Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 132

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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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“I see. Since the Duke’s Mansion isn’t far, commuting from the Princess Palace would work just fine. The scenery here is lovely too.”
“Hey, you’re lying, right? Please tell me you’re lying. None of your jokes are even funny.”
The Princess grabbed me and started shaking my hand desperately. Wait… did she really dislike me that much? This was actually hurting my feelings.
“Please wait here. I’ll go get permission from the Queen first.”
“Nooooo!”
The little one apparently hated me quite a bit, as she threw herself face-down on the bed and wailed. I’d only meant to tease her, but seeing her cry with tears streaming down her face, John glared at me something fierce.
No, wait—I didn’t deliberately try to make her cry.
“I was joking, I was joking. Please stop. How could I possibly move into the Princess Palace when I have so much work to do?”
I spoke the truth, but the floodgates had already opened and showed no signs of closing. What was I going to do? If I left with the household mistress crying like this, John Brown would chase after me whimpering until I relented.
Since I couldn’t afford to have my vacation plans disrupted, I quickly surveyed my surroundings. Let’s see… what could I find to play with this child…?
“Oh.”
I’d mentioned it was cold today, but the lake had frozen solid in a way that was unusually early for the season. This was perfect for ice skating.
“Your Highness, let’s go ice skating! The colder the winter, the more you should play outside to stay healthy. People need sunlight, or they become depressed.”
“I can’t skate, you old fossil!”
Huh? Really? That’s strange—she used to skate. And quite well too. Besides, the fact that there was a path leading all the way to the frozen lakeshore meant people had been going back and forth.
I pulled out two spare glasses from the Princess’s drawer and overlapped them like a telescope to survey the lakeshore. Sure enough, there were traces of ice skating. Someone had definitely been playing there.
“Hey! How did you know where my spare glasses were!”
“I just had a feeling they’d be here.”
“You’re a thief! A Rocksburg thief!”
How noisy. I could easily figure out where you keep your spare glasses. I’ve been here several times, and it’s your fault for never changing where you store them!
I brushed off the Princess as she shouted “thief,” grabbed my skirts, and headed outside. I banged on the walls to summon the attendants and servants, and they came rushing over in alarm, abandoning their work.
“Bring me the children who were ice skating! I need to borrow some skates! I have to take the little one out to play!”
I knew it. The evidence was right there, and if the owner wasn’t the culprit, then it had to be the servants. The children whispered among themselves in consultation, then asked me to wait a moment before bringing out the skates.
They must have skated quite a lot—there were skates in every color and size imaginable. At this rate, our country would become an ice sports powerhouse.
I selected mine first and examined what would fit the Princess. The smallest available was… this one.
“Your Highness, would size 200 work? There’s nothing smaller than that.”
“You idiot! I wear a 220!”
Goodness! With hands the size of a palm, how could her feet be so large? I gasped in surprise, and the little one apparently took offense, rushing over and hitting me repeatedly.
Fine, since I’d gotten myself into this, I’d just carry her outside as is.
Just then, Aster came running over after finishing his meal, so I quickly called out to him and pointed at the little one.
“Aster! Take the Princess!”
“Yes, Young Lady!”
“Hey! Let go! Let go, you underwear thief! You! John told me everything! Buy your own underwear with your own money!”
This John—the scoundrel had revealed his sister’s secrets in such detail. But I had no words to counter the Princess’s accusations, so I decided to keep my mouth shut. Really, that boy should be buying his own underwear instead of stealing.
The primary victims of Aster’s crimes were Karl and Quill. Those boys were so particular about their outer clothes that they naturally chose fashionable undergarments. Aster, finding them pretty to look at and comfortable to wear, would simply pluck them off the clothesline and put them on.
Jack, who actually lived in the same house, hadn’t suffered from this. His underwear looked so drab and shabby that Aster wouldn’t even touch it.
In any case, even after Aster’s worn underwear was washed clean, Quill and Karl would complain that it felt dirty and unpleasant, so they’d just give it to Aster. Aster had learned that this way she could obtain pretty and comfortable underwear for free, and since the boy’s thought process was so one-dimensional, the habit had simply solidified.
I hadn’t interfered in Aster’s underwear situation because the whole thing felt bizarre, so I had nothing to say even if I’d had ten mouths.
“Hahaha, the Princess’s residence certainly has plenty of entertainment. The rice tastes like honey after breaking through the ice, doesn’t it?”
“Don’t change the subject, you fool! Don’t you even have money to buy your subordinates underwear?! Master or lackey, you’re all equally shameless! You thieves!”
“Hahahaha, oh our dear Princess, you’re so funny! I’m dying of laughter, hahahaha!”
“Aaaaah! You’re not listening to me! How infuriating! Rocksburg is infuriating!”
Hahaha, how could I possibly ignore the lofty words of my four-span lady? I merely let them go in one ear and out the other.
I hummed a cheerful tune as I made my way to the frozen lakeside, then lifted the Princess’s skirt and fitted her with ice skates. Though it felt like she was patting my head repeatedly, it didn’t hurt much, so I ignored it and pulled the laces tight, tying the ribbons with a flourish before shoving her onto the lake.
“Aaaaah! You garbage! You beggar! Rocksburg! Ahhh!”
My four-span lady shrieked delightfully before tumbling down with a splash.
“….”
That’s strange. She used to learn so quickly back then.
It was during the time when the Princess and I had become friends and were having a blast playing together. I’d coaxed her into going ice skating, but she said she wasn’t good at it and asked me to wait just a week.
Then she showed up at our meeting place with dark circles under her eyes. Since she’d said herself that she wasn’t good at it, I held her hand and began teaching her from scratch, but it wasn’t long before the Princess was gliding across the ice on her own, and eventually she was even landing triple axels.
Truly, a former Crown Princess was different in every way. Her learning ability was remarkable. I’d been impressed then, but now… why is she like this?
“Could it be because she’s gotten older?”
“Do you want to die?”
The only difference between then and now is age. I must have still been in my teens back then, so the Princess would have been in her late twenties…
This is why they say age isn’t something you gain—it’s something that takes from you.
“Why are you sighing? Do you pity me? Am I going to cry again?”
As I shook my head with concern, the Princess’s eyes began to well up with tears behind her thick lenses. Oh, I shouldn’t think about the old days—at this rate, both the Princess and I will end up crying.
“Come now, get up. Once you get the hang of it, it’s easy, I promise?”
I grasped the hand of my four-span lady, adorably wrapped in a fur-lined cloak, and glided across the ice with her. Her athletic ability hadn’t completely deteriorated, and after waddling along behind me for a while, the Princess eventually succeeded in gliding across the ice on her own.
Once she’d gotten the feel for it, she picked up speed, threatening to kill me if I let go, so I spun around behind her and gave her back a firm push, sending her toward the middle of the lake before heading toward where John Brown was.
I’d been hearing clattering sounds for a while now, and sure enough, John was holding a hammer and nails, casually constructing a sled.
“It seems all the Brown children have good manual dexterity. Except for Aster.”
Karl and Quill, the twins, went without saying, and Jack’s hobbies were miniature-making and weapon modification, while Jang had a knack for crafting delicate ornaments. As for William… I didn’t know enough about that boy’s detailed background to comment.
“These children are skilled at their work—there’s nothing they can’t make. Jang makes accessories, and Quill and Karl make clothes well.”
I’d suspected John had manual dexterity too, and discovering it now, I praised him generously and patted his head. Then Aster, who had been skating alone and playing, quickly approached and blurted something out.
“What he really wanted to make wasn’t a sled—it was the next King.”
“….”
“….”
Aster Brown, having pried open someone else’s heart, laughed mockingly at John and glided away with elegant indifference. That girl seemed to go through life without a care, yet somehow she only became sharp and cruel at moments like this. Was her intelligence detachable or something? Is her intelligence seriously modular?
“…Are you alright?”
“…No.”
John’s voice trembles. What do I do—he’s going to cry.
“Don’t cry. It’s largely my fault for not educating your guards properly. Stop.”
“…I’m not crying.”
Oh dear, yes, don’t cry. If you do, you’ll only seem like a failure.
I embraced John Brown, who had stopped working on the sled, and gently rubbed his back. The man who had buried his head in my chest without moving for a long time finally composed himself, said he was fine, and returned to his work.
The sight of John hammering away so pitifully was heartbreaking.
“Hey, you stubborn old fool! Why are you hugging someone else like that? That’s sexual harassment!”
She’d already returned from the middle of the lake. Truly, when push came to shove, she managed everything—if only that woman’s eyes were intact, how wonderful that would be.
I clicked my tongue and shook my head toward the Princess. When I gave her a pointed look not to touch John Brown, she caught on with surprising quickness and changed the subject.
“What’s that? A sled?”
“Yes. I made it because the Princess struggled with skating, but it seems to have become useless now….”
“No way, I’m using it! A sled sounds like so much fun!”
Look at her getting excited about playing with something her subordinate made—our four-span girl really was kind-hearted.
As I affectionately patted her head, impressed by her virtue, the woman punched me in the ribs, annoyed. Gasping in pain as I clutched my side, she retrieved a rope from somewhere and tied it around my waist.
“Go on, pull! Run, Rocksburg!”
Living this long, I’ve even played the role of a reindeer.
With four-span sitting crouched on the small sled and pulling the rope, I had no choice but to play along, grunting as I dragged the sled. Better my body strain than listen to John Brown whine.
Since my nose was bright, I decided to count it as doing my duty pulling the sled. After dragging it earnestly for a while, I gripped the rope at my waist firmly and released it.
Spinning across the ice like throwing a shot put, I whirled the sled carrying the Princess and hurled it forward, sending four-span’s sled sliding endlessly across the lake until it reached the opposite shore.
Four-span screamed and cursed at me.
I decided to go sip fresh fruit juice in the Glass Greenhouse instead. It was cold outside.

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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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