My System Just Exploded, And You Ask Me to Become a God?-Chapter 43 --I Have a Backer??

"How would I know if you’re telling the truth or not?"

Joad still wore a look of deep suspicion. Since arriving at the academy, his social circle had been as simple as could be—practically nonexistent.

To say he had connections here? That was basically impossible.

The First Grand Duke Ilan shot him a glare, clearly annoyed.

"If you didn’t have a connection, why would I waste such a precious spot on you?"

"How am I supposed to know what you’re thinking?" Joad fired back.

"You little brat!" Ilan huffed, exasperated.

He was seriously starting to think it was impossible to have a normal conversation with this kid. Not only was Joad annoyingly stubborn, but he was also completely ungrateful—not even willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

But now, Joad’s expression had turned contemplative. He silently went over everyone he’d ever interacted with—every possible link or relationship—and after some thought, asked tentatively,

"Your Grace... you sound kind of serious. You really didn’t lie to me, did you?

If that’s the case... could it be that my mysterious backer in the Pyrothian Kingdom is actually... my long-lost biological father?"

"...What do you mean long-lost?! What kind of way is that to put it!?" Ilan snapped, clearly annoyed.

Joad’s eyelid twitched. Wait... Could it really be him??

But that didn’t make sense. Marquess Wyde had gone missing, hadn’t he? Even if he were still around, he was only a minor noble—a marquess at best. How could someone of his standing possibly influence the talent trials of an entire kingdom?

From the depths of his heart, Joad just couldn’t bring himself to believe it.

Ilan waved him off impatiently. "Enough already. You done with your nonsense? This matter is settled—you’re going. No more arguments."

With that, he yanked open a drawer and pulled out a sealed magical envelope, thrusting it into Joad’s hand.

The moment Joad’s fingers touched the envelope, a faint violet glow shimmered around it. Magical resonance.

This wasn’t just any envelope—it was a magically bound invitation. The glow signified that the trial invitation had now been linked specifically to him.

And once bound, it couldn’t be unbound.

Even if Joad tried to forcibly remove the magic binding through unconventional methods, it would trigger an investigation from the Luminous Pearl Kingdom.

In other words, even if he didn’t want to participate in the Trial of the Luminous Pearl, backing out now would cause huge trouble. The kingdom might even formally pursue the matter and demand accountability.

"Your Grace... this is just too much," Joad grumbled, face darkening with frustration.

Seeing his displeasure, Ilan stepped forward and patted his shoulder with a kindly smile.

"Well, what’s done is done. You’re going whether you want to or not, so start preparing, young man."

At that, Joad was done. Fully, thoroughly, completely done.

This was duck-herding at its finest—forcing him to leap straight into a pit!

But at this point, the matter was clearly beyond his control. There was no going back.

So Joad left the administrative building and quietly returned to his dorm.

The situation was crystal clear: he had no choice. He had to participate in the Trial of the Luminous Pearl. Willing or not, he was locked in.

Still, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe he could just treat it as a sightseeing trip—go through the motions and accompany Senior Leit on his glorious journey.

As long as he kept a low profile and didn’t perform too well, things shouldn’t get too messy, right?

But even so, with his naturally cautious nature, Joad wasn’t about to go in unprepared.

There were still a few months left before the trial began. He might as well use that time to try and increase his strength a little.

After all, if trouble did come knocking, the more powerful he was, the better his chances of surviving it.

As for what Ilan had just said about him having some grand backer?

Yeah, right. Joad didn’t believe a word of it.

Come on—if I really had such a powerful connection, would I be stuck living like this?

Meanwhile, back in the office of the First Grand Duke Ilan...

Bachelor Geoffrey stood beside the old Grand Duke, gazing out the window in the direction of the dormitory building. After a long moment of silence, he finally spoke.

"Your Grace, is it really true that Joad has a backer in the Pyrothian Kingdom? Has he really been guaranteed a spot?"

Ilan nodded slightly. "Sort of."

Bachelor Geoffrey raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised. "If that’s the case... why did you still go out of your way to give him an additional slot?"

Ilan’s face grew a little awkward. He paused before answering,

"Well, that slot was actually requested by that little girl, Lena. You know how Duke Blazefury absolutely dotes on her."

He continued in a matter-of-fact tone,

"So Duke Blazefury personally insisted that the academy reserve a place for Joad. Of course, in exchange, they gave us a generous compensation package."

Geoffrey’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"Your Grace, aren’t you the one who always stands firm and refuses to bend to power?"

"Not bowing to power doesn’t mean I’m an idiot," Ilan replied dryly. "If I can get a bunch of resources just by giving away one trial slot, why wouldn’t I do it?"

"Besides," he added, "you know the state of our academy. Apart from Leit, who’s guaranteed to pass, how many others actually have a real chance?"

"Well, I suppose that’s true," Geoffrey murmured.

"What’s there to suppose? It’s just one slot. It won’t affect the final outcome in any meaningful way. But it will make our academy stronger. So what’s the problem?"

"...I guess there isn’t one," Geoffrey admitted, his face slowly lighting up with understanding.

Then he sighed, shaking his head in mild amazement.

"Never thought that brat Joad would get so lucky. He did nothing, and now he’s heading straight for the Pyrothian Kingdom."

"Actually, you’re wrong about that," Ilan said, his voice dropping a little.

Geoffrey blinked. "What do you mean?"

"He’s not getting in."

"...Huh?" Geoffrey looked confused. "Didn’t you just say he’s already been pre-approved?"

Ilan gave a slow nod, then chuckled.

"Exactly. If I didn’t lie to him, how else would I have convinced him to go?"

Geoffrey stared in disbelief. "Wait... so he’s going based on a lie?"

"You don’t understand," Ilan said, voice serious now. "This year’s selection for the Pyrothian Kingdom is being overseen by Marquess Redflame himself. That man is infamous for being cold and ruthless."

He sighed.

"I wouldn’t be surprised if Duke Blazefury himself wouldn’t dare to push too hard. There’s no way they’d let some mediocre kid just walk in and take a spot."

Over the years, Ilan had kept an eye on Joad’s progress. It wasn’t that he was terrible, but... well, "exceptional" wasn’t the word either.

"But isn’t this just... cruel?" Geoffrey muttered.

He sighed again, now wearing a wry smile. Just moments ago he’d thought Joad had struck gold, only to discover that the poor kid was actually being played like a fiddle.

Still, even if Duke Blazefury couldn’t directly interfere in the selection process, he could at least ensure that no serious harm came to Joad. That was probably all Lena really wanted anyway—to get Joad a chance.

In the end, whether it was Duke Blazefury or Grand Duke Ilan, they were both simply playing along. They were just indulging a young girl’s wish.

Because to all of them... Joad’s participation in the Trial of the Luminous Pearl wasn’t truly that important.

Grand Duke Ilan himself felt somewhat helpless about the whole thing.

But since the trial wouldn’t put Joad in real danger, he figured... might as well go along with it.

And when the boy got back?

Well, he’d find a way to make it up to him.