Crown Prince’s Ex-Boyfriend

Now, I feel like I’m one step closer to him.

I hope it’s not just purely my illusion.

I hoped so as I saw Cith’s back receding.

  “…..”

Huh? I feel strange all of a sudden.

I was sure I was the only one here since Cith had already left, but strangely, I feel like I’m not alone.

From a long time ago, I could feel the presence of people quite well.

So even if someone suddenly ran from behind me, I would be able to defend myself immediately.

I picked up a branch and crept up to the spot where I could feel the person’s presence.

I don’t know who it is but it would be very difficult if they heard what I said. 

Without the advantage of knowing the future, it would be very difficult to survive.

‘I may have to kill that person to survive. But can I really kill people? No. Let’s be determined. It’s a person who doesn’t actually exist anyway. I have to kill so that I can live. But can this branch even kill a person?’

[PR/N : Here in the sentence ‘It’s a person who doesn’t actually exist anyway.’ means that the person here is an imaginary character from MC’s sister’s book. Therefore, the MC doesn’t consider this person real and thinks they don’t exist. She just thinks of them as imaginary extras.]

Feeling a flurry of thoughts, I raided the place where I could feel the person’s presence most from.

Coincidentally, it was the tree I hid behind earlier. I could see a familiar face on the tip of the tree branch I held.

“……Vinh?”

Did I just try to kill the person I shouldn’t even have thought of killing?

I almost got the death penalty ending right now….!

I asked him while my heart was still in a state of surprise.

“Why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to be waiting for me?”

“You didn’t show up even when I waited for a long time. So I came here to find you.”

His eyes widened with surprise.

“How much did you hear?”

“……all.”

I received the same answer when I asked him the same question again.

Crap! I’m doomed.

It’s highly likely that the man that Cith likes is Vinh…

It is unbelievable that I got caught by the person I shouldn’t have been caught by at all cost!

The thing I was so worried about had already happened.

Is it just a matter of time before the story is greatly distorted or will I die without knowing the future?

‘You said you wouldn’t tell anyone, then why does Vinh know how I feel?’

The imaginary Cith glared at me as if he was going to kill me.

Now that I have taken one step closer to him, I can’t believe it will all be useless.

While I was feeling resentful towards Vinh, a crusty voice leaked out of my throat.

“If you’re smart, you’ll know what to do with what you’ve heard.”

“Of course, I don’t have a habit of talking about other people’s secrets.”

“I’ll believe it since it’s you.”

The actual meaning behind those words was, “You both are gay, so I believe you’ll keep your morals,” but just by looking at those words, it would sound more like ‘I believe in your great humanity.’ 

Perhaps that was the reason why Vinh’s expression had grown sour.

“You always say that you like me and I’m cool, but I’ve never heard you say that before.”

“From now on, I’m only going to say things that normal people say to each other, so don’t worry.” 

“That would be great. Please do so.”

“Why did you want to see me?”

I asked as I sat down on the floor.

My dress was stained with dirt, but it didn’t matter much to me.

I spilled the hem of my dress as I slumped down on the ground.

Naturally, we kept our distance.

“Forcing you…”

Vinh said those words out of nowhere.

I asked, wondering what he was saying, “What?”

“About forcing you to do that.”

[ “Don’t give me orders, Vinh Ortega. I am not your dog.”

  “………..I never thought so.”

  “That’s what I think. You keep forcing me even though I said no.”

  “Forcing……….” ]

Oh, are you talking about what happened earlier?

I don’t think you came all the way here just to apologize after realizing your fault. What the hell are you even talking about?

“I’ll admit it. You’re right. For whatever reason, I shouldn’t have forced my circumstances on someone who didn’t like to hold a sword.” 

“So, what do you want to say? You probably didn’t come all the way here just to say that.”

Vinh paused for a moment due to my strangely cold response.

His eyes, which had nowhere to go, glanced at the branches once again. 

“So now I’m not trying to force you but persuade you instead. I need you.”

Those were words of correction, whether it was wrong after saying it. 

“I’m saying this not because I’m afraid you’ll misunderstand, but because I need your skills. Please don’t get me wrong. It’s unpleasant.”

“I didn’t misunderstand. It makes me uncomfortable as well.”

“That’s a relief. Anyway, I brought you something you might be tempted by.”  

Vinh took a piece of paper out of his pocket and set it down on the ground.

It was right next to the branch I had let go. 

I dragged the piece of paper with a branch. 

Vinh stared at me with a piercing gaze.

“What is this? Is it a ticket?”

“That’s right. It’s a ticket to a lecture from the Imperial Knights aimed at young people of this Empire.”

“Why would I be tempted?”

“You can actually see the current knights fighting each other. They select some of the applicants and give them direct guidance.”

…….fighting each other? Direct guidance?

Honestly, it’s a little… No. I’m very tempted.

It’s not just a sport, but swordplay that can actually kill people! 

It was something I’ve always dreamed of. In addition, I’m gonna be guided by someone from the current Imperial Knights.

“I was afraid to hold the sword.”

I wasn’t surprised that Vinh was trying to psychologically please me without saying anything.

This would not have been difficult at all for Vinh, who had developed the ability to read people’s emotions being an Ortega.

In short, Vinh was quick to catch on. 

“How are you now? Are you still afraid?” 

I didn’t say anything but our quick-witted little duke seems to have noticed that I was quite tempted just by looking at me. 

A light smile hung on his face.

“I don’t think so.”

“……….”

“You’ve already swung your sword at me once.”

Vinh, who tapped the tip of my branch once, whispered softly. 

……Come to think of it, I even tried to attack him without realizing it.

Even until now, I didn’t let go of the branch.  

I looked down at my hand with a branch. Of course, I wasn’t nervous at all. 

But it wasn’t the same case with my heart at all.

Like a person who discovered an oasis in the desert, it was running hard like a person holding a rope under a cliff. 

There was no fear in it.

“……I want to go but…”

“But?”

“Can I really go? Just you and me?” 

“I’m sure the Prince will be jealous, but does he know you’re doing this?”

I asked in that sense, but Vinh frowned as if he took it in a different way. 

“Do you think I’m you? I’m not asking you out, so don’t misunderstand.” 

“It’s not like that, but…” 

“You and I aren’t the only ones going. Your Highness is coming as well.”

Oh, wow. Are you trying to hide your date using me as an excuse? 

Normally, I would have been offended, but since they are young children and my favorite couple, it felt cute.

In addition, isn’t this an opportunity in a way? 

A chance to show my feelings to the Crown Prince, who has no contact with me!

To show that I don’t have any feelings for Vinh at all.

It would be better if I could buy the Crown Prince’s favor so that he wouldn’t have the urge to kill me in the future.

Even though it was something that was close to impossible, but…

“Then I’ll go.”

“Can I have a duel with you there?”

“I don’t know about that…”

“Try to think about it later. You have to take the graduation exam first.”  

Oh, right. Graduation exam. It’s said that if you can’t pass, you’ll pay for it in the future. 

I’m already tired of taking classes with young children, but if I don’t hold a sword, I’ll have to stay in elementary school for the rest of my life.

Being locked up in Dr. Saint’s hospital or locked up in elementary school…

I feel like I’m in danger of being locked up no matter what I do.

“Ugh…..I get it. I’ll try.”

“Okay. I’ll look forward to it.” 

No words were exchanged between us afterward.

An awkward atmosphere flowed because I was sitting far away. 

What is it? Why aren’t you going back home?

“····· Do you have anything else to say?”

“About what you said to Cith earlier… Do you really think so?”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s only natural that people like other people.” 

“Yes, I mean it.”

“······I see.”

At this time, even though Vinh had decided to go out with the Crown Prince, he must have been thinking a lot about whether it was the right thing to do.

Since I was still young, my values have not been established, and no one would have told me that their relationship was not wrong. 

After all, I was the first.

I don’t know if it’s okay to say……

“If your parents say it’s wrong, would you think it’s wrong as well? Well…. I am talking about Cith and your parents.”

Wow, are you going to be talking about Cith now just to pretend it’s not you? 

I knew that he was mature for his age, but when I look at him like this, he looks exactly like a child.

I thought that it was cute, so I smiled without realizing it. 

Vinh looked at the end of the branch again.

“Yeah. That’s true. Whether it’s a man or a woman, each and every human being is lovely.”

“Are you lovable?”

“Yes. Cith, you and me. We are all lovely. Oh, I’m saying this in case you misunderstand. You know that lovely doesn’t mean what you think, right? Please don’t get me wrong. Because it would be unpleasant.” 

My words were as cheeky as possible when I responded to him revengefully. Then I heard a small rustling sound.

It was the sound of laughter. 

It was none other than Vinh Ortega, who was laughing out loud.

It was the first time I’d seen a real laugh since I was possessed. It wasn’t a laugh that was to be sarcastic or to hide emotions.

“I didn’t misunderstand.”

Now, Vinh was not looking at the branches but his deep blue eyes were entirely focused on me.

Just as any other boy of his age, he had a pure and beautiful smile on his face.