The final straw was a moment when Johan had lunged at the maid who’d caught me after I’d almost fallen in my room. When he’d grabbed a letter opener from the desk and pointed it at the maid, I’d almost started screaming. Of course, I’d stood in front of her with arms outstretched to block his path, so nothing had come of it. This was the point where his obsessive behavior had crossed a line.
I mean, she’s a maid. She’s a woman. And she was just trying to help! What kind of psychopath would attack her for that?
No more violence, no more yandere!
As I witnessed my brother showing early signs of abnormality, I thought to myself, We’ve got to do something about this boy, quick.
Returning to the present circumstances, I addressed Chris: “This isn’t really something I should trouble you with. But I doubt that our father would replace his teachers, even if I asked him.”
Chris hummed thoughtfully.
The king had few hopes for the second prince. I understood why he wouldn’t want to fuss over Johan when he already had a capable heir, but my younger brother deserved at least a little thought. Johan’s teachers, who only taught lesson plans that would personally please him, were negligent at best.
Mother’s just as bad, I thought. She ought to have selected his teachers a little more carefully.
“What he needs is someone that he can respect. Someone he will listen to,” I stated clearly. “As long as I’m the only person willing to tell him off, he’ll continue to retreat further from the rest of the world.”
And to be honest, I’d like to put the brakes on the whole siscon thing.
There was a beat of silence where Chris stood, arms folded, before speaking. “Truth be told, that has been worrying me too.”
I saw myself reflected in his eyes, which he had cast downward in deep thought.
“I don’t see him very often, but even in those brief moments I can see that he is overly dependent on you.” Chris let out a slight laugh, practically just a breath. “After all, every time you and I meet, Johan glares daggers at me from behind your back.” Judging from the sympathetic look in his eyes, I was certain Johan’s evil stare was replaying in his mind.
I felt guilty for being the cause of this friction between my brothers, and wanted to kneel down and beg for Chris’s forgiveness.
“Is he hostile with others too?” asked Chris.
“Yes,” I said, winding up to relay the full story. I gave Chris a rundown of the time he’d tried to attack the maid, and Chris furrowed his eyebrows in response.
“I can understand that he’s desperate and doesn’t want anyone to take away his precious sister, but attacking a maid goes beyond a child’s tantrum.”
Yep, I thought wryly, adopting a blank-eyed, long-distance stare. He’s come down with a case of yandere-itis. I had my hands full when he was diagnosed as just a siscon—there is no way I can handle him progressing into a yandere.
So much for my mental health I guess.
What more could I have done? I tried to stop him, but whenever I left him, he would just get worse! He keeps hounding me, asking if I am abandoning him. Any more and I’ll faint!
The moment when the color seemed to drain from Johan’s eyes and they turned glassy, I knew.
This game’s broken. I can’t handle this on my own.
“There’s nobody around to keep him in check,” I said to Chris, “so he’ll never get better, only worse. If only I were tolerant enough to lead him down the right path. I’m ashamed to say I’m a failure of a sister.” I’d fully expected Chris to chastise me, but I was stunned when he widened his eyes once again.
Holding a hand to his chin, he let out a short sigh. His expression was one of great surprise or shock. “I knew you were mature for your age, but maybe you’re a bit too brilliant.”
“Huh? Did you say something?” I asked, confused. I couldn’t quite make out what Chris had muttered under his breath, but he ignored my request for him to repeat himself. He put an end to my query and then continued speaking at a normal volume.
“Nothing. You’re doing a fine job,” he said earnestly. “You are most certainly not a failure, Rose. However much power and tolerance you possess, there are things that can’t be done alone. That’s exactly why you came to me, right?”
I gave Chris a strong nod in agreement, then straightened my posture.
Right, time to make it or break it. Let’s do this!
“If you’ll allow it, I’d like you to take a firm hand in raising our brother,” I said. “Please, make Johan into someone who will one day stand by your side.”
This was the whole reason I’d asked Chris and not my mother. The king would listen to Chris because he was the heir, and with Chris on my side, the prospect of changing teachers wouldn’t seem so bleak. Plus, I trusted my wise and self-disciplined older brother to find teachers that were perfect. With one request, Chris would solve multiple issues, like hitting two birds with one stone. In the best-case scenario, we might even nail bird number three—more frequent exposure to Chris might enable Johan to develop into an honest man.
“And you’re really all right with that?” Chris asked in a hushed voice after listening to my request. His implication was clear: Are you all right with not only replacing his teachers, but also sending him to work for me?
Once his education started in earnest, Johan and I would no longer have much time to spend together. His path in life would split from mine.
In Chris’s eyes, I probably seemed just as dependent on Johan, and he was worried that sending the youngest prince off on a journey would leave me alone and unable to cope. The concern was appreciated, but honestly, not needed. If Chris could get Johan standing on his own two feet, that would give me more space to work towards my own goals. I couldn’t ask for more than that.
I might find my little brother cute, but that’s irrelevant. I’m ready for him to become his own person.
“Of course—I’m fine with it,” I answered Chris at once. “However far apart we are, I will always be his sister.”
Johan, I’ll be watching over you from heav—well, from somewhere, anyway. Grow up to be a respectable man.
“I see,” Chris whispered, treating me to a rare, gentle smile.
I closed my eyes the instant I saw it. It was beautiful, radiant.
That angelic expression is too much for my impure eyes to bear.
Chris must have taken the suggestion to our father after our talk, because Johan’s layabout teachers were soon shown the door, and stricter, more professional teachers took their place.
Chris himself took a part in Johan’s education, and he didn’t cut the boy any slack. Not one bit.
I’m counting on you, little brother. Stick to the right path and grow up to be normal.