I watched the two of them with great interest.
As expected, watching someone else’s romance was the most entertaining of all.
My eyes were sparkling when I happened to meet my mother’s gaze. The moment she saw me, she broke into a radiant smile as if she had never once frowned and pressed a kiss to my cheek.
“Oscar, today you’re so lovely I could go mad no matter how much I look at you.”
As if a single kiss weren’t enough, Mother rubbed her nose against mine. It tickled, and I burst into giggles, while the Marquis couldn’t even bring himself to look at us—he only stiffened and flinched awkwardly.
He really must be timid.
Thinking that, I remained in the Marquis’s arms as we entered the mansion. He was quite tall, so my line of sight rose high. When I lowered my gaze, I spotted a child standing alone in the middle of the grand hall.
From the moment I set foot inside the estate, that child’s eyes had been fixed squarely on me.
His intense stare made even my young self instinctively lift my head to look back at him, and when I saw his face, I was startled.
That child… is really the Marquis’s son?
I had heard he had one child, so the boy welcoming us must indeed be his son. But his impression was nothing like I had imagined.
The Marquis, even if he was handsome, gave off such a gloomy, timid air—unbefitting the head of a great house—that it diminished his looks. But the boy was nothing like that.
His hair color and eye color were identical to the Marquis’s, but his expression and atmosphere were a world apart.
To put it simply—
Why does he look… so sociable?
The kind of impression that said he had countless friends.
From the first moment he saw us, the boy had worn a bright, beaming smile. That smile made him shine brilliantly.
Unlike the Marquis’s damp, straight hair, the boy’s was curly. His eyes, folded like half-moons, were filled with nothing but goodwill, sparkling prettily.
Seems like there’s quite an age gap between us.
And apparently something I knew was wrong.
Mother had told me that the Marquis’s son and I were close in age, if not the same. But in person, he was far larger in build and looked remarkably mature.
“Erhan. Greet your mother.”
I widened my eyes in surprise. The Marquis, who had been so gentle with us, suddenly sounded strict and cold when calling Erhan’s name.
“All right.”
But it seemed that was only my imagination.
Erhan came trotting toward us, his steps lively and unshrinking, his face still adorned with a carefree grin. The chill I had just felt must have been my mistake.
“Hello, …Mother.”
“Oh my.”
They weren’t meeting for the first time, surely. But being called “Mother” must have been unexpected, for Mother’s eyes went wide in surprise. Erhan, seeing her reaction, crossed his feet bashfully, his cheeks flushing red.
How could a child be so pretty? The Marquis could skip meals and still feel full just from looking at him.
His unusually pale skin and curly ash-gray hair could almost be mistaken for silver. His lashes, nearly white, fluttered delicately as if a butterfly had landed there.
I was struck by how adorable he was. At that moment, the Marquis slowly set me down and introduced me to him.
“This is the first time you’re meeting, isn’t it? From now on, he’ll be your younger brother, Oscar. Get along well. Oscar? This is the boy who will now be your older brother.”
Erhan looked straight at me.
Even in the Marquis’s arms I had thought he wasn’t short, but standing face to face, I realized he was so tall that I had to crane my neck far back to meet his gaze.
“Hello, it feels so strange to think I now have a little brother. I’m Erhan. Nice to meet you, Oscar. Let’s get along well, all right?”
He bore the air of a child who had been properly educated and deeply loved. Who could fail to lower their guard before such a bright smile and an outstretched hand?
But my lips only trembled—I couldn’t manage an answer.
“Oscar?”
As I only blinked at the hand held out to me, the Marquis called me in puzzlement. Erhan too watched me with questioning eyes. While everyone’s attention was on me, I suddenly felt the warm touch of a hand gently stroking my hair.
“Perhaps because he’s been weak since birth… he’s a little slow to speak.”
Mother spoke evenly.
Both the Marquis and Erhan’s expressions shifted to realization. The Marquis, watching Mother’s face, added, “That can happen,” carefully, as if trying not to upset us.
Yes, I was five years old.
At that age, being unable to speak properly wasn’t just a little slow—it was very slow.
Of course, my body itself had no problems. The reason I didn’t speak was because… I found my own voice unpleasant.
If I didn’t remember my past life, it might be different.
But as an adult inside, the childish lisp and high-pitched tone of my speech repulsed me. So even when I had to express myself beyond babbling, I rarely spoke.
When I was alone, I practiced a little. With Mother or the servants, I only said short things like “Yes,” “Mm,” “No,” “I don’t want to.” And before strangers, not even that—much to Mother’s constant worry.
“……”
I looked back at Erhan, who was gazing at me quietly. Since hearing I had trouble speaking, he didn’t seem to expect a reply.
What should I do? After some hesitation, I carefully took the hand he still held out. Unlike me, who was rather small for my age, Erhan’s hand was large. As I clasped it gingerly, I lifted my head and said to his surprised face:
“Erhan.”
I tried to pronounce it as clearly as I could. Just a single name.
I still disliked how my speech came out slurred and muffled, but I wanted to make a good impression. After all, this was a new beginning.
Whether I liked it or not, this was the brother I would live alongside in the same family. Hoping he would treat me kindly, I added a touch of flattery to his name.
At once Erhan’s gray eyes flew wide, and he drew a startled breath.
“My, this child hardly ever speaks to strangers…”
Mother too was astonished, her eyes round with surprise. She had never seen me like this.
True, though I didn’t shy away from new people and would even throw myself into their arms, I never spoke to them. I hadn’t needed to—others would move to accommodate me without words.
Just don’t bully me, that’s all I ask.
But now the situation was different. I had to make a good impression on Erhan, my new brother.
Surely he was the heir of the Serpentine family, and if he found me annoying and chose to torment me, I—no more than a breathing lump of flesh—would have no means of defense.
So yes, I had to make him like me.
With that resolve, I gave him a smile tinged with ambition. But at that moment, Erhan hastily pulled his hand back.
…Huh?
Withdrawing his hand was fine. Who would want to hold on for too long anyway?
The problem was, compared to my small frame, Erhan’s build was much bigger.
With one sudden motion, my little body lost its balance and tilted back sharply.
As the ceiling filled my slowly overturning vision, even with the back of my head about to split open, I found myself thinking idly—
There sure are a lot of strange things up there.
People usually only look at ceilings when they’re lying down. Now I could see it clearly—twisting shapes and monstrous figures, symbols of the ominous Serpentine family. The craftsmanship was decent; the angel weeping blood looked rather dignified. A shame I couldn’t keep admiring it as my body tipped further back.
Just as I foresaw my short, chubby body—my only defense—being gravely injured, the world that had been moving in slow motion snapped back to its usual speed.
I squeezed my eyes shut as the scene flipped past in an instant, but fortunately, my head didn’t crack against the floor.
Instead—fwump—my body landed naturally on something soft.
Feeling the yielding surface beneath me, I carefully turned my eyes to discover the reason I was unharmed. The answer made me frown deeply.
Behind me, the servants were lying flat, offering their backs to catch me. They could have just grabbed me with their hands, and I’d have been grateful—but no, every single one had hidden their hands away and pressed their bodies to the filthy floor without a twitch. As though their hands must never touch me.
It was a chilling sight.