Previously
Birdie remains deeply suspicious of Thiel, doubting her identity and her legendary Power of Light, which is said to break the hereditary Curse of the Demon Orpheo. When Prince Ianthros arrives, Birdie and Lodian attempt to block the meeting out of overprotectiveness and distrust of the Prince's motives.
Birdie froze for an instant at Thiel’s touch.
Turning his head, Birdie looked down at his little sister, who was holding tightly to his hand.
Still holding his hand, Thiel went on hesitantly.
It was strange. Why was this happening?
Just a short while ago, I thought Thiel was an utter nuisance.
Yet the odd thing was, I didn't feel like refusing this request.
Lodian cried out with a disgruntled pout. After a moment’s thought, Thiel reached out and took his hand as well.
Yes, this was entirely to keep an eye on Thiel.
Birdie spoke smoothly, gently peeling Lodian’s sleeve out of Thiel’s grasp.
Lodian glared at Birdie as if ready to throw down right there, but he ultimately gave a defeated nod. Birdie wasn't wrong, after all.
Taking Thiel’s tiny hand, Birdie helped her up as though Ian weren't standing right before them.
Thiel’s face lit up the moment she had his permission. Smiling, she nodded.
"…"
Ian gave Birdie an indignant look.
Birdie paid him no mind, straightening Thiel’s dress before turning to the maid.
Lodian grumbled under his breath, giving a shrug. A sheet of yellow parchment fluttered down under his careless touch.
The page was completely bare of ink, yet Lodian had no intention of writing a single thing.
Birdie and Lodian were twins.
Because of that, each knew the other better than anyone else.
No matter how well Birdie hid his emotions, he could never slip past Lodian's eyes.
Lodian scoffed under his breath, recalling the first time they had heard the news.
‘…Who came back?’
The letter from Asterian had said that their youngest sister, whom everyone assumed had died alongside Lena, was actually alive and staying at the Asterian estate, urging them to hurry home.
Yet Lena wasn't mentioned anywhere in the letter.
Their mother had passed away seven years ago. Even with the miracle of their sister returning alive, that fact remained unchanged.
They had been told Lena died giving birth to Thiel. Even so,
they didn't harbor any hatred toward her.
‘She didn't do anything wrong.’
She was their one and only little sister, someone endlessly precious.
The moment Lodian and Birdie heard the news, they immediately boarded the carriage bound for Asterian.
All they talked about the entire ride was their little sister. Lodian had asked eagerly,
How cute. Birdie's cheeks had flushed as he spoke.
The longing and eager anticipation in his voice had been unmistakable.
Lodian and Birdie had returned to the Asterian estate with hearts fluttering, thrilled to finally meet their only sister. But.
‘Hello.’
He had been so strange.
Why was he acting like that?
The eager look in Birdie's eyes had turned stone cold the instant he laid eyes on Thiel.
Though he quickly brought back his usual smile, he couldn't fool Lodian.
Lodian had watched Birdie in utter bewilderment.
‘Was he disappointed?’
Was it because Thiel was a hybrid with Snow Leopard fur and Black Panther eyes? Birdie was dense enough to fixate on details like that, so it wasn't out of the question.
Yet Thiel was so adorably small that things like that hardly mattered, so Lodian stopped paying Birdie any mind.
It was more accurate to say he simply lost interest in him.
Because all of Lodian’s attention was completely fixed on Thiel.
She looked so tiny and cute, and on top of that, she had manifested the Power of Light…
Ever since Lodian heard from Cassius that Thiel had awakened the Power of Light, he had wanted to get close to her as quickly as possible.
All that occupied his mind was the urge to touch Thiel’s soft cheeks. But…
By Cassius’s strict orders, Lodian was forbidden from speaking to Thiel.
Not just speaking—even seeing her was off-limits.
Lodian put up a fuss, but he couldn't bring himself to defy Cassius’s direct command.
And so, Lodian resorted to watching Thiel in secret.
He fully intended to tell her the next time they spoke that he was her older brother.
Using my abilities, I climbed up to the second floor to peek into her room through the window.
Of course, I got scolded every time I was caught, but that hardly mattered.
Thiel was genuinely so small and cute. It was completely worth the lecture!
Yet there was something truly baffling.
Birdie had clearly looked disappointed upon seeing Thiel, yet he kept dogging Lodian’s footsteps.
We peeked into her room together, and we also spied on her from behind the rose bushes.
Lodian knew Birdie inside out. Birdie didn't seem to like Thiel.
So why on earth was he tagging along?
‘Is he worried about losing his place as head of the family?’
Either way, the title of Asterian’s patriarch had nothing to do with Lodian.
The heir to Asterian was Birdie, the eldest son.
The seat of the head belonged to Birdie. Everyone had long taken that for granted.
Yet, when word spread that their newly returned little sister possessed the legendary Power of Light…
There was a strong chance Birdie’s standing as family head would be threatened.
The Power of Light was an immense force, after all. Grandfather might just decide to pass the seat down to Thiel instead.
Was that why he disliked her?
Lodian whispered with a mocking snort, waving his hand as if shooing him out of the way.
Blinking at the sight, Birdie muttered softly under his breath.
Lodian’s eyes narrowed at the unexpected answer.
A nuisance?
He thought Birdie would say he was afraid of losing his position as head of the house, or terrified that everything he had worked for until now would come to nothing.
Birdie kept talking, oblivious to what Lodian had been assuming.
Lodian’s face went rigid. In that instant, an old memory flashed through his mind.
The day Birdie received a precious sword as a birthday gift, he had locked it away in his room simply because he was irritated and terrified that the jeweled ornament on it might shatter.
Yet he never showed any actual hatred toward the sword, leaving Lodian wondering why he had acted that way.
‘This situation… it’s the exact same as back then.’
Perhaps because he was born the eldest son of Asterian, he was a perfectionist with a habit of burying his feelings.
Being unable to express his fondness or affection was part of that exact habit.
So it wasn't that Birdie disliked Thiel—it was that she was so unbearably cute, it unsettled him.
His behavior in front of Ianthros today proved it beyond a shadow of a doubt.
What an idiot.
Just admit she’s cute. That you just don't know how to handle such a tiny, adorable girl. That was all he had to say.
To think he didn't know how to express it, so he called her a nuisance.
Lodian let out a weary sigh as he dipped his quill into the ink.