When she saw the bouquet in Genia’s arms, Ciel silently backtracked before quickly spinning around and barging into Cyan’s nearby room.

“What the—” Cyan, who had just returned to his room, cried out in surprise as he turned around to face the sudden intruder.

Ignoring her brother’s alarm, Ciel just looked around his room with narrowed eyes.

‘There it is,’ Ciel thought to herself in delight as she reached her hand towards the flower vase resting on a table.

Her older brother had a girlish side to him that really didn’t suit his character, so even his room at the main estate was always decorated with flowers.

“What are you doing?” Cyan asked, his jaw dropping as he saw Ciel pull the flowers out of their vase.

However, Ciel didn’t bother answering. After shaking the water off the flower stalks, she roughly tore off their roots and then resumed looking around the room.

Cyan tried to get her attention, “Hold on—”

But Ciel just boldly threw open his closet. Seeing this, Cyan’s eyes filled with anxiety and shook in panic. From a young age, Cyan would hide the things he couldn’t allow others to see, like certain naughty books filled with his own specific kinks, underneath his bed or deep inside his closet….

His voice wavering, Cyan called out, “That… Ciel, just what in the world are you—”

“Brother,” Ciel cut him off as her hands, which had been rummaging through his closet, dug into its depths to retrieve something. “Lend me this.”

The item that Ciel had retrieved was an old-fashioned silk scarf that was part of a formal dress suit. It was a congratulatory gift for Cyan from one of the best fashion designers on the continent for becoming an adult. Unfortunately, after Cyan officially became an adult, he hadn’t yet had the chance to leave Black Lion Castle, so he hadn’t gotten around to wearing that suit and scarf set.

“…No… that’s a bit…,” Cyan hesitated.

“I don’t want the clothes. I just want the scarf,” Ciel bargained.

Cyan tried to explain, “That’s, um, the clothes and the scarf together are a set….”

“If you keep arguing like this, I’m going to take out the books you’ve hidden at the bottom of your wardrobe and read them,” Ciel threatened. “After that, I’ll also tell our mother about their contents and spread rumors around Black Lion Castle.”

“You… don’t you know how old I am? I’m also an adult! Even mother can no longer scold me about such matters!”

“Yeah, I know that. She probably won’t scold you. Instead, she’ll just stare at you with a very, very complex look in her eyes, brother. And so will I.”

As if to demonstrate the said look, Ciel turned her head and stared at Cyan. Cyan shuffled backward in the face of his sister’s gaze, which was filled with something subtle yet complex, and was a swirling mix of many different emotions. If he refused her here, it was clear that this hateful little sister of his would look at him with these sorts of eyes for the next ten years at the very least.

“…T-take it,” Cyan gave in.

“Thanks,” Ciel said with a wide smile as she nodded.

Riiip!

Then, right in front of Cyan’s eyes, Ciel tore the scarf into two. Cyan’s jaw dropped open at his younger sister’s merciless actions. Ciel ripped the scarf a few more times and then gathered the flower stalks together. With one of the longer strips of silken cloth, she tied the flowers into a bouquet, then used the rest of the strips to cover the bouquet in ribbons.

When all of this was done, Ciel’s hands were now holding a stylish bouquet made using the entirety of the high-class silk scarf. While admiring her dexterity and aesthetic sense, Ciel scanned the creation from all angles.

“…You tore up the gift I received for my coming-of-age… just to make a bouquet…?” Cyan confirmed in disbelief.

“I’m taking this as well,” Ciel informed him as she took a large jeweled brooch from his accessory box. “This brooch doesn’t suit you, brother.”

Cyan protested, “But I’ve never even worn it—!”

“Your sense of aesthetics has been messed up since you were young,” Ciel critiqued. “Where exactly were you going to go while wearing such a large bejeweled brooch?”

Unable to respond, Cyan could only stand there silently, his shoulders trembling. Ciel placed the brooch in the center of the bouquet’s ribbons as a decoration and then nodded with a look of satisfaction. Although it was much smaller than the bouquet Genia had been holding, hers couldn’t compare in terms of sincerity and value that Ciel had placed in this bouquet.

‘Especially since I’ve made it personally.’

With a happy smile on her face, Ciel left Cyan’s room.

…Meanwhile, Genia was still hesitating in front of the door to Eugene’s room.

Her memory of what had happened was vague. The moment she was led into the depths of the forest by the demonic power… a wave of darkness had surged toward her from her rear. It had been a sudden surprise attack. She thought that she had reacted to it well, but she couldn’t remember what had happened after a certain point.

After regaining consciousness, she remained in bed for two whole days. During that time, she had heard the entire story. Something about how Eward Lionheart, the eldest son of the main family, had gotten involved with a darkness spirit possessed by remnants of the Demon Kings…. Since Genia wasn’t interested in magic, she couldn’t get a clear understanding of what had really happened.

As such, she decided to just think of it in simple terms. The eldest son of the main family had gone crazy. Dominic, the Captain of the Black Lion Knight’s First Division, had also gone crazy.

…And so had Hector.

“…Phew…,” Genia released a heavy sigh as she looked down at the bouquet in his hands. Although it was hard for her to believe, she had no choice but to believe what had happened. After going insane, the three responsible for this incident had been killed. What was even harder for her to believe was that the one who had killed these three and saved the hostages was none other than Eugene Lionheart.

‘…No… was it really?’ Genia thought doubtfully.

However, what reason could the Knights of the Black Lion have for lying about such a thing, even as they admitted to their own failures?

Genia plaintively thought to herself, ‘The one who saved me really wasn’t my father?’

But he had plainly said that he hadn’t.

Genos felt deep gratitude that his much-esteemed grandmaster Hamel had been reincarnated as Eugene and had saved his one and only daughter from this crisis. Also, he wanted his daughter to feel the same gratitude and reverence for their Grandmaster Hamel that he did.

…However, Genos couldn’t reveal Eugene’s true identity to his daughter. He hadn’t received permission to inform her. The fact that Eugene was Hamel was a secret that Genos needed to keep for the rest of his life. But… Genos really wanted to tell her. His lips itched with the urge to say it. Genia also shared his respect for Hamel, so he wanted them to show their respects to their master with a sincere heart together; once his daughter knew the whole truth….

That was why Genia was here. The bouquet had been placed in her hands by Genos. He had pushed her in the back and told her to come here and thank her lifesaver.

But Genia didn’t know about her father’s thoughts. Her mood was currently dampened due to a mix of various different factors. Hector, her close friend and rival since childhood… had betrayed the Lionheart clan. Then he had just died.

So, could Eugene be said to have gotten revenge on Hector for her? Although she didn’t think that things really went that far… Genia still had a hard time accepting Eugene. It wasn’t like Genia couldn’t recognize his skill, but she felt jealous of how much appreciation her father seemed to show Eugene.

A voice suddenly called out to her, “Is it okay if I head in first?”

Strolling over, Ciel now stood beside Genia. Genia had been engrossed in worrying about what kind of expression she should show Eugene and how she should express her gratitude. Ciel’s sudden arrival startled her, and she turned to look at the unexpected intruder. .

“Unless you plan on going in now, that is,” Ciel said with a smile as she tossed her hair back in an elegant gesture.

As she did so, Ciel carefully examined both Genia’s appearance and the bouquet’s.

‘So it was a misunderstanding,’ realized Ciel.

Having come here all by herself, with a bouquet of flowers at that, Ciel had felt the need to check if Genia might be harboring certain indecent intentions. But seeing the blatant reluctance all over Genia’s face, it seemed clear that Genos had pushed her into doing this.

“It looks like you feel uncomfortable heading in on your own?” Ciel observed as she placed her hand on the doorknob with a soft smile. “If that’s the case, let’s head in together. I was also feeling a bit embarrassed to go in by myself.”

“Ah… is that so?” Genia said, her expression relaxing as she felt sincere gratitude towards Ciel’s proposal.

Ciel had done several calculations before making this offer. Genia was twenty-seven years old, while Ciel was twenty. Although Genia wasn’t that old, a seven-year age gap was still pretty large.

‘As for appearances, well… I’m still better,’ Ciel thought smugly.

Ciel’s appearance had been praised ever since her childhood. Ciel knew all too well that she was seen as sweet, cute, and pretty.

‘She’s wearing such a drab outfit. And as for me? It looks like I made a good decision to get changed before coming here. When we enter together, there’ll be an obvious difference between the two of us.’

She had even sprayed on some perfume and put on a necklace. Ciel turned the doorknob with a wide smile.

“I won!”

The moment the door opened, Mer, who had been sitting on the sofa, leaped up with a cheer. With a triumphant expression, she approached Eugene, who was still lying in bed and reached her hands out toward him.

“You were already standing out there for quite a while. If you were going to enter, couldn’t you have at least waited one more minute before coming in?” Eugene complained, his face twisting into a fierce scowl, and he glared at Ciel and Genia. “I lost the bet because you came in too early!”

“Didn’t I say so?” Mer bragged. “I said she was slowly getting ready to come in, but Sir Eugene, you insisted that she would come in a bit later. So that means I won. In other words, Sir Eugene, you lost. You know what that means, right?”

“Just do it quickly,” Eugene said resignedly.

“Please admit your defeat.”

“Fine, I lost. Now just do it quickly!”

Hearing this retort, Mer snickered. Then she pulled one of Eugene’s limp wrists out from beneath his blanket and rolled up his sleeve.

“I won’t take it easy on you,” Mer warned.

Eugene snorted, “Who asked you to?”

“I know that your body is in pain, but a bet is a bet,” Mer insisted.

Fuu, fuuuh.

After Mer brought her index and middle finger together, she blew on them to warm them up, then mercilessly delivered a slap to Eugene’s wrist.

Snap!

The slap landed with a sharp noise. Normally, the attack wouldn’t even have stung him, but in Eugene’s current state, this blow penetrated deep into his bones and even shook his soul.

“Kaaargh…!” Eugene clenched his teeth as he choked back a scream.

However, this violent reaction only startled Mer more. Her shoulders shook as she scanned Eugene’s expression.

“A-are you okay?” Mer asked timidly.

Eugene squeezed out, “It’s—It’s nothing…!”

“You… you really mean that, right? You aren’t going to get mad at me for this later?”

“I said it’s nothing!”

“Let’s pinky promise,” Mer insisted.

Having forced Eugene to make such a promise, Mer returned to her seat with a smile. Enduring the pain in his wrist that had yet to fade, Eugene lifted his head.

…What in the world were they doing?

Ciel had imagined having a conversation with Eugene several times, but she hadn’t expected to be met with such a comedic situation as soon as they entered his room.

“…Ahem,” Genia coughed as she presented the bouquet she was holding in her arms to Eugene. “…I’ve come here to give you my thanks.”

“I thought so,” Eugene said with a nod.

“…This bouquet carries not just my gratitude but my father’s as well,” Genia added.

As Eugene recalled the sight of Genos with tears flowing from his eyes, he felt a bit embarrassed.

“…I’ll gratefully accept this,” he said politely.

Ciel butted into the conversation, “Take mine as well.”

Then, as if she had been waiting for this, Ciel pushed her bouquet onto him. She presented it at an angle where the ribbons and the jeweled brooch could be seen clearly from the front.

“Pretty, isn’t it? I even made this bouquet myself,” Ciel bragged.

“What’s with this jewel?” Eugene asked.

“It’s a brooch. It’s meant to decorate your chest. Would you like to try it on?”

“Maybe later.” As Eugene responded, he glanced at Ciel’s attire.

“And what’s with your clothes?” Eugene asked.

“…Hm?” Ciel questioned wordlessly.

“And what’s with that necklace? Since when did you go around wearing necklaces?” Eugene demanded.

Ciel had been prepared for such a question.

“Isn’t it pretty?” Ciel asked with a slight tilt of her head.

By doing so, Ciel emphasized the curve from her neck to her shoulders, even as the corners of her mouth curled up in a mischievous smile.

“Nope,” Eugene said with a shake of his head.

“…What?” came Ciel’s indignant response after a short delay.

“It doesn’t really suit you,” Eugene declared.

How could he say such a rude thing right to a person’s face?

“Instead of such a shiny necklace, I think a different necklace would suit you better,” Eugene elaborated.

Surprise colored Ciel’s reaction, “Ah…. Oh? Really?”

“Your clothes are certainly pretty,” Eugene complimented. “This feels like the first time I’ve seen you dress up like this.”

“…Is that right?” Ciel said shyly.

Her heart was shaken by this unexpected turn in the conversation. Ciel smiled softly and brushed her hair back in an elegant gesture.

“Do you remember what you said? You told me to save my thanks for later when I was all better, and you’d be expecting sincere thanks from me?” Ciel reminded him.

Then, so that he could get a good look at her, Ciel spun around on the spot. The subtle perfume she had sprayed on her body was dispersed through the air by her spin and carried over to Eugene.

“So thank you for saving me,” Ciel said gratefully as she slightly raised the hem of her skirt and bent both her waist and knees.

Without bowing her head down completely, Ciel stared at Eugene with a playful look in her eyes.

“So, this favor for having saved my life, how exactly should I go about repaying it?” Ciel asked suggestively.

Instead of answering her question, Eugene commented with a frown, “But it feels like your thanks isn’t all that sincere?”

Ciel was left speechless.

“Your knees should be bent a bit more… and your head should be bowed down fully. Wouldn’t that be a more sincere thanks?”

“Like I’ve always said, for a younger brother, you really are cheeky towards your older sister.”

Ciel’s expression contorted into a scowl as she stood back up. Then she flounced over and plopped down next to Eugene. 𝘦𝑎.𝒸ℴ

“Then how about this? While your body is recovering, I’ll come over to nurse you daily,” Ciel offered.

“I can take care of nursing him,” Mer lifted her head and interjected, only for Ciel to snort and wave a finger at her chidingly.

“How can you be a nurse when you can’t even peel a single fruit properly?” Ciel retorted.

“Being able to peel a fruit isn’t important when it comes to nursing,” Mer protested.

Ciel sniffed, “Then what do you think is important?”

“You need to change Sir Eugene’s bandages, wipe the sweat off his body, change his clothes, change his underwear, massage his muscles so that they don’t stiffen, and help him with his poo and pee,” Mer listed diligently.

Ciel’s lips parted slightly in shock. She turned to look at Eugene in disbelief, even as Eugene turned to look at Mer with the exact same expression.

“Are you crazy?” Eugene scolded her.

“But isn’t that what a nurse does?” Mer argued back.

“When did I ever ask you to help me with my poo and pee?”

“I’m prepared to do so at any time.”

“I don’t need it!” Eugene roared.

“Now that I think about it, it’s quite strange. You’ve been spending the last two days convalescing in bed, but why haven’t you gone to the toilet even once? You haven’t sweated either,” Mer pointed out as she blinked and tilted her head to the side.

“…His poo and pee…,” Genia, who had been listening quietly, suddenly murmured. She glanced at Eugene with an uncomfortable expression and admitted, “…I never thought that such words would grace the lips of the people from the main family.”

“Haven’t I already resolved this misunderstanding?” Eugene sighed in exasperation. “I have never asked someone to help me poo and pee, and I have never asked them to help me change my clothes either.”

“Then, could you be wearing a diaper?” Genia said with disgust as she took a step back, unconsciously glancing down at Eugene’s lower body.

Of course, his lower body was covered by a blanket, so nothing could be seen.

Exasperated, Eugene confessed, “…That’s…. I’m dealing with all that by using magic. I’m also using magic to clean myself, so that’s why I don’t need to change my clothes. Are you satisfied now?”

“Even if that’s the case, I’m still ready whenever,” Mer chimed in.

“Turn it down a bit,” Eugene scoffed as he rolled his eyes at Mer for that unnecessary comment. Then he turned to glance at Ciel and Genia, who were still staring at him, to warn them, “…Don’t have any strange ideas.”

“I’m not thinking of anything strange,” Ciel said as she leaned back and shook her head. “…It’s just, well… I’m fine with changing your bandages, but… anything more than that is a bit too much.”

“That goes for me as well,” Genia agreed.

“When did I ever ask you to? Stop bothering a sick patient and just leave,” Eugene shot back with a scowl as he gestured to the door with his chin.

At this gesture, the wind responded to Eugene’s will and popped open the closed door.

“It hasn’t been that long since we arrived, and you’re already asking us to leave?” Ciel complained.

“The patient’s comfort is paramount,” Eugene stated.

“You’re saying that being with me isn’t comfortable?”

“Why ask something so obvious?”

“Why not? Is it a psychological reason? Does my being in the same room as you while dressed up like this stimulate you psychologically?” Ciel asked with excitement.

“It isn’t your clothes that are stimulating; it’s the nonsense that you keep spouting. And do you know what type of stimulation I’m feeling? It’s rage. So if you don’t like it, then just get lost!” Eugene let out a roar.

At this outburst, Ciel just stuck her tongue out at him and stepped back slightly. However, Genia didn’t allow herself to retreat. After hesitating for a few more moments, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a necklace with a whistle hanging on it.

“…If you need any help, please blow this whistle,” Genia said as she hung the necklace around Eugene’s neck.

Since he wasn’t able to properly move his body, it was impossible for him to resist. Eugene glared at the whistle hanging from his neck, then summoned a breeze to lift the whistle to his mouth.

Peeeep!

Seeing Eugene blow this whistle right in front of her, Genia blinked in confusion.

Spitting out the whistle, Eugene continued speaking, “Take Ciel and leave this room immediately.”

“Don’t you think you’re being a bit too rude,” Ciel chided.

“You’re the one who came here for a bedside visit only to make my blood pressure explode!” Eugene roared once more.

“Seeing how loud your voice is, it seems that we don’t need to worry about you,” Ciel said with a wide smile as she grabbed Genia by the sleeve and pulled her along. “Well then, let’s head out now and stop disturbing him, big sis.”

“…Big sis?” Genia repeated in surprise.

“You’re seven years older than me, after all. Could I be making you uncomfortable by calling you big sis?” Ciel asked tentatively.

What should she say…? There didn’t seem to be any hidden meanings behind Ciel’s words, and it wasn’t unusual to be called that considering their family situation, but… Genia still felt subtle displeasure. Of course, she wouldn’t take her annoyance out on this young lady of the main family just because of a speck of resentment.

“…Not at all,” Genia eventually allowed.

Turning to Eugene, Ciel instructed, “Rest well. Call me if you’re bored or need any help. Also, about going to the toilet, if at all possible, you shouldn’t hold it and just go to the bathroom even if you do need assistance.”

Eugene’s only response was, “Get lost!”

Ciel left the room after showing him a final cheeky smile. While Eugene was still panting in anger, Mer took the bouquets that Eugene had received and moved the flowers into a flower vase.

“Still, it looks like everyone is worried about you, Sir Eugene, and grateful as well,” Mer commented happily.

“I saved them all, so it’s only natural for them to feel that way,” Eugene said complacently.

“Doesn’t that make you feel proud or rewarded?”

“Just like it’s natural for them to feel that way, I only did what I was supposed to have done, so why should I feel proud or rewarded?”

Eugene had responded to her question without much thought, but Mer still smiled widely at this answer.

“You are a good person,” Mer stated confidently.

“Did you think I was a bad person?” Eugene just asked sarcastically.

“What I mean is, you’re a much better person than I imagined when reading the fairy tale,” Mer explained.

Eugene just turned to look out the window without saying a word in response to that. Mer sat next to Eugene and resumed peeling the apples while humming a song.

“…Those apples sure are pitiful,” Eugene eventually muttered.

“Huh?” Mer grunted in confusion.

“I didn’t say anything,” Eugene denied it.

The apple peels were falling off in uneven shreds.

𝘳𝘦.𝒸𝑜𝘮