WCMP 04

chapter 04

Amon believed that, in this mansion, his sister was one of the people he was least likely to encounter.

The last time he had seen her was in the winter of the previous year.

Meeting her was a rare occurrence for Amon.

“Sister always avoids me…”

The day Amon turned three, his nanny left the estate.

After he was moved to a different room by order of Lord Robert that day, Amon had quietly continued living without drawing attention to himself.

Until then, he had lived in the room directly across from his sister’s, so they would occasionally cross paths. But now the distance was too great, and he had to exist as if he were dead—he could not dare to seek her out.

Because of that, encounters with her naturally became fewer.

But the last time they had met, in the winter of the previous year, he realized something.

His sister had been deliberately avoiding him.

That day, when they accidentally met in the hallway, she had made eye contact with him—and then immediately turned around and walked back the way she came.

Only then did he understand.

“How foolish… She must have been disgusted by how dull I must have looked.”

Since then, he had never truly met her again, except from afar.

No—this was not even a proper meeting.

It was the first conversation they had ever shared.

Amon remembered when she had come to see him in his childhood.

The younger, smaller Rielly who had visited him when he was still a newborn had said nothing, only looked down at him.

Just like Lord Robert, she had simply stared silently—then slowly reached out her hand.

But her eyes were different from the duke’s, whose gaze always shimmered with killing intent.

Gently lifting Amon into her arms, tears gathered in her eyes.

And then, one drop… two drops.

The tears that fell onto his cheeks grew heavier, until finally they overflowed—Rielly silently sobbing while holding him.

At that time, Amon did not even know who she was.

But seeing the girl crying while holding him, he too had begun to sniffle without realizing it.

Just before he burst into full tears, she had suddenly left him behind and vanished.

That was Amon’s first memory of his sister, Rielly.

It was also the only time he had spent the most time with her.

After that day, Rielly never came to see him again.

And when Amon began to speak clumsily—

At his broken attempt to say “nu-a…,” she had looked down at him with a complicated expression.

Even without her answering, Amon still greeted his sister faithfully every time.

Even if no response ever came.

Because she was his sister—and the only family he had.

Amon clearly remembered it.

From the time he was still in his mother’s womb, he had heard her voice saying she loved him and wanted to meet him.

Because of that, Amon had clung to hope when it came to Rielly.

One day, would she look at me?

One day, would she greet me properly?

If I became a better, less shameful younger brother…

Would she tell me she loved me again?

It was a foolish dream—but he had once held onto it.

“She doesn’t hate me… so if I try hard enough, maybe…”

Perhaps.

Swallowing the rest of the thought, Amon had forced himself to believe it.

Even when he saw her turning away and walking back down the corridor.

He did not want to accept that he might be wrong.

Because if he let go of even that last shred of hope, he would have nothing left.

He did not think he could endure it anymore.

So he wanted to appear less lacking.

So that when his sister finally looked at him, he would not appear pathetic or unworthy.

Fortunately, the Robert ducal household had many books on etiquette.

Amon read every single one and practiced repeatedly on his own.

“…Sister? I had a younger brother?”

And perhaps his efforts were not entirely useless.

For the first time in his life, his sister spoke to him.

Even though her maid mocked him, that did not matter to Amon.

The only thing that mattered was that she had looked at him.

However, he still seemed far from worthy of being acknowledged as a brother…

“I just have to try harder.”

She had finally stopped avoiding him.

That alone made Amon feel happy and excited.

Chewing on meat that melted softly in his mouth, Amon suddenly felt a wave of anxiety crash over him.

His heart jolted.

Am I dreaming right now?

Otherwise, there was no way he could be sitting alone at a table with his sister like this.

It would make more sense to believe it was a dream.

That was how unreal everything felt.

His room was located in the most remote corner of the mansion.

And yet his sister had come all the way there herself to invite him to eat…

That alone felt like something from imagination.

And earlier—she had even personally ordered the servants for his comfort.

Not only that, she had seen him struggling with a knife and instead of scolding him, she had cut the meat for him herself…

So many things Amon had never experienced in his life were happening all at once.

So much happiness that it felt almost frightening.

After finishing what was the most luxurious and abundant meal of his life, Amon followed his sister up to the third floor.

The room she brought him into was the one he had used long ago when his nanny had taken care of him.

“From now on, you’ll stay here. I couldn’t take care of you before, but I won’t allow you to live in a room worse than a storage room anymore.”

Rielly glanced at the maids standing behind her, then spoke firmly to Amon.

“I already said it, but from tomorrow you’ll have all meals with me. We’ll also replace everything you need. Do you think it makes sense for the only son of the Robert ducal house to live like this?”

She turned her sharp gaze toward Amy, her maid.

“Yes, y-yes… that’s right, young lady.”

Amy answered hesitantly, almost bowing in defeat.

Rielly ignored her tone.

“I agree. We’ve been far too negligent with the only son of the Robert house. Don’t you agree too, Amy?”

“Y-yes, young lady…”

“Good. Then we’ll fix it starting now. Amy, Karen—anyone who fails to treat Amon properly as the young lord will be punished immediately if I hear about it. Make sure everyone understands.”

With a cold expression, she delivered the order, then took Amon into the room.

Amon slowly looked around the room, which had changed drastically.

Nothing is the same as before.

Everything had changed except the fact that it was the same room.

When he had lived here as a child, it had contained almost nothing. Now it was filled with furniture—a large bed, bookshelves, a sofa, a table.

While Amon was looking around, Rielly muttered under her breath, almost dissatisfied:

“Everything’s fine, but the furniture is too big. We’ll need to replace everything quickly… and the clothes too.”

Amon pulled a book from the shelf nearby.

Seeing this, Rielly approached him.

Noticing his height, she crouched down to meet his eyes before speaking.

“Amon, things are going to get busy from now on. Tomorrow I’ll assign you a proper attendant. You’ve probably had no one taking care of you until now… but that won’t happen anymore.”

She continued speaking, forcing down irritation that crept into her voice.

“We’ll get furniture suited to your size, and buy clothes and shoes too.”

Thinking further, she decided to handle urgent matters first and deal with the rest gradually.

“For now, we’ll take care of the essentials and figure out the rest later. If you need anything or feel uncomfortable, tell me. Understand? My room is right across from this one.”

Amon felt his throat tighten as he met her serious gaze.

Even though he knew she was doing this for the dignity of the ducal house—

Even though he had heard her ordering the servants just moments ago—

His chest still swelled with emotion.

Even if her kindness was not for him personally, but for the heir of House Robert, it did not matter.

It was still her attention.

“…Yes, Sister. I will remember it.”

Amon tried hard to keep his emotions contained.

According to the books he had read, that was the virtue of nobility.

To never reveal one’s feelings too easily and always remain composed.

He wanted to be a younger brother his sister could be proud of.

“Good. Rest well. See you tomorrow.”

“Good night, Sister.”

Rielly let out a small laugh at his formal tone.

She gently patted his head twice, then turned and left.