A Third-Rate Villain Tries Her Best Today 169

Chapter 169: A Short Story

Yuna Vava’s office.

Noel, promoted to full knight, was immediately assigned as Yuna’s direct subordinate. Some questioned Yuna’s decision, citing Noel’s past, but most knights respected their captain.

More importantly, Raines Noel’s skills already surpassed those of the existing full knights, so they had to acknowledge him.

However, Yuna had a headache, having finally gained a direct subordinate. And the person causing her headache was also her direct subordinate.

“So… you’re saying Enzhe Lopetrefer murdered the late Prince Cedric…?”

“It’s just a suspicion, but I think it’s worth investigating.”

Yuna pressed her hand to her forehead at his words, which would have gotten them both arrested for insulting the Imperial Family and the nobility if anyone else had heard them. She collected her thoughts and said,

“If it’s worth investigating, then you must have some basis for it, right?”

“The basis…”

Was this some baseless conspiracy theory born from delusion?

Yuna wished it was. But it wasn’t just a conspiracy theory. Noel took a deep breath and said clearly,

“I heard Lady Lopetrefer say it myself at the Imperial Ball last year.”

“Say what?”

“She said, ‘There’s no point in killing Cedric if it’s going to end up like this.’”

“So there’s no physical evidence.”

“…No.”

It was only natural.

It had been almost 10 years since Cedric’s death. It would be strange if there was still evidence that the late Crown Prince Cedric, who had died 10 years ago, had been murdered by Lady Enzhe.

“That’s why I said it’s just a suspicion. I wanted to believe it wasn’t true at first, but…”

“But?”

“You know Lady Lopetrefer’s true nature, Captain.”

Noel clenched his fist slightly.

“I know, but even she wouldn’t do something as reckless as killing the Crown Prince.”

She said that, but Yuna wasn’t sure. She had been allied with the Lopetrefer family for a long time, so she knew all too well what they were capable of.

Yuna had even tried to marry her sister off to Reeves to avoid being allied with such a family.

‘If this is true, the Lopetrefer family will be erased from existence. But proving this will be much harder than proving all the other things they’ve done.’

Yuna sighed deeply.

“Let’s keep this between us for now. I trust you understand why.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you for not dismissing my words as lies.”

After Noel left the office, Yuna was lost in thought.

She had believed Noel’s words without a shadow of a doubt, simply because there was no reason for him to lie.

He had a reason to hold a grudge against Enzhe, but it would be a case of “cutting off your nose to spite your face” if he fabricated a story about the Crown Prince’s murder because of it.

More importantly, if he was the type of person to lie for personal reasons, Yuna wouldn’t have kept him by her side in the first place.

And most importantly, the moment she heard Noel’s words, she had felt like a missing piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.

She was one of the few people who knew who Enzhe’s “original” fiancé had been, as a member of the Lopetrefer family’s allied family.

‘Enzhe’s original fiancé was Prince Cedric. The only ones who knew were my father, who was the head of the family at the time, me, and the Eren couple… But Raines said that without knowing anything. That’s what makes it more credible. Like a perfectly fitting gear…’

***

Acrea visited Reeves’s office for the first time in a month.

“How was your exile, Woo?”

Acrea, facing the unchanged scenery, silently handed him the report he had been carrying. Reeves read it carefully, then tossed it onto the table, his interest waning.

*Elizabeth Perlman: No abnormalities. Kailo Perlman: No abnormalities. Owner of the pendant: Unidentified.* *…So? Are you going to investigate further?*

“I’ll stop the investigation here.”

Reeves looked at his younger brother, impressed by his straightforward conclusion.

“Good thinking. We have other things to focus on now.”

“Other things?”

Reeves took out an envelope from a drawer. It had the Vava marquis family’s seal on it.

“Yuna sent me a letter… Expressing her doubts about the death of the late Crown Prince Cedric.”

“What…?”

Acrea couldn’t believe his ears. But Reeves, as if to confirm it, stood up from his chair and said,

“Just listen for fun. Even if it’s true that Crown Prince Cedric’s sudden death was Enzhe’s doing, there’s no way to prove it now.”

Reeves had quickly calculated the value of using Yuna’s hypothesis as soon as he read the letter, but the result was a bust. Of course, Yuna knew that too. It was proof that she was determined to sever ties with the Lopetrefer family.

“But there’s something I’ve been wondering about, Woo.”

Reeves leaned against the bookshelf, his arms crossed.

“Why did you do that at the tribunal?”

“….”

“I didn’t have time to ask you that day. Why did you try to kill Sue Byron’s father?”

“Because I like Sue Byron.”

“Ah, I see. Woo likes that… girl?”

Reeves was speechless at his brother’s casual confession, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. It was the first time in a long time that his mind had gone blank.

Acrea, his face adorned with his trademark “picture-perfect smile,” said,

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to ruin your plans, Brother. I’ll marry whoever you tell me to marry. I’ll cooperate if you want to bring down the Byron viscount family. But even if the Byron viscount family falls, I’ll save Sue.”

That was all.

Acrea, after making his declaration, left the office, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

Reeves, left alone, finally came to his senses. He struggled to suppress his laughter.

Woo, his younger brother, was still unaware of the huge contradiction he was carrying within him.

***

Sue, after returning from Patroclus, started investigating the people connected to the Byron viscount family again, as Jean had requested. From her blood relatives to remote mages she had never even met.

She diligently read through the mountain of personnel files Ten had brought her, not expecting much.

The files contained even more detailed information than before. Magic license level, magic power rank, birthplace, health condition, childhood medical history, schools attended… There was even information about them wetting the bed as adults.

It was so tedious that she wanted to rip the papers to shreds, but she persevered.

She even skipped classes at the academy to focus on the personnel files. She didn’t have time, she couldn’t afford to be concerned about her grades anymore.

“Sue, I have something to tell you.”

Melaine called her out one day. Her recovery had been remarkable during Sue’s stay in Patroclus. Melaine touched her cheeks, her complexion rosy, and said,

“You asked me how I got to Dande, remember?”

“…You remember that?”

Sue had forgotten about it. Melaine also didn’t seem eager to bring it up, her brows furrowed as she tried to recall the hazy memory.

“I think… someone took me there.”

“What? Who? A knight? A soldier?”

Melaine shook her head.

“Neither. It wasn’t either of them.”

She didn’t seem certain. Sue blinked, and Melaine sighed.

“I’m sure someone took me there, but I can’t remember who.”

Sue chuckled and replied,

“That’s understandable, you weren’t in your right mind back then, Lady Melaine.”

Melaine’s expression turned slightly indignant.

“No, that’s not it. It’s like… that part of my memory is missing.”

“What?”

“I remember everything else, I mean. Why my sister locked me up, the name of the maid who took care of me, what I was thinking when I jumped out of the window… I remember all that. But I can’t remember who took me to Dande.”

Melaine, frustrated, had turned to Sue for help. As if asking her if she remembered anything.

Melaine’s intuition was right, Sue felt a strange sense of déjà vu. And that feeling turned into an unfounded certainty when Melaine said,

“And… I’m not sure about this, but… I think my leg was broken back then.”

“What? But you were walking fine at the chapel, Lady Melaine?”

“Yes, that’s why I’m not sure. My leg was fine from the moment I was at the chapel.”

Memory loss.

A suddenly healed leg.

The chapel she had been so desperate to go to, even at the cost of her life.

“Lady Melaine!”

“Eek!”

Sue, grabbing Melaine’s wrist, suddenly shouted,

“Do you have a snake mark on your body?”

“What? What are you talking about? A snake mark? …Do you think I would have something like that?!”

Melaine, baffled, pulled her wrist away.

“You seem to be having strange thoughts, but I don’t have a snake mark. If you don’t have any other ideas, I’ll be going. Take care, Sue.”

Melaine, rubbing her wrist, left. Sue, left alone, couldn’t shake the strange feeling of déjà vu.

But she had no way to investigate further, so she went back to the mansion after school and continued to rummage through the personnel files.

“This is bothering me.”

She was almost done with the mountain of personnel files Ten had prepared. If she didn’t find any useful information here, she would be trapped in the capital for another five years, unable to do anything.

She didn’t want that.

“…Huh?”

It seemed like God had decided to give her a gift. She was skimming through a personnel file, her mind wandering, when she suddenly noticed something strange.