Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 218

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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’ve avoided the worst outcome. But does that mean we’re safe from the second-worst? Absolutely not. The second-worst scenario is our household becoming a haunted mansion for over sixty years while Alein becomes a colony of Largol. And since I’ve betrayed Lucilucil and made him lose face, the treatment of Alein’s citizens will become atrocious. I myself might be recaptured by Lucilucil and subjected to who knows what.
My best plan was to smoothly dispel Celin’s curse, lead the greatest firepower including Serena and Sage, and strike down the Emperor. Though Lucilucil proposed the invasion of Alein, the final approval came from the Emperor. So the responsibility falls on him. And Lucius Crown Prince, the mastermind behind the invasion, would be deposed and exiled. We’d eliminate those two, place the Fourth Prince on the throne, have the Largol Military withdraw, and establish a non-aggression pact.
My best plan failed. I couldn’t break the dark magic. My second plan also failed. Serena, our strongest asset, is dead. To add insult to injury, a new enemy has emerged—the Heretical Sect Leader.
What purpose does the Heretical Sect Leader serve? At least I know that elephant-shaped monster was created by the Heretical Sect’s hands. Its form is decidedly ancient and archaic. It was absolutely affiliated with the Heretical Sect.
What benefit does that grandmother gain by unleashing an ancient creature here, in the Capital of Largol? Why does she pursue power within the Heretical Sect while sitting as Pope? According to Sage and Serena’s assessment, the Pope is greedy. She’s of a similar ilk to me.
Greed, you ask? Power! The desire to reach the pinnacle! Wealth! Beautiful things!
Simply being the head of the Zoroab Religion would have provided sufficient riches. But right now, she cannot return to the Temple.
She wants power. She wants to reclaim wealth as well. Now that the current Pope has vanished, if a mysterious priest capable of vanquishing the monster appears, inheriting the Pope’s legacy? And if that person resembles a Pope from several generations ago?
But would she be satisfied with just that? This is an opportunity. Simply returning to her original position won’t suffice. The Unknown Woman seized the crisis as an opportunity. If she reaches the same conclusion as me? She could eliminate the current Emperor under the pretense of being unable to protect him, and dispose of the Crown Prince later under the guise of desiring peace. The Fourth Prince, a strong contender for succession, has vanished. He’s in our hands, but the Pope doesn’t know that.
The Unknown Woman can seize imperial authority under the pretext of national stability. Given the circumstances, no one can raise objections. She can achieve theocratic rule without restraint.
“Retreat, retreat, retreat!”
“W-wait, Doctor?!”
Our objectives align up to eliminating the Emperor. We’ll just watch the show and enjoy the feast! Once the Emperor is dead, we’ll devise countermeasures then!
“Let’s go. That monster has other purposes, and we don’t need to take responsibility for dealing with it.”
“B-but then innocent lives… those poor people…”
“What do I care? They’re not even Alein citizens!”
Papa clung to me, but I dragged the man along. Perhaps due to the monster commotion, the guards have stopped emerging. I’ll collect Jack and Leon, go to Mother and Aster, gather those two women as well, then we can cross the river and watch the fire from the other side.
“Peter, you can carry four passengers, yes? It’ll be tough on you, though.”
“Squeeee…”
“I’ll provide premium beef sirloin for lunch every day for a week.”
“Squee…”
“Ah, but not every day. If you get fat, Jack will scold me.”
“Squee, squeak.”
This creature was thumping his chest and sharpening his eyes as if mimicking something. That look… I’ve seen it somewhere before. Could it be… our Elizabeth?
“When we return, I’ll bestow a medal higher than Elizabeth’s, and grant you a knighthood within the Duchy!”
“Squeeeak!”
He really loves that. What would you even do with a knighthood? Did Elizabeth usually provoke you? Do animals have hierarchy disputes among themselves?
Well… if this satisfies you, that works.
“Sister! Sister, please praise me! I’ve defeated more guards than Jack Brown!”
“I went to deliver a gas mask to the Young Lady midway! It’s unfair!”
“If you were serious about the competition, you shouldn’t have been distracted.”
“If I hadn’t gone, that Young Lady would’ve suffocated me! You know that!”
Ah, as if I’d suffocate you over that. I’d just bury you in a salt barrel. I joked with Jack and mounted Peter. Once I retrieve Mother and Aster, I should search for the priest. I also need to confirm the Fourth Prince’s safety. After he receives proper treatment, we’ll prepare for anything.

◇ ◆ ◇

Beneath the elephant, the village was in ruins. Every building had collapsed, and there wasn’t a trace of survivors. Only Aster and Mother were bounding about frantically, trying to lure the elephant toward areas with fewer dwellings.
“Duchess! Aster! Stop this at once! We’re retreating!”
“Rosie!”
As the colossal elephant’s rampage devastated everything around us, Mother came bounding through the rubble and threw her arms around me. She reeked. Why did Mother always smell whenever we met? Was it her fate? Were unwashed odors and Mother inseparable companions?
“I missed you so much! Rosie, you were gone, and Grandmother disappeared too, and Karl’s blade got all damaged, and that glutton over there let people escape just because of galbi! Waaaah!”
Ah… so the trap Aster fell into was galbi. Well, galbi was unavoidable. It was food with special meaning to Aster, wasn’t it? What was it again—something about how it was as beautiful as a flower, so you must be galbi? Or something like that?
Aster stood at a distance, watching my expression carefully as if bearing guilt, looking so anxious and on the verge of tears that I couldn’t just leave him be.
“Aster, come here.”
“…”
“There, you glutton.”
I bent Aster over and pressed his head firmly. Only then did Aster burst into tears and apologize.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Young Lady!”
“I’ll punish you when we return, so remember that.”
“Yes, Young Lady!”
That way he’d be satisfied too. It would put his mind at ease. He was the type who’d voluntarily go to prison for causing me trouble, so actually following through with punishment was better for Aster’s mental health.
“Where is the Fourth Prince?”
“That one—Grandmother left a note telling him to stay quietly at the Temple.”
“Then let’s head to the Temple. We can at least inquire about his whereabouts there.”
“B-but Rosie. That long-nosed monster over there? If we leave it like this, there will be significant casualties.”
Good grief, these kind-hearted souls so steeped in Magic Tower logic.
When I told her to leave it alone, Mother grabbed my shoulders with a horrified expression.
“How could you say such a terrible thing, Rosie! Who taught you that! Eddie? Did Eddie make you think such awful thoughts?!”
So Mother actually knew Father was a bad man? That was surprising in its own way, but I couldn’t afford to be surprised right now.
Right now, securing the Fourth Prince was paramount. If we were even a moment late, a colossal single-ruler dictatorship would be born. Moreover, the woman destined to become that dictator had supposedly lived for two hundred years already, so there was no telling how many more years she’d continue. A dictator who wouldn’t even die, controlling the world with an iron fist—what kind of dystopia was that?
“Let’s go! Elizabeth!”
At my cry, Elizabeth let out a loud neigh and flattened herself against the ground. As I easily mounted her and took the reins, Elizabeth sprang up and galloped toward our destination.

The Temple was in better condition than I had anticipated. That meant the monster hadn’t erupted from the Zoroab Religion’s Temple—it had simply been in our path.
“Do you happen to know where that elephant came from, Doctor?”
“If it’s that, I know, Doctor! It came from the Heretic Headquarters! It seems a summoning altar remains beside the mountain peak that Serena melted!”
A mountain peak melted? What was he talking about? I looked toward where Papa was pointing, but I couldn’t detect anything particularly unusual. There was a fairly wide wasteland beside the mountain. Wasn’t that terrain always like that?
“That was originally a mountain?”
“Yep.”
“Serena didn’t burn it—she melted it? Soil and rock both?”
“Yep.”
What kind of monster was that? With that much power, she must have used that Nietzsche series magic. And when I asked Papa about it, he said that after casting magic of that magnitude, mana would regenerate enough for another shot in just ten minutes.
Terrifying. Formal incantations. When I froze that anemone without chanting, I had to rest for an entire day. Systematic magic is this frightening. I covet it. The True Magic Tower’s secret vault. Only Serena could enter there, right? Just what kind of extraordinary things are sleeping in that place?
“Doctor.”
“Yes.”
“I received the rights to manage the Magic Tower from Serena.”
“Yes.”
“You’re banned from the True Magic Tower.”
“….”
“….”
Ha. We’ll see about that. Serena’s disappearance means the charisma that controlled all mages across the world has vanished. Don’t you think factions will emerge? Given Papa’s personality, he won’t be content just holed up in the True Magic Tower watching other mages. Eventually, he’ll come begging to me.
We’ll see then. At that moment, you’ll come crying and clinging to me, asking me to help manage the Magic Tower since I can search through every corner of the True Magic Tower’s secret vault.
“First, let’s find the Fourth Prince.”
“Doctor, you little brat, you disrespected me in your heart, didn’t you?”
“Prince Nerva! Where are you!”
“Changing the subject like that—so it’s true, huh?”
For safety’s sake, I had it written in the manual that the Fourth Prince must hear what our team members say, but I’m not sure if this fellow properly followed protocol. The surroundings were already filling with injured people bringing donations and looking for priests. We also need the Fourth Prince present so we can be introduced to a priest smoothly.
“Aster.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
“Try calling out loudly.”
Come on. Don’t make that reluctant face—hurry up.
When I issued the command forcefully, the woman, as if bearing some guilt, shouted toward the surroundings.
“Prince Nerva! Where are you!”
“Dear Prince Nerva. Where are you?”
“….”
“Go on.”
“Well, no matter what, Young Lady….”
“Hurry.”
At my continued urging, Aster scrunched up her face and squeezed her eyes shut.
“Dear Prince Nerva! Where are you!”
“Whoa! Aster! What did you just say!”
See? This works like a charm.
The Fourth Prince recognized Aster’s voice saying “dear” with uncanny precision, and poked his head out from the top of a distant tower. Though his face wasn’t clearly visible from this distance, there couldn’t be two people in the world with that flower-pink hair.
If we’re talking about similar hair colors, there’s Diana from Veloche, but the two have a slightly different feel. If the Prince has cherry blossom hair, Diana has the hair of a perfectly ripe white peach. When you think about it, it’s a hair color that comes from nature itself.
After waiting a moment, the Fourth Prince descended the tower with surprising speed and grasped Aster’s hand. Then he opened his mouth with the happiest expression in the world.
“Aster, please say what you just said one more time.”
“I said nothing.”
“Didn’t you say you love me? Don’t be shy—just once more, I beg you.”
Aster looked at me as if pleading for salvation, and I turned my head away indifferently.
Your karma, dear.

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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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