In Kirie's eyes, her younger brother really did seem a little abnormal. He had always believed that "like father, like son," and that Battler had inherited his father's bad habits wholesale—meant in the derogatory sense, of course. But today, her younger brother was acting far too normal.
His smile was neither fawning nor arrogant.
Everything about him radiated a gentlemanly bearing, and even his speech and manners were refined. Could this be what growth looked like? He was no longer the younger brother she knew, but it was a positive change nonetheless.
"How could I possibly be imagining things? Please get along well, all right? Isn't that right, Father?"
Rudolf Ushiromiya looked at his son with mild surprise, then nodded.
"This year, too, he's as impossible to read as ever, isn't he? Does he still only allow Genji to attend to him?" Aunt Rosa seemed particularly concerned about this matter.
Old Woman Kumazawa took over and answered.
"The master seems willing to trust only Brother Genji. Servants like us haven't even had the chance to catch a glimpse of him lately."
The master they were talking about was Kinzō Ushiromiya.
Kinzō Ushiromiya was the head of the Ushiromiya Family. He loved Western culture, had six toes, and his wife had already passed away.
His best friend was the head servant, Genji Ronoue, followed by his personal physician, Terumasa Nanjo. All three of them were fond of chess.
Kinzō Ushiromiya had originally belonged to a branch of the Ushiromiya Family. He had lived in Taiwan during his youth and inherited the Ushiromiya Family before the war.
He had joined the military as a combat engineer during the war and acquired a large quantity of gold while stationed on Rokkenjima Island.
Kinzō Ushiromiya was a skilled gambler, held deeply ingrained sexist beliefs