Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 70

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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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Three days had passed since I brought Glen from the Beloche Territory, yet he showed no signs of returning. He claimed he’d help with my work while he was here at the Duke’s Mansion, and we’d been laboring together in my office for several days now. His demeanor seemed unchanged from before, and yet I found myself inexplicably uncomfortable in his presence.
What could it be? This sensation of being glared at intensely from some unseen corner. Moreover, whenever Leon occasionally entered the office with snacks, Glen would threaten him by striking his cane against the floor with sharp cracks, warning him not to interrupt the adults’ work.
I wish he would simply express whatever troubles him in words. It’s not as though I wouldn’t listen to what Glen has to say.
His usual discomfort was manageable, but whenever Leon’s name came up, his displeasure became remarkably pronounced. I found myself wondering if perhaps something had occurred involving Asterion. Then suddenly, my body lifted into the air.
I had been sitting in my office chair just moments before—what on earth was happening?
“Young Lady. The Royal carriage has arrived.”
Aster, you’ve finally learned!
Aster had spotted the Royal carriage through the window before I did and moved to scoop me up and run. In response, I gripped Aster’s body firmly, and as she leaped down the staircase, I braced myself against the weightlessness of that moment and prepared for the impact that would follow.
As the floor resonated with a heavy thud, I caught sight of Father rushing toward us from the distance. This time, I was considerably faster than him.
It’s somewhat awkward to say, but judging by this reaction speed… truly, William’s… retirement timeline…
“Young Lady. We’ve arrived.”
Already?
Previously, in terms of pure speed alone, Aster seemed unable to match William, but… you’ve grown considerably, Aster.
I felt a slight swell of emotion as I received the letters delivered directly from the Royal Palace. After a cursory examination, I found no invitation cards to banquets, which was somewhat disappointing, but since the news I’d been awaiting for so long had finally arrived, I called for Father to share this good tidings.
“Duke. It appears the Crown Prince’s matchmaking appointment has finally been scheduled.”
This news was surely something Father had been hoping for as well. I wondered which family’s candidate the Crown Prince had agreed to meet first.
Secretly hoping it would be Princess Natalie of the Nimerunia Duchy, I tore open the parchment, only to find an unfamiliar name listed alongside the appointment date.
“…Who is Irini Mikea?”
Since she wasn’t in my database, I asked Father, and from the lips of the Rocksburg Duke, who maintained a far more extensive database than I did, flowed information about this woman’s identity.
“Irini Mikea. The Eighth Princess of the Largol Empire, if I’m not mistaken. She should be eighteen this year.”
…Why?
Unable to discern the Crown Prince’s reasoning for such a decision, I sought Father’s guidance, and without hesitation, he provided an answer.
“Since His Highness has made such a show of disliking the Four Great Ducal Houses, he’s preemptively chosen someone after realizing that all our recommendations had connections to the ducal families.”
“That can’t be right. His Highness isn’t that clever.”
“You’re oddly harsh in your assessments of His Highness alone.”
“Well, what could that young man possibly understand?”
“You’re even younger than he is.”
As Father chuckled and gave my head a firm tap, a small commotion erupted between Aster and William.
It seemed that Aster, reacting reflexively to Father’s tap on my head, had shown intent to attack, and upon noticing this, William grew greatly angered and struck the back of Aster’s head sharply.
“Have you lost your mind? This is the Duke, the master of this household.”
“…I shall correct my behavior.”
Why did you do that, Aster? This man is our Father…
Taking full responsibility for having taught her poorly, I apologized to Father and lowered my head, whereupon Aster finally showed signs of remorse and bowed her head in contrition.
While it’s good that this child has grown remarkably stronger in this iteration, it’s troublesome if she’s ready to bite anyone. I’ll need to either bring Jack to formal occasions or bring Aster with Jack as her companion going forward.
“Keep her cautious for now. It won’t be long before that position becomes yours anyway.”
“With all due respect, Duke, there are still ten more years until your retirement.”
“Ten years passes quickly.”
No, I wasn’t planning to go.
I’ve been living diligently for decades now, but those easy ten years simply wouldn’t pass.
Swallowing my tears inwardly, I answered that I would await Father’s retirement with a joyful heart. Father elaborated on how he had meticulously designed his life after passing the Duke’s position to me, mentioning that he was already constructing a house after purchasing an entire beach in the lower regions of Edaneli Territory.
I hope that dream comes true for you, I replied mechanically, then steered the conversation back to the main topic—discussing how to handle the Crown Prince’s marriage proposal.
Though it was unfortunate for Theodore, as a person of Rocksburg, I could not stand idly by and watch our nation’s next king succeed with the Largol Empire’s princess.
His Highness must marry Princess Natalie. He absolutely must.
Father and I made a firm resolution and began researching methods to sabotage this proposal.

◇ ◆ ◇

To cut to the result, I took on the role of obstructing the proposal between the Crown Prince and Princess Irini Mikea. The relatively idle heirs of the Four Great Ducal Houses gathered and agreed to select one representative to go and complete the mission, and we settled the matter through a duel.
…,
Rather, we made a promise to complete the mission, held a duel, and I ultimately emerged victorious.

Our duel took place one quiet night at Chatel Sparand, located on the outskirts of Rocksburg Territory.
Among the Four Great Ducal Houses, only three held the title of ducal heir: Rosalite of Rocksburg Territory, Dorothy of Edaneli Territory, and Anton of Bienar Territory. After meeting at the hot spring and promoting camaraderie by sweating together, we conducted the purpose of this gathering just before midnight.
After discussing among ourselves to ensure fairness, we settled on indoor archery as our competition. In common parlance, it’s also called indoor archery.
Since none of us were accustomed to strenuous work and had never trained with a bow, we thought this would be fair. We had Luke, the spa owner, procure bows and set up targets.
Standing beside Dorothy and Anton, nocking an arrow, I nearly died trying to suppress my laughter before shooting.
These foolish people—they had no idea I was a former Korean and yet they challenged me to an archery competition.
However, whether due to Duke Bienar’s genetic influence, Anton unexpectedly showed talent in hitting the center of the target.
Dorothy gave up after three shots, but Anton performed so well that I nearly lost, until Jack Brown’s underhanded interference allowed me to achieve the highest score. Anton expressed his dissatisfaction and cursed me as a cowardly Rocksburg.
No, it wasn’t a curse. Calling a Rocksburg person cowardly—isn’t that the highest praise?
I bowed deeply as thanks for the compliment, then teased them by saying I was grateful they let me win before heading back to the hot spring with Dorothy for another soak.

And so time flowed onward, bringing us to this very day.
“An island, you say?”
Yes, Leon.
More precisely, Rioka Island—a Royal possession. It lay five kilometers northeast of the Bienar Territory’s tourist port, an inhabited island renowned for its pristine sandy beaches and vibrant coral reefs, with waters said to be breathtakingly beautiful.
It was also the meeting place personally selected by the Crown Prince himself.
“You mean to say the Crown Prince and my sister will spend the night on an island where ferries run only twice daily?”
“Your words are strange. His Highness’s attendants and my guards will accompany us, and the Imperial Princess will also be coming from the Empire.”
“Either way, you’re saying my sister will sleep under the same roof as His Highness in such a remote place.”
“Indeed.”
“That’s unacceptable.”
“It is acceptable.”
“No, it absolutely is not.”
Well, it is acceptable, isn’t it?
I’d already secured Father’s permission, defeated the other ducal heirs in combat, and my fiancé working beyond that door raised no objections—so why were you making such a fuss?
Leon had arrived at the office as I’d commanded, and while taking a brief respite from my work, I had Lily prepare refreshments before summoning Glen Hofen, who had been laboring in the adjacent room.
Since Leon had been singing his tiresome refrain about not going to that island, I seated Glen beside me for support and jabbed him repeatedly in the ribs—yet the man, for reasons unknown, wore a displeased expression and uttered the very same words as Leon.
“That’s unacceptable.”
“Why must you do this as well, Glen?”
“Men and women must maintain propriety.”
“You do seem fond of that particular phrase.”
“In my assessment, Dorothy would be the most suitable. Entrust the matter to her.”
“I refuse.”
“Yet you’ll decide as you please anyway—so why ask for my opinion at all!”
Why must he lose his temper again like this!
As Glen shrieked in his characteristic manner, I hastily covered my ears, whereupon Asterion, seated directly across from me, crossed his legs with elegant grace and spoke in honeyed tones.
“Are you quite all right, sister? Glen is being rather excessive. How can one simply explode in anger like that? Look—you’ve startled her, haven’t you?”
“Character-disordered fool.”
“…What did you just say?”
“I said nothing. My legs became inconvenient one day without warning—has Leon’s hearing suddenly become impaired as well?”
“Sister, you heard that just now, didn’t you? This man insulted me!”
What? What did he say? My ears were covered, so I couldn’t hear his quieter words—had Glen said something?
When I answered thus, Glen chuckled softly, gently lowered my hands from my ears, and assured me it was nothing of consequence.
Well, if Glen says it’s nothing, then it must be nothing!
“Heh!”
“You seem quite fond of that phrase yourself, Leon.”
“In any case, I am opposed! Why should my sister go to such a place!”
“I’ve already packed all my belongings, and I called you here to ask you to manage my duties while I’m away.”
“If all you need is someone to create obstacles, I can do that. I’ll go instead.”
“Absolutely not.”
Having heard something truly horrifying, I widened my eyes as I spoke, and Leon clamped his mouth shut, falling into an awkward silence.

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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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