I Became the Male Lead in a Romance Fantasy Novel

038. What You Truly Desire (2)

Upon Lucia’s explanation, Marie easily found the tie pin she mentioned.

In the meantime, the gardener had finished making a bouquet of roses, and the maid reported it.

“We’ll send both to Count Verdin’s mansion.”

After giving brief instructions, Lucia quickly wrote a letter.

The content was not as long as the name “letter” might suggest.

It mainly consisted of casual inquiries about today’s weather and well-being, with my name added at the end.

“I’ll deliver it right away.”

The maid, who received the gift box containing the letter, bouquet, and tie pin, bowed and replied.

Watching her step outside, Lucia soon shifted her gaze to the table.

Recently, preoccupied with spending time with Owen and worrying about him, she hadn’t been able to attend social gatherings frequently.

“I had planned to prepare for the royal banquet this week.”

It had been four days since she scheduled a visit to the boutique for the royal banquet next month.

“Before that, I should go somewhere…”

Lucia, rummaging through the invitations, soon found a suitable social event.

“There’s one tomorrow and another in three days.”

The gathering tomorrow was a picnic, followed by a greenhouse tea party the next day.

With a plethora of dresses to choose from, she wasn’t concerned.

If the problem was late responses, well, none of the social gatherings she declined were of consequence.

Lucia quickly penned a reply expressing her intention to attend and handed it to Marie.

“Have the courier send the reply.”

“Yes, Your Ladyship.”

Appearing at the social gatherings a couple of times would suffice.

While she should also attend those scheduled for the following week and the week after, this week’s events were enough.

“Come to think of it, I might hear some rumors.”

Various rumors had spread about her and Owen since their trip together.

Having not attended any social events after the journey, this was an opportunity to confirm the outcome of those rumors.

She could generally anticipate the reactions, but seeing them firsthand was a different experience.

Feeling excited, Lucia hummed softly, then swallowed hard as she looked at the stack of invitations before her.

“…I should finish sorting them.”

***

“The original work has gone crazy.”

Tick, tock.

Bella nervously chewed on her well-maintained nails, her voice filled with anxiety.

“Does this make sense? Owen going on a trip with Lucia?”

A bitter laugh involuntarily escaped her lips.

The sense of doubt had long vanished.

Now, all that remained for Bella was bewilderment.

“And to the Osean?”

Bella withdrew her hand from her mouth, tousling her hair in frustration.

“Isn’t that where ＜Empire’s Flower＞ spin-off is set? Originally, it’s where Owen and Bella went together.”

A few weeks ago, Bella had successfully infiltrated the Taylor Viscountcy as she had desired.

The Viscountcy naturally welcomed her with open arms, even offering her a makeover.

Perhaps it was because she chose them herself rather than being discovered by the Viscountcy.

Unlike the original work, the Taylor Viscount and his wife didn’t blatantly try to use Bella.

Although they subtly hinted at demands or tested her, it was a matter of little consequence.

She had only infiltrated the Viscountcy to revert to the original work, not with any real intention of becoming part of their family.

Since she had to receive education at the capital’s temple, she didn’t stay in their domain.

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They were merely a formal family she occasionally met for paperwork.

Even if they asked for things or desired something, ignoring or feigning ignorance sufficed.

“Why is the outcome like this even though I’ve restored the original setting?”

The real problem lay here.

As I had advanced the timing of my appearance far ahead of the original work, the starting point of the original work had changed.

With many settings in the original work altered, Bella applied for entry into the Taylor lineage to revert those changes.

And the settings had returned as they were originally.

Only Bella’s setting in ＜Empire’s Flower＞, that is.

“Why are Owen and Lucia acting like this, seriously?”

As soon as they returned from the hunting competition, Bella had Owen attached to the mercenary guild. However, he was caught right away by Owen and didn’t pass on any information to her. Instead, he refunded a considerable amount of money that had been paid. Since Owen was a swordsman, it was something he could easily handle.

Having recently become a saint, Bella had only a small amount left after repaying the debt owed to “Bella” and maintaining her dignity. With that money, she could only afford to hire B-grade mercenaries, so it was a natural outcome. Thinking it was inevitable, Bella came up with another plan. It was to insert the people I had hired for the Earl and Viscount Edelt into the Earldom and Viscount’s households. She believed that by conducting undercover investigations with the servants, more information could be obtained. She thought that by receiving dignity maintenance fees and accumulating more money, she could hire S-class guild members and naturally succeed.

But…

“Sorry. I tried several times, but I failed, sir.”

She visited the information guild, the mercenary guild, and even the assassin guild, but the plans failed miserably. The two nobles, Earl Edelt and Viscount Berdin, who had been there since the beginning of the Empire, were as flawless as their reputation. Even forming a team of skilled members from my guild and devising a plan was of no use. So, while Bella wasted time, the rumors of Lucia and Owen dating grew even bigger. It spread that the two had meals together and had tea time. That alone was astonishing. What followed was even more shocking than that.

“Viscount Berdin and Lady Edelt went on a trip to the ocean together. It’s called Osean, a resort, and it’s famous for being really beautiful.”

How betrayed she must have felt when the maid serving her said that.

“Why on earth…”

By now, I was starting to resent the god who sent me here.

“Is it really a god?”

In fact, I don’t even know. Was it a god? The one who put me inside Bella’s body. “…”

Maybe it’s a demon.

Because if it was a god, they wouldn’t unnecessarily trouble a good person. They wouldn’t confuse someone who was perfectly fine. Perhaps it wasn’t the worst situation for Bella or for her. “But that’s not the important thing now.” But the crucial point to consider now was not that. “Something has changed. It’s not me; something else has changed.” Bella did her best for the original work. However, a change occurred despite her efforts. It was a destruction of the original work so radical that it was hard to call it a change. “What is it?” Where and how did the change start? Bella calmly reconsidered. “…As expected, the ones who have changed the most are Owen and Kyle.” The biggest difference between the original work and now was Owen and Lucia’s relationship, but surprisingly, Lucia remained the same. Lucia was still Lucia. She possessed the sharpness, flamboyance, cruelty, and languor characteristic of a villainess. There was no anomaly in Lucia’s behavior. Except for the fact that she was confidently strutting around with Owen in her hands, unlike in the original work. But that was a natural change. When you finally get what you’ve been longing for, who wouldn’t be confident? “But Owen and Kyle have changed to an unusual extent.” However, the male lead Owen and the sub-male lead Kyle from the original work were quite different. Kyle, who should have shown interest in Bella upon meeting her, showed no reaction, and Owen, who should have been indifferent, was uninterested. In truth, Kyle’s change didn’t bother her much. Because Kyle was a character completely unrelated to her, whether he changed or not. In the original work, the foolishly kind and good female lead paid attention to him, but… Unlike the original her, Bella had no interest in Kyle. He was actually quite handsome. But that was it.

Kyle wasn’t a concern for Bella, so she didn’t pay much attention to him.

But maybe she should have.

“Both of them changed… Was there a reason they both changed together?”

Bella pondered the situation carefully.

However, no convincing thoughts came to mind.

At best, the only thing that came to mind was that the two of them had become friendlier.

“…But how did Owen and Kyle become friends?”

Thinking about it, that was strange too.

She had found it odd even during the hunting competition, but she was too preoccupied with Owen to delve deeply into it.

Since then, she had been too busy getting to know Owen.

She was so concerned about his changes that she didn’t pay much attention to the shift in her relationship with Kyle.

It seemed like the changes in the original work had clearly influenced the changes in these two.

The problem was not knowing the fundamental cause.

“This is a headache, seriously.”

Bella sighed deeply and got up from her seat.

There was only confusion without a clear conclusion or solution.

But she couldn’t just sit there blankly.

She pulled the bell cord to call the maid.

“Please come in, maiden.”

The maid, whose face had become quite familiar by now, entered the bedroom.

Dressed in a white attire befitting a temple maiden, she politely greeted Bella as usual.

“I heard that there is a gift from His Eminence to be sent to the Matop.”

“Ah… Yes, that’s right.”

As Bella spoke, the maid nodded slightly in response.

Then she looked puzzled.

It was evident that she didn’t understand why Bella was talking about this.

“Who is going to deliver it?”

“I heard that the Chief Priest will go with the Holy Knights.”

At the mention of the Chief Priest, Bella smirked.

If it was the Chief Priest, he had been promoted just last year.

He was someone who, if not inferior, sometimes seemed inadequate.

Perhaps it was because of my status as a saint.

“I heard that His Eminence left the capital for a while.”

The Chief Priest was currently the highest authority remaining in the temple.

Except for her.

In short, it meant that there was no one to rival Bella in the temple.

“Yes…”

Sensing something from Bella’s smile, the maid nervously blurted out her response.

As if to prove her premonition correct, Bella made a bombshell declaration.

“I am thinking of going to the Matop instead of the Chief Priest. Could you inform him?”

“Wha…?”

Shocked by Bella’s words, the maid’s eyes flickered.

Even seeing the brown eyes quiver, Bella remained composed.

“The schedule was probably for tomorrow. You don’t need to inform separately about going to the Matop. I will go and explain.”

“Well, but…”

As the maid stuttered in her response, Bella gazed down at her with a stern look.

Bella knew.

It was unacceptable for a saint to make a pilgrimage to the Matop herself.

It was for the temple’s pride, if nothing else.

The reason for sending a gift to the Matop was for reconciliation.

Originally, the summer imperial banquet, which also served as a debutante ball, required the participation of the Matop, the temple, and all the noble families within the empire.

The banquet was postponed for a month due to the temple, as stated by the palace, but since it was due to the saint, the temple could potentially be criticized.

While the palace may maintain a good relationship with the temple, the Matop and the Berdine Duchy would likely send disapproving glances.

The relationship between the Berdine Duchy and the temple was not particularly good, but it was not bad either, so reconciliation was not necessary.

However, the relationship with the Matop was strained.

As the event that directly moved the Matop Lord, understanding was crucial.

Kyle was someone who would be disgusted by social events.

It would be as rude as delaying a unilateral event for someone who diligently prepared for something they disliked.

“May I ask a favor?”

“…Yes.”

But such matters were a matter of temples and towers.

For Bella, the original direction was more important than their relationship.

When Bella asked again, the maid slowly replied.

To the maid, the saint was a direct superior or an equivalent authority figure.

It was a situation that would never be allowed from the temple’s perspective, but the maid could not dare to oppose Bella’s will.

Satisfied with the answer, Bella smiled and questioned the maid.

Having made an excuse, she planned to meet Kyle the next day to find out the reason.