Chapter 39
My eyes nearly popped out of my head.
Wait, how did he…
That was a name that should never have been spoken.
Ares Balthazar.
My mind went blank. I instinctively turned my head and looked up at Ian’s face. Just to make sure his face hadn’t somehow transformed into Ares’s. It was an absurd thought, but wasn’t the current situation even more absurd?
How did Jean figure out Ian’s real identity?
The Ian I looked up at still had the same elegant, refined face. His sharp eyes, without the slightest vulnerability, were fixed on Jean. Even though Jean had figured out who he was, Ian didn’t show a trace of unease.
A cold wind swept over the frozen silence. Jean’s curly light brown hair swayed over his forehead. Then, Jean took a step forward.
Just as Ian pushed me behind him and moved to confront him-
“It’s an honor to meet someone like myself!”
…Huh?
Jean cried out, overcome with emotion. His voice cut through the tension of the riding arena and echoed outward. The cold, curt expression he’d worn the entire time instantly melted into joy. Uncontainable elation flooded his face.
Right before what seemed like an inevitable clash, something completely unexpected had happened. I quickly grabbed Ian’s forearm, pulling him back toward me.
“Did you also read the incident records of the Chancellor Brahms assassination case?”
“…What case?”
I asked, dazed, but Jean seemed not to hear me at all. He was wholly and passionately focused on Ian.
Ian’s eyes wavered slightly. He still maintained his antagonistic stance, but the sharp wariness within him seemed to subtly shift at Jean’s words.
Jean didn’t wait for Ian to respond and continued speaking.
“The infamous unsolved case that Lord Ares Balthazar personally investigated, that case!”
“……”
Jean’s fervor only continued to build.
“Everyone claims to admire and revere Lord Ares Balthazar, but it’s always surface-level. I’m the only one who has etched his life and his great achievements into my bones and my heart. I’m a true devotee!”
I glanced up at Ian and nudged his side.
The guy’s worshiping him like a deity, and Ian doesn’t even flinch…?
“…The records of that case were made public?”
…Or so I thought.
Ian asked the question as if he couldn’t believe it.
He was calmly listening to someone’s explanation. Was this really the Ian I knew? The same man who never cared for context, who would grab people by the collar first and ask questions later, was now actually hearing someone out.
I let go of his arm, which I’d been gripping out of nervousness. His guard was still up, but at least it didn’t seem like he was about to throw a punch.
Encouraged by Ian’s reaction, Jean spoke even more passionately.
“It was a bestseller! Lord Ares wrote it himself, but someone else made all the money. The publishers were the only ones who hit the jackpot. Ah! Wait just a moment!”
Jean darted under the shade canopy, rummaged through his bag, and came running back with something in his hand.
It was a battered old book.
“This is the published record of that case. It includes the assassination of Chancellor Brahms, which was disguised as a fall from horseback. The part you mentioned earlier about the assassination is only printed in the limited edition that used the original manuscript!”
His voice rose with excitement. The pride and emotion he felt about the content were evident in his every gesture and expression.
Though the book was worn, its cover faded with age, Jean handled it with reverence. He extended it toward Ian with a near-worshipful gaze.
Ian accepted what was handed to him.
The worn book was covered in the marks of Jean’s use. Just how many times had he read this one volume? With each gently turned page, an intense devotion could be felt.
Ian slowly flipped through the book. The old paper rustled with each turn, and the pages were densely filled with ornate handwriting, wild yet elegant. He seemed to know exactly whose handwriting it was. His eyes paused on the page.
“How many people have read this?”
Jean hesitated for a moment, flustered, then opened his mouth again.
“How could anyone count that? Even if they didn’t finish it, everyone probably knows the name of the book. But why are you acting like it’s your first time seeing it?”
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