“Why are you acting like this all of a sudden, brother?”
The sudden change made Letticia suspect that her brother might have eaten something bad.
Lenard, by nature, doesn’t meddle in Letticia’s romantic affairs. Although he feels uneasy about the fact that the person Letticia likes is his friend, he doesn’t go as far as forcing them to break up or making unnecessary comments.
After all, relationships are a matter between the people involved. As long as the person isn’t a complete scoundrel or the relationship doesn’t harm the Sharon family, even family members shouldn’t meddle too much. This principle is a part of the Sharon family tradition that Lenard follows well.
However, ignoring his sister’s baffled expression, Lenard repeated what he had said earlier.
“Confess to him quickly. Don’t beat around the bush with something like asking for a date. Just say, ‘I like you. Let’s be in a relationship.’ Be straightforward.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to, but how could I possibly do that?!”
Even though love marriages had become more common, from Letticia’s perspective, the views on romantic relationships in this world were still very conservative.
The customs, such as the ‘courtship season’ and the ‘visitation season,’ as well as the rule that you must not dance exclusively with your partner even if you are dating, all seemed inefficient and frustrating to Letticia.
But no matter how much Letticia disliked these traditions, there were plenty of people who found peace of mind in adhering to them. Especially someone like Ezkhiel, who came from an old noble family and always upheld decorum regardless of the situation, was not inclined to break the rules.
So if Letticia rushed things too much, not only would Ezkhiel be flustered, but he might also feel burdened.
“We’ve barely gone on a few dates, and I’ve only invited him to the mansion once. Even Ezkhiel knows I’m not someone who falls in love at first sight. If I say, ‘Let’s date,’ right now, it would definitely seem too soon. He’s secretly insecure, you know.”
“Secretly insecure? That’s an understatement.”
Lenard grimaced.
“That guy thinks that if you meet him three more times, you’ll probably get bored of him.”
“What?!”
Letticia’s voice hit such a high pitch that even an opera singer would have been envious, shaking the entire carriage. Lenard couldn’t be more grateful that the carriage was equipped with soundproof magic tools today.
“Me? Get bored of him? Why would he think something like that?!”
“Because he’s incredibly insecure. He’s somewhat confident about his abilities, but when it comes to his charm, he thinks he has none.”
“I had my suspicions, but still….”
Letticia recalled Ezkhiel’s previous remarks and rubbed her forehead. She thought she had reassured him when she emphasized her sincerity during their conversation in the garden, but it was clear now that her words hadn’t gotten through.
“It’s quite serious. He even said he was worried you might just pity him and were trying to help him succeed with you out of charity.”
“What?! What kind of nonsense is that?!”
“That sort of thing happens often among old noble families. Men build friendships first, then introduce their sisters or female relatives to get them married. Ezkhiel probably witnessed a lot of such arrangements around him, so it’s no surprise he misunderstood.”
Letticia felt like slamming the ground in frustration if only she could. She hadn’t expected a cultural gap between old nobles and new noble families to emerge in such an unexpected way.
“From the start, why has Lord Bright been so self-deprecating? He’s handsome, has a good personality, and a great job—what is he lacking? The fact that he isn’t an heir?”
“That’s a big part of it, but I think it’s mostly due to his upbringing.”
At the ominous word, Letticia tensed up. Now that she thought about it, it was rare for a male lead in romance fantasy novels not to have some tragic backstory.
“…Did Lord Bright say that himself?”
“Of course not. He’s not the type to badmouth anyone around him. It’s just my assumption.”
“Then why do you think that? Maybe he met some terrible people at the academy and got that impression.”
“From the way he talks, it feels like he’s repeating something he heard from someone else. Usually, in such cases, it’s either the parents or a private tutor. But considering the traditions of the Bright Baron family, it’s more likely to be his parents.”
Lenard let out a sigh, seemingly not happy about it, and began his story.
“The Bright Baron family is the epitome of an old noble family. The title and wealth are exclusively passed to the eldest son. The second son lives as a spare, just in case something happens to the eldest. Once the eldest has offspring, the second son’s role is considered complete, and he is cast aside. With a family like that, it’s obvious what kind of things Ezkhiel must have heard growing up.”
“What kind of things?”
“…Something like, ‘Don’t act weak like a girl,’ or similar remarks.”
Even though Lenard toned down the language, Letticia couldn’t contain her anger. The mere thought of Ezkhiel hearing such things made her furious.
“‘Weak like a girl’? Really? They actually said that?”
“Most young people don’t say things like that anymore, but the older generation does. If you hear those old men at the gentlemen’s club talk, you’d lose all respect for them.”
“What a joke. They should focus on being proper gentlemen themselves. Did they stuff their years of experience into a trash heap or what?”
“Hey.”
Lenard began to suspect whether Letticia had been sneaking out at night to hang around with strange people. How else could a debutante pick up such rough language?
“…Anyway, while our parents raised us with respect, most families aren’t like that. Especially in a family like Ezkhiel’s, children who don’t turn out the way their parents want are barely treated as human. And as you know, Ezkhiel doesn’t exactly have the kind of personality favored by old noble families.”
“Does that really matter so much? He’s way better than those arrogant, ill-mannered jerks.”
“In noble society, if you come across as weak, you’re seen as an easy target. Sometimes arrogance is a necessary tactic. There’s a reason why the traditional image of old nobles includes loving hunting, excelling in sports, drinking heavily, and gambling—it’s all part of a strategy.”
Lenard, who frequently interacted with noble society and the gentlemen’s clubs as an heir, understood the dynamics of the old noble circles very well—sometimes even better than Letticia or Kenneth, who were more active in social gatherings.
“Anyway, considering he grew up in an old noble family and only interacted with similar families, it’s no wonder Ezkhiel lacks confidence. Whether his parents’ remarks made sense or not, he grew up witnessing their words being validated over years. Of course, he would believe them to be true.”
“That makes sense… It’s like his experiences have reinforced the logic of those remarks.”
Letticia pressed her throbbing temples and leaned against the window. For the first time, she could understand why some people resorted to smoking.
‘Does Ezkhiel Bright really need a tragic backstory? He’s almost like a secondary character anyway. Why bother giving him such a setup? Just because someone’s good-looking, do they automatically get saddled with a painful past?’
The male protagonist, Matthias, and the Averil brothers all had major wounds caused by their parents and family issues as part of their character development. Tragic family backstories are a common trope for male leads in romance fantasy stories, often used to enhance their appeal or progress their relationship with the heroine.
But while it’s called a tragic past, in reality, such experiences would be devastating enough to leave permanent scars on one’s life. Particularly if it involves parents, it could create lifelong trauma that’s nearly impossible to overcome.
Even if such hardships add depth or charm to fictional characters, in real life, it’s better to have fewer of those struggles.
‘…No, but at least Ezkhiel Bright didn’t end up twisted like Matthias or the Averil brothers. Maybe that makes it easier for him to overcome.’
Ezkhiel didn’t have Matthias’s victim complex or display hostility toward everyone outside his family like the Averil brothers. Instead, he was so polite and well-mannered that even Letticia’s friends acknowledged it. He seemed to have overcome most of his struggles, except for his lack of confidence in his own charm.
“Alright, then I’ll confess to Lord Bright quickly and announce it at the ball. If I go that far, he’ll have no choice but to believe that I like him.”
“…Even if he says you’re being too hasty or that you’re misunderstanding something, don’t get angry.”
“I won’t. From now on, I’ll exercise infinite patience when it comes to him.”
Letticia answered Lenard’s warning with sincerity. Even though she usually approached things lightly and handled them with ease, she was well aware that this matter wouldn’t be easy.
Letticia had never forgotten that she was a reincarnated individual and that this world was based on a novel. But at the same time, she knew very well that this world was a real place where people actually lived.
‘If this world truly functioned like the original story, all my investments would’ve succeeded easily. Even those three fools would’ve immediately changed their ways after hearing a few words from me and fallen head over heels.’
Changing someone is no simple task. Breaking down beliefs that someone has learned from a young age, reinforced by experience, and turned into convictions is even harder.
Ezkhiel had experienced rejection of his personality and charm for years. Simply telling him, ‘You’re wrong,’ wouldn’t work.
‘If he takes it as mere pity, that would be the most moderate reaction.’*
So, to change Ezkhiel’s mindset, Letticia was prepared for a long game. Only by putting in that much effort could she hope to change him.
‘Even if I can’t completely alter his life values, at least I can make him believe that I genuinely like him.’
🍓; *Letticia is aware that changing Ezekiel’s perception of himself won’t be easy. Since he has spent years being denied validation, he might not believe her sincerity. Instead, he might interpret her actions as pity rather than genuine affection. Even so, Letticia considers that reaction to be relatively mild compared to other possible responses, such as outright rejection or disbelief.
