Chapter 543: Back To Being A Little Brother

Everyone in the room was flabbergasted.

Just a moment ago, they’d all been quietly admiring Cassius’s entrance.

The calm stride, the elegance of his crisp white shirt, and the effortless authority that seemed to radiate from him even when he said nothing.

But now, all that admiration shattered into confusion as they stared at the utterly bizarre sight before them: their noble host standing tall and stoic, with a tearful butler clinging to his back like a desperate koala.

For a few seconds, there was only silence. Then, the whispers began.

"...Is he crying?" One of the younger nuns muttered.

"Why is he on his back?" Another whispered back.

"Is this...normal behavior in noble households?"

Even Aqua, who moments ago had been glowing with joy at the sight of her brother, was now blinking repeatedly, trying to make sense of the scene.

Lucius, however, was completely oblivious to the growing bewilderment around him. His tears streamed freely as he wailed.

"Please, please don’t kick me out, young master! I have nothing but you!"

He clung tighter, sobbing dramatically.

"If you send me away, I’ll have nowhere to go! I’ll be begging on the streets! You’re my only reason to live—without you, what will I do?!"

Cassius sighed and strode further into the room, his expression dry and unamused.

"Don’t exaggerate, Lucius." He said evenly. "With your skills and reputation, half the nobles in this continent would host an auction just to hire you. In fact..." He flicked his hand dismissively. "...I could host the auction myself."

Lucius only cried harder, gripping tighter.

"No, never! I’ll never sell myself to anyone else, Young Master! You are the only one I’ll ever serve! My skills, my life, my soul—everything belongs to you! I’d rather die than work for another!"

The declaration was so dramatic that even the nuns shifted uncomfortably

Between sobs, Lucius suddenly added.

"I’m sorry! I’m so sorry for letting them in! I never meant to, I swear! They barged in, they didn’t listen to me—please, please forgive me, Young Master!"

Cassius exhaled deeply through his nose, rubbing his temple.

"Lucius, it’s not that I’m angry that you made a mistake."

He said, his voice heavy with weary patience.

"It’s that you keep making the same mistake over and over again."

Lucius froze. "S-Same mistake...?"

"Yes." Cassius said in a tired tone. "This isn’t the first time you’ve done this. First, you let Julie, Aisha, and Skadi into my room unannounced—and you promised it would never happen again."

"But then what happened? A week later, you let Lady Wilfey in while she was visiting for an appraisal and she witnessed another embarrassing scene. The time after that? It was Diana’s friend. And then a few after that. And now..."

He gestured toward the group of bewildered women

"...this."

He massaged the bridge of his nose.

"You have a record of letting women barge into my room during the worst possible moments. At this point, I’m honestly convinced you’re purposefully trying to embarrass me."

Lucius looked ready to cry again.

"It’s not my fault, Young Master! The Holy Guard forced her way in! The other girl came in when I was in the bathroom! And that time with Lady Wilfey—there was an emergency in the kitchen! The staff needed me, I had to leave for just a minute!"

He clutched Cassius’s sleeve desperately.

"I swear, it’s bad luck! Terrible luck! I’m doing my best, but fate itself seems to conspire against me! Please forgive me! Don’t cast me out, not again!"

The onlookers couldn’t help but find the exchange absurdly entertaining.

Several nuns turned away to hide their laughter, their shoulders trembling.

Maria even covered her mouth with both hands to stifle a giggle, whispering to Aqua.

"He’s so dramatic...it’s almost cute."

Cassius finally stopped walking, closing his eyes as if counting to ten. Then he turned slightly, his calm gaze meeting Lucius’s tearful one.

"Lucius." He said quietly. "Give me one reason—just one—why I should keep you as my butler after you’ve made the same mistake again and again."

Lucius froze. Then, with trembling lips, he straightened up slightly and said with absolute conviction.

"Because, Master...that is the only mistake I have ever committed."

Cassius waited, while Lucius continued passionately.

"Other than that, every duty you’ve given me, I’ve fulfilled flawlessly! I manage your estate, your accounts, your schedule, your meals—everything!"

"The only flaw in my service is my inability to guard your door from beautiful women! Aside from that, I am the perfect butler!"

Cassius paused, folding his arms as if actually considering the argument.

Lucius took the opportunity to go further, putting on the most tragic expression he could muster, eyes wide and glistening like a puppy’s.

"Please, Young Master...don’t abandon me. I’ll be better. I’ll guard that door with my life! I’ll even build a fortress around it if I have to!"

Cassius let out a small sigh, before giving in.

"...Fine. You’re right. I can’t replace a butler as competent as you over something so minor."

Lucius’s face lit up like a child’s. "R-Really?! You mean it?!"

Cassius nodded, exasperated. "Yes, yes. You can stay."

"THANK YOU, YOUNG MASTER!" Lucius cried out in joy, immediately trying to hug him tighter.

Cassius’s patience snapped. "Lucius, get off."

"But, Young Master, your back is so warm and broad." Lucius murmured dreamily. "It’s so comforting to cling to you like this. I really like it here—"

That was the last straw.

Without another word, Cassius grabbed Lucius by the arm, effortlessly swung him over his shoulder, and hurled him straight out of the open doorway.

"YOUNG MASTEEEEER!"

Lucius screamed midair before vanishing into the hallway with a thud, followed by the heavy slam of the door closing.

Cassius then adjusted his cuffs as if nothing had happened, turned back to the stunned audience, and said dryly.

"I apologize for the disturbance."

"My butler can be a little...over-enthusiastic."

The nuns in the waiting hall remained still in disbelief, still processing what they had just witnessed.

Maria, however, couldn’t help but smile softly.

She had seen many nobles in her time at the royal palace. Men born into wealth and status, proud of their bloodlines, obsessed with appearances, and dripping with arrogance.

But this man standing before her now...he was different.

Despite his pure lineage, despite the calm authority he naturally carried, there was no trace of pretentiousness in him.

He seemed—human.

Even the way he had handled that strange, dramatic butler was telling.

Most nobles would have struck their servants for daring to touch them, but Cassius hadn’t even raised his voice.

He simply sighed, reasoned, and even tolerated Lucius’s embarrassing display until the very last moment.

’He’s kind.’ Maria thought, her gaze softening. ’Too kind for a noble of his rank.’

She watched as he stepped further into the room, his presence quiet but commanding and even though he’d only said a few words, everyone could feel the gentle weight of his charisma settle over them.

At her side, Joy also slowly rose from her seat, her expression unreadable but her eyes sharp, ready to begin her questioning.

Maria followed suit more gracefully, ready to offer polite greetings.

But before either of them could utter a word—

A sudden blur of blue darted past them like lightning.

Before anyone could react, before even Cassius himself could comprehend what was happening—Aqua had already crossed the distance between them and threw her arms around him with the strength of a hurricane.

"Wait—! Hold on...Ooof!"

"Cassius! Cassius, oh Cassius, my dear brother!"

She cried out, her voice full of unrestrained emotion as she hugged him tightly. So tightly, in fact, that his face was immediately buried straight into her plump, soft chest.

"Oh, it’s been too long!" Aqua went on, rubbing his head affectionately against her chest. "Every single day in the capital, I missed you so much! I used to think of you all the time, wondering what you were doing, if you were eating well, if you were lonely!"

Cassius, meanwhile, was desperately trying to breathe. His hands weakly pressed against her arms, but she was far too excited and far too strong to notice.

"And I told myself..." Aqua continued passionately. "...that I would train and grow stronger, so strong that I’d be able to meet you again one day! And look at me now! I’m here, Cassius! I’m really here!"

Her voice softened, affectionate and almost tearful.

"My sweet little brother..."

But instead of any reply, the only sound that came from Cassius was a strained, muffled

"Mmph—ghkk—".

Maria, who had been watching the touching reunion with a fond smile, suddenly frowned when she noticed Cassius’s legs twitching oddly.

"Aqua." She said quickly. "Dear, I think you’re choking him!"

"Huh?"

"Your chest!" Maria gestured frantically. "He can’t breathe!"

Aqua looked down and her eyes widened when she saw Cassius’s face, completely red and pressed tightly between her breasts.

"Oh no!" She gasped, quickly letting him go. Cassius stumbled back, gasping for air as though he had just resurfaced after nearly drowning.

"Cassius! I’m so sorry!" Aqua cried, horrified. "I didn’t mean to—oh, Goddess, I got too excited!"

Cassius opened his mouth, about to respond in his usual confident manner—the kind of line he could effortlessly toss at any woman without batting an eye.

’I wouldn’t mind suffocating if it’s in such softness’ was what crossed his mind first, as it always did.

But the moment he looked up, the moment his eyes met Aqua’s—the words simply...died.

His throat went dry. His tongue froze. His confident smirk refused to appear.

He stammered.

"I–uh...no, it’s—" He tried to say, but the rest simply refused to leave his mouth.

His heartbeat quickened for reasons he couldn’t quite explain. His cheeks felt warmer. He was blushing.

And just like that, Cassius Vindictus Holyfield—charmer of nobles, slayer of hearts, master of composure—was blushing.

Aqua blinked at him, then suddenly grinned wide, her expression turning soft and teasing.

"Oh, look at you! You’re blushing!" She said, clasping her hands together. "You’re so adorable, Cassius! You can’t even handle seeing your sister again after all this time!"

Cassius tried to compose himself, but his mind was a mess.

Normally, he would have had a hundred witty remarks by now.

But instead, all he could do was stumble for words.

"I—uh—no, that’s not—"

He was completely disarmed.

Aqua laughed, delighted.

"See? You’re exactly the same as before! Always so timid, always following me around like a little puppy when we were kids!"

She smiled fondly, her voice turning gentle.

"You used to cling to me every time you were scared, remember? You’d barely talk, but you’d follow me everywhere I went. You were the sweetest, most innocent little boy and I adored you for it."

Maria covered her mouth, trying not to laugh at how flustered Cassius looked, while Joy simply crossed her arms and muttered how he was simply acting innocent to fool her.

But Cassius on the other hand had completely different reaction to what Aqua had just said.

Her words hit something deep inside him—something that wasn’t his.

For a brief moment, images flickered in his mind.

A much smaller version of himself clinging shyly to a girl with long blue hair. A warm hand patting his head. A soft, teasing voice calling him adorable.

He realized then, with a quiet jolt, what was happening.

These weren’t his emotions. They were the original Cassius’s. The boy whose memories he had inherited after coming into this world.

Every thought, every emotion, every attachment that boy once had.

And right now...those old emotions were resurfacing.

The original Cassius’s love for his sister.

That deep, childlike affection, that instinct to look up to her, to hide behind her when he was scared—all of it was welling up inside him, drowning out the confident, flirtatious man he’d become.

It was the same as when he’d faced his father—the conflicting swirl of inherited hatred and longing of love he felt.

Only now, it was something softer. Something that made him feel small and unguarded in a way that unnerved him completely.

And while he tried to steady his thoughts, Aqua only hugged him again, ruffling his hair affectionately.

"Ah, you really haven’t changed one bit." She said warmly. "Still my little Cassius."

And Cassius, the man who could usually make any woman melt with a glance, could only manage a soft, stammered,

"Y-Yeah..."

He looked less like a charming playboy and more like the shy, bashful younger brother he once was

This made the maids who was used to his boldness freak out and they were already planning to tell the matter to the rest of the women in the household.