Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 101

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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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Though we didn’t speak of it, Glen and I shared an unspoken agreement: we needed to leave this place. We practically raced each other off the ship, and Glen swiftly opened the carriage door, announcing he would depart first.
I wanted to simply bid him farewell and send him on his way, but I felt compelled to make my position clear.
I caught Glen as he was about to board the carriage and stuffed the shirt garter into his coat pocket, then gave the now-bulging pocket a few affectionate pats.
Really, why don’t you just wear it? It’s still beautiful, after all.
As I held Glen’s gaze and nodded, he answered my sentiment by blushing shyly and giving a small nod in return.
Yes, let’s part ways quickly now and give ourselves time to compose ourselves.
I closed the carriage door and rapped the outer wall to send Glen off. As Jack watched the carriage disappear into the distance in silence, he approached me and jabbed my ribs.
“What happened? The mood seemed fine just a moment ago.”
“These things happen.”
The servants don’t need to know.
When I played innocent, Jack kept poking my ribs, insisting we share the details. But I felt no anger toward him, so I simply urged him to hurry back.
Following my orders, the Duke’s Household sailors hastily brought back Elizabeth and Jack’s horses. The man who led Elizabeth over was remarkably well-built, and I found myself whistling without thinking.
Elizabeth came trotting over with such a cheerful gait, her hooves clicking rhythmically.
A creature like that could spend all day chopping wood beside the office and still be content. Look at those thighs—the breeches are about to split.
“I’m telling Glen everything.”
“That’s hardly sporting of you.”
“Since when do I concern myself with sportsmanship?”
I hadn’t even made him a recruitment offer to transfer to the Duke’s Mansion as a servant—why was he being so rigid about this?
I lectured Jack that if he continued being so narrow-minded, he’d end up like the Crown Prince, then took Elizabeth’s reins. Now that the Prince had ridden off alone in the carriage, I was short one horse. Jack and Aster would never consent to riding together anyway.
“Aster, on the way back, would you ride with me—”
Neigh.
Why was she acting up again?
Realizing my intention to ride Elizabeth with Aster, the temperamental creature whinnied in protest and trotted over to Jack with clicking hooves.
Well… I understood her sentiment perfectly. Jack was certainly the preferable option. I understood it completely.
“Jack, you’ll ride behind me, won’t you?”
“Are you insane?”
Yes, this was exactly how it would go.
As I was bickering with Jack, who protested that he had his own horse and saw no reason to ride behind me, Jack’s horse suddenly whinnied and bolted forward.
Aster, who had somehow seized the moment to mount Jack’s horse, twisted only his upper body backward while riding and raised his middle finger at Jack.
“You run all the way home, you idiot.”
Now I truly had no options left. I suggested we ride together since the distance was considerable, but Jack adamantly refused, insisting he’d rather run home as Aster had said. The journey would be quick on Elizabeth, yet he was determined to exhaust himself running—why did he insist on making unnecessary hardship for himself?
“You really hate riding behind me that much?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“It’s unsettling.”
I felt wounded.
I informed Jack that my feelings were hurt, mounted Elizabeth alone, and rode off. If he enjoyed running so much, he could run a half-marathon all the way to the Duke’s Mansion.
“Then I shall see you tomorrow. Safe travels.”
If you even pretend to be upset, I’ll genuinely feel hurt.

◇ ◆ ◇

After such an exhausting day, I merely rinsed my mouth and collapsed face-first onto the bed. I hadn’t even bothered to change out of my clothes, but I didn’t care—I was going to sleep.
The moment my face sank into the plush pillow, drowsiness washed over me naturally. I passed out the instant the back of my head touched the cushion, wishing I could sleep forever in that state, but someone shook me awake before I could drift deeper.
I opened my eyes groggily to find the room already brightly lit, and Aster standing before me. My exhaustion hadn’t lifted one bit, so I gazed out the window in despair, wondering if it was already morning—only to discover it was still the middle of the night outside.
“Young Lady! There’s an intruder!”
Ah… that…
The moment I heard the word “intruder,” I grasped the situation and cursed Martin Chatel. This bastard—if he was going to send assassins, couldn’t he have done it when I had some free time? Why did it have to be today of all days?
Let’s see… Asterion doesn’t seem to be dead, given that he’s not yet sixteen. If Jack isn’t here, he must have split off with Aster to check on the Annex Building.
“An intruder? At the Annex Building?”
“Yes.”
I yawned widely and rubbed my eyes, and Aster prepared to lift me up, asking, “Shall we go to the Annex Building?”
“Jack will come report soon enough.”
These kids wake me over nothing. Father must be awake too now that William went to him. When your body ages, sleep becomes so precious—and they go and rob me of it.
I stretched languidly and rose from bed, extending my limbs fully. To spare Father the trouble, it’s better if I handle things on my end and gather all the reports myself. Since my body is still young and healthy, I should be the one moving about.
After doing some light exercises to shake off the sleep, I decided it would be best to at least show my face at the Annex Building, so I called to Aster.
“Let’s go check it out. The children must be frightened.”
Asterion must be startled too, and the guards and on-duty staff who haven’t received detailed information must be panicked as well. With that in mind, I slipped on my slippers haphazardly and left the room. Beyond the corridor window, the Annex Building blazed with light.
“How many intruders?”
“I don’t know. I came running to you immediately, Young Lady.”
Right, that’s very much like you, Aster. My safety is the top priority, after all.
Because Aster had made such a fuss, the On-duty Maidservant sleeping in the adjacent room came rushing out in a panic, so I calmed the girl down and sent her back to her room.
As I dragged my slippers along, searching for the staircase, the lights near the stairs at the end of the corridor suddenly blazed bright.
“Sister!”
There stood Asterion. He was beaming with a smile as if something wonderful had happened, waving his hand at me.
Because he was waving at me, something he’d been holding dropped to the floor with a thud—and it looked disturbingly human-shaped.
“Sister! I did it!”
Hmm… I have a rough idea what you accomplished, so please don’t come any closer. Apparently, you reek.
But Asterion seemed oblivious to such hints, picking up what had fallen and dragging it toward me.
The lights in the path Leon had passed dimmed. The lights in the path Leon was approaching brightened.
Asterion, dragging three limp bodies with both hands, continued to speak words that needed no further explanation.
“I killed them! I killed them with my own hands, just as you commanded!”
Right, I think I did scold you about that. But bringing the evidence and shoving it in my face like this is a bit…
I spent a long moment wondering if this was truly normal thought process, when suddenly I recalled how children would bring their test papers or report cards to boast about their grades. Come to think of it, dogs and cats also bring their prey to people to show off their hunting prowess.
Is that what this is…? Some version of that phenomenon…?
Alright. Okay. I understand. Then there’s only one course of action for me to take.
“Well done, my dear brother! Excellent work!”
If a child seeks praise, I give it. Children are meant to be raised through praise, after all.
When I opened both arms to welcome Leon, Asterion’s already smiling face brightened further as he abandoned the corpses and rushed toward me.
Ah, receiving his embraces is terrifying. Why does Leon have absolutely no sense of restraint?
“Oof!”
Fortunately, I didn’t fall. Though Leon’s body tackle left my entire frame aching, at least I remained on my feet. Well done, Rosalite. I let the sound escape, but I mustn’t cough.
“Excellent work, Asterion! You truly are my brother!”
“Yes, Sister! I hesitated for a moment, but remembering your words gave me the resolve to act!”
Yes, yes, you did wonderfully. You did so well.
I responded enthusiastically to Leon’s proud words and embraced the child, stroking his head affectionately and patting his back as praise. Leon giggled with delight.
Since Asterion seemed thrilled by the praise and asked me to dance, I took Leon’s hand and performed a waltz. As I spun in place following his lead, I noticed the pile of corpses he’d arranged, and it occurred to me that if I killed them all, I’d feel regret either way.
“Asterion.”
“Yes.”
“Did you kill them all?”
I already know who’s behind this, but leaving one survivor alive would give me a clear justification and make apprehending Martin far more convenient. Testing Leon with this thought, the child grinned wickedly, wrapped his arms around my waist, and stopped dancing.
His face is too close. This is unpleasant. Stop it.
“I left one alive. We’ll need to torture him for information about who’s behind this.”
Excellent—truly my brother. You are Rocksburg itself. The pride of our house.
Since this little one had been behaving so endearingly lately, I grasped the back of Asterion’s head, bent him forward, and kissed his forehead.
Making soft kissing sounds, I peppered his forehead with kisses, then his cheeks, ears, nose, and his entire face, until the child laughed aloud and tried to push me away.
“It tickles, Sister. It tickles!”
“Hold still. I’m not finished yet.”
Why does he keep trying to escape? I caught Leon as he attempted to flee, finished my kisses, and tickled his sides. The child made gasping, dying sounds before breaking away and hiding behind Aster.
Hmm, this reminds me of old times. It’s nice. Even though he’s grown so much, he’s still just a child.
“Which one did you leave alive? This one?”
“The one at the very bottom.”
How could he pile a nearly dead person at the very bottom? I quickly had Aster retrieve the survivor and checked his condition.
Let me see—his mouth is gagged to prevent suicide, and all his limbs are broken so he can’t escape. That’s well done. Now I just need to call a doctor and keep him breathing until Martin and the Public Security Bureau arrive.
“You’ve worked hard. Since your room will need cleaning, wash up and sleep here tonight.”
Wash up and sleep here tonight, indeed. If I hadn’t mentioned it, you’d be in quite a state. You’re covered in blood from head to toe.
I guided Leon to the Guest Room located near my chambers and summoned the servants. There was much to do—clean the floor, remove the bodies, call the doctor. Though Leon had made it this far, I’d still need to check the Annex Building.
“Let’s go, Aster. We need to finish quickly and get at least a little sleep.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
I went to the Annex Building with Aster and received a proper report from Jack. The intruders were only the three Leon had captured, and on our side, two Annex Building guards on night patrol had been killed.
How unfortunate—we lost two people because of this situation. Feeling guilty, I decided to send substantial compensation and examined the rest of the personnel.
Fortunately, there were no other injuries. When I checked Leon’s room, aside from the shattered window, bed, table, bookshelf, and display case, there didn’t seem to be any other significant damage.
The dolls Leon treasured seem to have been damaged when the display case fell, but that’s nothing money can’t fix—I’ll just let him buy whatever he wants.
After surveying everything, I asked Jack to organize the confirmed details into a report and went to get some sleep.

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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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