Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 257

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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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Time froze in the Office. Father stared at me with wide eyes, wondering if I’d lost my mind, while Mother dropped the stack of documents from her shoulders with a clatter and asked what I’d just said.
I didn’t answer. Instead, I walked forward silently and embraced her.
“Wh-what? W-what are you—?”
“Wait, no—!”
Did you notice, Duke? But it’s already too late.
I lacked the courage to look Mother in the face and speak, so I buried my face against her chest instead.
“Mother, I love you.”
“Wh-what?!”
“Without you, Mother, I would die of loneliness.”
“Hic!”
“Even if I become the Duke, please don’t leave this place.”
“Ugh, u-ugh!”
I said it! Finally said it! I felt a weight lift from my shoulders, and a sigh escaped naturally—but then the Duchess pulled me into her embrace and gradually tightened her arms. Oh no. Now that I think about it, she once broke Father’s ribs hugging him. Surely she’s not losing control of her strength now?
“Target designation, physical enhancement, release!”
“Ack! Aaaack!”
I’m dying. I can’t breathe. Even with physical enhancement active, this is unbearable. Father endures this every time? What kind of person is he?
“No! Maria! Don’t overdo it!”
“Ugh! U-ugh, R-Rosie!”
“That’s all an act! If I need to, I can call you Mother a hundred times!”
“M-Mother! R-Rosie!”
Mother’s sobs mangled her pronunciation, yet Father understood perfectly. Since I was already committed to this, I decided to try the same words on Father. It probably wouldn’t work as well as it had with Mother, but I held onto a faint hope.
“Father, I love you.”
“I already know.”
“Without you, Father, I would die of loneliness.”
“Then die.”
“What kind of person is this?”
“If you’re going to fall for such a cheap provocation, don’t bother starting.”
Tch, Father’s immune to this. That’s our Rocksburg Duke for you. Meanwhile, Mother held me like a teddy bear and swung me around here and there, then stopped crying and spoke to Eddie.
“Eddie, let’s keep living here. Come to think of it, I can’t live without you, but I can’t live without Rosie either.”
“When did you say you loved me most?”
“But Eddie is 1 Eddie, while Rosie is 0.5 Eddie!”
Wow, that logic is something else…. I marveled at this miraculous arithmetic while dangling in mid-air, already devising a strategy to persuade Father.
“Give up, Eddie. If it’s the Duke’s child, then that child is ultimately Rocksburg. The world outside the Mansion is dangerous.”
“No. With Maria here, it’s fine.”
“I’ll submit a report on how many times Mother nearly killed me while raising me.”
“….”
You don’t know because you were never subjected to it during such a vulnerable period. When Maria’s name comes up, even my Predecessor still shudders, and I myself flinch occasionally, the memories etched into my very body. The exact count would be calculated mechanically if I submitted a question through our exchange diary with my Predecessor, and they would detail every single dangerous moment.
He pretends not to be, but he’s secretly sulking about everything, storing it all away. It’s exactly like the Duke in that regard.
“Five years old. Only until then.”
So Father was anxious too. He must have calculated the age at which the child wouldn’t die in Mother’s hands, proposing how much longer I’d stay at the Mansion. But I wasn’t satisfied with merely five years.
“Sixteen. I need to learn everything the Duke’s Household has to teach before I’m shipped off.”
“That’s exclusive education for the heir. The next Duke after you is Elpium, isn’t she?”
“Then just keep being Duke and hand it to your third child.”
“Ten years old.”
“Deal.”
“Agreement made.”
Excellent! For the next ten years, I won’t lack for helping hands! By then, Eri will be old enough to help with chores too, so Father can go wherever—Largol or Cerepia, anywhere.
I burst into triumphant laughter and did a samba of joy with Mother. Since we both had plenty of work and mountains of titles to transfer, I’d set the handover period at six months, then hold the inauguration ceremony right after.
From the moment Father and I reached our agreement, things proceeded at lightning speed. After discussing the details of designating the inauguration date as a Rocksburg holiday, we each returned to our duties. So now, was there just one major matter left to resolve immediately?
I brought Aster, who’d come to work, and sought out Leon, who was still engaged in social activities. Before Leon, who was employing every charm he possessed, Count Crowley stood motionless, but his outward expression was that of a twisted-minded curmudgeon, regardless of what lay beneath.
“That’s enough, Leon. You’ve done your part.”
“No, Sister, I still—”
“You are the younger brother of Rosalite Rocksburg. If you lower yourself more than necessary, people will have things to say about me.”
“S-Sister!”
This brat must have found it incredibly difficult to appease that curmudgeon. Leon let out a wail and nestled into my arms.
“I gave the order out of necessity, but my heart isn’t at ease either. You understand, don’t you?”
“Yes, Sister. But I’m fine. Please use me as much as you need. For you, I would even face death.”
“Don’t say such frightening things. What would I do with my life without you?”
“Kgh! I love you, Sister! Sister! Siiister! Waaah!”
This boy, speak properly. Leon, treating himself as little Leon, curled up and burrowed deeply into my arms, rubbing his head against me. If I hadn’t enhanced my body earlier, I would’ve fallen over.
“I’ll be direct, Count Crowley. Give me the funds to run the Telecommunications Bureau.”
“So the brat finally reveals his true intentions.”
“You knew all along and kept your mouth shut until now, Count. That’s quite something.”
“My own mother crawled on the floors of this house sixty years ago, you fool. Where do you think that bloodline would go?”
This old man is cunning. So he knew all along what I was scheming and came here, keeping quiet just to spend time with Leon.
“I’ll give you as much money as you need. But I’m taking Leon to Crowley.”
“Asterion is my younger brother. How could my brother go anywhere without his sister?”
“Your younger brother is in Maria’s womb. Leon is my grandson. I’ve even gotten confirmation from Eddie and Maria. What brother are you talking about? By blood relation, you two could even marry.”
“No. Leon is my younger brother.”
“Asterion. If you transfer your family register to Crowley, I’ll push you as that brat’s third husband. When I say I’ll support the budget for establishing the Telecommunications Bureau, you’ll be delighted and accept it.”
Ha, so this old man quietly helped with Mansion affairs, but he was actually observing how this neighborhood’s ecosystem operated.
However, unfortunately, this was Count Crowley’s miscalculation—he’d only grasped the surface of Leon. Did he think this boy wanted to marry me? Not a chance. This brat’s obsession couldn’t be wrapped in something as pretty as love. It was something deeper, stickier, and far more unpleasant.
“Leon. Tell the Count: do you want to become my husband, or do you want to remain my younger brother?”
Count Crowley looked triumphant, and in Leon’s eyes as he gazed at me, the madness of Diamante flickered for a moment. The brat laughed, haha, haha, staring into empty space, then split his lips into a grin.
“What are you saying? Of course being a brother is the best. What’s a husband? Those men become strangers once you divorce. But a brother is Sister’s second-degree relative. Even if I die, I’ll always be Sister’s second-degree relative. Death can’t separate us. Those men are nothing but tools for producing tiny Sisters. I’ll live happily surrounded by Sister and 0.5-Sisters until I die. No one can interfere. No one. No one. No one. No one. Whoever it is. Whoever. Hehe, hehehehe.”
Is the term 0.5 trending in the Mansion these days? Anyway, this is getting unpleasant. Step back.
As Asterion, with those mad eyes, started drooling, I pulled him away. Leon suddenly came to his senses, apologized, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I didn’t want to resort to such measures, but if the Count were to die an untimely death now, all his assets would revert to Rocksburg.”
“No. I knew Edward would pull something like that, so I wrote a will leaving everything to the Royal Family after my death. I just didn’t expect that brat Eddie to make his move first.”
“Writing a will is cowardly!”
“Who are you to talk, you devious little brat!”
“Why give the money to the Royal Family? Why not help the gorillas in the Southern Forest instead!”
“I already wrote that down and regretted it!”
“Let’s rewrite it! Only the most recently updated will is recognized!”
“Fine!”
Phew, I nearly let Count Crowley’s fortune fall into Alain’s hands. I set up a tea table in the garden and became the notary for Count Crowley’s new will.
Upon Count Crowley’s death, all of his assets, including his domain, shall be donated entirely to the gorilla conservation project in the Southern Forest.
Excellent. This would expand the gorillas’ habitat. The Southern Forest has been shrinking year by year due to Masujung Mine development, so wildlife habitats are disappearing and animals keep appearing near settlements. We can’t just hunt and kill them all, so we need to restore the environment we’ve damaged.
“If you’ve given up on Leon, give me the money now.”
“I haven’t given up.”
“Then just give me the money.”
“Is money all you ever ask for?”
“Then lend it to me.”
“You annoy me.”
“You annoy me too, Count.”
At this point, there’s no choice but to negotiate properly. Not having a monopoly stings, but this becoming a state enterprise with the Royal Family’s involvement is six times worse. And the other party is none other than the Rocksburg Branch Family, connected through Leon’s grandfather.
Immediate seizure is impossible, but Lucilucil advised that viewing this matter from a long-term, macroscopic perspective, waiting would ultimately benefit me.
If I gathered all the funds and started the business alone, no matter how great the profits later, I’d bear all the burdens along the way. But if I collaborate with Crowley, I’d split the profits but also share the work. And decades later, when the company grows and Crowley falls into Leon’s hands, that bloated megacorporation would be entirely mine.
Don’t chase immediate gains—wait. If I’m going to wait anyway, I must steel myself to wait twenty, thirty years. These were the words of Lucilucil Aidemock Rocksburg, the master of patience, and I chose to follow them.

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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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