I Will Protect My Brother - Chapter 125

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

Chapter 15. On Things That Always Return
The dream always begins with sinking to the depths of the deep sea below.
When did I become accustomed to the dark, damp underground dungeon?
This is my fifth visit to Riltear Island. The vague terror faded with each experience.
The descent to the Underwater Detention Facility, far beneath the surface, no longer frightened me.
I traced the stone wall with my hand as I moved through the dim corridor.
There were no guards watching the prisoners in this dungeon. The keys to the prison were held by the Transcendents on the mainland.
Those irresponsible people had built a luxurious villa on an uninhabited island in the middle of the vast sea and lived at their leisure.
The key I possessed had been practically wrested from the current Wynack Family Head. At times like this, my status as Princess of Abuye proved quite useful.
It had been two months since I last set foot here. My Father had grown increasingly interested in my daily activities lately, making it difficult to find time.
‘It’s obviously about my marriage prospects.’
My coming-of-age ceremony would arrive soon. Father was desperate to marry me off to one of the Transcendent Families’ heirs.
Just days ago, he had subtly urged me to travel to Delpiam with a delegation and meet the Whezel Heir.
The young Whezel was said to be at least ten years my junior, and despite being a Transcendent, the thought of marrying a child was absurd.
While I grumbled inwardly, I reached the end of the corridor.
My destination was the first prison cell that appeared after turning the corner. I stood before the rusted iron bars and offered a casual greeting.
“Hello, Wynack.”
The sound of chains dragging echoed from beneath the wall shrouded in darkness.
I carefully moved toward where I heard the sound. Beyond the iron bars, the prison cell was spacious. The dim luminescent stones couldn’t illuminate every corner.
The floor was covered in water stains and moss—perfect for losing one’s footing.
Just as I thought I should be careful, my heel slipped.
“Ugh…!”
With a loud crash, I fell ungracefully on my backside. The impact struck my tailbone directly, leaving me unable to even cry out.
Five seconds of silence. Even the clanking of chains had stopped.
“Ow… that hurts…”
I lay on the ground, unable to rise, letting out a groan. My pelvis throbbed as if it might split apart.
Yet I could still feel his gaze fixed upon me.
“It’s been… a while.”
I barely lifted my head and greeted him as if nothing had happened.
From within the mass that appeared to be darkness itself, two crimson eyes stared at me intently.
“Haha, the floor has gotten even more slippery… Have you been well, Wynack?”
I rambled on out of embarrassment. My dignity as a princess was in tatters.
But we were both equally exposed in our pathetic states. The luminescent stone I had dropped rolled far into the prison cell beyond the bars.
In its light, the figure of the young man bound in chains was revealed.
‘Right, he dislikes having light shone on him.’
I stretched my arm through the iron bars to retrieve the stone. It was impossible to reach.
“I’m sorry. It will go out on its own after some time… No, I’ll just go in and get it myself.”
I always kept the key to this cell on me. Entering that space would be child’s play if I wished.
I hadn’t yet found the courage to go in, but today the man seemed calm enough that it might be alright.
However, a soft voice stopped me.
“Don’t come any closer.”
I froze, startled, my grip tightening around the key.
This was the first time I had heard the young man’s voice.
His vocal cords, unused for so long, produced a sound heavily tinged with metallic harshness. Yet I could easily discern that his natural voice was extraordinarily pleasant—soft and melodious.
He spoke with visible effort, his words barely a murmur.
“You’ll become tainted.”
“Tainted…?”
The young man gestured with his eyes toward the hem of my dress. Was he concerned the fabric might be soiled? If so, it was an unnecessary worry. I shook my head quickly.
“It doesn’t matter. I can simply change into another dress.”
The young man released a sound—whether a sigh or a hollow laugh, I couldn’t tell. Then he lowered his gaze once more. He seemed about to say something further, but resignation overtook him.
Instead, the flow of air within the prison cell shifted.
A luminescent stone rose into the air of its own accord, drifting slowly toward me. This too was unprecedented.
“…Thank you.”
As I carefully cradled the glowing stone, the light that had been searing my eyes receded.
In its place, a gentle, wavering reflection bathed the surroundings in a soft glow—bright enough to discern the other’s features.
He was exactly as I had seen him before.
Even in this filthy place, he bore no trace of contamination, as if proving he was something other than human.
His cheeks were pale and bloodless, and his golden hair gleamed like spun gold even in the oppressive darkness.
And he remained young—appearing to be scarcely different in age from myself.
Time had simply stopped for him.
He was condemned to live eternally in his ruined form, neither aging nor falling ill.
‘No matter how many times I see him, he truly is beautiful.’
Had he not suffered that unspeakable tragedy, his beauty alone would have allowed him to dominate the Continent.
Not a single portrait of him remained in Wynack Castle. As if denying his very existence, Wynack had deliberately erased every trace of him.
I found myself imagining running my fingers through his golden hair from a distance.
Aware of my lingering gaze, he lifted his eyelids once more.
A faint ripple stirred within his deep crimson eyes—an expression that seemed utterly helpless.
We hadn’t even touched; we had merely met each other’s gaze. Yet the act of facing another human being appeared profoundly unfamiliar to him.
Eventually, the young man turned away, avoiding my eyes. He was uncomfortable, it seemed. During my visits to Riltear, I had learned that my compassion could wound others.
“I’m sorry. I won’t look.”
An awkward silence settled between us.
In truth, most of the time I spent here was filled with such silence. After sharing a few words about how the world had changed, there was little else to say.
‘But why do I keep coming here?’
I still hadn’t found the reason why I visited this place, why I coerced the Wynack Family Head behind my Father’s back.
Even he seemed reluctant to receive me.
We had met face-to-face five times now, and his first words were always “Don’t come any closer.”
‘Then again, when he first saw me, he behaved like a savage beast.’
The fierce light blazing from his eyes and the mana radiating sharply in all directions had nearly caused me to collapse dead on the spot.
So even by my third visit, I hadn’t dared to approach him at such a distance.
But now he showed me no aggression. It was as if he had finally realized I was not a human who meant him harm.
Yet still, I could not bring myself to open this door. This distance was a line I must not cross.
Innocent or not, the prisoner was a criminal whom Rahnar had turned away from. Helping them would be the same as betraying the world itself.
My fear had subsided, but courage remained beyond my reach.
After a long hesitation, I finally spoke.
“Listen, Wynack. If my visits truly trouble you….”
I was about to say I would stop coming, that I would never return to this place if it caused him discomfort.
The young man’s lips moved for the second time.
“Last month….”
His gaze slipped away from mine as he murmured the question.
“Why didn’t you come?”
It was Karga’s first question to me. All the words I had prepared scattered like ash.

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