The way to Protect the Female Lead’s Older Brother - Chapter 34

I was startled to see Cassis appear behind the screen.

He had not dried himself properly. His billowy shirt, which I had picked to deter irritation against his wounds, stuck to his wet skin in several places. His silvery hair left drops on the stone floor.

He paused and grimaced when he saw me perched on his bed. I had been a lazy student in my past life who liked to work on my laptop on top of a blanket. As a lady in this world, I had trained myself to be more delicate. Still, when I was deep in thought and there was a lovely mattress in view…

I smiled at Cassis with my eyes and mouth. “Sit, please,” I said, and held out my hand.

His gaze moved from the wooden chair to the bed. A twitch formed along his jawline. Thoughts of impropriety and refusing a lady seemed to flit through his head. It really was stressful to be a gentleman, I sympathized.

I laid back on my elbows. “Waiting for you makes me fatigued, and the bed is soft. Perhaps I should sleep here,” I said airily.

Cassis sat by me on the bed at once.

“Well, what is it?” his voice seemed gruffer than usual. He coughed, and a sheen of sweat shone on his forehead. Perhaps his bath water had been too hot.

I sat up straight immediately, glad that he was being agreeable. I pulled some bandages and medicines out from my dress pocket.

“Let me,” He began.

“Please, sit still,” I chided. “Would you really be able to dress the wounds on your back? If you bleed on the mattress again, the maids will have to stuff a new one with hay. You’re already a nuisance to the help, you know.”

I grew excited. I had been training for this day since I had been old enough to dress my dolls. “Don’t worry, I’ll doctor you well. I’ve had much practice.”

“How much practice?” His eyebrows knitted together.

In all honesty, the physician should be dressing Cassis. Left unattended, his chest wound in particular could make him bleed to death, but I was taking a gamble. This Pedelian at least seemed to have natural healing abilities. It would not do to have a medical professional see how quickly he was recovering.

Also, I still remembered watching my favourite medical dramas in my past life. Often, the male lead fell in love with his nurse, didn’t he? I didn’t want Cassis to be besotted with me—lovesick suitors were a bore to be with—but I had noticed that making him uncomfortable was entertaining.

“I’ve treated my older brother,” I answered casually, feigning to mention my dolls.

It was the truth, but exaggerated. My older brother Asil did have training injuries. He was a klutz and inept in his education. Because of their close age, he was always paired up against Dion as well.

Mother and I couldn’t afford to send for a doctor for Asil often; it would have made him look weak in front of Lant Agriche if he were to find out. Instead, we treated Asil as well as a noble lady and a child could with minimal knowledge in first aid. In any case, my brother did not die from our hands.

Then of course, I had also learned over the years to treat myself. I didn’t receive many external wounds, but my insides and saliva were poisonous. The side effects of having my butterflies addicted to my blood, to make them want to eat me alive, while maintaining a clear mind to control them. If I was not a certified paramedic, I could be a decent pharmacist in this age.

Cassis drew back and held his breath as I leaned closer to him. The top of his face was hidden in shadow as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. He grabbed my wrist and shook his head before unbuttoning his shirt, himself. He untucked his shirt and left it to wrinkle beside him on the bed.

“Just the back,” he said, and turned his broad shoulders away from me.

“Your ears are pink,” I remarked.

It was a lie, but at my comment, the top of his ears did flush a brilliant shade of pink.

He had scratched off one his blood clots while he was bathing so that a thin line of blood had formed and was now sliding down his back. I wetted my handkerchief and wiped the blood away slowly, before applying some ointment and bandaging him.

I moved to kneel beside him and began handing off the roll of bandages between my hands, being sure to cover his stomach and back wounds concurrently. It felt calming to dress him in a circular motion, in which it seemed that I was almost hugging him outright. If Cassis squirmed and perspired, at least I was comfortable. When I moved to stick plasters on his back, I was tempted to hug him around the neck. Perhaps, I had been lonely since Jeremy had grown too old to sit on my lap. In any case, Cassis began to be more talkative than usual to hide his discomfort.

“Yes, you are quite popular among my siblings, particularly with Charlotte,” I said.

Why is that?

            “Because of your face and your muscles here…and here.” I pressed a fingertip between his shoulder blades. I was trying to keep the conversation light and friendly.

I didn’t bother to expound on Charlotte’s curious taste. She did not like fat on her toys, but preferred them to be toned with thick, protruding veins. It was easier to cut cleanly with her scalpel than guessing where to pull out their organs under a blob of fat. She admired cutting the vertebrae along the spinal cord in particular. She often played with the back of her toys’ neck, inducing paralysis or a stroke as she cut off the tendons one by one.

Since Cassis had his back turned, I allowed myself to grimace. Some of my siblings, including Charlotte, pickled organs or collected bones either to play with or experiment with making the next Frankenstein monster. Cassis, with his healthy heartbeat, lithe body, and noble descent was the ideal candidate for a toy.

I could see some of my siblings salivating to pop out his finger bones from their sockets, sluice them, and throw his fingers in the air for the guard dogs to play fetch or eat.

I quickly hid my eyes of pity when Cassis turned his head abruptly.

“You’re quite handsome,” I said innocently.

I took his silence to mean that he was offended by how straightforward I was being.

“Are you in such a huge amount of pain?” My tone was still light, but Cassis was such a serious person. I suppose he thought I was mocking him now.

Cassis rose quickly and buttoned his shirt. I didn’t stop him. I had finished treating him aeons ago.

I leaned back to lay on his bed again when Cassis shot his arm behind me and picked me up. He quickly settled me on my feet, briefly laid his hands on my shoulders to make sure I could stand alone, and then stepped back, releasing me quickly as if I were made of lava. When he was several paces away from me, his nostrils flared as he allowed himself to breathe properly again.

“I wish to be alone,” he said.

“Then I will come back tomorrow,” I said.

Several expressions went through his face. He seemed elated that I would see him soon, despised himself for then thinking that, felt helpless in this situation, and winced from a sharp stab of pain, before mustering a fake air of indifference.

I tilted my head and smiled, letting my hair brush over the side of my shoulder. We had gotten closer together splendidly in the last hour. Or at the very least, Cassis was finally becoming easier to read.

I held my hands together.

“Good night,” I said.