Chapter 36
“I’ll never leave my little sister with you again.”
“I said I’m sorry, Simon.”
Inside the carriage returning from Lake Lagria to the mansion, my very angry brother kept scolding Darius.
At first, I felt touched that he was worried about me, so I stayed quiet. But after listening for a while, I couldn’t take it anymore.
Darius was already apologizing enough.
“Stop blaming Darius oppa! The water bird was the bad one!”
“Riez… whose side are you on right now?”
The moment I defended Darius, my brother’s sharp gaze turned toward me. Instantly, the fight changed into one between me and my brother.
“Even if entering the willow pond was Darius oppa’s mistake, he took responsibility and swam to pull the boat out! What’s the problem?”
“He should have pulled it out before wasting that much time!”
“You’re overprotective! It wasn’t something to worry about that much!”
“What? If something had happened to you too, Father would—!”
My brother clenched his teeth and shut his mouth.
I also bit my lip, unable to argue. I knew what he was about to say.
I understood his position. He had promised to protect me.
But the cause of everything was really the water bird. It was basically an unavoidable accident.
“Both of you, calm down… It’s my fault…”
Darius awkwardly patted both our shoulders. A cold silence filled the carriage.
After the fierce argument, the carriage rolled toward the count’s mansion in an icy atmosphere.
I turned my head toward the window, but my eyes met Kyle, who was sitting diagonally across.
Come to think of it, what were Kyle and my brother doing while we were missing?
Kyle looked pale and thinner somehow. I could guess without asking. My brother must have acted like a strict adult toward him too.
‘Are you okay?’
I mouthed the words to Kyle, but he coldly turned his head away.
What? Why is he like that?
He hadn’t been this cold during the picnic earlier.
‘Is he upset because I didn’t chase after him and went boating happily with Darius instead?’
What a mess.
I only wanted to give Darius and Kyle the best vacation. How did it turn out like this?
The promise to include my brother in every schedule had become an unexpected obstacle.
Tomorrow, we were even going to the exhibition together with the duchess.
Just imagining the awkward future made me sigh.
At dinner in the count’s dining hall, as expected, the atmosphere was stiff.
Kyle and Simon stayed silent the entire meal.
Father was absent because he was preparing for the exhibition, so only I, Darius, and the duchess kept up light conversation.
Simon was the first to put down his dessert spoon. After politely greeting the duchess, he left the table.
As soon as he left, the duchess sensed something awkward between him and Darius and silently asked about the cause with her eyes.
Darius scratched his hair and confessed.
“Simon is a little angry because of me.”
“It was nothing. My brother just overreacted.”
The duchess narrowed her eyes and asked for details.
I was about to explain everything, but behind her back, Darius was urgently shaking his head.
He was clearly asking me to hide the truth.
If she found out he had swum in the lake to push the boat, she might faint from shock.
She was just as overprotective as my father and brother.
“…Darius oppa stole one of Simon oppa’s sandwiches.”
I quickly made up something trivial.
Just like that, my brother became a legendary miser who got upset over a single sandwich.
Fortunately, the duchess seemed to believe me.
“What childish behavior, Darius. That’s embarrassing.”
She lightly scolded him but looked relieved that it wasn’t serious.
“Simon’s reaction was too funny.”
Darius gave me a small grateful smile.
Children with overprotective parents tend to hide many things.
Soon, Kyle pushed his plate away with a tired expression and stood up. I waited a little, then followed him out after saying good night to the duchess and Darius.
When I closed the dining hall door, Kyle was already far ahead.
I hurried after him.
I wanted to ask whether he was upset because of me or because of my brother, and I wanted to cheer him up.
When I stepped into the dim corridor leading to the courtyard, I saw Kyle standing face to face with Simon.
It looked like Kyle had stopped him. Soon, I heard their faint voices.
“There’s still something to settle.”
“What is it, brat?”
“Tell me Darius’s weakness.”
Darius’s weakness?
I instinctively hid behind a pillar.
“You said you’d tell me if I rode the boat with you.”
From Kyle’s words, I understood that some kind of negotiation had happened between them.
The very day I defended my brother, saying he was loyal—this is what he does?
Simon smiled slightly, hands in his pockets.
“You’re more innocent than I thought. That was a lie.”
“What?”
Ah. So he had tricked Kyle into riding the boat by promising to tell him Darius’s weakness.
The brief feeling of betrayal inside me disappeared.
Unlike me, Kyle was grinding his teeth in anger.
“I just wanted to hear from you the answer he would never give me. I’m sorry for forcing you onto the boat and making you seasick. I mean it.”
Simon didn’t look very sorry.
So Kyle got seasick… and he was tricked into boarding the boat. What a terrible day.
“Darius and I may be rivals, but we compete fairly. Don’t dig into his weaknesses. Win honestly.”
“…None of your business.”
Kyle muttered, but Simon’s voice softened slightly.
“This is just my personal opinion, Kyleus.”
“…?”
“Isn’t Darius’s weakness you?”
“Nonsense.”
“He worries about you every single day at the dormitory. He even writes you letters.”
“I never received anything like that.”
Simon snorted.
Peeking from behind the pillar, I saw Kyle slap away Simon’s hand when he tried to ruffle his hair.
“Sleep well.”
Leaving the angry boy behind, Simon walked away down the corridor.
So Darius writes letters to Kyle.
Are those letters filled with apology?
Kyle stood there for a long time, unmoving. Simon’s words must have disturbed him deeply.
That was probably more effective than me begging Kyle to forgive Darius.
After waiting a moment, I stepped out from behind the pillar.
“Kyle.”
He flinched and turned around.
“What? Since when were you there?”
“I just came. Hey… are you mad at me?”
When I asked carefully, his tense eyebrows slowly lowered.
“…Why would I be?”
“Because I left you and went boating happily with Darius oppa.”
“……”
He let out an annoyed sigh and ran a hand through his hair.
“Over something like that? I didn’t even want to ride a boat in the first place.”
“I was disappointed I couldn’t go boating with you.”
“……”
The moon rose brightly above the castle wall, shining through the clouds and lighting up the area faintly.
I looked up at the sky.
“The moon is bright tonight, so we can’t see many stars.”
“……”
“On a night when the stars are clear, I’ll come to your room again. Let’s go watch them from the rooftop.”
I felt his gaze on my side profile as I spoke.
There were many things I wanted to ask about Darius, but I held back.
Darius had asked me not to interfere.
Simon’s words were probably enough for now.
“Tomorrow, let’s really have fun together. I’ll guide you well at the exhibition. Good night.”
I waved and left the courtyard.
I felt his gaze on my back for a moment, but he didn’t call out to stop me.
The exhibition held in Alean Village of the Brante territory was not just a simple evaluation event—it was a large traditional festival.
There were competitions to select the best agricultural products, processed goods, and livestock. There were also performances, contests, parades, and even a night ball. The entire territory became lively for several days.
That was why Father stayed in the territory for a month every summer—to successfully host this important event.
And I had secretly prepared a special surprise at the exhibition to completely amaze Darius’s family.
Before leaving, I stood in front of the full-length mirror and lightly slapped both my cheeks.
It was my ritual to strengthen my resolve.
‘Today, I will definitely make everyone happy!’
