How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 295

“But what on earth is happening up there right now?”

 

“There’s a huge monster, a dragon or something, going wild.”

 

“A dragon?”

 

At the unexpected word, Julius doubted his own ears.

 

“A dragon? Weren’t dragons supposed to be extinct? How in the world are those wizards controlling one?”

 

“It’s probably not a real dragon. Most likely just something they gave a fancy name to.”

 

Kairos knew it was a chimera with the name ‘dragon’ in it.

 

But he couldn’t reveal that without exposing how he came by such knowledge. So instead, he spoke of something else.

 

“But I understand why they gave it that name. If we leave it like this, the palace—no, the entire capital—will be in ruins before daylight.”

 

“That serious? What is the Marquis—no, His Majesty—doing right now?”

 

“I don’t know.”

 

His indifferent voice hinted at his lack of interest.

 

Instead, he told Kairos the news he was most curious about at that moment.

 

“Sister-in-law… I have brought her to Paul Herbina. Under Ajas’s protection, she will be safe even if the entire palace collapses.”

 

The moment the unfastened necklace clattered to the stone floor, Julius pulled Kairos into a tight embrace and spoke with genuine warmth.

 

“Thank you, Kyle. There’s no one but you.”

 

“It’s nothing…”

 

The unhesitating strength of that hug made Kairos remember the warmth Julius had shared when they first met.

 

“Hello? Nice to meet you. So you’re my little brother.”

 

Only after the symbol was manifested, Kairos was recognized as a member of the Emperor’s bloodline and was able to enter the palace.

 

Therefore, the first meeting between the two only happened after Kairos was crowned prince.

 

But the truth was different.

Their real first meeting had happened when Kairos was six.

Julius had secretly snuck out of the palace to visit Marquis Calvin’s estate.

 

“Brother? Don’t make me laugh. I don’t have a brother.”

 

“No, really? My father said so. You’re my little brother.”

 

“Who is your father?”

 

“Are you asking because you don’t know? My father is your father.”

 

“My father was the late Marquis Calvin.”

 

The last words “I think” he swallowed back, because his mother had told him otherwise.

 

“Kyle, you are the Emperor’s son. Right now, you have no choice but to stay at the Marquis’s residence, but once that fact is proven, you will immediately move into the palace.”

 

But she was the only one who said so. None of the Marquis’s people believed that Kairos was truly the emperor’s son.

 

More precisely, they wanted him to be the Marquis’s son.

 

“Don’t believe what the Marquise says. You are indeed the Marquis’s son.”

 

His mother said he was the Emperor’s child, while everyone else said he was the late Marquis’s.

 

It was natural that Kairos’ thoughts leaned towards the latter.

 

“I’m not your brother. Get out of my house before I call someone!”

 

“No, I can tell just by looking. You are my brother.”

 

“And how would you know that?”

 

“I just do. Don’t you feel something when you look at me?”

 

“No!”

 

Whether Kairos stood upright like a cat wary of strangers or not, Julius smiled brightly.

 

“I guess I’ll have to go now. I’ll come back next time. Next time, let’s play together!”

 

If Kairos had informed his mother of Julius’s visit, she would have taken steps through the emperor to prevent Julius from coming again.

 

However, Kairos was unable to tell the Marquis of Calvin the truth.

 

At the time, she was busy trying to win over several nobles to gain recognition for Kairos’s imperial blood.

 

She was not the type of mother who stayed home and tenderly asked her son what his day had been like.

 

Although he did not suffer from any difficulties in food, clothing, and shelter due to the care of his servants, Kairos was in fact being neglected.

 

In fact, he talked more with Julius—who sneaked over once or twice a month—than with the mother he lived under the same roof with.

 

“Here, try this. Our palace chef made it. I brought it just for you.”

 

“Have you read this book? It’s really good!”

 

“Today I brought a ball. Let’s play kickball!”

 

Whenever Julius popped in, declaring “you’re my brother,” Kairos would vehemently deny it—but over time, his resistance wore down.

 

Is it because he is tired? Or simply growing used to it?

 

When he caught himself peeking out the window wondering if it was time for Julius to show up again, the answer was clear.

 

Like clothes soaked slowly in a drizzle, the idea of having a brother seeped into him until it felt natural.

 

Years later, when he grew old enough to understand the ways of the world, he realized why Julius had only come in secret, bringing just a single guard. Why he had insisted their meetings remain hidden.

 

One day, Kairos asked: “Do you not hate me?”

 

“Why would I be? If I were, I wouldn’t come to see you like this, would I?”

 

“I only have sisters. I’ve always wanted a brother. You wouldn’t believe how close they all are—sleeping in the same bed, whispering secrets—and I was always left out. So I really wanted a younger brother. If you lived in the palace, we could meet more often.”

 

There is a way for the symbol to manifest, his mother had told him. Painful, yes, but if he succeeded, he could enter the palace.

 

He agreed because of Julius’ words.

 

Had he been a little less starved for affection, had he known the truth of the imperial succession struggles no one had told him, he never would have chosen it.

 

Only after the crest manifested, after he was recognized as imperial blood and entered the palace, did Kairos realize—he was the only royal with a manifested symbol.

 

And that very fact was a tremendous obstacle to Julius.

 

“Prince Julius greets His Highness the First Prince.”

 

When he saw Julius politely bowing before him, Kairos realized the consequences of his ignorance and greed.

 

He had never coveted the throne for a single moment. He had spent his entire life hearing his mother tell him it was his, but what he had really wanted was simply more time with her.

 

At some point, he gave up on his mother’s affection and began to glance only at the backyard fence that his brother secretly climbed over.

 

All he had wanted—truly—was to someday say with confidence that he was Julius’ little brother.

 

That was all.

 

“I am…”

 

Kairos was unable to say anything to Julius, who bowed his head to him in front of countless people.

 

He paid no attention to the chatter that followed his cold retreating back.

 

If Julius hadn’t come secretly that evening, just as he always did, maybe Kairos would have worried that Julius had started to hate him.

 

“We’ve started living in the same house, but it’s become harder to see each other. It’s definitely because this is the prince’s palace, so the security is tight.”

 

“Why did you do that earlier…?”

 

“Do what? …Ah, well, you’re the first Prince now. In public, I should show respect. If not, people will look down on you.”

 

“I don’t care. Those who look down on me are already looking down on me anyway, no matter how you treat me.”

 

“That’s not right. You’ll be the Emperor one day.”

 

You will become Emperor one day.

 

When those words came from his mother’s mouth, they stirred no feeling in him.

 

But when Julius said them, Kairos felt a wave of revulsion rise within him, something close to nausea.

 

“You… you don’t hate me? Even though I stole your place completely?”

 

“Stole? What did you steal from me?”

 

“If it weren’t for me, the throne would’ve been yours…”

 

“How could I inherit the throne without a symbol?”

 

“You might awaken one someday.”

 

“That’s true. Maybe I will. Or maybe one of my sisters will… Who knows what the future holds?”

 

“Only when I manifest the symbol and become qualified will we be able to compete. How could you possibly have taken something I didn’t even have?”

 

After Kairos manifested the symbol, the Emperor’s favor was completely focused on Marquise Calvin, and the nobles also gathered around Marquise Calvin, whose son bore the imperial heir’s mark.

 

Those who had admired and followed Julius because he was the emperor’s eldest son suddenly turned around and began to mock and ridicule him.

 

Yet Julius’s attitude toward Kairos never changed.

 

If only he had gotten angry—cursed him, and accused him of ruining everything—Kairos’s heart might have been at ease.

 

Kairos prayed. He prayed to a god who may or may not exist. He prayed that he could atone for his mistakes.

 

And perhaps his prayers reached some God’s ear.

 

One day, Julius also manifested a symbol.

 

Unlike him who had been using evil tricks, it was the birth of a legitimate successor to the throne.

 

“This really puts us on the same starting line. I wouldn’t give in even if it was you.”

 

“Yes. Please do.”

 

“Huh? Why the sudden formality…?”

 

“Congratulations on awakening your symbol, brother.”

 

“What? What did you just call me?”

 

“I called you brother. Brother.”

 

“Oh my god, there’s no one else in this world who’d be so happy just to hear their younger sibling call them that… But why the formal speech? It feels like you’re pushing me away.”

 

That was exactly what Kairos wanted—to push him away.

 

To warn him not to grow attached to someone like him.

 

And yet, he still couldn’t bring himself to give up the place of being Julius’s younger brother

 

Will Julius still think of him as his little brother when he finds out what he has done?

 

His mother, who sent assassins to kill Julius, simply because he had become the second Prince—Kairos no longer cared for her.

 

The Emperor, too, who fawned pathetically over her even while having such a worthy son, disgusted him to no end.

 

If things ever went wrong, Kairos resolved, he would confess his sins—every last one of them.

 

With that thought, Kairos began to ruin his own reputation.

 

So that no fool would ever consider putting someone like him on the throne.

 

So that if Julius ever stumbled over him, he would not be a stumbling block but a pebble, kicked aside and scattered out of the way.

 

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