ITMWG 68

Chapter 68…

 What he wants to hear.

Oh no. The other person is the 3rd prince.

Melissa, who was flustered for a moment, quickly adjusted her expression. In any case, the 3rd prince had little influence in the capital. Although he was a member of the royal family, he spent little time in the capital.

They say he doesn’t get along very well with the emperor, empress, or his other siblings.

He was a lonely prince. So, nothing he saw or heard here would ever spread through his mouth. After a moment, Melissa regained her composure, smiled, and greeted the third prince, Orca.

“I am Melissa of the Marquis of Vine, Your Highness. I never thought I’d see you here.”

“Lady Melissa. It’s really been a while. The last time I saw you was before you became a lady.”

The corner of Melissa’s mouth quivered at his gentle greeting. ‘Lady’ was a title used to refer to the mistress or daughter of a family with the title of count or higher, so Melissa was not a ‘lady’ from birth. That was a weakness that Melissa was particularly sensitive to, so she answered pointedly, not even minding that the other person was the prince.

“Yes. That was a really long time ago. Well, since Your Highness rarely sets foot in the capital, I can understand that you are not aware of social updates.”

At first it might seem natural that fire will have the upper hand in terms of immediate victory, but…

Altair knew that the scary ones were types like Orca. An opponent who would quietly wait for the opportunity would be more difficult to deal with than one who rushed in blindly. No one could know when a breeze would turn into a typhoon.

“Still, I think I will return to the capital for the upcoming National Foundation Day. His Majesty sent a letter urging me to attend. The Silver Jubilee* founding ceremony is special after all.”

T/n: Silver Jubilee – the twenty-fifth anniversary of a significant event.

Silver Jubilee. It meant that it was the 25th anniversary of the emperor’s accession to the throne. The emperor’s coronation and the National Foundation Day were just one week apart, so festivals were held throughout the period, but this year, as it had a special meaning, an even grander event seemed to have been planned.

“I think he’s probably planning to invite nobles from all over the empire.”

As Orca said that, his gaze passed Melissa and landed on Altair. It probably meant that an invitation would come to him soon. However, Altair had figured that out already. Among the news Blan brought from the capital was the news that the emperor was preparing a grand Silver Jubilee and Founding Nation day. What’s more…“Marquis Vine has already delivered some words through lady Melissa. He asks us to stay at the Marquis de Vine when we come to the capital.”

Father?!

Melissa, who had only been told to deliver the letter but had no idea what it was about, widened her eyes.

“Of course, I will gladly accept the Marquis’ offer. It’s my wife’s parents’ house, so I wanted to take a good look at it at least once.”

“Oh, I see.”

Orca nodded with a strange smile. Perhaps Orca also knew something unpleasant about Marquis Vine? No matter how far away he was from the capital, the Marquis of Vine was a powerful family, so a person with a high status as the prince would have kept his ears up for information about him. Altair looked at Orca as if searching. However, as always, Orca skillfully blocked all information with a strange smile.

As I thought, he’s obnoxious.

It had been a long time since Altair felt this way, as he usually didn’t like to complicate things. While the two men exchanged mysterious glances, Melissa was lost in her own thoughts. She instinctively sensed that this was an opportunity to seduce Altair by being by his side.

“If you’re heading to the capital soon, then I guess I can follow along!”

Altair and Orca looked at her at the same time as Melissa saaid in a cheerful voice. A cold handsome man and a soft beautiful man. Melissa was almost entranced for a moment by the gaze of the two good-looking men, who had distinctively different traits but the same mesmerising eyes, but she managed to keep herself together.

“The road to get there alone would be difficult… but the way back won’t be as tough.”

What she meant was that she should be treated well as a guest here until the day Altair and his party left for the capital, then, they would return home together. That way, there would be opportunities to seduce Altair not only while staying in Aylesford, but also on the way to the capital, and even at the Vine’s residence.

It’s such a perfect plan!

Melissa was so proud of her own brilliance that it surprised her. The pride radiated from her face was so obvious that not only Altair but also Orca could see her intentions. This young lady seemed to firmly believe that she was very clever, but in reality she was very sloppy and lacking. The reason she hadn’t noticed it until now was probably because the people around her were conscious of her name, the powerful Marquis of Vine, so they let her have her ways. However, Orca and Altair were not people who would be frightened by the Marquis’ power.

“Pft.”

Eventually, Orca couldn’t hold it back and burst out laughing and lightly patted Altair’s shoulder, then he walked up to him and whispered in a low voice.

“It looks like you are caught up in a troubling situation, Baron.”

“…”

Altair frowned at Orca, wondering if he was teasing him, but Orca raised his hands, showing no intention of fighting.

“What I’m trying to say is, I’m going to take this burden off your shoulders.”

“Why?”

“Hmm. Don’t you think this annoying burden will also trouble ‘my admirer’? Unlike my brothers who are big stars, I don’t have many admirers. I have to cherish it.”

“Admirer?”

“Ah. Didn’t you know? The Baroness confessed that she was my biggest admirer. Didn’t she tell the Baron?”

It was the first time he heard of this matter. Nonetheless, Altair couldn’t bring himself to say that and a grimace remained on his face. That was the clearest answer of all, and Orca burst into laughter again.

“Anyway, watch carefully. I’ll clean it up properly.”

There was no need for Altair to stop him from removing this bothersome load. But what on earth was he going to do? Without leaving him hanging for long, Orca stepped in front of Melissa, leaving Altair’s gaze mixed with questions and doubts. Melissa, who was looking expectantly at Altair to hear his answer, turned her head in surprise at the close presence, while Orca smiled brightly and held out his hand to her.

“Since the lady has asked first, it would be unbecoming of  a gentleman to refuse. I shall take lady Melissa with me on my way back.”

“P-pardon? What are you saying… ”

Melissa rolled her eyes back and forth in confusion. As she quietly reflected on her own words, she realised that she had not clearly stated who she was asking for. The subject was missing from her request!

“Your-,Your Highness. That’s not what I meant when I said I would come along with-…”

Melissa held up her hands to clear up the misunderstanding in a panic. But Orca, one step ahead of her, held Melissa’s hand affectionately.

“Thanks to lady Melissa, I won’t feel bored on the way back. Don’t you think so?”

Melissa’s reason was completely blown away by his delightful smile.

“Right…I guess it won’t be..”

Melissa kept nodding, her mouth slightly agape and face blanked. At that sight, Orca shrugged towards Altair as if telling him to look at this, and Altair let out a scoff, astounded by him. He could not believe how proudly a prince of the empire used his good looks to his advantage. Orca, perhaps noticed Altair’s mockery, leisurely tilted his head to one side.

“I am a person who wants to use everything that is available for my own good. I think it is probably the same for the Baron, isn’t it?”

Altair was overcome by a strange feeling at the declaration that ‘they were cast in the same mould’. In fact, Altair always had this same weird indescribable feeling whenever he saw Orca. Although their appearance and aura were completely different, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that they were of the same kind.

“Usually, similar people are attracted to each other.”

But in contrast, there was hatred between them. Orca didn’t bother to bring that up and just naturally escorted Melissa out.

“Now then, let’s discuss the journey together. My subordinate will tell you the schedule in detail.”

“Yes. The journey… sorry?”

Only then did Melissa come to her senses and look back at Altair in surprise, but it was already too late. Orca naturally handed Melissa over to his subordinate who was guarding by his side and gently rubbed the hand that was holding her on his clothes. It was as if he was wiping away something dirty. Along with his natural behavior, thoughts were also flowing in Orca’s head.

This woman is the  Baroness’s cousin, I might be able to dig up some interesting information. Also, since I took care of this troublesome burden for him, the baron owes me.

Orca smiled contentedly and walked away.

Altair sat on the bed, lost in thoughts. It was obvious where his thoughts would trace to. He was recalling the moment he faced Prince Orca a while ago. Prince Orca was always saying sarcastic things and getting on Altair’s nerves. Among them, the thing that bothered him the most was…

Didn’t you know? The Baroness confessed that she was my biggest admirer.

She confessed that she was his biggest admirer… she confessed that was a big admirer of his… ? She confessed that she was a big admirer…! As Prince Orca said that, a strangely shy blush appeared on his face, which made Altair even more furious. Nadia was an admirer of Prince Orca? It was truly his first time hearing this! The Nadia Altair knew was a person who did not express her feelings often. She rarely stated clearly what she liked or disliked. Perhaps she did it out of consideration for other people… But still, she directly told Prince Orca that she was his admirer! What did being an admirer mean? Did that mean she admired and liked the other person?

Nadia… likes that frail prince…?

The feeling like as an admirer was probably the same as the kind of ‘like’he was thinkig about, but… but…

I’ve never been told by Nadia that she likes me in any sense.

The moment he realised that, he felt like his head was ringing. He couldn’t figure out why it mattered so much or why it was so shocking. It was really odd. It felt like there were dozens of snakes tangled in his stomach, writhing wildly. As he clenched his fists, the snakes in his stomach began to churn even more, making his chest suffocating.

Do I…Do I want to hear Nadia say she likes me?