My Brothers Are Not Villains

Chapter 3

I lay back down on the bed.

I wanted to send Maiches out of the room and think about the topic “Could we live quietly and happily on the outskirts of a novel?” But…

Maiches was the kind of person who didn’t waste a single second during the time I was awake.

Sending him away, when he was so determined to stick to my side, was harder than if I had suddenly jumped up and sprinted 100 meters.

“Maiches, you know…”

“Hmm? What is it?”

I simply mumbled “Never mind” to Maiches, who was grinning at me like a fool.

I just couldn’t bring myself to push him away.

I knew that because of me, who could wake up at any moment, he always pushed himself to finish his work quickly, just so he could make time for me.

In the end, as usual, we settled into our places: me on the bed, and Maiches in the chair beside it.

I held Maiches’ hand tightly. It probably wasn’t even strong enough for him to notice, but he seemed to sense the faint change.

“What’s wrong?”

Without saying anything, I gripped Maiches’ still young and delicate hand even tighter. My own hand was trembling slightly.

His voice asking “Why?” echoed in my mind like an afterimage.

Yeah, why? Why…?

Why do I feel so pathetic?

Why does that moment when I closed my eyes on the asphalt keep coming to mind?

“…Anyway.”

Anyway, we’re going to die. I had thought that ever since I was born as Aiel.

But in the midst of actually dying, I thought to myself, “If I was going to die like this anyway…”

At that time, my mind was such a tangled mess that I couldn’t even look at it properly.

But after coming back to life in Aiel’s body, I sometimes thought about it.

If I was going to die like this anyway…

When my cousin was bad-mouthing my parents, I should have shouted, “Hey! Do you know what kind of people my parents were? You’re the one with the problem!”

When the closet was still cold, instead of crying, I should have studied again and brought my aunt’s family down a peg.

Instead of laughing at that annoying nephew, I should have become the gloomy nephew who, if abandoned, would truly become a curse.

Instead of expecting anything from people who wouldn’t love me, I should have just lived my own life.

It was all filled with “I should have done this, I should have said that, I should have been like this.” Just regret.

“Anyway?”

“…Maiches.”

“Yes, Aiel. I’m listening.”

I looked into Maiches’ eyes.

Honestly, to me, Maiches was just a pitiful child with the same scars as mine.

He was so desperate for someone to rely on that he had to lean on a younger sibling who couldn’t even speak or walk properly.

I ignored Maiches’ bright, sparkling eyes, even though I was the closest to him.

I didn’t recognize him, even though he was right in front of me, trying so hard on his own.

“Maiches.”

“Hmm? Aiel, is something wrong?”

What do you mean, something wrong? You spent all your time with me while I was awake, and whatever I went through, you went through it too.

For some reason, my throat tightened.

I may not know much, but Maiches must be a very busy and burdened person. No matter how smart he is, being the new head of the Ruedeliz family at only thirteen must be overwhelming.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that everyone around him is an enemy.

And yet, whenever I opened my eyes, he would drop everything and run to this room.

Only now do I truly see all the love he showered on me during that time.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Maiches, startled, grabbed the soft cloth by the bedside and wiped away the tears that had fallen from my eyes.

Panicked, he placed his hand on my forehead to check for a fever and asked, “Are you in pain? Where does it hurt? Do you feel unwell?”

The tears kept flowing.

Maiches, flustered, called for someone.

Then, he gently whispered to me, apologizing that he hadn’t considered how walking today for the first time might have strained my body and caused my tears.

The actions that had once felt burdensome, the affection he had shown to his younger sibling… now they felt warm and I was grateful for them.

I felt sorry for the days when I had stood back, watching his efforts with a pessimistic attitude.

“Maiches…”

“Yes, I’m here. Tell me. I’m listening. Are you in a lot of pain? I’m sorry.”

I wanted to say, “I’m not in pain.”

But my weak body, after shedding just a few tears and feeling my face flush with heat, couldn’t even handle that and truly began to ache.

I opened my eyes again. Through the blurred vision, I saw Maiches’ silhouette, faint but visible. As the tears fell, his face became clearer.

As expected, it was a warm face, filled with worry.

I spoke, forcing out my words, trying not to succumb to the pain, with all my strength.

“I will…”

“Yes, Aiel?”

“I will protect you, Maiches.”

I’ll try to change the original story.

Even if we ultimately can’t escape that fate, let’s live a happy life so that we won’t have any regrets before we die.

“…….”

“I’ll protect you, brother.”

Because we are family.

I don’t know what expression Maiches had after that.

Because, as usual, I fainted again, drifting into unconsciousness.

Two years have passed since then.

A lot has happened during that time.

First, I started properly calling Maiches “brother.”

Of course, it was hard at first. After all, I had the self-awareness of my past life, where I had lived for 19 years.

Calling a fifteen-year-old kid “brother” either hurt my pride or made me feel uncomfortable—one way or another, it was unsettling.

But now, I consistently called him brother. I had accepted that this was the world I lived in now, and I had decided to embrace my new life as Aiel Ruedeliz.

Moreover…

“Aiel… why don’t you call me brother?”

Every time I coldly called him “Maiches” without any warmth, he would press his lips together tightly and look at me with eyes that seemed on the verge of tears.

After calling him “brother” once, he started behaving like that every time.

Honestly, calling Maiches “brother” wasn’t all that difficult.

It made me feel better to think of Maiches’ middle name as “brother.”

Anyway, this wasn’t the most important thing.

Second, my health miraculously improved.

If I used to barely open my eyes once a month, now I only fainted once a month.

I guess when a genius wizard is determined, things really do change.

A few months ago, I even managed to walk from my room to Maiches’ study (which had been moved right next to my room) without any help from Maiches or the maids.

Maids and servants applauded from all directions.

The butler and the head maid nearly collapsed to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

It’s a good thing the flash didn’t go off; otherwise, I might have mistaken the hallway for a red carpet…

That day, Maiches was so overjoyed that he gave the mansion staff bonuses that exceeded their monthly salaries.

Afterward, I continued my walking exercises amidst the enthusiastic support of the Rudeliz mansion staff, and I eventually regained enough health to walk briskly for about three seconds.

But even this wasn’t the most important thing right now.

Third, and this was the most important matter:

Maiches Ruedeliz, now fifteen years old—my brother—was objectively an extremely handsome young man.

Subjectively, Maiches was just a bit of a goofball to me, so I never really thought about how good-looking he was.

When I first met Maiches, dragged by my parents, I briefly thought, “Wow, this is a strangely beautiful boy. Oh, could this be that Maiches? Wow, it really is…” and then I forgot about it.

But just a little while ago, while desperately walking down the hallway, I overheard the maids excitedly praising Maiches’ looks.

My heart dropped, and I felt the need to immediately verify whether their words were just the exaggerated opinions of smitten maids or the objective truth.

“Brother.”

I still didn’t have the strength to knock.

I leaned my weight against the doorknob and managed to open the study door with a push, entering abruptly.