CWMBR 34

Chapter 34

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Declan checked his pocket watch as if to show off, then stared expressionlessly at the employee. Meanwhile, Ain crossed the office without hesitation and began looking around here and there. Startled by this, the employee slammed his desk and hurriedly stood up.

“Wait a minute, where are you going? Hey! That area is off-limits to non-authorized personnel!”

“It looks like an archive room. The films must be here too.”

When he opened the inner door, he saw large boxes along with the smell of old paper. Judging from the metal shelves continuing inside, it seemed that quite a lot of materials were stored there. Ain took out a cigarette and lit it.

Cameras were revolutionary and useful tools, but they weren't common enough for every newspaper company to have one. Typically, only the most authoritative and influential media companies in the region had their own staff photographers. So, the accumulated film materials were a means for the media company to indirectly demonstrate its authority.

The value of the archive room in this newspaper company must be quite high.

“Ten minutes.”

As he lit the cigarette and spoke briefly, Declan, sensing something, looked back at Ain with a worried expression.

Yet he didn’t try to stop him, as he acknowledged that this method was far more effective than pointless arguments. If anything, it was a way of buying time with money.

Ain glanced at the employee who had twisted his face.

“If your boss doesn’t come in, I’ll dispose of the original myself.”

The tip of the cigarette began to burn red. Ignoring the employee’s horrified gaze, Ain turned his eyes toward the interior of the archive room.

“There’s a lot of paper, so it’ll burn well.”

The employee’s face turned pale.

Exactly ten minutes later, a short, stocky old man burst through the office door, panting heavily.

***

As soon as they stepped out of the newspaper office, Declan protested to Ain in an angry voice.

“You didn’t say there were two photos, did you?”

"I just told you."

Ain replied indifferently and headed toward his car. Declan spoke to him in a tone of injustice.

“Hey! I submitted all the materials to the investigator, and now you’re bringing up that crucial point…”

“Why is that crucial?”

Was he asking because he didn’t know?

Declan, who was speechless, sighed and touched his forehead. It wasn’t just once or twice, but every time he faced Ain’s uncooperative attitude, no matter how much he tried to ignore it, he couldn’t.

Ain clearly had no intention of annulling the marriage.

“You… ha. Please just make up your mind. What are you trying to do? Are you going to erase the marriage records altogether? Are you just saying that out of anger?”

“It’s possible.”

Declan looked at Ain with astonishment. Not a divorce, but an annulment? The official registry recorded by the royal family? Out of anger? After only a few months? Causing the entire country to be in an uproar?

“Is that something you’d say in a fit of anger?”

“If it were you.”

Ain began with an irritated tone, furrowing his brow. He looked down at the bag in his hand with a displeased expression. Inside the bag were two film canisters he had just received from the media company.

The “photos from that night” that had come into Ain’s hands were two in number. To be precise, they were not exactly two photos, but rather “photos of two rooms.” One was of the room where Ain had stayed, and the other was of the scene from another room on the same night.

One was a photo of a woman on top of Ain, and the other was…

“How could you not be furious seeing a photo of your wife naked in another man’s arms?”

Of course, anyone would be furious. Anyone would lose their mind. However, Declan had never once considered that Ain might be among those "anyone." Everyone else would think that way.

That’s because everyone, including Declan, knew how absurdly the Wise couple’s marriage had unfolded.

Ain Wise was a groom that everyone wanted. There were countless beautiful women who wanted him. Even so, Ain's eyes were fixed on the sky, and even when he saw a princess, he didn't bat an eye. 

Ain was a veritable fortress. Given his nature, when the marriage was first announced, no one even considered the possibility that Ain had fallen in love with Bridget. After news of Bridget's pregnancy leaked out, everyone concluded that Ain had been forced into the marriage.

Declan was one of those who secretly agreed with that conclusion. After all, after the marriage, Ain had thrown himself into work like a madman. His life was filled with nothing but work, to the point where it was hard to believe he was newlywed. It was no different from when he was single.

“You didn’t want this marriage in the first place, did you? Wasn’t it forced?”

“Isn’t a marriage forced by circumstances still a marriage?”

When did he start conforming to the system with such a diligent attitude? Ain, who was freer than anyone else from the system, said that, and Declan could only shake his head in disbelief.

However, Ain’s words were technically correct. The problem was not the content of the words, but the person speaking them.

Declan, who had been hesitating, finally replied with a half-resigned expression.

"..................Well, who said that? I just thought that if we presented that photo as evidence, it would give more weight to our argument."

Honestly, wasn’t it decisive? Declan recalled the photo he had briefly seen earlier and swallowed his disappointment. Although it was taken from a distance in a dark room and wasn't very clear, anyone who knew Bridget would agree that the person in the photo was her.

“Forget it. We won’t release it.”

“Who said we should? We’ll submit it as unofficial evidence… Okay, okay. Forget it! Do whatever you want! Yes, yes. I’ll follow the client’s instructions! You’re smarter than me, after all!”

Ain, who had been frowning and glaring at Declan, turned his head. Declan, noticing that his gaze had shifted, puckered his lips and muttered a silent complaint.

Whether he was aware of Declan’s anger behind him or not, Ain casually changed the subject.

“Take care of the aftermath quickly.”

Photos and articles about Ain Wise were relatively strictly controlled, but nothing was perfect. There were a few media outlets and individual photographers who tried to stir up controversy by taking photos like this one. This wasn't the first time, and it wasn't the first time they had dealt with such incidents.

In fact, the very fact that such a photo had managed to evade the Wise family’s notice and remain preserved for several months was remarkable in itself.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not the first time, and anyway, every now and then, those reckless fools who don’t know any better pop up.”

Declan shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“I’ll do what I’ve always done.”

“More thoroughly.”

“………………More thoroughly?”

“Yes.”

Declan, who had been staring at Ain with a dazed expression, licked his lips and nodded.

“If that’s what you want, then so be it.”

It seemed that the proud history of a certain media company was about to come to an end. After all, if he was angry enough to blurt out that the marriage was invalid, he must have been quite upset, and there was no way he would just let that go.

But if there was a photo, didn’t that mean the allegations Ain had raised were true? If that was the case, he should be grateful to the media company for taking the photo and providing evidence…

Declan shook his head and dismissed his wavering thoughts. Regardless of the truth, his job was simply to fulfill his client's request. In this case, it would be a matter of legally "properly" following the procedures to destroy the other party's social standing.

Eliminating a local newspaper company was not a difficult task. The only question was whether it was necessary to go to such lengths.

“What am I even doing right now?”

Ain ignored Declan's lament and got into the car. Even though he had obtained the film, he still didn't feel good.

In truth, he had felt this way ever since the day he met Donna Green in Breford. He had been carrying the weight of an unresolved issue, like a live grenade, ever since.

“Speaking of that woman…”

Fearing Ain might abandon him again, Declan quickly climbed into the passenger seat and spoke up.

“Your first love. Are you going to meet her again?”

“Why?”

“Well…”

Declan said in a matter-of-fact tone.

“If you’re going to do that, at least wait until the lawsuit is over. To be honest, I don’t really believe you’re still hung up on your first love, but you were generous to her, so I’m just telling you this in case.”

***