The Way To Protect The Female Lead’S Older Brother [EN]: Chapter 147

Protecting the Heroine’s Older Brother – 147

* * *

Late at night, Cassis returned to his room and opened the window, feeling the stuffy air.

A cool breeze, different from the daytime air, brushed his cheek and swept into the room.

Time had passed incredibly slowly since Roxana had left the banquet hall. Eventually, Cassis also left with Sylvia before the banquet ended.

Cassis still didn’t know the real reason why Roxana had left the banquet hall early.

She had said she had a headache and wanted to return to her room to rest, but Cassis knew that wasn’t the real reason.

So, what had prompted Roxana to leave?

Cassis had been speculating about the reason alone.

Just in case, he had also stopped by Nicks’ room a moment ago.

Then, he couldn’t help but frown when he realized that there was no one guarding the front.

The guard duty was supposed to be rotated among the families, and today it was Hyperion’s turn.

But for some reason, the door was empty.

Moreover, although it was very faint, there were traces of someone tampering with the lock.

So, just as he was about to go inside to check, Hyperion’s subordinate, who had been away, appeared.

Cassis lowered his hand, which had been reaching for the doorknob.

It was possible that Roxana was the one who had entered and left this room.

Also, the energy felt beyond the door was only from one person, and the transmitted waves were calm, so it seemed that there was no particular problem with Nicks.

Cassis warned Hyperion’s subordinate, who was embarrassed, and left the front of the door.

He thought it would be more convenient in many ways to take charge of monitoring Nicks in Fedelian.

Then suddenly, a piercing gaze flew in from somewhere and dug into his skin.

Cassis’s eyes coldly swept through the darkness outside the window.

He couldn’t make out the shape because it was completely buried in the black night, but the owner of the gaze was definitely where Cassis’s eyes had stopped.

After a while, the intensely sharp gaze disappeared without a trace.

But Cassis didn’t move right away. His coldly frozen eyes were fixed on the spot where he had felt the presence a moment ago.

He had felt this kind of gaze just a few days ago, in the neutral zone he had stepped into before entering Yggdrasil.

“I have met those I missed and those I didn’t.”

Roxana’s words from the banquet hall suddenly came to mind.

The temperature of his low golden eyes sank even deeper.

Cassis had already guessed that Roxana and Deon Agrippa might have met.

But after confirming that fact directly from her mouth, he couldn’t help but feel down. It was something he couldn’t help.

Cassis closed his eyes for a long moment before opening them again.

Then, finally, just as Cassis was about to step away from the window.

Flutter.

A red butterfly flew into his room.

It was clearly Roxana’s poison butterfly.

The moment he caught sight of the red butterfly, the chill that had been lingering in Cassis’s cold golden eyes disappeared.

“Did Roxana send it?”

The butterfly, fluttering its wings, approached Cassis and gently landed on his outstretched hand.

“Even if you have committed some discourtesy, I would never blame you.”

A bitter and sweet taste welled up in his mouth at the same time.

Amid conflicting emotions, Cassis thought that he wanted to go to Roxana right now and hug her so tightly that she would be crushed.

The sight of Roxana wavering at the words that Deon Agrippa and Nicks had recognized each other also came to mind, making his heart ache.

Cassis gently stroked the red wings with his fingers, as if the butterfly in front of him was Roxana.

The night in Yggdrasil felt unusually long.

* * *

The rose garden in Yggdrasil was filled with a different kind of vitality than yesterday.

Around 2 p.m.

Since the evening banquet yesterday, some of the people from the five families, whose moods had relaxed, came outside to have tea together and engage in conversation.

“Hello, Miss Fedelian.”

“It’s nice to see you again, Head of Black [referring to Jeremy’s family leadership position].”

Jeremy and Sylvia were also among them.

Jeremy greeted her politely first, and Sylvia responded with a smile.

With her long, shimmering silver hair neatly cascading down and adorned with a blue dress and hair accessories symbolizing Fedelian, Sylvia was strikingly beautiful among the people gathered in Yggdrasil.

The tea party in the garden was attended only by the younger generation, who seemed to be of similar age.

Therefore, many people approached Sylvia, showing her their favor.

Until recently, Sylvia’s brother, Cassis Fedelian, had also been by her side. So, their surroundings were constantly filled with people.

Then, when Cassis left for a moment, and the people who had been around them also happened to leave, someone greeted her and sat down opposite her.

It was Jeremy.

Perhaps because they had spent time together at the banquet yesterday, there was relatively less awkwardness between the two.

Seeing Sylvia smiling, Jeremy also raised the corners of his lips.

But the thought that came to his mind right now was somewhat rude.

‘As expected, she looks just like that blue bastard [referring to Cassis].’

Perhaps that’s why he felt annoyed just by looking at her like this.

But Jeremy no longer engaged in the foolish act of expressing his true feelings openly and without reservation, as he had done in the past.

Roxana had told him that he didn’t have to do anything for her… But still, he couldn’t stand by and do nothing.

Also, wanting to be of even a small help to Roxana was, in the end, his own desire.

That was why he had mingled with Sylvia Fedelian at the evening banquet yesterday, and it was also an extension of that that he was now in the rose garden, facing her again.

If narrowing the distance with Fedelian was Roxana’s will, Jeremy was prepared to endure it, no matter how unpleasant it was, and follow her wishes.

“Did you have a pleasant time last night?”

“Thanks to you, it was a pleasant night.”

Jeremy, wearing a black formal suit symbolizing his family on his sleek body and leaning loosely on the chair, looked like a black panther.

In front of Roxana, he was so docile that he melted away, but in front of others, it was a different story.

Moreover, his dark eyes revealed beneath his jet-black hair and the occasional slanted smile on his lips were particularly attractive, and many people glanced at Jeremy.

So, on the surface, Sylvia and Jeremy were a very well-matched pair.

Furthermore, Jeremy’s outfit was decorated in blue to match the color of his eyes, making him look even more picturesque with Sylvia, who was from the blue family [referring to the Fedelian family color].

“By the way… Miss Roxana didn’t come with you? Is she not attending the tea party today?”

“Yes. My sister said she would rest in her room today.”

At Jeremy’s words, Sylvia looked very disappointed.

Seeing that, Jeremy frowned slightly.

Jeremy was also disappointed, but he wondered why Sylvia was reacting like this.

Come to think of it, Sylvia had also asked a lot of questions about Roxana at the evening banquet yesterday.

‘Well, it’s only natural that there’s no one in the world who wouldn’t fall for Sana [Roxana’s nickname] noona [term of endearment for an older sister or female friend].’

Finally, Jeremy convinced himself of that and loosened his lips.

Jeremy, who boasted a severe sister complex [extreme affection for his sister], felt much better just by thinking of Roxana in his head.

“Head of Black, you are Miss Roxana’s closest brother, right?”

Then, at Sylvia’s question that tickled his ear the next moment, Jeremy paused for a moment.

Although it was a question, Sylvia’s tone was closer to trying to confirm a fact she already knew.

Suddenly, Sylvia Fedelian, who had been annoying, began to feel somewhat okay.

Jeremy wriggled his lips, which were rising upward, and replied.

“Ah, I guess it shows. That’s right. I am the only younger brother that my sister cherishes in this world.”

It was a statement that was so full of pride that it felt somewhat arrogant. In particular, he emphasized the word ‘only’.

Of course, Jeremy wanted to brag about the fact that he was such a precious existence to Roxana in every direction.

Especially, the content that Roxana had told him when they reunited this time always made his heart swell anew, no matter how many times he recalled it.

Perhaps if he didn’t want to monopolize that sweet moment, he would have grabbed everyone he met and preached his touching heart to the whole world.

But at that very moment, Sylvia did not empathize with Jeremy’s feelings, but unknowingly twitched her eyebrows.

Oh, what is it…? I feel like I’m getting a little irritated right now.

Besides, I think I’m a little jealous.

Sylvia was the same age, and she thought that Jeremy Agrippa, who seemed to be a good brother to Roxana, might want to get closer to her at this social gathering.

In fact, when they talked together at the evening banquet yesterday, Jeremy was quite a good conversational partner.

Moreover, above all, he readily took the bait that Sylvia threw and told her stories about Roxana.

As Sylvia had initially thought, Jeremy definitely liked Roxana very much. Otherwise, his expression wouldn’t have brightened so much just by hearing Roxana’s name.

That appearance was fun and somewhat cute, so she had some affection for him…

But suddenly, about half of that feeling disappeared.

‘I… I also told Roxana unnie [term of endearment for an older sister or female friend] to call me unnie!’

Rather, she began to feel a sense of repulsion towards Jeremy, who proudly said that ‘Roxana’s only cherished brother is himself’ and made a full expression.

Besides, Sylvia had not yet exchanged a single greeting with Roxana since coming to Yggdrasil.

So, she couldn’t help but feel irritated because Jeremy was bragging like this when she was already feeling regretful.

But Sylvia tried to hide those feelings and laughed.

“I knew it from the moment the two of you came in holding hands at the banquet yesterday.”

Jeremy quickly felt better, as if he had never been annoyed by Sylvia.

This woman, now that I see it, is quite perceptive? Now that I look at it again, she doesn’t look that much like Cassis Fedelian.

Jeremy upgraded his evaluation of Sylvia.

But with her following words, his favorability, which had been drawing a vertical curve, plummeted back to the bottom in an instant.

“But no matter how I look at it, you don’t look much like Miss Roxana.”

Sylvia said with a completely innocent-looking face, laughing.

“If you just look at it, you wouldn’t even know you’re siblings. Do you hear that a lot?”