Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 85

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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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After finishing my work, I had intended to seek out Asterion alone, but Jack threw such a tantrum about following me even unto death that I ended up heading to the Annex Building with him instead.
The Annex Building, which served as Asterion’s residence, had its entrance door smashed to pieces and holes punched through the brick walls—so I summoned workers to have it repaired.
From what I could infer, Asterion had slammed the door shut and stormed upstairs after hearing my instructions, but had the building truly deteriorated so badly that a child’s light touch could cause such destruction?
Perhaps Father and I had both been neglectful of Leon all this time. We had never once arranged for repairs despite his residence falling into such a state.
“I need to have a serious word with the Annex Building staff. How could they let the structure decay like this without reporting it?”
“Please, Young Lady. Even a clear sky can bring a sudden thunderbolt.”
Thunderbolt? Nonsense. It was simply the fault of those who failed to maintain the building properly.
Worried that Leon might have been living uncomfortably all this time, I hurried up the stairs.
I knocked on the door to Leon’s room and asked if Asterion was there, receiving an affirmative response. Fortunately, he seemed willing to answer, so he wasn’t sulking to that degree.
“Jack, aren’t you planning to wait outside?”
“Oh, why would I miss such an entertaining spectacle?”
“Then don’t smile like you did before.”
“I’m so exhausted I couldn’t smile even if I tried.”
That would do.
After giving Jack a stern warning, I opened the door and entered Leon’s room. He was still absorbed in his doll collection—dolls of various sizes were lined up in neat rows, and on part of the display shelf sat perfume bottles with dates written on them.
…Though now that I think about it, I believe several of those handkerchiefs are ones I had lost.
“Now he doesn’t even bother hiding it. How repulsive.”
“Jack. Silence.”
Asterion was merely playing with dolls—there was no need for Jack to keep making pointed remarks about it.
I firmly grasped Jack’s mouth and twisted it shut, then turned toward the bed where Leon lay sprawled.
The boy had grown considerably in the past year, making the bed look quite small. If the bed didn’t fit him properly, he should have simply asked for a replacement. His feet dangling off the edge made for an undignified sight.
“Asterion, Asterion, do wake up.”
“Why do you keep calling me Asterion?”
“What else would I call Asterion but Asterion?”
“You called me Leon before.”
I apologize—looking at your size now, I simply cannot bring myself to say “Leon” anymore. It’s just… how should I put it? Leon carries the impression of something small and diminutive.
“Now that Asterion has grown so much, how could I address you as though you were still a child?”
“You simply find it repulsive and don’t want to call me that, don’t you?”
This boy’s perceptiveness was truly sharp. I felt a twinge of guilt internally, but I continued speaking as though nothing were amiss.
“I suppose I was too harsh with my words. When I said repulsive, what I meant was…”
How could I possibly soften such a statement?
I considered how to rephrase “repulsive” in a way that wouldn’t hurt Asterion’s feelings, but finding no suitable alternative, I simply reiterated what I had said before.
“You’ve grown now too. When adults embrace each other carelessly, it looks improper to others.”
“…”
“I myself am on the verge of marriage. No matter how close siblings may be, those who don’t understand the situation could spread rumors, and furthermore…”
“That statement…”
Oh my, you startled me.
Asterion, who had been lying face-down, suddenly sprang to his feet and knelt before me. Even kneeling, he was enormous. When had he grown so much? The mysteries of human development, truly. Compared to a year ago, he seemed to have expanded by roughly 1.5 times in both height and width—didn’t he?
“Do you mean I appear masculine to you?”
Uh… well…
My focus seemed slightly off, but as he gazed at me with sparkling eyes, I couldn’t bring myself to deny it. Besides, if I contradicted him, he might sulk and bury his head in the mattress again.
“That’s… right? Yes. Exactly. You do look like a man. That’s it.”
“Truly?”
This boy was overwhelming. He grasped my hand to pull himself up—don’t thrust your face at me like that.
But for his sake, I could manage a little lip service. Words cost nothing, after all.
“Indeed. I hold you dear, but when a man with a head even larger than mine presses close, it becomes rather burdensome and embarrassing.”
“…! Even embarrassing, you say!”
“Yes, yes—when a silver-haired, handsome man embraces me, it feels awkward and embarrassing.”
“…! Then your heart races too!?”
“Yes, it does race.”
My heart races from fear that I’ll lose my grip while holding him and we’ll both tumble backward to a tragic end. Every time, my heart pounds so violently I fear it might seize entirely.
“Hehe, then I have no choice. I shall exercise restraint.”
Asterion, seeming in better spirits, nearly threw his arms around me before catching himself and simply pressed his face against my hand instead. At least the boy had some capacity to learn.
After that, I exchanged some pleasantries, mentioned that I would be bringing in new furniture soon and proceeding with repairs to the Annex Building, then took my leave.
I had already confirmed his promise to return to regular work tomorrow, so there was nothing more to do here. I left the Annex Building intending to return to my room, rest, bathe, and sleep—but before we parted, Jack Brown offered a cryptic remark.
“Is digging graves a hobby of yours?”
“Making graves is your job, not mine.”
“You don’t understand figures of speech?”
What do you mean I don’t understand figures of speech! I studied advanced Aleine Kingdom language and literature for years!
As I flared up in anger, Jack Brown
“Live that way your whole life.”
left with only those parting words before clocking out.
Couldn’t he at least explain the context before leaving? Infuriating man.

◇ ◆ ◇

The wedding ring I had been eagerly awaiting finally arrived. I needed to show it off at the Royal Palace and couldn’t have it interfere with my work, so I had a special order made—a two-carat teardrop diamond ring, neither too large nor too small.
I slipped it on secretly when Glen wasn’t looking, and the cutting was absolutely exquisite. Sparkle from this angle, sparkle from that angle. Even someone ignorant of value would recognize it as a possession befitting someone of considerable worth, so Glen wouldn’t fall victim to rumors of being mistreated after marrying into the Duke’s House.
The amount I spent to obtain this, the years I waited to find an artisan whose schedule was fully booked—it was all substantial.
Satisfied beyond measure with this purchase worth the wait, I immediately summoned Ram Bart to have wedding invitations printed. The Duke had recently called her to help send 2,401 letters of good fortune to the King, and she had whined about feeling like she’d die from exhaustion, but that wasn’t my concern, so I forced her to labor.
She should focus on her assigned duties instead of meddling in those two’s games. The Duke probably coaxed Ram Bart into pranks because he didn’t want to waste ink on such frivolous matters. Seeing Father engage in such pointless activities suggested he was quite stressed about my wedding. I needed to relieve stress somehow—was this perhaps a case where the King had been wrongly implicated?
Other people rest for a month before their wedding, receiving skincare treatments and traveling, but what kind of fate is this for me?
“At least I’m off tomorrow. Hehe.”
I sipped my coffee and wielded my pen without pause. Once I finished this, I’d sleep all day tomorrow. With all preparations complete—from venue decoration to guest guidance, security, and event coordination—all I needed to do now was rest well and show up.
If a Rocksburg-style wedding was this exhausting, I should have just filed the marriage registration without holding a ceremony. What kind of wedding requires an orchestra, a dance hall, three bridal gowns for costume changes, a chef capable of preparing Rocksburg House’s traditional multi-course cuisine, and even an invited singer?
Moreover, this wasn’t a problem confined to our household alone. With so many people gathering, shops throughout Rocksburg Territory launched massive sales to commemorate our wedding.
The desire to clear inventory and empty others’ wallets while people gathered was very characteristic of our territorial residents, but this caused security to deteriorate, and with the chaos came those attempting to embezzle goods, dodge taxes, and commit fraud. I’d have to return to work immediately after the wedding.
How unfortunate. What newlywed bride goes to work in her wedding dress?
“You’re still here?”
I felt like I’d heard that before.
Lost in melancholy contemplation of my misfortune, gazing out the dark window, Glen Hofen entered the office carrying an armload of files.
“Has the groom arrived?”
“And you, Rosalite, are the bride.”
“That’s not something a bride and groom should say to each other. What are all those files?”
The man who had dropped the files onto my desk avoided my gaze, stammering before finally revealing in a very small voice what he’d brought.
“The statistics on tribute payments from the Duke’s cadet branches over the past ten years… I thought I might review them…”
“That doesn’t need to be done now, does it? Isn’t it enough to look at it before year-end?”
“That’s true, but…”
The man hesitated before finally sitting at the desk and opening the files.
Witnessing the true nature of the human Excel in action could be called endearing, but something felt off. Of all the days available, why today, right before the wedding, was he creating work like this?
“Is this cold feet?”
“…”
“Do you regret marrying me, or something like that?”
“No.”
Phew, thank goodness. If he said he didn’t want to marry, I would have blackmailed him with leverage. After all, the method to control him was simple, and I already had a hostage in hand—confining him to the Duke’s House would be effortless if I chose, but if he surrendered himself willingly, I was grateful.
“It’s just… I’ve been thinking whether this is really okay…”
“Thinking?”
“On a rational level, I’ve never even held hands with you, never been on a date, and it’s unclear whether you have any affection for me at all. I’m questioning whether marrying someone like that is truly the right thing to do.”
This fellow had quite a lot pent up.
Each of Glen’s words pierced my heart like a dagger, leaving me with nothing but a dry cough. I pretended the coffee I was drinking had gone down the wrong way, coughing and striking my chest, then dabbed my mouth with a handkerchief and spoke to the man calmly.
“Why would you think such things? No matter how much I need a marriage partner, I’m not so insensitive as to promise a lifetime with someone I don’t care for.”
“It’s not a lifetime though. You know it’s an automatic contract renewal every two years.”
“Ahem! Cough! Cough! Hack!”
He really leaves no opening. That’s precisely why I decided to marry him.
Whether I was cornered or not, Glen’s gaze toward me was cold, so I had to come up with something to salvage the situation. This was the moment for my composure to shine.
I set down my coffee cup, steadied my voice, and spoke with confidence. This was an answer I’d been preparing in advance, just in case I faced such accusations.
“You’ve never been on a date? We’re in the office together every single day—isn’t that an office date?”
“….”
“….”
Why had his gaze grown even colder than before?
The way Glen Hofen looked at me was unmistakably not the way one regards another person. It was the gaze reserved for something far beneath even livestock.
Flustered by my apparent misstep, I watched as the man released a deep sigh and opened a file, muttering something about getting back to work.
“What could I possibly expect from you, Rosalite? Never mind.”
This man’s contempt for me ran far deeper than I’d realized.
Stung by his words, I rose from my seat and moved toward Glen.
“….”
Yes, I had intended to leave.
But I took a detour to the window for a deep breath, circled aimlessly around the center of the Office, and finally approached the spot where Glen sat, clearing my throat awkwardly.
“You there. Look at this for a moment.”
Ahem. If there was no way to arrange a date immediately, then this was my only remaining option.

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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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