I Became The Male Lead's Female Friend

As I returned to the starting point again, I took a deep breath. But somehow Lowell was hesitating in front of me.

I thought he was doing that because my reaction was bad, so I tried to smile and thank him.

“By the way… are you okay with the rumors?” said Lowell.

My eyes widened at his unexpected remarks.

“Rumor?”

“Yeah, since you’re looking for a fiancée, so I’m afraid the rumors will spread…”

“What rumors?” asked Dahlia.

My brows furrowed at Lowell’s mysterious words.

What the hell was that rumor, and how could it be related to finding my fiancé again?

But that wasn’t the only strange thing.

Lowell looked strangely embarrassed when he saw me not knowing anything, and even Jeron, who was sitting in front of me, mumbled, “Oh, no!”

It seemed that Hestia and I were the only ones who didn’t know anything here. I narrowed my eyes and urged Lowell.

“What is it? Tell me.”

“Well, it’s…”

Lowell, who was coughing and feeling embarrassed, had no choice but to tell the truth at my glare.

“There are rumors that the Duke Bouser and the Princess are already passionately…”

Dahlia shouted, “What!?”

But that wasn’t the end of it. Jeron, who was scratching his cheek in embarrassment, was more silent than ever.

“Somehow, I thought it was strange from the first time you said that the Princess was looking for a fiancé, and I forgot about it. It was rumored in the noble society.”

“Wha— what, what…?”

“Because it’s famous that you and the little Duke are friends. There’s been a lot of rumors that you’ve promised a future since you were young, and that you’re both already passionately dating.”

The more Dahlia listened to Jeron’s words, the dizzier she felt.

Even in people’s words, I became a woman who waited for Rudrick for so long.

‘I haven’t had a fiancé, even though I’ve been alone for a long time because of my love for the little Duke.’

I heard that all the people who were nominated for my fiancée were strangely bad. Because of that rumor, good people had given up on the candidacy ahead of time.

“I’m in trouble.”

This was not good for Rudrick or me. Like me, Rudrick doesn’t have a fiancé.

Of course, even if he had a partner in the future, I didn’t know what would happen, and now it’s like blocking each other from our marriage.

How do I solve this? As I think about it more deeply, I had a sudden headache.

“But I’ve been curious about it for a long time…”

“… What is it?”

“Are you two really in that kind of relationship? Even if you haven’t seen each other for a long time, even at the ball…”

Did the rumor spread because of that event?

Well, I didn’t have time to look around because we suddenly hugged. If I think about it a little more calmly, it was perfect for the rumor to spread.

“We’re just friends. We’ve been together for less than a year, and we’ve just met…”

“Hmm… Well, if that’s true, then, come to think of it, doesn’t the Duke of Bouser have a fiancée? He seems to be close to both families.”

“Well, there have been times when we have talked about it before.”

I spoke more firmly than ever, “No, not Rudrick!”

Jeron’s eyes widened in surprise, “What?”

“No!”

“Why?”

Seeing him asking as if he was genuinely curious, I answered unknowingly,  “He’s the eldest son!”

Others, including Jeron, were bewildered at my concise and decisive answer.

Rather, I looked at them as if it was strange to even think about it.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

In my opinion, it was a good reason.

From a young age, leaving love in the first place, my goal was to get approval from the vassals and to succeed.

Of course, Rudrick was also important, but above all else, my family was more important to me.

But if I’m awarded a title, and then get engaged to Rudrick, who’s going to be the Duke?

‘It’s difficult in reality.’

Of course, it’s okay to get engaged with him. But marriage was difficult.

From an objective point of view, as a groom, Rudrick was not bad, or rather, a man of the best condition.

Firstly, he’s the best beauty in the world, he has a good family, and he’s talented, so I don’t know if he meets my ideal type, but most of them fit.

Besides, we had known each other since we were young, so there was trust between our families.

It’s hard to find someone this big, but the problem was that my goal was to be a Duke like Rudrick.

The position of the Duke’s spouse wasn’t that important.

The role of helping and supporting the Duke’s external activities. And when the Duke’s away, I must also play a role in supporting the family.

Of course, I had to manage the little too-big things in the mansion even regularly, so I had a lot of responsibilities as much as my position. But what if the Dukes of each family marry each other?

“His spouse’s seat is empty.” 

Jeron refuted my words.

“Isn’t the position of Duchess supposed to be managed by choosing a wife from among the vassals of the Duke?”

“If the power is concentrated on the vassal? It’s not an easy place to leave. And what will the successor do?”

“Adopted by relatives? Or if you have two babies?”

“Do you want to have a baby?”

When I asked him, Jeron dodged my gaze.

“And most of the time I’m in the capital or have to travel to other countries for business, and Rudrick has to be in the north to keep the border safe. Then we won’t be able to see each other a few times a year. What couple? We’re going to get tired of each other!”

As I was speaking nonstop, I felt something strange and stopped speaking.

Then I was embarrassed at the thought that I was taking it more seriously, so I hurriedly changed my words.

“Wait! Why am I saying this on the premise of dating Rudrick in the first place? I want to live with someone I love!” shouted Dahlia.

“Well, that’s…”

Jeron, who was staring at me with a meaningful gaze, uttered something, “… I guess you don’t know.”

“What?”

Jeron sighed and said, “It’s nothing. I understand what you’re thinking. But…”

“Yes?”

“Do you feel the same way about small things?”

“What do you mean?”

“Rumors have spread throughout the social world. Soon the Duke will also hear the rumors, or he may have heard it already.”

Did Rudrick hear the rumors? After thinking about something for a moment, I nodded indifferently.

“It’ll be similar,” said Dahlia.

“Similar?”

“Yes, maybe…”

Looking into the air, I recalled the old days.

“He’s more determined than I am on that matter.”

I was strangely convinced. If Rudrick hears the rumor, he’ll dismiss it as a false rumor first, but he’ll simply never get engaged to me at all.

It was a matter of his past, whether he liked me or not.

In the first place, Rudrick had a poor perception of his family.

Especially when it comes to marriage, the degree might be severe.

✿

As a child, Rudrick thought marriage was a shackle to each other. No matter how much you hate the other person, you have to be forced to stick together, and in the end, it’s like a chain that blocks each other’s breath.

In fact, it was a natural misconception for both Rudrick and Dahlia. Since he has never seen his parents get along well before.

At least they had a good relationship by pretending not to see each other, and as time passed, only discord and quarrels arose.

Rudrick must have thought so when he saw his parents fighting every time and his mother crying.

Marriages are all about suffering.

‘Still, there are cases where there’s peace because both loved each other. Just like my parents.’ Dahlia thought.

If Rudrick remembered her parents, he might agree as well.

Soon afterward, he murmured a little, “What if the other person changes his or her mind?”

“What?”

‘At first, we can marry because I liked her…’

Rudrick buried his head in his gathered knee.

‘You won’t suffer like my mother, or even fall…’

At the time, I didn’t know what to say. I knew Rudrick wasn’t thinking well about his family, but I was a little embarrassed because I didn’t know it would be this negative.

But it was Rudrick who spoke first.

“So I liked the rumor because I’m friends with Dahlia.”

“With me?”

‘No matter how far a friend fights and becomes distant, if they reconcile again, they can become friends. There’s no responsibility for each other, so there’s less burden. If we live like that…’

Rudrick turned his head and looked at me. Then he laughed bashfully.

“Because we can be together for a long time.”

I had no choice but to look away at Rudrick’s figure.