Beware of the Brothers - Chapter 11

(It’s a flashback chapter, happened in the first timeline.)

Erich’s POV

Hari Ernst’s smile seemed like flower buds that were in full bloom.

Whenever the girl with a gentle scent like a lily of the valley gives a sweet smile to his face, everyone knows they’re going to be choked for a moment by her beauty.

And Erich hated her like that.

“So I told you not to attend.”

A chilly voice spread across the outdoor patio with party stalls and streets.

“These seats don’t suit you.”

The cold blue eyes were nailed to the person in front him. At his rebuke, the girl in front of Erich smiled embarrassedly.

“Don’t be too angry. I was invited

directly so I couldn’t not come.”

Erich and Hari, both of them were

equipped with the suits prepared for today’s banquet. Erich’s face didn’t know how to said the word out to her.

The lavender cordis, the organizer of today’s banquet, was the one who invite them. It was because she was trying to disgrace Hari publicly.

They would have had to hear an insulting

remark to their face today, well, it’s just her actually.

“That woman likes Eugene. So she’s hostile to you.”

Erich said, still cynical, feeling unpleasant. Then, as Hari couldn’t understand, she tilted her head.

“But, why?”

Erich’s lips slit into small lint as soon as the word flowed away from her. But eventually he said nothing. And she couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

“I’m not Eugene’s fiancee.” she said.

“It was natural to be jealous of his fiancee, Rosabella Velontia, if it was due to her ties

to Eugene, though.”

“That’s….”

Erich’s mouth opened slowly. He was recalling the scene he had seen one day.

One spring day, the face of his older brother quietly staring at Hari standing in the garden.

Just staring at the scene, the strange memories of the day when he had to feel like time had stopped.

Obviously for his brother….

“Because you’re not our sister.”

Soon, Erich was whispering in a low whisper close to himself. Hari said nothing to him for a while, and after a while she said with a casual face as usual.

“I’m not by blood, but we live together. That may not be what it look like.”

What is she thinking with that little head, he almost imagining how to say this to her. Perhaps Erich misunderstood himself as a liar.

It was enough to think of what he just said

unintentionally.

Erich opened his mouth unconsciously to say that that was not the case, but with a smile in front of his eyes, he was just

silent with a hard face.

“Thank you for helping me today. I’d be

embarrassed if it weren’t for you and brother Cabel.”

Oh, there was Cabel, who came with Erich today in the party hall. Erich again looked at her that he was so dissatisfied with, and then turned away from her.

“Stupid.”

Don’t smile, stupid.

Actually, she doesn’t feel like smiling right now.

Perhaps she think she’s deceiving them well, but how many years have they been together and can’t tell the difference between her real smile and her fake smile?

So, Erich hated it when Hari Ernst smiled

like she does right now. Why is she always smiling like that?

No matter what happens, she doesn’t get angry and never show her honest feelings.

Nothing changed when she was upset at

the fact and suffered and hurt more.

No, rather, the more Hari concealed herself, the more it like he was hitting a wall.

Yes, actually he knew the reason for this.

It was their brothers who made her so. Suddenly, his stomach twisted, and Erich

frowned.

“Well, was brother Eugene coming here today?”

At that time, Hari opened her eyes as if surprised at something. Following her, Erich also turned his eyes out of the terrace.

Then, as if he had just arrived at the

mansion, a prim-proper-cold man standing beneath it caught his eyes.

He also seemed to have found two people on the terrace too. Immediately after their eyes met, Eugene lowered his head and moved on again.

As Eugene walked into the building and looked at them, she said,

“He came.”

“Is it okay?”

“It’s weird. Everyone said they weren’t planning on coming to this party until yesterday.”

Originally it was going to be like that. After

hearing the rumors, he couldn’t stand still. Perhaps the other brothers were the same, so everything they did was put aside to come here for her sake.

“But it’s good that we all gather together after a while.”

However, her current smile is close to a real smile, and Erich’s feelings have been

lifted.

“There’s only two of you?”

“Brother Eugene.”

At the same time, Eugene opened the door of the terrace and step inside.

“Brother Cabel is inside. I’ll get him.”

Erich went out on the terrace in search of Cabel because he wanted to leave the party hall anyway.

“There’s nothing special about it.”

Erich said, when he could easily find

Cabel.

It was because he was walking towards the terrace where Erich and Hari entered earlier.

“Brother.”

“Yeah? Why did you come out alone? Tra…. No, where’s Hari?”

Cabel tried to call a nasty nickname according to his custom at home, but soon became conscious of the place and changed his words.

Cabel was the same as a child, but after entering the knights, he was only in the gap between the strong people, and the words he used gradually became rough.

It’s all men, and it’s only people who wield

their swords every day. It was now that Erich got better with a few attentions.

It was better than before, because he doesn’t call Hari’s trash outside.

And the reason Cabel changed the name for Hari outside is because he learned that there were noble who heard the terrible title and ignored Hari.

Of course, he will not tell her what he did to them.

“Brother Eugene came over and I left her to him. Is that the woman you were with before?”

Cabel squirted at his words.

“I just said a few words and squeezed it. It’s not a big deal. Why are you scared for? It’s not like she’s going to die.”

Probably not, but Erich know she didn’t

deserve it.

Nevertheless, it was cool to see that Cabel had returned several times to a woman who tried to insult Hari.

“Oh, I’m getting beaten by the manager after leaving the office tomorrow.”

“I had a final exam tomorrow.”

Both of them suddenly chased Hari and attended the party, so they’re a bit troubled when thinking about tomorrow.

Isn’t it unlucky for some reason?

At that time, Cabel floated something as he asked with a crumpling face. Erich said the name that did not stand during the day.

“Are you talking to Johannes Vastia?”

“Yes, that child.”

“He’s from the same academy as brother.”

In fact, Erich remembered because Vastia was a family member who had a close relationship with Eugene.

“Why, on the day of graduation last year, Hari came to my school to see me. At that time, that child’s face was strange.”

“What?”

“It was a multitude of expressions at a glance!”

Cabel grinded his teeth as if he were thinking.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen Hari and that Johannes Vastia ever since.”

“That’s because you don’t know. Since then, the child has been sneaking around, and it’s been around us. He was in the party hall today, isn’t he like a complete

stalker?”

Isn’t this a sensitive reaction? But Cabel didn’t just say it because he didn’t seem to be thinking of Erich.

He used to avoid having this topic himself.

“Hey, she doesn’t smiled at anyone outside. She doesn’t even know she’s attracting other guys.”

“Both of you, come on.”

As soon as they stepped into the terrace, he heard a voice and a smiling face. It was released in a light.

“Cabel, You’ll have to do it in moderation for the next time.”

Eugene seemed to know what his brother had just been doing. Still, Eugene did not tell Cabel not to do anything like that for the next time.

Of course, there may be a reason for not having another word because Hari is here.

“Let’s go. Today’s party is sloppy, so

there wasn’t anything to see more.”

“Yes. It’s completely unconscionable to invite a busy person to a party like this.”

As they showed their dissatisfaction, Hari’s face arose again.

“Sorry. I guess everyone wasn’t having fun because of me.”

“What are you talking about? Do you think

something like that could affect my feelings?”

it’s not because of her, he can’t honestly say,

“Don’t think about it.”

But Erich wasn’t the only one to say. He just kicked his tongue in the face of Cabel.

“Let’s go.”

After saying that to Eugene, Hari also got up. Her hand touched Eugene’s closest arm. At that moment, Eugene stopped, but only Erich noticed it.

“Today I’m really glad to be with my brothers. It’s been a long time since we’ve been all together.”

It became a sight.

Together they went out on the terrace. Ernst’s three brothers were around Hari, who was alone when she first appeared at the party.

As if to protect her, a couple of people chatted face to face in the middle and across the party about them.

Four people outside the building walked towards the prepared wagon. Erich saw Eugene and Hari walking ahead.

When she tells him something, Eugene begin to responded with a small smile. His face was so expressionless and cold as usual, though.

“I don’t think it’s good things such as having a quick eye.”

He said to Cabel, who was next to Erich’s in tingling sound.

“Yes, what?”

“It’s good. My brother probably won’t know it forever.”

“What do I not know?”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

Knowing it makes him nervous and tired.

Cabel frowned on the feeling of being ignored, but Erich moved silently without saying anything more.

Lavender Cordis, the organizer of the party today, was apparently a quick-eyed woman.

It wasn’t until she left Eugene’s weak fiancée that she start showing Hari that jealous look.

Erich stared at Hari’s face dyed in the light.

Yes, their sister.

Nonsense.

Maybe in this house the only one here who think her as a real sister is Cabel alone.

However, Erich swallowed up what he had never said before. Perhaps those two will never reveal such a heart in the future. It was too far to do so.

So far, there was no intention to pack just what they did to her now and only the appearance.

When they were young, they had been doing things to her that couldn’t be said

without being covered with their own love.

It was the same as before. And Erich knew that the brothers were all regretting that.

Of course, they all knew it was too late.

“Erich, what are you doing?”

But sometimes he think about it. If they could go back to that time again, if they

could start from the beginning again, they might not have changed much today.

“Isn’t it?”

Without hurting her, he feel like he swallowed thorns every time he look at her like this, and he don’t feel guilty or maybe they’re all really a real families.

“I’m going.”

However, all of them were thoughtless.

“Come up quickly.”

Erich laughed self-helpfully, looking at

Hari’s face in front of his eyes. He couldn’t even be honest when he said he was sorry even at this moment.

He still want her to be happy. Perhaps

it was the same desire of all the other brothers who are now here.

Finally, the door closed and the wagon began running.

Toward a path that leads to the past or future. The lights swaying in the dark were

exceptionally bright.