The Emperor’s Misunderstanding

The guy was strong. Clearly, “Emperor Kaian” was born with more Dragon Blood, and he had even manifested his power through the sword, yet I couldn’t push him away.

“You.”

Trying to reason with him since I lacked the strength was a blatant mistake. He tilted his head and pressed his lips fully against mine. His tongue slid into my parted mouth. Mouth-to-mouth was something I considered “a bit much for grown brothers but technically possible in a dire emergency,” but a deep kiss was different. This… this was game over. He had crossed the line.

I tried to tilt my head back to avoid him, but he was persistent, keeping his lips glued to mine. I struggled, eyes shut tight, until I simply toppled backward. Splash! The surface of the water roared as it broke under the weight of two adult men.

As I choked on the water entering my nose, he pulled and sucked on my tongue. When the hell did this brat grab my waist? Since I had been bathing, my naked body pressed against his—and despite not coming for a bath, he had stripped completely too. You crazy b*stard, I’m your brother! The breath he blew into me swallowed even the anger that I couldn’t put into words.

He nipped at the tip of my tongue and rubbed against it. Water rushed in during a brief gap between us. The water, which was the perfect temperature for soaking, felt lukewarm when swallowed. His tongue was the same. It surged like water, pointlessly and relentlessly rummaging through my mouth. Kallios… or Duke Rotenmeyer, was awkward with greetings, tea-holding, and dining manners, yet he was disturbingly skilled at kissing. I didn’t have the luxury to dwell on that, though.

My flailing to push him away soon turned into a struggle for survival. I hadn’t prepared for the plunge, so I was out of breath. Kallios! The call turned into a burst of bubbles. Just as my mind was turning white from lack of air, he stood up while holding my waist. The air hitting my face was a godsend. I coughed, spitting out water.

“You—you—this—?!”

I had no idea how I’d ended up in this predicament. Actually, I had a vague idea why, but that didn’t give me a reason to laugh it off. I tried to lash out as soon as my coughing subsided, but he was faster. Our lips met again. I gritted my teeth to keep him out, but this time he traced my teeth and sucked on my lips. This is madness. He caught the wrists I used to try and push him. Since he had positioned himself between my legs, kicking was out of the question. I squeezed my eyes shut.

Fine. One kiss. No, two. It’s not like I’ll wear away. I’ll just let it happen and explain once he stops. Me calling you to a private space, hugging you as I pleased, giving you the symbol of the Emperor, and even giving you a room to stay the night—none of that was with impure intentions. Really. I… hey, that tickles, can you stop touching my side? No, not there…

Kallios’s hand slid between my thighs. His tongue entered my mouth again as it hung open in shock. Holding the back of my head firmly so I couldn’t pull away, he rubbed the hollow of the roof of my mouth with his tongue. I gasped.

“Hng, ah…”

He persistently licked and rubbed a spot that had only made me flinch from the tickling at first, stimulating it. Every touch sent a shiver through me that made me want to just die. I had never imagined that the mouth I shoveled food into three times a day could have an erogenous zone. I certainly never imagined it would be such a shameful place that responded to a brother’s kiss. You’d have to be a madman to think that.

My head was tilted all the way back, but I didn’t even notice the pain or discomfort. I panted shallowly, swallowing the excess saliva.

He pulled his lips away. I first saw his lips, glistening with our shared saliva, and then his dry, expressionless face that hadn’t changed even after such an intense kiss. If it weren’t for the thing pressing against my thigh, I would have wanted to die right then and there. If you asked if this shared excitement was okay, I’d answer with a definitive no.

“Ha… you… what are you…”

“Your Majesty.”

His face drew close again. I could consider the first time an accident and the second a mistake, but a third was unacceptable. I turned my head away entirely. Instead of my lips, he kissed my neck. I was about to yell at the muah sound, but I lost my voice and stayed silent.

There was no way his body was intact if he had a brand on his face. His back was covered in countless scars. Scars that looked like they were drawn with thin strings.

“Ah…”

The moment I reached out to touch them, his life flashed through my mind. It was a service from the Guardian, but it wasn’t welcome. Not a single memory was good. They were all horrific.

Those b*stards didn’t brand him to shame him. The brand was the rank Kallios held in Rotenmeyer Castle.

Licking my neck, Kallios raised his head and bit my earlobe. The former Duchess had taught Kallios this kind of “acting cute.” It wasn’t until he was eighteen that Kallios could sleep in a warm room without “acting cute.” He had sent the carriage she was in off a cliff. Kallios, the Duke of Rotenmeyer, might have wanted to die then. He could have jumped out before the carriage fell, but he chose to stay seated across from her. She didn’t die instantly. She continued to breathe for a long time even with a broken neck. She called out Kallios’s name.

He began to stroke my member, which he held softly. The eldest son of the former Duke of Rotenmeyer enjoyed watching Kallios kneel and serve him. He gave him bread if he did well, and whipped him if he didn’t. The scars on his back were his handiwork. He had learned how to pleasure a flaccid member from him too. To be precise, he learned by reading the man’s cues while being beaten hundreds, thousands of times. It wasn’t until he was sixteen that Kallios stopped being whipped. He beheaded the man who had run out claiming he would subjugate orcs. That b*stard’s corpse became orc food.

“Don’t.”

It was miserable.

“Don’t do it, Kallios.”

“Do you not like it?”

Kallios’s hand stopped. I couldn’t bring myself to look at him, so I covered my face with my hands. He lifted me up and sat me on the edge of the tub. Something warm touched the top of my foot. It was something he used to do for that woman. I reached out and placed my hand on his head. I slowly stroked his wet hair.

“You can stop now.”

His lips touched my knee. I moved my hand down and touched his cheek. I felt the burn scar. I moved my hand further down to hold his chin. I made him look up and removed the hand that was covering my eyes.

“Your Majesty. Why are you crying?”

“Kallios.”

He blinked. Water from his hair had trickled into his eyes. It was just water, but it looked like tears. I forced a smile I didn’t feel and wiped his face.

“Don’t do things you don’t want to do.”

I thought he was all grown up, but I didn’t realize he was still trapped in his childhood. He had finished off everyone who exploited him, so he should be sleeping in a warm place and eating well as a Duke. Why serve the Emperor in bed? He was someone who didn’t need to do that anymore.

“You don’t have to do that.”

I don’t know if he understood, but Kallios nodded anyway.

A dry, fresh Kallios was sitting on the bed.

This brat didn’t understand. I guess I’ve become too used to talking to my brother Kallios, who understands ten things if I say one. I sighed as I looked at him sitting modestly in just a robe. I couldn’t blame him. Technically, this was normal, and the way I talked with my brother was abnormal. Besides… I could feel the Head Chamberlain’s touch in how Kallios was dressed in a silk robe with his hair neatly styled. Right. How could any of this be your fault? It’s all mine.

I crawled into bed and patted the spot next to me. He came over and lay down. I stared at the ceiling with a restless heart, then looked at him, who was lying straight like me, also staring at the ceiling. Soon, his gaze turned to me.

“Kallios.”

“Yes.”

“What were you thinking when you came here?”

Regardless of the misunderstanding by Sierra and the Head Chamberlain, this wouldn’t have happened if Kallios had said no. He lived that kind of life because he was young, weak, and had no one to protect him. But not now. Kallios was a Sword Master and a Duke. Even if Imperial authority was strong thanks to “Emperor Kaian’s” hard work, he wasn’t someone who had to forcibly comply with such an order.

Kallios didn’t answer. I watched his face as he looked at me, then yawned as sleepiness hit. Come to think of it, I didn’t really need to know the reason. It was something that would never happen again…

Once I acknowledged the drowsiness, it became irresistible. I nudged closer to Kallios and put my arm under his neck.

“Do you know what this is?”

I hugged and patted the head of the silent guy.

“It’s called an arm pillow. It might be uncomfortable, but bear with it.”

It was something I’d never even done for my own Kallios. Well, I would have done the same if I were lying in bed with him. A breath that was neither deep nor shallow hit my chest. Feeling his regular breathing, I closed my eyes. I must have been drained from sitting in the bathroom and crying for so long after sending him out. Sleep came quickly.

Kallios was gone when I woke up. I rubbed my eyes as I looked at the empty spot next to me, which bore no trace of anyone having lain there. I didn’t think I’d had any dreams, but I felt dried tears as if I’d cried in my sleep again. I rubbed them away.

[Child.]

“Was this what you meant when you said I’d regret it?”

I asked the Guardian’s voice as soon as I heard it.

[What do you think?]

If I answer this, I’ll have answered all three questions. I pondered for a moment before getting up. I didn’t plan to stay until the end of a lifetime like the original Lamier, but I didn’t plan to leave immediately either. At the very least, I wanted to see Kallios return after finishing the western subjugation.

Now, I am the Emperor and the head of the Arneb-s Imperial Family.

And he is a Duke, a member of the Imperial clan who received “Capre” as a middle name.

There was a lot I could give him. I could merge a few western fiefs to make him a Grand Duke, shower him with all kinds of riches, and grant him the status of a “War Hero.” The Empire was vast, but the continent it sat upon was even vaster.

I didn’t even need to invade other countries. Defeating seventeen thousand—soon to be twenty thousand—orcs was a great achievement in itself. An “Orc Lord” had the trait of becoming stronger as they had more orcs under them. Slaying a lord of twenty thousand orcs was difficult even for a Sword Master, but I didn’t think it was something Kallios couldn’t do.

Let’s hold a grand victory ceremony when Kallios returns. And let’s make it so no one can treat him poorly. He was someone who only lacked slightly more emotion than others, but he had been undervalued for too long. He was someone who deserved to be loved, praised, and put on a pedestal more. Neither the “Dragon’s Blessing,” which worked like a cheat code, nor the martial prowess of a “Sword Master” had made his life easy. As if it had been decided that he must be born and raised miserably and die miserably.

I had no intention of letting him become like that. Neither my brother in reality, nor my brother here.

A purely happy life only exists in fairy tales, so I don’t expect you to live like that. But I really, truly want you to be less miserable.

The Head Chamberlain entered with the wash water. I heard about today’s schedule while washing. The news that Duke Rotenmeyer had left early in the morning was last. As I wiped my face with the towel she handed me, I asked if he had eaten breakfast before leaving.

Hmm… I think this question was a mistake. Because the look the Head Chamberlain gave me was mixed with pity.

Seriously, it’s not like that! I explained quite seriously, but without the key facts, I couldn’t convince her. In an instant, I had become a pitiful Emperor who sent his lover to a dangerous battlefield.

Whatever. As long as I know it’s not true.