Ch.27The Third Ball (2)

A few days later.

Kirsy kept thinking about that book whenever she spent time alone in a daze.

Her body squirmed. Her chest felt ticklish, and sometimes even suffocating.

Her curiosity was relentless, with one thought leading to another.

Since she could hug him again, those feelings had only grown stronger.

Even while kissing his cheek, her eyes followed his lips.

She had imagined kissing Caden hundreds of times.

What would he say if he knew about these thoughts?

Would he despise her?

Would he call her disgusting?

Either way, he would probably be very shocked.

She knew she shouldn’t reveal these feelings even to Asena. She had to keep them to herself. Instinctively, she knew this was something she shouldn’t do with her brother Caden yet.

…But. That didn’t mean she didn’t want to do it.

Rather, she was ready to do it at the first opportunity.

If only Caden would agree. If he would just give permission.

Without Asena knowing, she was confident she could slip her tongue into his mouth without even taking a breath.

She thought there might even be a thrill in doing something forbidden.

Kirsy didn’t know this side of herself existed within her. She agonized over whether she had always been such a bad person.

Something she shouldn’t do, but wanted to.

That gap tormented her.

“Kirsy!!”

Someone shook her shoulder to wake her up.

“…Huh?”

It was her friend, Mary Bones.

“Kirsy, why are you so out of it?”

“…Oh, sorry. What did you say?”

“Get up. We need to change classrooms.”

Kirsy looked around. The classroom was in disarray. Mainly the young ladies were getting up from their seats. Looking to the side, she saw Asena doing the same.

“…Where are we going?”

Kirsy asked.

“The professor already told us…! Today is sex education. The girls just need to move to the next classroom.”

“…Huh?”

.

.

.

.

The professor delivered her lecture passionately.

“…Now, young ladies, you understand the importance of premarital chastity, don’t you?”

Kirsy’s face burned hot.

This was the first time she had heard such detailed information about the process of making babies.

“In the end, the moment you engage in relations, no matter how careful you are, there’s always a possibility of conceiving a child. And once a child is conceived, there’s no turning back.”

As the classroom fell silent like a mouse had died, the professor continued.

“Some of you may find today’s lecture shocking. You probably didn’t know this is how babies are made. That’s natural. It’s something you shouldn’t be curious about. The consequences can be too overwhelming for youthful curiosity. But now you’re adults. It’s important to have proper knowledge about sex.”

Only the professor’s clear, refreshing voice echoed through the room.

“So don’t forget today’s lesson. Yes, you.”

The professor pointed to a student who was raising her hand to ask a question.

The student, having received permission, asked:

“…Professor, as you said, this is too shocking… I’m scared that it hurts the first time. To have a baby… do we really have to engage in such… disgusting and barbaric acts? Is there no other way?”

“No. This is the only way.”

“…I thought a fairy would bring a baby if I slept holding hands with someone I love…”

Some burst into laughter, while others nodded their heads.

The professor smiled and said:

“…Ladies. Some of you are mistaken. I understand you may feel repulsed after seeing such explicit images and pictures, but in reality, this act brings tremendous happiness.”

“What?”

The questioning student expressed her doubt.

“Among all acts of affection you can share with someone you love, none compares to this intimate act. Someday… you’ll understand what I mean.”

Kirsy swallowed hard once more.

****

“I was so shocked, sister.”

Kirsy was still holding her flushed cheeks.

Asena, wearing her black Student Council uniform, listened with a stern face.

Unlike Kirsy, Asena didn’t seem any different from usual. She just continued studying quietly.

Finding this strange, Kirsy asked:

“…Did you already know about this?”

Asena looked at Kirsy briefly, then nodded. She seemed indifferent.

“Wow… you knew about it?”

“…..”

Kirsy couldn’t tell if this was due to a difference in study habits or interests.

“…I wonder if brother knows too.”

At that moment, Asena slammed her book shut.

Kirsy, who had been mumbling to herself, looked up at her sister in surprise.

Asena said:

“…Why are you bringing up brother here?”

“…Huh??”

Kirsy was visibly flustered. It felt like she had been caught vaguely thinking about Caden.

“…Kirsy. Don’t have strange thoughts. It’s disgusting.”

“…No… I…”

As Kirsy hesitated, Asena couldn’t let it go.

“Do you have something to say?”

“Well… I mean… is it disgusting?”

Asena sighed deeply. She had somewhat expected this, but it gave her a headache. The other women at the Academy were already enough to deal with, and now Kirsy was acting like this…

“Get a grip. Didn’t you hear it’s something done between spouses or lovers?”

She lashed out with harsh words to suppress Kirsy. Even if it was Kirsy, Asena couldn’t stand by and watch her desire Caden. He belonged to her, the head of the family.

“……”

Kirsy tilted her head and then tapped her chest.

“….?”

“Why does it feel tight here again…”

“What?”

“…Nothing. But then, brother won’t ever experience that act.”

“What are you talking about?”

“…? Because brother won’t get married.”

Asena silently waited for Kirsy to continue.

“He said it before. That he’ll stay by our side forever. That he’ll always love us the most. How could he leave me behind and go somewhere else?”

Asena stared at Kirsy for a long time, then opened her book again without saying anything.

****

“Brother. You look amazing.”

Eric Endra, the protagonist of the novel I was possessing, gave me a thumbs up in praise.

We had become quite close.

He didn’t have any rough edges, so it wasn’t difficult to get along with him.

I also had no intention of taking advantage of that, so Eric opened up to me as well.

I was wearing a tailcoat and examining myself. The quality clearly showed the family’s status.

It fit my body perfectly, and the finishing was excellent. The material and the family crest embroidered on the shoulder were all high-class.

It’s not fair to compare, but… there was quite a difference from Eric’s tailcoat, who was a minor noble from the frontier.

I also complimented Eric, who was dressed up for the ball.

“You look good too, Eric. All ready?”

“Of course.”

“Eric, I think I’ll head out a bit later. Given my family’s status, it’s burdensome to show up from the beginning.”

“I thought so. Well, I’ll go ahead then.”

I sat on the sofa and waved to him.

-Thud.

After he left, I pondered for a moment, then stood in front of the mirror.

Since it’s come to this, I might as well style my hair up before going.

****

At the appointed time, as promised, they gathered in front of my garden.

I had offered to go to the twins’ dormitory, but they adamantly refused.

It’s a bit strange. The feeling is somehow unsettling.

It’s like I’m experiencing the same feeling as during the jousting tournament. Back then, Asena tried to prevent me from entering the competition.

As if she didn’t want me to appear in front of others.

Today was the same. Their goal was to quietly attend the social ball and quietly leave.

I understood Asena’s explanation that followed… but right after, when they told me not to stray from them, another question mark appeared in my head.

…If it were any other time, I wouldn’t mind.

If it were like before, I would have just thought they wanted to spend time together.

But after various incidents.

After suspecting that the twins might hate me, these actions only make me uncomfortable.

I don’t know how to interpret this.

It almost seemed like the goal of this ball was to hide me.

I wondered if they saw me as a blemish on the family.

Considering they were planning to expel me from the family later, it didn’t seem entirely implausible.

Were they ashamed of me?

They seemed to like me as a person, but when it came to the family, they seemed embarrassed. Like immature elementary school children who are embarrassed by their aging mother.

So they only speak ill of me in front of others.

If that’s true… it would hurt a bit.

Because apart from my birth, I’ve tried to live in a way that wouldn’t be embarrassing.

Honestly, even if everyone else pointed fingers at me, my sincere wish was that the twins wouldn’t be ashamed of me. Especially since they’ve witnessed my efforts up close.

With the belief that they would love me, I endured.

First, Asena’s expulsion and gossip.

Second, Kirsy’s gossip.

…There wouldn’t be any more.

I had asked. Please love me.

It was implicitly loaded with all meanings.

This suspicion of mine must be a misunderstanding.

“…Brother.”

Kirsy’s unusually cautious, calm voice called out to me.

As I straightened up from examining the flowers and turned around, the twins were waiting for me.

“….”

They were my sisters, but.

I could only say they were truly beautiful.

Asena wore a modest black dress.

Kirsy wore a gray dress similar to her silver hair.

With accessories and makeup they didn’t usually wear, they shone brilliantly.

Asena’s prickly yet seductive beauty was captivating enough to steal the heart of any man who looked at her, but to me, she was just adorable.

Kirsy exuded a refreshing charm like fruit.

I blinked, momentarily at a loss for words.

I still couldn’t find the right words to describe them.

“…..”

The twins also remained silent, looking at me.

Finding the situation amusing, I smiled slightly.

Then, I squeezed out a compliment from my stiff lips.

“….I’m surprised. My sisters are so beautiful.”

“…..”

They still just looked at me without saying anything.

As the silence grew awkwardly long, I called out to them with an embarrassed smile.

“…Asena?…Kirsy?”

Only then did they blink their eyes and move as if ice was breaking.

“Oh… Brother… you look handsome too.”

Kirsy slowly approached me and firmly linked her arm with my left arm. Then, she just looked down at the ground.

Asena also approached slowly and reached out her hand toward my head.

Since I had already styled it, I defensively blocked her hand.

“Hey. I’ve already fixed it. Don’t touch.”

“…Can’t you wear your hair down, brother?”

Asena, dissatisfied about something again, said to me.

“…Why now.”

“…If you look like this, you’ll stand out too much.”

“…So what. Just because we don’t want to stand out doesn’t mean we won’t. When else would I dress up if not now?”

“…..”

I put my arm around Asena’s shoulder.

She drew in a sharp breath, then weakly followed my lead.

“Come on, let’s go. We should attend a ball at least once.”