CHAPTER 841: CHAPTER 841: IN HIS ELEMENT

Ferdinand did not comment though since Ivan was Arabella’s assistant. She always spoke highly of him and clearly trusted in his abilities and promise right from the start.

Thus, Ferdinand simply said it will be up to Arabella to decide since she was the one who picked and hired Ivan.

Further, how could he possibly ask her to let go of someone she chose and equipped to be confident even in this setup?

Ferdinand had watched all of Arabella’s assistants since she picked them and he noticed Ivan was nowhere near as confident as he was now compared to how he was before.

Ivan seemed to lack confidence before.

But now, he was working well with others without being too nervous or wary. His hands were no longer trembling as they used to when someone of high position came near him.

"Uhm, but Your Majesty, I also need to retrieve more samples. There are something’s I’m looking for and I need to see them on the field myself to know where best to retrieve the samples. And I need to speak with the local farmers to gauge their reaction about some things. There’s something I’m onto that I do not dare speak about yet without enough proof," Ivan said.

’Ah, now he dares talk back to me too,’ Ferdinand stared at Arabella’s precious assistant.

The thought Ivan made was clear on his face. He was planning to ask Arabella for help if Ferdinand refused here.

’Is he getting ahead of himself already?’ Ferdinand frowned. He didn’t like it when someone acted like they were closer to his wife than he was.

Ivan gulped nervously. He looked like he wanted to take a step back but did not move.

"You said you were onto something. Have you made progress with your research?" Ferdinand inquired.

Ivan had contributed a lot to the research party but a few days ago, he requested to be allowed to research on his own because there was something he would like to follow that was different from their current research.

Ferdinand had provided him everything he would need and the research head did not go against it since he saw how promising Alwin was.

The other researchers were visibly not fine with it though and were jealous of the privilege Ivan received.

They were all saying it was because he was Arabella’s assistant that Ferdinand was treating him so well.

Of course, that was true.

Ferdinand could not possibly treat him badly with how Arabella treasured him.

But likewise, he had seen how serious this boy was in his research and he knew exactly what he was doing.

Ivan was confident in touching all the equipment because he knew exactly how to use them.

He was in his element.

No, it was more like it was like a playground to him.

It was something he did for fun and enjoyed it a lot.

Ivan was even better than a lot of the researchers here who had been in this job for decades.

Ivan touched even the most expensive research tools without hesitation like the others did since he knew he would not make a mistake in using them. And even if he did, if he successfully found something, it was more than enough to compensate for the tools.

There were even a lot of times he forgot to eat because he was so focused on what he was doing and no one disturbed him either because he seemed to be in the zone.

It would be a waste if he forgot what he was onto if they disturbed him.

It reminded Ferdinand of Alwin. He was exactly like this when he was curious about something.

"Yes, Your Majesty. But I dare not say anything yet since I need to further study it," Ivan replied.

’I see. If he had discovered something aside from what the current research is chasing, then it’s good.’

They needed to give more explanations to the people soon so the more research results the better.

Ferdinand nodded, "Alright. Alright. You may go. But a magician has to go with you along with the knights assigned to protect you."

"Yes, Your Majesty! My deepest gratitude!" Ivan brightened up and bowed deeply before leaving.

Ferdinand sighed once the boy was out of sight.

He was incredibly jealous of that man.

Arabella had nothing but praise for Ivan. Everything she said about him was positive. And she spoke with so much trust and belief in this person.

Her eyes always lit up when she talked about him too.

It was as if she was so sure everything she was saying about this person was true or would come true in the future.

No, it was as if she had seen it herself so she was so sure about it and believed in him no matter what.

Ferdinand thought it was because she could hear Ivan’s thoughts so she must have been able to grasp just what he was capable of.

But she said Ivan’s thoughts were too fast for her most of the time and she barely understood what he was thinking about since he thinks too fast when he is working.

Only when Ivan was thinking about people or his surroundings could she listen to his thoughts.

Was it because it was hard for her to process this man’s thoughts that she was so amazed by him?

Ferdinand did try testing Ivan and he was very capable indeed. His memory was sharp and he was a fast learner.

Ivan performed so well in all his tasks and helped lessen Arabella’s workload a lot so Ferdinand was fine with letting him stay by her side.

Arabella would not be overworked with Ivan as her assistant. He was knowledgeable in various fields too and Arabella was doing well in maximizing that.

She did not limit his tasks in one area of expertise and varied it instead.

And instead of making him work from morning to afternoon, she even allowed him a lot of freedom.

She even gave him this task to give him more exposure and let him shine in a field she knew he excelled at.

Arabella understood that talented people like Ivan had to go at their own pace for them to shine their brightest.