I Want to Fall in Love After Getting Reincarnated as the Heroine on the Verge of a Bad Ending, but My OP Older Brother Won’t Leave Me Alone!? - Chapter 66
Translated by: ShinigamiTori
Chapter 66 ? Playing House 1
“I hate you! I really, really hate Brother Julius….”
“…. Is that so?”
“Give me back my mother…!”
“….?A dream?”
Julius let out a sigh, having had the worst dream from the morning. Slowly getting up, he swept back his sweaty bangs. As soon as he realized it was a dream, he was shocked at how relieved he felt.
Even if it was a dream, the fact remains that it was an actual event from the past.
Hoping Rene’s memories would never come back, Julius got out of bed and decided to sweat it out first.
“Good morning, Brother. You’re up late today, aren’t you?”
“Yeah, good morning.”
After that, he headed to the dining room to have a late breakfast and found Jenny, who seemed to be waiting for him. Putting on a smile despite the inconvenience, he took a seat across from her.
He can see that his father will complain if he avoids her too much or acts too cold towards her. It would be troublesome if it affected his future plans, and he also wanted to avoid Jenny’s frustration being directed at Rene.
“Were you studying late again last night?”
“Sort of.”
“You’re truly diligent, Brother. By the way, the other day?”
He continues to eat, offering occasional nods. Meanwhile, Jenny happily kept babbling about trivial things.
If he remembered correctly, Rene was supposed to be attending a garden party at the royal palace today. She’s probably having a good time with her dear friends right now.
“You’re planning to go to the Yates’ party tonight, right?”
“Yes, you’re well-informed.”
“Father had words of praise for you again this morning. He said having a capable older brother like you ensures our family’s well-being.”
“…. Well, well.”
His foolish father, who doesn’t even dream that he’s trying to take over this household, seems to trust him completely.
Julius spent the unpleasant breakfast time, hoping his father would remain ignorant and foolish.
???
Eventually, evening came, and as Julius was about to leave the mansion after preparing for the evening party, he bumped into Rene, who had just returned.
Clad in the light blue dress he gave her, Rene beamed happily the moment she caught sight of him.
“Julius, I’m back! Are you going somewhere?”
“Welcome back. I’ll be attending a short gathering with some acquaintances.”
“I see, have a good trip. Take care, okay?”
“Thank you.”
Until yesterday, Rene was in low spirits, as if she had noticed that he was avoiding her. But now her smile is as bright as ever, and it seems she’s no longer bothered.
As long as she has her friends, maybe he doesn’t need to be there. Julius felt kind of betrayed, thinking that even though she said he was the best, it was probably a misunderstanding after all.
“… Honestly, it’s messed up.”
He’s the one pushing her away, but he’s being selfish. Maybe he’s more attached to her than he thought.
Laden with a silly sense of possessiveness, Julius gets on the carriage. Soon, upon entering the venue, he found himself instantly surrounded by a large crowd.
“Julius-sama, I’ve been wanting to meet you.”
“The next Count Wainwright, I see you’re here.”
“I hear you’ve been quite active recently.”
He pastes on a smile, exudes friendliness, and courteously engages with others. To achieve his goal, it is essential to establish a foothold in the social world.
??For a long time, he had been imagining the despair that would be painted on their faces as they lost everything, using it as motivation. That’s all he’s lived for since that day.
Lately, however, he realizes that he hasn’t been entertaining those imaginations at all. And he already knew why that was.
“… Perhaps I’ve gotten too attached.”
“Julius-sama?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
After greeting some people, Julius decided to take a break and stepped out onto the balcony to enjoy the night breeze. To his surprise, a familiar face awaited him there.
“Oh, Julius, you’re here too?”
He heads toward Arnold, who smiles broadly.
“Don’t just slack off all the time. Put in a bit more effort, will you?”
“I’m good.”
Arnold isn’t the type to willingly participate in social gatherings. If he does show up, it’s usually just to pass the time casually like this.
This man, with his abundant talent and universal appeal, would surely navigate life skillfully. He was aware of that, and he also knew that he was cutting corners in a lot of ways.
“Julius, you don’t look well.”
“Does it look that way to you?”
“Yeah, it’s been going on since that day. Are you bothered by what happened to Rene?”
“No way.”
It’s not like he feels guilty or anything. However, the moment Julius saw Rene’s cheeks turning red as she became conscious of him for having put his hands on her, he lost confidence in continuing the sibling act.
He’s become jealous of the person he was when he didn’t remember anything, and he feels like he can’t continue to be her older brother, so he keeps his distance to cool his head.
“Why not just tell her everything? Is it not allowed?”
“… Maybe I should just stop.”
He’s played along with the sibling act long enough. There’s a possibility that Rene will hear the truth from someone in the family at some point.
Playing along like this is unlike him.
“Even if Rene-chan will be confused at first, I’m sure you’re important to her no matter what.”
“I hope so.”
“Why don’t you just spill it all out and get comfortable? Julius is cool, so I’m sure she’ll end up liking you.”
“It’s infuriating hearing that from you.”
Julius remembers that Rene likes Arnold’s face and becomes irritated. Seeing him like that, Arnold laughs merrily.
“Do you like Rene-chan that much?”
“Who knows?”
What this emotion is and what she means to him, Julius doesn’t understand. It doesn’t seem like love or affection. However, he wanted to be the best for Rene, and he didn’t want her to belong to anyone else.
Shortly after returning to the mansion, Julius quickly notices that the door to Rene’s room is slightly open. He thought that she must have just accidentally forgotten to close it and glanced through the gap, only to see Rene sprawled on the floor.
He immediately rushes over and lifts her into his arms. Her face is flushed, and her body feels noticeably warm. There’s no doubt she has quite the fever.
Julius takes her straight to the bed and immediately calls a maid to prepare the necessary equipment to nurse her. Placing a cold towel on her forehead, her pained expression seems to ease ever so slightly.
“… Really, what am I doing?”
He decides to stay by her side until morning and gently caresses her soft hair, acknowledging that it’s truly out of character for him.
However, he didn’t feel comfortable in his formal attire, so he got up to change his clothes into something more comfortable.
“?Mom… Dad…”
“Rene?”
A single tear fell from her eye as she muttered this.
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