Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 252

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

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing wandering around without my permission!”
Well, I apologize for that, but… wait a moment. Now that I think about it, wasn’t that book the birthday gift I gave to Four Spans? A yoga method for growing tall—who else would dare give something like that to Four Spans besides me?
“Hey, bring some alcohol! You said you got something good!”
“….”
Seeing him flustered like this, there’s definitely something going on. I turned around wanting to check the room once more, but John Brown was blocking the doorway with his life.
“Get out of the way, you fool. I need to see my things again.”
“That is not possible. Without Lady Grace’s permission, you cannot enter. It would be disrespectful to the royal family, Young Lady.”
“Right, you old-fashioned fool! Do you want to be punished? Going to the Royal Court? You’ll get sued and spend time in court multiple times, you criminal!”
Just let me through, you crazy people! What exactly is in this room that you’re so desperately trying to stop me from seeing…!
“….”
Ah.
I remember now.
Aren’t all those things birthday gifts I sent to Four Spans? And they’ve been carefully stored in the room next to the bedroom without throwing away a single one?
“Four Spans.”
“Huh? Y-yes?”
“Why are all the birthday gifts I’ve been sending since I was ten years old stored in that room?”
The items in that room were gifts I’d sent to Four Spans since I started the da capo, and from those I didn’t remember, I could deduce that they were gifts from the time Rosalite Rocksburg formally began exchanging with the Royal Family at age ten.
My deduction was accurate, and Four Spans made excuses—not in the way I was thinking, but rather that each birthday gift I’d sent held memories and she simply couldn’t bring herself to throw them away. I felt upset and took several steps backward.
“You’ve been keeping them for over ten years? Ugh, that’s gross. You’re a stalker or something. That’s so gross!”
“Hey, no! That’s not it!”
“I will send the alcohol separately. I’ll sleep outside. Sleep well.”
“Hey! Wait! Little old-fashioned one!”
I gathered up my dress hem in a curtsy and bolted outside. I borrowed a horse from the Princess Palace and returned to the Camping Ground, where people greeted me and asked why I’d been released so quickly.
I told them exactly what happened and let slip that there’s a stalker living in the Princess Palace.
“Why are all the women around you like that?”
“A birthday gift from a close friend can be precious. Don’t worry too much, Rosalite.”
“That’s right, Sister. My radar is going beep-beep, and that person is not from Janet’s faction.”
Ugh, but being upset is still being upset. Why hasn’t she thrown away things sent when I was young? Especially since most of them were things I sent specifically to annoy her, so I naturally assumed she’d have discarded them. The fact that she still has them was an incredibly upsetting element.
“Hey! Who gave you permission to run away!”
Kyaaaah! The stalker is chasing me!
I shrieked dramatically and fled from Four Spans. After running around for a while and giving Four Spans a workout, I plied the woman with alcohol, and we spent the entire night eating, drinking, dancing, singing, and insulting each other until dawn broke and we finally fell asleep.

◇ ◆ ◇

By the time the sun reached its zenith, I woke to find Aster and Four Spans sleeping soundly on either side of me. Well, perhaps the wine had been good—fortunately, I had no hangover. Stepping out of the tent, I found Lucilucil, who’d already drunk cold water, doing morning exercises like some middle-aged man. I promptly called for an attendant, drank water myself, and joined in the exercises.
As we stretched and supported each other, my entire body crackled with satisfying pops and cracks. Ah, wonderful. Feeling so refreshed in the morning made me feel alive again.
“Ro… Rosie. Rosie…?”
Strange—no hangover, yet I was hearing phantom voices. I feigned ignorance, had the attendants pack up the camping ground, then called for a carriage to load the Nanny and Eri. With Eri, myself, and both my husbands aboard, the carriage was absolutely packed.
“Rosie, can’t you see me? Can’t you hear me? Am I a person who doesn’t exist to you?”
“Let’s go, coachman! We’ll see the stalker Princess another time!”
“Hey! Who’s a stalker, you criminal!”
I’ve never received a suspended sentence in my life. I’m not a criminal. The Princess said something absurd, so I laughed it off, but from outside the carriage came the wailing sound of someone who resembled a Duchess. Not wanting to hear it, I had Glen close all the windows, which he did. Then I asked the Nanny to cover my ears and squeezed my eyes shut.
There were people whose very sight I couldn’t bear right now, and I had no desire to see them for some time. Once home, I’d corner my Predecessor and pour out my grievances, then seek some counsel. Perhaps this is why one needs siblings as one grows older. I alone cannot manage these parents.

The road home was, quite literally, a ruin—not metaphorically, but actually. Trees in the Garden were snapped, decorations lay shattered, rocks jutted out here and there, and the Duke’s Mansion entrance, which suffered damage every time, was predictably destroyed.
What had happened this time? Glen and I both sighed heavily at the sight of the wrecked Duke’s Mansion, but Lucilucil, seeing such a scene for the first time, made a fuss and asked if it was an enemy attack.
Ha, well, it must be an enemy attack of some sort. Rocksburg has so many enemies that we can’t pinpoint which one.
“Don’t worry, Lucilucil. The Duke’s Mansion occasionally ends up like this.”
“What?”
“In fact, lately I’ve been almost disappointed that it’s remained intact for so long.”
“What?”
“Yes, well. On a typical two-year cycle, the entrance door disappears…”
“What kind of life have you all been living here?”
Ah, whatever calamity befalls us, it’s nothing compared to the Largol Imperial Palace.
I laughed heartily, descended from the carriage, and checked on the servants first. Following protocol, they hadn’t resisted the intruders but had instead smuggled away the safe containing classified documents, so they were unharmed. They’d recorded minute-by-minute details of what the person who’d done this had done and what they’d demanded.
Let me see… Early this morning, a mage named Yuri Andreevich broke in… Ah, so Yuri came. Well, it’s standard procedure for anyone who wants to ransack our house to do it while we’re all away at a gathering. If we’d left Magnus behind, we’d just retrieve him and come home. Otherwise, we could capture someone important from Rocksburg and attempt a hostage exchange.
Reading the report, it seemed Yuri was currently holed up with people working in the Duke’s Office. I thought it would be catastrophic if Anna Brown was among the captives, so I asked in detail who had fallen into Yuri’s hands.
“Currently, Louis and Benjamin have voluntarily allowed themselves to be captured. They said they would serve as hostages to guarantee the safety of the servants, and the two of them…”
“…”
Sigh… Aren’t they not hostages from our perspective? And seeing how they looked after the servants, the children must have been deeply moved… or maybe they just thought it looked fun and stepped up? It’s definitely not what you’re thinking.
“Magnus! Yuri has come!”
“S-surely you don’t mean Yuri did all this?”
That seems to be the case. When I spoke calmly, Magnus protested that Yuri wasn’t that kind of child. He went on at length about how there must be a reason for such violent behavior… Honestly, I had no interest in that. It seemed the time had come for us to settle the Magic Tower personality test controversy once and for all.
“Duke Rocksburg. Your brother and nephew are being held hostage, it seems.”
“So now you’re not treating me as if I don’t exist.”
“Once this is resolved, you’ll be treated as if you don’t exist again.”
“It’s not my fault the child exists.”
“If it’s not your fault, whose fault is it?”
“The Duchess’s fault.”
Wow, this man really knows how to shut down any comeback. What’s the point of arguing with him? I’d lose anyway.
Having surrendered completely, I sent my husbands to safety, then led the Duke forward with Papa and Magnus in tow toward the Duke’s Office. Father, having spent all these years in his position, must have navigated countless treacherous situations, for he didn’t even twitch an eyebrow at the hostage situation ahead. He simply knocked on the office door.
Knock, knock.
“Who is it!”
“The master of this house.”
“Bring Magnus here!”
“I’m on my way. Open the door.”
“Ah… yes, understood!”
Oh no, if I’m already losing the psychological battle before we even start…
Behind the door came the sound of furniture scraping—apparently Yuri had barricaded the entrance. After a prolonged commotion of moving things around, Yuri continued speaking, though the man’s breathing had grown labored from the effort.
“Come in! But only the Duke and Magnus are allowed inside!”
Hmm… a reasonable selection. Magnus naturally had to be admitted since he needed to be returned, and since my abilities had already been demonstrated on that island, it wouldn’t be wise to let me in carelessly. By bringing in someone powerless yet possessing the greatest authority in this household, Yuri would have the advantage in negotiations. At least, that would be true if Father didn’t fall for his own sophistry.
As long as Father doesn’t succumb to his own twisted logic.
“So it’s Magnus. Go on in.”
“Y-yes. I apologize for the trouble our Yuri has caused.”
“It’s fine. Houses tend to fall apart from time to time.”
Father has truly become enlightened. With a hollow expression, Father let Magnus inside, entered himself, and closed the door. I’d already explained the situation at the Magic Tower to him, but anxiety bloomed within me—would he really side with Papa?—so I pressed my ear firmly against the door.
“What are your demands?”
“Return Magnus! And lower the character assessment hurdle according to Magnus’s request! If you don’t—”
“If you don’t. What then.”
“I’ll kill these hostages!”
Ah… Yuri Andreevich, of all the terrible moves you could make…
The moment I heard the man’s demand, shame washed over me so intensely that I covered my face with my hands. Though I couldn’t see inside, the scene was vivid in my mind. By now he was probably threatening Uncle Louis and Benjamin with either a blade or magic, spouting threats about killing them.
If the hostages he’d taken had been nothing more than our household’s milk delivery person, the hostage-taker wouldn’t have found himself in such a disadvantageous position. My heart ached so much for Yuri that a sigh escaped me unbidden.
“Doctor, don’t worry. If it comes to that, I’ll step in myself, so your relatives will be fine.”
“No, sir. That’s not it, Papa.”
That’s not what I mean. I’m trying to tell you that it’s really not what you’re imagining, Papa. But before I can explain the full story, Father’s response comes faster. His voice carries an emotion of profound relief, and he speaks briefly.
“Kill them.”
“…Pardon?”
“I said kill them.”
“Um, well… Pardon?”
So it comes to this after all. Whether Yuri’s soul leaves his body or not, Father laughs heartily and speaks with conviction—words of shocking cruelty.
“To put it plainly, they have no value as hostages.”
Father is so brutally honest that I’m embarrassed on his behalf.

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