Dear Broom Knight.

Chapter 1044 Similar Lives

“Didn’t you say you’d only take care of me from now on?” Seeing Antirochus’s pained expression, Theodoric Lantana advised, “Then just resonate with me! You’ll immediately know what I like and what I need, and you can use my skills right away.”

“No, Theo,” Antirochus replied seriously. “I wasn’t even an adult when I made a pact with you!”
If you resonate with someone too many times, you might lose your self-awareness and become someone else entirely.

The lantana branch froze: "Another... me?"

“Yes, it will think like you, it will compete with you for sunlight and rain to take root, and it might even want to replace you,” Antirochus said softly. “You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

“That’s absolutely impossible!” The beautiful image in Ma Yingdan’s mind was immediately replaced by the terrible reality. She said firmly, “Antilochus is Antilochus! How can it be Theodoric!”

His focus was still somewhat problematic, but Antirochus was quite satisfied that he had finally made Lantana understand something again.

He nodded happily, and couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude towards the noisy Alexandra family.

Antirochus could not understand any of the things Antirochus talked about with Lantana.

But this is not the fault of Lantana.

Antirochus himself didn't know how to make the simple plants understand his true intentions.

It's very likely that once the setup was started, Ma Yingdan's attention was drawn away by the prelude... and she didn't listen to anything that followed.

But after witnessing several instances of Lady Ariges educating her children, Antirochus began to understand his own mistakes to some extent.

He grew up in a place where not understanding indirect communication could lead to serious consequences, even death. He's used to speaking in a cryptic, ambiguous way, making people guess what he's saying, because the more honest he is, the more he'll hurt himself.

Therefore, one should always beat around the bush when speaking.

But Lantana is a magical plant; though its life is brutal, it is also simple.

There's no need for Antiochus to tell him about the 'possibilities'; just tell him the worst possible outcome.

Just like when Alexandra teaches her own children, she never talks about the process, but goes straight to the result.

Smart children are actually very clear about what they are doing, so they only need to be rewarded or punished according to the results.

After all, Lantana was a bit older mentally, so as long as he was told that the bad outcome would be detrimental to both of them... In the past, Antirochus always only mentioned the disadvantages for Lantana herself, and as a result, Theo didn't care at all.

But after realizing that even if she damaged her own interests, it would only lead to a worse outcome for Antiochus, Lantana became fearful.

He should have known that for plants accustomed to reviving after losing leaves, flowers, and branches, some damage is not so important, and it doesn't even count as a sacrifice.

Therefore, if these costs could be used to help Antirochus grow rapidly, Theo would be quite willing.

But if it would harm Antirochus himself, Dio would definitely give up.

This was still Antirochus's fault. His heart, tainted by the intrigues and power struggles of the nobility, was left bewildered and helpless in the face of the pure, kind, and radiant Dio.

He glanced gratefully at the window opposite, then pursed his lips and drew the curtains... To show his gratitude to Miss Penelope, he decided to avoid looking at her distorted little face, which was pressed against the glass, tears streaming down her face and her throat was clearly visible.
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"Brother? Why did you close the curtains?" Euphemia put down the food basket in her hand and asked with a puzzled look.

She and Antilokos agreed to take turns going to the church for dinner once a week.

They don't need to bring breakfast or lunch; they can just go and eat. After all, they have classes and won't be able to go home until after 3 p.m.

The packed schedule chosen to save time turned into unbearable suffering for the two siblings... To show the Emilia royal family's respect for the Sun's Chosen and the Night's Favored, Queen Louise specially added some classes for them that were only open to church members.

Then, it was added before the courses they had previously selected... and it linked all their courses all the way up to the advanced level.

As long as Antirochus and Euphemia can master it, they can continue learning.

That's a lot of money.

No, it's a great thing that money can't buy.

Even with their packed schedules making them shudder, the two siblings couldn't bring themselves to say, "I'm not going to [school name] anymore."

Therefore, the course, which was originally expected to be completed in three years, has turned into uncertainty about when graduation will be possible.

Don't be fooled by the fact that the church lets people go home at 3 p.m.; that's because there's a lot of practice and homework involved.

Skill-based courses cannot be learned in just a short time in class; you have to practice hard at home.

They don't finish all their homework until 10 o'clock... but they have to get up at 6 o'clock in the morning.

Antirochus's magical meditation and Euphemia's basic knight training would both take at least two hours.

I got ready at 8:00 and went to have breakfast. The first class started at 9:00.

The cycle repeats itself endlessly, with no days off whatsoever.

Antirochus and Euphemia did indeed long for the day when they could learn whatever they wanted and fill their minds with knowledge.

But I never expected it to be so fulfilling.

Now, their only goal is to finish a course as soon as possible so they can have some rest time and not think about anything else.

Euphemia actually quite enjoys the task of fetching dinner; at least it allows her to breathe some fresh air a little longer.

Back home, all that remained was a table piled high with books and notes that made one's head spin. But Antirochus refused to hand over the work entirely to her… not that Antirochus wanted to do anything himself, but that he felt that, for better or worse, whether voluntary or not, he and Euphemia should share the household chores equally.

Antirochus felt ashamed that he had to share these tasks with his younger sister.

But he had no other choice.

After all, even if you don't need to cook, cleaning and washing clothes are not only troublesome, but also time-consuming.

Even now, at almost 16 years old, he can't handle it.

He actually wanted to hire a housekeeper like Ms. Alexis across from him.

But Antirochus also knew that Euphemia, who knew exactly how much money he had, wouldn't let him empty his pockets and would definitely contribute money with him.

That's not okay.

Antirochus did not believe that he did this out of excessive pride to waste both of their time.

He knows himself very well.

He's someone who has some principles, but he's not necessarily that noble.

Once he gets used to using Euphemia's money, he might very well...

People with impure bloodlines should avoid doing things that test themselves, lest they become a menace like their parents.

It's better to just live like an ordinary person.

Until he started earning money himself and then he could enjoy life.

Antirochus believed that he wouldn't remain so weak and dependent on his past achievements forever.

He pointed across the street and asked in a low voice, "Didn't you hear any noise when you came back?"

"Oh~ Pepe got beaten up again!" Euphemia exclaimed suddenly. "You can hardly hear anything on the street."

Theo happily stretched out his branches: "Of course, their family's sealing magic circle is very, very large."

The little girl was howling so loudly by the window, but only a tiny bit of her voice could be heard.

I went through a lot of trouble to collect the sound and amplify it for you to hear!

Euphemia glanced wistfully at her brother's plant companion, utterly bewildered as to why Theo always felt the need to let them hear the neighbor's child being disciplined.

“Actually, Penelope gets beaten up every two days, so there’s no need to keep listening to her, is there?” Antirochus couldn’t help but offer his suggestion.

Although he did gain some inspiration from the Alexandra family, Antirochus was also reluctant to overly intrude on other people's privacy.

“How can that be?” Theo said seriously. “I heard from Alexandra that she wants to give Penelope and Mikhail a complete childhood.”

Antiroxon blinked in amusement. Could it be...?

"You and Euphemia are both children who never had a childhood! This is a good opportunity to relive the joys of childhood."

Theo spoke with righteous indignation, but Antirochus and Euphemia could only look at each other blankly... Ariges' maternal love was abundant, but the two of them had never envied it.

Everyone's childhood is different, and theirs wasn't too bad either.

Although I know Penelope asked for it, but...

That small bamboo stick had become a nightmare for many children on Laurel Street, including the two of them.

After all, Penelope's crying was very distinctive... and the Alexandra family didn't always beat their children with the windows closed... It was rhythmic and loud.

It is comparable to the clock tower in the central square.

But Antirochus didn't know how to correct Dio's idea for a moment.

He knew very well that Theo had this idea because of Garrett's nonsense that time.

That guy practically described Harvey Castle as the stronghold of an evil god, and emphasized that Antirochus needed orthodox education and management to change his abnormal way of thinking.

Although Theo didn't think there was anything wrong with Antirochus and Euphemia, he believed that they had had a hard time and had never been happy.

So that's... that's not really normal!

“Theo, Euphemia and I are both good children,” Antirochus boasted, suppressing his shame. “Penelope’s childhood can’t teach us anything.”

"Oh...is that so?" Ma Yingdan looked a little dejected. "But those two are also siblings, and the brother always gives in to his sister. Their mother is extremely domineering, and they have no father at all...I thought it was similar!"

Euphemia frowned as she listened to the series of analogies, then suddenly asked, "Your sister also gets into trouble, right?"

“Hmm!” Theo answered readily, then immediately realized something was wrong, “Ahhh! No~ I just said it offhand…”

Euphemia nimbly leaped up, grabbed a Lantana branch, and immediately began the battle.

(End of this chapter)