Unexpectedly Impressive
Ichika, too, saw the news the next day.
Fraught with concern, she immediately called to check on her family. Unfortunately, her calls went
unanswered, which only worried her more. What’s going on? Where’s Mom?
“Ichika,” Solomon called from downstairs. “Where are you?”
“Oh!” She hurried down in her pajamas. “Sorry, Darling. I was preoccupied with something and haven’t
started making breakfast yet… Let me do that now.”
In Jetroina, it was customary for the wife of the newlyweds to take care of her husband by preparing
meals. Solomon, however, did not seem to care about such traditions.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll just have something at the office,” he told her gently. “Are you preoccupied with
what happened to your sister?”
“Yeah…” Ichika chewed her lip in slight distress. “There must be a misunderstanding. My sister… She’s
not like that, I’m sure. My family didn’t raise us to be like that.”
She was saying this not only to defend Himari but also to maintain her family’s honor. After all, her
upbringing had taught her that the Minamoto family name was everything and that she should never let
anything or anyone tarnish it.
Solomon’s expression was unreadable. “Ichika,” he said slowly, “You have to learn to see the true
nature of one’s character. Unfortunately, not everyone in this world is as nice as you make out to be.”
“Oh…” His wife blinked, looking at him with bewildered eyes.
She waited to see if her husband had more to say, but the man simply left it at that. He got up and
headed toward the door, ready to set off for work.
“What’s your plan for the day?” he asked casually.
“Vivi and Matteo don’t need me at Frontier Bay, so I might just stay at home today,” Ichika said, tilting
her head in incomprehension. “Why do you ask?”
“In that case, why don’t you come to the office with me?” her husband offered. “My secretary is on
leave today. I could use some help in the office.”
Ichika perked up immediately. “Really? I would love to!” A smile blossomed on her face as she nodded
profusely.
With the scandal involving Himari momentarily forgotten, she headed to the office happily with her
husband. By the time the matter surfaced again, it was a few days later. When she eventually managed
to get a hold of her family, it was to the knowledge that Himari was married into the Nogita family.
Shocked, Ichika shared this news with her husband at once. “Darling, guess what? My father just
arranged a marriage between my sister and someone from the Nogita family in Terrandya! But why
would Dad do that? Everyone knows that the Nogita family has a bad name.”
“Is that so?” Solomon muttered as he continued browsing his work emails on his computer.
“Yeah… It’s the strangest thing,” Ichika said, confused. “I thought my parents had wanted her to marry
into the Tsurka family… I wonder what made them change their mind?”
Little did she know, the person who was responsible for this was sitting right in front of her, nor was she
aware that he did it solely because of her.
Ichika left the study, still pondering the events that had happened to her sister. Solomon, on the other
hand, was feeling rather pleased with himself.
His good mood lasted until he saw the texts in the Whatsapp group chat he was in.
Old Mr. Jadeson: So it’s true that someone tried to poison the people in the research institute? But
why?
Devin: I have no idea. The institute had been fine even when Eddie pulled those stunts. I don’t
understand why something like this would happen now.
Sabrina: Hubby, why don’t you go there to check on things?
The group remained silent after that last message.
Solomon’s brows knitted together. Though he wanted to comment, he was unsure if he was in the
position to do so because he saw himself as an outsider in the group. The only thing he could do was
remain on the sidelines and see how things would unfold.
Unexpectedly, a message from Ichika popped up in the group chat.
Ichika: Could it be a mishap? Zinc is sometimes used in forensic chemistry as a preservative for
biological evidence. Maybe someone was using it to preserve something and caused an accidental
poisoning.
The group fell silent once more.
Solomon cast a glance at the door. He could imagine Ichika in her room, carefully reading the
messages and earnestly doing what she could to help.
His eyes twitched.
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