Chapter 181, Not Yet, But (4)

Translator: Hedge

Editor: Lizzz

 

[I don’t know why I’m going this far. I know even less why he’s going this far.]

 

[The more I think about it, the more questions arise and the more irritation wells up. I’ve never encountered such a crazy bastard in my entire life, and the problem is that bastard happens to be my younger brother. Because of that, I have to throw everything aside and decided to let whatever happens happen…]

 

If there had been even one more person like Kalian in this world, it would either be truly peaceful or already completely ruined. So it was both truly regrettable and genuinely fortunate that Plants was experiencing this for the first time because there was only one such bastard in the world.

 

“Ha.” Plants let out another sigh that contained all those emotions, whether it was irritation, worry, guilt, or frustration, even he could not tell.

 

It was not that Plants did not understand Kalian’s intention to wrap up this subtle conversation between brothers on a reasonably good note. Plants, whose anger had already subsided by then, also tried to take a step back at an appropriate point.

 

“Smiling again.”

 

If only he had not smiled.

 

Plants had even thought about needing hawks instead of pigeons and wondered how to handle the aftermath of someone who would try to escape outside the Royal Palace every day. If only Kalian had not smiled again, Plants would surely have ended the conversation well.

 

But that crazy bastard smiled.

 

Kalian said he knew how Chase’s condition was, and Plants briefly regretted saying something unnecessary, and the crazy bastard grinned. Kalian said there would be nothing to worry about, and Plants felt somehow uncomfortable with those words with the crazy bastard grinned.

 

That crazy bastard could not lie, and Plants was smart. Just that before, he had smiled as if he did not want to live, but now, he smiled as if he were already dead.

 

He was that person’s younger brother and now he was his younger brother. That was how Kalian thinks of it, but acting that way was by no means easy.

 

The day Chase had barged into Cyriesus. After first encountering Chase, when Kalian came back and was ranting, he had worn exactly the same expression and smiled.

 

So Plants could tell.

 

Surely something that Plants should not know about had happened. And Kalian had probably set aside Chase’s side while being considerate of the heart Plants had put on the line.

 

Otherwise, there would be no reason to wear such an expression. It was like a direct copy of Chase from that day walking in circles on the walkway of Senu Hall. That smile was just too similar.

 

So Plants realized that bracelet was a rotten rope offered to Chase instead of Plants’ heart, not something brought out to suggest living together, but a pit given to say ‘hang in there.’

 

“Right. It wouldn’t be easy.”

 

Plants, who had spoken words that even Kalian couldn’t understand, briefly closed his eyes. Then he counted once.

 

When he had handed over everything in his hands to Plants. When he told him to resent him but only got cursed at. And today.

 

Even counting just the major incidents, he had already endured three times.

 

[…This crazy bastard.]

 

A bastard who might have spun around so many times that he ended up standing in his original place, so no one might recognize it, but if one looked properly, he was the most thoroughly insane person in the world.

 

A crazy bastard who pretended not to be spinning while knowing he was spinning.

 

A real crazy bastard who had called Plants a crazy bastard after doing that.

 

[‘I’m not the kind of younger brother who only causes heartache.’—Yeah right. I guarantee you, if you searched all the way to the Great Dunes, there wouldn’t be another bastard younger brother who causes heartache in such diverse ways!]

 

Thus, Plants, having completed his extremely rational judgment and very objective assessment, quietly opened his eyes.

 

His light green eyes briefly swept over the table and touched on the teacup that Kalian had pushed aside. Plants, who had been silently taking it in with his eyes, smiled. He smiled as innocently as a young child.

 

And so, Plants, who had shown such an unsettling smile, suddenly hardened his expression completely and spoke as if spitting out the words.

 

“I understand what my little brother is thinking.”

 

Then he deliberately brought back the black tea that had been pushed aside and drank it without hesitation.

 

After all, to make a crazy bastard come to his senses, he just need to be a little crazier than him. Hadn’t Kalian taught him that on the day he grabbed the knife?

 

So, Plants drank up that fragrant tea that would surely be poison to him, leaving nothing behind. Though he shuddered at the thick, thick fragrance, he was momentarily surprised that it was not as terrible as he had thought.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

At Plants’ suddenly changed attitude, Kalian asked this. Plants, who had been looking at such a Kalian, curled up one corner of his mouth and let out a languid voice.

 

“Playing the role of a troublesome older brother.”

 

Plants, who had demonstrated good use of what he learned from Kalian, slammed down the teacup hard. Then he picked up the bracelet Kalian had given him and went outside.

 

*Bang!*

 

This caused Kalian to get flustered.

 

Because he was not sure what Plants claimed to understand.

 

Because he also did not know how to deal with an adolescent older brother who openly declared he would cause his younger brother heartache.

 

* * *

 

And Allan was also flustered.

 

Because the Second Prince, who had appeared like a green vegetable out of nowhere, had made an unheard-of request.

 

“I tried opening the window. I tried applying Warming Magic. So I think it’s possible, Mage.”

 

Plants had brought the bracelet that Kalian had taken.

 

Then he made an unreasonable demand like a request. No, he made a fuss asking for a request-like demand to be granted.

 

Allan smiled slightly at Plants’ appearance, which he was seeing for the first time, and asked.

 

“For what reason are you saying such things?”

 

As Plants had said, Allan had indeed undone Syspanian’s Magic to open the window of Plants’ room. He had also cast various Spells on Hina’s robe.

 

But what Plants was saying now was beyond that.

 

“It’s impossible to use personal Communication Magic in a place where Syspanian’s power reaches. If you’re asking me to undo that…”

 

“I.”

 

Plants, who had interrupted Allan’s words, smiled crookedly and opened his mouth.

 

“I was annoyed that whatever I did would block his path, so I thought about not doing anything and just staying still.”

 

Having said that, Plants pointed toward the site of Heisia Palace visible outside the window of Allan’s office and continued.

 

“If that bastard hadn’t done such things from the start, he would have lived like he was dead. If you save someone’s life, you should let them live. What’s the point of saving someone and then making them suffocate to death?”

 

Allan’s eyes widened at hearing this far.

 

Smart and sensitive, picky and fierce-tempered but obedient to Kalian’s words. Yes, because he understood very well the incoherent talk of the Second Prince, who was just like Raven.

 

“It seems Prince Kalian has committed another troublesome act.”

 

Plants only frowned at the corners of his eyes without answering. Allan, who smiled slightly seeing this, stood up from his seat and said.

 

“Please wait a moment. Since I only have coffee and mint, I’ll ask them to prepare another tea.”

 

It was because he had not even been able to serve tea yet, thanks to Plants pouring out words uncharacteristically as soon as he arrived.

 

“…Mint.”

 

Actually, coffee would have been better, but because the thick, thick sweet apple scent was still lingering in his mouth, Plants replied this way. Then, he frowned at Allan, who was again showing the expression of dealing with the only friend who played with his problematic youngest child.

 

Allan, who had smiled toward Plants, prepared tea at one side of the office. The clear sunlight streaming in from the sun-filled window reached the sofa and settled on Plants’ hair. The clinking sound was not bad to the ears.

 

“Debeullan is a snake-like person.”

 

After some time had passed, breaking the silence, such a statement was said. Debeullan, it was a name Plants knew well too. Evaluations of being cold, merciless, challenging. A man who never accepts mistakes.

 

“I don’t know if you’re aware, but he was someone who cut the throats of his brothers and sisters with his own hands as soon as he ascended to the Crown Prince position.”

 

*Clink*

 

A warm cup of tea was placed in front of Plants. A very light mint scent brushed past.

 

“There are various people in this world. There are those who don’t even know what purple flowers show, but there are also those who can only rest easy after pulling out all roots of distrust.”

 

Birds that constantly observe other countries’ movements. Endless suspicion.

 

“Because he only protected his brothers from a father who harmed others to protect himself, he only knows how to harm himself to protect someone else. So please don’t think too harshly of him.”

 

Plants, who had been looking at Allan telling this story, replied quietly.

 

“I don’t. I know too.”

 

He might not know what he had seen and lived through growing up, but he understood why he acted that way. So how could he think it was harsh? It was just frustrating and irritating to see it.

 

“This bracelet. I want to send it to Secritia’s Crown Prince.”

 

At those words, Allan looked somewhat surprised. Seeing that he was swallowing the thought of whether that would really be a good thing, Plants opened his mouth again.

 

“Instead of the cat.”

 

If one understood what it meant to send a bracelet to Chase instead of a cat, that person must have been Kalian. Allan had enough vocabulary to enable normal communication, but he was no Kalian.

 

Plants, realizing his words were not properly understood, added an explanation.

 

“Mage. You save your son yourself. You have the ability, don’t you.”

 

Allan looked surprised to hear the word ‘son’ in this place, this way, through Plants’ mouth. Then he soon answered in a gentle voice.

 

“I shall do so.”

 

Looking at the mint tea giving off a pale light reminded Plants of a certain bastard, so he frowned.

 

While thinking that whether he would block that crazy bastard’s path again or not, he would continue doing what he needs to do on my own, so that little brother could deal with whether his head hurts or not.

 

[I won’t live just quietly receiving what’s given. Because I’m different from Chase.]

 

* * *

 

After that, time passed as if nothing had happened.

 

Kalian and Plants still occasionally ate meals together and almost daily sat facing each other, looking at bundles of papers and racking their brains.

 

They thoroughly searched the basement of Heisia Palace for wall sculptures. The busy Mage Arsene, who had become involved, also came once or twice to spend the night.

 

There were no letters from Chase. Plants had definitely said he sent a letter through an agent, so they thought either someone had caught the hawk flying through the sky or it was taking Chase time to recall about the Arcus Tempus.

 

When the ring on Kalian’s index finger glowed…

 

On the third floor of Chermil Palace, Plants, who had been more curious about why Lucy kept pressing her thighs than about the origin of the characters written on the paper, curled up one corner of his mouth. Then he silently stood up holding Luci and went outside.

 

– Prince Kalian.

 

During the time when the blue star and silver moon floating in the sky shone like a dream, a dreamlike voice that he had not thought he would hear so quickly in such a place echoed in his head.

 

Kalian quietly stood up and went out to the terrace.

 

It did not take long to understand who had caused this situation, and it took a bit longer to understand what that bastard had done this for.

 

– A messenger bird came from Prince Plants with the message that Prince Kalian has something he is curious about, so he should speak to me directly. Because I don’t know how to handle Mana, I am late in getting help from Lord Kastrin.

 

[…Damn bastard. He hadn’t conveyed the message about needing memories about the Arcus Tempus. He is basically telling me to say it directly if I need it. That he won’t bring it up, so I should figure it out myself. Challenging me, as if I can do it even after hearing that voice, to go ahead and try.]

 

– Ah…

 

Kalian raised both hands to cover his face. [Wait, why does it feel like I’m dreaming.]

 

– Prince Kalian?

 

Because of that voice, which he had heard in some past dream, was heard exactly the same without any mental preparation, it felt just like he was dreaming.

 

He forgot what he should say and forgot what he could say and covered his face like that.

 

Under the black sky, when the silver moon shone, Bern’s long hair that flickered just like starlight kept coming to mind, so he covered his face.

 

As if that memory would close just because you tried to close it.

 

It felt like he could hear the crazy bastard asking that, so he forgot everything he had to say.

 

– I.

 

– Talk about anything. Whatever it is. It’s okay.

 

Because he readily gave an answer without even knowing what he was trying to say, Kalian’s shoulders shook very briefly.

 

– Not yet, but.

 

Like that dawn when birds with folded wings cried sweetly, Kalian held his breath once more.

 

– Later…

 

When everything becomes okay. When it really becomes okay, then he would ask.

 

– Crown Prince Chase, myself, and even Kyrie, all together. At the Royal Palace spire. I was hoping we could drink together. Whether that would be okay. That’s what I was trying to ask.

 

Later.

 

Really, later.

 

– Come when you’ve grown more. Then, we can do so as much as you want.

 

A willing answer flowed down like water.