The duke’s voice became even lower, as if descending into the depths. Despite not being the target of his remark, I felt increasingly uncomfortable under his intense gaze.

‘I wish mother could ease the atmosphere…’

From my short observation, it seemed the duke was peculiarly lenient towards my mother. I looked at her, hoping for help, but she remained unresponsive, apparently having no intention of intervening. It dawned on me that she believed I deserved an apology but also implicitly agreed not to meddle in what seemed like a family matter.

This left me feeling even more uneasy.

‘I don’t really need an apology.’

In fact, Erhan had no real reason to apologize to me.

Though I was only about five years old, Erhan seemed to be in his early to mid-teens. It was natural for a young boy to feel uncomfortable with a sudden new sibling. Even if he had pushed me intentionally, I wasn’t hurt, so I was genuinely fine.

“Go on.”

But the duke didn’t seem like someone who would let such things slide.

Eventually, Erhan, who had been staring at the ground, seemed to surrender.

“I’m sorry, Oscar.”

Erhan swiftly closed the gap between us and hugged me as if our previous awkwardness never existed.

“I was careless and pushed you. It wasn’t because I have anything against you. I’m sincerely happy you joined our family, and I’ve been looking forward to a day like today…”

He held onto my clothes tightly, as if he was about to lift me up, and rambled on without pause.

“Oh, I’ve spoken too much.”

Erhan dramatically leaned in towards me.

“As your mother requested, I’ll show you to your room and around the mansion.”

His theatrical performance left me speechless, while my mother played the perfect audience.

She merely smiled broadly, elegantly covering her mouth with her hand, and said, “Oh my, you two really do seem like affectionate brothers!” The duke, too, seemed pleased with this performance, smiling quietly from behind.

“Take my hand.”

Erhan’s hand was extended towards me again.

I stared at his hand, then opened my eyes wide. Despite his casual demeanor and tone, Erhan was desperately trying.

His hand was trembling slightly.

“Oscar.”

…Should I really take it?

Not doing so might lead to an even more awkward situation. Eventually, I grabbed Erhan’s hand. Contrary to his delicate appearance, his hand was surprisingly firm and calloused, as if he were used to holding a sword.

“Ugh.”

Suddenly, Erhan clutched his mouth and turned away, retching. His body shook as he continued, leaving me bewildered. As I was about to check if he was ill, the duke sighed and coldly chided him, “Making a fuss again.”

‘Making a fuss?’

Could this really be called making a fuss? It didn’t seem like an overreaction to me.

Caught off guard, Erhan’s hand slipped away, and the duke called him to attention once more.

“Erhan Serpentine.”

“I’m, I’m sorry…”

Erhan tried to regain composure, but he seemed unable to do so. His face turned ghostly pale as he continued to retch, eventually collapsing to the ground.

‘He seemed fine when he hugged me, but why does he react like this just from holding hands? Does he dislike me that much?’

It was a troubling thought, considering we were supposed to live together.

I hadn’t expected him to have such a strong physical reaction to mere contact. Observing him closely, I realized what I had initially thought to be calluses were actually raw, chafed skin.

He could grasp my clothes but not hold hands, and his hands were raw as if scrubbed raw daily. Putting it all together,

‘Erhan Serpentine has germophobia.’

Understanding this, his actions made sense.

Furthermore, since he didn’t like me, he must have found skin contact particularly distressing.

“You’re embarrassing yourself again.”

The duke seemed to view his heir’s germophobia as a shameful flaw, almost as if he was exposing Erhan.

Look at him now. Even as his son suffered, he seemed more embarrassed and bothered, sighing heavily.

“Get it right, Erhan. Hold Oscar’s hand properly.”

He was trying to force Erhan to overcome his condition by making him hold my hand.

‘Just tell him to stop.’

I was the one caught in the middle.

But it felt odd to label it simply as germophobia.

He was somewhat okay with contact with my clothes but extremely uncomfortable with skin contact.

‘It seems like more than just germophobia. It’s like he has an aversion to people themselves…’

The duke wanted to force a solution, even if it was against Erhan’s will.

Indeed, Erhan is the designated heir to follow the duke, and apart from the gloomy image, the Serpentine family is quite renowned. The duke’s strictness makes sense, considering an heir should ideally have no shortcomings, but I still felt frustrated.

He’s still a young boy, after all.

How could anyone push him further when he’s already so pale and trembling, struggling to wipe his hands, desperate to remove any trace of contact?

“Erhan Serpen…”

Erhan Serpentine.

No doubt the duke was about to scold him again, but I acted faster. I pulled a handkerchief from my pocket, held it in my palm, and quickly grabbed Erhan’s hand.

Erhan initially reflexively tried to push me away, but when he realized what touched his palm was not skin but soft fabric, he looked at me with wide eyes.

I carefully concealed the handkerchief, worried that the duke might notice it if Erhan tried to shake off my hand. Of course, even with the handkerchief, some contact was inevitable. I tried to minimize it as much as possible, but our fingers still slightly touched.

‘He’s too shocked to react.’

Erhan appeared too bewildered to show any aversion, just staring at me with wide eyes.

Why Erhan was so fearful of the duke, and why the duke was so determined to correct him, was beyond me. Though I didn’t fully understand the situation, what I needed to do was clear.

“Brother. Hello.”

My sudden initiation of conversation startled everyone – the duke, who stood there fiercely ready to scold, my mother, quietly observing from the side, and even Erhan.

“Oscar!”

Following a brief silence, my mother called out my name with a startled tone and quickly scooped me up.

Surprised, I accidentally dropped the handkerchief, but Erhan, still dazed, quickly hid it behind his back. As I quickly looked up, my eyes met my mother’s, which gleamed with tears of joy like golden orbs.

“My goodness, my goodness. You initiated the conversation!”

Seeing my mother so overjoyed just because I uttered a single greeting made me feel a bit guilty for being so quiet out of shyness. I looked down, trying to hide my embarrassment.

Of course, my mother didn’t miss even this brief moment. She expressed her joy unabashedly, showering my nose with countless kisses.

“Oh, thank you. Thank you so much.”

I wasn’t sure who she was thanking, but as I looked up, I caught the duke’s eye. He seemed a bit surprised but stepped back respectfully, giving us space.

‘I didn’t expect such a reaction.’

I wouldn’t have normally spoken up, but I couldn’t stand watching the duke scold his young son, especially since it was because of me. I thought that showing my affection towards Erhan might make the duke ease up, so I spoke up.

“Oscar, do you like your brother?”

My mother was making quite a fuss. Regardless of the duke’s presence or the fact that it was our first day here, she was completely absorbed in her happiness.

Feeling a bit embarrassed by her overwhelming reaction, I tapped my mother and shyly pointed at Erhan, who was standing awkwardly.

“Oh my, look at me, Erhan! My goodness, you must have really liked Oscar for him to speak, to speak… I’m so glad you’re Oscar’s brother! You’re a blessing. What a dependable brother you are!”

This time, my mother seemed genuinely fond of Erhan, unlike before. She smiled brightly as she praised him, while Erhan looked on, seemingly dazed, and the duke returned to his calm demeanor, as if he had never exhibited any hostility towards Erhan.

She still couldn’t contain her excitement. It seemed she had been more worried than I realized about my reluctance to speak and lack of childlike emotion.

‘Well, I have been told I’m emotionless and off-putting.’

My mother probably thought there was something wrong with me, given my lack of emotional expression, even though she didn’t show it much.

It was the same in the royal household. The royal servants often said behind my back that I was creepy for not acting like a normal child and wondered if something was wrong with my mind. There’s no way those words wouldn’t have reached my mother, who had many ears within the palace.

“Then, I’ll show you around.”

Looking uncomfortable as if he were on a stage in a ridiculous play, Erhan seemed to want to leave the awkward situation.

“Uh…”

But what followed was unexpected. Erhan carefully took my hand first.