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

Even though his amber eyes had lost focus, I was still glad to see them.

For some unknown reason, the frightening transformation that had been going nonstop halted for now.

I was terrified that something might suddenly happen to Ludwin right in front of my eyes, so I was relieved just seeing him come to his senses.

“…”

His eyes slowly turned toward me, and soon, as if recognizing me, they widened slightly.

“Are you alright?”

Seeing him panting heavily, I forgot my fear and, as I had done when Ludwin was a child, I stroked his head.

“Lu, it’s okay now. So don’t worry.”

Ludwin remained motionless for a while, just lying there as I patted him.

His breathing and complexion seemed to be slowly returning to normal.

After a moment, Ludwin raised his head and looked up at me, then lightly placed his large, pale hand on top of mine.

“Ah.”

Only then did I realize that my hand was trembling slightly.

He looked at me with a pale face and then smiled, his transparent amber eyes curving into a gentle expression.

It was a soft smile that looked like the one from my dream.

“Tia… ah.”

I flinched at that moment.

He lost consciousness again after saying those words.

I stared down at Ludwin, bewildered by what he had said.

‘What did he just… say?’

At that moment, I heard the voices of patrolling guards. Although they were still a bit far off, they were clearly heading in this direction.

The noise brought me back to my senses, and I quickly looked around and then down at my lap.

Ludwin, who had fainted, was lying across my knees.

And he was naked!

“What should I do?”

If he had fainted in his animal form, I would have called for help from the guards!

No, showing Ludwin in his current state to others was dangerous, regardless of his form.

Who knew when he might transform again?

‘I need to get out of here immediately.’

I properly covered Ludwin with a shawl and hugged him tightly. I could feel his solid muscles clearly, but now was not the time to be embarrassed.

‘Ugh! He’s too heavy!’

He was much heavier than I expected, perhaps because of his muscular build or because his animal form’s weight applied to his human form as well.

I couldn’t lift him alone. Even though I used all my strength to drag him, I could only manage a few steps. My arms felt like they were going to fall off.

‘I should have exercised more regularly!’

Regret is always too late.

Meanwhile, the voices of the guards continued to get closer.

“Oh, so that guy got angry and…”

“Great! He’ll never again…”

They were only about a block away.

‘What should I do? At this rate…’

I closed my eyes tightly.

Just then, someone placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Captain.”

“Eek!”

Startled, I hugged Ludwin tightly and turned my head swiftly, only to see a familiar face.

“Jeffrey?”

Why was Jeffrey here?

I didn’t know why, but I felt relieved to see someone I knew.

But I didn’t let my guard down. No matter how much I trusted Jeffrey, I couldn’t reveal Ludwin’s true identity.

“Jeffrey, this is…”

Jeffrey sighed briefly as if he had noticed me trying to hide Ludwin in my arms, and then he took off his long coat.

“Ah.”

Before I could say anything, Jeffrey wrapped the unconscious Ludwin in the coat and slung him over his shoulder.

He looked around and then held out his hand to me.

“Let’s get out of here first.”

I don’t remember how we got back home.

I told Jeffrey to take Ludwin to my room through the back door, and I entered through the front, announcing my return.

Lena fussed over my face, asking if something had happened, but I brushed it off, saying I was just tired, and hurried upstairs.

“It’s me.”

I knocked and announced myself instead of turning on the light as I entered the room. There, I saw Ludwin lying on the bed with Jeffrey standing beside him.

Click.

I immediately locked the door and went inside.

It was a night with little moonlight, so the room was dark.

Just in case, I drew the curtains and turned on a small lamp beside the bed, casting a soft orange glow in the room.

“I heard some crazy guy was causing trouble during the day, so I came to check the situation, but what happened? Why is this person…?”

Jeffrey seemed to have realized who the person on my bed was—the missing Ludwin Rivolte, the Duke’s son.

Jeffrey seemed quite baffled by the situation, rubbing his face repeatedly with one hand.

‘Did he see Ludwin transforming?’

I thought about asking him but decided not to.

There was no need to create trouble unnecessarily.

“Jeffrey, keep what you saw today to yourself.”

“Captain!”

“And don’t sell this information to anyone, even the imperial family. This is not a request; it’s an order.”

“But…!”

Jeffrey took a deep breath and reluctantly replied, clearly displeased with my command.

“Understood.”

He didn’t seem to like my words.

‘I know he must be curious and worried.’

I knew Jeffrey cared about me.

He had always helped me when I was in trouble, and I was grateful for this. Normally, I would have explained and asked for his assistance, but this was my problem.

An issue involving a possessed character and a supporting male lead.

I told Jeffrey to leave.

“You can go now.”

He remained motionless for a while despite my words. Then, after a long sigh, he turned to leave.

“Call me whenever you need me. I’ll leave the flute here.”

After placing the special flute from Laplace Garden that only certain people could hear on the table next to the window, Jeffrey left through the window again.

After he left, I brought a chair next to the bed and sat down.

Although the transformations seemed to have stopped, Ludwin was still unconscious and sweating profusely.

‘He looks exhausted.’

The rapid transformations I had witnessed earlier were shocking. It was as if his transformation button had been pressed and gotten stuck, causing his form to change constantly.

It must have caused an immense strain on his body.

I couldn’t understand why Ludwin, who had been fighting so well before, suddenly became like that.

‘Could it be because of that smoke?’

The smoke had seemed suspicious since it appeared out of nowhere. It might not have been a simple smoke bomb but some dangerous drug.

Although I had inhaled the same smoke and was fine, Ludwin had ended up like this, so it must have been something that affected beastmen only.

‘It’s strange that he stayed in his animal form for so long. Was he affected by that drug before too? Who made it? Could it have been Duke Rivolte? Did they notice that I was with Ludwin and decided to target me too?’

The questions were like an elusive answer, leading my mind through a maze.

“Ugh!”

A sudden groan brought me back to my senses. Ludwin’s breathing was getting heavier, possibly because of a fever.

‘Oh no. This is no time for that.’

I decided to put off my thoughts for later.

Although I was still scared of Ludwin in his human form, I couldn’t ignore someone who had saved me and ended up like this because of it.

I brought a towel, wet it, and wiped off Ludwin’s sweat. The cool touch of the towel seemed to ease his groans slightly.

‘Should I also wipe his body?’

If his sweat cooled, his temperature might drop drastically, worsening his condition.

‘This is purely a medical procedure.’

With a pounding heart, I removed the blanket.

I almost screamed at the sight of his well-defined chest muscles, which were like a statue’s.

‘He’s a patient. He’s a sick person.’

Barely managing to keep my sanity, I wiped down his upper body while mentally chanting prayers I didn’t care about in my past life.

Then, I glared at something beneath the blanket.

The only thing left was his lower body.

I kept lowering and raising the wet towel, torn with indecision.

‘Ugh, I can’t handle below!’

Clutching the towel tightly with both hands, I admitted defeat.

Fortunately, at that moment, Ludwin regained consciousness.

“Mmm.”

His amber eyes appeared in the darkness, turning toward me. Blinking several times as if his vision was unclear, his large eyes with long lashes focused on me.

“Ah…”

I momentarily forgot the situation and stared blankly at Ludwin’s face.

It was my first time seeing Ludwin properly as an adult. Most of the time, I had seen him from a distance or avoided eye contact even when we were close.

‘This might not be the best time, but he’s still beautiful.’

I felt my heart fluttering just from looking at him.

I had thought he was pretty as a child, but I hadn’t expected him to grow up so well.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, I cleared my throat.

“Are you coming to your senses, Lord Rivolte?”

I politely addressed him by his title. He was no longer the popular Lu of Tyria’s flower shop but the Sword Master and supporting male lead, Ludwin Rivolte.

“This is Count Dilucia’s estate.”

Ludwin finally seemed to recognize me, his eyes widening before he suddenly sat up and pulled me toward him.

“Danger!”

“Ah!”

He frantically looked around, apparently thinking we were still among the assailants.

“Um, excuse me! Wa-wait a minute!”

Held in his arms against my will, I called out to Ludwin, embarrassed.

I was surprised to be suddenly pulled onto the bed, but that wasn’t the real issue.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I shouted the truth to him.

“M-my lord! Y-you’re not wearing anything right now!”

His frantic movements stopped. Then he looked down at his own body.

His silent acknowledgment made my face feel like it was burning. Since I was held tightly against him, I could clearly feel his muscles moving.

‘Ahhh!’

I squeezed my eyes shut as tightly as I could, terrified of seeing anything.

Then, to assert my innocence, I desperately shouted.