TBKBS 03

 Chapter :  3

Do you wish for me to have that kind of love?

What does that even…

Ah! That’s what you meant?

Of course.

You meant for me to love you!

I was flustered for a moment, but thankfully I quickly grasped the hidden intent in Calix’s words.

That was when it happened.

“Lyn.”

Just as I sent Calix a look saying I understood his hidden meaning, someone came up beside me and called my name.

Lyn?

Lyn, you say…

The only people who called Kaelyn “Lyn” were my father and my brother, Luke.

Which meant…

I instantly knew the man before me was Grand Duke Leon.

The very Leon that Kaelyn had loved in my novel.

But he was also the very Leon I had to keep my distance from if I wanted to stay alive.

He was a tall, slender man with golden hair and blue eyes.

Handsome, yes, but… how could someone so handsome leave me so unmoved?

Maybe because all I could think about was that he was the one who would lead me to death. His elegant face didn’t stir a single feeling of attraction in me.

“Your Grace, the Grand Duke.”

I bowed politely with a stiff expression.

Making sure there was no trace of familiarity in my demeanor.

But despite my formality and cold expression, Leon smiled brightly.

“Lyn, I’m a bit late, aren’t I?”

Affection poured from his eyes, his tone and actions carrying the ease of long familiarity.

It was the attitude of a man still in love, even after years of comfort and closeness.

Sorry… Leon.

But what can I do?

From now on, I must keep my distance from you.

“Oh, I was enjoying myself with His Highness the Crown Prince so much that I didn’t even notice your delay, Your Grace.”

The moment I said it, confusion and shock flickered across Leon’s face. Eyes widened all around me, including Luke’s.

And then, I felt Calix’s sharp gaze pierce into the side of my face.

Turning my head, I met Calix’s eyes.

The instant our gazes locked, he looked away, bowing his head.

His face was visibly stiff as he stared intently into his wine glass.

Even though he had to know I was watching him, he fixed his eyes there, refusing to meet mine again.

While I looked at Calix, Leon spoke again.

“Lyn, shall we dance?”

It seemed Leon thought my cold attitude was nothing but a passing mood.

No, Leon.

From now on, I’d prefer we didn’t even exchange words, much less dance.

I turned back to Calix, eager to see his reaction to Leon’s offer.

He was still staring at his wine.

So desperately hiding his emotions, taking refuge in the wine glass rather than risk his eyes betraying his feelings?

But I knew the truth. Right now, your chest is burning with obsession for me and jealousy toward Leon.

But you don’t need to hide anymore.

That void in your heart, that obsessive desire for what you cannot have, that tangled knot of yearning and hate—don’t worry. I’ll erase it all.

I shifted my gaze from Calix back to Leon and spoke clearly.

“Your Grace, I’m sorry. But I would like to share the first dance with His Highness the Crown Prince.”

To Leon, my response must have been absurd and shocking, but I had a clear goal. I wasn’t holding back.

I was so focused on that goal that it only struck me afterward—wait, can I even dance?

Calix, you heard me, didn’t you?

I’m opening my heart to you.

Not Leon—just you!

Leon’s expression, so steady even at my earlier coldness, turned crimson now, spreading to his ears.

All eyes fell on me, and I could even see people exchanging looks.

Even Calix, who had been stubbornly hiding behind his wine glass, finally looked at me instead of away.

His wide eyes betrayed his shock all too clearly.

After staring silently at me for three whole seconds, he finally spoke.

“Lady Brockburke, what did you just say? That you want to dance with me?”

“Yes, Your Highness. Would you honor me with the first dance?”

I could always learn while dancing.

So what? I’d just let myself follow Calix’s rhythm!

Dance or no dance, I’d already thrown the words out. There was no going back now.

But again, Calix only looked at me, silent.

After another three seconds, he finally opened his mouth.

“Sorry, but I must refuse. I don’t enjoy dancing.”

“!!!!!!!”

What?

Male lead, what did you just say?

Did you… reject me?

You?

Reject me?

Calix just rejected me, Kaelyn Brockburke?!

I was speechless.

In my novel, he had always glared silently, displeased, while Leon and I danced.

But here I was, rejecting Leon of my own will and offering to dance with him—and he rejected me? The man who was supposed to be hopelessly in love with me?

Whether I was stunned or not, Calix turned away and calmly sipped his wine.

What the hell…?

I stared at him, unable to comprehend this.

But instead of looking back at me, he started discussing border matters with the man beside him.

Why is he acting like this?

Stick to the script!

Show me the obsessive, love-sick side that I wrote for you!

Instead of being moved to tears by my affection, why do you look so indifferent and calm?

Unless…

Is he sick?

Suspicious, I studied his face closely.

Eventually, he stopped talking and glanced at me.

His face was rigid, as if he were flustered.

That stiff face, that tense expression…

Ah… maybe he’s actually just extremely nervous because of me?

Yes, that’s it.

He’s pretending to be calm, but my sudden affectionate advance left him overwhelmed and unsure of how to respond.

He’s never been good at expressing emotions.

My sudden change must have him completely at a loss.

Watching his stiff expression, I once again unraveled his complicated psychology.

Good thing I’m the author.

This is my male lead—I know his personality too well.

Of course he’s flustered. I’ve been acting way friendlier than in the original story.

I get it. It makes sense.

While I studied Calix, I could feel Leon’s gaze on me, but I deliberately ignored him. For my sake, and for his own, he needed to let go. The cleanest cut was best.

Just then, a murmur rippled through the crowd as someone entered the hall.

At last, the party’s most anticipated guest had arrived.

Though the throng of people blocked my view, the atmosphere told me it was Iden.

Soon enough, Iden emerged through the crowd into my sight.

The first thing I noticed was his silver hair.

As he drew closer, his face came into focus, and I was left speechless.

What in the world is with that impossible beauty?!

I had given the heroine silver hair and blue eyes for her romantic beauty. Naturally, I made her brother look the same. They were siblings, after all.

But that simple choice had just led to this.

Silver-haired, blue-eyed Iden was so beautiful that not a trace of him lacked romance.

Was silver hair and blue eyes the problem?

I only ever described him as “handsome.” But when that “handsome” is paired with silver hair and blue eyes in reality—it turns into pure art!

Iden had only been meant as a side character, there to bring the male and female leads together.

But with that face? Another mistake.

There was no way someone that striking could ever be just a side character.

As I stared at Iden, I regretted my writing choices.

He began with greetings to the Emperor and Empress, then moved on to noble house heads like my father.

I had been gawking at his beauty so long that I’d gone blank.

Ah!

Suddenly, I snapped back to my senses and remembered my true goal.

Focus, Lyn!

For survival, the man you need to pay attention to is Calix.

I hurriedly turned to where Calix had been.

“??”

But he was gone.

While I’d been distracted by Iden’s beauty, Calix had vanished.

Oh, come on!

I’d meant to keep track of his movements at all times.

Did the pressure of being near me overwhelm him so much that he ran off to hide and watch from afar?

I darted my eyes around, searching for him.

And unexpectedly, I locked eyes with Iden Darkus, the Crown Prince.

As if waiting for me, he dipped his head slightly and smiled.

Ugh, what a dazzling smile.

But… did he just smile at me?

Why?

In my novel, Iden and Kaelyn had no connection.

They might have crossed paths at a party, but never exchanged words.

Even I, as the author, only knew him as the heroine’s handsome, womanizing brother.

Still… his smile made him even more stunning.

For a moment, I almost smiled back before catching myself.

No, Lyn! Snap out of it!

This isn’t the time to admire beautiful strangers.

I quickly turned my gaze away.

I had no time to exchange smiles with a charming playboy.

I needed to find the male lead who held my life in his hands.

My eyes scanned the ballroom again in search of Calix.

But he never appeared, even until the party ended.

Why does he disappear like this, never showing his feelings openly, yet slipping away completely? I’m ready to love and be loved.

The frustration in my chest was suffocating.

*****

Why does this woman keep hovering around me?

Calix was starting to feel irritated by the woman who stuck to his side, stealing glances at him over and over.

When she first approached, he assumed she was some noble lady and was about to exchange the usual greetings. But when he realized he couldn’t place her family, he had to cover his awkwardness.

Who is she, following me around like this? It’s unsettling.

Her relentless gaze on his face was making him increasingly tense. Only after overhearing her conversation with Duke Luke Ford did he finally understand who she was.

She was the Duke’s younger sister—so this must be Lady Kaelyn Brockburke.

Calix had kept careful track of the Duke’s household, so he already knew the reports: she had been away in the countryside for her health, then returned to Everen a few years ago, and since then she had been close to Leon.

By the timing, she must have been present when he’d visited the Duke’s mansion as a boy, and they must have crossed paths at parties since her return.

But he had only ever glimpsed her from afar. Never once had she come this close, which explained why he hadn’t recognized her face.

Why does she keep following me? Should I at least say something?

From their conversation, he gathered her name was Kaelyn. Full name: Kaelyn Brockburke.

Lady Kaelyn kept staring at his face without pause, even asking for his opinion on things he cared nothing about.

To relax his stiffening face, he drank more wine than usual, but her increasingly bold stares became unbearable, so he finally asked if she had something to say.

But immediately, he regretted speaking to her.

Clearly, this woman was not right in the head.

She spoke of how she liked obsessive, possessive love, spouting strange nonsense—yet as she said it, her eyes shone at him in a bizarre way.

Why is she looking at me like that while saying she likes obsessive, possessive love?

Goosebumps crawled over Calix’s skin.