I really hope the Princess can reel her brother in. Ran has her hands full with romance, she doesn't need nobles being antagonistic for no reason lol. I wonder what will end up happening with the Crown Prince, he's such an idiot it won't go well if he's crowned Emperor
@Kynnath Agreed, I also thought it strange that not receiving a title from the Emperor somehow made the Luchia Duchy 'lesser'... It's usually time that matters in real life, as you said
For the Princess' brother, he seems to believe that power is the most important thing, to the point where he ignores other motivations people might have. Like Ran "will be nothing" when she's no longer head of Lachia - he assumes a lot of things regarding the relationship between Ran and Yus here; Ran is a block between Yus and power, and is of course therefore an enemy to Yus. The Prince does the same though even more extremely (he's so sure he's right he outright states stuff like this to Yus, I get the feeling the Princess' brother would test the waters first). They're both also kinda sexist lol. The thoughts and feelings of women aren't really taken into account by either of them. I don't think the Princess' brother think Ran likes the Prince; the Prince likes her and that's all that matters. Since Ran won't be Head of Lachia forever it's only a matter of time in their eyes, probably.
Exhibit B: why would the Princess envy Ran, when she has the most prestigious position a woman can have apart except Empress? The Princess saying she was sold which implies that her current position isn't one she's chosen; in contrast, Ran has
freedom in addition to power. She could in theory get married before or right when Yus takes over the Lachia duchy - to whoever she wants! Obvious to us readers but not to the brother apparently. Yknow before writing this out I thought the brother was smarter than the Prince, but now I'm not so sure