CH 27

Chapter 27 – I need your help

Translator: Yonnee

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After going through the portal, Ciel arrived at the Leopardt Duchy’s provincial mansion. And, without any delays, he headed straight to the detached manor, where his younger brother resided.

The sudden appearance of the household head swept the entire residence into a flurry. However, it soon subsided as the butler, who’s in charge of the provincial mansion, quickly went to meet Ciel.

“Your Grace, you’ve arrived? I apologize for not being able to greet you as I had not received prior notice regarding your arrival, sir.”

“Never mind. I came to see Aiden. You don’t have to follow me.”

“…I understand. If there’s anything you need, Your Grace, please call me.”

“Alright.”

As the provincial mansion’s butler stared at Ciel with perplexed eyes, it was reminiscent of the confused gaze that the capital mansion’s butler gave Ciel.

The household head, whose demeanor had changed so suddenly, certainly looked very unfamiliar to him.

The duke that the butler knew was the kind of man who wouldn’t answer someone else like this. It was the butler’s job to try and gauge his master’s thoughts.

And here, the butler could only wonder. Where did the master’s refined, aristocratic atmosphere go? The master in front of him right now was instead exuding such a violent atmosphere, enough that just one wrong word might cost him.

Such an atmosphere was perhaps common amongst low-grade mercenaries. The butler could not say anything back, and he simply withdrew quietly.

For a moment, Ciel squeezed his eyes shut, and he opened his eyes to a scenery that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

He was lightheaded. His body, which constantly screamed for a Guide, had already begun to show abnormal symptoms.

On some days, he would see illusory hallucinations. On other days, it would be auditory hallucinations. Even if he could not see any nightmares as he was abysmally devoid of any sleep, he could not escape the vivid image of his wife’s final moments, enough that it made him breathless.

He wished to forget, yet he could not forget. Each and every time he tried to do so, he would be filled with so much guilt, and this would cause his partial state—which he’d been trying to suppress all this time—to fluctuate even more violently.

Yet another hallucination was plaguing him, however, he soon snapped out of it due to the voice that called out to him. It sounded much younger than how he remembered it to be.

“Brother?”

Ciel slowly raised his heavy, spinning gaze.

Before his eyes now stood a thin boy who was about a head shorter than Ciel. Beneath the boy’s black hair was a small face that was exceedingly pale, and this was due to how seldomly he’d see the sun.

And with that, his pale face made his red eyes, like rubies, stand out.

Surprised by Ciel’s sudden visit, Aiden’s eyes grew wide.

In the past, Ciel would fleetingly think about how keen Aiden’s senses were, but would stop there. However now, Ciel could feel the energy that Aiden was emitting—it was the energy of a fellow Esper.

Aiden himself had yet to realize that he was one.

With Aiden standing right in front of him, Ciel smiled widely, showing his teeth. It was very nice to see his younger brother again. It had been almost ten years since Ciel last saw him.

“Aiden.”

As Ciel called him, Aiden’s already wide eyes grew even wider.

“…Huh?”

“I need your help.”

“…My help?”

In the past, Ciel had not been able to properly recognize his younger brother’s abilities. So, in the guise of a vacation, Aiden was sent to a faraway villa.

Even though it was still within the duchy’s grounds, Aiden stayed in that villa until the very end. He had sent letters to Ciel from time to time, but Ciel never gave any replies.

Some time after this, Ciel followed after Seo-yoon and crossed the dimensional borders, and he never had the chance to meet Aiden again.

This, too, was one of the many regrets Ciel had before he died.

This time, Ciel wanted to take more care of the younger brother he had neglected. Ciel would teach Aiden how to use his abilities to the point that he wouldn’t be swayed by Ciel himself. Additionally, Ciel would also help him grow into a healthy person, psychologically wise.

“Don’t lock yourself up in the detached manor anymore.”

As though embarrassed to hear Ciel’s words, Aiden lowered his eyes.

“Brother.”

“Aiden. Your mind is not ill.”

“……”

“You’re an Esper.”

The forthright proclamation made Aiden bite his lips.

Ciel took a step closer to his younger brother, then firmly grasped his shoulder.

Trying to push down on his ever-surging impatience, Ciel further said.

“There’s a place that needs your power.”

“But, Brother… Am I really an Esper? If I am, I don’t know how to use my abilities like you. But, really, how is it possible that I’m an Esper? If you’re only saying this because you don’t want me to continue staying in the detached manor…”

Ciel glanced down at Aiden as he trembled with fear. Soon, Ciel pulled his younger brother into a hug. Slowly patting him on the back, Ciel reflected on the past and recalled how Aiden was before.

They didn’t have a big age difference between them, but Ciel regretted sending his younger brother to a separate residence. Even if Aiden didn’t want to, Ciel should have dragged him out and taught him how to stand on his own feet.

No, in the first place, if he hadn’t regressed, Ciel wouldn’t have known that Aiden was an Esper. Even so, he should have made an effort to help Aiden get better.

During that time, Ciel felt as though all the burdens of the entire world were riding on just his shoulders alone. Weighed down by self-centered pity, he neglected all the people around him.

As a result, he had lost his wife in a past life he could not return to. And here, so obtuse as he was, he had neglected his younger brother and did not even make an effort to look into his condition properly.