Isn’t the Second Prince supposed to be in a period of self-growth and avoiding social circles these days?
Considering that Ludger didn’t appear to be surprised at all… did he know beforehand that these people were attending the gathering?
“By any chance, Young Duke, the reason you attended the gathering today… was it to meet the Second Prince?”
“Yes. Since His Highness the Second Prince has finally shown his face at the social circle in a long time, I wished to greet him.”
“I was just an extra, then…”
Well, thinking about it, it’s most likely that he added me as his partner to the gathering as an afterthought, since it was originally an event he intended to attend from the beginning.
Ludger is the type who likes to deliberate on which gathering to attend.
I was merely stating objective facts, however, Ludger began to make excuses with a flustered expression, perhaps thinking I was offended and complaining.
“Oh, of course I was originally going to attend today’s gathering… however, I haven’t thought of Sir as an extra. I just thought it was a good opportunity to taste the new menu they’re going to introduce.”
“No, actually, it’s fine even if the Duke has considered me as an extra! That wasn’t meant as a criticism.”
“Still….”
“It’s really okay. Should we go ahead now?”
I took a deep breath.
‘What should I do… Should I believe that the male protagonist won’t get rid of me later for small reasons?’
The Second Prince is generally gruff and lacks compassion for others, but he treats the female lead like a cherished possession. He’s essentially the epitome of an ideal romance fantasy male lead.
In other words, if he feels that something might be harmful to him or the female lead, he might show his crazy tendencies when the female protagonist wouldn’t be around.
‘Let’s not… make the female lead dislike me…. That’s the only way to survive….’
Since the female lead is a kind-hearted person, there shouldn’t be major problems as long as I don’t directly harm her.
Today, I would just breathe quietly, greet them calmly, and minimize my presence as if disappearing.
Perhaps Ludger had misunderstood my determined expression as being anxious, so he comforted me in a soft voice.
“His Highness the Second Prince may have a somewhat prickly personality, but he’s not a bad person. There’s no need to be so nervous.”
“…Yes, yes.”
I’m more worried about whether that prickly temperament might end up getting my throat slit. Also, weren’t you and those people at odds? Why is everything so peaceful now?
I walked, my head still confused to the point where I couldn’t tell if I was moving on my own or my feet were dragging me, when I reached a sudden conclusion.
‘Ludger has to fall in love with the female lead Elisa for the story to progress.’
A peaceful ending where he quits being the Phantom Thief Heilbronner and his involvement with black magic disappears.
In order to reach that ending, the prerequisite was that Elisa needed to influence Ludger.
‘Maybe I just don’t know yet, maybe Ludger is already in love with Elisa?’
I subtly asked.
“Is the Duke familiar with those two?”
“The Second Prince and I have interacted several times due to royal events. As for Lady Serphenne… hmm, just a casual acquaintance?”
“I see.”
He may not be showing it on the outside, but judging from his reaction right now, he didn’t seem to have any feelings of passion for the person he is supposed to have a crush on. Maybe he was just too dense.
If he had known the other party at least by face, it wouldn’t have been love at first sight. Then there must have been some kind of trigger….
‘Could it be that he’ll fall in love with her today? By any chance… Today’s incident is the trigger?’
I thought about it a lot, but the original memories, which I had forgotten, couldn’t be revived miraculously.
For now, I decided to observe the situation. My goal was to avoid creating any issues with the protagonists and let Ludger’s affection develop naturally!
“Greetings, Your Highness the Prince Alphonse.”
Ludger greeted Alphonse gracefully. I also bowed and greeted him from the side.
It was more of a knight’s greeting than a social one, but it wasn’t inappropriate, so it should be fine.
‘He’s quite handsome up close… Hmm, but he’s not really my type.’
There wasn’t the same impact as when I first saw Ludger in person.
Well, it’s true that in romance fantasy novels, over 90% of the time, the dark-haired characters end up winning. However, in my opinion, Ludger was much more handsome, so I felt a little sympathetic for the silver-haired Ludger who was destined to lose.
Alphonse responded to Ludger with a provocative smile.
“It’s been a while, Lord Ludger. Nevertheless, I’ve heard you’ve been involved in some interesting events lately?”
“Interesting events, you say….”
“I think it’s the first time I’ve seen Lord Duke with a female companion. Indeed, she is a beautiful young lady who can capture the heart of the young prince.”
‘Listen….’
I wanted to float away like air, but I ended up becoming the center of attention from the very first remark.
I could feel the curious eyes of the guests, who were secretly peeking around us, also being drawn to me.
‘That’s the typical thinking of a romance fantasy male lead! Don’t interpret everything with your romantic brain!’
However, I couldn’t also interrupt the conversation between the member of the Royal Family and the Young Duke and exclaim, “That’s not it!”. I felt frustrated by the sudden situation.
At that moment, a gentle voice intervened to mediate the atmosphere.
“Your Highness, it’s impolite to speak like that right after meeting.”
“…Elisa.”
“Your Highness the Duke, I hope you could be generous and understanding. Our Prince is a bit riled up lately.”
With her golden eyelashes fluttering in the wind and her pink lips upturned in a gentle smile, her very appearance was like the personification of ‘loveliness.’
Although she was about two years older than me, she actually looked younger.
“Nonsense.”
“Oh, here you go again. I told you I’d make you a pie later as an apology.”
Elisa gently closed her eyes after coaxing the much younger Prince Alphonse like a child.
It seemed they were in a sort of push-and-pull phase of their budding relationship. They probably weren’t officially dating yet
‘Oh… Is this what it feels like when the main characters in a romance novel are flirting in front of you?’
However, since I actively wanted to be a backdrop, I was actually quite pleased. I hoped they would lose interest in me and move on…
But my earnest wish was shattered mercilessly. It was because the female lead actively acknowledged me.
“Your Highness the Duke, I hope you can forgive Prince Alphonse’s impoliteness and introduce your companion to us. She has a face I haven’t seen in high society, so I’m curious.”
Elisa’s kind eyes turned to me. Alphonse on the other hand, gave me a cold, disinterested look. He seemed to be true to the setting that he was not interested in anything other than the female protagonist.
“This is Sir Clara Weyburn, the Captain of the Ruby Knights. I have been indebted to her for some business matters, so as a token of gratitude…”
Ludger faithfully replayed the introduction he had used earlier for Count Morsal.
“Ah… The Ruby Knights, is it? The ones chasing that Phantom Thief Heilbronner.”
“Yes…. that’s correct, Your Highness.”
The fact that the thief we were talking about was right in front of us was amusing, but I maintained my poker face and answered politely without showing it.
“Indeed, the Phantom Thief caused some trouble in the Duke’s jurisdiction as well.”
“Yes.”
“I hope to hear good news from the Ruby Knights.”
“I will do my utmost to repay Your Highness’s undue trust.”
It seemed like the formalities were wrapping up. I sighed inwardly.
In the end, I had managed not to upset the male and female leads, who were likely to be the winners in this world. That was enough for me. It would be great if they could just forget my name as they went by.
Just as we were about to wrap things up and return to my seat, Elisa smiled gently and held Ludger back.
“Duke Kassen.”
“Yes, Lady Serphenne.”
“Hehe, you don’t have to address me that formally. I told you before that you can call me by my name.”
‘Oh?’
It was a tone that suggested that there was already some history between the two.
However, Ludger coldly rejected her friendly suggestion.
“No. I cannot afford to be so disrespectful to the Prince’s lady-in-waiting. Thank you for your kind suggestion.”
“That’s unfortunate… Well, Lord Duke, I have something I’d like to discuss with you privately. Could you spare some time later? We can meet on the terrace for a moment.”
‘Wow. Is it okay to do that so openly in front of the male protagonist?’
As expected of an obsessive male protagonist of a romance fantasy novel, I thought Alphonse would surely show jealousy and try to intervene.
I subtly glanced at Alphonse out of curiosity.
However, Alphonse was just looking down at Elisa with adoring eyes. As if he was just completely absorbed in the role of the male protagonist who was only obsessed with the female protagonist.
For a moment, I felt an inexplicable chill.
It was as if I was looking at a paper doll faithfully adhering to its role rather than a real person.
‘Maybe, I’m just getting overly immersed…’
I erased the thoughts that had suddenly surfaced in my mind. More than that, I was excited about the thought of Ludger having a secret conversation with Elisa today, as if waiting for a new history to be written.
So Naturally, I assumed Ludger would agree to her request….
“I don’t wish to be disrespectful to my companion by leaving her alone. If it’s acceptable for Sir Clara to join us, I’ll be happy to do so.”
Ludger used me as an excuse to refuse!
T/N: My Kofi is up again! Visit my page to read advanced chapters 😘
