24
Agenor grit his teeth and sprang up.
‘Whoops, water power.’
A stream of water passed over my shoulder at the same time I dodged.
Fortunately, it seemed he wasn’t accustomed to water power either, as a single stream of water was the limit of what he could create.
“Master! Ack, aah! I finished mopping everything, so what are you doing launching water at me…”
“You should have placed the mop appropriately.”
“Just what kind of ‘3-second foresight’ are you telling me to have? Ah, I’ll do it! I’ll do it!”
‘My goodness, I wondered why Master kept launching water streams during cleaning. It must have been to build this kind of agility.’
When I was receiving training, I had nothing but complaints, but now that it’s helpful, it feels somewhat strange.
When his water power didn’t work, Agenor lunged again.
Even his lunging speed was outstanding.
However, it took less than 3 seconds to reach out and pin my brother down once more.
Instead of teasing Agenor this time, I crouched down beside him.
“By any chance, have you ever tried dodging stones while running to avoid getting hit?”
“Th-there’s no way that would ever happen!”
“I have. That must be why you’re slow.”
Thwack! I flicked Agenor’s forehead again as he lay there.
“It hurts!”
I wonder if this is how Dad felt whenever he looked at me.
I turned toward Agenor with a pathetic face.
“I hit you so it would hurt. Did you think I hit you because you did a good job?”
“……!!”
Eventually, Agenor’s eyes welled with tears while he remained lying down.
Even a baby killer whale with psychopathic tendencies feels pain.
‘He doesn’t show any sign of jumping back up anymore.’
His spirit was finally broken. I stood up from my spot.
Agenor flinched but pushed himself up into a sitting position.
The two eyes directed at me were full of grievance and confusion.
“You, you, how old are you? What are you that you’re this strong?!”
Has this guy not even heard when his younger sister was born?
Or was he just not interested? Even the collateral kids from earlier had been chatting away kindly about it before they left.
He still muttered blankly as if his mind had gone somewhere else.
“This makes no sense……. You took some strange medicine, didn’t you?”
“Let’s speak the truth. Have you not considered that you are just weak?”
“…….”
Agenor made an expression of his pride being completely crushed, yet he did not rebel any further.
He was acknowledging the difference in strength and engraving the hierarchy into his body.
Even so, he kept stealing glances at me.
‘I think a conversation is possible at this point.’
I dusted off my skirt and crouched down next to Agenor.
Agenor winced just at me coming close, then looked at me with wary eyes.
‘Wow, look at those eyes. The will to challenge me again and pin me down at any moment is burning brightly.’
It seems he hasn’t been completely broken after all.
Of course. He wouldn’t be my brother if he were broken that easily.
“You lost today, didn’t you?”
Agenor stared at me stubbornly.
Then, with a huffy face, he quickly opened his mouth.
“Who says I lost?”
“Try calling me ‘Princess Sister’.”
“N-no way!”
I looked at Agenor with narrowed eyes and let out a secretive voice.
“Don’t you want to get stronger?”
Agenor, who was about to say something, faltered.
Then he stared at me intently. It was a look filled with interest.
“……Is there a way to get stronger?”
Clandestinely, a feeling of pity flickered like a sprout about to rear its head.
My three brothers and I were, in fact, in a state of abandonment.
Because our primary caregiver, our father, does not raise us.
Just looking at the couples of my eldest aunt or youngest aunt, they coddle their children so much.
Despite only having Dad now that Mom has passed away, we had to fend for ourselves.
In the end, Pierre’s immense talent surely played a part in these brothers growing to this extent.
To put it another way, it means they had to survive somehow with that talent alone.
‘I thought of a good idea while dealing with Agenor.’
I looked at my hands.
I had greater strength than I thought.
I never imagined I could become strong enough to knock down Agenor at this age.
This fact… could actually be credited to the Master who grew my strength fully.
I heard a small breath in front of me.
It was also the breath of someone who had made a decision.
“……H-how do you get that strong, Princess Sister?”
When I looked up, there was a face that looked exactly like mine.
In Agenor’s blue eyes, an eerily blue heat wavered.
‘So you killed your pride in the end?’
Greed, obsession. These are all instinctive emotions that I also possess.
“Those kids from earlier—don’t hit them and don’t kill them, even if you meet them again.”
Then Agenor kept his mouth shut with a dissatisfied expression.
Did I mention earlier that being bullied was this guy’s hobby?
“Don’t even think about secretly killing and burying them.”
If that was his hobby, then his specialty was burying people.
“What is this, you, you, how can you speak… speak to me… like you know m-me so well when we just met today for the first time?”
The baby killer whale, having learned the hierarchy through his body, became polite.
Of course, the fact that I raised my fist likely played a big role.
“It’s better not to kill. I’m telling you, you’ll get caught anyway. What do you take the killer whale adults for, Brother?”
“…….”
I recalled the rest of the story about Agenor’s school days that I heard from my subordinates.
“Lord Agenor received a major punishment after dealing with a classmate. But as it turned out, the classmates had first, um, insulted the Family Head’s mother… but at that time, that fact wasn’t taken seriously. It was when Lord Bayan held the succession rights. I remember that Agenor-nim acted out even more after that. That guy is a victim, so he trembles just at the sight of Agenor-nim.”
The major punishment Agenor supposedly received as a child.
‘I only realized while stopping him earlier that today was that day.’
Now that I think about it, it seems it was exactly this period.
‘It means I basically corrected the first moment this guy started going crooked, right?’
The reason Agenor was hated by everyone in the 3rd cycle was also due to this kind of behavior.
He intentionally makes people hate him, enjoys the attention to his heart’s content, and then uses that as a justified reason to kill and eliminate them.
‘Since I am stronger than this baby killer whale anyway, I should fix him up and use him.’
I rested my chin on my hand while still crouching.
“If there is a way to get stronger, will you follow my words in exchange for doing exactly that?”
“…….”
Agenor, who was staring at me, said quietly.
“I’ll decide after hearing it. Because your strength is truly at an unbelievable level.”
“I am quite amazing, after all.”
“…….”
“Instead, the moment I tell you, you must do whatever I say. And killing is forbidden until you beat me.”
“……N-no way!”
“Really? Then just live like this.”
I stood up and dusted off my skirt as if I had no lingering attachments.
“I’m going to go to Atlan next and tell him the same thing, though?”
Atlan. That was my second brother’s name.
The moment he heard that name, a fire ignited in Agenor’s blue eyes.
“N-no way! I’ll do it! I’ll do it, okay!”
“Good. Then it’s doing as I say?”
“…….”
I held out my hand toward Agenor.
Agenor frowned deeply and tried to get up while ignoring my hand.
Smiling, I lightly tapped the head of Agenor, who was just about to stand.
“My name is Calypso.”
“Cal-nip-so?”
“Calypso.”
“Calypso…….”
Agenor stared at me while brushing my hand away.
“I know Brother’s name. The third brother. Agenor. Right? Nice to meet you. I really wanted to see you at least once.”
“…….”
For a moment, Agenor’s expression became very subtly strange.
“……Until I beat you, really, I can’t kill anyone?”
“If you feel it’s unfair, challenge me again. If you beat me, you can do as you please then.”
At that, a bizarre interest dwelled in Agenor’s eyes.
‘Even in the previous cycles, that brother wasn’t a human who gave up easily just because he lost once.’
This was the same for all three brothers, but it was particularly severe for the youngest brother.
That look was at once murderous intent and a type of interest.
In fact, it would be the kind of thing that isn’t very pleasant for an ordinary person to receive.
‘But this body is different.’
Since I am stronger, it didn’t matter if that brother held a somewhat crooked interest.
“I don’t care even if Brother uses any means necessary to win.”
“Any means?”
“For example, a sudden raid at night, or lunging while I’m eating. Something like that?”
At my answer, Agenor’s face brightened instantly.
As if he had never been disappointed, the dark smile vanished and a twinkling light swirled.
“Good. No taking it back.”
……No, is it okay for a face harboring murderous intent while looking at a younger sister to be this pretty?
‘As expected, our baby killer whales are extraordinarily crazy.’
I took Agenor’s hand.
“Good, then I’ll tell you the way to get stronger.”
Because my hand was small, the only thing I caught was his finger, but this was fine as it was.
“First, there’s one requirement you must follow. As long as you follow this, you can actually do anything other than murder.”
I smirked, looking at the beautiful boy’s face filled with curiosity.
I didn’t forget to wave my fist in front of his face as if threatening him.
“It’s something you must follow.”
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
Chapter 25
‘He’ll be running here soon.’
Pierre sat by the fountain, looking toward the end of the road and thinking languidly.
Everything is a bother, and a bother again.
Pierre Aquasiadel’s daily life was regular and monotonous.
To put it another way, he rarely deviated from his set routine.
If there was one thing recently added to his routine, it was training Calypso, who had suddenly become his disciple.
He didn’t know why his daughter appeared claiming to be a disciple and rolled around under him again and again.
‘I’ll find out as I keep rolling her.’
Pierre was relatively relaxed.
He intended to slowly, as if peeling an eggshell, enjoy this interesting problem he felt for the first time in a while.
Yes, that was his intention, but…….
From the moment his daughter appeared, she didn’t stop at just defying expectations; she occasionally caused unexpected problems.
Just like now.
“Say hello, Master.”
Calypso smiled brightly.
Then, she cheerfully introduced Agenor, who was standing beside her, shrinking back and unable to straighten up.
“This is my older brother.”
“……And?”
Unless Pierre was a fool, there was no way he wouldn’t realize that the boy who appeared was a son who closely resembled his own childhood.
Pierre remained silent, and Agenor, who was watching, turned even paler.
“…….”
In this situation, how is this different from trying to cover the sun with one’s hand?
Meanwhile, Calypso admired Pierre inwardly as she watched him jerk his eyebrows up.
She felt like she could now see a bit of that father’s emotional expression.
‘That means he’s displeased.’
Whether that was the case or not, Calypso smiled and subtly observed him.
“Master.”
Calypso felt Pierre looking at Agenor, his third son, and brought out the line she had prepared.
With a very bright smile!
“By any chance, do you need a second disciple?”
* * *
The next day.
Even for the most powerful Killer Whale, it was a languid morning where drowsiness seemed to pour down.
A time when yawns kept coming despite knowing it would soon be lunchtime.
At times like this, one should listen more closely to that reciting voice.
It was such a peaceful day. Far from listening, it felt like my eyes were about to close.
‘I can’t do that, no.’
Now that Grandmother has returned, it was a time to show an even more exemplary side.
While maintaining a straight posture, I heard the sound of giggling from somewhere.
When I turned my head to see what the sound was, surprisingly, that guy Karon was giggling with other collateral Killer Whales.
‘What’s going on with him?’
He was a guy who had been living as quiet as a dead mouse ever since I gave him a piece of my mind.
To the point where I thought even plankton couldn’t be this devoid of presence.
And yet he’s grinning unpleasantly?
Moreover, although he flinched in total terror when our eyes met, it didn’t feel like his spirit was completely broken. I felt like something was up.
‘Did his spirit revive because I left him alone for the past few days?’
It would be troublesome if I left him like that and he went back to being a bully who goes around hitting the twins or other kids.
I had already made a promise to the Luga-Luba twins anyway; I brushed off my thoughts for a moment, vowing that I must set a date.
And so it became lunchtime.
“Princess!”
“Princess!!”
Today was a bit special as I received visits from others instead of lunching with the maids.
“We p-prepared lunch!”
“Eat together!”
“Okay.”
There was something I had asked the Luga-Luba twins yesterday, and besides, I decided to have lunch together today.
I had already told the maids in advance this morning.
“Princess looks like she’s in a good mood.”
“You do!”
“Does it look like that? Well, you wouldn’t be wrong.”
I waved my hand with a grin.
The twins stopped mid-smile while following my lead.
“Princess, does your arm hurt?”
“Did you get an ouchie?”
“Ah, this? It’s nothing.”
I quickly hid my bruised arm in my sleeve.
As for this…….
“Something incredible happened yesterday.”
“Something incredible?”
“Yes. A father-son reunion that nobody knows about, I should say…….”
Mmm. It was incredible. It was incredible.
I briefly recalled yesterday’s events.
“By any chance, do you need a second disciple?”
The look on Dad’s face when I brought this up.
A face that said, “What kind of nonsense is this?”
I dare say it was more vivid than any expression I had ever seen.
“I don’t need one. Get lost.”
It was natural that I was surprised by his firm words.
Actually, I was surprised by something else.
‘Wow, the way he says “get lost” and his tone are exactly like Agenor’s!’
I could tell even better because I heard “get lost” from both my brother and my father in one day.
Of course, the words “get lost” seemed to be directed at Agenor rather than me.
In any case, somehow I succeeded in getting even Agenor accepted as a disciple.
To be precise, rather than a disciple…….
“Master, do you know who he is? I beat him today. You said so, Master. If I fight, don’t get thrashed and make sure to land the hits.”
“……You won?”
“Yes, I won!”
As the subordinate once said, Pierre was a person who knew how to grant requests better than one might think.
This time was the same as the day he took me in as a disciple.
“But since I beat him, he became my subordinate, but I have nowhere to use him. Can’t he be here together?”
“…….”
Of course, rather than being a second disciple, he ended up being just a subordinate of the first disciple who tagged along.
‘Still, this is great, isn’t it?’
Of course, Agenor’s pride must have been crumpled a bit like the mat we’re sitting on right now.
But is that any of my business.
If he had recognized that I was his younger sister as soon as he saw me, I would have treated him better.
‘I’m not infinitely kind either.’
Surprisingly, Agenor did not express resentment at his situation or storm out.
This was actually quite unexpected.
If it were the second son, who is more like an underwater crater than a hot-tempered person, he certainly would have exploded here.
“What’s a f-father-son reunion?”
“She said father-son d-dun-union!”
“Oh really? Hyung, you’re a genius!”
“Hehe.”
“It’s neither of those.”
I woke up from my reminiscence and gazed at the twins.
Before I knew it, an adult with white hair like the twins appeared near them.
“I greet the Princess. I have heard much about how you helped the young lords of our family.”
“Nice to meet you.”
The old man, who identified himself as the butler of the Beluga family, spread out a magnificent lunch box in front of us with practiced skill and then withdrew so we could play among ourselves again.
“The butler came today.”
“That’s right. Dad will come tomorrow.”
“Really? You guys get along well.”
As expected, everyone except the Killer Whales gets along well.
I marveled as I looked at the delicious-looking lunch spread out.
‘No, can the three of us kids eat all of this?’
While marveling, I didn’t forget what I needed.
“Come to think of it, did you ask yesterday?”
“Yes, Princess!”
“Yes!”
Luga and Luba answered almost simultaneously, and without deciding who would go first, they rushed to the lunch bag and rummaged through it.
As I watched to see what they were doing, they soon brought two pieces of parchment and held them out side by side.
“Is this it?”
“Yes! What you asked about yesterday, Princess.”
“What you asked!”
Oh, so this is it.
I hurriedly grabbed one first, untied the string, and read the contents.
While I checked the contents of the remaining one, the Luga-Luba twins watched what I was doing while holding their breath quietly.
Finally, after checking everything, I smiled with satisfaction.
“It’s very good?”
“……!!!”
The twins’ eyes became twinkly as if starlight had fallen into them.
“Really?”
“Yes. I like it very much. Thank you.”
“Hyung begged Dad!”
“Hey, don’t say that!”
“Ouch, why did you hit me!”
“Don’t fight. Thank you both so much.”
I tucked the parchment I received from the twins preciously into my arms and stroked both Luga and Luba once.
Then, being children, they grinned as if they had never been squabbling, and we spent a harmonious lunchtime.
“Princess, Princess. Dad was curious why you were asking…….”
“Princess, he said you must come to our house to play!”
They are still frantic twins, but I’ve become accustomed to filtering what I hear.
“Really? Hmm…….”
At the words that flowed from the twins’ mouths as lunchtime was ending, I pondered for a moment and then readily nodded my head.
“Okay. I’ll think about it.”
Because the food tasted so good, I felt a bit sorry to refuse flatly.
The twins’ faces brightened up completely.
“Promise!”
“P-promise!”
“Yes, yes.”
The mealtime was very satisfying.
The meal brought by the twins’ family was so skillful and tasted as excellent as the ones made by the Herring sisters.
As I was eating heartily, Luga got excited and bragged, ‘Our dad prepares food while even thinking about nutrition!’
Hearing that, I felt even more that I had done well to ask these twins.
‘Maybe I really should visit their family once.’
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
