From Villain to Virtual Sweetheart: The Fake Heir's Grand Scheme(BL)
Chapter 103: Of Oppas and Overlords

Aidan had finally replied. After weeks of silence, there it was: a message.

RiverBridge: Thanks for your tips. How can I help you??

Micah’s face filled with a wide smile. But the sudden interest made him a bit apprehensive. From zero reaction to asking about what he wanted, the shift was too abrupt.

He pondered for a bit, biting his bottom lip. Even if there was a catch, he had nothing to lose. Yeah, it was better to seize this chance, even if it turned out to be a trap, than to let it go to waste. Honestly, after his failed past attempts, he couldn’t see any breakthrough.

Then he began typing carefully.

RogueOverlord: Oh, I didn’t do it to gain anything, Oppa!

His fingers froze over the screen. A second... then two.

Micah gagged.

Nope. He couldn’t send something cheesy like that. He quickly jabbed the delete key. He rewrote the message, more composed this time.

RogueOverlord: Oh, I didn’t do it to gain anything. I admired you for a long time. I just wanted to be a bit of a help to you.

Micah nodded in approval. This was better. Earnest without sounding like a total weirdo.

Far away, in a study, Clyde Du Pont sat still as a statue, eyes locked on the chat room. He read the messages. A flash of surprise crossed his pale blue eyes.

Admired? Since When? Where would someone like him have earned admiration from an eighteen-year-old boy? He was at least ten years older than him. Their worlds didn’t intersect; school and university were far apart in years.

And he had never participated in any banquets or social gatherings. So, where exactly did he meet him? And with his tale as a cold, heartless beast in the upper class, a terrifying ghost whom no one mentioned his name. Where could he have heard about him?

Even if he had, his reputation wasn’t the type that earned admiration.

Even Albert Ramsy had drawn a line with him, preferring to deal with Dean instead.

All those lavish invitations were addressed to Dean. Never to him.

He tapped back a message, expression unreadable.

RiverBridge: Have we met before?

Micah squinted at the reply, hesitating. He had never seen Aidan in person. Not even a proper photo. No point in lying. If he made something up, he would fall straight into a trap.

RogueOverlord: Of course not. I just read about you in the news or financial reports.

There. That was safe enough. Vague.

With how shallow and arrogant Aidan was, this reply would definitely make his nose shoot up in the sky, distracting him enough to question Micah more.

Clyde, on the other hand, felt more confused.

What news and financial reports? He, himself, had put a gag order on his name. He had spent the past years ensuring that his name stayed out of the press. Any articles that even hinted at personal details were censored before they hit circulation. If anything was ever published, it was about the company, La Riviere, not him.

How could he not know about it?!

RiverBridge: Really? Like what?

Micah panicked. He quickly searched for Aidan Wilson’s past achievements on his phone.

There wasn’t much. As expected. Aidan hadn’t formally taken over the family business yet, and, like in the book, he had kept a low profile, likely hiding his achievements from his siblings. Finally, Micah found one in his notes.

RogueOverlord: like how you bypassed your siblings and took the exclusive rights to the manganese mine for yourself.

Clyde stared at the message for a long time. Then, without changing his expression, he exited the chat, locked the screen, and unceremoniously tossed the phone into a drawer beside his desk.

He leaned back and closed his eyes.

Then he let out a sharp bark of laughter.

"Ha!"

What mining deal? What siblings had he ever needed to bypass? His older brother and sister had fled the family business without a second thought. They were happy to leave everything to him, barely looking back. There had never been any internal struggle.

Micah had mistaken him for someone else.

Clyde’s lips twitched. He pulled out his tablet, typing swiftly: manganese mine in Isatis city. And there it was. A headline from six months ago. Shimi Chemical Company secures exclusive mining rights in Isatis.

He knew who the real boss of that company was.

Aidan Wilson.

Clyde tugged at his wooden prayer beads. That wasn’t him. Someone else had clearly impressed this boy.

A voice broke the quiet in the room.

"Uncle, dinner is ready," Dean called.

"Umm. I’ll pass," Clyde said, not turning around. "And don’t come in without knocking next time."

Dean froze at the door. The temperature in the hallway seemed to drop.

What had happened again?! Why did his little uncle become grumpy? Wasn’t he in a good mood earlier?!

"Okay. Sorry." Dean mumbled and closed the door. Swearing to himself never to come personally for a trivial matter.

His uncle’s cold personality was sometimes really scary.

Back inside, Clyde rubbed the prayer beads slowly, his brows creased in thought.

It didn’t make sense. If that boy was aiming to help Aidan and befriend him, then why did he (or to say Asena) provoke Aidan in the hotel lounge? Why trigger a public scene? The pieces didn’t fit.

Could Micah and Asena be different people?!

Micah wasn’t cross-dressing? So how could two people have the same burn wound at the same place and time?! On Friday, there hadn’t been any. But on Sunday was?

His head throbbed.

Once again, he opened the report. He skipped to the section documenting Aidan’s behaviour after the hotel incident. This time he read it carefully. Suddenly, his eyes caught a statement from one of the waiters. Apparently,

the young lady had called Adian by a different name. Ford something?

So, Asena didn’t know Aidan either. A small smile crept onto his face.

This had become so interesting.