I Give Up on the BL Novel's Male Leads - Chapter 9
Edwin wanted to be alone, just like Illein in the original story who went to the rooftop for lunch. What do you call coincidentally meeting the person you accidentally kissed the day before?
A tragic fate where you’re inevitably devoured by the obsessed crown prince?
But the future is being forged anew!
With that thought, I approached Edwin and sat down near him.
“What are you doing here?”
“What, you.”
He moved the book that was covering his face and looked at me. It was clear he hadn’t planned on eating lunch here but rather intended to sleep.
“What about your lunch?”
“Get lost.”
How could Edwin’s prickly attitude be so…
“Aren’t you hungry?”
…comforting?
I hoped he would dislike and reject me more.
I definitely didn’t want to see the mad behavior he exhibited towards me in the original story.
“Aren’t you leaving?”
He sat up irritably and glared at me. Meeting his fiery red eyes made me instinctively shrink back.
“I usually eat here.”
I blurted out reflexively, and he slightly furrowed his brows, brushing back his tousled black hair.
“Do you want to have lunch with me?”
He looked at me as if startled by my question.
“Why would I want to eat lunch with you?”
Edwin’s cold voice made me lift my head without realizing it.
Our eyes met, but instead of annoyance, his red eyes seemed more filled with confusion.
“Well, it’s lunchtime, and I came here to eat. And you must be hungry too.”
He seemed taken aback by my calm response.
“You didn’t put anything weird in there, did you?”
“No, look.”
As he watched me like a wary cat, I laughed and moved closer to him, opening the two lunch boxes to show him.
I picked up a green apple and bit into it.
“See?”
“Who eats green apples with peanut butter?”
“It’s really good.”
He didn’t know what he was missing from never having eaten green apples with peanut butter. I offered him an apple slice dipped in peanut butter.
He grimaced and said,
“Never mind, I’m not eating. Just leave when you’re done.”
He said that and tried to lie back down on the floor.
“Isn’t the floor dirty?”
“It’s clean.”
Indeed, the floor was clean.
Even though it was a rooftop, it had a marble floor, and magic had been applied to prevent erosion from rainwater.
“Just try one.”
“Stop bothering me.”
“Aren’t you hungry?”
Suddenly, he got up and elbowed me.
“Ow.”
Whether he intended it or not, the lunchbox I was holding dropped, spilling its contents.
“…Sorry.”
Edwin apologized, looking flustered at the spilled lunch. I used my wand to gather the fallen food, returning it to its original place.
“If you feel sorry, will you eat what I bring tomorrow?”
Though it was a waste about the spilled food, I saw it as an opportunity.
Trying to stay positive, I smiled at him, prompting him to say in a dazed tone.
“Do you not know how I got here? Why are you being nice to me?”
He spoke cautiously, pulling out his wand to clean the stains on my clothes.
Seeing his actions, I felt he might not be a bad person after all, and words just slipped out.
“I’m Illein Thierry.”
“…”
“My family is a Barony too weak to have any ties with the imperial court. The first time I saw a prince’s face was when you came to the academy.”
Our family was modest. We never had connections that could leak important information, and our relationship with the Candelaria Ducal family was purely employment, making it hard to access such information.
To make matters worse, our estate was mortgaged due to debt.
“And I’m not interested in things you choose not to tell me.”
“Why are you being nice to me then? I have no power to offer you anything.”
As he looked at me with even more confusion, I blurted out, “I don’t know. I just felt like getting to know you.”
“…?”
“I think it’s strange too. This is new for me.”
I laughed, pretending my kindness was nothing but pure goodwill.
In truth, my approach was to show him that I was far from the intelligent and aloof character he had loved, a complete departure from his expectations.
“And I don’t expect anything from you. If you think I’m asking for something, feel free to turn me down.”
My words seemed to soften his wariness a bit.
Yet, he didn’t seem interested in sharing lunch and quickly disappeared.
That was a relief.
“Hey, student council president, where are you heading?”
Despite the unpleasant voice, I forced a smile and turned around.
“Hello, Macintosh.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
I hate this person.
Willai Macintosh’s father and my father were both aides to Duke Candelaria.
Willai’s father was the senior aide, while my father was just an aide.
Willai, considering his father superior to mine, naturally treated me as someone beneath him.
