Finding My Leading Man
“…….”
“…….”
She had known the wall connected straight to the neighboring estate, but she had never once expected to come face-to-face with another person.
And for good reason—the owner of the house next door spent all his time in the capital, leaving the place little more than an empty shell.
Caught red-handed in the middle of an illegal trespass, Cecilia hesitated before finally parting her lips.
“……Uh, hello?”
The rigidly frozen figure across from her gave a silent nod.
Too shocked to even speak?
Jumping to conclusions, Cecilia hurriedly tried to explain away the disgraceful scene.
“I—I’m not a suspicious person or anything. I live next door. My cat ran off with my bracelet and came this way. I was chasing after it and just… sort of ended up here without thinking…….”
“Ah……. I see.”
The voice was so soft it might have been meant only for himself. Yet the clear, youthful tone sent every last scrap of her awkwardness scattering like dandelion seeds on the wind.
Only then did Cecilia take a proper look at him.
The person she assumed was a man stood with his shoulders hunched and his posture slightly stooped, yet he was still remarkably tall and broad. That was all there was to him, though.
Head fixed toward the ground, the dirt-stained hem of a robe, and finally the garden spade gripped in one hand.
A shy gardener—clearly a supporting character.
In romance novels, something this out of the ordinary always ends with a miraculous meeting.
Running into a crown prince hiding from political intrigue, or stumbling across a cursed grand duke—those kinds of surprise events.
Reality, however, was far harsher.
In three whole months she had never once had a chance encounter. The only men she had met were priests devoted to God, the estate’s servants, or the elderly guests of some marquis. Cecilia’s interest and expectations evaporated almost at once.
“Have you by any chance seen a white cat? It should have come this way.”
“I—I did see it heading toward the western garden…….”
The man stretched out a straight finger, pointing somewhere that did not even look like a path.
She had no idea where this “western garden” of his was, but the cat could not possibly have gotten far.
“Then would you mind if I borrowed the space for a moment? I’ll leave as soon as I find the cat.”
“I—if it wouldn’t be a bother, would it be all right if I showed you the way?”
Cecilia decided to revise her first impression just a little.
Instead of chasing out an illegal trespasser, he was offering help. He was definitely a shy and extremely kind gardener.
“I’d be grateful, then.”
When she smiled brightly and nodded, the man flinched and his shoulders jerked. Then, with awkward little steps, he began to lead the way.
They crossed a stretch of lawn too pathetic to be called a path, and soon the garden he had mentioned came into view.
Right in the center of that garden sat the white cat in question, looking thoroughly pleased with itself.
Rolling around and completely wrecking a flower bed that had clearly been tended with great care.
“Oh my god.”
Horrified by the tragic sight, Cecilia clapped a hand over her mouth.
Those flowers lying flat on the ground would never rise again.
“What am I going to do? The cat ruined the garden.”
It was not even her cat, yet the sight of the man’s suddenly drooping back made her feel guilty on pure instinct.
Is he going to get scolded badly by his employer?
“W-well, if it’s a cat raised by the master of this estate…….”
“……I’ve never seen that cat before.”
Oh no.
The broad back shrank another handspan.
Cecilia gave an awkward little cough and, completely reading the room, scooped up the cat that was still rolling around without a care in the world.
“A-actually, it’s not even my cat either. At any rate, I’ll personally ask the master for forgiveness about the ruined garden……. Ah!”
Before she could finish speaking, the little troublemaker in her arms caused yet another accident.
As if displeased with her touch, it began thrashing about—and then launched itself straight at the man’s face.
Reflexively catching the cat, the man lost his balance and toppled backward onto the grass. The dirt-stained spade clattered to the ground, and the robe he had been wearing low over his face slipped off.
“Ah.”
The one who gasped was not the man.
Confronted with his bare face, Cecilia went completely stiff.
Found him. My male lead!
Jet-black hair set against flawless, translucent white skin without a single blemish; perfect features that looked as if they belonged only in two-dimensional art; and, behind silver-rimmed glasses, violet eyes the color of wisteria blossoms that seemed to snare the gaze and refuse to let go.
She had read plenty of black-haired handsome characters in novels, so she still had no idea which book she was inside.
What was certain, however, was that looks this radiant could never belong to a mere supporting role.
He’s definitely someone hiding his identity.
Whoever he was, Cecilia decided then and there that the man in front of her would be her male protagonist.
Even if this place was not a romance fantasy novel, even if she herself was not the heroine—it did not matter.
From now on, every objection is overruled.
Having made that firm resolution, Cecilia promptly stretched out a hand toward him.
“Are you all right?”
As if simply being offered a hand had moved him deeply, the man’s eyes went wide; then his cheeks flushed.
“Th-thank you.”
That tragic beauty combined with such a cute manner. The mere act of removing the robe worked a kind of magic, instantly transforming the damp, gloomy aura he had given off into something entirely different.
A face so handsome you could skip meals and still feel full. Seriously.
Trapped in this narrow territory, she had thought “Cecilia’s” face was the prettiest around—only to discover she had been a frog in a well.
Wait. Don’t tell me faces like this are everywhere once you get to the capital?
But when she thought of the noble guests and merchants who occasionally came to visit her father, that did not seem to be the case either.
In any event, Cecilia had no intention of letting this perfect opportunity to advance Plan D slip away.
“I’m sorry. I should have held onto the cat better.”
“It’s fine.”
Flustered, the man shook his head and carefully held out the cat.
Cecilia accepted the creature that had gone limp like jelly and casually added,
“Thank you for helping me. The house next door has been empty for so long that I honestly thought no one was there. Did you just move in?”
“Yes. I—no, my master said city life in the capital didn’t suit him, so we came down.”
“Then you’ll be staying for a while?”
“If you’ll allow it…….”
“Pardon?”
“Ah, no.”
So for the time being he’s going to be living next door, right?
The way he trailed off was a little strange, but the important thing was that she would have plenty of chances to meet this man from now on.
Having reached that swift conclusion, she readily offered the name she had grown used to.
“I’m Cecilia Weberdin. And you?”
“……Rien.”
Yep. Fake name.
The subtle pause right before speaking, the awkward way he avoided her eyes—she would have bet her own wrist that it was not his real name. Still, she pretended not to notice and held out her hand.
“Well then, let’s get along. As neighbors.”
Rien hesitantly took her hand. From that large, warm palm she could feel every bit of his tension, and Cecilia found herself laughing again.
Could a person’s mood really flip as easily as turning over a hand?
Just that morning she had been despairing over the failure of all her plans.
Now she felt she could willingly cherish this other world even without tteokbokki, ramen, or iced Americanos.
Inside a bedroom where the wallpaper, window frames, tapestries, and furniture were all pure white, Cecilia lay on an equally white bed and lazily lifted one hand.
The sapphire bracelet on her wrist sparkled under the light.
Just as she had been about to leave after their greetings, the man had found it among the wreckage of the flowers and fastened it on her himself.
“I’m glad you found the bracelet.”
And that faint smile he had worn while saying it.
He had probably only been considerate because she was holding the cat and could not use her hands.
Still, the memory of his careful touch rose again, and a smile slipped out on its own.
Until the cat stole it, it was just an unnecessarily expensive mineral.
Now it felt like it would become a lucky charm.
No—maybe the lucky charm is this cat?
The cat that had led her to that astonishing meeting was currently loafing on a plush cushion placed beneath the bed, baking itself into a perfect little loaf of bread.
Where on earth had the little thing come from?
The moment she returned to the estate she had asked the butler to check whether any servant had lost a cat, but there had been no word yet.
“It’s not like it just fell out of the sky.”
Until its owner appeared, she intended to take full responsibility for protecting it.
In a thoroughly generous mood, she was gently scratching between the sleeping cat’s ears when a knock suddenly sounded.
It was her personal maid, Melanie.
“My lady, your bath is ready.”
Having seen her mistress vanish and then return covered in dirt, Melanie had been so startled she had not even had time to ask questions before rushing straight to the bathroom.
By now her shock seemed to have settled somewhat; she calmly helped Cecilia up from the bed.
“First let’s get these clothes off. Come on, arms up.”
Silently raising both arms, Cecilia soon sank into warm, fragrant water.
The pleasant drowsiness that made her go limp lasted only a moment.
As Melanie rubbed Cecilia’s skin with a soft cloth, she suddenly spoke.
“I was in too much of a hurry earlier to ask properly, but of course you’ll explain what on earth happened to leave you covered in dirt like that, won’t you?”
The corners of her mouth seemed to be twitching—surely it was just her imagination.
“O-of course.”
She had never planned to hide it in the first place. She intended to keep climbing through that gap in the wall from now on, and there was no way she could keep deceiving Melanie, who stuck to her side all day long.
“What happened earlier was…….”
Cecilia straightforwardly told her maid the story of the strange cat and the man next door.
“I was chasing the cat and ended up going into the house next door.”
“I see.”
“Yeah, and there I met this man, and when we talked…….”
“Wait just a moment! A man? Don’t tell me you met a complete stranger and even had a conversation with him?”
Melanie, who had been listening rather calmly until then, recoiled in horror and dropped the soapy cloth with a plop.
For some reason her face looked even paler than when Cecilia had first appeared covered in dirt.
“Y-yeah.”
“What if you’d been kidnapped?!”
Melanie launched into a passionate lecture about the dangers of the world, and she truly seemed to be worried for her mistress.
It was not an especially over-the-top reaction.
And for good reason…….
Because Cecilia is the Saintess.