Male Lead, Don’t Push, Pull! - Chapter 56

“Open.”

At my command, the door to the room where the Crown Prince stayed slowly opened, revealing the man I was looking for.

A man with beautiful black hair and deep ocean-blue eyes.

And now, he was dressed in the Crown Prince’s attire, the protagonist of the story, Kyle Ygritte.

“Vivi.”

Kyle approached me, smiling broadly at my unexpected visit.

I put a hand on his shoulder to stop him from casually pulling me into a hug, as he’d done all the time at the Academy.

Today, I wasn’t in the mood to indulge in such affectionate gestures.

Moreover, this kind of intimacy could inconvenience Sienna, so I had to control myself now.

I placed my hand on my waist and sighed deeply.

“Why did you do that?”

“Mmh? What do you mean?”

“Why did you refuse to escort the Saint?”

I braced myself. I was going to root for the two of them, who were obviously meant to be together.

In fact, the scene where Kyle and Sienna danced together for the first time was my favorite scene when I read the novel.

But Kyle built a wall between himself and Sienna, and everything got tangled up.

“Haven’t you read the letter I sent? I clearly said it. When you like someone—”

“Stop pushing and pull them close.”

“That’s right.”

Even though he knew it well, why was he acting like this? Why was the male protagonist building a wall against the female protagonist?

I glared at Kyle. But he just smiled mysteriously.

He grabbed my hand that was on his shoulder and brought it down.

His fingers secretly slid along the inside of my palm.

In an instant, my whole body tensed up.

What is he doing? It’s like he’s seducing me…His fingers secretly slid along the inside of my palm.

Our eyes met, and Kyle playfully tilted his head.

“Is that what you came to ask me?”

“Th……at.”

“I did everything right, but it seems Vivi doesn’t know.”

Warning bells rang in my head.

You did everything right, what on earth?

Unable to find the right words, I stammered like a goldfish, but Kyle suddenly interlocked his fingers with mine.

The unexpected display of intimacy left me unable to collect my thoughts.

“By the way, what was that about yesterday? Why were you with Daniel as your partner?”

I looked up at Kyle. Sure enough, I was questioning him, but the tables had turned and now he was gently questioning me.

His face was smiling as usual, but it definitely felt different.

“Since when was it decided? Was it back at the Academy?”

“Not really. We ran into each other on the first day of the banquet and decided to go together.”

“Why didn’t you go with me.”

“Kyle, you never asked me to be your partner.”

I said, a little angry. If Kyle had asked me to go with him, I would have naturally gone with him.

But Kyle hadn’t said anything to me about a dance partner before the banquet started, or even after it started.

So, I naturally assumed that Kyle had eyes only for Sienna and….

I didn’t want to say this reasoning out loud; it would make me miserable.

“Let go of me first.”

I whispered to Kyle, my face blushing. I needed some time to think about why Kyle was suddenly acting this way.

But Kyle didn’t let me go just like that.

“What’s your relationship with Daniel?”

“Why suddenly ask that…..”

“Tell me, Vivi.”

“Honestly, we’re just friends. Kyle, you’re also friends with Daniel, right?”

I answered truthfully, but Kyle didn’t seem convinced. After kissing the back of my hand, he looked into my eyes and whispered.

“I wonder if Daniel feels the same way as you.”

I was confused. In just one day, Kyle seemed like a completely different person. His behavior now was obviously driven by jealousy.

But when I thought about it a bit more, I realized that Kyle hadn’t changed.

He had always made it impossible for me to guess his feelings.

It wasn’t the first time I hadn’t been able to figure out if he thought of me as family or if he had feelings for me that went beyond that.

He pulled me in when he wanted, making me like him helplessly, but then he confused me at crucial moments.

And now, even as Sienna approached him, he behaved the same way.

It felt like he liked me, but ironically, I couldn’t be sure about it.

“Kyle, let go of me.”

I said in a soft voice but firmly.

I didn’t want to be pulled around by Kyle anymore.

I had already made up my mind, so why should I waver again?

“Let go of me.”

I pleaded once more, and Kyle slowly released my hand.

He seemed slightly taken aback but quickly composed himself and asked gently, full of concern.

“Vivi, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

His voice was full of concern.

It was the kind of voice that makes you want to close your eyes and let it fool you.

But if I did that, I’d end up being swayed by Kyle’s actions again, and I’d be the only one hurt.

“Vivi?”

I heard Kyle’s voice, and I took a deep breath inwardly.

Smile, just smile.

As if nothing happened.

“Mmh, Kyle!”

“…Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah!”

I lifted the corners of my mouth and smiled broadly.

“Just holding hands got a bit too warm. Wow, this is the drawing room of the crown prince’s palace, right?”

“…Yes, it is.”

“Interesting. I want to take a look around!”

I deliberately acted a little too excited and gently pulled away from Kyle, trying to make it look natural and not too strange.

Kyle’s expression seemed to stiffen slightly, but I pretended not to notice.

My own heart was too confused to focus on Kyle’s feelings as well.

It felt like I was facing Kyle for the first time with a mask on.

***

I decided not to meet Kyle for a while.

Whether I was mistaken or not, we needed time.

I believed Kyle’s actions meant one of two things.

One, Kyle was toying with me.

In fact, he’s already got his eye on Sienna, and he’s playing with me.

Since the Rosiere´s were the most influential family in charge of the Empire’s military affairs, it would be a waste to easily let go of me, whom he could easily use.

Unlike the original story where he reluctantly became the crown prince, this time Kyle confidently claimed his position.

So, it wouldn’t be too surprising if he gained some strategic aspects different from the original male lead!

My goodness, who knew I would end up as a fish in the net of the male lead!

And to top it off, a strategic male lead?

“I can’t believe it’s true, but…”

It was a slightly skeptical guess, and I truly hoped it wasn’t the case.

If the first hypothesis were true, I would be deeply disappointed in my old friend, Kyle.

The second theory was that Kyle was too scared to take the first step.

He’s afraid of what would happen if he made a confession to me, and I didn’t accept it.

“This one is kind of cute.”

I’d really like to see him wagging his tail on that one.

If my second guess is right, then should I make the first move?

That I should confess to Kyle…?

Me…?

Both of these speculations gave me a lot to think about, so I decided I needed to take some time to think about it.

If I were to meet Kyle again now, all the pondering I had done so far would be swept away in confusion once more.

But my schedule moved against my will.

The day arrived when Daniel and I were to receive the Emperor’s Order of Merit.

“Do you have a hairband in a brighter color? This one looks too plain.”

“A jewel one would complement this well, don’t you think?”

On the day of receiving the award from the emperor, from early morning, all the maids in the house, led by my mother, rushed to help me get ready.

The Marquis de Rosiere was a prestigious family that had produced generations of First Knight Commanders, but until now, no child without a title, especially a girl, had ever received an award.

That’s how remarkable my achievements were.

“Make it look more lovely and elegant.”

“Keep the makeup light. Vivian looks better in soft colors than in bold ones.”

Because of that, everyone was putting in their utmost effort to adorn me. They were paying several times more attention than when I attended the Foundation Day banquet.

Well, today was a day when I would personally meet the emperor, so it was much more important than attending a large banquet with many guests.

Not only Daniel and I, who would receive the merit award, but our families had also been invited. Daniel would attend the event with his family as well.

“Vivian, is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince coming today?”

“Well, I’m not sure…..”

I trailed off.

After I decided to avoid Kyle, he had sent me several letters.

Somehow, he would mysteriously detect if something was wrong with me.

However, I hadn’t read the letters he sent. I was sure they were filled with affectionate words, but I was afraid I would waver if I read them…

I shook off my contemplation and replied brightly.

“He might come, or he might not, who knows?”

Since this was a personal event where the emperor invited specific nobles rather than a gathering of all nobles, there was a possibility that Kyle wouldn’t be called.

But somehow, my intuition was telling me that Kyle would attend today’s event