MBFUV

Chapter 2

Well, it was only natural.

The memories that came back that day were just a small part.

But thankfully, over time, more and more of them started returning clearly.

I realized Arno was going to die in the winter of the new year, when I had just turned thirteen.

By then, Arno had already finished the entrance exams for Hyaelern, and the ceremony was only a week away.

“Arno Franteya, eldest son of House Franteya and the Grand Duke’s right-hand man, died after suffering a fatal wound to the heart during a battle at the eastern gate of the capital.”

As soon as I remembered that sentence, I threw my glass of milk and ran to Arno like a crazy person.

“Arno!”

“What the—?!”

Startled, Arno jumped back as I came charging like a bull.

“Arno, please! I’m begging you. Can’t you not go to Hyaelern?”

“What?”

“If you stay, I’ll let you boss me around like a servant! I’ll polish your sword and even wash your stinky socks…”

“What are you even talking about? Just yesterday you threw a party with your maids, celebrating how you wouldn’t have to see my dumb face anymore.”

“That was a misunderstanding! I only did it to distract myself from feeling lonely!”

At my ridiculous excuse, he smirked, clearly not buying it.

“My little lying sister… What’s this?”

Arno held up a familiar dark brown notebook.

‘Wait, what?! Why is that in his hands?!’

I jumped to try and snatch it back, but no matter how high I jumped, our height difference made it impossible.

“Give it back! You thief!”

“Thief? I just picked up what you dropped in the dining room. If anything, you should be thanking me for returning your lost item.”

“Don’t make me laugh!”

“Tsk, tsk. Rude children don’t deserve to get their things back.”

Arno lowered his voice playfully and tapped my forehead with a fake serious expression.

“Hey!”

“‘Hey’? Really?”

“…Give it back, Arno.”

“Still not polite enough.”

“Please give it back… dear brother.”

I tossed aside my pride and even called him “dear brother,” but all I got in return was a mocking grin.

Arno raised the notebook higher and gently pressed down on my head with one hand.

“I’m not the kind of guy who goes reading other people’s private stuff, but… the notebook was already open.”

“Don’t tell me you read it?”

I glared at him, eyes wide.

“I only looked at it, but my name was written dozens of times. How could I not see it?”

“You shameless thief! Idiot! Moron! Give it back!”

Ignoring me, he slowly flipped through the pages.

“Things to do once that guy leaves for the academy.
First, take over his study.”

“Ahhh! Stop reading! Give it back! Right now!”

“Second, ride his favorite horse, Pepe.
Wow, you were planning to take all my stuff the moment I left, huh?”

Chomp!

I couldn’t take it anymore and bit Arno’s hand.

“OW! Agnès! Let go!”

“Only if you give it back!”

“Alright, alright! Here! Take it!”

The moment he lowered his hand, I snatched the notebook away.

Clutching his bitten hand, Arno glared at me.

“Tch. You could’ve just asked nicely.”

“You’re seriously not a wild horse or something?”

“What was that?”

“Forget it. I need to pack. Just leave! Go away!”

“No. You can’t go to Hyaelern.”

“Why not? You already have a full list of things you want to do when I’m gone.”

“Now that I think about it… Dad’s too busy to leave the capital, and you’re the only person I can rely on here.”

“So?”

“What if something happens? Who’s going to protect me then? Aren’t you even a little worried about leaving me all alone in this huge castle?”

When I looked up at him with sad eyes, Arno bent down and met my gaze. His expression suddenly turned serious.

“Agnès… How could you think like that?
You’re just as much the owner of this castle as I am.
I never thought you might not feel safe here.”

Arno’s cold gaze shifted—not to me, but to the servants behind me.

Worried they might get dragged into this, I quickly stepped in front of him to block his view.

“No, no. I just meant that my only real family is you and Dad.”

“Are you sure no one said something strange to you?”

“Of course! Who would even dare say something like that to me?”

“Then don’t make a fuss and get out.”

With that cold dismissal, I was kicked out of the room.

I knocked on the door a few times, but it stayed firmly shut.

So, I had no choice but to drop my shoulders and return to my room.

I even tried a hunger strike and wrote a letter to Dad to stop him.

But Dad only wrote back saying, “If you’re feeling lonely, I’ll come down right away.”

And as for the hunger strike—well, I had been eating way too well, so a few missed meals didn’t even affect me.

“Why am I so annoyingly healthy?”

Just like that, time passed pointlessly, and the day of Arno’s departure to the academy finally arrived.

Until the last minute, I reminded him:

“What do you do if someone has black hair and red eyes?”

“…You don’t go within 10 meters of them.
Geez, where did you get this clingy personality from?”

“You want to arrive safely at the academy, don’t you?”

“Alright, alright.”

“Don’t forget what I said!”

* * *

Even after sending Arno off, I reminded him of our promise again and again through letters.

But today…

Not only did he completely betray my trust, he brought that guy to our home.

Without even knocking, I threw open the door of the traitor.

“Arno Franteya!!”

My teeth-gritting voice echoed all the way down the hallway.

Startled, Arno, who had been changing behind the screen, hurried to button his shirt.

“Agnès, you should knock before coming in.”

“How could you do this to me?”

“Why are you so mad?”

He answered casually, which made my eye twitch in anger.

“Did you seriously forget our promise before you left for the academy? What are you, a goldfish?”

“What?”

“Or is your brain so tiny it can only remember one thing at a time, so when something new goes in, something else gets pushed out?”

“Wow, your attitude got even worse since I’ve been gone… Calm down. I didn’t forget our promise.”

“Then what’s this supposed to be?”

“Life at the academy isn’t something I can control. Sometimes things just happen—”

“Fine, maybe you couldn’t avoid running into him. But bringing him here to our home? That was your choice!”

“Agnès, there were reasons for that…”

“Liar. Traitor!”

“Agnès, listen to me!”

“Don’t forget—I warned you I’d erase you from the family register!”

Fuming and out of breath, I kept yelling, and Arno quickly fixed his clothes and came over.

He crouched down in front of me to meet my eyes.

“I’m sorry for not keeping the promise. But César’s really not a bad guy.”

“Oh wow, what a convincing argument.”

“He’s also the top student at the academy. Being around him motivates me. Just this once, can’t you let it go?”

“You could break every other promise, but not this one! I warned you so many times!!”

“Next time, I swear I’ll keep it no matter what.”

“I don’t need a next time. Do you have any idea how I felt sending you off? If I had known this would happen, I would’ve broken your legs and locked you up!”

I stared him down, lowered my voice, and shouted like some crazy, obsessive tyrant.

One of the knights nearby couldn’t help but burst out laughing with a “pfft”, but when our eyes met, he quickly looked away and clamped his mouth shut.

“Be honest. Did you secretly join the criminal underworld or something? You’re not their leader… right?”

“Stop talking nonsense. Just send your friend away. Now.”

“Agnès, come here for a second.”

Arno grabbed my hand, gently pulled me away from the doorway, and sat me down on the sofa.

On the table were lots of nicely wrapped packages.

“These are all gifts the young lord picked out and saved for you whenever he saw something nice,” the knight explained.

But I still didn’t say anything. Arms crossed, lips shut tight, eyebrows furrowed at a perfect 45-degree angle.

Like I was going to forgive him for something like this.

“All these presents are for you. Aren’t you curious about what’s inside?”

“Not at all. If you think this will make me forgive you, you’re very wrong.”

At my icy reply, Arno scratched his head awkwardly. Then suddenly, he dug into his luggage.

“Philip! Where’s that chocolate?”

He turned and asked in a rush. His knight quickly pulled out a sleek black box tied with a gold ribbon.

“Right here, sir.”

“Try this, Agnès. It’s from the most popular shop in the capital. They only sell ten boxes a day. I got up early just to buy it.”

“I’m not eating it!”

“Oh, come on~”

Ignoring my refusal, Arno pushed a piece of chocolate into my mouth.

The sweet flavor exploded on my tongue.

Ugh.

I was seriously annoyed.

Because it was delicious.