~Chapter 10~
“Ares?”
Aveline’s eyes shook as she saw her brother charging in like an angry bull.
“What are you doing, touching his mouth like that?”
Ares ran over and grabbed Aveline’s hand away from Duke Ribes’s mouth.
“Didn’t I tell you to clap if something weird happened?”
Aveline was confused by her brother’s sudden appearance.
“Were you hiding and watching the whole time?”
Ares had jumped in through a window in the servants’ hallway—a place he never went.
“Uh, uh…”
Ares’s face turned bright red.
When Theron looked where Aveline was pointing, Ares hurried to change the subject.
“Anyway!”
Ares raised his voice and glared at Theron now.
“Even if you’re a duke, it’s rude to visit a young woman’s house without warning.”
“Hey, why are you acting like this?”
“Sis, get behind me.”
Aveline poked Ares’s side, embarrassed by his behavior, but Ares just stood in front of her protectively.
Theron watched the twins with interest, as if he found the situation amusing.
“By now, some people probably already know the Duke visited our house. You know how rumors can spread.”
“I don’t really care about baseless rumors.”
Theron’s reply was polite, but hinted, You care a lot about rumors, but I don’t.
Ares’s forehead wrinkled in frustration.
“Maybe you don’t care, but my sister isn’t just some weird girl who reads books at home all day! If rumors spread and ruin her chances for marriage, what will you do?”
Theron slowly blinked, looking at Aveline.
“Weird books?”
Theron glanced at Aveline, a little suspicious.
“What is he talking about?!”
Aveline gave an awkward laugh and kicked Ares’s shin.
“Ow!”
“Haha, you can ignore what he just said.”
There was an awkward silence.
Theron frowned, as if he was thinking about whether Aveline should keep the jewel or not.
‘I finally bought some time. I can’t let them cut me open!’
Aveline put on the most pitiful face she could.
Theron looked away and finally spoke.
“Let’s do this, then.”
Both twins stared at him.
“Today, let’s say I came to visit the son of the Herald family, not the daughter.”
“Huh?”
Ares stood there, mouth wide open in shock.
Theron smiled even more.
“You said you were worried about your sister, right? So if I say I came to visit you, the rumors will be fine, and your sister’s reputation won’t suffer. In the end, it helps you too.”
Ares’s face turned white as Theron finished speaking.
Even after Theron left, Ares couldn’t calm down.
“Stop pacing!”
Aveline scolded her brother, who kept walking around her room.
“He was serious, wasn’t he?”
Ares finally stopped and looked serious.
“The Duke said he was here to see me, not you.”
“Yeah.”
Ares was really worried. He kept thinking about the rumors that might spread.
In the empire, the meeting of two of the most handsome young men would become big gossip.
“Why do I have to get mixed up with someone so strange? My reputation…”
Aveline was starting to get annoyed by her brother’s whining.
She wanted to tell him he wasn’t exactly normal either, but remembered how he had waited in the hall because he was worried about her. She forced herself to smile.
“Don’t worry, the Duke doesn’t seem to have any friends to tell. Let’s sleep and think about it tomorrow, dear brother.”
“Why are you talking like that?”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind. You’re annoying.”
“Goodnight, little brother!”
Aveline waved at Ares as he left the room, still sulking.
“Ha. Finally, I’m alone.”
As soon as he was gone, Aveline threw herself onto the bed.
“I need to relax.”
Tonight, she picked a book called The Tyrant Loves His Sister to read before bed.
The story was simple: a tyrant older brother fell in love with his much younger sister’s cuteness and couldn’t resist her anymore.
‘That’s the part that makes readers feel good.’
Aveline settled in and started reading her favorite scenes. Soon, she fell asleep.
Someone gently patted Aveline’s forehead as she slept.
“Mmm…”
She turned over at the touch. The hand stopped for a moment, then started again.
‘Who is it?’
The gentle touch was new to her. Nobody in her house ever did something like that.
She opened her heavy eyelids.
“Don’t wake up yet.”
A soft, unfamiliar voice.
Aveline turned to the voice.
“Did you sleep well?”
The speaker was a handsome young man with brown hair and green eyes.
‘Is this another dream?’
She checked herself—small hands, chubby arms, and a round face.
‘I’m a little kid?!’
What was going on?
The young man spoke again.
“Chloe, did you have a bad dream?”
Chloe?
The name sounded familiar.
‘No way!’
She looked at him again—brown hair, green eyes. If she was Chloe, then he was her big brother, Klein.
‘Wow. This is the story The Tyrant Loves His Sister!’
Yesterday she’d dreamed about a regretful ex-husband, and today it was a child-care story.
Klein looked at her with loving eyes.
Aveline was surprised, but quickly decided to just enjoy it.
‘Might as well have fun while it lasts!’
Until she woke up, Klein showered her with affection.
“Brother!”
“Heavens, an angel speaks! Someone, take this angel’s wings at once!”
Klein was a total sister-lover. Every time Chloe spoke, he overreacted with joy.
When Aveline handed him a bouquet of flowers she’d clumsily made, he even wiped his eyes.
“How did you do this with those tiny hands… sniff.”
“Don’t cry.”
“Write down every word Chloe says!”
Klein even wrote down everything his little sister said.
At night, he read those words over and over again.
“Who could ever hate you?”
He would pat her head as she ate dessert beside him.
“Hee!”
Aveline gave Klein her brightest smile.
For the first time, she felt like she was truly precious to someone.
She honestly didn’t want to wake up from this dream.
Klein might have been cold at first, but now he was the best big brother and family she could imagine. Aveline loved how he made her feel so loved.
But the dream didn’t last. Soon, Aveline woke up in her own dark room before the sun was up.
