He’s My Real Brother, Duke Chapter 122

 

‘Well, logically speaking, I was offering my life and his. And I’m just being stupid, and besides, beasts people have a long life span. The problem is…’

 

Boom!

 

Lightning struck from the sky outside the cave. The boy and I instinctively grabbed each 

other’s hands for comfort. 

 

Even so, the touch of our hands sent a chill down my spine.

 

— “Are you sure we have no other choice but to sacrifice his life?”

 

— “…Hmm, no. That’s weird. The dots have changed again. Wait a minute.”

 

— “Yeah! Maybe you don’t have to give my life, or maybe you do!”

 

Knox and I nervously intertwined our hands again. Mimi began to stamp his foot again on the altar but then rolled over. His fur stood on end, spiked with anger.

 

— “It’s not a merciful god at all, it’s an evil god. Give it all, give your life!”

 

Mimi stomped his foot, but the god didn’t respond anymore. I trembled against the cave wall. 

 

The chill wind grew stronger, and I was sure something worse had happened.

 

— “What happened?”

 

— “Darn… He said… life isn’t the most important thing to him. The most important thing is…”

 

— “Is it clothes?”

 

I shook my head. Mimi sighed heavily and shook his little head.

 

— “It’s the memories we have made… It’s an evil god, you want life and the memories we shared!”

 

Mimi gritted his teeth and fluffed his tail. Then, with a loud crash, a rock fell from the cave. Knox subconsciously and I hugged each other tighter. 

 

The cave was shaking and looked like it might collapse at any time, and outside, lightning was striking like crazy.

 

— “So, if the memories fade, will we all get out safely?”

 

— “This kid has no memory of being happy in his life. The only happy memory he has is with you, and he’s trying to steal it from him…”

 

I glanced over at Knox, his face was extremely blue. His eyes were moist, and he shook his head.

 

— “Oh, no! Anything else, I’d rather have a few years of life…”

 

I patted Knox’s trembling shoulder, then suddenly had an idea.

 

— “Well, can’t you take the memories I have, I’m fine with that!”

 

— “Hmm… Well, they didn’t say anyone’s memories they’re taking specifically, so if mine are gone, this little guy will still have his memories.”

 

— “Then I’ll forget it!”

 

— “But, Astel…”

 

— “Don’t worry, Knox. If we’re meant to be, we’ll meet again, and we’ll remember each other!”

 

I smiled weakly at Knox.

 

— “I’m more worried about your life than my memories.”

 

Seeing my expression of concern, Knox shook his head, looking a little nervous, and 

muttered to himself.

 

— “I don’t care about my life, but… if it’s a real bond…”

 

— “Well, if we get out of the magic circle, we’ll meet in the same place anyway!”

 

— “Hmm, that’s not likely. We’ll probably go to different places.”

 

Mimi’s words made us both frown at the same time. But I quickly came up with a plan.

 

— “Or, Knox, if you remember me, you can come and find me without forgetting. I’m a poor girl, I live on the streets, and I’ll show you some medicine?”

 

I could write, but I had awful directions, so I couldn’t express exactly where I lived, so I used my feet to draw something similar on the dirt floor of the cave.

 

 The boy clenched his teeth and stared at the map, which was drawn in rough cursive.

 

As he looked at the map with a determined gaze, as if he would remember it, he squeezed my hand more tightly and said. 

 

— “Even if we ever part, I will not forget, and I will come back to you, stronger than I am now, so that I can protect you…”

 

— “Yes, then let’s be friends again then!”

 

— “…Then, my name you gave me.”

 

His eager gaze suddenly fixed on me. In all my time with Knox, I’d never seen him look so 

determined.

 

— “When we meet again, please remember to call me… by my name.”

 

— “Okay.”

 

— “That’s enough.”

 

The agreement was done. Knox and I looked at each other, as if he had one last thing to say.

 

There was a silence, perhaps short, perhaps long. I stared at him until the walls of the cave echoed with a lingering rumble, and then, impatiently, I asked.

 

— “Knox, is there anything else you want to say?”

 

— “Yes, I mean…”

 

He stared at me, then carefully dropped to one knee on the cold, hard cave floor. It was a poor form of etiquette, imitating something I’d seen somewhere.

 

It must have looked funny, this kind of escort.

 

But his trembling hands and lips showed a sincere desire to show me the highest form of respect. 

 

I looked down as he kissed the back of my hand, and thought to myself, ‘I can’t wait to see Knox again.’

 

— “You must wait for me, my lady.”

 

As soon as he said that, I blushed slightly out of my mind, feeling like I really was a lady of noble birth.

 

But the momentary warmth of the situation was quickly interrupted. Because at that very moment, Mimi came up close to us and asked.

 

— “Are you done saying your farewell?”

 

— “Yes.”

 

— “Let’s start the ritual, then.”

 

Mimi showed us how to perform the altar ritual. It was simple. 

 

We would stand side by side in front of the altar, and a new circle of magic would be drawn around us. I stood side by side with Knox at the altar, the journal I had brought with me when I was brought here was in my pocket.

 

We both closed our eyes tightly. Finally, a giant cloud of darkness formed around us.

 

— “I am sorry for your loss, and I grant you both a small favor. Let them find each other… to meet.”

 

Inside the cloud, which was warmer and cozier than it looked, it was as if someone was speaking softly to us.

 

The sound made me look around, but there was no one there. The clouds grew thicker, and I blinked away the growing pain in my temples.

 

Soon, space and time twisted dangerously. The boy had taken half of his life to escape such a punishing magic circle, and my memories of him were blocked.

 

After what seemed like a decade, I found myself sitting in the hunting grounds.

 

— “Why am I here?”

 

— “Why are all my clothes so old?”

 

I thought to myself, rubbing my aching head. It’s as if I had somehow created a gap in my memory, and the empty space was filled with memories of my past life instead of a faint 

connection with someone.

 

It wasn’t until my brother found me, sobbing through his runny nose, and slapped me on the back that I fully understood that I was in the novel 「Bloody Revenge.」

 

From then on, I prepared for my revenge and forgot about the boy who had only existed in 

my memory for a short time.

 

🐾

 

Opening my eyes, blinking…

 

I gazed at the ceiling and realized that I was in my room inside the duke’s mansion.

 

Only the light of a bedside lamp shone on the nightstand in the pitch darkness.

 

I breathed calmly, trying to control my overwhelming emotions.

 

“It’s back, all of it.”

 

After a few long breaths, it didn’t take long for me to become aware of a person beside me.

 

“Astel.”

 

The Duke sat in the chair beside the bedside table, staring down at me. In his hand, he held a mismatched handkerchief. He was probably trying to wipe the sweat from my forehead.

 

“…”

 

I didn’t know what to say, emotions boiling in my stomach, and I felt overwhelmed, unable to say anything.

 

So I just stared at him. How did he read my silence, the Duke asked me directly.

 

“Are you afraid? You are sweating….”

 

He placed the towel on the bedside table and reached to wipe the sweat off my forehead.

 

When I couldn’t speak for a moment, he calmly explained about the Duke of Cornwall, as if 

trying to ease my worries.

 

“The Duke of Cornwall has fled, pretending to have committed suicide by voodoo. Don’t worry, I’ve called in the beasts to track him down, but he has lost his powers, and we’ll take him down somehow.”

 

I nodded and stared at the Duke. I had him figured out.

 

There was no way I was going to be able to deal with him right now.

 

What I wanted was to weaken the Duke of Cornwall’s power, to cast a spell on him through Mimi.

 

And to allow my brother to enter the Cornwall manor and discover the cure.

 

‘If the Duke of Cornwall has been weakened and escaped through voodoo, my brother will be safe, and maybe he’ll have the book of magic.’

 

I nodded, pleased with the better-than-expected outcome.

 

But right now, the Duke of Cornwall wasn’t the most important thing. No, of course it was, but…

 

At this moment, the most critical thing was the man in front of me.

 

“…You don’t look so good, a little more rest wouldn’t hurt.”

 

I looked up at him as he whispered, concerned for me, and lowered my eyes.

 

How could I not recognize this look before?

 

How… How could I have suspected him of being in the dark villain when I had seen those desperate blue eyes?

 

— “I’ve been waiting for you to say that.”

 

The day I first met the Duke of Anais. No, the day I thought I met him, I was on guard, wondering if his every word was a trap.

 

I thought it was odd how familiar he was to me.

 

— “You’ve been waiting for me?”

 

— “Yes, I’ve been waiting.”

 

In the past, I had been suspicious and doubtful of the faceless man.

 

But that expression that I was afraid of because I didn’t think it contained any emotion……

 

In fact, in my mind, I think it was the overwhelming amount of emotion that made it harder to read.

 

When I thought about how he must have felt when he saw me not remembering anything, I started to cry.

 

He had been waiting for me for over a decade to reunite with him when he told me to wait.

 

And… when I entered the palace and tried to lure him out, he had come to me first.

 

I pushed myself up from the bed.

 

“Duke.”

 

“…”

 

He looked at me, blankly. I looked into his face and thought about Knox, the boy who had grown up.

 

“Knox!”

 

“Yes.”

 

The Duke’s cold expression was slowly replaced by the warmth of the way Knox had looked at me as a child.

 

I wonder if that’s why. The look I had once feared, and that some might still find terrifying, no longer seemed cold.

 

The way he looked at me now, at this moment, was pure and sincere. I could see, now that I knew everything, how much he cared for me.

 

I inhaled quietly and opened my mouth to speak to him.

 

“I missed you.”

 

He stared at me, still, speechless.

 

This time, I reached out first, wrapping my hand around his shoulder and hugged him.

 

At that moment, his body went stiff in my arms. I squeezed his shoulders harder.

 

To the little boy who had told me to make sure I remembered his name, to the tiny child who had given me a slice of his life.

 

Now, more than a decade later, I had to tell him. I hugged him tightly, my heart pounding in my chest, the sound of it pounding like ringing in my ears.

 

I gently pulled myself away from his body, and our eyes met.

 

“I haven’t forgotten… I came to the right place.”

 

After what seemed like an eternity, it was finally my turn to say his name.

 

“Knox.”

 

I whispered, my voice dry, “I remembered, everything.”

 

As soon as I finished, his pupils began to flutter open.