ITMWG 97

Chapter 97…

 We are thinking of the exact same thing.

Of course it was necessary. It was crucial evidence that proved that she was the one who should receive the insurance money, not her uncle.

Her uncle has been claiming from the beginning that ‘the former Marquis couple designated him as the beneficiary!’… ’

It was solid evidence that would reveal his lies. But at the same time, it was questionable. How could that document end up in Prince Orca’s hands? While Nadia was confused by all the questions, Prince Orca added.

“This is a definite original. It is the real documented version that has not been tampered with.”

The doubts grew even more at his unwavering words. There were only two parties who currently had her parents’ insurance policy. Her uncle and the insurance company. In Korea, one could reissue an insurance policy at any time, but in this world, it was not easy. In the first place, such a concept was vague. In particular, certificates like insurance policies were treated as a kind of contract, hence reissuing them was considered strange. Only the ‘original’ was important. That was why the nobles could not throw away important documents and would create a large archive to store the originals. They had a separate manager to sort the documents and took care to prevent the paper from being damaged. The Vine also had a room where important documents passed down from generation to generation were stored, but her uncle would not open that space to her. If the recipient was really not her uncle, he would have already damaged or destroyed the documents by the time she declared her lawsuit, so she didn’t expect it. No fool would hold evidence against himself, right? So if the insurance policy that Prince Orca had obtained was real, it must have been obtained from the insurance company. However, the insurance company would never give out a policy unless it was the person himself. Nadia knew this because she had already requested the documents from the insurance company. No matter how much she tried to convince them to grant her request because the deceased ones were her parents, they wouldn’t listen. They seemed to be concerned that showing the insurance policy might be disadvantageous to them. No matter how much Nadia tried to persuade them, they kept saying,

‘We handled the payment according to the insurance policy! I’ve definitely given the insurance policy to the person concerned, so shouldn’t we check it? There’s also a confirmation that the person has received the insurance policy!’

There was no way around it. But then, out of nowhere, Prince Orca had this? The more she thought about it, the more suspicious he became. At this point, she began to think that since it was clear that he was the ‘higher-up’, he must have joined hands with the insurance company and manipulated the situation. That way, it wouldn’t have been difficult to obtain the documents.

“… First, tell me how you got this.”

“Hmm. That means you still doubt me even after I presented it to you.”

Prince Orca tilted his head to one side with a strange smile, seemingly troubled.

“It’s not hard to explain the process, but before that, I want to know why the Baroness is so suspicious of me. You’ve been very wary of me from the beginning.”

“That’s…”

“Even the words that you’re my admirer are just false excuses.”

She felt a strange weight in his voice mixed with a small sigh. Prince Orca’s face looked like someone who had realised the reality he had been ignoring, and she felt strange too. Did Prince Orca really want her to be his admirer? Anyway, there was a much more pressing matter right now. In order to get the truth from Prince Orca, she had to open up to some extent as well. It was a necessary process to get real information.

“I knew that Your Higher wanted to reach a ‘high position.’ I didn’t want to get involved in something so scary. So I wanted to keep my distance…”

“Hmm. How did you know that I wanted a ‘high position’? It’s strange to know that from the first time we met.”

Prince Orca touched his face with his hand and smiled.

“Or do I look that rebellious?”

He said that, but he seemed to know very well that it couldn’t be true. Prince Orca’s face definitely wasn’t the type to cause any repulse. At some point, Prince Orca began to subtly reveal his ambitions to Nadia. It seemed to be after he realised that the mask he wore toward others didn’t work on her. He would often look at her as if he was examining her and make dangerously profound remarks. Right at this moment, it was similar to when he made those remarks. He was smiling, but his eyes were sharp. It was not a time when she could say, ‘I saw you, the villain in the novel, commit all kinds of evil deeds to become the emperor!’. Instead, a suitable lie was needed.

I’m not confident in lying.

Thus, Nadia decided to use the ‘deflect with another truth’ tactic.

“I lived quietly, but I was also the young lady of the Marquis. My parents were planning to bring in a son-in-law to make me the head of the household. I also knew everything my father knew.”

It was a subtle way of giving credit to her father. It was indeed true that her parents were planning to bring in a son-in-law to make her the head of the household, and that her father had told her everything he knew.

It was probably something that no one in this world knew.

“You mean, the Marquis saw through my ambitions?”

It was a huge misstep, but from Prince Orca’s perspective, it was a situation that could have easily been misunderstood. She had set the table so that he would feel that way. When she remained silent without answering, Prince Orca quickly concluded that his guess was right.

“The previous Marquis of Vine was also quite quiet. Well, quiet people are the scariest. It’s hard to know what they’re thinking or what they’re doing.”

If her father had been someone who had a prominent influence in the aristocratic society, Prince Orca would not have believed her. His scope of activity would be too obvious. However, her father was a quiet and insignificant person. That was why she was able to deceive Prince Orca.

“I told you my reason, so now you must tell me the process.”

“That’s right. That was the deal.”

Prince Orca shrugged his shoulders, feeling somewhat relieved that the question he had been harboring for so long had been resolved.

“Actually, I didn’t use such a complicated method.”

“Really?”

“… Pardon?”

Nadia thought Prince Orca would have obtained the documents through some great deal of work. Her mouth dropped open at the simple and ignorant method.

“Sometimes the simple method is the most reliable.”

Seeing her looking bewildered, Prince Orca burst into laughter as if he truly found it amusing.

“There’s no need to react like that. The day I sent someone to steal the documents, your husband also came to raid the insurance company’s archive.”

“I-I beg your pardon? A-Altair?!”

“To be exact, his subordinate, the knight. He seems somewhat bright and frivolous…”

Prince Orca trailed off as if he couldn’t remember the name. Of course, she could tell the identity of the knight who had raided the insurance company’s archives just from that brief description.

“… Cain.”

“Oh. That’s right. That was his name. My subordinate said he saw him on his way back with the documents. Too bad your husband was a step behind.”

Prince Orca smiled and shook the documents lightly, delighted at having won the competition.

“Isn’t it amazing and fun? Your husband and I have similar strategies. I think we are very similar.”

Prince Orca’s words, which created a sense of kinship, made her realise. Prince Orca and Altair should never get close! She quickly shook my head with denial.

“Not at all! You two are completely different!”

“Is that so? I thought we were quite similar.”

Prince Orca’s eyes crinkled as he tilted his head to one side as if asking her to tell him what was so different between them. And so, she began to search for differences to back up her reason.

“Your appearances, your personalities…They’re all different.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Altair looks so scary. In comparison, Your Highness has a gentle appearance like a breeze. Also, do you know how different your personalities are? Altair is so stubborn that it’s frustrating, but Your Highness is flexible. You are completely different.”

You’re much better! So don’t ever think to relate to my husband!

Nadia intentionally flattered Prince Orca, and a strange smile appeared on his face.

“Well, now that I hear it, that’s true.”

Nadia let out a sigh of relief, thinking that he had somehow understood.

“I wonder what the Baron thinks about this.”

Upon saying that, Orca’s gaze shifted to behind her back.

The-, the Baron’s thoughts?

It was as if Altair had been listening to everything she said…It might be her hallucination, but she suddenly felt a chill down her spine.

Wasn’t Altair out right now? She turned her head, creaking, wondering if it was real. Then, the fearsome aura became clearer and clearer. As soon as Nadia turned she head completely, her eyes met with Altair’s, who was holding the study door crookedly with an stoic face.

“How-, how long have you been here?”

As she panicked, Altair opened his mouth coldly.

“I heard that His Highness, the soft-looking and flexible prince, has been stealing.”

Oh gosh. Did he hear everything?

As Nadia was sweating profusely, not knowing what to do, Altair turned his gaze away from her and approached Prince Orca. His eyes were fixed on the documents in the prince’s hand.

“Stolen goods cannot be used as evidence in an official trial.”

“That’s right. How dare I present stolen goods as evidence in a trial presided over by His Majesty?”

Even to Altair’s point, Prince Orca responded casually.

“But you know, the Baron tried to do the same thing as me, didn’t you? So I think you’d have the same idea about how to use this…”

Prince Orca trailed off as if trying to figure out Altair’s thoughts, but Altair just stared at Orca. Silence flowed between the two for a moment. The awkward standoff was broken by Prince Orca’s snicker.

“Of course, stolen goods can’t be official evidence… The court presided over by His Majesty the Emperor isn’t the only battlefield.”

Prince Orca pressed the document against Altair’s chest and came closer to him.

“We can create public opinion with this. Create rumours, allies, and bring the court to our side. Baron, this is probably what you were thinking, right?”

‘We are thinking of the exact same thing.’

There was a glint of certainty in Prince Orca’s eyes.

HAPPY NEW YEAR Y’ALL