Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 146

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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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“Scope designation. Convergence.”
I had plenty of excuses regarding my nocturnal activities, but I had decided to dedicate myself to my training instead. Since my output seemed weaker than those brain-attribute mages who had been struck directly by lightning and awakened, I figured that simply raising my circle wouldn’t yield any change in destructive power—so why not try a different approach?
Lightning is electricity, but electromagnetic force is also electricity. I converted my mana into magnetic force, gathered all the iron filings within my field of vision, and shaped them into a conical spiral—what others might call a drill. After researching the image most likely to cause pain when driven into a human body, I ultimately arrived at this form.
“Well, well, so you immediately devised countermeasures after hearing you couldn’t create something like a thundercloud due to innate limitations? Impressive, my daughter, though I’m not sure whether to praise your resourcefulness or admit I’m terrified.”
“You could simply praise me for thinking hard about it.”
“No, I don’t think I should praise this. I feel like I’ve just released something strange into the world. And since you have ducal duties to attend to, I can’t exactly lock you away in the Magic Tower.”
What good is regret now? I’ve already tasted the power of electromagnetic force, after all. Khehe.
With this alone, I could pierce through people, tunnel through earth, and bore into bedrock. If I played my cards right, when laying railways to the south, I wouldn’t need to wind around—I could carve a perfectly straight path. Mountains, rivers, tunnels through them all without spending a copper on explosives. Exciting! I should ask for a larger stake in the high-speed railway.
As I hummed and tore through the earth, kicking up dust, Sage scolded me for playing around with magic. And Leon, who had been watching me through the attic window, shouted that his sister was cool before getting shocked and clutching his neck.
With this incident, even Jack learned that I could use magic, so by now practically everyone in the household knew. Father, William, Sage and his disciples, Aster, Jack, William, Leon… and Ram Bart probably had a rough idea too.
At this point, there were fewer people in the mansion who didn’t know than those who did, so it felt awkward to keep hiding it. But I couldn’t exactly go around boasting that I use magic either.
“Anyway, Papa.”
Thinking that uncertain matters could be postponed with composure, I withdrew my magic and approached Papa. As I approached him with a scheming expression and rubbed my hands together, Papa regarded me with suspicion.
“What is it? You’re trembling with anticipation.”
“Is that thing finished? It’s about time that person arrives.”
“Ah, that.”
Sage answered that he had prepared it generously, as if he had just remembered. Then he leaned closer with an expression even more suspicious than before.
“Will that really make money? I doubt a few communication devices would sell for such an exorbitant price.”
“Ehehe, you don’t trust me?”
“No, it’s just that you’ve never been wrong about money matters, but…”
Then close your eyes and believe me. This man does nothing but magical research all day, so he doesn’t understand how the world works. Do you know how crucial a signal corps is in war? The ability to issue orders quickly and hear voices from the field immediately is practically a cheat code in tactical warfare.
Just deploying a single mage to a unit makes communications run smoothly, and there’s no way a man obsessed with fighting wouldn’t covet this.
“Tsk, you must trust my word. Depending on product quality, this is merchandise that could fetch even more than the price I’ve quoted. Imagine it—if Papa and I split the profits fifty-fifty and make a fortune, your research lab will be equipped with the latest magical apparatus, and the warehouse will overflow with mana crystals. This is exclusive distribution, exclusive! A brilliant future, a comfortable retirement—we can build it together, Papa.”
“Your words flow smoothly enough, but you sound like a swindler, Rosalite.”
“Even if I were a swindler in a million scenarios, why would I swindle my one and only Papa? Aren’t we family?”
“That’s… well, true!”
Papa finally set aside his suspicions and smiled contentedly, and I clasped hands with Sage, laughing brightly.
Technology leaks eventually anyway, so let’s establish factories and mass-produce before it’s too late. Whether the paradigm of warfare changes or not, what do I care? I just need to make money.
To extract even more funds from Duke Neitram, I assembled even Sage’s disciples to discuss presentation methods for the communication devices. If this worked out well, I could openly sink my hooks into the Noctram Duchy.

◇ ◆ ◇

That morning, luck seemed to be on my side from the start. When I woke up, Glen was sleeping soundly beside me, and after I planted a morning kiss on his lips, the man drowsily responded with a cheek kiss in return.
He grinned sheepishly before drifting back to sleep, but I was in such high spirits that I hummed while sipping my morning tea and headed to work. Around noon, I went to Sage as usual for meditation practice, and to my amazement, I had reached the Third Circle—we even held a small celebration among those gathered. In the afternoon, Duke Neitram was scheduled to visit, so I dressed in my formal attire and skipped merrily to greet him.
Leon hadn’t caused any trouble, my relationship with Glen seemed to be improving gradually, I had achieved the Third Circle as a mage, and in a few hours, I would be extracting wealth from Noctram and sitting on a mountain of platinum coins.
My life was sailing with the wind at my back, my secret vault would overflow with platinum coins, and once I resolved the matters with the Demon Sword and Leon’s wish, I could even retire in comfort. My future was paved with gold.
I wished every day could be like this one. With that thought, I was performing an arabesque in the entrance hall with Aster when he lifted me by the waist and set me down—and that’s when I spotted a carriage arriving.
It was unmistakably a carriage bearing the Noctram crest, but I made a fuss and, accompanied by servants, went to greet the Duke of the Northern Region.
“Thank you for traveling such a long distance. I am Rosalite of Rocksburg. Your Grace, Duke Neitram.”
When I offered a graceful greeting, the man merely nodded without a word, but I wasn’t offended in the slightest. There was a deeply tragic reason behind his demeanor—one that would move anyone to tears. Besides, his crimson eyes were blazing fiercely as he glared at the servants with a terrifying intensity.
Black hair, red eyes, sharp features, an aura of killing intent as though he’d slain tens of thousands—thanks to all this, the man bore many titles: the Butcher of the North, the War Fanatic, the Iron-Blooded Duke. And people feared him accordingly.
So I decided to let him rest quickly. I dispensed with formalities, gathered only the essential personnel, and headed to Sage’s Magic Research Lab. Once we entered the reception room with only Duke Neitram’s attendants and Aster, Papa was already waiting with the equipment prepared.
“There’s no one here now. You can relax your expression.”
The moment I finished speaking, the Duke’s stern expression softened, and he transformed into a gentle, tender man with smiling crescent eyes.
“Phew, that was exhausting. There really are a lot of people at Rocksburg Duke’s Estate, aren’t there?”
“Then why don’t you just look the way you naturally do instead of putting yourself through this trouble?”
“If I don’t keep my eyes sharp, people look down on me. That’s what my wife says….”
Well…, I suppose that’s true.
A man who looked far younger than his years, had a gentle demeanor, and possessed a voice like dripping honey would certainly be underestimated by seasoned veterans if he appeared as a commanding general on the battlefield. I found myself nodding in deep sympathy, and the man asked me with a wounded expression.
“Do I really look that unassuming?”
“Yes.”
“Yes….”
Oh, what a wonderful voice. I could listen to it forever without tiring. If he would just say “Close your eyes, Sinclair” in that voice once, my heart would race so.
I felt envious of the Duchess and bit my lip as I took my seat. No matter how good his voice or how gentle and tender he seemed, I couldn’t afford to let personal feelings cloud my judgment when business was at stake.
“Then we should begin our transaction now, shouldn’t we?”
“You have sufficient quantity?”
“Of course.”
Since we had already exchanged letters regarding the transaction details, I skipped the pleasantries and moved straight to inspecting the goods before explaining their functions.
“Even if they’re Low Circle mages, they only need to be able to use mana, correct?”
“Exactly. I wouldn’t have mentioned messenger supply lines otherwise.”
“I’ve brought someone from my side. May I conduct a test?”
“Yes. I’ve prepared something as well.”
I asked Sage for help and selected a walkie-talkie that paired with the disciple I had sent ahead, then handed it to the Duke. The man had one of his mages operate the device, confirmed that conversation could be maintained to a certain degree, and then spoke.
“The sound quality is clear. There shouldn’t be any issues with message transmission. The important factor, then, is the range….”
Where exactly was the other party transmitting from? When he asked, I laughed confidently and spread my palm wide.
“5 kilometers, you say? Certainly, if we position messengers at those intervals, it would be revolutionary, but there’s the matter of budget….”
“50.”
“…Pardon?”
“50 kilometers.”
The man’s jaw dropped. Saying it was impossible, he even stood up from his seat, but I snatched the walkie-talkie from him and decided to show him the other party’s location.
“This is Rocksburg Mansion. This is Rocksburg Mansion. What’s the weather like at Bienar Harbor?”
– This is Bienar Tourist Port. The waves are a bit high, but the sun is shining brilliantly, Patron!
Did you see that! This is true Sage Magic!
Standing at the threshold of a new future, I was overwhelmed with emotion and showered Papa with praise, while Sage seemed embarrassed that I kept spouting nothing but correct observations. And Duke Neitram stared at me with fierce eyes.
“Noctram has also attempted to develop communication devices. I’m well aware that with current technology, this is impossible!”
But isn’t the greatness of Sage precisely in making the impossible possible? As I continued to marvel and heap praise upon Papa, the Duke seemed to regain some composure, returning to his gentle demeanor.
“If I may be so bold, I should go to Bienar Port and verify this myself.”
“My, is the trust between Noctram and Rocksburg truly so lacking?”
“Yes.”
….
“Our mother suffered greatly at the hands of the Rocksburg Duke.”
….
I didn’t know that either. Hearing that my father had squeezed the previous Duke of Noctram dry and seized territories on a scale equivalent to the national budget, I decided it was best to keep my mouth shut.
Sigh… what a scoundrel my father is. If he’s done things to that extent, then perhaps I should show some restraint here as well…
“Understood. I shall make preparations. I have nothing whatsoever to feel guilty about.”
“I appreciate your consideration.”
The man who accompanied me to the entrance hall, leaving behind a mage and one attendant, hurried to prepare the carriage and fidgeted impatiently.
From the way he was acting, it seemed he was worried that if he gave me any time, I might use the opportunity to pull off some deception.
It seems Father must have done something quite terrible to him, and now I’m curious about what it was.
“Your Grace, if it wouldn’t be too much trouble, might I ask what misfortunes befell the previous Duke of Noctram?”
“You don’t know of that incident from twenty years ago?”
“I’m twenty-three years old.”
Gasp!
How old did you think I was?

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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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