Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 290

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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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Side Story 1. Good morning, sunshine (4)

A memory surfaced unbidden, and under the weight of his gaze, I went rigid like prey caught in a snare. Between our palms, a sharp sting—Raymond’s fingers had tensed far too much around mine.
The moment he noticed my flinch, he released me as though he’d made a mistake. By then, the vivid red afterimage from memory had long since faded.
I turned toward Raymond, but his face was terrifyingly blank, his attention fixed solely on Lisianthus.
“So, I mean, the most frightening person in this house is obviously you, Raymond, but since I’m the type who bites back if you touch me, I thought I’d boost my presence a little. You know, a last resort…. Ow!”
His ceaseless prattling grin must have annoyed the otherwise silent Pan, because he seized Lisianthus’s ear and yanked without mercy.
“Your mouth’s been running free ever since it split open, hasn’t it! Do you have any idea how many nights I went without sleep making that? I spent all that effort refining comparison Mana Stones in half-spheres, circles, and diamonds—the most optimal sizes as a Mana Efficiency Medium!”
“Ow, ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow. Master Rasper, though you’re not technically my master…. Ow!”
“Father instructed us to treat Master Pan as our teacher, so it’s quite all right.”
“Brat! Rasper! You, you you you you—after all this time I’ve cherished you and cherished you…… Argh!”
The commotion that erupted suddenly caused Bibi, nestled in my arms, to let out a long sigh and turn to me.
“Let’s leave those hopeless people and go eat, just the two of us. Sister.”
“Hmm. Shall we?”
“You always said it was burdensome, so this time I kept it simple.”
“All right, let’s do that.”
I followed Bibi’s cheerful voice, but Raymond remained remarkably quiet. As Bibi chattered and held my right hand, pulling slightly ahead, I moved along soothing her, while he trailed a step behind as though escorting us—so calm and composed that I couldn’t help but glance back, wondering if he might casually take my hand again as he’d been doing lately. But Raymond was silent.
Though he called it “simple,” the evening table was laden with the usual abundance, all crammed onto a single platter, and I ate bite by bite of the dishes Bibi pressed on me.
Lisianthus grumbled about how we were eating ahead of the family, and Rasper laughed, and Pan continued griping as before. Orto, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, greeted me with a far more relaxed expression than before, and after exchanging pleasantries and sharing tea.
Raymond remained remarkably quiet.

* * *

“Sister, let’s sleep with just me tonight! Those stupid brothers who wreck my composure can go to hell! Play with me and only me!”
“Well, Rasper doesn’t ruin your composure, does he….”
“That’s the thing—he has this enlightened look and keeps saying ‘yes, yes,’ which is annoying in a different way!”
Bibi let out a fierce growl and hugged the Rabbit Doll in her arms with tremendous force, as if it were a savage beast. I lay on the large, ornate bed in her bright, delicate room and laughed softly.
The Imperial Palace had collapsed entirely, so I’d been coming and going from the Castrain Ducal House almost as though it were my own home. I was wealthy, and there was no shortage of my own properties nearby, but with so many people needing housing while their residences were being restored, I’d offered most of my buildings for temporary rental at reasonable rates.
This led to Bibi stubbornly insisting that if I could give out deeds, a room hardly mattered—and before long, I had my own space in the estate.
Usually I slept there, but whenever Bibi insisted, I’d sleep beside her too.
Of course, each time Raymond would hint subtly, saying things like “you should sleep comfortably” or “Bibi can’t cling to you forever.” And Bibi would brush it off with “Right, Bibi’s still young! I’m going to be clingy!” But then….
…Tonight, from the moment dinner ended until now, Raymond hasn’t said a word to me. He hasn’t held my hand either.
No quiet adjustment of his clothes over mine, no laying his head on my shoulder. No gentle touch to my cheek. None of that familiar Skinship. Even when bedtime came and I was drawn toward Bibi’s room, he offered no complaint.
What—what is this?
-No, Contractor. Ordinary people can go without interaction for two or three hours. Perhaps you should assume he’s been playing games up until now! ‮ּ_‮ּ
The strangest thing was, well, yes—it wasn’t the rational part of me that accepted Raymond might be less clingy for a bit, like he’d decided to be less of a burr. Rather….
“Bibi, why do I feel so empty?”
“Huh?”
“It’s like a stray cat that rubs its head against my wrist every time I feed it suddenly turned its back on me.”
“…Huh?”
“Hand-holding was all it was, and yet….”
“Sister, why are you suddenly like this?”
I was the one feeling this emptiness. How long had we been like this? And the thought that maybe something had happened to Raymond, that he was being so composed with me—worry surged up.
Not that Raymond could be defeated by anyone short of me wanting him dead. Logically, whatever problem might arise for him would be meaningless. But reason and emotion were separate things.
“So, that is…. Bibi.”
I hesitated a moment, then opened up to Bibi about my simple predicament. Bibi blinked her large eyes and fell silent in thought. Then, with a deflated expression, she spoke.
“…Why are you just being dragged along by this?! I thought your emotional walls were the strongest in the world! They weren’t! It was all a lie! Just fake walls made of thin ice!”
“…No, well, at that time there were… various circumstances I couldn’t help….”
“I—I don’t like saying this myself, but none of our brothers are easy to handle! What did you do to already be bowled over like this?”
“I’m not really bowled over.”
“Nabira would probably be good at this kind of advice. But rather than her….”
“Rather than her?”
“You’re good at something. Just going and confronting it directly.”
“…Was I ever good at that?”
“Yes, you were the best at it. And well, seeing you struggle with worries like this actually looks good on you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You’ve been… so exhausted running forward, only looking at the road ahead.”
“That was true of all of us, though.”
“Especially you.”
Bibi squeezed me in a tight embrace. I held her in return. Though I couldn’t feel a heartbeat directly like I would with Raymond, a warm, tepid sensation spread through me—a peaceful ease.
“I’m on your side, no matter what you choose.”
“You should be, we’re family.”
“Because of you, our family all grew in confidence and independence. Raymond had a significant influence on that.”
“Haha….”
“So don’t worry too much about our brothers. Do what your heart wants.”
“….”
I gazed into Bibi’s ocean-blue eyes for a long moment, then placed a quick kiss on her soft, rounded cheek. Then I rose from the bed. Bibi offered her advice in an exaggerated, dignified tone.
“The garment the lady currently wears seems far too thin to be out of doors, wouldn’t you say?”
“Ah, understood. I shall heed the lady’s counsel.”
I wrapped myself in the Robe that Bibi’s maid handed me at the door, walked without a sound, crossed the familiar corridor and door, stopped briefly at the Kitchen to gather what I needed, then slipped silently out of the building.
The Outer Garden, its interior largely unchanged from before. The place where I’d clashed when I sensed Raymond had recovered his “memory” and tried to escape with help from Rasper and Pan.
Moonlight dimmer than usual draped like a veil over the shrubs. Butterflies alighted and departed from the scent-free White Flower Bushes that Rasper had experimented with and refined.
I wasn’t certain if I’d find anyone or no one….
But someone was already there.
“Lisianthus?”
“What are you doing here?”
“What, you mean? Looking at the moon.”
He paid no attention to the benches scattered about, instead perched casually on a branch. I laughed and nimbly sat beside him.
“Eh, eh?”
“Seems that’s the prime spot for moon-viewing. Let me borrow it too.”
“…I welcome it.”
He hesitated as though caught off-guard, then his smile spread with genuine delight. Lisianthus was always the same. Indifferent to heat or cold, his shirt half-unbuttoned, his lower half in barely a single layer. Yes, Lisianthus was forever consistent.
“Did you enjoy moon-viewing?”
“There was a time when moon-viewing was all I could do.”
“….”
The man sitting beside me trembled faintly. I didn’t miss it, and he couldn’t have failed to know I’d noticed.
I uncapped the Bottle of Spirits I’d brought from the Kitchen. It was potent distilled liquor. Without hesitation, I took a sip. A sharp, burning sensation traced from my throat deep into my belly.
“I’m not sure it could really be called moon-viewing. Every time, I was bleeding and half-conscious, sprawled out with nothing to do. No books or anything…. I needed rest to recover, but I didn’t want to sleep. So when I was awake like that, well, my eyes would just stay wide open.”
“….”
Complex light flickered across Lisianthus’s face.
“…When did you figure it out?”

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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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