CHAPTER 86

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4 (3) – 13

The blows that rained down on him were almost naïve in their monotony.

It was as if every punch was thrown with the weight of a different grievance filled memory behind them. But even if every hit was considered like that, considering the weight difference between them, they still hurt.

"You're...!"

As Klaus raised his arms to protect his face, Franz pummeled them. As the blows thudded against them, Klaus thought that his arms might break under his younger brother's power.

"You're always taking away the things I want!"

The love he should have received as a child. The expectations of his parents. The trust of the people. He had even snatched away his first love.

He had a handsome face, he was cultured and he was clever. Just what lay behind the eyes of the younger brother who envied his talented elder? Klaus knew.

"Just what more do you want!? How much more do you have to take from me before you're satisfied!?"

Franz was by no means a useless person. He had a strong body and studied diligently. He was an ordinary man who made up for his shortcomings by working hard. His character may be slightly skewed, but it was never warped to a serious degree. He always tried to think logically and seemed like the picture of excellence, never letting any of his weaknesses show.

"Argh, isn't it enough already!? You have everything you want, don't you!? This is the only thing I have!"

The only thing that Franz had over Klaus was that healthy body. People often whispered about them at an early age 'if only it had been the other way around'. If only Franz instead had the weakness that was supposed to have taken Klaus' life before he was ten. The number of people who thought that wasn't small.

Yet, the reason Franz didn't hate his older brother and could endure all those cold glares was because he thought that Klaus would die young. Eventually, all those eyes that showered Klaus with affection would have had to turn to him one day.

And yet...

"Why are you alive!? Why did you come back!? Why!?"

As he voiced out his remorse, Franz kept hitting Klaus. As he let his emotions take over, his voice turned into a scream.

"How much do you think I've worked for this!? How desperately long it took!? And you're just going to take it all away again... Brotheeeeeeeeeeeeer!!"

Franz had always worked desperately to not seem like the inferior substitute to Klaus as an inheritor. But, no matter how hard he tried, Franz could never catch up to Klaus. His parents, his relatives, even the servants, all of them only looked Klaus' way. They didn't even notice how hard Franz worked. He was only ever just Klaus' substitute.

But, Franz couldn't give up on the succession. Because as a child, it was for that reason alone his parents ever looked his way, his one source of pride.

Franz held a deep insecurity when it came to Klaus. He envied what Klaus had, was jealous of his talents, admired what he was and also hated him for it.

Klaus knew just what went through the mind of his poor younger brother.

Because, in a way, Klaus was the same.

"I never wanted to be a genius, either."

Klaus spat that out, along with some blood. Through the gaps in his arm, he could see Franz's panting face. Klaus didn't know how many times that Franz, who was riding on top of him after he fell on his back, had punched at him anymore.

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