Even If You Tear Me Apart - Chapter 58
The chapters are split like this so that the TL can update more consistently over time (✿ ＞◡❛)
If that were the case, then Ezekiel would have to accept the situation. And it would only be right to wish the two of them happiness.
Of course, what he had felt that early morning was the sense that Iris might like him too. But that was only Ezekiel’s assumption. He had never actually confirmed it.
“…And what did you find, after confirming your feelings?”
And so, Ezekiel asked. Étienne frowned, as if he’d heard something ridiculous, and replied curtly.
“What else? I was drawn to her.”
“…Did Lady Iris feel the same?”
At those words, Étienne’s eyes narrowed. The languid attitude, like he was too tired to care about anything, vanished in an instant. His gaze sharpened, almost as if studying something, and turned toward Ezekiel.
If Ezekiel had been just a little older at the time, he would have clearly seen what lay beneath Étienne’s reaction.
Though he always called him ‘Brother’, Étienne was, in truth, merely a nineteen-year-old boy—only one year older than Ezekiel.
At an age where immaturity could be boundless, yet one tries desperately to dress it up as something else.
Étienne was drawn to Iris. She was, after all, a lovely girl, with a kind of charm that made even the onlooker feel more cheerful just by watching her.
And not only that—she was good-natured and had saved both boys’ lives. When Étienne was burning with fever, it had been Iris who laid a cool cloth across his forehead.
“You’re burning up. Oh, what should I do…”
How welcome those cool fingers had been on his searing skin.
People thought only Ezekiel was sensitive, but Étienne was very much a boy in the prime of youth.
That sharpness and sensitivity were traits common to the imperial family of Murenas. The only difference was that Ezekiel was more contemplative, and Étienne more instinctive.
And so Étienne believed his attraction to Iris was only temporary.
That belief wasn’t necessarily wrong. It was just that Étienne, being a more transactional and impulsive person, allowed it to turn into something more.
Why had Ezekiel and Étienne, despite occasional friction, still managed to live as affectionate brothers?
It was because both knew just how impulsive and moment-driven Étienne could be. He was moody, his emotional states changed by the hour.
That’s why Ezekiel always treated Étienne’s behavior as a passing whim, pretending it was nothing.
And this time was no different.
“Lady Quilluxia. I’m tired, should we lie down for a bit?”
The sky was clear, and Étienne was drowsy from drinking. He’d only suggested lying down because the girl sitting next to him looked awkward and fidgety—it was amusing and endearing. He hadn’t thought much of it.
Fifteen-year-old Iris, hesitant but reassured by the prince’s casual tone, lay down next to him. That was fine.
But then, meaningless small talk and teasing jokes passed between them, and the mood gradually softened. The unusually fine weather also played a part. Blue skies, the scent of damp forest, and a charming young girl.
“Iris.”
“Yes?”
“What were you and my brother doing in the kitchen last night?”
Had she not flinched so noticeably at that moment…
“What’s this? You’re so startled—anyone would think you kissed or something.”
It was a joke. He never imagined it might be true. His brother was uptight and earnest to a fault. A boy without even a single frivolous rumor.
And Iris, in Étienne’s eyes, was still just a naive, unaware little girl—not someone with romantic feelings for anyone.
But then, when her face flushed red, Étienne was startled.
“…Iris?”
“That’s not… it wasn’t like that, Your Highness. We just… happened to meet.”
It was obvious she was lying. It was shocking.
That priggish kid had reached out to this girl?
Why?
It made him feel a little bitter. It felt like he’d lost to Ezekiel. The younger brother he’d always mocked and seen as beneath him had moved one step ahead. No—he’d reached somewhere Étienne hadn’t even thought to go, and that was infuriating.
Of course, this wasn’t quite the same as simply ‘knowing a woman’.
Unlike Ezekiel, Étienne was spontaneous and emotional. And wasn’t he the one destined to become Crown Prince? Regardless of Felicia Arbois’s existence, many noble ladies sought his attention, and Étienne rarely turned them away.
So this…
Étienne, not even fully understanding why, sat up. Iris, who had been lying down, blinked. Even as his shadow fell over her, the girl seemed unaware of what was about to happen.
And then he kissed her.
Étienne didn’t realize it himself, but there was something else at play. He was more jealous of Ezekiel than he knew.
…If only it hadn’t been Ezekiel.
