The fiery red eyes bore into mine. I could almost feel the heat from it in this cold autumn. Blonde hair and a similar height with mine. His arms crossed together and his head held up high. It's been quite a while since this brat had been glaring at me.
"Why are you here?" the teen male snarled.
"Duh, I'm his personal knight. Of course I'm here," I shrugged.
"He doesn't need one. Brother is strong enough."
"That was what I had thought so, too. Ask your precious brother. He's the one who requested it," I replied.
The other member of Leonhart family, Jeremy Leonhart, is currently on his semester break. I've bumped into him a few times after his return but he simply rolled his eyes at me every single time. Now, he's here at Lucius's office, too. Does he has a grudge on me or what? Brat. He's even rude with me when I escorted him back from the academy. And it's just me. He's a proper young master with everyone else.
"Why have you come, Jeremy?" Lucius asked.
"Ah, I just wanted to greet you, brother," Jeremy replied, bowing courteously.
*Heh, what a sucker,* I thought.
"What are you looking at?" Jeremy glared at me again. The gentle look in his eyes vanished almost instantly.
"I'm looking at the door. Got a problem?"
Jeremy clenched his fist tightly. Seems like he's trying so hard to keep his cool in front of his brother while his eyes were literally throwing daggers at me. Seriously, what's his problem? Is it because I'm close with Lucius now? Brother-complex kicking in? To prove my theory, I came up with an idea.
"Gosh, my Lord!" I exclaimed, scooting over towards Lucius and taking his right wrist. "You wore the bracelet that I gave you before! I am honoured to have the same one as that!"
My assumption was proven to be correct when Jeremy actually flinched from my poor act. His scowl grew even more apparent, as if he was about to transform into something entirely different. Lucius on the other hand didn't utter a single word and let his hand dangle in mine. Maybe he already noticed my intention?
I mouthed 'Jealous?' at Jeremy to get more reaction out of him.
"Why- ..this knight is so childish, brother. Such a person would be an inconvenience towards you," Jeremy said, still trying very hard to remain calm.
That's when I realised that teasing Jeremy is very fun. He reminds me of my baby brother in the other life. Bratty and sassy, but I don't hate them. Children should act like children and that's totally fine. While Jeremy was listing out more reasons as to why I would be a burden towards his brother, Lucius didn't mind much and continued to flip the document with his free hand. Only when I released his right hand did he pulled away.
"Oh my, maybe your brother likes me much more that you think?" I said to Jeremy, a smirk tugging on my lips.
"You—"
"What? What about me, hm? Adding more to your list?" I taunted him more.
"Catherine, stop that," Lucius interfered.
I shifted my gaze away from Jeremy with a satisfactory smile. I teased him enough for him to break his charade of composure. Jeremy, who had been under the care of Lucius since he was 10, had been trying so hard to impress his brother. Lucius is the only family member left for him. The father figure, the brother and his idol. He wanted to make him proud and always does his best in everything. I recently heard that he had placed first on the latest exam at the academy. When I escorted him back before, I tried to start a small talk and praised him about it but got told off, instead. Only god knows how pissed I was back then but I guess we're even now.
*I'm sure he would be happy to hear it from Lucius himself. Oh, well. Since I'm a kind-hearted and forgiving person, I'll grant him one special congratulatory wish,* I thought before shifting closer towards Lucius.
"Your little brother scored some good grades for this semester. You should say something," I whispered.
After a moment of silence, Lucius set down the documents in his hands and looked up. "…Congratulations on your recent achievement, Jeremy. You did great," he said. But I feel like it sounded a bit scripted. He should really practice his tone.
Jeremy's gaze that was previously blazing with fury changed drastically after hearing that. The sparkles in his now cleared eyes were so obvious that I almost burst out laughing. At the end of the day, he's just a child at heart, craving for praises. I can't help but felt a bit smug, knowing the good deed I've done.
"It was nothing, brother…but thank you," Jeremy replied in a rather composed manner.
I'm sure he was feeling ecstatic at the time. Getting praised by the person you looked up to surely felt different. Jeremy lost his parents since he was young. Hence, he could only rely on Lucius physically and emotionally. Back in the previous world, mother would always cut me some fruits whenever I brought back any good news. Should I cut some fruits for him, then? Apples maybe?
"Brother, could we possibly have lunch together?" Jeremy asked hesitantly.
"Yeah, you should go and catch up," I added. "Then, I can have my lunch with Louie~"
After saying that, I nudged Lucius' side and urged him to went along with the request. I even called the Santa Butler to sort out the documents while he was out. It'll be easier for him to work with it later. It didn't take much persuasion for him to agree. Perhaps he had already considered the idea prior to Jeremy's request.
"Alright, let us go to the dining room, then," Lucius nodded. This time, the sparkles in Jeremy's eyes were amplified. He sure is an easy kid, that one. Once Lucius put his outer coat on, they both walked out of the room and down the hallway.
After the two siblings disappeared from my sight, I took an opposite turn towards the manor's pharmacy in search for Louie. I hope that the two brothers will have a good catching-up session together while I spend my time with my own lovely baby brother.
"Louie! Sister's here!" I exclaimed, pushing open a white wooden door. The smell of medicine immediately rushed into my nostrils.
The room was quite big and had fitted a lot of items in there. A few cauldrons with different sizes, shelves with multiple glass apparatus and ingredients, be it magical or not. A golden framed window at the end of the room, wide enough to see a scenery of a whole mountain. Half of it was left open to let out the smoke from the largest cauldron at the centre of the place. A clear liquid with a bluish colour was seen in there while Elder Samuel was busy stirring it and adding a few more ingredients from the table right next to him. All of it were properly arranged. At the far corner of the room, I got a peek of Louie who was diligently separating the herbs. He was so focused that I thought it might be better to wait a little longer for him but the golden eyes quickly met mine.
"Sister!" Louie exclaimed, leaving the herbs and dashed my way.
Louie's voice alerted Elder Samuel, too. The old man with long white beard turned his focus away and looked towards me.
"Hoho, if it isn't the dame. What are you here for?" he asked, his voice was as kind as always.
"Ah, I just wanted to have lunch with my brother. Would you like to join us, elder?"
"This old man would be more than happy to do so!"
Elder Samuel really gives off the feeling of a gentle grandfather. Just hearing his voice felt soothing. Maybe Louie would be like that when he got older? That thought lingers in my mind as we made our way to the manor's kitchen together. I was so lost in thought that only when Louie tugged at my sleeve had I realised that we were already right in front of the kitchen's door.
"Martha! Your favourite knight is here!" I barged into the kitchen, causing a few maids to be startled.
"Ho, 'ya came early today!" Martha turned towards me with a welcoming gesture. She even set aside her butcher knife on the cutting board, one that she rarely do. Her distinct accent was as thick as always.
Martha is the Leonhart's main cook. She got a rough look but has an outgoing personality, someone that I got along best with here. She acted like a mother figure to me, making my days felt a bit more livelier. I came here almost everyday, so she always had some leftovers aside for my extra lunch or dinner.
"Make sure 'ya stomach is empty. I prepared a whole buncha food for 'ya brat!" she said. Martha then served a whole roasted chicken on the table with some additional side dishes. There's baked potatoes, vegetable soup and my requested meal, rice.
"Woah, Martha you're the best!" I jumped and hugged her tightly.
"Yeah, sure. 'Ya always finishes the leftovers, thought I'll treat 'ya with some real meal," Martha said, her arm wrapped around my body and gave a pat on my back.
The four of us sat by the table and had a long conversation over the meal. Martha, me, Louie and Elder Samuel. Martha had worked here for over 25 years already. She's very talented and well-liked by everyone, including me. Previously, she was also a knight. Due to some serious injury, she decided to work as a cook, instead. She had said that she enjoyed serving the Leonharts.
"Say, why doncha be my daughter-in-law? My son seems to like 'ya!" Martha suggested suddenly and slapped my back. The chicken that I was swallowing almost got whacked out from her strength.
"I want to be your daughter but not marry your son," I declined.
She's been promoting her son for a while. Her son, Bastian, is a butler in this mansion who had previously gifted me the cookies. He doesn't resemble Martha much besides the bright Hazel eyes and his excellent cooking skill. While Martha had a strong appearance, Bastian is a slender man with a gentle look. People said that he resembles his father more.
"Sister is getting married?" Louie asked. The conversation seem to bother him a lot as his eyes had started to well up in tears.
"No, sister ain't getting married," I said, shaking my head.
"Hoho, young couples," Elder Samuel nodded slightly.
"No, there's no couple," I denied it strongly.
I don't really hate the idea of getting married. Just not yet. Maybe later? I don't know.
I managed to change the subject after rejecting another three of Martha's offers. The lunch time proceeded fairly peacefully after that, though Martha tried yet again just to receive the same answer. We even got to hear Martha's love story. Turns out that her husband was a dancer from a foreign country and they met during one of her expeditions. No wonder Bastian is such a beautiful man despite coming from her womb. (Don't hate me, Martha. Others said so, too.)
We sometimes burst into laughter from the random jokes cracked by Elder Samuel or from Louie's clumsy but adorable act. He accidentally hit a fork and made a catapult shot of baked potato that flew right through the window. It causes no harm, really, but he was so apologetic over it. It was an enjoyable meal, so different from what I had back in the other world.
I've became totally accustomed to this new life by now. It's very great. Almost perfect, actually. However, I do think of the past sometimes. The other world. If I were to get a chance to return, would I take it?