“T-This is…”

“It means exactly what it says.”

His eyes were resolute, but Kana was considerably shaken. It was brief, but the content was intense.

‘Like? Is that something a sub male lead would say to a background supporting character?’

Even if you try to interpret it differently, considering the atmosphere, it was nothing short of a confession. Kana tried to gather her thoughts and asked for confirmation.

“Surely you don’t mean ‘like’ in a romantic sense, do you?”

“…Yes, I do.”

Kiriel avoided her gaze and fiddled with the ends of his hair. The tips of his ears turning slightly red added credibility.

Kana closed her eyes tightly and opened them again, unable to believe the reality.

‘This looks like someone being shy, no matter how you look at it. Is this really okay? Where did the plausibility go?’

When she was in the protagonist’s camp in other novels, she had a distant relationship with the sub male leads she encountered for work. Even if they became friendly, there was an implicit distance they never crossed.

No matter how often they met, Kiriel was the first person to be so blatant towards her. Confused, Kana hesitated before speaking.

“…But when I asked before, you said it wasn’t like that.”

“At that time, it was so sudden, and I couldn’t clearly define my feelings. Ah, I don’t know how to express it, but I was also in a bit of a strange situation.”

He felt pained and frustrated that he couldn’t clearly explain his situation to her, who might think it unnatural. Kiriel sighed with a face full of worry.

Kana carefully examined his face and cautiously asked.

“Is this strange situation perhaps related to the mental magic and curse confirmation from before?”

“That’s right. I don’t know the cause, but whenever I try to directly express my affection for you, Miss Kana, I feel like something invisible is blocking me.”

Kiriel touched his neck, recalling the days he had tried multiple times.

Not only direct verbal expression, but even when he tried to write it in a letter, he was subtly prevented by interferences like the pen’s ink not coming out.

Mentioning it to others was fine, but there seemed to be a restriction when expressing it directly to her.

Kana, looking at his serious face, couldn’t find words and just moved her lips silently.

“Ah…”

“It’s the same even now.”

Kiriel’s voice was tinged with complex emotions. For someone who was used to saying everything he wanted, it was a frustrating situation. If it weren’t for this inexplicable restriction, he would have expressed himself freely.

‘Is there an issue with the setting? No, this whole situation itself seems like a big problem. Wait, even though I heard something like a confession, my star rating didn’t decrease. Is this really okay? What about Letie?’

Originally, he should have been creating this kind of atmosphere with the female protagonist at the clock tower yesterday. Looking at the current situation, it seemed like they might have only exchanged businesslike conversations, which was worrying.

With her mind in turmoil, Kana rubbed her temples and maintained her silence. Feeling anxious about her ambiguous response, Kiriel, uncharacteristically, pleaded earnestly.

“It might not sink in because it’s too brief, but I’m sincere. As you know, Miss Kana, I’m not the type to speak empty words.”

“…That’s true.”

Kana nodded slowly. Although it was ambiguous due to the brief expression, it wasn’t an unbelievable statement. After all, there was no benefit for him in causing such trouble for her.

Kiriel swallowed dryly and asked with a slightly trembling voice.

“Do you dislike me, Miss Kana?”

“Well, it’s just sudden. I guess it’s because I’ve never imagined a situation where you would act like this towards me, Lord Kiriel.”

Kana felt her own voice sounding awkward as she squeezed out an answer.

It was natural. Unless she was a novice supporting character actor or someone who didn’t focus on star ratings and clung to relationships with characters, there was no reason to envision a future with him.

But Kiriel couldn’t understand. To him, it sounded like she couldn’t believe that he liked her. He leaned towards Kana.

“Why?”

“It’s a bit complicated to explain, but I naturally thought so. After all, I’m relatively less prominent and less charming as a character.”

Kana’s voice was dry and plain, as though she was explaining a specific phenomenon. Her expressionless face showed no signs of self-deprecation.

It wasn’t a statement born from low self-esteem, but rather a characteristic of a background supporting character.

Since her role was to highlight the main characters who were given elaborate settings, she was bound to appear relatively dim in comparison.

‘It’s no wonder the main characters treat supporting character actors like background props. Particularly in romance stories, women other than the female lead would be practically invisible.’

Unlike Kana, who was calm due to her clear understanding of her position, Kiriel was shocked and upset. Feeling suddenly emotional, he blurted out honestly without realizing it.

“Who dares to say such things? Lack of presence, my foot. There were times when I thought about you all day long. And you’re overflowing with charm. Enough to make me, of all people, anxious and clingy.”

His cheeks were now flushed, but his eyes remained intense.

It was such a blatant statement that even Kana, who usually dealt with main characters professionally during work, was startled. She tensed up unconsciously.

“…Ah.”

“Originally, I thought I’d express myself properly after resolving this strange restriction. But I became afraid of losing you while waiting. You’re so beautiful and lovable in my eyes, how must you appear to other men?”

Kiriel gently stroked her hair with one hand while clenching his other hand into a fist. His eyes, flickering with passion, would seem sincere to anyone who saw them.

‘No, isn’t this something the female lead usually experiences? I’ve always been in an observer position in any situation. Why now, after nothing has happened all this time…’

Kana felt dizzy. Since leaving her days as a novice, she never imagined a situation where a main character would aggressively pursue her.

While Kana was silently shocked, Kiriel ruffled her hair and muttered in a dejected voice.

“Damn, I didn’t mean to push it like this. Why did the atmosphere turn out this way?”

“C-Calm down for now.”

“Okay.”

Kiriel obediently took a deep breath. Kana, seeing that his state had improved somewhat, cautiously asked.

“How did you come to have such feelings? I assumed you were being kind to me because of the way I kept appropriate boundaries with spirits.”

“It certainly started that way… but before I knew it, I had already fallen. Even in your businesslike and cool attitude, I felt a kindness you couldn’t hide.”

Kiriel’s eyes sparkled as he lifted the corners of his mouth. Kana smiled awkwardly, feeling her face heat up for no reason.

“…Ah, I see.”

“I have a lot I want to say, but I’m caught by this strange restriction.”

Kiriel gave a bitter smile. Kana became solemn and closed her mouth. Kiriel, gazing at her as she slightly lowered her eyes, added,

“Somehow the conversation went off track, but this is how I feel. How about your feelings, Miss Kana?”

“I… I’m hesitant to answer. I’ll think about it.”

Kiriel’s heart sank at Kana’s carefully considered response. He heard that saying ‘I’ll think about it’ was almost half a rejection.

He clung to hope and asked,

“So you’re giving me a chance for now?”

“Yes. If your feelings remain unchanged even after Lady Letie and His Highness the Second Prince are married, I’ll consider it positively.”

“I understand.”

Kiriel accepted it readily, though puzzled by the sudden mention of Letie and Richard. Kana unconsciously clutched at the hem of her dress.

‘What am I doing…’

She impulsively mentioned the time after the story ended. Considering her and Kiriel’s positions, it would all be in vain.

Normally, she wouldn’t have acted like this. She felt that something was off about herself today.

Things were already a mess, but considering the possible star rating, she had to salvage the situation.

‘Sigh, to think I have to worry about star ratings even in this situation.’

Kana felt a bit bitter but didn’t show it, calmly summarizing the situation.

“Let’s just continue as usual for now. If this has made you uncomfortable around me, you can keep your distance if you’d like.”

“No, I don’t want to be distant.”

Kiriel firmly refused. As an awkward atmosphere settled following his answer, her industry friend’s voice echoed in her head.

‘[Round, an incident has occurred at the monster slaying demonstration.]’

‘[Okay.]’

Just as Kana received the information, Kiriel’s work communication device also lit up noisily.

Feeling annoyed, he frowned as he answered the call. A mage’s urgent voice flowed from the device.

— Tower Master, I’m terribly sorry, but please come quickly to the square in the southern street!

“What’s this, what’s suddenly happened?”

— There’s been a problem with the monster slaying demonstration. It’s a big deal!

The communication cut off abruptly after a mix of crying and noisy background sounds. Kiriel sighed deeply, running his hand through his hair.

“Ah, this has become a headache.”

“What could be the problem?”

Kana put on a serious expression, despite already knowing. Kiriel shook his head.

“If they’re calling for me so desperately, either the demonstrator is in danger or it’s something serious. Why today of all days?”

“…Right.”

It’s natural to feel annoyed when called for work-related matters during off hours. Kana fully understood that feeling. Kiriel said regretfully,

“Miss Kana, I’m really sorry, but we’ll have to part ways here for today.”

“It’s okay. It’s a sudden accident situation after all.”

“Yeah. Then before I go to the square in the southern street, I’ll take you to the mansion first.”

Kiriel hastily grabbed Kana’s hand. She stopped him as he was about to use teleportation magic to the Round mansion, saying,

“No. I’ll go with you, Lord Kiriel.”

“Why? We don’t know the situation yet, but it could be dangerous.”