After the Ending, I Received the Second Male Lead as a Gift

When the door burst open, a black wolf-like dog stood there wagging its tail.

“Lou?”

Startled by his sudden appearance, I froze in the middle of putting on my earrings, eyes wide open.

Ludwin strolled inside.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed he was wearing a leash.

It was just that Ludwin was the one leading, while Lena was being dragged along.

“Lena?”

“Ah, miss.”

Knowing that I would be too busy with the flower shop’s grand opening to handle everything myself, I’d asked Lena to take care of smaller tasks the day after Ludwin arrived.

He seemed to know that Lena was one of my people, so he followed her words to a certain degree.

I’d assigned Lena because she liked animals, but her face turned pale when she heard my request.

 

‘If, if it bites me, you’ll have to take responsibility for the rest of my life, miss.’

 

Lena trembled as she accepted the leash with tearful eyes.

Ludwin, seemingly annoyed by Lena’s reaction, barked as if to ask what she thought of him, causing Lena to let out a gasp and sit down in fear.

And now, with the same frightened look on her face as back then, Lena followed Ludwin inside.

“Lou suddenly asked me to put a leash on him, so I did… Then he dragged me here.”

Ludwin came up and sat down right in front of me, placing the leash Lena held at my feet.

When I realized what that meant, I asked him with a puzzled look on my face.

“…Lou, are you planning to go today, too?”

In response to my question, Ludwin just wagged his tail. The sparkling eyes seemed to answer, saying it was only natural he’d be accompanying me.

Even though he was in animal form and appeared more innocent than the Ludwin I knew, this behavior was still confusing.

‘It’s a relief he’s not biting anyone, but this isn’t the Ludwin I know from the original story, is it?’

There was no trace of the dark aura typical of the blackened second male lead, only a wave of pink cuteness.

Whimper!

When I continued to stare at him without a word, Ludwin started to rub his head against my shoulder affectionately.

His eyes shining as if asking, ‘Aren’t you going to take me with you?’

‘So cute!’

Caught off guard by his sudden display of affection, I felt my resolve waver.

At the same time, my rational side screamed.

‘Get a grip! This is Ludwin, the second male lead!’

I had to remember that treating him like a pet could have dire consequences.

Yet, before I knew it, my hand was already reaching for Ludwin’s head.

‘No, stop!’

I desperately pulled my hand back.

Ludwin tilted his head, looking at my hand and then at me.

It seemed like he was asking me why I didn’t pet him.

His eyes sparkled.

“Ugh!”

I couldn’t bear it anymore.

I closed my eyes tightly and tried to calm myself by recalling the expense report I’d organized for the flower shop the day before.

Whimper.

When I withdrew my hand, Ludwin looked very disappointed.

On the contrary, I felt like I was breaking into a cold sweat.

‘I almost made a big mistake.’

Even though he looked cute, Ludwin was still Ludwin. There might be an ulterior motive behind his affectionate behavior.

For example, perhaps trying to catch me off guard so he could get rid of everything related to Lilian.

I nodded.

‘Yes, that’s the Ludwin I know from the original story.’

My mind finally felt calm again.

Having narrowly avoided a crisis, I asked Ludwin with a stern face.

“I’m going to be very busy today because the flowers are going to be delivered to the store. Are you sure you want to come along?”

Ludwin still didn’t say anything, just continued wagging his tail. That didn’t seem to matter to him.

‘Yes, you still want to come. Ugh.’

There was no way to stop him. He would just escape and follow me to the shop if I left him at home. What’s more, at the moment, he was in animal form and couldn’t communicate.

“Just take him with you, Miss. Even if you leave him at home, he’ll escape and find you. We can’t stop him.”

“Ah.”

Lena was right.

The day after I received Ludwin as a gift, I told him to stay home and rest, only to find he’d arrived at the flower shop ahead of me when I got there.

He’d escaped the mansion shortly after I left.

Even when I snuck out after making sure he was asleep the next day, he somehow managed to beat me to the carriage.

It was like he had a sixth sense.

Thanks to this, my plan to stay as far away as possible was long gone.

‘Why on earth are you following me around?’

I really wanted to ask him that.

He ignored any mention of returning to the duchy, and aside from when I was bathing or using the bathroom, he followed me everywhere, all day long.

As if declaring, ‘I’m the master’s shadow!’

Everyone said it was cute that he followed me around, but I felt like I was suffocating.

It wasn’t just that.

Rationally, I knew this creature was the fearsome second male lead, but what I saw before me was just a big, tail-wagging dog.

And I have a weakness for cute things.

Think about it.

Even if you hug him, he’s so big that he’ll fill both arms!

Sleek, shiny black fur!

Clear and transparent amber eyes!

A huge dog that smiled brightly and waged its tail every time it looked back!

It was lethal.

My whole body trembled.

‘So cute! I want to pet him! I want to hug him!’

This was practically torture.

There was no mention in the original story of Ludwin being this cute.

In the story, he was a dangerous beast that tore his enemies to shreds!

I couldn’t hide my distress.

‘Ugh, he’s scary, but so cute.’

At first, the fear had made it bearable, but as time went on, his cuteness became overwhelming.

With him constantly seeking affection with a bright smile, was he really that prickly second male lead from the story? Watching him reminded me of a golden retriever, famous for its love of people.

Perhaps because of the difference in character, I kept forgetting that this dog was Ludwin.

I slumped my shoulders.

‘I need to get rid of him quickly.’

If this continued, I felt like I was going to make a mistake sooner rather than later.

Did I have a weird expression on my face as I stood there pondering? Ludwin gently licked the back of my hand.

I flinched in surprise and looked down to see bright amber eyes looking up at me.

“Ugh!”

Suddenly I felt like my heart was aching.

There was no way I could withstand his innocent, loving gaze any longer.

Even if I left him behind, he would find me anyway, so it was better to just take him with.

Yes, it was inevitable.

As soon as I made that decision, a sense of peace settled over me.

“Then, you have to behave today too, okay?”

Woof!

Ludwin wagged his tail happily, answering energetically as if he was very satisfied with my decision.

 

***

 

Shad Palace where the crown prince of the Rem Empire resided.

The palace, a perfect blend of white and gold decorations, exuded elegance as someone ran down its corridors.

She was Lilian, the daughter of Marquis of Biod who’d recently become the Crown Princess.

Lilian, her bright blue hair streaming behind her like a clear sky, arrived at a certain room and flung open the door without hesitation.

“Pedro!”

“Lili?”

Crown Prince Pedro, who was busy attending to government affairs, put down the teacup he was drinking from and opened his eyes wide at his beloved wife, Lilian, who suddenly visited him.

“Pedro, did you know?”

Lilian waved the newspaper in her hand.

“Lili, what am I supposed to know?”

“Oops!”

When Lilian got excited, she had a habit of spewing out words without any context.

Pedro’s amused response made Lilian’s cute face flush red. Realizing her mistake, she quickly spread the newspaper out in front of Pedro.

“Look at this! Tyria!”

“Hmm? Didn’t Lady Dilucia go down to her estate?”

Without answering, Lilian pointed to a specific part of the newspaper, and Pedro turned his gaze to it.

“What is it?”

“Tyria opened a flower shop!”

“Pfft!”

At Lilian’s words, Pedro spat out the tea he was drinking.

Fortunately, not a single drop hit Lilian, but the servant standing next to him took most of it.

The servant silently handed a handkerchief to the crown prince and then wiped his own face.

“Cough! Now, wait a minute, Lady Dilucia opened a flower shop?”

“Yes!”

“Wasn’t there one of your friends who specializes in killing every plant she tries to grow, whether by drying them out, rotting them, or for unknown reasons?”

Lilian’s face also became serious.

“Yes, that’s Tyria.”

“But that friend opened a flower shop?”

Lilian nodded enthusiastically.

“The grand opening is next week.”

“In the capital?”

“In the Dilucia territory.”

“Hmm. Apart from our wedding, this is the most interesting news of the year.”

The crown prince wore a mischievous smile, and so did the crown princess.

“You’re going, right?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t miss such an entertaining event.”

“Then I’ll send a congratulatory gift first.”

“Good idea, Lili.”

As he said that, he lightly squeezed Lilian’s wrist and pulled her closer.

“Pedro?”

“Before the gift, let’s take care of another matter first.”

Lilian’s round eyes grew even rounder as she looked up at Pedro, who was smiling broadly.

“Weren’t you busy with government affairs?”

“Hmm, I’m on a break right now.”

“Then I won’t refuse!”

Lilian kissed Pedro’s lips like a fish in water.

The crown prince returned his beloved wife’s kiss and gestured for the servant to leave.

This couple, destined by the heavens, had become an inseparable pair of lovebirds that would never exist again in the world.

That was one of the reasons why Tyria gritted her teeth and left for her territory.

 

***

 

As warned, the day before the grand opening was hectic.

Flowers arrived one after another, along with other supplies and tools, all at once.

“Ah! Put those flowers here!”

“Wait! Don’t place them there!”

Even though I ran around all day, I only finished cleaning up when the sun had almost set.

“Phew.”

After putting the last flower back in place, I straightened my back, wiping the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand.

Looking around, I saw that the shop was more or less ready.

“At least we’ll be able to open tomorrow. Ugh, I’m so tired.”

Exhausted, I rubbed my shoulder and leaned back in my chair.

Despite the fatigue, I was overjoyed to see the shop filled with beautiful fresh flowers, just as I had envisioned.

Although I’m completely drained.

“Well, that’s because you spent a week in the capital for the national wedding.”

A man in his late thirties, with long brown hair tied to the side, emerged from the storage area, clapping his hands.

He kept teasing me with a smile on his face.

“You should’ve postponed the opening date, as I suggested.”

“Jeffrey.”