I am not the Villainess

Chapter 64

CHAPTER 64

Later that night, Tatiana wore a plain black dress underneath a black long cloak. Unlike the cloak she wears as Investor J, this one was a bit different since its hood only covers half of her face.

“My lady, His Highness has arrived,” Mia announced.

“Alright. I’ll go downstairs in a moment.” Tatiana said. She turned to Mia and gave a small nod. “Is he ready?” she asked.

Mia bowed her head and answered, “Yes, my lady. Everything is going according to plan.”

Tatiana smiled in relief.

“That’s good. Thank you, Mia. I’ll trust you with this.”

“Don’t worry, my lady.”

Tatiana looked at herself in the mirror for the last time and sighed. She’s confident about her plan, but she still feels worried in case things go wrong.

Tatiana walked out of her room and went downstairs where His Highness was waiting.

“I’m sorry to keep you waiting, your highness,” Tatiana said as she walked closer to Noah. She curtsied and looked at him with a calm expression.

Tatiana thought he looked different at that moment. Noah was also wearing a black cloak. The hood was down, and unlike how his hair was usually styled, his jet black hair was messy as if he had just combed his fingers through it.

“No worries. Let’s go?” Noah offered his arm to her. Tatiana took it with a bit of hesitation.

This was not the first time she holds his arm, but she still felt strangely uncomfortable at the idea of being close to him.

The both of them walked together towards the carriage that Noah brought. The carriage was a common one as it doesn’t have any family crest on it.

They decided to use such a carriage to not attract attention from the public, especially since the Crown Prince of the Empire and the Lady of the House of Cromello will be the ones to use it. If it was revealed that the two went on a secret escapade late at night, it will surely cause a big scandal. Hence, they try to avoid that situation by being discreet with their journey.

They even went through a secret passage to avoid being noticed as they left Cromello's manor.

“Does your butler know about this trip?” Noah asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

“No. Only my personal maid, Mia, knows about this.” Tatiana answered.

The duke and the duchess were currently away for a business trip, and Aaron was also out for a mission. As such, it was easy for Tatiana to go out this late at night.

However, just in case, she didn’t tell the head butler nor the head maid about her trip with His Highness.

“I see. You must really trust her, then.”

“Well, of course. She’s my personal maid after all.” She replied.

Noah nodded and stared at Tatiana. She was not wearing her hood on, so he could see her silver hair glistening in the moonlight that passed through the windows. Her purple eyes, which are often cold, glimmer in the moonlight as well.

At that moment, Noah was reminded of the night he first met Tatiana after returning from the war. In one of the town's dark alleys in a town near the border of the South, Tatiana was effortlessly fighting three bulky men with a long stick to save a helpless child.

He could still vividly remember how her moves made it seem like she was dancing. It was a spine-chilling scene that Noah will surely never forgets.

With that in mind, Noah thought of a question that he has been meaning to ask Tatiana.

“Tatiana, I’ve been curious about something,” he said after a while of silence.

Tatiana raised an eyebrow, “What is it, your highness?”

Noah was hesitant at first, but he eventually asked about the matter that had been bugging him for some time.

“Your fighting skills…where did you learn all of that?”

Tatiana froze at his question.

She was certainly not expecting that question, but she does understand where he was coming from.

The original Tatiana was the typical noble lady who only knows how to party, and shops colorful dresses and expensive accessories. She was the type of lady who couldn't even lift her own plate because she was so pampered. Tatiana was so privileged and spoiled that one couldn't envision her engaging in rigorous activities like training or fighting.

Hence, it was odd to see such a lady suddenly became skilled in fighting that she even managed to beat ten professional assassins all by herself.

“I trained…for it,” Tatiana answered quietly.

Noah’s brows furrowed.

Train? Of course, she trained. But how? Just two years ago, she was still the feeble Tatiana who couldn’t even lift a stick.

“How and when did you train that you became that good?” he asked again.

Tatiana rummaged through her mind, trying to find a reason. She couldn’t simply say she was not the Tatiana they knew or that she’s just a soul from a different world residing in Tatiana’s body. Noah would think she’s crazy, or worst, they might kill her for taking over Tatiana’s life.

What should I say?

“Uh… a year ago. After I recover from my sickness, I decided to train my body.” Tatiana replied and averted her gaze.

“You became that good after a year?” Noah couldn’t believe her reason.

What Tatiana had said doesn’t make any sense. He would have believed her if she had told him she had been secretly training since she was a child. But after only a year of training? That's simply not doable.

Even he, the empire's Crown Prince, has had to practice his entire life to get the skills he currently possesses.

“Well… I don’t know. Maybe I’m just that talented at it.” Tatiana said and force a laugh.

Of course, that doesn’t make sense! But what else can I say? She reprimanded herself.

Noah became silent after that. He was trying to process what Tatiana told him, and no matter how much he thinks, he just couldn’t believe it.

There must be something else going on with her. But what is it?

He wanted to ask about it further, but it was obvious that Tatiana didn’t want to tell him about it. In the end, he decided to put it aside.

“Then…was your training with your brother fake?” Noah asked instead.

Aaron told him how their training went. They have yet to begin swordsmanship training, so it was still mostly for stamina training. Aaron also said that he purposefully increased the intensity of the training for Tatiana to give up on her own. Aside from that, he heard from Aaron that even though Tatiana appeared to be struggling at first, she persevered and worked even harder to keep up with the rigorous training.

So, now Noah wondered if Tatiana was indeed struggling during their training. Given her current abilities, it seems that she was merely faking it in front of Aaron.

Tatiana let out a sigh.

It’s a good thing he didn’t ask further about how I got this skilled.

“Yes. I don’t really want my brother to question me.” She answered. “Ah that reminds me, please keep this a secret from him, your highness.”

His Highness had already discovered my skills, so I guess the only thing I could do now was hope he wouldn't tell anyone, especially my family.

Noah looked at her, amused at her sudden request.

Tatiana was worrying for nothing. Noah wouldn't tell anyone about what he knows even if she didn't ask for it. He, for one, does not want anyone to know about her fighting skills. He was proud of Tatiana's skills, but he also desired to be the only one who knew about them.

But of course, Noah wasn’t planning on telling that to Tatiana. Instead, he’ll use her request to his advantage.

“Hmm…that depends.” He said and smiled smugly.

Tatiana frowned at his sudden change of attitude.

He’s acting like that again… She thought to herself.

“What do you want, your highness?” Tatiana asked, brazenly.

Noah didn’t answer immediately, so it made Tatiana curious.

After a while, he grinned at her and said confidently,

“I want you to train me.”

Tatiana looked at him with wide eyes.

“What?!” she couldn’t help but exclaim.

Instead of feeling offended at her sudden outburst, Noah just leaned back in his chair and looked at Tatiana with a complacent expression.

“Exactly as I said. Train me like how you did with Kael Arder, in exchange, I will keep your little secret for you.” He said again, his smug smile still on his face.

Tatiana looked at him in disbelief.

She couldn’t believe what Noah was asking her right now.

He wants me to train him? So suddenly? Why? What is he up to?

Noah was already a skilled fighter. He is the empire's most talented swordmaster, and he's unbeatable in martial arts as well. As such, it didn't make sense why he suddenly wanted to be trained—and by Tatiana of all people.

Is he planning something? Does he want to keep me in check by using training as an excuse? What is it?

Tatiana's head was flooded with questions as she tried to figure out why Noah had suddenly proposed such a thing.

It would have been not that big of a deal since it was just training, but Tatiana couldn’t help but feel suspicious about it. For starters, Tatiana wanted to cut ties with him by annulling their engagement. She already told him about that, but if she trains with Noah, that just means they will still be connected somehow. Second, shouldn’t Noah feel hatred towards her? In the novel, that was the case, but why does he keep bothering her like this? Finally, Noah was already suspicious about how she got her skills. If they train together, he would have more chances of knowing more than he should.

“W-wh—“ Before Tatiana could utter anything, the carriage came to a stop.

“We have arrived.” The coachman announced from outside of the carriage.

Noah smiled at the still stunned Tatiana.

“You don’t have to give me an answer right away. Take your time to think about it.” He said. He pulled his hood up before stepping out of the carriage, leaving Tatiana still frozen on her seat.

Noah then turned to Tatiana and offered his hand.

“Let’s go, Tatiana.” He said.

Tatiana came to her senses and looked around. She immediately pulled her hood up when she realized that they’ve already arrived in front of Alfred’s shop.

She looked at Noah who was waiting for her outside the carriage, with his hand still on the air. Tatiana accepted his hand and stepped out of the carriage as well.

Once outside, she turned to Noah again.

“Please do not call me by my name here, your highness.” She reminded.

Noah smirked, amused.

“Then… should I call you, darling?” he teased, whispering the last word in her ears.

Tatiana found herself blushing at his tone. It's a good thing the place was dark and she was wearing her hood on, so Noah didn’t notice her flushed cheeks.

“W-what are you saying, your highness?” she mumbled and averted her gaze, shyly. “I meant please call me Ana, instead.”

Noah was amused at her reaction. At that moment, he just wished to pull down her hood and look at her face.

So, this is how you act when you’re shy? He thought to himself.

“I understand,” Noah replied, his smirk was still on his face. “Then, you should also call me Val instead of ‘your highness.’” Noah said.

Tatiana nodded in understanding

Val?

His full name is Noah Von Alexander Kaylon, so Val comes from Von and Alexander.

That’s adorable of him…

She smiled, secretly.

The two of them walked together towards the shabby building. Noah did the code knock on the door, and seconds later a man wearing a black cloak and black mask, opened the door.

Tatiana could tell that this man was Alfred Rogers.

Alfred then led them to the office, and inside, was two more people wearing the same cloaks and masks. Tatiana inwardly smiled seeing them.

The first one was obviously Mia, and the other one was…Kai.

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