Chapter 44
Oscar did feel sorry toward Lady Wentworth, but he had his own reasons and excuses.
“If the Lady hadn’t secretly peeked at Your Highness’s documents, I wouldn’t have spoken that harshly.”
“Documents?”
“Those, scattered all over the place.
I keep telling you, Your Highness should tidy up more often.
No one but you would manage security papers in such a careless way.”
Ignoring Oscar’s nagging, Vincent stepped closer to the desk.
He needed to check what papers he had left there.
“There’s quite a lot concerning Duke Wentworth… what if that information leaks out?
Wouldn’t we have to rewrite everything from scratch?”
Vincent carefully went through the documents.
There were papers on raising harbour usage fees, test operations of magical farming tools, and petitions to allow the founding of academies in the provinces.
All of them awaited Vincent’s final approval.
The Emperor set the great direction of the Empire, but the actual management fell to Crown Prince Vincent.
In other countries, the role of chancellor was what Vincent himself carried.
Among the documents, what immediately caught his eye were those concerning Marquis Moulton’s household.
They contained rough notes on how far Duke Wentworth had managed to extract information from the Marchioness.
They also contained investigations into the gambling dens she frequented to determine who the true owner behind them was.
Another set of papers outlined plans and progress made to block the tax law Duke Wentworth had proposed.
Both were indeed sensitive matters.
Yet Vincent laid them down with a detached air.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Pardon?”
“I was planning to explain a little anyway.”
“To Lady Wentworth?
Why?”
Why was I planning to explain?
Now that I thought about it, there wasn’t really a reason.
At first, I meant to lie about not opposing Duke Wentworth’s tax law and then later deny it.
But Amelia had shown little interest in the subject, never even mentioning it.
And the matter of Moulton had been information Amelia herself had given me in the first place.
Didn’t she deserve some share in it?
Above all, both issues put House Wentworth at a disadvantage, so I mostly wanted to prepare her in advance.
In the past, I would never have shown such consideration.
But for some reason, now it felt like I should.
If she were to feel hurt or angry at my words, that would be fine too.
It would be easier to grasp her and let go of her if she were the Amelia I used to know.
But the Amelia before me now was too unpredictable.
I couldn’t tell at all how she would respond once I spoke.
Still, he couldn’t say all that aloud to Oscar.
“There’s also the option of leaking information in reverse and using it to our advantage.”
“Ah, I see.
As expected, Your Highness is sharp!
But the Lady did say something rather ominous, you know?”
“What did she say?”
“Something about a flaw in our plan.
That we hadn’t accounted for some votes during the ballot.”
Vincent could guess well enough what she had meant.
It was something he had set aside as too vague, but Amelia had pointed it out instantly.
And she had done so after merely skimming the papers in such a short time.
“Anyway, Lady Wentworth isn’t as dull as I thought.”
“Oscar—”
“Ah, forgive me.
I’ve spoken out of turn again.”
As Vincent’s voice dropped, Oscar lowered his gaze, knowing well what was coming.
“Whatever happens from now on, she is still my fiancée.
I’d appreciate it if you’d refrain from speaking carelessly.”
“Yes, Your Highness.
When I see Lady Wentworth again, I will be sure to apologise properly.”
“Good.
Prepare the carriage, we’re going now.”
“Yes, then I’ll go and… wait, now?”
Without answering, Vincent went to his drawer and pulled out a small box.
It was small, but it looked quite luxurious.
He slipped it into his pocket and strode out.
Flustered, Oscar scrambled after him.
“Y-Your Highness, I’m not ready… P-please wait for me!”
I went to the small library attached to the Crown Prince’s palace.
Since the Imperial Central Library already existed, this place was more of a study room than a library.
It mainly held books for the officials working here, so I was confident the materials I needed would be among them.
“Please wait here.”
“Yes.”
Derek, surprisingly, backed off without protest.
Did he think a sealed library was safer than the open gardens?
Either way, seeing him stand stiffly at one side, I walked inside.
I wondered if there might be some entry procedure, but there was none.
Perhaps because so many came and went regularly.
Even though the space was enclosed, a gentle breeze blew through as if a window had been opened.
Curious, I looked around and saw a device along the ceiling edges releasing air.
A magical ventilation system?
Really now, the setting might be medieval, but it had everything.
Not only ventilation—light poured softly across the entire ceiling, just bright enough for reading.
I stared in wonder, then shook my head quickly.
This wasn’t the time to be distracted.
Though it was small, the library still had its share of people reading in silence.
None paid much attention to my entrance, absorbed in their books.
Carefully, so as not to disturb them, I moved about and tried to figure out where the materials I needed might be.
The indexing system was different from what I knew, so I stumbled a bit.
Besides, Amelia herself had almost no knowledge of such things.
I decided I would have to study the classification method another time.
But there are more books here than I thought.
Finding what I want might take a while.
I stood helplessly, staring up at the tall shelves, when someone cleared their throat behind me.
I turned to see a young woman with brown hair tied in two braids, glasses perched on her nose, hugging a book to her chest.
When I looked at her questioningly, she spoke.
“You seem to be struggling.
May I help you?
I work here as a librarian.”
“Ah, a librarian.”
“My name is Tina.”
She introduced herself hastily, and I gave mine in return.
“Nice to meet you, Miss Tina.
I am Amelia Wentworth.”
At that, Tina suddenly grabbed my hand and shook it enthusiastically.
“Oh, you’re Lady Wentworth!
I’ve wanted to meet you so much!
It’s an honour to see you in person!
You’re truly beautiful!”
“Ah, well… thank you.
But please, a little quieter.”
“Ah.”
I pressed a finger to my lips, and Tina quickly clapped a hand over her own mouth.
For someone claiming to be a librarian, she was awfully noisy.
The glances from around us made me feel embarrassed.
Lowering her voice, Tina leaned closer and whispered.
“So, Lady Wentworth, what kind of book are you looking for?”
“Law books.
Tax law and parliamentary law.”
“That’s quite a difficult subject.
This way!”
Clumsy as she seemed, Tina clearly knew her domain well.
She led me straight to the shelves I needed.
Before me stood rows of stiff, dry-looking tomes.
“Thank you.
I’ll look for them myself from here.”
“Yes!”
After Tina left, I quickly found the necessary books.
I opened one on parliamentary law first.
Though I had bragged in front of Oscar thanks to my knowledge of the novel’s plot, in truth I didn’t know exactly how the number of votes varied by status.
Good thing I slipped away before Oscar could ask me for details
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