Chapter 183
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 183
Chapter Title: Seeking Permission
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Chloe wanted permission.
"So pitiful yet nobly beautiful... Like a bud longing to bloom but unable to find its place in the soil, just like I was in the past."
Rike reached out and gently stroked Chloe's hair.
"...Rike?"
"It's exactly the same."
She giggled, saying how adorable it was that her sister and she looked so strikingly alike.
When sisters resembled each other this much, it was inevitable—destined, even—that they'd share the same taste in men.
"Huuu..."
Chloe's face flushed apple-red at those words, and she bowed her head deeply.
"And this isn't just about your sister. The longer you delay, the harder it'll be for both of you when the truth comes out."
"..."
It was a heavy topic, but Rike's gentle touch kept the mood from growing somber.
"Your upright sister... wouldn't forgive herself first for not noticing, even though you're sisters, right?"
She seemed on the verge of saying it was frustrating...
Chloe's eyes twitched for a moment, but the words that followed tangled her thoughts into a mess.
"..."
"And at the very end, she might even grieve that you kept it hidden from her."
After a long stretch of contemplation, Chloe covered her face with her palms.
She absolutely couldn't let anyone see her expression right now.
"I don't want Sis thinking like that...!"
Rike slowly stroked Chloe's back at the desperate voice leaking through her fingers.
This touch from a lover before bed, lying down—it had a strong calming effect on the heart.
"No need to be scared. If the roles were reversed and your sister was in the same situation, what would you do?"
"Eut...!"
Rike's words pierced her, and it took time for Chloe's mind to settle into a clear direction.
Rike stayed by the side of the pondering girl, keeping her company.
She lifted her violet gaze to watch the clouds drifting in the sky.
She leisurely took in the sight of leaves tumbling along, unable to resist the wind.
She even spotted a plump white cat stealthily trailing behind a novice priestess.
Swoosh—
"Ah..."
A long while later, Chloe's head lifted from her palms, facing the sunlight as her thoughts concluded.
...
...
-Sis. Is it okay if I head to the study after dinner tonight?
Eclair sat and stood repeatedly from her chair in the study, waiting for Chloe.
She couldn't calm her body or mind at all.
Looking out the window, she took in the bright full moon hanging in the sky.
But the myriad thoughts crowding her head left no room to leisurely remark on its beauty.
"Hoo..."
Thinking of Chloe still brought that incident vividly to mind.
It was a horrific day, one that made her shudder just hearing about it or imagining it.
It had targeted her because she wasn't there, no doubt.
But what if Roman hadn't been by Chloe's side? What then?
The foreboding "what if" from the past already made her mind queasy and nauseous just considering it.
When she'd heard from Roman about the crisis that had nearly befallen her sister.
She'd instantly resolved to cause a scene and abandon her position as one of the Five Knights.
She'd even considered grabbing her sword and storming the Church to seize the firstborn son of the Malroy Count family for questioning.
But Roman, with his connections in the information guilds and the shadows everywhere, stayed by her side, his anger calm and cold.
And he suggested various countermeasures she couldn't manage herself.
'Things only possible because he started from the very bottom...'
Roman had used his accumulated network for the investigation, cross-verifying the intel thoroughly before acting without hesitation.
After capturing and dealing with some guy named Philip or whatever.
He'd followed the trail from tail to head.
Once the ringleader was confirmed, he'd dashed alone to the Malroy Count's territory—without even using a gate.
Roman had personally reduced the count—a major figure—to a fate worse than death.
But Eclair didn't worry about the fallout, whether someone might catch wind of it or not.
The crisis targeting Chloe was gone—that was enough to ease her mind.
No other sentiments beyond that.
Even if her knightly title mattered to her, for Chloe's sake.
She saw it clearly as a shield and ornament she could discard on the spot.
It had been her vow since childhood in the territory with Chloe.
The moment she'd gripped her sword, that priority hadn't wavered.
Even when she'd left her sister behind to wander the battlefields alone, it had held true.
That's why she could never feel proud when Roman praised her as an exemplary knight.
'Now it's the same with Roman and Rike...'
Someone once said that the more precious things you have, the more weaknesses they become, making life arduous and tough.
What nonsense.
'I can't relate to that at all.'
A mere glance showed the exact opposite.
They meshed so perfectly together that she worried she might be the burden instead, they were that reliable.
In any case, looking at the current situation.
Her recent manic workload could be called self-sabotage, perhaps.
The Malroy Count incident had piled on, prompting a full security overhaul for the emperor's faction nobles.
But with her sister in that state, even amid the frenzy of work, Chloe never left her thoughts.
Eclair's heart ached more knowing Chloe was bottling up her feelings alone, pretending all was well.
She couldn't force Roman on her, though.
Nor did she have the eloquence to approach, shed her clumsy emotions entirely, and smooth things over.
So she'd asked Rike—the most fitting, with her exceptional talent for it.
Yes.
She had asked...
But this was too fast. It left her flustered.
The very next day.
In the time it took Chloe to return from the academy.
She hadn't expected some resolution in Chloe's heart and mind.
'What on earth did Rike do...'
Eclair's fidgety fingers drummed the desk in anxious rhythm when Chloe arrived at the study.
Knock-knock-
-It's Chloe Dreitna.
"Come in."
Creeeak—
The study door opened cautiously, and Chloe entered, dressed in comfortable sleepwear with a robe draped over.
"Sorry for the late hour. You must be tired from work too, Sis..."
"Not at all. Sit comfortably."
The chair that had appeared since their relationship mended, whenever Chloe came to visit.
Chloe pulled it out naturally and sat, meeting Eclair's gaze head-on, staring intently.
The vitality and spark back in her eyes brought relief.
But tension swirled inside Eclair, wondering what her sister would say.
As proof, she couldn't even think of standing to prepare black tea like usual.
With neither sister speaking, just exchanging glances, Chloe opened her mouth with a somewhat enlightened smile.
"...You knew too, didn't you, Sis?"
"Knew what...?"
"That I have feelings for Big Brother."
Her voice came sharp and direct, without the usual drawl, leaving Eclair speechless.
"Mm..."
"I'm sorry, Sis..."
As she apologized, Chloe reached out to cover the back of Eclair's hand.
Her trembling fingers betrayed the hollow, indifferent facade on her face—her true heart laid utterly bare.
"This isn't empty comfort or bravado. I'm truly fine, so you don't need to apologize, Chloe."
"Uu..."
Chloe's feigned nonchalant expression crumbled in an instant, her eyes growing misty.
Seeing her sister so open, Eclair relaxed a bit and readied a handkerchief in one hand.
"Even I, who should be the example, botched the start and wasn't forthright... Who am I to blame anyone shamelessly?"
Flipping her hand to interlock fingers with Chloe, Eclair pulled her chair closer until their knees touched.
"Sis... Before we get to the main point, one more apology."
Chloe wiped her eyes before tears could trail down her cheeks.
"Go ahead. Speak your mind freely."
"That day, I came to the study by chance and saw it."
Eclair felt a strange unease creep in as her sister's face rapidly turned red.
"...The study?"
"You and Big Brother—"
Her mind went blank white the instant she heard it.
A simple display of affection in front of Chloe would be embarrassing enough.
But this—foreplay, gradual steps, no breather—straight to the peak. The shame whipped her mind into a frenzy.
"Ah...! Ugh! Wh-what, whaa...?!"
"Just like Rike said, you really are cute even to me. Do I really look that much like you, Sis?"
Stuttering and malfunctioning, Eclair watched as Chloe laughed with genuine ease for the first time in ages.
"..."
Stopping her laugh, Chloe let out a long breath and turned her eyes to the moonlit window.
She smiled softly, cheeks still flushed, lost in thoughts of someone.
Chloe was showing her most beautiful, natural self.
"Honestly, back then it was all just guilt... But now, envy outweighs it."
Chloe's momentum crashed over Eclair, who was floundering in confusion.
Her bold blue eyes gleamed as she spoke.
Not fully grasping it, Eclair nodded reflexively.
"I-is that so?"
Her wits scattered, Eclair couldn't muster a proper reply, but Chloe pressed on, pouring out her honest feelings without pause.
And then.
The resolute glint in Chloe's eyes upon returning to the mansion that day.
She sought Eclair's approval.
"I talked to Rike and got her permission too, but I want yours, Sis."
"My permission?"
A bit recovered from the shock, Eclair leaned in to hear what it was about.
"There's a city outside the capital I've wanted to visit with Big Brother... Can I ask him to go together?"