Chapter 73

Translator: Cyrus

Is Michelie my weakness?

The obvious answer is no. The person I love most is my weakness? What a joke. That’s why I’m denying it outright. But I still have not the slightest intention to let Michelie and Endo see each other.

Michelie is my prized treasure, and the greatest treasure in the world. It’s no exaggeration to say that she’s my primary motivation to live, or that she’s the reason I can stay strong. She’s not someone whom the likes of the crown prince can lay their eyes on.

Also, it’s kind of pathetic, but I’m still afraid of fate. Charles and Leon no longer pose a problem, but a part of me is still afraid of hopping onto the rails of destiny by any chance. I suppose it’s a price I have to pay for knowing a part of the future.

And there’s the biggest and simplest reason of all. It’s extremely simple, yet it has the biggest factor for concern.

I don’t want an idiot like the crown prince to get together with Michelie.

But the unexpected encounter happened. I originally planned to send a message to Michelie after escorting Endo to my room, but we’re in the same manor. There are a number of ways things could go wrong.

I’m a genius. It’s exactly times like these when I have to settle the matter calmly. Yes. For example, I could solve everything by digging a hole in the courtyard and burying Endo in it. Yeah. I’ll do that. It’s my house. Even if there are witnesses, I could get rid of them easily. I can commit the perfect crime and get away with it.

Completely committed to my genius solution with my mind as serene as a polished mirror and still water, I bring up my fist, ready to knock out the prince.

“Hm?”

He opens his stupid mouth.

I tilt my head and forget about hitting his incomprehensible, stupid face.

What happened? I know he’s an idiot, but his reaction upon seeing my sister is very strange.

“H-hey, Christina Noir.”

He’s calling my name with a shaken voice while staring at Michelie. He’s planted right in the middle of the hallway, so she can’t just walk past him.

“What, you idiot prince. That stupid face suits you a lot, by the way. You should just use it by default-”

“There’s an angel here.”

“-eh?”

He said something decent for the first time since I met him.

I blink in surprise to his unimaginable iteration of the universal truth.

“Your Highness Endo. It can’t be.... you actually have good eyes?”

“What are you talking about? I have the most refined sense of aesthetics. More importantly, can you see that halo shining from behind her?”

“Of course I can.”

Why is he asking such an obvious question? I’ve constantly been bathing in Michelie’s light since I met her when I was three. Of course I can feel her radiance.

“It’s an overwhelming radiance that spreads in all directions and travels miles away. There’s no way I could miss it. Why do you think I love her so much?”

“Huh, I see. I thought your eyes were merely black holes, but it seems that’s not really the case. ....Hmph. It’s too bright even for a ruler such as I.”

If he didn’t insert his overly egotistical lines, I would have taken him for an imposter. That’s how shocking it is when he’s making such commonplace remarks.

“But you referred to her as big sister, didn’t you? So you’re her younger sister? I heard there was someone like you in the Noir family.... but you don’t resemble her at all.”

“Shut up, you’re annoying.”

It’s obvious since we’re not related by blood. Why is he saying something like that so recklessly?

Then again, he’s the only one to have seen Michelie’s halo. Charles often clashes with her, and Leon tends to avoid talking about her for some reason. Even Surfania said something ridiculous like “I can definitely see an indescribable chaos.” What does she take Michelie for?

While I’m busy thinking about what a certain shut-in so carelessly said, I feel my skirt getting pulled.

“Hey, big sister. Who is that?”

“Hm? Ah....”

Endo is beginning to whisper. He’s probably prepared to die standing. I nod gravely to Michelie as she timidly approaches me.

Now that it’s come to this, it’s no longer possible to conceal his existence from her. I decide to bury the idiot prince next time.

Also, it was Charles who was supposed to be here today, but it’s an obvious idiot who’s here instead. I can’t help it if she has doubts. Even I wasn’t fully convinced when I him.

“He’s our guest. He’s the older brother of Charles.”

“Guest? ............Charles’ older brother?”

“Y-yeah. I’m Charles’ brother, Endo Edward. I’m in line for the throne! S-so, yo- I mean.... w-who are you? Tell me your- kh! No.... could you.. tell me your name?”

It’s the first time I’m seeing him walk with full self-awareness. It’s kind of creepy. He’s moving awkwardly like a robot. Normally he acts all high and mighty, but now it looks like he doesn’t even know how to approach her. I’m having trouble keeping myself from laughing.

Look at him now.

He’s showing his pitiful side for once. It’s my only chance. I’ll plant a negative image of him now.

historical

“Don’t pay attention to his creepy behavior. This guy’s an idiot. Too bad he’s going to succeed the throne.... the future for this country is so dark. But it’s okay. I’ll protect the peace and security of the Noir family with my life.”

“Hey, Christina Noir.”

“And you shouldn’t get too close to him, lest his idiocy infect you too.”

“Hey. What the hell are you saying?”

What am I saying? Only the objective truth. Also, I am under no obligation whatsoever to be on his side. I thought it was enough to make Michelie dislike him, but her response is beyond my expectations.

“Hmm....”

Michelie, whose first reaction to Charles was one of enmity, has been observing our exchange, taking a peek at Prince Endo’s face, then shifting her gaze to me. She must have sensed something from our emotions.

“....Yup.”

Muttering slightly, she looks at Endo and squanders her angelic smile on him.

“I’m Michelie. Pleased to meet you, Prince Endo!”

“Y-yeah! Likewise!”

“Hold on, Michelie. You don’t have to be pleased to meet him, you know?!”

It’s a much more proper encounter compared to Charles. I can’t accept it.

But I can’t find a good reason to tear them apart right now. Michelie is smiling happily, and while Endo’s face is red with panic, he seems to have fallen for her smile.

Never mind. I should tear them apart.

I prepare to use some hard-handed tactics even if it means gouging out his eyes, but I stop myself.

I’ve seen this before, somewhere.

“Also, Charles is using a horrible excuse to come to our house. It would make me really happy if you could do something about that as his brother, Your Highness!”

“I see. I can’t ignore Christina Noir’s negative influence on Charles, and it’s unbecoming of royalty to pay unnecessary visits. Very well. It’s my duty as his brother to keep an eye out for him-”

I frown at the increasingly strange feeling from the trivial conversation.

The topic itself is simply gossip. Ignoring it is not a problem. But I get a sense of deja vu just from seeing them talking.

I wonder why, but this event is clearly different from my knowledge of my past life. In Labyrinth Destiny, the first time they meet is in the Royal Academy. There is no situation in which they meet at this age.

So I shouldn’t be feeling this same sense of deja vu as it was with Leon–

“–Oh, I see.”

I remember now.

Yeah, I see now. It’s not my past life, but it’s overlapping with something I saw long ago.

A scene of Michelie talking with a smile, and a boy with a red face, drawing her attention. I remember seeing that.

Yeah, that’s what it was.

I felt the same thing when I first saw Leon.

Leon seems to be avoiding Michelie for some reason now, but I was upset when he was all shy in front of her when we first met. I felt like crushing the insect trying to crawl his way towards Michelie. I see, this was similar to how I feel towards Endo right now.

As I come to terms with the situation and the strange feeling begins to dissipate, I suddenly come up with an impossible theory.

“....Impossible.”

“Big sister?”

“N-no, it’s nothing.”

I try to cover it up, and give Michelie a smile. Obviously, she’s sensitive enough to notice. She gives me another questioning look, but I can’t tell her about it.

“I was about to tell you how impossibly stupid Prince Endo really is. Combined with the stories Viscount Igusa told me, this could become a comedic masterpiece.”

“Do you have a grudge against me?!”

A lot of grudges, actually. Especially our unforgettable first meeting?”

“Gh.”

“First meeting? What was that like?”

“Ah. Of all people, this guy came to me and–”

“Anything but that! That’s the biggest blot of my life!”

I stick my tongue out at him, dodging Michelie’s sharp senses while desperately looking for evidence to disprove my theory.

This can’t be. Michelie’s angelic cuteness and beauty drew Leon to her, and her deadly attractiveness is drawing Prince Endo to her right now. That much is obvious. My sister is the cutest in the world.

Michelie is the charismatic and adorable heroine of this world.

She’s.. definitely.. the.. heroine.. of.. this.. world.. not because of her cuteness and charisma.

It’s because she’s the most charismatic girl in the world, that she’s drawn in both Leon and Prince Endo on their first meeting. It’s definitely not because of fate.

“Come on, Michelie. Let’s go to our room.”

“Yup! ....Are you coming too, Prince Endo?”

While urging Michelie forward, I keep looking for solid proof to deny my own theory.

It’s okay. There’s no way Michelie’s charisma is tied to the magnetism of fate. Otherwise, it makes no sense why I love her with every fiber of my being. Even if my response towards Michelie isn’t normal simply because I’m a “bug” born as a genius in this world, I have another solid reason to deny the existence of fate.

Because Charles was never attracted to Michelie.

My fiancé has been paying attention to me without the influence of fate. It’s precisely because of his passion toward me that I can bring myself to believe that fate does not exist. Michelie and I will grow without having to die young, get along with each other, and support each other through our lives.

“Alright. Since you’re our guest, we’ll bring you to.... hey, idiot prince. Step away from Michelie. Were you just about to touch her hair? If you dare lay a finger on her, I’ll slaughter you and bury you in the courtyard, you pervert.”

“....Prince Endo?”

“Huh?! T-t-that’s not how it is okay?! Why would I do that?! D-don’t call me a pervert! It’s just your imagination, Christina Noir!”

“Huh. ....Yeah. It’s just my imagination.”

Yeah.

It’s just my imagination.

“....Hm? You’re surprisingly honest. Stop it, it’s creepy.”

“Okay. I’ll take you to the courtyard later. After I bury you I’ll make a gravestone that says “Here lies a perverted prince.”

“You’re really scary.”

“Prince Edward, big sister is always honest. She’s always dazzling, too. That’s why she’s cool, and I love her!”

“I love you too. You’re always so radiant and honest and adorable!”

Holding my beloved sister’s hand and thinking about my fiancé with hope, I catch a flash of fate’s silhouette, even though it’s supposed to be far away.

(Fate) “I don’t see a way in for my debut so I’ll try calling.” *beep boop bup*

THE NUMBER YOU ARE TRYING TO REACH IS NOT AV-

(Fate) “........”

－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－

Author’s note: This marks the end of the Age 11 arc.