Touch My Brother and You Die - Chapter 92

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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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The woman who waved goodbye had already disappeared into the distance, but seeing how much the girl who’d whined about missing her dance with the Crown Prince had grown filled me with unexpected nostalgia.
Yes, that’s right. Time had already passed so much…
“…”
So much time had passed, yet why hadn’t Theodore gotten married?
As I pondered this, irritation bubbled up, and when I glared at him, Theodore cursed at me to stop showing my ugly temper.
I finished my final dance with him in the most perfunctory manner possible—barely a dance at all—then brought Elizabeth to the courtyard in front of the Crown Prince’s Palace as promised, mounted him alone, and smacked the horse’s rump.
I shouted at Elizabeth not to let him down until she’d circled the Royal Palace three times, and she trotted off happily, her hooves clopping rhythmically with the Crown Prince aboard.
He seemed to be cursing at me, but he was too far away for me to hear clearly.
My mood had improved considerably, so I led the Maidservants of the Crown Prince’s Palace to the Guest Room assigned to me. I’d visited this place so often that it felt like my own home now.

◇ ◆ ◇

“Sigh…”
I didn’t want to go home.
I glanced at Aster, who was already sprawled on the bed snoring away, then buried my head in the table.
Normally, I’d have hated returning because work was exhausting, but this time the reason was different. Father had been acting strange, Glen had been giving me pointed looks, and Asterion had been distant, so I dreaded going home.
Father’s strangeness wasn’t a major source of stress since I could just lock myself in the Office, but being caught between Glen and Asterion while working was absolute torture every single day.
The two of them didn’t seem to have a particularly bad relationship, so why was the atmosphere so tense? Or was their relationship actually poor? But if that were the case, they wouldn’t have agreed to work in the same Office in the first place. Was William right that this was my fault? I had no idea what I’d done wrong, but was I primarily to blame?
Working between the two of them made me uncomfortable to begin with, and ever since Glen ate the braised oxtail, he’d been grumbling at me whenever he got bored. Asterion, meanwhile, had stopped initiating conversation with me recently.
Even when we did speak, it was only morning and evening greetings, and the conversations never seemed to extend beyond that. I suspected it was because I’d been too pushy when we went out together before, but since that was clearly my mistake, I couldn’t blame Asterion for it.
After clearing my head and thinking it over, Jack had been right. How could someone who’d never killed before actually do it? They’d naturally hesitate.
So aside from Father, everything else was really just reaping what I’d sown, wasn’t it? I should have asked Glen beforehand whether he could eat braised oxtail.
But don’t people usually eat it? It’s food, after all. And it’s delicious.
Squeak!
As I rolled my head around and sank into thought, the veranda door of the Crown Prince’s Palace Guest Room opened, and a man dressed entirely in black slipped inside. The moment he leisurely removed his mask and I saw his face, I belatedly—
“Ahhhhh!”
screamed, and when I cried out, the man also—
“Ahhhhh!”
shrieked in surprise.
We startled each other with our screams, and in that instant, Aster, who’d been snoring away, jolted upright and lunged at the man. Or rather, tried to.
Even after confirming the man’s face beneath the mask, Aster threw a punch as if it were a mistake, and moments later, his lips made intimate contact with the marble floor.
The man simply hooked Aster’s leg—despite Aster being far larger than him—grabbed the back of his neck, and effortlessly sent him crashing to the ground.
He spun like a squirrel tumbling through a log. Whirled right over.
Aster hit the floor face-first and rolled about with a pained groan. The man barely glanced at him before losing interest, then walked toward me while brushing off his chest.
“Why did you scream so suddenly? You startled me.”
“Because you snuck into the Crown Prince’s Palace Guest Room—not even our own home—under cover of darkness.”
“But I made my presence known and came through the door.”
“Yes, yes, the veranda door was indeed a door. My mistake. It’s all my fault.”
Expecting common sense from Will Brown was my greatest error. After repeating my apologies several times over, I asked Will Brown—the third son among the seven children of William—if he’d like a glass of water.
Since he appeared to have no intention of leaving, the maidservants would surely be startled by his presence, so I couldn’t offer him proper refreshment. But water I could provide, so I asked. The man gratefully accepted and took a seat at the table.
This didn’t seem like it would be a brief visit.
“So, what brings the busy Will Brown all the way here?”
“There appears to be significant personnel changes coming to Chatel Corporation.”
“Hmm….”
That was interesting enough, but was it something he needed to come find me about while I was lounging in the Royal Palace?
As I sat across from Will with my legs crossed, displaying my displeasure, he drained his water glass in one gulp, set it down on the table with a decisive clink, and continued.
“Luke Chatel appears to be returning to his home country.”
“Is that so?”
“Aren’t you quite close with that man, Young Lady?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say we’re that close….”
“You call him in secret every month, sometimes every week, drag him out to dance, take him around, and send him off in secret—and you don’t consider that close?”
“Fine, Luke and I are close.”
This fellow knew everything.
I’d tried to dodge the question, but since he wouldn’t let it go, I just admitted it. Then I cautiously asked if the Duke knew about this. Will said he hadn’t reported it since it was my personal matter.
Phew, thank goodness. I almost lost my dance partner to Father. Luke danced well enough with men too, so if Father found out, he’d definitely claim Luke for himself and take him away. For Luke’s business, dancing attendance on Father would be far more beneficial than on me, so he’d readily switch over.
Well…, if he’s leaving, I won’t be able to spend time with him anymore, let alone with Father….
“I’m simply advising you not to needlessly antagonize Chatel House and to prepare yourself mentally.”
“Prepare myself for what? That man is simply returning to his own home. I should see him off properly. He was just my dance partner, that’s all….”
“I sincerely hope that will be the case.”
I offered him some pastries, but he refused, saying the crumbs bothered him. This fellow was always dashing about in all directions, so it made sense his energy would flag. He said he’d accept candy if I had any.
“I only have cinnamon drops. Is that alright?”
“I like cinnamon.”
Well then, perfect.
I pulled out a cinnamon drop from the little pouch tied to my petticoat and popped it into Will’s mouth. He ate it nicely. Aster always crunches hers so loudly it’s frightening to watch, but he ate his so politely.
“Speaking of which, didn’t the Duchess pass by recently?”
“Huh? Yes.”
“Then Asterion’s biological mother must be nearby as well. Be careful.”
“?”
Asterion’s mother is alive? But what does that have to do with my mother?
I’d never heard this story before, I didn’t understand the connection between the two, and therefore couldn’t fathom why I should be cautious. So I pressed him for details, but the man simply stared at me as if he himself didn’t understand.
“The Duke hasn’t told you anything?”
“No!”
“Then I won’t add to it either.”
No! Tell me! You can tell me! Will, tell me before you go!
I tried to grab and hold Will down to hear the rest, but the man quickly stood up, stepped hard on Aster who was still sprawled on the floor on his way out, and left through the veranda.
I thought Aster might at least grab his foot, but the woman had her head buried in the floor and seemed to have been unconscious the whole time. She got up with a bewildered expression and looked around frantically.
…Aster, you’re bleeding from both nostrils.
“Will Brown! Where is that bastard?! Will Brown!”
“He just left. You trampled him quite thoroughly.”
“Damn it!”
Stop making a fuss and wipe your nosebleed instead.
I pulled out a handkerchief and unfurled it with a flourish, then grasped Aster’s nose. Since William had already left and it seemed appropriate to call for a maidservant, I shouted to see if anyone was outside. Two maidservants who had been waiting for a summons entered and attended to us.
Being well-trained, they didn’t ask how this had happened, but when I casually mentioned that I’d gotten restless feet while jumping on the bed and ended up hitting my head on the floor, they nodded in deep understanding.
In any other place it might be strange, but at the Crown Prince’s Palace, Aster’s image was already… well, what could you expect?
When I returned tomorrow, it seemed I’d have quite a lot to do besides work.
I’d need to console Jack, Glen, and Asterion, and I should also ask why I need to be cautious about Asterion’s biological mother… and, while I’m at it, I should ask about Mother too…
Truth be told, I know nothing about events before I turned sixteen, so I’ve been actively avoiding any topics related to childhood until now. But fainting and rolling my eyes just from seeing Mother once—that does seem rather odd, doesn’t it?
If Father finds it strange, I’ll just blurt out that it’s amnesia and ask away. Father has a flexible mind, so he’ll probably think it’s possible. When he thought I’d forgotten all my successor training, he calmly accepted it and started drilling me from scratch anyway.
I decided to worry about tomorrow’s matters tomorrow and went to sleep under the covers once Aster’s nosebleed stopped.
Planning to return home early the next morning, I had someone prepare a carriage, only to find an axe embedded directly in the center of our family carriage’s coat of arms from yesterday’s ride. So I grabbed the axe with both hands and grunted as I wrenched it free.
I hurled what I was holding straight through a window near the Entrance Hall of the Crown Prince’s Palace, and the sound of shattering glass rang out. His Highness bellowed that he’d charge me with regicide, but I pretended not to hear and went home.
Who told him to lay hands on someone else’s private property? If that sleepy fellow had been awake at this hour, the reason would’ve been obvious.

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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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