”

“Go on.”

“If you are the master of this school, I can’t believe your claim of knowing nothing about the Tikhonov issue.”

“The Tikhonov issue?”

“Major Zhou Lizhi. You said Barbara Tikhonov’s transfer was decided by higher-ups. You spoke as if you couldn’t do anything about it. And you even explained that Nanjing intentionally ordered to exclude Tikhonov from this murder case. If you are a power holder second only to the Generalissimo, I can’t help but wonder whether you received orders or gave them. Which is it?”

“…”

“A murder case occurred. But the officer from China’s most powerful enemy country was intentionally excluded from the investigation. Isn’t it not strange for me to have questions?”

“Katerfeld?”

Zhou Lizhi suddenly mentioned Rebecca’s name. I flinched.

“…Major?”

“Is that annoying woman conspiring with you to find out something? Well, fine. I’ll answer. I received orders regarding the Tikhonov issue too. I don’t understand it either. Why a Russian woman can come to this school. Why she’s free like this without any surveillance or confinement, even I’m going crazy with curiosity. I’d be grateful if you could tell me. What on earth is Barbara Tikhonov?”

“But if you’re the highest authority in this school…”

“The entrance ceremony is presided over by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. Didn’t you see them meet in person? No matter how powerful I am, could I be stronger than Chiang? Is it possible to ignore Chiang’s intentions and insert a Soviet person into this school?”

Her words made sense. While I was at a loss for words, Zhou Lizhi shook her head and clicked her tongue.

“I don’t understand. The Tikhonov issue was a direct order from the Generalissimo. Even in this investigation, that issue alone was directly instructed by the Generalissimo. What did Katerfeld say? That I’m turning this school into my domain in preparation for contingencies, something like that?”

“…That’s…”

“She would come up with such a conspiracy theory. But look at the situation with your own eyes. Something is happening. Whether I have such thoughts or not, when the situation comes, there will be a time when something must be decided. What are you thinking of by guessing now? I’m the one who makes the decisions.”