The Way To Protect The Female Lead’S Older Brother [EN]: Chapter 140

How to Protect the Heroine’s Older Brother – Episode 140

Hyberion’s group, having arrived first, had already begun unpacking.

“Ugh, I thought I was going to die of frustration.”

Orca, looking utterly drained, entered the building to find his room.

Pandora, too, found the unfamiliar carriage travel stifling.

She was about to enter the building to rest when she spotted Jeremy emerging from a carriage.

Instantly, Pandora flinched and quickly turned her head away.

Last winter, after hearing about the fall of Agriche, she had been snooping around, hoping to find a useful magical creature, when she ran into Jeremy.

She had anticipated possibly meeting him if she came to Yggdrasil this time, but…

Perhaps everything had happened so fast that he wouldn’t remember her.

Besides, communication with magical creatures was weakened in Yggdrasil, so she couldn’t summon Turobe, whom she had used to escape back then.

So, the chances of him recognizing her were even lower.

Of course, she was worried about Hyberion’s distinctive blue hair being a giveaway, but…

As long as he didn’t know that Pandora was the one who had tried to rob Agriche back then, she would be fine.

Anxious that Jeremy might recognize her face, Pandora hurried inside the building.

“What’s with this chaotic atmosphere?”

Meanwhile, Jeremy frowned as soon as he stepped out of the carriage, sensing the disorganized air.

The Gastor family had arrived at Yggdrasil first.

However, instead of being in their rooms, they were outside, glancing at the garden and loitering around.

Why are they acting like dogs about to relieve themselves?

Their behavior was strange, so Jeremy also turned to look.

The sound of people whispering reached his ears at that moment.

“……!”

Even amidst the general noise, ‘that name’ was etched so clearly in Jeremy’s ears.

Jeremy’s legs, which had been frozen in place for a moment, finally moved.

For some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to approach the garden directly and merely pushed through the loitering people.

Roses were already blooming in Yggdrasil.

The closer he got to the garden entrance, the more the heady fragrance filled his lungs.

The intense rose scent made him increasingly breathless.

No, that wasn’t it.

The reason Jeremy’s breathing was becoming increasingly erratic wasn’t just the scent.

His heart had been pounding wildly for some time, and his slow pace had now quickened to almost a run.

Vivid red and green colors mixed in his vision, blurring erratically.

Then, Jeremy gasped as the sight finally came into full view.

Swish.

The fully bloomed roses swayed gently in the light breeze.

The woman was sitting like a painting on a chair in the middle of the flowers.

The softly flowing golden hair sparkled brightly, creating a halo of light as it caught the sunlight.

The slowly gliding eyes, sensing his presence, were as red as the roses blooming beside her.

For a moment, he forgot to breathe…

To Jeremy, it was an overwhelmingly beautiful scene simply because she was there.

Jeremy’s tightly closed lips trembled.

Could it be a dream?

Without realizing it, Jeremy called her name and took a step forward.

“Sana, Sister…”

Thud.

But soon, Jeremy stopped abruptly.

His hand, which had unconsciously reached out, was now clenched so tightly that it drew blood.

…No.

Perhaps Roxana hadn’t come here to see him.

So, she might not want him to acknowledge her any further.

Maybe…

Maybe if he rashly approached her now, she would disappear without a trace again…

“Jeremy.”

However, the fear and anxiety-filled thoughts that had been swirling in Jeremy’s mind vanished without a trace in the next moment.

It was the moment when the person in front of Jeremy called his name in a low voice.

Jeremy stood blankly, staring at the face before him.

He was sure there could be no more beautiful sight than this, but the moment a gentle smile, which Jeremy had missed so much, appeared on Roxana’s face, he realized that it was a foolish thought.

“You’re late. I’ve been waiting.”

The voice reaching his ears was unbelievably sweet.

Roxana reached out her hand to Jeremy, who was still frozen.

“Come closer, my brother.”

Jeremy’s eyes turned red in an instant.

“Sister…”

He was overwhelmed with an indescribable feeling and took a staggering step.

Like someone who had been lost at sea for a long time and finally found a buoy, Jeremy’s movements were filled with such desperation and raw emotion.

And when his hand finally touched the person who existed like a phantom before his eyes.

“Sana, Sister. Sister…”

Jeremy inevitably collapsed completely.

He knelt down in front of Roxana without hesitation, just as he had done in Agriche, and buried his face in her skirt.

“Jeremy, I missed you.”

A gentle touch stroked his hair and cheeks.

The whispers spreading in his ear were so warm and soft that his heart felt heavy.

“Jeremy…”

If this was a dream, he never wanted to wake up. He wished time would stop forever.

“Don’t cry.”

It was only when Roxana said that that Jeremy realized he was crying in an unsightly manner.

Slender fingers wiped away the teardrops falling down.

It was something he couldn’t believe himself, and he didn’t want to show such an unsightly appearance in front of Roxana, whom he was meeting after so long, but…

Nevertheless, he couldn’t stop the tears that kept blurring his vision.

In the end, Jeremy continued to cry into Roxana’s skirt for a long time.

The hand stroking his back as if to comfort him was so warm and tender that he never wanted to escape it.

* * *

I was a little surprised that Jeremy even cried.

Even during the last monthly evaluation at the age of fifteen, when Jeremy had seen a hallucination, he had been comforted by me and his eyes had turned red, but he had never actually shed tears.

But now, he was simply shedding tears in front of me without saying anything, as if he couldn’t control himself.

I had already been well aware that I was not an insignificant presence to Jeremy.

But seeing him show such a vulnerable side and cry in front of me like this…

I patted Jeremy’s back until his trembling subsided.

In the meantime, someone stepped into the entrance of the garden.

I glanced over and recognized Ryzak Gastor, whom I hadn’t seen in a while.

His red hair, like a fully bloomed rose, scattered finely in the wind.

He paused for a moment after discovering Jeremy and me.

I quietly raised my hand and put my index finger to my lips.

Jeremy was still not calm and didn’t seem to notice that someone had entered the garden.

Fortunately, Ryzak understood the meaning of my actions and quietly backed out of the garden without making a sound.

After that, no one else caught my eye.

As time passed, Jeremy’s crying finally stopped.

“Sister, I… I’m not crying right now. That’s, well, that is…”

He belatedly came to his senses and didn’t know what to do.

But it was too late to deny that he hadn’t cried.

The hem of my skirt, where Jeremy had buried his face, was already soaked.

Jeremy seemed embarrassed to show me his messed-up appearance, so he turned his head and belatedly tried to compose himself.

“Jeremy. Just stay here for a moment.”

I wanted to talk about how he had been doing, but it didn’t seem like the right situation right now.

Besides, if he left the garden in this state, everyone he encountered outside would notice that Jeremy had been crying.

So, I got up, intending to have a servant in Yggdrasil prepare something to reduce the swelling in his eyes.

“Where are you going?”

But Jeremy flinched and immediately grabbed my wrist.

Jeremy’s face, looking up at me, still showed traces of his earlier crying.

He looked up at me anxiously, as if he had forgotten that he had been hiding it from me until just now.

I looked down at Jeremy and raised my other hand, which was not being held, to stroke his black hair.

“I’m just going to the entrance of the garden for a moment. I’m going to have a servant bring a cold towel or something.”

“I don’t need that.”

Jeremy said sharply. It was obvious that he didn’t want to let me go at all.

But even if he said he was okay right now, if he really stood in front of other people like this, Jeremy would definitely regret it later.

“It’ll only take five minutes. I’ll be right back.”

I said soothingly.

Then Jeremy stared at me blankly.

“You’re really coming back, right…?”

“Of course.”

Knowing that he was anxious, I answered without hesitation.

Even after hearing my confirmation, Jeremy hesitated without letting go of my hand.

But soon, he bit his lip and released my wrist.

I helped Jeremy up and sat him down on the chair I had been sitting on, then turned to leave.