“Onii-sama!!! What did you give me to drink last night?!!”
I placed my cup of tea down with a smile. I looked at Freya, who was burning with rage, and greeted her: “Good morning, Freya. Did you sleep well last night?”
“Ah… Uhm, good morning, Onii-sama. I slept very well last night. Wait!! I asked you what you gave me to drink last night!! Why did I end up sleeping until now?!”
Freya scrunched her face up again, returning to the initial infuriated look she wore. I answered, “Don’t you feel that you’ve been overzealous recently? You’re aware of that, aren’t you? Freya, if you continue working at this pace, you’ll break down in the end, so I made you rest. This isn’t just about me being your Prince. The most important part is that I’m your brother. Is there a problem with a brother letting his sister rest?”
Freya exclaimed, “That was too much of you!! Onii-sama!! I do not want to rest! I do not want to rest!! I need to finish today’s work, or else, you won’t be able to keep the Princesses happy! And if I do not work, what would meaning would there be left for me to live for?!”
I furrowed my eyebrows: “Freya, I need to correct you on that. Since when did your purpose in life become to work? Freya, you’re my sister. You’re Freya. Isn’t your purpose in life to be my sister? Are you Freya? Your purpose in life isn’t to work. What would I have saved you from the church for, then?”
“I… I… If I do not work. Onii-sama… Onii-sama will not…”
Her tears welled up in her eyes. I froze for a moment then stood up and walked over to her. I hugged her, and she thumped her head on my chest before tightly hugging me and sobbing. I gently stroked her back then smiled: “What’s wrong, Freya? What’s wrong? It must be my fault. I shouldn’t have buried you with work to the point you feel light headed. You’re my sister. You’re my sister!! I had you help me with work, but I didn’t mean that the only thing you could do was help me with work. I felt reassured trusting you with work, because you’re my sister.”
“Onii-sama…”
“I let you work on my behalf, as you are my sister. Nevertheless, I still have to take care of my own work when I have time. You’re my sister. I can have you help me with work, but you’re my sister. You can play with me, eat lunch with me, and spend time with me. By the same token, we have to work together, too!”
“But… but… but in that case… if… if I do that… will you… feel… that I am useless?!”
I pressed one hand onto her shoulder, and then looked into her eyes. I titled my head: “Freya?! Why would you think that?! You’re my sister! You’re my only sister… Ah, okay, maybe not my only sister anymore. Hey! Don’t hit me. Mm… What I meant to say was, you’re my sister, so, so it’s fine if you don’t help me with work. I just want you to live. I’m happy as long as you continue to stay by my side. I need you, not your help with work!”
“Onii-sama… Onii-sama!”
Freya thumped my chest with her head and suddenly tightly wrapped her arms around my back. She cried loudly as she tightly hugged me. She loudly sobbed: “Onii-sama! Onii-sama! I am so scared!! I am scared that you do not want me after having Tanya! I am scared that you will abandon me after you find a new sister! I am so scared!!! You are the only person left in this world that cares about me! What am I going to do if you do not want me, either…? How will I continue living?! How will I live on?! Do not leave me, Onii-sama… I beg you… Please… Please do not leave me… and please do not give me the cold shoulder… I will do my best to be obedient… and I will continue to work hard!”
“No, no, no, Freya, you need to understand that I won’t stop liking you, because of Tanya. No, no, no. I have two wives, but I like them equally… No, no, no… Don’t hit me. Stop. I’m not trying to weave my way out, because I view Tanya as my sister, too. What I mean is, Freya, I consider you my sister. I will, therefore, always consider you my sister. I’m an only child. I don’t have siblings. I’ve always been looked after. I want to look after somebody, as well. What I mean is, I truly feel very blissful to have a sister, like you.”
I tightly hugged Freya and she reciprocated it. She wept on my chest. I switched up my posture and went down on one knee, so that she could hug my head. She rested her head on my shoulder and loudly sobbed. I just hugged her and let her cry on my shoulder.
“My Onii-sama… My Onii-sama…” Freya cried in my arms. Her small body trembled due to her crying.
Nier watched me from behind with her chin in her hands. I don’t know how long Freya cried for, but Nier began to get a little tired of it: “Dear, you’ve embraced with Freya for a little too long, haven’t you?”
Nier then clapped her hands gently and said, “I’ll have someone take your plate, okay?”
“Uhm… Sorry… Miss Nier… Sorry…”
Freya pushed me away with one arm and then quickly wiped her tears. She then turned around and rubbed her face. After wiping away her tears, she spun back around to reveal a calm and casual smile. She said, “I shall explain today’s work to you, then, Onii-sama. There is a fair bit of work today. We had best get started now. Sorry, Princess. We must go and work now. You can come and see His Majesty at lunch!”
I smiled, and then scrubbed Freya’s head. She looked at me, and then watched Nier stand up. The maids and guards left with Nier as a big group. Freya tugged the corner of my shirt for me to squat down. She checked her surroundings. Other than Tanya standing at the door with the gaze of a woman out for blood, nobody else was watching us. I squatted down, and Freya then bit my ear. She whispered, “Onii-sama, if possible… I wish to use your thigh as a pillow for a nice nap… Perhaps it is due to the drug, but I still feel slightly sleepy.”
“I can carry you back right now…”
“Can you really?!”
“Of course. You’re my sister!”
“Uhm… Thank you, then, Onii-sama… Hng, hng… It appears Alex was right… Since I am your sister, I should be more spoilt… Your back is very wide, Onii-sama… despite you looking very skinny and weak because of your elven lineage…”
“Do I look that skinny and weak to you all?! You’re not the only one who has said I look very skinny and weak now!”
“You do look very skinny and weak… You have elven blood in you. That is why your body is fated to be slightly skinny and weak… However, you shoulder far too much, Onii-sama… Therefore, you truly are a… very… very… strong man…”
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