บท 6: A Brother's Love and Care
After several days had passed, Calus' thoughts continued to circle back to Herena. He was preoccupied with thoughts about the infant all the time. Something about her had a powerful effect on him, and he became very devoted to her. The manner that she regarded him in her eyes. When he recalled that Ismael's younger sister was tapping his shoulders gently for squeezing her cheeks, he was so overcome with amusement that he could not even stop himself from laughing.
Since Arianne had entered his life, he had not given any thought to a particular woman until now. He was thinking of a baby. Every day, he couldn't help but think about how much he missed her. In his spare time, he enjoyed reading novels. He would engage in the same activities as his father. His wacky friends would drop by the house occasionally to share their wacky notions with him. In spite of this, he was unable to shake the vision of the infant at the present time.
After that, his thoughts turned away from the infant and toward Lady Arianne. Indeed, he did recall it. He had previously engaged in conversation with Lady Arianne at an earlier time. How was it possible for him to forget it? Tomorrow would be the birthday of the woman he loved, and the thought of the baby continued to occupy his thoughts. He must have suffered from something else, perhaps as a consequence of rescuing the infant from drowning. That was the idea he had in his head at the time.
Earlier, Calus and Arianne had a lengthy conversation about a variety of topics. The same thing applies to how he always follows her, yet the image of the baby's face never ceases to flood his mind, much in the same way that those golden highlights in Herena's hair. How wonderful it would be if he could feel it again on his hands, with the baby's cheeks being all smooth and red at the same time. Everything that went through his mind at the moment seemed to be connected to Herena, but he had no idea why this was the case.
"... well, it looks like that's all we have time for, Calus. Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"
Because he was the crown prince, it was expected of him that he would be skilled in each and every aspect. That is the part he plays. On the other hand, his thoughts ran off the rails, and the reason for this was the infant that he saw in his imagination. After all, she is the youngest sibling of Ismael. Is it possible that it's because she's the sister of one of his friends? She occupied every waking moment of his thoughts, despite the fact that he was already with Lady Arianne.
"I have no queries, Arianne. In anything pertaining to you, know that you may count on my unwavering support," Calus said. After that, the two of them laughed once again.
Calus gave a slight nod of his head. Now that the baby is out of his mind, he can focus on other things. He reflected on the time he had spent with Arianne earlier. He felt confident that he had a sufficient understanding of what he desired for the years to come.
He couldn't stop thinking about Ismael's younger sister because he could want to have a kid in the future with Arianne, and that's why he couldn't stop thinking about Ismael's younger sister.
That is the opinion that he held. Although he kept his gaze fixed on the book he was reading, his thoughts began to wander to other potential outcomes. He was already sitting in his chair when he shook his head while moving his head back and forth. But suddenly, he seemed to curve up the corners of his lips, which was something he had no understanding why was happening.
At the moment, he was currently located in his room within the royal residence. As a child, he was instructed by the professors, all of whom were managed by the officials, to act like the emperor and do what the emperor was doing. This training continued throughout his life. When that time comes, they will be able to determine whether or not he was capable enough.
He never failed to keep the officials laughing at some point. At least according to the officials' point of view, he was capable of being influenced by them in the same way that his father had been. Even as a young boy, Calus understood that if he could gain the favor of those who were tainted with corruption, it would put him in a position of power. Once he had won their confidence, he would then move in for the kill at the most opportune moment possible.
When he reaches that stage, the only time he will be required to finish making his arrangements for everything is then. Even when he was a kid, he was always thinking about different topics. However, with only a single word from his father, he was already well aware of their position within the empire.
"Puppet."
It was mentioned by his father that he understood what would occur if his son continued to obey what officials advised him to do in order to advance his position in the empire. Nevertheless, one of the Emperor's well-known associates within the empire, Ivian Ferrer, is considered to be the primary source of all of this. They pretended to have a tight connection at all times, but in reality, everything they did was only for show. Ivian Ferrer, the one that he was familiar with, was the mastermind behind all of the bureaucrats' schemes.
Calus was able to recall events from the past. Because his father was unable to even achieve the level of power that he desired, the pages of the book that he was holding became creased. He had every intention of eliminating the officials, but he was unaware of Ivian's strategies. If in the future he did end up destroying the officials, he would be suspicious of what Ivian may do in response. In his current condition, he is aware that he does not possess any power. Even if he tried, he was unable to gain allies within the organization because they were all under the duke's influence. He is patiently waiting for an opportune moment to influence someone into becoming one of his allies.
Aside from the fact that he wanted to ruin the official that he had sought to imprison for the longest with Duke Ferrer as the major issue, he was unable to do so since he knew that Ismael and the baby were in the hands of the Duke. Before he saw her on that particular day, he had no interest in Ismael's younger sister at all.
His mind kept going back to those other folks, particularly the infant. In the beginning, he had the notion that he and Arianne would eventually mature into adults, at which point they would produce another child just like her: a charming and lovable infant. But despite recalling the source of the entire mess this time, he was still required to bring that family to ruin. He considered it his obligation. Ismael and his younger sister did nothing wrong, but he does not understand why he was unable to make up his mind to save the baby and his friend when he had the chance. It's possible that it was due to the fact that they were the duke's offspring.
He sat down with the creased book on his lap and looked at the hand that had saved the infant's life.
She is so light that she may be compared to a feather.
He pondered the question while maintaining his gaze on his palm. All because of a certain infant that he just couldn't get out of his thoughts, he had previously been frowning at the memory of the authorities, but now the corners of his mouth were pushed up again in a frowning expression.
He couldn't help but look at the window, where the curtain swung freely as the breeze from outside the imperial house went to gently caress his face. With his whispers throughout the night, he couldn't help but look out the window.
His body had already begun to rise from the bed where he was while he was still unaware of what he had done. He was in the process of making his way toward the window so that he could take in the energizing view of their imperial garden.
When he shut his eyes to take in the scent of the wind, he was reminded of the baby's expression once more. After that, he raised the corners of his mouth by spreading out his lips even further.
"Why is it that even though I haven't seen the baby in a few days, she still has such an effect on me?"
Again, he knew he had already discovered something thanks to the whispers he had been sending through the glass.
***
"Chuuu!"
"Oh, look at how cute my younger sister looks while she's hacking up a lung! Did you become cold? Herena, I will see to it in my own time."
When Ismael's sister sneezed for the first time, he became concerned about her health. The opposite was true for Herena, as seen by the surprised expression on her face when she realized Ismael was speaking to her. She had the impression that he was overprotecting her in some way. That when she's older, she'll look back on her brother's inappropriate behavior toward her and feel ashamed about it. He never failed to show up, and he never failed to tell her how much he loved her, even when she was still in baby form.
It was impossible for her to conceal the fact that her face, neck, and little ears were already scarlet because her cheeks were wrapped over her ears. Ismael was unable to maintain the arch in his eyebrows after seeing the remark given by his sister. He approached the child with his handkerchief and carefully wiped Herena's nose in a soothing manner.
It is inappropriate for him to give his handkerchief to anybody other than the loving partner he cherishes, in accordance with the customs of the aristocrats of the empire. Giving a lady the white cloth emblazoned with a man's initials meant that "you are only mine," which was also in accordance with the regulations of the empire, which said that this was how it should be done.
Nevertheless, a lady's act of giving a young man their embroidered handkerchief is a declaration of her love for him even before the words are spoken. It was widely acknowledged across the Empire that this particular regulation was both the simplest and most crucial one. Ismael, on the other hand, does not place any importance on those criteria when it comes to his sister.
He was aware of those things, but the importance of his sister surpassed that of anything else in his life.
He wanted to tell his sister that he wanted her to have hope and wait for him to do everything he could to get them out of that madhouse where they lived with the wealth that he was about to earn. He wanted to tell her that he wanted her to help him escape with the money that he was about to earn. Because of this, he will fulfill all of her requests and will remain by her side until the day that she weds the guy she adores. Ismael wished for Herena to keep in mind that as she gets older, the only thing that is required of her is to simply be happy.
He merely looked at his sister with a kind expression while he was wiping her nose. He almost made fun of her appearance because she was such a vibrant shade of red. The way that he looked at her made it appear as though he was constantly at peace, but he could not understand why this was the case. It was as though the pressure that he was experiencing at the time vanished.
Everything... When he first laid eyes on his younger sister's enormous emerald green eyes, he had a distinct impression that everything was exactly where it should be.
The intensity that he now possesses as a result of Herena's size is indisputable. Every time she looked at him, he felt an overwhelming sense of calm and contentment.
She was bringing him silence, for certain, and she couldn't even begin to comprehend how much she meant to him.
"My younger sister was maturing at a rapid rate every waking moment of the day. But despite this, you should never forget that your brother will always be there for you and will watch out for you no matter what."
Ismael does not forget how he tells a story to his sister, not even when he is reading it to her in the middle of the night. She had already made her way onto his lap. Herena could not help but widen her eyes as Ismael delicately wiped her nose with his special handkerchief. Though she never knew that Ismael had saved this handkerchief just for her. Yet, with such simple words coming out of Ismael's mouth, Herena later let out a long and delightful baby sigh. She had thought that to give a cloth was to give it to the lady he loved, but Ismael had said those words. In spite of this, she was relieved to find that her brother had not changed. He had devoted his entire being to the love he had for her. She was acting in the same manner toward him as well. Because of her ability to see into the future, she will be able to save her brother's life.
There were moments when Herena had trouble understanding her brother Ismael, and this was always the case in the past as well. Even though he made numerous questionable statements, she never questioned her trust in him and chose to look past his questionable behavior. On the other hand, this time she had to figure out the reason behind why he suddenly performed those things and the source of those actions themselves. Is there a danger to her life?
Herena believed. If she had not found the answers to these questions in the past, she would not be asking them now. After she discovered that her father was one of those people responsible for Calus' anger in the past, she wouldn't be able to accept what she was seeing with her own eyes. They were the reasons, and perhaps Ismael had something to do with it, she thought, as her eyes never left the sight of her brother laughing, and she never took her gaze away from him.
While Ismael was reading a book, Herena was thinking about the future and what steps she can take to protect those who are important to her.
"Asdfghjkl...."
'A powerful expression of sincere gratitude'
The next thing that happened was that Herena giggled to herself as she stared at her brother and tenderly placed her hands on his knees. It was her intention to make her brother smile. The evening was made significantly better for Ismael as a direct result of Herena's actions and remarks.
"Do not be concerned, younger sister. In the future, I'm going to teach you how to properly pronounce words, all right? Even if you only speak a few words, I'll do my best to understand what you mean, but this one? This is a challenging task!"
After that, he laughed as he affectionately stroked her head with the golden strands of hair that were growing from each side.
She was going to advise him to be watchful at all times and maintain an open mind, but the sight of her brother acting in such a manner is sufficient motivation for her at this point.
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