I became a Male Lead in a Romance Fantasy Novel

Before Owen's arrival, Lucia had come out to the front of the mansion.

Although Marie suggested waiting inside, Lucia declined, feeling too anxious to sit still and wait due to her racing heart. It was strange that she was becoming familiar with the idea of meeting him, yet she felt so nervous.

Lucia checked her appearance one last time with the handheld mirror Marie brought out. Today, her attire was coordinated to match the tie color she had sent to Owen yesterday.

A wine-colored, splendid dress and garnet-crafted jewelry.

As she had adorned herself with her usual splendor, she worried whether Owen might dislike it...

But since he had made no comments on her somewhat dazzling outfit when they went to the auction house yesterday, she concluded it should be fine.

Hm.

How long had she waited?

Now, the black wolf insignia-adorned carriage, which she had grown quite accustomed to, arrived at the Duke Edelt's Manor.

As the attendant opened the carriage door, a tall man with black hair stepped out. Taking a sharp breath as he stepped out of the carriage, Lucia was taken aback.

His attire seemed to be coordinated with hers in a way that almost seemed intentional. Moreover, around his neck was the tie she had gifted him. Her heart fluttered at the fact that he hadn't discarded her gift and had personally worn it.

As Lucia was taken aback, Owen took a step closer and spoke up, "I've kept you waiting."

"...No, it's me who came early."

"Next time, I should come even earlier."

Owen murmured as if there was nothing he could do. Then, he handed the bouquet of flowers he was holding to Lucia.

"This is..."

As Owen offered the bouquet, Lucia's ruby eyes widened slightly.

"A token of appreciation."

"Thank you."

At Owen's brief response, Lucia's cheeks blushed a light pink. She reached out and embraced the bouquet Owen handed her.

The bouquet was made up of carnations, lisianthus, and ranunculus, all in shades of pink.

"All are pink flowers..."

As Lucia murmured while inhaling the scent of the flowers. Hearing her, Owen's lips curled up.

"Last time, you mentioned that you like pink."

"...You remembered."

As Owen's explanation continued, Lucia's heart started to beat unexpectedly fast. Just receiving a gift from him was surprising enough, but for him to remember my passing comment...

It was truly something she hadn't anticipated.

"Thank you, I like it."

"I'm glad to hear that."

Owen soon reached out his hand to her.

Upon this, Lucia hesitated for a moment. It was hard to let go of the bouquet he gave her by taking his hand.

After gazing at the flowers once more, Lucia instructed Mary to bring the bouquet to her bedroom. Only then did she place her hand on top of Owen's.

"Shall we go?"

As Owen asked, holding her hand, Lucia nodded.

The two of them got into the carriage one after the other, and the carriage set off towards its destination. When they arrived at an elegant building, the carriage came to a stop.

"This is..."

Owen, getting off the carriage, gazed at the building in front of him and trailed off. The grand building, constructed magnificently with white marble and the like, was reminiscent of a famous museum back in his hometown.

As Owen compared the building in front of him to modern buildings, Lucia spoke up, "It's an art gallery."

Since Owen had chosen the place they visited last time, today's destination was chosen by Lucia. After much consideration, she had picked this place.

It was a 'noble' place frequented by aristocrats, which Lucia herself also liked personally. Considering Owen had mentioned liking 'beautiful things' before, it seemed reasonable to assume he would enjoy an art gallery.

"I see."

Having heard her brief explanation, Owen silently nodded. Just as Lucia had chosen this place based on her own reasons, Owen seemed to understand why Lucia had come here. Given that she had mentioned liking beautiful things, it seemed only natural for her to enjoy art pieces.

Owen reached out his hand, escorted Lucia as she got off the carriage, and together they entered the art gallery.

Inside the gallery, there were several aristocrats who had come to see the exhibits. Among them, of course their striking red hair and unique jet-black hair stood out. Naturally, the two of them drew attention, and people whispered about them.

"Duke Verdin and Lady Edelt..."

"Are they following each other around only to end up dating?"

"The Duke Verdin is in love? Ridiculous."

"If not, why would the two of them come here alone?"

"Moreover, look at their clothes. Seems like they're coordinated."

Despite various comments floating around, the two of them remained unfazed. They simply walked in sync, quietly examining each piece on display.

As they meticulously inspected the artworks, the two suddenly stopped in one spot. Whether it was a piece that caught her heart, Lucia stared intently at a certain artwork. It seemed like she was meticulously examining the artwork, even down to the smallest details.

"Do you like it?"

Observing her, Owen asked.

Lucia nodded slightly.

"I like it."

The artwork she was staring at was hers.

Her blue-hued self took the elegant shape of a flower vase.

Judging by the explanation that her famous master from the continent had meticulously crafted and painted it, the piece seemed quite valuable.

Owen alternated between the artwork and Lucia before calling over a museum employee.

"You called, Your Grace."

Seeing the employee bow respectfully, Owen nodded slightly and opened his lips.

"I would like to purchase this artwork."

The museum in had a slightly different concept from modern art galleries. In this world, the museum was not just a place to admire art, but also a place for buying and selling.

"If you could sign here, we will inform the family of the artwork price."

Since nobles rarely carried around large sums of money, they often settled payments this way. Whether buying clothes at a boutique or at an auction house, the practice was the same. Keeping this in mind, Owen watched as the employee wrote his name on the paper.

According to his body's will, Owen signed fluently as 'Owen' and suddenly saw the price written above.

[Master Ezark's Blue Flower Vase - 100 gold]

100 gold!

It was a piece worth of 100 billion copper coins.

Owen couldn't help but wonder why a flower vase was worth so much, but he decided to stop dwelling on it.

Nobles were naturally extravagant.

Besides, Duke Verdin was wealthy.

Overflowing, even, and drowning in wealth.

'Owen,' too, was in the dark about how to spend it.

"A hundred gold should be fine."

Recalling the piles of money in banks and warehouses, Owen cleared his mind of distractions. Then he instructed the employee, "Please list the recipient as Lady Edelt for the gift."

"Oh, it's a gift. I'll make a note of it. We'll send the artwork to the Edelt's Manor by this afternoon."

Lucia, who had been listening to the exchange between Owen and the employee, widened her eyes in surprise.

"Is it for me?"

As a mix of astonishment and doubt filled Lucia's bright eyes, Owen nodded.

"I received a lot from you yesterday, and I can't just keep receiving."

"But the flower bouquet you gave me earlier..."

"I felt it was a bit lacking."

At his response, Lucia pressed her lips together.

She thought the flower bouquet was sufficient.

She wasn't someone who often received gifts, so she believed it was more than enough, almost overly generous.

Seeing Lucia's silence, Owen added, "And you said it yourself that it's better when the recipient likes the gift."

"That's right. The recipient should like the gift."

Then a faint pink hue rose on Lucia's cheek.

-Gifts are better when the recipient likes them.

I clearly said that yesterday. But I didn't think he would remember those words, let alone expect him to give a gift for that reason.

"...You remembered what I said."

Muttering softly to herself, Lucia made Owen tilt his head slightly.

"It's your words, how could I forget."

Owen was sincere.

He remembered every line Lucia had spoken in the original work. Even the seemingly unimportant lines that had passed by fleetingly, or the scattered words in side stories or behind-the-scenes pieces.

If it was related to Lucia, he was the next person who knew the most after herself. So, it was natural that he wouldn't forget the words Lucia actually uttered.

But it never felt natural to Lucía.

It was expected since the 'Owen' she knew was someone who found her annoying.

Even after Lucia successfully figuring out all his schedules just to participate in the same events he attended, it was still difficult for her to come face to face with him. And even when she did, he didn't easily give answers.

But now, that particular person remembered everything she said and told her that he never forgets.

That's what he said.

Emotions welled up inside Lucía, causing her to bite her lower lip.

Seeing Lucia unable to respond, just nervously biting her lip, Owen reached out his hand.

"It hurts. If you keep biting like that."

With his long fingers, he gently pressed Lucia's lips.

Startled, Lucia opened her mouth, and a trickle of blood ran from where she had bitten.

"It's a bad habit."

Owen, with worried eyes, mumbled as he took out a handkerchief from his pocket.

Instead of handing her the handkerchief, he wiped the blood himself and spoke, "It's better not to bite your lips in the future."

With his concerned advice, Lucia finally managed to muster a voice.

"...Yes, I'll do that."

She tried to speak as calm as possible, hoping that Owen wouldn't know about her feelings.

Owen then softly smiled and reached out his hand to Lucia.

"Shall we go to the exhibition hall over there?"

"Sure."

And Lucía, at Owen's gesture, concealed her true feelings once again.

***

Even after visiting the art gallery, the two of them met about five more times.

Cafes,

Restaurants,

By the lake,

And even on the streets.

As they frequented crowded places, rumors started to spread.

The rumor was none other than Lucia and Owen becoming lovers.

Unfortunately, most of the nobles who heard the rumor did not believe it. Owen's usual behavior led them to think the rumor was baseless.

The Owen they knew was usually aloof, emotionless, and seemed devoid of feelings.

Such a person dating someone?

Especially someone like Lucia, whom he found so annoying.

Most considered it nonsense. They thought Owen was simply being capricious, giving her a chance out of curiosity.

Hearing this story, Lucia sneered.

A villainous, glamorous, and cruel smile crossed her lips.

'Will they still be able to say those words even after the hunting competition?'

Thinking that those who spit those words would soon licked their own saliva, she even hummed a tune while rearranging the flowers in the vase.

"Are you really enjoying it that much?"

Though it had been a while since she received the gift, Lucia was still treating the vase and flowers she received from Owen with care. She cleaned and maintained the vase daily, and the flowers were preserved by a magician. Thanks to this, the vase shimmered like new, and the flowers remained vivid and fresh as if picked today.

"Yes."

In response to Mari's question, Lucia nodded her head.

Marie then made a comment as if amazed.

"You used to quickly grow tired of things you had longed for so much once you had them in your hands."

"That's true...."

Agreeing with Marie, Lucia spoke affirmatively.

She loved beautiful things and desired them, but once she had them, she quickly grew tired of them.

In the case of flowers, she often got bored within a day, and vases or her own accessories lasted about a week. Strangely, this time, she had far surpassed that duration without growing tired of the vase and flowers.

"Could it be because it's a gift?"

Lucia whispered cautiously as she caressed the pink rose petals.

Mari's expression showed doubt at her words.

"Unlikely. You quickly grew tired of gifts from other nobles too."

"Did I?"

"Yes."

Mari answered firmly, nodding her head, leaving Lucia looking puzzled.

Then, after a short sigh, Marie added, "Perhaps is it because it was a gift from Duke Verdin?"

"...Could be."

In response to Marie's direct question, Lucia slowly spat out her answer.

The ambiguous answer neither affirmed nor denied the question, but Lucia's expression seemed to reveal the whole truth.

Her ears and cheeks tinged with a rosy hue couldn't hide anything.

Marie inwardly sighed, wondering why Lucia alone didn't know the fact that everyone else seemed to know.

'Is she confusing the desire to possess with affection?'

At a glance, they seem similar.

Moreover, as someone who had never properly received love-like feelings from others, Mari thought it was understandable.

After coming up with a somewhat plausible conclusion, Marie fell into contemplation. She pondered deeply on how to make her mistress realize this fact, but she couldn't find a suitable answer. Mari then swallowed a sigh internally, deciding that she would help whenever needed.