Chapter 26 – The Other Brother
Despite her second elder brother’s good-naturedness, he avoided approaching Bianca’s friends for some reason. She reckoned it would be enjoyable to have a cup of tea together, but…what a pity.
The eldest brother spent his time helping their father, going back and forth between the royal capital and the villa. As a result, after finishing her studies, Bianca had free time and no one to talk to.
Perhaps due to having time to mull things over, her brain filled with all sorts of thoughts. These days, she harbored suspicions about her father. She questioned whether he was inept or whether her vermilion eyes were used as a justification for her brother’s disqualification as an heir because of his strong jealousy towards him. Hence, she suspected that he was actually imposing everything on her brother, claiming it was his duty to do.
The way he has been treating Bianca has been equally strange. He would say things like, “Satias is so capable, yet you’re so incompetent and lazy.” When she thought about it now, she could only assume that he was attempting to instill hatred in her toward her brother.
When she countered with something like, “I can’t compete with Brother, who is so outstanding,” he would retort, “Satias isn’t that outstanding, his schoolmates this year are simply idiots, so he just stands out.” Did he not realize that in that same school year was the third prince, Stuart?
After sending her friends off the next morning, Bianca had nothing to do but study. She had the choice to go back with the girls to the royal capital, but she didn’t want to face her father, who had already returned to the main house.
Since it was the social season, everybody was probably hectic with evening parties and tea parties. She could only attend the events arranged by her father. The list of potential fiancées had already been narrowed down, so she would be confined to the house to prevent any strange corruptions.
I beg of you, anyone other than that irresponsible His Highness Prince Stuart.
She felt as if she were praying.
After completing her studies, she went down to the saloon, where she noticed her second older brother, who frequently accompanied their mother, was unusually reading a book by himself. It was the first time she had ever caught sight of him reading a book.
“Brother Julian, what book are you reading?”
The unusual sight piqued her interest.
“Ah, this one? It’s a botanical illustration book.”
“Do you like botany?”
She expected him to be interested only in horses and companionship.
“Oh, you look surprised. I’m majoring in medicinal plants, you see. Healing magic is not absolute, you know?”
Indeed, in this country, medicinal plants were often relied upon.
“I see.”
“You don’t seem to be interested in plants, Bianca.”
“That’s not true. I like flowers and tea.”
“Is that so? Do you like the tea at home?”
“Yes, now that you bring it up, the tea at home is better than the one served at the academy. Lately, I like hibiscus tea because of its beautiful color.”
Julian grinned at her then.
“Great. I’m the one who chose it.”
“Really?”
Julian appeared to be a man of many interests.
“Sometimes plants grown in the greenhouse in the main house back in the capital are used.”
Bianca stared in wonder upon hearing this.
“I didn’t know that. Come to think of it, there is a very wide and magnificent greenhouse there. I had tea there once.”
The vast greenhouse was hidden away from the landscaped garden at the front of the building.
“I rent a corner of it and grow medicinal plants and herbs, and of course, flowers as well.”
“Brother Julian, that’s amazing.”
“I’m glad to hear that. At last, you’ve taken an interest in me too, Bianca,” he chuckled.
“Well, you didn’t seem like you wanted anything to do with me, Brother Julian.”
“I guess that’s how it looked to you. As you said, without your memory, you didn’t act much like an aristocrat, and you were very honest, so I suppose there was a part of me that was afraid of how you might react to me.”
Initially, the second elder brother did not approach Bianca but showed concern for her. She decided to seize this opportunity to ask him questions about the house as well. Together on the terrace with its large windows, where the soft afternoon sun penetrated, they drank tea together.
“It’s my first time drinking tea alone with you, Brother Julian.”
Usually, their mother, Irene, was always around.
“Is that so?”
His tone was laid-back. Although he was smiling, those hazy golden-brown eyes were dreamy and hard to read, making it difficult to figure out what he was thinking.
“I was wondering, does Father often make Brother Satias help him with his work, claiming that he is very busy? In reality, he is forcing him to do all the work, isn’t he?”
“Did Brother say that?”
“No, Brother Satias never said such a thing.”
Watching Bianca, who couldn’t help but be annoyed at the misunderstanding of her eldest brother, Julian chuckled.
“You’re spot on, Bianca. Did you realize that?”
The second elder brother readily admitted it, which caught her off guard. She assumed that he would simply dodge the question like he’s always done.
“Brother should do well, but he’s so serious, it’s his loss. He’s that kind of person.”
He laughed lightly, as if he were talking about someone else’s business.
“If you know that, why don’t you help him out, Brother Julian?”
This brother of hers seemed to have a lot of free time on his hands, and he played around a lot.
“Bianca, you have already found out a lot of things, haven’t you? Like the fact that I’m the only one attending a different school?”
When Julian casually told her the truth, Bianca nodded her head, feeling slightly tense.
“The things Brother is helping with require magic. Contracts made between nobles often require approval by magic. Unfortunately, I can’t help because I can’t use magic. So, if anyone can be of help, Bianca, you are the only one who can,” he said with a very plain smile.
Not a trace of jealousy towards his eldest brother could be found there. He was calm.
Right, Brother Satias had once mentioned that it is a taboo subject because Mother felt ashamed of it.
But the second elder brother didn’t mind.
“So that’s what it is.”
She was dumbfounded. Since he wasn’t the successor, he seemed to have nothing to really do. Instead of being caught up in jealousy like their father, he enjoyed spending his days. Perhaps he was a surprisingly terrific person. Bianca was genuinely impressed.
“Father said he was returning to the royal capital on business, but what exactly is he doing there?”
“Well, he might take Brother to some business meetings, negotiations, and discussions, but mostly he’s seeing his mistress.”
“…Huh?”
The sudden revelation left her gobsmacked. It took a while for her second elder brother’s words to sink in. What a horrible father. This was likely the reason why the family was on edge.
“You really don’t know anything, do you, Bianca? Did Brother follow Father’s orders with discipline and remain silent? That’s just like him.”
Like usual, the second elder brother was smiling. Julian may have always been distant from people, even from his family. It wasn’t that he was avoiding her. Bianca speculated that this was his secret to success in life.
Thanks for the translation!