I Became the Male Lead in a Romance Fantasy Novel

079. Affection (2)

“Uh…?”

Owen was taken aback by Lucia’s question.

He probably didn’t anticipate such a question and hadn’t thought about what the best answer would be.

Lucia wasn’t the type to delve into such details, so she hadn’t considered this situation.

“You’re not particularly interested in bakeries, Owen.”

Thinking of an excuse with all his might in response to her question, Owen slowly spoke up.

“That’s true.”

“But how did you find out about that bakery? It seemed like one I hadn’t visited before.”

“…Because you like strawberries.”

That was the excuse he had come up with after much thought.

“I thought you would also like strawberry cake.”

“Ah.”

“So, I looked for a bakery that sells strawberry cake. It caught my eye on the way back.”

Although not a perfect answer, it at least sounded plausible.

Satisfied that Lucia seemed to accept his explanation, Owen relaxed and looked at her.

Being honest was nearly impossible, so this was the best he could do.

“I see… I thought you were considering a business related to bakeries.”

Luckily, Lucia seemed to understand his reasoning.

Owen lightly replied, “That’s also a good idea.”

He hadn’t thought about it, but it was indeed a decent idea.

If it was a bakery mainly focused on fruit-related pastries, Lucia might like it.

‘If we prepare various beverages besides bakery items…’

As Owen pondered a new business idea, Lucia nodded in agreement.

“You’ll end up doing all sorts of businesses if I say I like them.”

“There’s nothing you can’t do.”

With no complaints, Owen chuckled briefly.

Lucia, exhaling at Owen’s response, set down her teacup.

Then, she reached out and lightly touched Owen’s cheek.

“It’s a problem. We might run out of time to spend together at this rate, right?”

“That’s unlikely. If the things are for you, there’s no point if we lose time to share them.”

Owen leaned his face into the reaching hand.

Satisfied with the gesture, Lucia smiled contentedly.

“Exactly. No matter how many gifts are prepared and things are handed over for me a hundred times, they’re useless without you.”

“Right. It’s only natural.”

After briefly touching Owen’s cheek, Lucia withdrew her hand.

Then she stood up, walking over to the spot beside where he was sitting.

“You know, at the tea party today, I heard that you made a donation to the orphanage.”

As Lucia spoke while sitting beside him, Owen turned his head to face her.

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Some viscount’s daughter mentioned it. She said the orphanage director is your father.”

“Oh… Viscount Smith, I see.”

“Really? Anyway, that young lady mentioned that Owen makes donations secretly. She also said you seem quite affectionate.”

“Viscount Smith has a loose tongue.”

In response to Lucia’s words, Owen clicked his tongue softly.

There was a valid reason why Owen insisted on keeping his donations a secret.

Firstly, it was because ‘Owen’ had been taught by his parents that one of the noble things to do was to donate.

Following that teaching, ‘Owen’ had consistently made donations but kept the fact a secret.

Thanks to the teaching passed down through generations from the Marquis of Verdun, stating that true nobles should fulfill their duties without boasting, Owen continued with this practice.

The second reason was that he didn’t want to draw attention to himself.

Owen, like ‘Owen,’ had a genuine intention to donate.

Despite earning a lot of money and having nowhere to spend it, he believed it was meaningful to help those in need.

However, he found it tiresome to attract the attention and comments of nobles and others.

Having more than enough visibility and power without making a fuss about donations was something he preferred.

“I did warn her to keep it discreet.”

“So, the rumors didn’t spread?”

“Right.”

“Did the Viscount’s daughter overhear it secretly from her father?”

“Well, either she overheard it or the Viscount mentioned it himself. In any case, it shows a lack of caution.”

“Hmm…”

Lucia nodded quietly, then suddenly reached out to touch Owen’s thigh, bringing her face closer.

“So, what’s the reason?”

As her hand made contact, Owen’s body tensed.

Even though he might have felt the reaction, Lucia, with a casual expression, urged Owen on.

“Why do you donate secretly? Is there a special reason?”

From such a close distance that their breaths mingled, she whispered with a radiant smile.

Owen turned his face slightly to feel her breath on his nose.

His earlobes were already tinged with red.

“Hmm? Owen, tell me.”

Finally, Lucia exhaled against his ear.

Under the warm sensation, Owen’s throat moved.

Watching him with a joyful face, Lucia gently stroked his hair, causing his eyelashes to flutter and his cheek to blush.

“…I dislike causing a commotion.”

Struggling to find his words in a chaotic mind, Owen managed to speak.

His slow voice was filled with a mixture of breaths.

“Nothing more than that.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah.”

As Owen nodded, Lucia smiled and briefly kissed his forehead.

Perhaps due to her hair stroking, Owen’s previously neat bangs were now disheveled.

“But Owen, you’ve been surrounded by various rumors for a long time.”

“Being born in Verdun, it’s inevitable.”

“It seems like it’s not just because of that reason.”

The lips that had touched his forehead now settled on his straight nose.

In the subsequent kiss, Owen shuddered once again.

Lucia resumed gently caressing his head.

“It must have been difficult to look like this and live quietly. Even if it weren’t for being in Verdun.”

“Well….”

About to reply, Owen closed his mouth again.

Lucia’s words seemed true.

Owen was well aware.

That his face looked quite unrealistic.

“You know that too? Seeing you unable to respond.”

Smack.

From Noble mtl dot com

This time, Lucia’s kiss landed on his lips.

After a brief kiss and retreat, she found herself sitting on Owen’s knees.

“It must be amusing not to know. It’s absurd not to realize you’re handsome with this face.”

Reaching out, Lucia felt Owen’s chin and traced his face.

Her hand, which was brushing his agile chin, moved towards his cheek and eventually reached his ear.

Lightly tugging his ear as if tweaking it, she made Owen flinch once more.

“Reacting like this with that face seems a bit excessive, but well.”

As Lucia laughed joyfully, Owen took a deep breath.

She used to torment him like this out of jealousy and possessiveness, but now, she often did it for fun.

Seeing that today’s behavior was a bit more intense than usual, Owen asked, “What’s the matter?”

Looking at Lucia, who continued to play with his ear, he inquired.

Lucia removed her hand from his ear, then grabbed Owen’s chin and lifted it.

“Yeah.”

Lucia lowered her head again and kissed Owen’s lips.

This time, she didn’t just settle for touching; she even nibbled on his lower lip.

Owen obediently parted his lips.

As Lucia invaded his mouth with her tongue, Owen responded to her attempts to deepen the kiss by pulling her closer, supporting her as she seemed to struggle to breathe.

With one hand gripping Owen’s arm and the other holding his chin, Lucia continued the kiss.

The intense heat gradually subsided after a long time.

“This is honestly unfair…”

Breathless at the end of the long kiss, Lucia caught her breath and leaned against Owen’s chest.

“What do you mean?”

“Why do you always look so composed even after kissing?”

“It’s because you can’t breathe properly through your nose.”

“…Maybe you should practice then, really.”

When Lucia complained, Owen’s expression hardened in an instant.

“What?”

“Breathing through your nose. Did you think I’d go somewhere to practice kissing?”

As Owen’s face stiffened, Lucia lightly pressed his forehead, causing his expression to soften.

“If I were to practice, it would be with you. Though I doubt it would be very helpful.”

“Maybe you haven’t practiced enough yet.”

As Owen retorted, Lucia looked surprised.

“What, Owen. Didn’t know you could say something like that?”

Then she playfully poked his cheek.

It was a playful gesture.

“I thought you were a true blue-blooded noble to the core.”

“…Not really.”

“Is that so? The Viscount of Verdin itself is quite conservative and noble in lineage.”

Unable to argue with Lucia’s point, Owen silently agreed.

The Verdin Viscount was very conservative and adhered strongly to noble principles within the family.

When it came to hiring talent, lineage, status, and background mattered.

They didn’t care about such things at all, but conversations within the family were different.

They never treated non-direct descendants as equals, emphasizing nobility and providing thorough etiquette and manners education from a young age.

Noblesse oblige was highly regarded, engaging in charity and philanthropy without boasting, and engaging in activities that harmed others like fraud, murder, or assault was strictly prohibited.

Even drug use, smoking, and gambling were forbidden, boasting a strict policy of integrity that frowned upon any association with information guilds or assassin guilds.

“So even in this awkward situation, you don’t touch me.”

Lucia glanced at Owen’s thigh where she was sitting.

As she briefly looked there, Owen’s ear and cheek turned red simultaneously.

“Just getting embarrassed like this. We’re both adults after all.”

“…That’s true.”

It was a valid point.

Lucia was twenty, and Owen was twenty-four.

But still…

“It’s said that even before marriage, you shouldn’t share the same floor.”

At Owen’s reasoning, Lucia sighed.

“See, you really are noble to the core.”

Lucia muttered as she grabbed Owen’s tie.

At her gesture, the tie easily loosened.

While Owen was trying to figure out the situation, Lucia unbuttoned one of his shirt buttons.

“Or is it because of your legal guardians? Did they go as far as to provide such education?”

“…Yes, they did.”

He couldn’t deny it.

There were scenes like that in Owen’s memories.

“Ridiculous. They can freely sow their wild oats while instructing their son to live decently until marriage?”

“It’s not necessarily bad.”

While Owen thought this might not be normal, it seemed different to Lucia.

She frowned, saying, “What nonsense. I’ve only just started liking someone, loving them, and so far, all I’ve done is kiss them.”

“…”

There was nothing to say.

As Owen fell silent, Lucia exhaled deeply.

“Actually, I felt a bit off today because of the other young heirs you mentioned as kind. But now, it doesn’t matter anymore.”

So, that’s why she came.

It seemed these were the reasons that had provoked me so earlier.

As Owen finally realized the truth, Lucia spoke.

“More than that, it’s become more difficult for Owen to strictly follow the hollow etiquette.”