Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 20

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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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Isn’t it a bit much to push a child who’s only just entered society?
“I am deeply grateful that Your Highness took pity on Glen, who must feel awkward stepping into the Royal Palace for the first time, and spoke to him first. However, as you can see, my fiancé is quite shy. Since Your Highness has treated him so informally, he simply doesn’t know what to do with himself. I humbly ask that you not take offense.”
“How shy can he be if he can’t even answer a simple question?”
People can be that way, can’t they? After all, Your Highness didn’t manage to marry at that age either.
The words rose to the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed them down and searched for something else to say. If I just bent a little, he wouldn’t push further. I had leverage—I could always let my hair down and expose my scars to the entire court if it came to that.
That would silence him soon enough.
“It is my oversight. When we return home, I shall discipline him properly.”
“Yet you brought him all this way despite wrapping him up so carefully. It seems the young master’s health is also delicate, and still you don’t let him rest at home.”
“Indeed. If I had my way, I would bind him up tight and never let him leave the house—I’d keep him all to myself. But how could I not introduce him when it is the birthday of the Queen, whom I so deeply respect?”
When I paid my respects to the Queen once more, she laughed warmly and praised Glen and me for our excellent harmony.
From there, she spent ten minutes rattling off Glen’s remarkable qualities, his praiseworthy accomplishments, and his handsome and beautiful features. With Glen as the subject, the murmuring crowd fell silent, the Crown Prince tried to steer the conversation elsewhere, and Glen scratched my back desperately, pleading for her to stop.
Why does he keep scratching me? I’m starting to think the real cat isn’t the Princess—it’s him.
“Miss, a moment.”
Just as I was wrapping up my lengthy tribute to Glen, William pulled me aside to share something he’d heard from Father. Apparently, when Father tested Glen in my absence, he discovered that the young master could perform mental arithmetic with five-digit numbers, and when asked, he sang beautifully as well.
“My fiancé can perform mental arithmetic with five-digit numbers and has a lovely voice—he sings wonderfully! Isn’t his very existence a miracle? How can such a perfect person even exist?!”
“Then this one is Asterion?”
Hey, listen to me.
Apparently tired of hearing me speak, the Crown Prince openly ignored my words and turned his attention to Leon. Leon seemed a bit tense after watching what Glen had endured, but he managed to introduce himself splendidly and executed a perfect closing bow.
“He’s definitely from the Rocksburg House. He resembles the Rocksburg young lady quite a bit.”
Don’t you dare take another step.
Because the Crown Prince was showing interest in Leon, I hurried to find the Queen. I apologized for the urgency and quickly asked if she could select a waltz for us to dance to. The Queen looked puzzled and asked why.
I leaned close to the Queen’s ear and whispered the reason to her.
“I wish to claim my brother’s first dance, but unfortunately, Leon only knows how to waltz.”
“A request like that certainly deserves to be granted.”
The Queen chuckled and called for an attendant. Soon after, a leisurely waltz began to play.
I struck the Crown Prince’s hand away with my fan as he reached out to touch Leon’s face, remarking how similar it was to mine. I pulled Leon close and spoke quietly to the Crown Prince.
“That’s sexual harassment. Stop showing interest in my brother and go get married yourself.”
I didn’t even look back as I pulled Leon toward the center of the floor.

Phew, now I can finally relax and enjoy myself.
I’ve finished introducing the new family members and fulfilled my quota of nagging about marriage, so it’s time to savor my freedom. With a refreshed spirit and a bright smile, I greeted Leon and took his hand to begin dancing.
His leading had improved even further—it was remarkably easy to follow. The patterns weren’t monotonous, and I felt no dizziness whatsoever. At this rate, I could dance forever.
“Has your mood improved, my lady?”
“You’ve been watching my expression this whole time, and all you were concerned about was something so trivial?”
“How could I not be concerned?”
Fair point. When you’re bickering with someone of the Crown Prince’s status, the people around you tend to become anxious rather than at ease. I’m used to it, so it doesn’t bother me, but still.
“From now on, you won’t have much reason to see him, so pay him no mind.”
“That may be true for me, but you’ll continue to see him, won’t you?”
“I suppose so.”
Whether I succeeded in escaping this regression or not, this irritating man was someone I’d have to see for the rest of my life. Now that it’s been revealed that something terrible happens if I leave Leon’s side, I can’t abandon my position as Duke. So I’ll be seeing him indefinitely.
If Leon were to run away with me to the Magic Tower, there might be a way… actually, there probably is. But Father would work himself to death. That won’t do. Without me, Glen would be in a difficult position too.
At that thought, I glanced over at Glen, and he noticed my gaze. Even while drinking wine, he lifted his hand and waved at me. It’s nice to see him doing well. I didn’t know he could drink, though. At twenty years old, there’s no reason he couldn’t, but…
“Sister.”
While I was worrying about whether Glen might get drunk, my waist suddenly pulled back. As I bent with his lead, Leon smoothly shifted his hand to support my back and assumed the countercheck position.
“Are you not enjoying dancing with me?”
“Not at all. It’s quite fascinating.”
“I’m relieved. You kept looking elsewhere, so I thought you were bored.”
How did he learn this without me teaching him?
I extended my leg and supported myself, naturally moving my body to match the throwaway step. He’s not just good—he’s exceptionally good. Curious about where he learned such skill, I asked, and he replied that he’d picked it up by watching other dancers over their shoulders. I could only come to one sincere conclusion.
“This is unbelievable. My brother is a genius.”
“It’s only thanks to your excellent instruction, sister.”
No, I think this is purely a matter of talent. As I continued praising him, Leon countered with modest words. He should accept a compliment when he’s genuinely skilled, but he persists in deflecting.
A sarcastic remark was creeping up my throat when suddenly the song ended. As people around us finished dancing and exchanged courtesies, I had no choice but to part from Leon.
Leon looked somewhat reluctant, but once another song came up that we could dance to, he would simply take my hand again. Besides, he could ask other noble ladies for a dance.
After reassuring Leon and sending him off to William and Glen, I was about to turn toward the other Duke families to socialize, but the next song selection made me whip my head toward the orchestra. The bright, soaring trumpet and saxophone, the pizzicato of the resonant contrabass, the fast rhythm and exhilarating melody.
This is… swing dancing, isn’t it! I perked up my ears and looked around for Father. Where are you, Father? We need to dance the swing together!
“…!”
I finally spotted Father, and betrayal made my hands tremble. Father still seemed intent on continuing to dance with the Duchess of Edanelli. Never mind Father, but how is the Duchess not exhausted? More importantly…
No, my hands are empty. My hands are completely empty right now!
As the music threatened to end, I stamped my feet impatiently and looked around for a partner. My eyes met those of the Crown Prince, who remained at the Queen’s side.
Many thoughts crossed my mind.
Should I go and ask him?
Should I beg him to dance with me?
But I didn’t want to humble my pride that much.
I turned away with a dismissive gesture and set out to find a dance partner. With so many people here, surely there’s someone. There must be at least one decent bachelor willing to dance a passionate swing with me!
“Oh my, how clumsy of me. I’m terribly sorry—I wasn’t paying attention.”
“Not at all. I was also rushing…”
How embarrassing—I’d run without looking and collided with someone. I quickly apologized and looked up to see who it was. To my amazement, standing before me was Luke Chatel, as if he were a gift sent by the heavens themselves. It felt as though a jazz arrangement of a waltz was playing in my mind.
“It’s been a long time, Rosalite. This seems like a staged situation, but I assure you it’s truly coincidence. Please believe me.”
“Do you know how to swing dance?”
Luke made a suspicious remark and let out an awkward laugh, but I didn’t particularly care—I was simply curious whether he could actually swing dance.
The man fell silent for a moment at my sudden question, then tilted his head and asked me in return.
“Pardon? Swing dance?”
“Can you do it or not!”
“Well, yes, since it’s been fashionable recently, I know the basics at least.”
Perfect.
I grabbed Luke’s hand and headed toward the center of the floor. The man, dragged along behind me, simply stood motionless among the crowd with no apparent intention of beginning to dance.
There was nothing for it—I’d have to set the mood myself. I clapped my hands rhythmically to the music and began stepping in place with enthusiasm.
Behold, this is the Rocksburg House’s secret weapon: the swing dance.
“Give me your hand.”
I seized Luke’s hand and executed a full turn on my own terms.
After stepping with a twist and repeating the pattern of moving away and drawing closer, Luke finally began matching my tempo, wrapping his arm around my waist and lowering his head near my ear.
“Rosalite, about that rental fee matter you mentioned before….”
Mm, fine. I quite enjoy line dancing too. The way the repeated footwork flows in succession feels like singing a round—it’s exhilarating.
Paying no particular attention to what Luke was saying, I continued stepping enthusiastically in place, then lifted my hand to spin my partner around. Luke seemed to be muttering something about gold ingots and taxes, but why did he always talk so much while dancing?
“Eek!”
Just as I was preparing to take my turn spinning, I heard the Duchess of Edanelli cry out in front of me.
Wondering if something had happened to Father, I looked over to see him staring intently at me while lifting the Duchess up and setting her down—as if he were challenging me, saying, ‘Your partner can’t do this for you, can he?’
Seeing Father smirk, it seemed like provocation. Wait—he was the one who abandoned me first, and now he wanted to try? How audacious.
“Luke, bend your knee.”
“Yes?”
“Quickly!”
“Ah!”
I stepped on Luke’s bent knee and jumped, then wrapped my arms around his neck. Though startled, Luke skillfully caught me by grasping my back and the back of my knees, then set me safely on the ground.
“Don’t do that so suddenly—you’ll get hurt!”
“But I didn’t get hurt.”
As I continued dancing and smiled back at Father’s expression, he refused to be outdone and proceeded to demonstrate increasingly daring moves with the other man’s Duchess. The screams seemed to grow more tinged with genuine terror, but that was his concern—I couldn’t lose.
“Luke, bend lower! Arch your back!”
“Please stop. If you get injured, it’ll be a serious problem—I’m begging you, Rosalite, please don’t!”
“I said I won’t get hurt!”
He was going to do it anyway, so why all the complaints?
I grabbed Luke’s hand and jumped, pressing my back against his, then rolled and landed on my feet. From Luke came a sound—a breathless gasp that might have been relief or something else entirely.
“Don’t ever do that again. Never do something like that again, please. I’m begging you. I won’t mention work anymore.”
“Work?”
What on earth was he talking about?

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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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