Chapter 23: Chapter 23

For a moment, Ferdi’s expression hardened when Tiel grabbed his hand.

He turned his head and looked down at the tiny girl holding onto him.

Still gripping his hand, Tiel carefully continued.

“Oraboni isn’t dangerous, so… could you come with me?”

“…Hmm.”

How strange.

Just a moment ago, he had thought of her as nothing but a bothersome nuisance. And yet, for some reason… he didn’t feel like rejecting her request.

“What about me, then?”@@novelbin@@

Ludian, looking displeased, protested.

Tiel hesitated for a moment before grabbing Ludian’s hand as well.

“Then, Ludian Oraboni too…”

“No, Tiel. Ludian has things to do. I’ll go instead.”

Yes, this was all to keep an eye on her.

Ferdi gently pried Ludian’s sleeve out of Tiel’s grasp, his tone light and kind.

“What? Hey, I don’t have anything—”

“Don’t you have an assignment from the academy? Something about ability utilization? It looked like there was quite a bit of work. Wouldn’t it be better to get a head start?”

“…You bastard.”

Ludian looked like he was about to start a fight right then and there. But in the end, he scowled and accepted the reasoning—reluctantly. Because, unfortunately, Ferdi wasn’t wrong.

“Alright, let’s go, Tiel. Careful as you get up.”

Completely ignoring Ian, Ferdi took Tiel’s tiny hand and helped her to her feet.

Tiel’s face brightened as she successfully secured permission. She beamed, nodding enthusiastically.

“Yes!”

“…Unbelievable.”

Ian shot Ferdi an exasperated look.

But Ferdi paid him no mind. Instead, he tidied Tiel’s bonnet and dress before turning to a maid.

“Is the reception room prepared?”

Meanwhile

“Tch, what the hell is his problem?”

Ludian grumbled, shrugging his shoulders as he flipped through pages of parchment.

They were pristine sheets, without a single drop of ink on them. But despite the untouched state of his assignment, Ludian had no intention of picking up his pen anytime soon.

“…That bastard Ferdi.”

Ferdi and Ludian were twins.

Which meant they knew each other well.

No matter how skilled Ferdi was at hiding his emotions, he couldn’t fool Ludian’s eyes.

“What an idiot.”

Ludian sneered, recalling the moment they first received the news.

"…Who did you say arrived?"

That day, at the academy, when they received a letter.

The message from Asterian stated that the little sister they had believed to be stillborn alongside their mother, Lena, was alive. She was at the estate, and they were to return immediately.

But nowhere in that letter was their mother’s name mentioned.

Because their mother had truly passed away seven years ago.

A miracle had occurred—their supposedly dead sister had returned.

But their mother… she was still gone. That fact remained unchanged.

She had died giving birth. And yet—

Ludian felt no resentment.

Of course not. It wasn’t her fault.

A younger sister. Their younger sister. How precious, how adorable must she be?

Ludian had wanted to meet her as soon as possible.

Excited beyond words, he and Ferdi immediately climbed into the carriage bound for the Asterian estate.

Even inside the carriage, the only thing they talked about was their little sister.

Ludian had asked in an eager voice—

"Hey, Ferdi. What do you think? You always said you wanted a little sister."

"Yeah, I did. That’s why I’m happy. A little sister…."

How cute would she be?

Ferdi had mumbled, his cheeks faintly flushed.

His voice had held a rare sense of anticipation.

The two of them had arrived at the estate, their hearts brimming with excitement.

And then—

"Hello."

Something felt… off.

"What the hell is wrong with this guy?"

Despite how much he had anticipated this moment, Ferdi’s gaze turned cold the moment he laid eyes on Tiel.

Though he quickly returned to his usual smiling expression, he couldn’t fool his own eyes.

Ludian, watching from the side, found it odd.

Is he disappointed?

Because she was a mutant with the fur of a Snow Leopard and the eyes of a Black Leopard? Ferdi was the type to obsess over such things, so it wouldn’t be surprising.

But to Ludian, it didn’t matter at all. Tiel was so unbearably cute that nothing else could possibly be a flaw.

So, Ludian stopped paying attention to Ferdi altogether.

Or rather, to be more precise—he lost interest.

Because from the moment he saw her, his entire focus had been on Tiel.

She was small. She was adorable. And on top of that, she was a genius who had awakened the light ability…

From the moment Karsus told him about her power, Ludian had wanted to get closer to Tiel as soon as possible.

The only thought in his head was how much he wanted to squeeze her fluffy little cheeks.

But then—

"Your sister is shy around new people, so mind your words. Don’t approach her for the time being."

That damn order from Karsus had banned Ludian from interacting with Tiel.

Not just from touching her, but from even meeting her.

Ludian had protested, but there was no fighting Karsus.

So, he decided to just ignore the rule and secretly linger around Tiel’s surroundings.

The moment they met, he planned to tell her once again— “I’m your brother.”

He had loitered outside her room, even used his ability to climb up to the second-floor window and peek inside.

Of course, he got caught every time and was scolded.

But that didn’t matter.

Because Tiel was really, really small and cute. And for that, it was absolutely worth getting in trouble.

The unexpected thing, however—

“Hey, why the hell are you following me?”

Ferdi, who had clearly been disappointed in Tiel, kept following him around.

He loitered outside the room with him. He peeked at Tiel from behind the rose bushes with him.

Ludian knew Ferdi well.

And he was certain—Ferdi did not like Tiel.

So why was he acting like this?

Is he worried she’ll take the family head position from him?

Not that it mattered to Ludian.

The Asterian heir had always been the eldest son—Ferdi Asterian.

The title of Patriarch would go to Ferdi, and everyone accepted that as an undisputed fact.

However, now that it was known that their new little sister possessed the light ability…

There was a high probability that Ferdi’s position would be threatened.

The light ability was that extraordinary.

So extraordinary that… perhaps even their grandfather might consider handing over the heir position to Tiel.

Is that why Ferdi doesn’t like her?

“You know,” Ludian suddenly whispered, a sly smirk on his face. “You clearly don’t like Tiel. So why are you following me around? One big brother is enough for this body—I’d be just fine on my own, so if you don’t like her, why don’t you just scram?”

He made a shooing motion with his hand, as if waving Ferdi away.

Ferdi simply blinked at him for a moment before murmuring in a low voice—

“…Ah. I just… find her bothersome.”

Ludian’s eyes narrowed at the unexpected response.

Bothersome?

He had expected something like, “I’m afraid of losing my position,” or “I don’t want everything I’ve built to go to waste.”

But Ferdi, unbothered by Ludian’s scrutiny, continued speaking.

“She’s too small, and it bothers me. She looks like she’ll break at any moment. Like she’ll disappear any second now. No one in Asterian has ever been that tiny. And her eyes… they’re rounder than ours. Maybe she takes after Mother?”

This lunatic… Ludian’s expression soured.

At that moment, a fragment of memory flashed through his mind.

"It bothers me… because it might break. It’s a precious ornament."

The day Ferdi had received a sword as a birthday present.

He had placed it on display in his room because the jewel-encrusted ornament on the hilt bothered him.

He never acted like he hated the sword, so Ludian had wondered what the hell was wrong with him.

And now—

This bastard is acting exactly the same way.

Ferdi, having been born as the heir to the Asterian family, had a perfectionist streak and a tendency to suppress his emotions.

Not being able to express when he liked something was just another part of that habit.

In other words—Ferdi didn’t hate Tiel.

Ferdi just… found her too tiny and adorable.

And Ludian’s theory was confirmed when he saw Ferdi’s behavior in front of Ian Dross today.

"I agree that Ian is a bastard. And Tiel is still too young to be meeting guests from the palace. Even if he was the one who brought her here… it would be best to send him back today. Family should take priority over visitors, don’t you think?"

"Asterians don’t treat their benefactors this way… unless it involves their little sister."

"Alright, let’s go, Tiel. Careful as you get up."

You idiot.

If you think she’s cute, just say it.

If you’re unsure how to deal with her because she’s so tiny and adorable, then just admit it.

But instead, because he didn’t know how to express himself, he kept running his mouth about how she bothered him.

Ludian snorted and dunked his pen into the ink bottle.