Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 175

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

Let me see… Normally I would have assigned Royal Family matters to Glen or Leon, but I’ve been thinking about this since yesterday. This time, I’ll entrust it to Will Brown.
That boy needs to save up and move out quickly. He wants to leave home, so I should help him. If he’s commuting, the house needs to be close by. A residence near the Rocksburg Mansion would cost a fortune.
If it were Jack or Aster, they’re my direct guards, so I could easily provide them with a house. But Will isn’t Father’s direct subordinate, nor is he mine. He’s a Rocksburg Mansion employee, so there’s no way for me to offer him special favors. If I just handed him a house, Karl and Quill in similar positions would push back hard. At least I can make sure he gets a decent bonus.
After drafting the documents, I had Aster deliver them to Will, then rolled my forehead against the desk. I’m dying. Where is Lily with that hangover cure I sent her to get? At this rate, I really might not survive.
“Sister, the hunting party—I want to go too. I also… I want to go…!”
Hey, if you skip out too while I’m already going, what will we do? And do you think that’s up to me? You’ll only get the chance to go if Glen approves it. He’s got the second-heaviest workload after me.
I still felt bad about leaving Leon out when we went to Rohil the other day, so I rolled my head hopefully toward Glen, but the young lord had his expression locked down like an iron fortress.
“That won’t do. Rosalite will only be making a brief appearance at the hunting party anyway, so you won’t have much time to enjoy yourself. Just stay here.”
Well… he does have a point.
I rolled my head toward Leon again. But this brat, whatever he was thinking, grabbed his head—which was in terrible shape from the hangover—and crossed over the partition.
The partition separating Glen and Leon. It was something that could be called a border. Since it was put up, Leon and Glen had never crossed it except when cursing, teasing, mocking, or throwing things at each other.
But what about now? Leon crossed the border without showing any hostility. Well, of course his expression was as furrowed and disgusted as it could be. Still, this was remarkable progress.
Conversing without pointing weapons at each other—what a beautiful sight this was.
“I’m asking you. Glen… no…”
You need to work on your facial expressions. Don’t grind your teeth like that. You’ll damage them. If you break a tooth, you’ll have to go all the way to Largol to get it fixed. Only the priests of Largol can reattach broken teeth.
“Br…”
Br what? Leon wasn’t just trying to say “I’m asking.” His mouth kept opening and closing. He looked like he was about to say something he absolutely hated. What on earth…
“Brother-in-law.”
“…”
“…”
Ah… so that was it. You little brat… just how badly did you want to go to that hunting party?
Leon said “brother-in-law” in an ant-sized voice, and Glen let out a deflating sound before quickly covering his mouth.
“My apologies. I’ll excuse myself for a moment.”
The man grabbed his cane and hurried out of the office, then laughed uproariously in the corridor.
Wow… I’ve known Glen for a long time, but I’ve never heard him laugh this hard. Was Leon calling him “brother-in-law” really that funny?
That was quite a show. Leon, you really should call him “brother-in-law” more often since he enjoyed it so much. You’re always so proper with Luke, calling him “nephew,” but why are you so stingy with Glen?
The man laughed his fill outside, then returned to the office with a few theatrical coughs. He sat down at his desk with an air of authority and displayed adult magnanimity.
“I will permit you to accompany Rosalite. Just make sure you don’t cause trouble in your excitement.”
“Hic, th-thank… you…! Hic!”
Leon couldn’t even finish his words before returning to his seat and sobbing into his desk. So calling Glen “brother-in-law” was something he hated that much? No, if he hated it that much, why would he force himself to say it? Why go that far…
He really wanted to go play that badly? Is that it? Well, thinking about it, Leon hasn’t had time to relax lately. This boy—if he hates working so much, he should just say so. We do have vacation days, after all. Though they’re pretty useless since we have to make up the hours with overtime anyway.
Still, if he doesn’t want to work right now, he should just take the time and worry about it later. Such an inflexible child.
I was planning to leave the Crown Prince and Capo together and slip away at the first opportunity, but since Leon wants to play this badly, it seems I should make extra time for him. There’s Spaland nearby, so we can go together, soak our feet in the hot springs, and get some massages.
With that plan in mind, I quickly drew up a list of people to accompany me to the hunting party and submitted it to Father’s office. Once Will Brown finishes setting up the hunting grounds, all the Royal Family and Rocksburg need to do is coordinate our schedule and head out.

◇ ◆ ◇

A few days passed. Will Brown, who worked with impressive efficiency, sent word that the Hunting Grounds were ready. He mentioned he’d been given a generous bonus and had put in extra care—but honestly, the boy was already meticulous with his work. Why would he need to try harder? A larger bonus simply meant he’d accept a larger bonus, that was all.
After that, everything moved at lightning speed. With the Hunting Grounds prepared, we decided each person would select their companions and gather at the appointed time. We agreed that everyone would bring their own horses, weapons, and provisions.
Theodore would lead his attendants and bring whoever he wished to accompany him. The Rocksburg contingent planned to travel light—just myself, Leon, Capo, and her retainers—but suddenly Jack Brown volunteered to join us.
Since we were heading to such spacious grounds, he wanted to give Peter some exercise. I thought his reasoning sound, so I approved his participation. After all, that beast had spent his life running across vast rural plains. No matter how expansive our estate is, he must feel confined.
That boy certainly cares deeply for the animals he raises.
For weapons at the Hunting Grounds, new rifles had arrived from Nimerunia after completing thorough safety tests. The Crown Prince said he would bring them.
I led Elizabeth along, saying we only needed to bring our own horses, but Jack didn’t bring the horse I’d told him to—he brought Peter instead. I asked if he planned to run all the way there instead of riding, and the man looked at me with pity before grabbing Peter’s fur and climbing on.
“What do you mean, my lady? Peter is faster than most horses.”
Wow, wow! What is that?! He’s riding a rabbit! That looks fun! I want to ride too! I want to ride the rabbit!
Is it just about holding onto the fur? Does Peter not hurt when you pull? I asked all sorts of curious questions, and Elizabeth began to snort and puff.
Ah… this won’t do. If I ride something else in front of Elizabeth, there’s no telling what she’ll do. Before, when I kept riding that Segway everywhere, she even tried to bite it and throw it away.
What a temperamental creature. I wonder who she takes after.

Everyone arrived at the Hunting Grounds on horseback—private land belonging to our family. I’d been worried since it had been neglected for so long, but it seemed Will Brown had repaired all the signage and fencing while managing the grounds. Everything looked brand new and pristine.
“Duke’s Daughter of Rocksburg!”
Oh my, who is this? I’d sent official notices to other ducal houses asking if they wanted to join the hunt, but they all said they were busy, so I thought no one would attend. Yet a man was approaching from the distance, carrying arrows bundled in his arms.
He held an extraordinarily expensive longbow, was thin as a rail with hair the color of water—otherworldly—and rode an elegant white horse. He looked exactly like an elf.
An elf, an elf. If elves existed in this world, wouldn’t they look like Anton?
“Isn’t this the heir of Bienar? What are all those bows and arrows?”
“What do you mean? I came to hunt!”
And why do you look so lively all of a sudden? The last time I saw you, you weren’t like this at all. Curious about where that frail Anton had gone—the one who looked like he’d collapse after three steps—I asked, and the man surprisingly brought up something from long ago.
“Well, I went out with the Duke’s Daughter and did indoor archery. I got hooked on archery after that.”
Oh, this is quite a new development. The workaholic has taken up a hobby? Moreover, the man wasn’t just devoted to archery—he showed interest in the new rifle Capo had brought. Since he’d also taken a liking to shooting, he politely asked if I could lend him one later. Capo readily nodded and tossed him one of the rifles she’d brought along with a bag of ammunition.
“I’m glad I came. Is this the percussion rifle I’ve only heard rumors about? The one that doesn’t require flint?”
“You know your stuff. It’s a masterpiece our country created with all our effort. The tide of war will change soon.”
“Then the Crown Prince really should marry the Princess, shouldn’t he? Alein has nothing but magic and mana crystals to rely on.”
“What an irritating person. Isn’t everyone depending on technology precisely because there are so few mages?”
Wait, is that a percussion rifle? A jump from flintlock to percussion? Out of nowhere? Suddenly? And looking at the shape of the ammunition Capo was holding, I’d suspected as much, but that rifle definitely seemed to be breech-loading. She opened the rifle with a click, inserted a single round, closed it, and aimed at a distant target.
What… what kind of world is this? Skipping all the intermediate steps and advancing this rapidly? I’m hardly one to talk, having extracted Sage and created Segways and streetcars that run on electricity, skipping steam engines entirely.
Could it be that Nimerunia has someone like Sage, and they’re grinding that person into technology? I should probably ask about this later. If this person falls out with the Crown Prince, Nimerunia becomes nothing but a militaristic hostile nation.
Either we join hands, or we need to nip this in the bud quickly.
“My apologies. I’m late.”
Oh, is the Crown Prince arriving? Everyone was so absorbed in discussing the weapons Capo had brought that no one noticed our kingdom’s most noble personage approaching so closely.
When he comes, he comes; when he goes, he goes—he should make some noise. I felt so sorry for Capo, who startled and began adjusting her clothes, that I was about to scold her, but he didn’t even greet us properly and looked elsewhere.
“…What is that?”
Is it about the rifle again? These boys really love their guns. Thinking children always love their toys, I was about to explain when Theodore gestured for me to stop and tilted his head.
“No. What is that, exactly? Are your eyes not working?”
What on earth are you looking at?
Wondering what could possibly surprise him so, I followed Theodore’s gaze to the end, and there was our family rabbit with his horns cut off.
“The rabbit?”
“A rabbit?”
“Yes.”
“That’s a rabbit?”
“Yes.”
“Are you insane?”
“Who is?”
“Rosalite Rocksburg.”
“I’m not?”
“No. You’re the one who’s lost your mind.”
Why does this man always have to start a quarrel the moment we meet?

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