…However.

When he started thinking about it, there was an issue with that ointment. Undoubtedly, Alves’ friend had commissioned the most famous pharmacist in the royal capital.

Because he was a former knight, he had been taken care of by that pharmacist once. That pharmacist was someone who possessed deep knowledge of medical concoction.

Therefore, all of that pharmacist’s medicines were costly.

After all, the medicinal herbs used in those medicines were be tended to with the utmost care. It was only natural. For the knights of the royal army, the cost of the medicine should’ve stung.

If the medicines weren’t expensive, there’d be a lot of buffoons who’d carelessly fall ill or get injured. Considering that, setting a high price might be a wise decision.

However, his friend had brought medicine from a famous pharmacist. Normally, no knight would be able to afford such a thing.

Moreover, usually, the ointment would come in an expensive container. On the contrary, the ointment his friend had bought came in a very common, small, piece ofpottery that could be found anywhere.

That pharmacist was used to receiving custom orders.

Since that pharmacist was accustomed to dealing with aristocrats as well as knights, he wouldn’t just acquiesce to power play. It didn’t matter even if the other party was royalty. Usually, said pharmacist would just laugh at the attempts.

Nevertheless, his friend, who had no reason to do so, accomplished that great of a deed.

—He must have requested for it for day after day.

That person, who was supposed to be the crown prince’s younger brother, earnestly appealed for the sake of a single, fallen, noble lady’s coarse hands. Even if the disgusted pharmacist were to charge him with a ludicrous price, that friend would have happily obliged and use his savings.

…Alves could roughly imagine what kind of face that dogmatic pharmacist made.

As a trace of the pharmacist’ small resistance, instead of using a normal string, the inexpensive and ordinary container was bound with a colorful string.

…Spare me, already.

His sister was already betrothed. Soon, she’d be married.

Alves wanted to compliment Lucia for remaining as she was despite having received such an expensive gift. At the same time, he’d like to keep her from going in and out upon having received said expensive gift.

Still, he sympathized a lot with his friend. He wanted him to enjoy his stay in the Ragulen territory.

…He had a headache.

“Brother Alves? What’s wrong? You’re making a terrible expression.”

Before he noticed it, Lucia was worried about him.

Alves remembered that he was in the middle of breakfast and hurriedly smiled at her.

“It’s nothing… No, actually, there’s something on my mind. My hands hurt from having sheered the sheep yesterday. May I ask you to repair the mattress?”

“Is that what you’re so concerned about? It’s alright. I’m confident that my results will be more beautiful than my brother’s!”

Lucia laughed brightly and poured him another cup of tea.

Alves, who sipped the hot tea, suddenly brushed away the bangs that fell over his eyes.

“By the way, my hair has grown… Should I cut it?”

As soon as he casually said that.

Lucia stood up with a bang.

“…Brother, you aren’t going to cut it yourself, right?”

“Of course, I am. It shouldn’t be too difficult with a mirror.”

“You can’t!!!”

At the strong tone of his sister, Alves swallowed his words.

“Brother, you mustn’t cut it yourself, alright?”

“But why?”

“Because you’re a viscount! Please do not reduce your hair into such a mess!”

“…Is it that bad?”

Back when he was still a knight, everyone cut their own hair.

Hence, he thought nothing of it. For a long time, that was how he had done his hair. Of course, considering Alves’ position, the one who should have been doing it should be either a servant or a professional hairstylist…

…Before Alves could argue, Lucia’s gaze became cold.

“Brother, as a lord, how can you be so careless? Don’t you know how pained the lords were when they saw your hair back then? I’ll cut it, so don’t do it yourself!”

Lucia’s eyes were frosty while her tone was fierce.

Alves wasn’t upset, but he inadvertently slumped against his chair.

Lucia cleared her throat and sat back down again.

Her posture was beautiful while her appearance as she drank tea was graceful.

However, as soon as their eyes met, her gaze became sharp once again. Alves had to divert his eyes.

“Do you still intend to cut your own hair?”

“I know, I know, I won’t attempt to cut it on my own. I will leave it to Lucia. But can you do it?”

“Recently, I’ve been cutting the hair of the shepherds. I’ve been practicing. I have no doubt that the end result will be better than that of my brother’s!”

“…Then, I will entrust it to you. Although, I don’t really care about my hair…”

He murmured.

Lucia stared at him in astonishment.

“Brother, you’re too lackluster about yourself. You’re a young and single viscount. You’re always well-dressed, so why are you indifferent about your own hair? You’re the exact opposite of Phil. Even though Phil prioritizes cleanliness, most of time, he’s messy.”

“…Don’t lump me with the likes of him.”

Alves made an unsettled expression.

The name of the guest who had stayed with them until a month ago being mentioned wasn’t strange.

However, as he was having trouble with that particular friend of his, he felt annoyed.

That said, Lucia, who mentioned his friend, was completely carefree. So far, only he had a problem with his friend.

Therefore, it’d be immature to make a statement there. After sighing softly, Alves sipped his tea.

“Good morning, Alves, Lucia!”

A cheerful voice came from behind the door. It was Yurana, the person who be helping with housework.

Lucia hurriedly drank her tea and went out to greet Yurana.

The day of the Ragulen family had begun.

They were still dealing with the debt from their grandfather’s generation. He had no money for Lucia’s marriage. The reconstruction of the territory was going well, but it was still not enough.

Alves had a lot to do.

“Alright, time to go.”

Alves stood up.

Lucia had just returned with Yurana. It seemed that Yurana’s daughter would also be helping that day.

In such a situation, doing the household chores, alongside with mending the mattresses, shouldn’t become a burden.

Alves suddenly recalled his beloved horse while clearing the leftover dishes from the table.

Recently, he hadn’t been riding much.

As soon as he thought about it, he felt uncomfortable. After clearing his throat, he beckoned to his sister.

“Lucia, if I have time, I’d like to go a little farther while patrolling the farmland today, or tomorrow…”

“Are you going to ride your horse? That’s fine. If you plan to leave before noon, I’ll prepare a lunch box.”

“…That’ll be a great help. I’m sorry for burdening you.”

“Isn’t it an important duty of the lord to look around the territory and show his face to his vassals? It’s something that only my brother can do… But, don’t overexert yourself.”

Lucia had a smile on her face, but for a moment, her gaze was serious.

The glint in his sister’s eyes belonged to a thoughtful adult.

—it dawned upon him.

Lucia was no longer a child.

Not only was she about to be married, she was the sister of the lord. She was a dependable person trying to take on various responsibilities herself.

Upon noticing that, he felt sick.

Alves put his hand on Lucia’s head, hoping to rejoice in his sister’s growth—and at the same time, disguise his own loneliness.

Lucia laughed happily when he patted her hair the way he used to in the past.

Her smiling expression remained like that of when she was still a child.

…Soon.

It’d be a year and a half until his sister got married.

Despite the fact that his sister had grown, he still had to protect her.

With a smile on his face, Alves once again braced himself.

---

***T/N: Good luck onii-sama.

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