While Others Became Female Leads In Romantic Fantasy Novels, I Became A Closet Monster
Chapter 41
“Didi, shall we try looking up here?”
Since nothing turned up on the lower shelves, we raised our gaze.
And finally, we found them!
In that massive library, we managed to find a total of five books concerning the World Tree.
‘No wonder it was so hard to find; there are only five books in the whole place.’
Even those five were classified as rarely read and tucked away at the very top, so we struggled just to get them down.
Since we would have had to speak to the librarian to check them out, we simply carried the books and snuck out of the library. They probably wouldn’t even notice they were gone.
We returned to the room hugging the books proudly—well, Didi was the one hugging them—and stepped inside.
By now, two chairs were placed at the desk as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
He and I sat side by side and opened a book. Just as we were about to start reading in earnest, Dedrick rubbed his eyes, his bangs seemingly getting in the way.
I reached out and grabbed his hand.
“Didi, I’m curious about something.”
Dedrick looked at me with a slightly nervous expression.
His blue eyes were hidden behind his black hair, making them hard to see.
I asked him seriously.
“Can you even see what’s in front of you like that?”
Dedrick flinched. Fidgeting with his bangs for no reason, he mumbled.
“I… I don’t want to show my face in front of others yet….”
“What about in front of me?”
“Even in front of me?”
“No, it’s okay in front of you.”
I brushed his hair back as if I had been waiting for the chance.
“There’s no need to be uncomfortable when it’s just us, so let’s move it! I’ll pin it back for you.”
“You will…?”
“I even prepared hair ties and pins just in case.”
I’m quite thorough when it comes to preparation, you know.
I pulled a small pouch out of the bottom drawer of the desk.
If he suddenly cut his hair, it would only give the Grand Duchess, Somerset, or Axel a reason to pick on him, so it was better not to change his outward appearance if possible.
I took a hair tie out of the small pouch and faced him.
When our eyes met, his ocean-blue pupils darted around before he eventually lowered his head.
“Hey, you have to lift your face.”
I cupped his cheeks and tilted his head up. Then, I gathered his bangs and tied them neatly upward.
To be honest, I did have a bit of a mischievous intent, but he looked so pretty that those thoughts vanished instantly.
As he looked up at me with that beautiful face and his hair in a little apple sprout, a satisfied smile naturally formed on my lips.
“This is called an apple hairstyle.”
When I lightly tapped the tuft of hair, Dedrick looked embarrassed.
“Oh! I wanted to try this style too.”
I untied the apple hair and gave him a half-updo from the back.
“You’re so pretty!”
Dedrick’s face looked like it was about to explode. When I tried to push my luck and go for pigtails, he made a whimpering face.
“I don’t like this one….”
“You’re the cutest in the whole world.”
“Even so, I’m not reading books with my hair tied like this.”
Oh, he’s being stubborn.
I laughed and let his hair down, this time neatly pinning his bangs to the side.
I stared at him for a moment in admiration.
He looks like an idol….
I opened a book and brought it close to his face.
“It’ll be easier to see now.”
As he peeked over the book and our eyes met, Dedrick’s face turned red in an instant.
“Are you hot?”
“A-A little….”
I vigorously waved a nearby fan.
He said he was fine and buried his nose in the book.
‘I can’t just sit still either.’
I boldly opened another book. However…
Cold sweat started running down my back.
I had forgotten that my reading level was barely at the stage of children’s picture books.
I wasn’t yet at a level where I could read such difficult texts.
I peeked at Dedrick, and our eyes met directly.
He looked back and forth between me and the book, then suddenly buried his face in his own book.
Seeing his shoulders shaking….
“Didi, are you laughing?”
“Pfft….”
“Ahem. I’m sorry.”
After catching his breath, Dedrick lifted his head. With a face still full of mirth, he took the book from in front of me and replaced it with a picture book.
“I’ll look for it.”
I felt bad leaving it all to Dedrick. He had his own work to do.
“Just read it when you have spare time. It’s not urgent, so don’t do it at the expense of your own studies.”
“Before that, I’ll study my letters hard! You focus on your studies, Didi!”
He didn’t seem particularly keen on the idea, but I considered his response a win anyway.
It was impossible to finish the books in a single day.
Dedrick was very busy having to study to become the successor and undergo swordsmanship training.
It would probably take a few days to read through them all.
Since Dedrick’s studies came before mine, I intended to wait patiently.
In the meantime, I scurried around the wardrobe to do some spying, which I hadn’t done in a while.
Somerset aside, Axel had been so quiet lately that I sought out his room.
He was sitting in a chair. As I approached quietly so as not to make a sound, I saw him studying with great focus.
And quite seriously at that.
‘Maybe it’s because he has something to fall back on, but Somerset never seems to sit still for long.’
Even though Dedrick was getting higher grades than him, Somerset didn’t seem to feel much of a sense of crisis.
Seeing how he slacked off on everything except swordsmanship.
‘He probably thinks there’s no way Didi will ever surpass him to become the successor anyway.’
Pathetic.
In contrast, Axel was putting in quite a lot of effort.
When nothing else was going on, Axel was the type to study hard, though not quite as much as Dedrick.
“He’s definitely greedy for the position of successor too.”
There was no other reason for this.
Should I just interfere?
No. Dedrick wouldn’t like that kind of tactic.
…But Dedrick gets interfered with every single day!
My mind wavered back and forth.
Suddenly, Axel flinched. At the same time, blood dripped down from under his nose.
“He worked so hard he got a nosebleed?”
As I watched in surprise, Axel hurriedly blocked his nose with a handkerchief.
Fortunately, the bleeding stopped quickly.
“Hmph, it’s only this much.”
Just as Axel muttered and picked up his pen again…
The door opened and Delaney walked in. Thanks to the maintenance funds she had protected even at the cost of giving up command of the knight order, her attire was still luxurious.
‘Well, don’t you look radiant?’
I glared at Delaney with all my might. Not that she would know.
Axel welcomed her with a noticeably brightened voice.
He ran to Delaney and gave her a tight hug.
Despite everything, the two brothers really loved Delaney.
Well, she was their mother, after all.
It would have been nice if Dedrick could have enjoyed something like that for a long time too.
Before I could even let out a sigh of pity, Delaney coldly pushed Axel away.
“How old are you that you’re still acting like this…?”
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Axel stepped back awkwardly.
“It’s been a while since Mother came to my room personally….”
Delaney cut Axel off mid-sentence.
“You know Somerset has been depressed for a while.”
She was talking about him being stuck in his room for a month under house arrest.
Because of that, for a while, the servants’ gossip about Somerset’s cruelty would often reach my ears.
“Is Hyung okay?”
“I’m here because of that.”
Delaney looked disapprovingly at Axel’s books, which were covered in signs of hard study, and suddenly started picking on him.
“How can you even look at books when your brother is so disheartened?”
At the sudden criticism, Axel blinked like an idiot and asked back.
“What good is doing well in your studies? Why are you trying so hard?”
“Mother?”
Axel looked at her as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Somerset couldn’t even rest properly because he was so busy being wary of you while he was supposed to be recuperating. As his younger brother, how can you be so selfish?”
“Don’t give your brother anything more to worry about when his self-esteem is already so low.”
In short, she was telling him not to study so that his older brother’s spirits could be lifted.
‘Wow. This is the first time I’ve seen a parent step in and tell their child not to study.’
I thought he might throw a tantrum, but Axel just nodded weakly.
“…I’m sorry. I didn’t think about Hyung. I won’t study for the time being.”
“Behave yourself so Somerset doesn’t have to worry.”
No, is Somerset a child?
He’s old enough to know better, what on earth….
Due to her excessive love for her eldest son, Axel eventually took a step back.
“Yes, Mother.”
The door closed, and Axel let out the breath he had been holding.
“Sigh….”
His face contorted as he snapped his head up and gritted his teeth.
“This is all because of Dedrick, that bastard!”
“What?! How does it turn into his fault again?!”
