* * *

The plan to get rid of Mikhail was postponed for the meantime, and this was only because Roen had come forward to the duke and asked for the right to dispose of Mikhail himself. The duke allowed it.

The second son did not hand down punishment to the first. Instead, he visited his older brother and had a conversation alone with him.

Just the two of them.

Ever since Violet and Cairn had been born, they rarely had any reason to be alone together.

Mikhail glared at his younger brother. Albeit weak, hostility was evident.

Roen said nothing. He’s the one who initiated this conversation, yet he was just maintaining this dreadful silence. Thanks to this, the air in the drawing room had become endlessly heavy.

Silence, stillness. Tempered hostility and a low sigh.

In the room where even the faintest sound of a droplet could be heard, it was Mikhail who broke the silence first.

“If you have something to say, then just say it already. I am in no mood to listen to your unpleasant word games.”

A punishment would soon be imposed upon him, yet he still carried himself with the confidence of an innocent man.

Yes. As a matter of fact, Mikhail thought that he was not at fault in any way at all.

“…Brother.”

“Sure, carrying yourself in such sanctimony now, aren’t you? You must be here for quite an important talk.”

“Stop it with the bullshit,” Roen said with a smile.

At this, Mikhail’s expression hardened.

Watching the older brother who he once looked up to in admiration, Roen swallowed a sardonic smile.

“Bullshit?”

“Yeah. Bullshit. Without any of the unpleasant wordplay you dislike, I’m asking you directly, Brother. Do you truly not know what situation you’re in right now? Why aren’t you aware? Unless you’re quite literally a halfwit, there’s no way that you wouldn’t know. I can’t believe I have a fool for an older brother—”

“You atrocious—!”

However, regardless of Mikhail’s furious outburst, Roen quickly cut him off.

“How can you be so blind and senseless? Ah. No, that’s not what I’m here to say.”

“Then if you’re here to say something, just do it right! If you don’t want me to hit you, just—”

“Alright, then let me be straight. There’s no way a fool like you would ever apologize or reflect on your actions. Just keep this in mind. Do not show yourself in front of Violet anymore. Don’t talk to her. Don’t touch her. Just consider her as someone who doesn’t exist. And above all—”

Do not hurt her.

Clatter— His teacup was brought down upon its saucer.

Mikhail looked at Roen with a more incredulous expression than when he was called a halfwit. He could not believe his own ears.

“…I did say that I will refrain from the word games you revile.”

Though Roen spoke in a seemingly nonchalant tone, his voice conveyed his seething anger.

“Do you hate that child that much?”

“Roen.”

“Do you truly hate her? So much so that you’d blame her even when she’s done nothing wrong?”

“Roen E. Everett!”

Bang!

His fist hit the table. At the roaring noise, Roen looked at Mikhail as he sipped his tea.

As the man who lived as a knight displayed a frightening amount of rage, the man who lived as a scholar only laughed.

“You know, Brother.”

“Shut your trap.”

“This time, it’s not Violet’s fault.”

“I told you to shut up!”

“And even all those times before… Many of them were just pinned on her. No, even if she hadn’t been framed, none of those actions were deserving of such criticism.”

BANG!

He hit the table once more. The teacups shook, and the tea spilled on the flat surface.

“So.”

“……”

“So are you saying that I should have just stayed still and watched everything, you damn punk?!”

Mikhail’s blazing green eyes were completely filled with rage. His words were directed at Roen, but his anger was—always, always—directed at Violet, even at this moment.

Even to the bitter end, you keep hating that child.

Roen smiled.

Seemingly, Mikhail’s anger was justified. However, that was not true.

The one and only target of his hatred and derision was always just Violet.

Because Violet S. Everett was a villainess. Because she was a bad child.

However, right here and now, Mikhail had no right to be angry at Violet.

“It’s your fault that you were deprived of your status as the Duke’s heir.”

“……”

“No, in some way, you could blame me for that. I’m the one who officially asked Father for the position of his heir.”

“You, right now…”

“But then, why are you angry at Violet and Violet alone? As if she was the only one in this world who’s evil.”

What stood against evil was justice.

And justice could be served when a righteous man were to punish an evil woman.

Thus, Mikhail was a ‘righteous man’.

“You know what? In the old days, I used to look up to you, Brother. You were kind, admirable and righteous.”

“Have you seriously gone mad after falling for that wicked woman’s sweet talk?!”

“How did you end up like this… There was once a time when you cared for Violet, when you didn’t hate her this much. Why did you become a person who just keeps blaming her for anything and everything?”

“ROEN!”

The malice in the knight’s voice was not something that a weak scholar could endure.

Roen’s fingertips trembled. However, without showing any sight of this, he laughed.

How did this happen? When did their relationship start deteriorating so horrifically?

Roen considered himself to be smart, and yet what was it that had been blocking his view? What was it that made him blind to all of this?

There was only one answer.

And Roen agonized over that fixed answer.

Just as Violet was Roen’s younger sister, so too was Mikhail Roen’s older brother.