I Will Protect My Brother - Chapter 113

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 113
Once again this year, our lodging in Delpiam was the Star Residence that Whezel had provided.
When I arrived at the Star Residence, the reception room was already occupied by two men. One was naturally Kalian, and the other was the master of this mansion.
“You’re remarkably carefree, aren’t you? The situation is dire, yet your mouth stretches from ear to ear.”
“There’s no reason not to be cheerful. But now that I’m facing your ugly mug here, the tea tastes a bit worse, I must admit.”
“I envy that dull, pure-white brain of yours.”
“Will you just shut your beast’s mouth?”
Their pointless and exhausting exchange of barbs ended the moment I entered. I deliberately made my presence known by putting weight into my footsteps, and both their gazes snapped toward me at once.
“Oh, you’re here. Hello, Luize.”
“Sister. Are you alright? Are you in any pain?”
“I couldn’t be better. Perfectly healthy.”
“Thank goodness.”
I hadn’t told Luize about Yeljewa’s next prophecy either. I suspected his reaction wouldn’t differ much from Kalian’s.
Perhaps Luize would have it explained to him by the other Transcendent Family Heads.
I gestured weakly to Kalian.
“Let’s go upstairs, Older Brother. I want to rest.”
* * *
The next morning, the day of the Continental Conference finally arrived.
“You’re incredibly tense, Rosy.”
Kalian muttered with a puzzled expression as he watched me standing blankly before the mirror.
“You haven’t slept a wink since yesterday, and why are you trembling so badly? You look like someone heading off to their own funeral.”
I flinched like someone caught stealing as I adjusted my clothes.
Since arriving in Delpiam, I hadn’t been able to control my emotional state at all.
Naturally, all the negative emotions I’d barely been suppressing had overflowed onto Kalian. It would be strange if he hadn’t noticed.
I forced myself to adopt a cool tone.
“Don’t talk nonsense. You remember what you promised me. At the Continental Conference, you won’t cause trouble, and you absolutely won’t tell anyone about our relationship.”
“I remember. That what the Elixir is must not be revealed.”
Of course, the Transcendent Family Heads would all know, but every record from the conference is transmitted directly to all the nations of the Continent. I had to watch my words where all of Rahnar’s people could hear.
Of course, even if our mutual Elixir relationship were revealed to the Continent, no one would be bold enough to target the Family Heads of Wynyak and Kirges.
But we couldn’t afford even a single risk factor.
Kalian narrowed his eyes and scrutinized me thoroughly.
“Again.”
“…Again, what?”
“Is there something else you need to tell me, Rosy?”
He’d been openly trying to read my mind for a while now. I barely managed to close off my senses.
‘I still don’t have certainty.’
I’d been agonizing over whether to tell Kalian about Yeljewa’s foresight.
I still hadn’t reached a conclusion.
“…You understand that telling you to keep it hidden doesn’t mean you should stay far away, right?”
“I have no intention of that. Don’t worry.”
“Yes. Don’t take your eyes off me. Keep watching.”
“Is that all you wanted to say?”
“Yes.”
“Then why is my heart racing like this?”
Kalian suddenly reached out and pressed his hand against my left chest. My heartbeat was so violent I could hear it thundering in my own ears.
“It’s just nerves from the upcoming Continental Conference, that’s all.”
“Lozietti Kirges gets nervous? That’s unexpected.”
He showed no sign of backing down.
‘This won’t do. If you find out, all the preparations I’ve made will crumble to dust.’
Kalian would never cooperate with my plan.
But suddenly, I recalled words that Regina, my teacher, had always emphasized whenever she looked at me long ago.
“Do not be arrogant, Lozietti.”
“Do not blindly trust your genius, do not blindly trust the power you possess. One day, you will inevitably stumble.”
‘…Her teachings weren’t entirely without merit.’
I couldn’t afford to stumble from the very start.
In the end, I interlaced my fingers with Kalian’s. Yes, let me try my luck for once.
“This is something I’m asking just in case, but what if I die?”
Kalian, who had been looking down at our joined hands, slowly lifted his gaze. His lips kept drying.
“If I die, or disappear. If I have to leave your side for a while.”
But I couldn’t continue.
The emotion dwelling in his crimson eyes, fixed intently upon me, was shifting slowly yet unmistakably. Into precisely the light I had feared.
“Why would my princess die?”
Kalian smiled faintly, tilting his head. The smile was chillingly cold.
His gaze traveled across my shoulder and descended toward my heart.
“I even gave you a new heart so you wouldn’t die like those weak, fragile humans.”
“I’m just speaking of a remote possibility.”
I hastily cut off his words.
“To prepare for when I have to be away from you for a moment…”
“Rosy. You cannot leave my side.”
Kalian corrected me gently.
“You’ve been anxious this whole time worrying about such pointless things? To the point where you couldn’t even sleep properly?”
“There’s nothing wrong with preparing contingencies.”
“It’s not a contingency—it’s a meaningless hypothetical and wasted effort. Rosy, I think it would be better if you didn’t provoke me further. I’m starting to get angry.”
“I only asked for luck, and now you’re getting angry? What I meant to say was, even if I disappear for a moment, please don’t overreact.”
Kalian let out a hollow laugh.
“Aren’t you asking too much of me? As you know by now, I’m not exactly known for having a good temperament.”
There was still a long way to go. At least Kalian had one weakness—his reaction to threats against the Elixir’s safety was relatively restrained, and that was fortunate.
I maintained the calmest tone I could muster.
“I didn’t want to tell you because I knew you’d react like this. But it’s better than letting the worst-case scenario unfold, so I’m telling you anyway.”
“All right, then. Go ahead and tell me.”
“Regardless of my intentions, if such an ominous situation unfolds, just wait for me. So… it’ll be at most a year, at longest eleven years.”
The Revival Crystal can resurrect one person once every ten years. By coincidence, next summer marks the completion of that ten-year cycle.
“Eleven years is nothing. It’ll pass in the blink of an eye. Compared to the eternity we promised to spend together, eleven years is trivial. You waited for Rozentia—for me—for hundreds of years, so you can do this too.”
“That was before I loved you.”
Kalian cut me off coldly. His eyes, voice, and tone were utterly devoid of warmth.
“Before you became my Elixir. If you vanish so suddenly, do you really think I could endure even ten minutes?”
“You’ll have to. Because I’ll come back to you.”
“How can you be certain of that? By your own logic, if something happens to you, the dead can’t speak. What else can I do but search for you?”
“That’s exactly why I’m telling you this now.”
“So you’re asking me to survive over ten years without my Elixir? When did my Rosy become so cruel?”
“You can do it. Because you managed just fine for hundreds of years without an Elixir.”
“….”
“You don’t have a human body, so an Elixir isn’t absolutely essential for you. You know that.”
“Even so, having something and not having it are worlds apart.”
Kalian ground his teeth and shot back.
“Why do you keep saying such ominous things? Rosy, what’s making you so anxious? Tell me. Whatever it is, I’ll eliminate it right now.”
“I’m human. I’ve been marked by the Stars—how could I not be afraid? I just didn’t show it.”
I pressed my fingertips firmly against my throbbing temples.
“In any case, if I leave your side, know that there’s not a shred of my will behind it.”
“….”
“So don’t be angry, don’t cry, don’t recklessly use your power, don’t let Rahnar fall to ruin. Just wait for me. This planet is where I’ll return to find you. Understood?”
“…You’re speaking hypothetically, right?”
“Of course. It’s only a one-in-ten-thousand possibility.”
This was enough. Any more and I wouldn’t even be able to attend the Continental Conference. It was best to end it here.
I cupped both of Kalian’s cold cheeks in my hands and drew him toward me.
“Kalian, heal me.”
“…My Rosien really does handle me well.”
Kalian let out a dissatisfied groan.
“Honestly, I think I understand you completely, and then the next moment I don’t understand you at all. What kind of circuitry is running through that small head of yours?”
“Stop talking and kiss me.”
I deliberately wrapped both arms around his neck. Kalian reluctantly spoke.
“If we ‘heal’ now, we’ll be late to the conference, won’t we?”
“It can’t be helped. My precious Elixir will always be my first priority.”
I tilted my head first, capturing his lips deeply.
Turning over in my mind all the apologies I couldn’t fully convey.
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t be completely honest. But with this, I’ll make you forget how you pretended to be a helpless lamb in front of me for ten years.’
So please, don’t lose yourself too much when I disappear, older brother.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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