The Way To Protect The Female Lead’S Older Brother [EN]: Chapter 206

“Noona, take my hand and let’s get down,” Jeremy said.

I took Jeremy’s arm and stepped down from the carriage.

It felt strange to return to Agrigent like this, after leaving with the intention of never coming back.

Jeremy spoke to me as I stood there, slowly looking around.

“Well, the restoration isn’t complete in some areas yet.”

As Jeremy said, the desolate appearance from last winter still lingered within Agrigent.

“So, there might be some unsightly parts… but we’ll fix them soon!”

It felt a bit out of place, but Jeremy seemed quite excited.

Until just now, he had been watching me carefully in the carriage.

It was obvious he was thrilled that I had returned to Agrigent.

At the same time, there was a hint of anxiety in Jeremy’s eyes.

He seemed a little worried that I might be disappointed with the shabby state of Agrigent, unlike before, and change my mind.

I spoke to reassure Jeremy.

“No, it’s not that. I’m surprised it’s more organized than I thought.”

Jeremy’s expression brightened.

I took his hand and took a step forward.

“And because you’re here in Agrigent, I don’t really care about the rest.”

Jeremy’s excitement was transmitted through our clasped hands.

Soon, the grip on my hand became stronger.

I felt like the atmosphere beside me had become somehow lighter, almost fluffy.

Jeremy and I held hands tightly and walked towards the building.

The servants who came out after hearing the news bowed their heads in unison.

The number was clearly smaller than before, but there were still more people left in Agrigent than I thought.

Some of the half-siblings who came down also greeted me and Jeremy awkwardly.

Some of them glanced at Jeremy’s face and turned away with a sullen expression, as if they had seen something they shouldn’t have.

It was understandable, as Jeremy was smiling brightly with a face that had completely abandoned any sense of seriousness.

“Lady Roxana!”

At that moment, someone rushed out in front of me.

I recognized his face and acknowledged him.

“Yoan. You stayed in Agrigent.”

He was the man who had been the gatekeeper of the underground prison when Lant was alive.

I had first met him when Cassis was captured, and I used to greet him whenever I ran into him in the mansion. It seemed that he had not left even after Lant’s death and was still working in Agrigent.

“Yes! I knew Lady Roxana would come back.”

He seemed quite moved to see me.

“Who do you think you are, acting so familiar with my Noona [older sister or close female friend]?” Jeremy frowned as if he didn’t like Yoan, who had suddenly popped out.

“I’m sorry, Master. I was so happy that Lady Roxana came back that I was rude without realizing it.”

“You little…! I’ll let it go today because it’s a good day, but be careful in the future. Got it?”

“Yes!”

However, after hearing Yoan’s words, Jeremy’s momentum, which had been about to turn fierce, subsided slightly.

It seemed that he felt a sense of kinship with the fact that Yoan was also happy that I had returned to Agrigent.

Jeremy turned to me with an innocent face, as if he had never glared at Yoan, and asked.

“Noona, you must be tired. Do you want to go to your room and rest?”

I nodded for now.

“Okay. You should rest too.”

“I ordered them to clean Noona’s [older sister or close female friend] room every day. So, it will be clean.”

Jeremy seemed to have forgotten how serious he had been about Nix until recently.

I thanked the proud Jeremy and smiled. Then Jeremy’s lips twitched.

Jeremy said he would not go straight back to his room but would stop by his half-brothers’ rooms.

It seemed to be to check if there had been anything unusual in his absence.

I refused Jeremy, who insisted on taking me to my room, and went up the stairs alone.

Tap.

After a while, only my footsteps echoed in the quiet hallway.

Perhaps because the fire had not reached this building in the past, everything in sight was clean.

Because the number of people staying in Agrigent had decreased significantly since before winter, the interior felt wider for no reason.

…Is that why?

Somehow, Agrigent felt a little unfamiliar.

As I walked inside, a quiet air, somehow different from before, brushed past my whole body.

Then, suddenly, I realized that there was a sense of comfort embedded in this unfamiliar atmosphere.

Swish.

The sound of leaves rustling in the wind poured in from the open window.

My finely scattered hair sparkled thinly in my vision.

I shifted my gaze to the window.

“…I see.”

Agrigent was no longer a place where I had to live in tension every minute and every second.

Just that alone made this place take on such an unfamiliar color and become a world I didn’t know.

Shuaaa….

I stood there for a long time, staring out the window at the green tide rippling.

Holding a feeling that was hard to describe accurately in any words.

* * *

That evening, I had a late dinner alone with Jeremy.

Originally, it was common for the people of Agrigent to eat separately, so I didn’t call the other brothers.

It was not appropriate for me or my other half-brothers to suddenly pretend to be a family and promote friendship.

Jeremy wanted to stay by my side as long as possible, but I thought he must have accumulated a lot of fatigue, so I sent him back to his room early.

He had been overdoing it alone since winter, and he had a lot to worry about in Yggdrasil, so Jeremy needed to get enough rest.

Besides, I could only stay in Agrigent for a few days like this.

The heads of each family had to gather in Yggdrasil again soon.

Because an unprecedented general meeting was scheduled to be held there.

Creak.

After sending Jeremy away, and after a little more time passed, I also left the room.

As Jeremy said, the room was clean as if it had been cleaned every day.

However, perhaps the hinges were a little stiff, and when I slowly opened the door, a sharp metallic sound rang out, a sound that hadn’t been there before.

I was going to leave the room quietly without anyone knowing, but the sudden noise made me stop moving for a moment.

Still, there was no sign of anyone outside.

I had a feeling that if Jeremy found out, he would scold the servants for neglect.

Thinking that I should tell them to oil the door before that happened, I stepped out into the hallway.

Walking alone inside Agrigent at night like this made me think even more about what happened last winter.

I slowly made my way towards Lant’s office, where I had stayed on the last night before leaving Agrigent.

It seemed that Jeremy had never entered this place even after becoming the head of the family.

I entered the office and took a look around the interior, which had not been used by anyone for a while.

Because the lights were not on, my vision was dark, but I quickly got used to it and was soon able to move without difficulty.

I took out a bottle of wine and a glass from the cabinet in the corner of the room and sat down at the desk as I had done before.

This place, too, had been cleaned regularly, so the glass was as clean as new.

I picked up the bottle and poured wine into the glass.

Looking at the lights outside the window and sipping the bitter liquid, it really felt like time had gone back a few months.

Then, a trivial thought suddenly occurred to me.

“Ah, now that I think about it, what happened to Cassis’s coat that I was wearing that day?”

I was sure I had dropped it somewhere, but I couldn’t remember where.

“Well… it’s been quite a while since I lost it, so even if I remember now, I won’t be able to find it.”

The glass emptied faster than I thought.

I poured more wine into it again.

The scenery outside the window, the silence of this room, and what I was doing here now were all so similar to that time in winter that they naturally brought back memories.

But in reality, many things were different from back then.

So, I should feel more relieved…

Strangely, my stomach felt strangely heavy, as if something I had eaten a long time ago hadn’t digested properly.

After emptying about half the bottle and feeling the alcohol kicking in, the guest I had been waiting for arrived.

“Want a drink?”

Still looking out the window, I asked the person who had just silently opened the door and entered.

This was the same situation as last winter.

But the person reflected in the window was different from then.

“…Why are you drinking alone?”

A low voice echoed after a moment of silence.

Along with the approaching footsteps, the outside air clinging to his clothes brushed past the tip of my nose.

“I was waiting for you.”

The butterfly that had led him here flew to me, hovered around, and landed on my glass.

I turned my head and took in the man standing before me.

Cassis, who had come closer, stopped and looked down at me.

His gaze quietly scanned my face.

I didn’t avoid Cassis’s intense stare, as if he was trying to see through me, and asked,

“How did you get in?”

“Through that secret passage from before.”

“Really?”

“No.”

I had spotted Cassis just as he entered this building a little while ago. So, I was curious about how he had entered Agrigent.

When he said he used the old secret passage, I was almost shocked that he had crossed the Great Monster Habitat [a dangerous area filled with powerful monsters] on the northern border, but fortunately, it seemed like he was joking.

But after hearing Cassis’s next words, I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

“The security around the main gate was weak.”

Is this what they mean by ‘the darkest place is under the lamp’ [a saying meaning the most obvious place is often overlooked]? To think he would boldly enter through the main gate.

It seemed like I needed to strengthen the security around the mansion. Of course, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be of much use against Cassis.

After that, we silently met each other’s gaze for a moment.

It felt like it had been a long time since I had faced him like this.

Of course, I had seen him indirectly through the poison butterfly, but this was the first time I had met him directly since Yggdrasil [likely referring to a significant event or location].

I knew that Cassis had gone to find Deon and Nicks in the neutral zone. But I didn’t say anything about it.

Cassis also didn’t mention it to me.

“Do you know where this room is?”

Then, I casually let the words slip out.

Cassis’s gaze swept around the room once.

“Is it the head’s office?”

He seemed to have easily deduced it from the appearance of the room.

I looked at Cassis and slightly raised the corners of my lips.

“…Shall we do something fun here?”