CWMBR 71

Chapter 71

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*Present

"Alright, are we good now?"

As soon as he got into the car, Declan asked in a triumphant voice, lifting his chin. Seeing this, Ain, sitting in the driver's seat, snorted in response.

"So what? You just protected your own client. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"

It was a cold, unfeeling reply that showed no appreciation for Declan's efforts. At that attitude, Declan protested with a look of injustice.

"You say that after seeing me subdue that thug with skilled technique? Do you think I'm a bodyguard? I'm a lawyer who fights with the law books!"

"A law book makes an excellent blunt weapon."

Yeah, that's true. Look at its thickness. One hit with that and anyone would be done for...

Declan, who had absentmindedly nodded in agreement with Ain's words, suddenly snapped back to his senses and widened his eyes.

"Hey, you……………."

Declan, who had barely swallowed the curse word that had risen to the tip of his tongue, let out a deep sigh.

Honestly, it was only because he was a good-natured, broad-minded person like himself that he was putting up with Ain’s whims like this. Anyone else would have thrown in the towel and abandoned the case long ago.

Penalty fee? Every conversation with this client multiplied his mental fatigue tenfold, and on top of that, he was constantly handling non-work-related schedules. Was the penalty fee really the issue now? If paying some penalty fee meant he could take care of his health, it would be a bargain!

"Just drop the lawsuit. No, we haven't even gone to court yet, so there's nothing to withdraw. Pretend you never knew. Get down on your knees and beg."

Declan, resigned to despair, finally voiced the thoughts he'd been harboring all along. At that blunt advice, Ain shot Declan a look that said he'd heard it all before.

"Are you out of your mind?"

You're the one who's crazy, you bastard.

Declan nearly let another string of profanities fly, but he clenched his teeth and managed to hold back. Meanwhile, Ain, his gaze already withdrawn with an indifferent expression, spoke in a flat voice.

"Besides, now that the royal family is involved, stopping it is impossible."

If the investigators were only looking into the Wise couple's discord, he might have tried to force a halt. But once the lid was lifted, the situation unfolded quite differently.

To Ain, it seemed the royal family hadn't dispatched the investigators primarily for his sake. Rather, they appeared to have tacked on the Wise couple's story as a side issue while investigating some other matter. If that was the case, it was practically impossible for Ain to block the royal investigators' actions using his personal power alone.

"Sanne swore up and down she'd deliver a fair result."

Declan, who had been busy swallowing his anger, snapped his head up at those words.

"Ah, right. The investigator was Sanne Mond. We're screwed."

Declan knew Sanne Mond's rigid adherence to principle all too well. Burying his face in his hands in utter frustration, he asked in a gloomy tone.

"So you're going to keep doing this?"

"What?"

"Acting like an idiot like this..."

Declan, who had been speaking in a gloomy tone, caught Ain's cold stare and quietly shut his mouth. Blinking his eyes, he glanced at Ain's expression, then cleared his throat and looked away.

"No, I don't mean you're an idiot. I just mean you look a bit like one. A bit. Like half an idiot?"

Life is really tough.

Declan swallowed his pent-up frustration and sighed repeatedly. He had long since given up trying to understand Ain, yet moments like this still pained him with incomprehension.

He’d been trying his hardest to make the marriage null and void, just as Ain had demanded, but now that they were actually meeting, all Ain did was sneak around following his own wife or blatantly follow her around.

And if he even tried to strike up a conversation, he’d get a look of contempt, or be ignored... Meanwhile, he'd offer help that made no difference, hovering around, trying to find any opening to worm his way in. Wasn't this just stalking? A client who was a criminal? It was truly appalling.

Seeing Declan's face drained of energy, steeped in disillusionment, Ain pointed out in a blunt tone.

"You agreed to be my wife's representative because you stood to gain something too, didn't you?"

That was true.

As he'd told Bridget, Declan was thoroughly pragmatic when it came to business. And his decision to become Bridget's representative stemmed purely from concluding it was advantageous.

To be more honest, he'd reached that conclusion after quietly observing Sanne and Gilum stirring up trouble in Glynford. On top of that, the state of that damn friend of his—acting strangely only toward his own wife while completely unaware of his own oddness—had also helped his decision.

"If I can't even speak..."

Declan muttered in exasperation, frowning.

"Why send me in the first place? For something this minor, couldn't you just use those people you're so good at handling? That would be far more stable."

If there were people like Declan who existed to handle things officially and legally, there were also specialists who handled things unofficially and illegally. Declan didn't particularly want to know the details about those 'specialists,' but he knew Ain used them when the situation called for it.

If he wanted to protect Bridget Wise, planting them discreetly nearby was undoubtedly the surest method. Unlike Declan, they were the real fighters. Had they been present, the man Shabo he encountered today wouldn't have even been able to even speak to her.

Ain shook his head at Declan's words.

"Those guys are busy with other work."

"Other business?"

"Yes."

Ain leaned back, slouching slightly. Far off, Bridget's mansion was lit up. The narrow, three-story mansion had an appearance almost identical to the other houses standing side by side around it. Unless you looked closely, it would be hard to tell them apart. Especially now that it was completely dark outside, it was even harder.

Even so, Ain easily picked out Bridget's mansion. It wasn't that he had deliberately studied its features and memorized them; it just happened naturally.

Simply because Bridget had entered there.

Ain exhaled deeply. He hadn't been entirely averse to having 'those guys' guard the mansion's entrance. But their true specialty was, in fact, extracting the information their master desired by any means necessary.

When he asked Ronan about his relationship with Donna Green, Ronan widened his eyes in surprise.

"My relationship with Donna?"

"What kind of relationship? I'm the theater's representative, and she's an actress under contract with the theater."

There was nothing strange about Ronan's matter-of-fact reply.

"Huh? Who resembles whom?"

When asked if Donna and Bridget looked alike, Ronan looked dead serious, as if hearing this for the first time.

"Donna and Bridget? What on earth are you talking about! Donna is an actress who makes her living with her face! She shouldn't be treated like an ordinary person."

His response was utterly natural, flawlessly smooth. As if he'd prepared it thoroughly.

So Ain decided to verify the relationship between Ronan and Donna Green. Not just superficial information like how long Donna lived in Elber, but more specific, intimate details. If necessary, even using slightly coercive methods.

"Are we heading back to our lodgings now?"

Ain replied, his gaze fixed on the lit mansion, as Declan asked.

"No, we're going to the police station."

"Huh?"

"I need to see the chief."

"...Huh?"

Ain frowned and shot Declan a sideways glance at his successive bewildered responses.

“Not only was there a murder case recently, but just now an ordinary citizen was threatened by some stranger on their way home. City security is a complete mess, so I need to go tell them.”

Declan, who had been staring blankly at Ain as if it were obvious, took a deep breath calmly. Then, with a faint smile, he said.

"I already went. Earlier."

"But the security situation hasn't improved."

"No, we visited just a few hours ago, so of course..."

Declan, who had been trembling at the mouth in protest, finally shut up. He knew it wouldn't make a dent anyway. Ain was completely unaware of the absurdity of his own words, just looking at Declan with pity. Talking to a wall would probably be more satisfying than this.

"Ha. Sometimes I want to donate your brain to the Royal Medical Institute. It must be shaped differently from others. The pattern of wrinkles, or the size, or the color, or something."

"What utter nonsense."

"You're the one with time to burn? Planning to tour the entire village of Glynford?"