Cinderella's Brother

“Isn’t this all the result of your sister’s foolishness?”

 

“Isn’t this all because of her immature behaviour!”

 

He yelled.

 

“Have you even listened to her all this time!”

 

“You’re the one who should be listening to her!”

 

.It might sound very strange if you listen without knowing what’s going on. I think you’re talking about one person, but it’s ironic that you’re not. The way the two men, who rarely raise their voices at each other, shout to the point where the ceiling rumbles, was indeed a memorable scene.

 

Even when I was not acting, I can’t help but shiver. What’s wrong with my body? I shouldn’t be shaking this badly, should I? My heart was still throbbing.

 

All I know was that my father believes Levina now, and my brother believe me. Though I suspect there’s another reason he’s so angry that I don’t understand, Dad, I didn’t expect this, but you’re really too much, Drew. Still, I was happy. At least my brother was on my side and not Levina’s. Phew.

 

It was then that Levina, who had been clinging to her nanny and squeezing every last drop of tears out of her eyes, broke into the scene. She opened her mouth to speak, sobbing in a gravelly voice.

 

“That, that’s enough. It’s all because I was stupid and lost my sister, and I’m all-“

 

“You don’t interrupt, and you stay put.”

 

Wahhhhhh, was this the sign of the end of the world? That fearsome big brother was giving Levina a toast, oh my god! Fuhahaha! The sight of Levina’s face turning bright red was quite a sight to behold, wasn’t it? Oh, God, 

 

“Are you really going to bring shame to the family? If you don’t mend your ways this time…”

 

“If that’s what you’re afraid of, I’ll personally correct both of them, okay?”

 

…Tongue in cheek, big brother, you’ve been doing so well, I was scared! You’re not really going to punish me, are you?

 

My father and I were both stunned by my brother’s unexpected announcement, and I couldn’t help but let out a little sound of surprise. When my older brother is in the mood, even the most innocent women can’t resist.

 

I moved gently to my brother, clutched his sleeve with both hands and opened my mouth in the most pathetic way possible.

 

“Brother, I’m sorry, I was wrong, I wasn’t thinking… I, I was just trying to get along with my sister, like my father said…”

 

My brother, who had been glaring at my father with all the force of a whipping north wind, turned his head and looked down at me. I huffed a little and then continued.

 

“I’m sorry, brother, I was just trying to find Levina, really, I was just… I, I’ll take all the blame. Don’t fight with my father…”

 

Let’s cry, let’s cry, let’s do a big cry, Let’s cry! Let’s cry out loud! Oh my god, I’m sad, I can’t live with sadness! Levina’s eyes looking at me shedding tears are truly breathtaking. Hahahaha! You’re angry, right? You’re going to die of disgust, right? That’s exactly how I felt in the past. Don’t ever ignore the former commander again!

 

 Ahem! The sound of my father’s cough and my brother’s sigh rang simultaneously.

 

I sneaked a glance, then clung to my brother’s waist, who was alternately looking at me and Levina with an indescribable expression. Ouch!

 

“Hahaha, big brother… Don’t be angry…”

 

“‘Ray.”

 

“Hhhhhhhhh-!”

 

I can feel his stiff hand, carefully patting my head. Who would have expected him to be so gentle on my side? There’s a wave of emotion coming in! …By the way, Emma, why are you standing on the stairs crying with me? You don’t have to cry with me because I’m crying? All my beautiful handkerchiefs will be wet.

 

Sure, it seems like my plan to understand our family’s connection to this has worked, and I’m starting to feel hopeful that I can trust my brother in the future, hehehe. I think I can go ahead with my plan to save this strange human from the white fox’s grip.

 

Father… Eh, I don’t know! I didn’t have any expectations in the first place, so let it be.

 

After that incident, I don’t know if Miss Emma heard something from my brother or if she just made up her mind on her own, but she turned on the lights and started spying on me, so I was forced to read or do some kind of embroidery exercise that was literally horrible from morning till evening under the watchful eye of our professional Miss Emma!

 

Ah, the pain of having to sit motionless all day long, looking at a needle that pierces my fingers without a break! I am a proud gun of the Empire, a seventeen-year-old ex-commander whose blood was boiling! How can you ask a man who wielded a sword on a bloody battlefield to wield a needle instead!

 

…At least I can draw, which was a good thing. Phew. I used to love to scribble as a kid, but I remember folding it up early on because my dad couldn’t stand the sight of me drawing. But now that I’m a girl, no one is going to judge me if I sit around and draw or fall asleep. What a dirty world!

 

And so I spent most of the day drawing. Sometimes, when I got so frustrated that I thought I was going to lose my mind, I would lock myself in my room and do the training exercises I had been given as an apprentice knight. …which didn’t go so well. Not surprisingly. Just doing a few simple movements would leave me with sore arms the next day. The thirteen-year-old girl’s lack of sixty-year-old endurance made it difficult to keep her center of gravity, not to mention the two throbbing lumps on her chest.

 

“Miss, look at this. It’s a gift from the Countess of the Vineyard.”

 

…Ian was no help to me either. First of all, look at that giant teddy bear, the size of me, that he sent me as a gift, how could I possibly accept that and like it?

 

And then there was the fact that that dog Jayden had confessed to my brother that I had been riding a horse without a saddle the other day, and I had nearly died trying to hold on to that dreadful fellow’s hand. It’s a good thing I prayed for my hands to become feet so I wouldn’t do it again, 

 

The teddy bear pretended to be Ian and beat him up for a while, and just as I was about to focus on drawing again, someone called out to me.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

…You have to be honest with yourself. You’re actually in love with me, aren’t you? At this point, I was getting the impression that you’ve been trying to keep me away from everyone else so that you can have me all to yourself. What are you doing? Can’t you tell? I’m drawing brother.

 

I don’t really want to do this, but you have to do something pretty to look good, even if it’s just a little something. Damn it.

 

Anyway, the way Levina treated me again after that day was quite strange. In the past, she’d definitely treated me like a cow when we were alone after that incident, but even if boys and girls are different, I didn’t expect Levina to have a different approach, though I’d never say she meant well.

 

It wasn’t until I met Jayden that I realised that people I knew were treating me differently. Even the hired help and drivers were very different somehow. I could see it in their eyes. Even the knights were a little different, so how could anyone else be?

 

“What is this?”

 

I’ve always wondered, why are you so greedy for what’s mine? If you want something, just ask your father who loves you.

 

Levina, who had been hovering around me, sneaking peeks at my drawings, was now staring at the object of her gaze, her eyes shining brightly: the teddy bear Ian had sent me. The one I’d beaten up so badly earlier.

 

“Do you want it?”

 

I ask, and she smiles as if she’s been waiting for it. Oh, no.

 

“Me, really?”

 

“If you want it, have it. I don’t really like dolls.”

 

“Are you sure? I’m so excited because I’ve never had a doll that looks that expensive.”

 

Maybe you’ve never had one before, but all those dolls your dad bought you that have been filling up your room lately aren’t dolls, they’re treats. They’re dragons.

 

Whatever I was thinking inwardly, I smiled sweetly and handed Levina the horrible teddy bear that Ian had sent me, and our little white fox said yes, and promptly left with it.

 

To be honest, there was something odd about Levina coming to me and asking for something when all she had to do was tell her father if she wanted it. We hadn’t had any trouble with dolls in the past, so I wasn’t sure, but I had a feeling she’d be up to something again.  Come on, try your tricks again. I’ll be happy to deal with you.

 

Boom, boom, boom, boom!

 

It was a stormy night. I was used to typhoons hitting the capital region every summer, but tonight was a bit much, with lightning bolts turning the room white every few seconds and the sound of thunder splitting the sky.

 

So I decided to do something I used to do as kid.

 

When Emma had gone to bed , the whole house was turned off, I had slipped out of my place, hugging my pillow with one arm, Then I began creeping up the stairs leading to the third floor, killing the sound of my footsteps barefoot.

 

To my murderous brother’s room, you ask? Ugh!

 

Come to think of it, I haven’t been in my brother’s room for ages, not since I was a little kid. As I stood there, lost in memories, staring at that fancy door with the vine pattern (I didn’t come all this way to space out), I raised my hand and gave the door a gentle knock.

 

Tick-tock. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Come out, big brother, let’s build a snowman together! Open the door…

 

Bam!

 

…The door swung open without warning, and I nearly fell backward. What a freaking human being!

 

“Ray?”

 

Unlike me, who was all ready for bed, he looked like he had just gotten out of the bath, as he was shaking out his wet hair. What if it wasn’t me who knocked on the door, but some cute young maid, and he was expecting her, hahahahaha

 

While I was floundering in such worthless delusions, my brother, who had been glaring down at me with a somewhat incomprehensible gaze, spoke up again.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

“…Oh, big brother. A lot. It’s just… Can I sleep with you tonight?”

 

“….”

 

I asked in a hastily composed voice, but my brother didn’t answer for a moment. There’s a hesitant glint in his eyes, like a winter sea, as he stares intently at my face. Is it because I was not affectionate enough?

 

“I, I’m so scared…. I want to sleep with my brother. Can’t I?”

 

“…Okay, come here.”

 

Aha! The first step was a success!

 

I hadn’t been to my brother’s place in a long time. The desk was still sharp and reflected the owner’s quirky personality and the whole place was tidy and dust-free, with a big old bed by the window.

 

In my previous life, I was so terrified of lightning as a child that I used to sneak out of my room without my father’s knowledge on stormy nights and crawl into my brother’s bed. Even then, my brother was far from affectionate, but he never kicked me out.

 

I was sure he must have found it annoying to have to share a bed with someone like me who’s such a hard sleeper.

 

When did he get into the habit of falling asleep with his upper body naked? I don’t think he did that when we were younger. I’ve seen the same guy’s body hundreds of times and it doesn’t inspire me, but I can’t help but feel a surge of envy. Sigh.

 

By God, boys used to have bodies like that, too… What? Don’t cheat me, I used to be pretty good in my own right, if not as good as him! Hmph.

 

Like the extraordinary man that he was, already taking on all the major duties of the court at the age of eighteen, my brother fell asleep as soon as he was laid down on the bed; it was a wonder he slept so peacefully when it was so noisy outside. I stirred in my comforter and stared at my brother’s sleeping face.

 

He’ll catch a cold if he sleeps without drying his hair, I thought. I reached out and touched his silver hair, still wet. Short silver hair with a pale bluish tinge, so different from my blood-red hair. It’s surprisingly soft, almost like cat fur.

 

His sleeping face was strangely gentle, and he looks strangely young… Look at those long eyelashes. What kind of man has eyelashes this long? Brother, I think it would have been fine if you were a sister instead of me, but then Ian wouldn’t have left him alone.

 

After observing my brother’s sleeping form for a while, I suddenly felt like a new kind of pervert, so I coughed unnecessarily and laid back down. Hehe, I’m going to cut my brother’s strong forearm. his left arm will be very numb tomorrow morning, hehe.

 

With that, I closed my eyes and was about to drift off to dreamland.

 

was this some kind of wizard’s new invention? The pillow just massaged my head? What the hell was inside? …Oh, this was my brother’s arm.

 

I frowned in disbelief as I felt my brother’s arm twitching on the pillow and glared at him, only to be rewarded with the sight of his body, which had been sleeping like a corpse until just a few moments ago, twitching and mumbling unintelligible sounds.

 

I thought I had squeezed his arm too hard, so I quickly stood up, but his seizure didn’t stop. He started shaking even more violently than before and broke out in a cold sweat.

 

I gradually became worried. Was he getting sick because he slept without drying his hair?

 

“Brother…?”

 

I cautiously called out, reaching out to touch his forehead, but as he groaned and winced, he suddenly moved his other arm and grabbed my wrist without warning! I almost let out a scream as he gripped it so hard.

 

Aaahhhh, brother, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts, what can I do if this man grabs my wrist with such a strong grip! I guess I’ll be the one who feels like one of my arms was going to fall off tomorrow morning, huh. 

 

“Oh, brother… Brother?”

 

I twisted my arm, trying to pull it out, but it was no use. My brother’s grip on my wrist grew stronger and stronger, and I wondered if I was about to break a bone.

 

Still, I managed to stifle a groan. For some reason, I didn’t want anyone to know I was here. What was wrong with this man, was he having an inappropriate nightmare?

 

“Brother, what’s wrong, Brother…?”

 

I whispered softly, worried about my brother, who was still shivering in a cold sweat, the pain in his gripped wrist notwithstanding, and finally a recognisable sound escaped his lips, which up until now had been emitting only unintelligible, bizarre moans.

 

“…This, Ray…”

 

…I almost said, ‘Yeah, why?

 

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Translator Note:

Next 15 chapters will be translated by RJR. You will have a special release of this story then 😉