He’s My Real Brother, Duke

y.

 

But, it was strange…

 

Unlike before, the current Duke looked like a demigod immersed in darkness.
So I kept reinforcing my bad imagination.

 

As a result, when he took a step closer, I hesitated for a moment and stepped back.

 

“…Ho-how did you get here?”

 

I bit my lips as I recalled the artifact hidden in my arms.

 

“I tried to wait patiently.”

 

The moment I held my breath,

 

His face came close right in front of me.

 

He had a horrifying expression on his face, and I faltered trying to set my feet back.

 

But his actions were faster.

 

“But I just realized…’

 

There was a series of unanswered questions about what he meant to wait patiently and what he realized.

 

“I’m not that patient.”

 

His hand gently touched the tip of my chin.

 

The tip of our noses noses touched as our gazes met.

 

“Astel.”

 

The hand holding my chin loosened.

 

I was stunned for a moment, my eyes widened and I stiffened in place.

 

Suddenly, what kind of patience… ?

 

…What the hell are you talking about, Duke?

 

Sponsored Content

I couldn’t bring myself to say anything in this bizarre confrontation with the Duke.

 

Rolling my eyes, trying to look elsewhere, then carefully looking into his eyes, but I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking.

 

“Well…”

 

I carefully grabbed his hand and put it down.

 

The Duke’s hand fell unexpectedly gently.
Soon, I pulled myself back and moved away from the Duke.

 

“Duke, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

 

“It’s nothing.”

 

The Duke’s peculiar low voice reverberated in my ears.

 

He returned to his usual self, taking back the strange attitude a little while ago.

  

 

The Duke naturally put his hand ober mine and tried to escort me.

 

It was his very natural, usual behavior.

 

But…

 

ㅡ’Below one, but above all.
Isn’t that… a story referring to the Duke?’

 

Again, the voice of the Artifact Appraiser came to mind.

 

ㅡ’He who has this artifact has something to do with the Duke, doesn’t he? It wasn’t a matter of recklessly entering the castle and discussing such things.’

 

The story that the Duke might be the final villain behind all if these.

 

Come to think of it, I hadn’t been very wary of him until now.
Perhaps the imprint inevitably softened my alertness.

 

But…

 

I came up with a rather vague hint that I knew about the final villain.

 

‘The villain’s magic ability was very strong, and he could handle dark magic well.
The Duke was a magic swordsman, but… maybe he knew how to use dark magic.’

 

When doubts were settled, it felt like everything was put together like a puzzle.

 

It could be the Duke who made our family wallow in the mud.

 

Thump—

 

At that, I unwittingly struck out his hand.

 

“Astel.”

 

Then, the Duke stared at me with his eyes stained with shock, a rare look that could ever be seen from him.

 

Sponsored Content

No, maybe I misunderstood that he looked shocked?

 

When I blink, the Duke seemed to be the same as his usual insensitive expression.

 

“Ugh… It’s a mistake.”

 

Saying that, I reached out to his hand awkwardly again.

 

But the Duke only looked down at my hand silently.

 

“…”

 

Looking closely again, it was not that he looked cold, but that he was just slightly frozen by the shock that came like a tidal wave.

 

It’s as if his whole world was ruined…

 

“That…” I said with an awkward smile.

 

“Well, is this really mistake?”

 

…It seems to have the opposite effect.

 

For the Duke’s expression had hardened even more horribly.

 

Still, he quietly took my hand and nodded his head.

 

“I think it’s a mistake.”

 

Even those words sounded somewhat strange.

 

The Duke, who’s indifferent to everything, couldn’t be, but somehow he soundes sullen.

 

So I was a little dumbfounded…

 

 

❅

 

 

It wasn’t just the Duke who was acting weird.

 

The atmosphere of the Duke’s Castle when they returned was really different from usual.

 

First, the lighting…

 

Inside the castle was so dark that even the sound of a song carried by the wind could be heard.

 

In fact, the maids were wearing black mourning clothes, not their original gingham checkered maid dress they used to wear.

 

Sir Retro, who returned to the scene, pounded his chest as if ge really did his best.

 

‘What the hell has changed…?’

 

It’s very strange…

 

I’ve only been away for about an hour.