Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 167

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

Chapter 167

His brothers worried for Rasper more than anyone, though their mother was gone. They never caught so much as a cold even in the harshest winters, yet with each drop in temperature, Rasper’s cough grew worse.
For Rasper’s sake, they reinforced the heating systems throughout the manor—not with smoke-filled fireplaces or braziers, but with expensive Mana Stones.
Your weakness is not your fault. Mother pushed herself too hard. You are our precious little brother. There is no need to force yourself to take up a sword. He had heard such comforting words countless times.
Yet Rasper knew the weight of the gazes that fell upon him. There was no way he could not know.
To them, Rasper was a glass marble that would shatter if gripped too tightly. Still, he longed for their glances to say: it’s all right, even if you roll around carelessly. He did not want to be a source of worry.
If only he could wield a sword like his magnificent father and brothers, he thought. How wonderful that would be.
In the Castrain Family, so close to a martial house, Rasper had no one to compare himself to.
The family had fought Magic Beasts since ancient times, passing down not some ceremonial Sword Arts dressed in empty ritual, but true martial techniques honed in real combat. The training regimen was grueling enough that most could not keep pace, yet no one in the Castrain Family failed to master it.
Rasper could not even lift a wooden sword. He would trip over a pebble while running across the Training Ground and fall flat on his face.
His brothers could sprint across treacherous terrain for hours while battling Magic Beasts, yet he could not even run properly across the flat Training Ground. There was nothing more to say.
But there were other, crueler gazes.
‘……No one knows what the Duchess died of. Looking at how frail he is. Yet his brothers are so healthy…….’
The Castrain Family Territory was generally favorable toward them. Still, outsiders did pass through from time to time, and many spoke carelessly around the children, thinking they were too young to understand.
The men of the Castrain Family were far from delicate, each consumed by their own duties.
When Magic Beasts invaded, people died and buildings burned, and there was urgent work to rebuild—little wonder that a solitary, neglected child’s overheard rumors went unaddressed.
‘Is he even the Duke’s own blood? Who knows what tricks the Duke used to hide the truth about his wife dying not long after birth?’
‘But even so, it was terrible for his late wife…….’
‘That Iron-Blooded Duke? Don’t talk nonsense.’
When Rasper overheard merchants who frequented the ducal house whispering such things among themselves, his Hair Strands stood on end. Because people’s eyes always seemed to watch him so carefully—our frail youngest lordling—monitoring his every move with intrusive concern, Rasper took to wandering the manor in secret whenever he could. The merchants who spoke so carelessly could never have imagined that Rasper himself had heard every word.
Had his family—who treasured Rasper dearly—heard such talk, they would have been furious. But Rasper could not bring himself to tell them he had overheard it.
Though others praised Rasper’s sharp intellect, reading comprehension, and remarkable memory, when the family’s greatest concern was battling Magic Beasts, Rasper found it agonizing that he could read a hundred, a thousand books without being able to lay a hand on even a single Magic Beast’s claw.
What if the rumor was true?
Even if it wasn’t true—because I’m inadequate. Because I’m weak. Because I’m inferior to my brothers, I hear such things. It shames the family…….
If only I didn’t exist.
Then I would never have heard such talk at all.
So Rasper went in secret to look upon the Divine Weapons.
It was when Lisianthus had been chosen by the Flamberk’s Wrath, and everyone was caught up in celebration.
Only their father, as the head of the house, held the key to the Treasure Vault. But there were other ways. For emergencies, there was a secret door that only direct-blooded members of the Castrain Family could access. Raymond, the heir apparent, had taught Rasper about it in secret, knowing the youngest would often be left alone in the manor.
‘Of course, there are many hidden spaces throughout the manor, but you’ve always loved the Library……. This location is close to it. You must never tell anyone. Keep this secret to yourself alone.’
‘All right. Brother.’
When his taciturn, stolid brother stroked his head and spoke those words filled with concern, Rasper had been so happy. Though it felt like a betrayal of his brother’s trust, Rasper was desperate.
The sword that Lisianthus had offered to him—it was the very one his brother had been chosen by.
Perhaps I could too. If a Divine Weapon chose me, maybe I could become as strong as my brothers and truly help the family.
The air inside the Treasure Vault was cool. There were several traps, but Rasper navigated them without difficulty.
Deep within, preserved in a glass case, lay the Tides of Oceanus—a Wand with a fist-sized blue sphere that looked like a Mana Stone suspended from its tip.
The Wand itself was slender and pale as ivory, something even a small child like Rasper could easily use. Unlike a sword.
Just touch it. Just look.
Of course, just as they had eventually let Lisianthus grasp the Flamberk’s Wrath, they had plans to let Rasper approach the Tides of Oceanus in the future.
But only once he grew healthier and stronger, his family had said. Yet Rasper could not wait any longer. His brothers accomplished great deeds before they came of age. I keep being protected. This cannot continue.
His small, trembling fingers barely brushed the tip of the Wand.
‘…Oh.’
Nothing happened.
Rasper’s heart sank.
The blue sphere at the tip seemed paler than before, but there was no visible change of note.
Of course.
It was foolish to hope. I should go back quietly.
I’m still young and weak. A Divine Weapon would never choose someone like me…….
Rasper returned the Wand to its place and made his way back to his room.
There, he wept until his pillow was soaked. Lisianthus, who had been chosen by the Flamberk’s Wrath and could barely set down his sword in joy, had actually put it aside and come to check on his youngest brother.
‘My little one. Why are you so upset? That is, well, it’s rather… a crude sort of strength, that sort of thing. It destroys and burns and tears apart. It doesn’t suit our gentle, delicate little brother. Should I have let you hold it before I did?’
What sword in this world would choose a master who cannot even lift it? Rasper heard this kind consolation and denied it—claiming instead that he worried his brother might grow reckless with the sword, that he feared Lisianthus might become overconfident and suffer some accident. This worry would later prove prophetic. He made his excuses and said nothing more.
With Lisianthus now chosen by a Divine Weapon, the ducal house’s mood became brighter still. And so the suggestion arose: would it not be wise to send the clever youngest to the Academy? With such a sharp mind, he could graduate early, and there would be no need to keep him away from home for long.
Rasper was kidnapped.
Those who knew the manor well were aware that their precious youngest lordling moved about secretly, leaving no word of his whereabouts, wandering the manor alone.
Yet the Castrain manor’s defenses were formidable, and no great danger was expected so long as he remained within the walls. What people did not account for was that Rasper did have secret guards—unseen shadows following his every step, though he knew nothing of it.
But something did happen.
A conspirator from within the family had orchestrated it. The kidnappers cut down the secret guards sent to rescue Rasper and carried him relentlessly beyond the manor walls, toward the very boundary of the Castrain Family Territory.
‘Little lordling. We’re not after ransom or anything. So stop your blubbering.’
The kidnappers laughed.
‘What fool would kidnap someone for ransom from the mighty Castrain Family? They’d be courting disaster. But really, you don’t look like a Castrain at all. Docile, obedient, whimpering tears…….’
‘Stop your idle talk about the cargo.’
‘What, is mere bloodline so important that we had to bring him in alive? He’s just a brat.’
Tears streamed down Rasper’s face. He thrashed against his bonds, thinking: Am I a wicked child? Am I being punished? For touching the treasure in secret? For envying Lisianthus?
‘But the youngest lordling whom everyone loves so much—well, this is a waste. You know, maybe we could get anything we wanted? They’d probably hand over the Mana Stone mines if we demanded it.’
‘Is your head made of ten bricks?’
‘No, listen. The client did say he’d do anything…….’
‘You fool. Don’t you understand what a Curse is? If we don’t hand him over to the client, our skulls will split open. Stop talking nonsense…….’
‘Still, maybe if we could pressure him into giving us something extra…….’
No.
He was already a burden to everyone. He had never accomplished anything. And now, to the very end, he was becoming his family’s weakness. Like this…….
If he were his brother, he would never have been kidnapped in the first place. He could have killed thugs like these without effort.
He could not die like this. He must not die like this.
Rasper struggled desperately. Then, something whispered.
—Truly?
Yes.
—You can do anything?
Yes!
—There are three heads weighing approximately six kilograms each inside this carriage. The minimum magical energy required to teleport each head outside the carriage is 30, 50, and 70 respectively. You have three Mana Stones with a combined total of 140. Using the given conditions, calculate the Magical Formula and find a solution for the insufficient magical energy. Time limit: one minute.
…Pardon?

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