He’s My Real Brother, Duke Chapter 137

💫

 

As I approached my brother’s bed, my heart sank. 

 

My brother’s face was gaunt, as if he were about to die, and it pierced my heart to see him like that. But I was relieved to find that his tone of voice was lighthearted.

 

“If you hadn’t warned me, I would have been in trouble.”

 

He continued to babble at me as if he hadn’t seen anyone in a long time, and the faint smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth made me feel even worse. 

 

As if to hide my frustration, I gave my brother a gentle nudge.

 

“Yeah, just shut up, you’re bleeding!”

 

At the same time, I wiped the trickle of blood from his nose. Even though he was bleeding, he didn’t stop talking, as if in wonder.

 

“Well… I used the potion you gave me well.”

 

As I listened to him, I remembered what had happened. 

 

In truth, I hadn’t fully overheard their ruse as I stole a glance at the Duke of Cornwall.

 

But I did manage to catch a glimpse of the poison, Angel’s Tears.

 

‘The poison used in the original story.’

 

The extreme poison known as Angel’s Tears was a terrifying weapon in the original story. 

 

A poison that soaked into the skin or other skin surfaces, causing the victim to writhe in agony until death was the only option.

 

As soon as I heard those words, I worked with my three brothers, all geniuses in poison, to concoct a ‘baiting potion‘ that would produce symptoms similar to angelic tears. 

 

First, we wrapped transparent cloth around the hands, feet, and neck of every Cassian who went out to fight.

 

— ‘You must wrap your entire body in this to avoid being poisoned.’

 

— ‘What about my face?’ 

 

— ‘I’ll put powder on your face.’ 

 

— ‘Well, I’m sure I’ll be suffocated before the poison kills me.’

 

— ‘But you can’t take it off.’ 

 

— ‘Yes, of course. As you command.’

 

I handed the stubborn Cassian the potion I’d worked so hard to concoct.

 

— ‘Take this when I tell you to.’

 

With that, I scowled at the supposed spy, Julie, as she approached.

 

After that, things went smoothly. 

 

Cassian made contact with Julie and secretly drank the potion I gave him before heading out to fight the demon.

 

Then Cassian collapsed, the demon war was lost, and…

 

They would think everything was going their way. I smirked and slapped my brother’s handkerchief down.

 

“You know.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

I lowered my voice.

 

Figuring that after all the hopefulness, it was time for a story of despair.

 

His face twisted for a moment as he looked at me with a sickly expression.

 

My brother and I had that kind of relationship. We could look each other in the eye and know what to say.

 

“First, even if I die, you should never die, but wait for me. Live well.”

 

“Don’t talk like you’re going to die. We’re going to live together… uck, cough.”

 

Cassian brought the back of his hand to the corner of his mouth and coughed softly. 

 

Fake blood poured out of the corner of his mouth with a crackling sound. 

 

I wiped the corner of his mouth with a white cloth and spoke softly.

 

“It’s just something.”

 

Cassian tried to sit up, groaned, and then lay sprawled out. He frowned as he considered my words.

 

“Don’t do anything dangerous. I’ll take care of that.”

 

I turned to Cassian and nodded affectionately.

 

“Yeah, Cassian’s been good bait today, too.”

 

“That’s unnerving…”

 

To reassure him, I smiled with a twinkle in my eye. But deep down, I knew he was right.

 

‘I’ll share everything I’m planning, but… there are still some things I can’t tell you.’ 

 

How could I tell him this was a world from a book?

 

It’s something that, revenge or not, shakes up Cassian’s very life.

 

To realize that all the hardship, misery, and suffering you’ve endured throughout your life was just adversity stirred up by the stroke of someone’s pen.

 

I didn’t know if he would believe me if I told him, and it wasn’t the right time to tell him yet. 

 

Even if I did, it wouldn’t make any difference, because he was already going along with my plan. He was already fully on board with my plan.

 

But following my plan and worrying about me were two different things. He gave me a stern look.

 

“You, don’t do anything dangerous.”

 

“I won’t. Don’t worry!”

 

Smiling brightly, I tucked my brother’s blanket up to his neck.

 

“Just think good things, you’re a patient.”

 

He whined as I pulled the blanket up to his neck. His voice was cracking from the potion, though, so I couldn’t quite hear him.

 

I gave him a pitying look, then smirked.

 

“I’m sure it’ll be over soon enough after you get some rest.”

 

I patted his head. He returned my touch, closing his eyes languidly. I knew I was being a brat, but for some reason, I felt bad.

 

How long must I have been stroking his hair?

 

Someone grabbed my shoulder lightly and called out.

 

“Astel.”

 

It was Knox.

 

I opened my eyes in surprise, glancing back and forth between the barracks’ tented door and Knox’s sideways face.

 

The last thing I needed was to appear overly intimate with Cassian to anyone! I hastily pulled my hand away and feigned nonchalance.

 

“Uh, when did you get here?”

 

“I arrived just as Astel’s precious hands were covered in sweat.”

 

By sweaty, I assume he means from wiping my brother’s sweat earlier.

 

Pulling my hand away from Cassian’s forehead, making sure it was well away from his, Knox wiped it lightly with a handkerchief he’d taken from somewhere and spoke low.

 

“Let me wipe you clean.”

 

My brother, frowning at the sight of him, muttered something under his breath.

 

“We’ll see.”

 

…Of course, he got caught.

 

Knox glared down at him coldly and spoke stiffly.

 

“Wait and see what?”

 

“Wait and see,” he replied grumpily, wiping the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

 

“For now, as a sick man, I will remain silent… Co, cough. I will.”

 

The way they were going at it, even if I succeeded in exacting revenge…

 

I had a premonition that my future with Knox would be a thorny one.

 

💫

 

At the same time, the palace was peaceful.

 

The Crown Prince, sensing that all was going well, was all but ready to push the Emperor aside and take power.

 

The Duke of Anais seemed to be a reluctant beast and a threat to his succession.

 

There was a reason he’d sent him away like a demon to the battlefield.

 

“Council.”

 

As the Emperor’s representative, the Crown Prince sat on the throne and watched over the council.

 

A look of benevolence crossed his face as he realized that things were going his way.

 

“Unfortunately, our Demon War was predicted to be lost.”

 

The majority of the noble houses had fallen into the hands of the Crown Prince, except for the neutral nobles under the watchful eye of the Duke of Anais.

 

The beast may be a mystery, but the capital’s politics were not all about brute force.

 

It’s strictly a place of honor and cause.

 

And with the defeat in the Demon War, there were reports of key knightly personnel dying.

 

Now that their honor has been shattered, they have an excellent excuse to attack.

 

The puppet nobles at the Crown Prince’s behest have gotten lucky.

 

“It is unfortunate, Your Majesty. If we lose the Demon War, we will have to impose some sort of tax on the Duchy of Anais.”

 

“The imperial palace has suffered great losses due to the supplies for this war. We must make them bear some losses as well.”

 

The suggestion was ridiculous, but the crown prince’s eyes narrowed, and his mouth clenched like a conch.

 

“We’ll discuss it later. When we’ve been soundly defeated, don’t you know? We’ve gathered the heroes of the Empire.”

 

Of course, he wouldn’t let them win.

 

“Maybe we could pull off an incredible victory.”

 

Not only would they lose, but they would inflict mortal pain on the Duke of Anais. But only a foolish cheat would reveal such dark thoughts.

 

The Crown Prince lifted his chin arrogantly and said, “Now to the next item on the agenda.”

 

With that, the nobles flipped through the agenda papers in front of them. 

 

The papers rustled as they were turned over, and everyone swallowed hard when they saw what was written on them.