The Way To Protect The Female Lead’S Older Brother [EN]: Chapter 90

“Ah, this is nice.”

I brazenly took Cassis’s bed in his empty room and lay down.

Maybe it’s just that the grass is always greener on the other side, but the bed in Cassis’s room felt much softer and more comfortable than mine.

Lying here like this, I felt a sense of contentment.

I subtly rolled onto my side.

After receiving energy from Cassis, I always felt incredibly sleepy.

He might act like it wasn’t the case, but my sleep time had definitely increased because of him.

The faint fragrance that clung to Cassis’s skin also permeated his bedding.

I buried my nose in it.

For some reason, his scent made me feel at ease.

Even when I was in Agrische, I often felt the tension leave my body whenever I thought of Cassis. It was the same now.

But no matter how I looked at it, it was a bit strange.

Cassis and I had only spent less than a month together three years ago.

Of course, it was a very intense experience, but…

Still, I couldn’t understand why I felt this way about him.

However, not everything in this world makes sense…

So, maybe it’s best to just accept the things I can’t understand.

Before I could get lost in thought, my eyes began to droop.

I decided to just rest my eyes for a moment until he came back, and I relaxed my body.

* * *

I had a dream.

The point I kept returning to was the last night in Agrische.

I guess I was having this dream because I had met Richel.

I was in Lant’s office.

The frigid air and the acrid smell of herbs that hung in the air like a dark stain were still vivid.

But mixed in was a different scent.

A refreshing and clean fragrance, unlike the stimulants Lant always used.

Ah, right. I was wearing Cassis’s clothes.

I was drinking alcohol while wearing the coat that Cassis, whom I met in Wigdrasil, had given me.

It was after I had Jeremy evacuate the servants and dismiss the soldiers.

Then, Deon opened the tightly closed door and came inside.

His red eyes, glowing even in the darkness, immediately met my gaze.

He approached me with quiet footsteps.

Did I look him straight in the eye back then, or did I close my eyes to avoid him again?

I don’t remember what I did back then, but the current me did the latter.

Suddenly, something cold touched my cheek.

Like a distant memory, I felt someone’s cold hand lightly brush my face.

The cool temperature on my skin brought someone to mind.

But he had never touched me kindly like this.

We didn’t have that kind of relationship, and we both knew very well that I would never allow it, just as he would never try to do such a thing.

With that sense of unease, my mind slowly returned to the present.

Before I knew it, the sun had completely set, and it was dark.

A dark figure was silhouetted in my blurry vision.

Ah… Has the moment finally come?

That thought flashed through my mind.

So, without realizing it, I called out the name of the person I had seen in my dream.

“…Deon?”

The hand that had been touching my cheek stopped abruptly.

Only then did I realize something was wrong.

The person standing before me as my sleepiness finally vanished was Cassis.

“Deon, you say?”

The low, muttered voice fell heavily from above me.

The cold air that Cassis had brought in from outside washed over me. His hand completely dropped away.

“I never thought I resembled that guy.”

It was as if a cold wind was blowing from Cassis’s eyes as he looked down at me.

“I don’t know why that name came out of your mouth while you were sleeping in my room.”

Cassis whispered softly and smiled faintly.

But it definitely wasn’t a smile of happiness.

I looked up at Cassis and took a deep breath. Then, as I slowly exhaled, I sat up.

“It doesn’t mean anything. I just mistook you in my sleep.”

I hoped Cassis would just let it go, but this time it didn’t work.

“Come to think of it, you called me Deon in Wigdrasil too.”

It was on the last day of the Harmony Council, in the deep night before dawn.

Indeed, as Cassis said, I mistook him for Deon back then too.

But that was because I was seeing Cassis for the first time in three years.

Besides, at that time, his face was obscured by the darkness, so I largely made the mistake based on his imposing presence and physique.

“Looks like you had a dream about him.”

A parched voice echoed in my ear.

I felt the weight of the situation.

The thought that I couldn’t explain my feelings with words silenced me.

So, I tried to get out of bed to leave.

But Cassis’s hand covered mine on the bed, pressing it down.

Then, the distance between us closed.

I reflexively moved back, but Cassis leaned forward, making us even closer.

In the end, I felt trapped by him.

“Could it be that you’ve been waiting for Deon Agrische all this time?”

Frozen golden eyes pierced me.

I gently bit my lip.

I tried to move my hand, which was firmly held by Cassis, but it didn’t budge.

It was natural for Cassis to react this way.

Even I thought that my voice, which had called out Deon’s name in my sleep, sounded like I was welcoming someone I had been waiting for.

But whatever Cassis was thinking, it wasn’t the truth.

I didn’t know what had happened to Deon after we parted ways on the last day of Agrische. Whether he was dead or alive.

But if he was alive, I thought he would definitely come to find me.

Wherever I was after leaving Agrische, I believed Deon wouldn’t give up.

When I woke up and saw the dark figure in front of me, I thought it was him.

That was why I inadvertently spoke Deon’s name.

“…That’s not it.”

At that moment, I resigned myself, and ridiculously, my heart sank.

Even while in Pedelian, I had always kept in mind that Deon might come to find me.

So, I hadn’t considered Cassis’s side as my true final destination.

For some reason, in the endings I sometimes imagined, I was dying at Deon’s hands.

“…Your relationship with him is strange.”

A heavy, cold, and sharp voice pierced my eardrums.

“You’ve never asked about anyone other than Lant Agrische. Not even about Deon Agrische.”

A suppressed gaze searched my eyes, as if not wanting to miss even the slightest hint of deception.

“So, that day I said, ‘Everything has become as you wished’.”

But even after hearing those words from Cassis, I couldn’t decide anything.

Because I still couldn’t tell whether I wanted Deon to have died that day, or to have lived.

“Do you want to go back to Agrische?”

A whispering, low voice mingled with rough breaths.

The grip on my hand tightened.

Cassis spoke from a distance so close that our lips could touch at any moment.

“But I won’t let you go.”

The moment I heard those words, my heart clenched.