Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 188
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Since I was bound and couldn’t evade, the parchment struck me squarely in the face. The guardians who’d accompanied me showed no concern for my dignity—they simply picked up the fallen document from the floor and huddled together to examine it.
Wait, you lot—I want to see it too!
“This is….”
“Excellent, Sister. What if we sacrifice Glen and avoid war altogether?”
What in the world could this document possibly contain?!
I squeezed between the children and read through the contents rapidly. Oh, this is Lucilucil’s own handwriting, isn’t it?
“….”
After reading through it all at once, I fell silent for a long while, unable to accept the meaning the document conveyed.
So basically…, in Lucilucil’s official handwritten document, there was the true identity of some reason that had unified the hearts of all Largol Empire citizens at once, and scattered throughout were sentences that glittered with absolute nonsense….
This is too complicated to summarize neatly. So basically. First…. Prince Marius, the Third Prince, had passed away, and the cause was murder, and Glen’s staff was found at the crime scene, so using this as evidence, that damned bastard blamed Rocksburg for assassinating the Third Prince, and the people were outraged by the death of the Third Prince who was beloved by the entire nation, and Lucilucil exploited that tide of sentiment to cultivate hatred toward Rocksburg and Alein, inciting war itself, and with the support of all nobility and citizens, was rapidly appointed Crown Prince, and true to his promise, immediately started a war upon becoming Crown Prince.
Under the supremely capable command of Crown Prince Lucilucil, the Largol Imperial Army bypassed naval combat and landed in Alein, seizing the Masujung Mine first and establishing a foothold.
And most importantly, the document stated that if Rocksburg and all its members were surrendered willingly, Alein would be treated as a colony with the utmost generosity.
Generally, citizens from nations that Largol had made into colonies were treated as second-class citizens. But if the entire Rocksburg Family were handed over to the Imperial Court, the Masujung Mine wouldn’t be destroyed, there would be no war, the status of Alein nobility would be guaranteed, and Alein citizens would be treated equally with Largol Empire citizens—so from Lucilucil’s perspective, he was being quite magnanimous.
I was infuriated by the aforementioned nonsense, but something more important pierced through my heart. Sorrow. I was overwhelmingly sad. A profound sadness so deep that I nearly fell to my knees and buried my face on the floor swept through my tear ducts.
“Prince Mariiiiius!”
Waaaah! This can’t be right! It’s impossible! Prince Marius couldn’t have died! Nobody dies in a comedy timeline! You’re all idiots! The author is an idiot! Well, technically it wasn’t a book, but regardless—idiots!
“Why is Little Curmudgeon crying? Do you know, Crown Prince?”
“The Prince Marius who supposedly died possesses a very large chest, and she appears to be grieving over that, Your Majesty.”
“What, was she a pervert?”
“A pervert without equal in this world. When I first met that prince, she even drooled.”
“Wow…, she really is a pervert.”
Hey, you—speak properly. When did I ever drool?
But I couldn’t refute him. I was far too sad. It couldn’t be true. Prince Marius hadn’t died. He simply hadn’t. Lucilucil, what do you know about our Prince Marius? Nothing. Prince Marius isn’t dead. He couldn’t possibly be dead.
What could someone like Lucilucil possibly know about Marius?!
“Sister, please don’t grieve. I’ll do my best to develop them. That bean sprout was already ruined long ago, but I have the potential to grow, don’t I? Come, feel them. They’re so soft.”
How disgusting, Leoooon!
Don’t thrust your chest at me—I’m bound, I can’t raise my hands—Glen, please stop him!
“Please stop, Leon, this is an official setting.”
That’s right, you said it well! While Glen was scolding Leon, I quickly accepted Jack’s support and sat down in a conference hall chair. It was my usual temporary chairman’s seat. Now I really need to focus and proceed with the meeting, or this will never end.
“Um….”
Everyone was waiting for the documents to circulate when Dorothy Edanelli, who had witnessed the entire commotion, quietly leaned her body toward me. The woman looked at me with such pity that she subtly opened her collar to reveal her chest.
“I can’t replace Prince Marius, but would you like to touch mine for now?”
I don’t need this, woman. What’s with treating someone with genuinely ample breasts as a pervert who shows no restraint?
You shouldn’t be sighing to Janet about how she grew wrong. Your thoughts twist in such strange ways—you grew up exactly like your mother—so how dare you complain?
As I contorted my face in displeasure, Glen limped over with a new chair. The man set it down firmly between me and Dorothy Edanelli, then squeezed himself in.
“As the consort of the Young Duke, I certainly have the qualification to sit here, don’t I?”
Ah, the Young Duke is flashing that Crown Prince smile again. Having two Crown Prince smiles in the same place feels strange…, but why is he glaring at me? I really didn’t do anything wrong this time.
“What in blazes are you doing, you little thing?! How are you managing your husband?!”
Oh, you startled me!
Just when I thought the documents had finally made their rounds through the entire assembly, Duke Bienar grew angry. Even as I bristled at the sudden mention of Glen, I couldn’t help but recall Lucilucil’s scheming, leaving me no choice but to apologize.
“I sincerely apologize. This is entirely my fault for lacking virtue.”
“Of course it is! Your people’s fault is your fault!”
He speaks nothing but perfectly reasonable words, which only irritates me further.
Back when I was sharp and alert in Rohil, there was nothing to fault—so it must have been while I was bedridden that Glen, knowing nothing, fell victim to their schemes. I had no rebuttal, as my failure to manage my condition was entirely my own fault.
“I apologize, Rosalite. I never imagined things would come to this…”
Duke Bienar kept needling me, and my teeth ground together, but Glen’s face crumpled again. Ah, you fool, don’t cry. The opponent is Lucilucil—even if Glen hadn’t made a mistake, they would have found some pretext to attack Alein anyway.
Glen was simply unlucky enough to be caught in it. The King, the Crown Prince, Duke Edanelli—they all understand this and don’t blame him. Since it’s become our side’s fault, we’ll have to compensate heavily from Rocksburg after this is settled, but… it’s not your fault.
“It’s fine. I’ll take responsibility. I have no intention of blaming Janet.”
“Well, well. Do you have the ability to take responsibility?”
This woman has been grating on my nerves since earlier. Bienar’s forces are half navy anyway—hardly their main strength—so why does she strut about like that?
“That’s why your husband left home under the pretense of important business.”
“Hey! Say that louder! My husband didn’t leave home—he went out on important business!”
“What man could tolerate that personality?”
“Fine, let’s fight. Today, either you die or I do.”
Duke Bienar shot to his feet, and the elf youth cried out for Mother again, grabbing the Duke to restrain him. Meanwhile, Leon and Glen moved to shield me, embracing me protectively, while Jack Brown positioned himself to stand me up and ready himself to draw whatever weapon he’d smuggled in at a moment’s notice.
That’s all well and good, but Jack Brown, if they catch you sneaking weapons in, it won’t end with just a fine. I told you not to do it, didn’t I?
“Settle down—the commotion is distracting. If they’ve established a stronghold at the Masujung Mine, then broad-spectrum magic attacks would be impossible to deploy…”
Ah, there it is—given time, King Laios always figures things out. You’ve identified the very point I wanted to emphasize.
His Majesty grasped Alein’s disadvantage and proposed that, difficult as it would be, we had no choice but to resort to guerrilla warfare.
This Lucilucil is absolutely infuriating. Guerrilla combat in rough terrain—isn’t that precisely the Largol Imperial Army’s specialty? They’re the ones who conquered the continent by crossing mountain ranges and great rivers; they’d be seasoned in irregular warfare.
With a single move—choosing their landing point and stronghold—they’ve seized control of another nation’s resources and turned the military balance in their favor. I truly despise it. Lucilucil is absolutely the worst.
“How many troops can Noctram deploy?”
“Thanks to the wireless sets we provided, they should have some flexibility, but it will take time for them to arrive. Largol’s advance could be one step faster.”
“And with the railway Rocksburg laid down, the Largol forces will have quite the comfortable journey north, won’t they?”
Hmm… Yes, fine. Let’s fight. I can’t take this anymore. Even if I have to expose my magic use today, I’m going to shut that man up.
I rose from my seat, intending to confront Bienar directly, but as if she’d been waiting for this very moment, Capo placed a rolled parchment on the table with a decisive tap. The Princess, instructing an attendant to present it respectfully to His Majesty, turned toward the Crown Prince with an extraordinarily radiant smile.
“What is this?”
“You’ll understand once you read it, Your Majesty.”
What’s with that woman covering her mouth and laughing like that? It’s frightening.
Curious about what could possibly warrant such behavior, I craned my neck to peek at the document, but His Majesty, whose hands trembled, deflected responsibility by saying the Crown Prince should make this decision.
No, the King himself, yet he’s passing responsibility to the Crown Prince? That’s strange—he’s not the type to do such a thing. So I craned my neck toward the Crown Prince instead, and Theodore, smiling, also trembled as he slammed the document onto the table.
“Are you threatening me right now? Princess Natalie?”
“Threatening? If you dislike it, you can simply refuse. It’s merely a proposal, after all.”
What is it? What could the contents possibly be to warrant talk of threats?
Impatient, I urged Leon and Glen forward. Since my arms were bound and I couldn’t move, I had them fetch the parchment, and upon learning the true nature of this “simple proposal,” I finally understood why Capo had been smirking all along.
“Offering support as an allied nation if they marry—how is that not a threat?”
The parchment contained a promise that if a marriage between Theodore of Alein and Natalie of Nimerunia were to take place, Nimerunia would provide three thousand of its elite troops.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————