The Future Calamity’s Brainwashing Won’t Wear Off Chapter 4

The more I blinked, the strange expression on his face only deepened. Feeling rather uncomfortable, I whined slightly and hid behind my mother’s legs, prompting him to snaps out of it late and carefully lift me up in his arms.

“Oh, my goodness. How can a child be so…”

The Marquis uttered incomprehensible words as he picked me up, his movements awkward as if he had never held a young child before.

However, I could no longer pay any attention to the Marquis—and that was because of the servants lined up behind him.

‘They’re all criminals?’

I closely examined the cloths covering the eyes of the servants standing in the rear. Over the cloths, which looked sunken as though their eyes had been gouged out, blood-red characters were densely inscribed.

What was more, it felt as though they could see me right through the fabric. Following me as I was held by the Marquis, their gazes slowly swept upward, remaining fixed in my direction for a long while like motionless dolls, as if trying to engrave me in their memory.

The sight was eerie enough to give me goosebumps, so I ducked my head deep and buried my face into the Marquis’s shoulder. At that, the Marquis flinched slightly before gently patting my back.

“Adelheid, was the journey here arduous?”

“It was rough, but certainly not enough to keep us from coming.”

It was plainly obvious that the Marquis was trying hard to use a gentle tone of voice, which didn’t match his cold and gloomy appearance at all.

On the other hand, perhaps because she had been forced into this arrangement, Mother was frosty. Yet even as she reached out her hand after pulling off her glove—as if granting him permission to escort her—the fluid beauty of her movements was utterly flawless.

The Marquis stared blankly at Mother for a moment, spellbound by her grace. When he eagerly took her hand, Mother looked completely repulsed.

‘He’s not even that ugly, though.’

From what I had observed so far, Mother liked beautiful things. Given that rumors of my biological father’s beauty had spread far beyond the kingdom into the Empire, perhaps the Marquis—even if he was far from unsightly—just didn’t measure up in Mother’s eyes?

‘Even so, to look that repulsed…?’

Though the Marquis’s actions might seem sluggish and gloomy at first glance, there wasn’t really anything else to fault him for.

Had something happened between the two that I didn’t know about?

Just as I was wondering in confusion, I noticed Mother’s ears turning slightly red. Completely unaware of Mother’s true state, the Marquis awkwardly escorted her into the mansion.

So the conclusion was this:

Both of them were nervous and embarrassed, utterly oblivious to each other’s feelings.

I watched the two with deep intrigue.

Truly, watching other people’s romance is the absolute most entertaining thing.

As I watched with gleaming eyes, my gaze met Mother’s. The instant she saw me, as if she had never been scowling in the first place, she beamed warmly and pressed a kiss to my cheek.

“Oscar, I swear you get more irresistibly lovely by the second today.”

As if a single kiss wasn’t enough, Mother rubbed her nose against mine. I burst into giggles at the ticklish sensation, while the Marquis froze up entirely, flinching silently without even daring to look directly at us.

‘He must be really timid.’

With that thought, I entered the mansion while cradled in the Marquis’s arms. Because the Marquis was quite tall, my field of vision rose significantly. As I lowered my gaze, a single child standing all by himself in the middle of the massive hall caught my eye.

The child had kept his gaze locked onto me from the very moment I stepped into this mansion.

Under that intense stare, young as I was, I instinctively raised my head to look back at him—and was thoroughly startled the moment I saw his face.

‘Is that boy really the Marquis’s son?’

I had heard that the Marquis had a child, so that boy greeting us right now must be his son… but he was far too different from the impression I had imagined.

Even if the Marquis was fairly handsome, his overall atmosphere was gloomy, and his timid demeanor—unbefitting the head of a great house—detracted from his good looks; but the child was different.

Though his hair and eye colors were a spitting image of the Marquis, his expression and aura were worlds apart.

To put it more specifically…

‘Why does he look so… sociable?’

Should I say he had the look of someone who had an endless number of friends?

Indeed, from the very moment our eyes met, the child was wearing a brightly beaming smile. That bright smile made him look exceptionally radiant.

Unlike the Marquis’s limp, straight hair, the boy’s hair was softly curled, and his eyes—curved like crescent moons—glimmered prettily, overflowing with complete goodwill.

‘It seems like there’s quite an age gap between us.’

Furthermore, it felt like some of the information I knew was incorrect.

I had heard from Mother that the Marquis’s son and I were close in age, if not exact peers, but seeing him in person, his frame was quite large and he appeared exceedingly mature.

“Erhan. Greet your mother.”

My eyes widened in slight surprise. The moment the Marquis called out to Erhan, the soft and gentle tone he had used with us instantly shifted into something strict and cold.

“Understood.”

However, that coldness seemed to be an unnecessary worry on my part.

Pattering over toward us, Erhan’s movements were remarkably light and energetic without a trace of being intimidated. Seeing his cheerful, smiling face, the chilliness I had just felt seemed to be nothing more than my imagination.

“Hello, …Mother.”

“Oh, my.”

It probably wasn’t their first time meeting. However, hearing her addressed as “Mother” for the first time must have taken her aback, as Mother’s eyes widened in surprise. Seeing her reaction, Erhan bashfully crossed his feet, his cheeks flushing red.

The child was so adorable that I felt the Marquis wouldn’t even need to eat food to feel full.

His unusually fair skin and curly light-grey hair almost looked silver, and the way his pale, near-white eyelashes fluttered gently was as dainty as a butterfly alighting.

Just as I was marveling at how utterly adorable he looked, the Marquis slowly set me down on the floor and introduced me to Erhan.

“Is this your first time seeing each other? Starting today, this is Oscar, who will be your younger brother. Do get along well. Oscar? This child will be your older brother now.”

Erhan looked straight at me right away.

Even when looking at him while held by the Marquis, I hadn’t thought he was short, but standing face-to-face on the floor, Erhan was so tall that I had to tilt my head all the way up.

“Hello! It’s so amazing that I have a younger brother now. I’m Erhan. Nice to meet you, Oscar. Let’s get along well from now on, okay?”

It was obvious the child was well-educated and showered with love. Seeing a child reach out his hand with an unreserved, bright smile, who wouldn’t have their guard instantly melted?

Yet I could only part my lips slightly, unable to offer a response.

“Oscar?”

As I simply stared blankly at his extended hand while blinking my eyes, the Marquis called out to me in confusion. Erhan also gazed at me with a puzzled look. With everyone watching me like that, I felt a gentle, warm hand quietly stroke my head.

“The child has been sickly ever since he was born…. So he is a bit slow with his speech.”

Mother spoke calmly.

The Marquis and Erhan assumed understanding expressions at the same time. Scanning Mother’s face, the Marquis added, “That can certainly happen.” He made every effort to ensure that neither Mother’s nor my feelings were hurt.

Yes, I was five years old.

At this age, being unable to speak properly wasn’t just being a bit slow; it was being very slow.

Of course, there was nothing wrong with my physical functions. The only reason I didn’t speak was… because I found the sound of my own voice unbearable.

It might have been different had I not remembered my past life.

Having been an adult, hearing the childish slurring and high-pitched tone peculiar to toddlers made me feel repulsed, so even when I needed to express myself after the babbling stage, I rarely spoke.

I had only practiced a few times when I was alone, while to Mother and the servants, I only gave brief responses like “Yes,” “Yeah,” “No,” or “I don’t want to.” Since I didn’t even do this in front of strangers, Mother’s worries were beyond measure.

“….”

I looked at Erhan staring intently at me. After hearing that I couldn’t speak, he didn’t seem to expect an answer anymore.

What should I do? After a moment’s hesitation, I carefully took Erhan’s hand, which was still holding out for a handshake. Unlike me, who was on the smaller side for my age, Erhan had very large hands. Gently gripping his hand, I nodded to Erhan, who was looking at me with a surprised face, and spoke.

“Erhan.”

I tried to speak as clearly as possible. Calling a name wasn’t a big deal, after all.