Chapter 46: Little Brother and the Mice

It had been two days since we departed the capital. We would have arrived faster if Emilia hadn’t been so particular about timing our breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the sky. We usually spent our time in the sky—eating, sleeping, bathing, or changing. The only reason we could do this was because of the wonders of magic.

Today was our third day, and since I could finally see my home, it was safe to say that we had arrived. I increased my speed and left Emilia behind, driven by my excitement to return home and meet my new little brother.

When I was almost above my home, I began to decelerate until I came to a stop. I then descended from the sky as if walking down a flight of stairs, each step creating bluish ripples in the air.

Upon arriving in front of our door, I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself.

Good, I think I’m ready.

I knocked on the door and heard a response. If you think the response came from a servant, you’re wrong. The voice that answered with a “yes” was my mother’s, judging by the pitch. As the door slowly opened, I automatically said, “I’m home.”

“Lumina! You’ve arrived!”

“Yes, I just finished my business in the capital, Mama.”

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“Is that so? Then come in quickly. I want you to see your little brother.”

Her words made me even more excited to meet him, so I quickly went inside our home.

“Nothing’s changed, huh? The paintings, the decorations, and the wallpapers. It feels like I never left home.”

“Then our hard work paid off.”

“Eh?”

“Actually, when you left, your father and I decided not to change anything in the house. We didn’t want you to feel alienated when you returned.”

My mother twirled her finger in the air as she explained.

“Really? Thank you very much, Mama.”

“As long as you’re happy.”

Just as we were about to turn towards the living room, someone started knocking on the door.

Oops...

I quickly turned around and walked to the door before my mother did.

“Lumina-sama… did you forget about me?”

The person knocking was Emilia. She was a petite girl around 165 cm tall with red twin tails that had black ends. She wore a red dress and held a parasol that wasn’t hers—it was actually mine. Additionally, a rope made of mana was visible on her wrist, leading to a floating platform made of mana that carried our luggage.

“N-no… I didn’t forget about you… o-okay?”

“Really? Then why did you close the door even though I was still in the sky?”

“Well, that is… umm…”

“Hmmm?”

Emilia gave me a smile, but after being together for five years, that smile made me deathly afraid. It meant she was really angry. The pressure she exuded prevented me from thinking of any lies.

“I’m sorry, I forgot about you. It’s because I was excited.”

In the end, I caved and apologized to Emilia. I only hung my head in shame and didn’t bow to her while I apologized, as my mother was nearby.

“Haa~ It’s okay, I understand that you were excited, so I forgive you this time. But please remember your promise to me, okay?”

“Guh—“

“Since you’re now a leader of a faction in the royal court, please stop being so forgetful. Okay?”

“Urk…”

“Okay?”

“I-I’ll do my best…”

Hearing my response, Emilia gave a small nod. I then instructed her to deliver my luggage to my room, which was the third door on the second floor of our home. After receiving my instructions, she gave me a deep bow and walked towards the stairs. I then approached my mother with a slight blush on my face.

“Fufu… It seems like your bad habit hasn’t been fixed.”

“Mama… you were aware of it?”

“Of course, I’m your mother. I know everything. Plus, when you were still a child, you never called the servants by their names, which meant you forgot who they were even though they introduced themselves to you.”

“Mou! Mama, let’s go to where my little brother is already!”

“Fufu…”

I pushed my mother towards the living room with an indignant face. I know that pushing others, especially my own mother, was bad behavior, but I couldn’t think of another way to hide my blushing face. So don’t judge me for doing something like that.

When we arrived in the living room, I noticed many unfamiliar toys. My mother giggled at my reaction and gently guided me towards a specific direction. I looked and found a boy with short blonde hair, cerulean eyes, and an outfit suitable for his age—four years old.

I became speechless as I observed him. He was playing with wooden blocks, smiling as he did so.

Hey there… I’m Lumina, your big sister…

As he continued to play, I imagined myself walking up to him and introducing myself. I didn’t want to scare him on our first meeting, so I kept planning how to introduce myself. Lost in thought, I unknowingly knitted my brows and pouted while staring at him.

Then, as I was still contemplating the best approach, my little brother turned his head towards me. In that instant, his face turned pale, tears formed in his eyes, and he quickly started crying.

This all happened within ten seconds.

Seeing him cry, my mother rushed to him and began rocking him in her arms.

“It’s okay, Mama’s here. There’s no need to cry…”

My mother repeated her comforting words as she rubbed his back.

Haa~ I should have expected this… I should have expected this!!!

My brother continued to cry for 30 minutes. Throughout those 30 minutes, my mother did her best to calm him. I wallowed in despair, feeling that even my little brother was crying because of me. Though my mother assured me it wasn’t because of me—saying that I had made third graders and some children in orphanages cry—I wasn’t convinced.

“I’m going to my room upstairs, Mama.”

“I see… then once he wakes up, I’ll explain who you are and introduce him properly.”

“…. Yes.”

With a heavy heart, I headed to my room and found Emilia sorting my clothes. Seeing her, I let out a heavy sigh.

“Haaa~”

“Let me guess… the moment your younger brother saw you, he started crying.”

“Haaa~”

I didn’t answer her and only sighed as I plopped onto my bed.

“Why do children start crying when they see my face? It’s not like I’m scary or anything. Objectively speaking, I’d say I’m cute…”

“What expression did you make when he saw you?”

“I’m not exactly sure… but since I was thinking really hard, I may have been pouting?”

“Pouting, huh…”

Emilia repeated my words as she continued to arrange my luggage. I then used ‘Null Element’ magic to create a mirror and made a pouting face.

“I think this face is kinda cute. Why did he cry?”

Emilia glanced at me for a moment and sighed.

“That’s only cute because you’re aware of it, Lumina-sama.”

“Huh?”

“When you pout, you knit your brows like this. Since you naturally have sharp eyes, it becomes more emphasized. Your mouth looks like this, and you wouldn’t puff your cheeks if you were thinking hard. It would look a little more like this.”

Emilia placed her fingers on the outer edges of her eyes and raised them while knitting her eyebrows into a deep frown. She exuded an aura that made her look unapproachable. Honestly, if I didn’t know Emilia, I would have done my best to avoid her.

“Why would I make a face like that?”

“Hmm… I think it’s because of the way you normally act in front of others.”

“The way I act in front of others, huh… Tell me, how do you see me whenever I’m with people I don’t know?”

“To put it simply… you act like a queen.”

“A queen?”

I sat on my bed, hugging a pillow as I pondered her words.

“Hmm… why do I act like a queen?”

“Didn’t you want others to respect you? I thought for sure that was the reason.”

“Hmm… I think that is part of the reason, but I don’t think it’s the exact reason… Hmm… I think you were a part of it, though.”

“Me?”

“Yes… though I can’t figure out why.”

We continued discussing this until Emilia finished sorting my clothes. I then stood up from my bed and told her to catch some mice. Since it was boring to just talk, I decided to start my research. The first thing I chose to investigate was body enhancement.

After about an hour of scouring and capturing mice using magic, we stopped when we had ten mice.

“Then let’s start with the experimentation!”

“Ummm… Lumina-sama… why do we need mice to research body enhancement magic?”

“To see if using this magic poses any danger to us. Since we’re using our bodies for this magic, any side effects would be apparent through the mice first.”

“I see… that seems plausible.”

Nodding to her, I created a box with magic and separated one mouse from the pack. I then began injecting mana into its body. At first, I injected a small amount, but since it didn’t show any changes, I decided to increase the dosage.

“U-ummm, Lumina-sama…”

“Look… the mouse’s muscles are starting to bulge.”

As

Emilia looked uneasy, I continued pouring mana into the mouse.

Then, suddenly, something completely unexpected happened.

The mouse literally exploded inside the transparent mana box.

““….””

Emilia and I were left speechless.

“Uwaaah!!! Mama, you liar! You said… that Lumina-oneechan… wasn’t scary! She just… just… made a mouse explode! Uwaaa!”

Hearing a new voice from the door, I quickly turned around and saw my mother. She was holding my little brother with a pale face and then closed the door as she left.

“Lumina-sama…”

“Yes?”

“I think your little brother will never approach you.”

“What a coincidence, Emilia… I think so too.”