The Grand Kidnapping of the Princess – Chapter 13
Honestly, from beginning to end, isn’t everything about this little kid completely absurd?!
“She’s not cute at all.”
“Huh?”
“Your sister. She’s not cute. Not even a little.”
Lavian said it without a hint of hesitation, since he’d never found any child cute in the first place.
“But still…”
“That doesn’t mean you’re cute either, so don’t misunderstand. You’re so scrawny, what’s there to be cute about? When I first saw you, I thought a walking skeleton was approaching.”
He wasn’t exaggerating.
Indeed, Nina was much smaller and thinner than other children her age. And right now, she’d just recovered from an illness, wearing oversized ready-made clothes—far from resembling a princess. One might think she came from an orphanage at the Temple of Transparency.
Considering her parents were both tall and robust, her development seemed unusually slow. Or maybe…
“Well…”
Nina blinked, looking flustered, and then her eyebrows began to knit together. Soon, her blue eyes flared up with icy fire.
Skeleton? That was just too much!
“What did you just saaay?!”
“Oh, a talking skeleton. The skeleton is getting angry now.”
“I’m not a skeleton! Don’t call me that!”
“If you hate being called that, just hurry up and eat. Who knows? Maybe if you gain a little weight, you might be somewhat bearable to look at.”
Lavian’s tone was playful and teasing, but in his absinthe-colored eyes glinted a sharp, knife-like energy.
Though Nina grumbled under her breath, she slowly lifted her hands from her lap and placed them on the table.
Then she cautiously asked,
“Do you really think that…?”
“Nope.”
“…”
“Honestly, you’re not too bad right now either. It’s just… you’re a skeleton.”
He pushed the cup of cocoa back toward her.
‘Surprisingly fun to tease.’
He hadn’t necessarily meant to tease her, but Lavian wasn’t mature enough to pass up a chance to get back at this cheeky brat who had acted so high and mighty from the very first moment they met.
Nina hesitated, then lifted the cup.
The warm, sweet scent tickled her nose again, and her plump cheeks turned a soft pink.
She was happy.
At least in this moment, she felt genuinely happy.
‘Thank goodness.’
She was glad Lavian hadn’t agreed with Diana. Glad she didn’t have to just stare at something so delicious without being able to eat it.
If Lavian had responded as if Diana was right, Nina probably would’ve wanted to die on the spot.
‘Really, thank goodness.’
Lavian watched her blue eyes sparkle like stars again, a strange look in his eyes.
“But hey, mister.”
“What now.”
“When are you going to sign the contract?”
Cough, cough…!
Just as Lavian was about to sip his bitter freshly brewed coffee, he nearly choked.
“You okay?”
Nina’s concerned voice was just too much. He almost forgot this tiny hostage was a cunning little devil he couldn’t drop his guard around.
“This is all your… cough, cough, who talks about work while eating?”
“Then when?”
Nina blinked innocently.
Speechless, Lavian clicked his tongue and crossed his arms solemnly.
“Tsk. So cheeky, hurrying me up with a forged document. Where did a little thing like you learn to be so naughty…?”
“It’s not forged! I told you, I secretly brought it for real! Why can’t you just trust people?”
They say the suspicious see only what they expect—what kind of kidnapper is this suspicious?
Nina was so frustrated she could burst; she pounded her chest, but Lavian just scoffed.
“Then show me.”
“You’re just gonna steal it!”
“Don’t want to? Then forget it. I don’t even need a contract anyway. I still don’t get why you’re so obsessed with it.”
Lavian shrugged indifferently.
Nina’s insides were boiling, but she held it in.
‘Be patient. He doesn’t know anything right now.’
He would never know, not really. But at least they’d met again like this—that alone was a miracle.
Besides, even if Lavian really did steal the signet ring, it didn’t matter.
Nina reluctantly pulled the ring from her pocket and placed it on the table.
“Here.”
Lavian was a bit surprised by how easily she handed it over.
“You’re giving it up that easily? That makes you disqualified as heir to the Empire, you know?”
“I don’t need something like that.”
Nina snapped as she crunched into a colorful macaron, and Lavian picked up the ring and examined it for a moment.
‘It’s real.’
Forgery of public documents might be the bread and butter of the underworld, but an imperial seal was a whole different league.
As a former imperial guard captain and dethroned prince, Lavian could tell at a glance whether the ring was genuine.
However…
“It’s real, right? I told you so!”
Nina asked proudly, delighted by the macarons.
Still staring at the ring, Lavian let out a quiet laugh.
“Yeah. But, kiddo…”
“Yeah?”
“How did you get this?”
“Huh? I told you, Mother left it with me.”
“Your mother left this with you? That can’t be right.”
Nina suddenly stared at Lavian, then pouted.
“You seem to know my mother really well, huh?”
Silence fell.
As Lavian stared at her with an expression that was truly a sight to behold, Nina leaned back and looked down with a sulky air.
‘Is this some kind of advanced evasive tactic?’
Trying to shake off his ridiculous suspicion, Lavian let out a hollow laugh.
“Is that strange?”
Nina shook her head and bit her lip.
She suddenly felt childish and her cheeks burned.
‘Lavian is Father’s brother, and Mother met Lavian before I was even born…’
So it was natural they knew each other well.
Still, she couldn’t help feeling jealous.
Lavian, completely unaware of Nina’s thoughts, jumped to his own conclusion.
‘Rebellious little brat. No use pressing further…’
He hadn’t expected a truthful answer anyway.
He only asked to see what she’d say.
The fact that Diana had ever held this ring in the first place didn’t make sense. So Nina’s claim that she got it from Diana was full of obvious holes.
‘Such a cheeky little thing.’
Lavian’s absinthe-colored eyes sparkled with an amused sharpness.
He was the type who had no problem deceiving others but couldn’t stand being deceived himself.
And just because she was a child didn’t mean she got a free pass.
Still, why wasn’t he angry right now?
Normally, he would’ve cornered this sassy brat until she broke down in tears and spilled everything.
“Anyway, now that it’s been confirmed as real, you’re going to sign, right?”
Nina, her face flushed from the delicious macaron, abruptly changed the subject.
Lavian responded with a strangely serious question.
“Just who the hell did you take after?”
“Huh?”
He could tell her looks came from Anna, but her personality? No clue.
Who did she inherit this fearlessness from? It was baffling—and a little worrying.
“Fine, whatever. Anyway, we need something solid before we can trust you and consider a deal. Since we’re on the subject, give me one of the pieces of information you’re holding onto.”
He’d already signed that damn contract a while ago, but Lavian shamelessly made the demand.
