I Want to Fall in Love After Getting Reincarnated as the Heroine on the Verge of a Bad Ending, but My OP Older Brother Won’t Leave Me Alone!? - Chapter 80
Translated by: ShinigamiTori
Chapter 80 ? Music Festival and Fateful Love 3
Tugged along by his grasp, I made my way to where Yoshida was seated, and it finally dawned on me that I had been asked to share the table.
“Is it okay if I join you?”
I thanked the prince, who nodded, and sat diagonally across from Yoshida, next to the prince. Therese settled down beside Yoshida.
Yoshida, who seems to have already made up his mind, hands me the menu, placing it between myself and the prince. I glanced through the options.
“I’ll have the pasta set, and… Well, I did work hard today, I might as well add a cake. What about you, Theodore-sama?”
“…”
“I see, meat is a good choice. I prefer chicken over pork.”
“…”
“Ah, this bread is really good! Okay, then I’ll have the same.”
As the prince and I finished choosing from the menu and placed our orders, I became aware of Yoshida gazing at us.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, I was just wondering how long you’d be holding hands.”
It wasn’t until he said that that I realized that I had been holding hands with the prince the whole time. Everything felt so natural that I had even forgotten we were holding hands.
The prince, as if remembering, glanced down at our joined hands, tilted his head slightly, and then gently released his grip.
“Huh… Yoshida, are you jealous?”
“Don’t be stupid. I’m just worried that it might tarnish Prince Theodore’s reputation.”
It’s true that given the prince’s position, there must be various considerations and precautions when interacting with the opposite sex.
I definitely don’t want the prince to be talked badly about because of me, so I have to be careful. Nevertheless, the prince himself appears unfazed by it all.
In the midst of this, Therese chimed in, saying, “Speaking of which…”
“Prince Theodore and I were forced into a blind date the other day.”
“Eehhh?”
I couldn’t help but let out a loud exclamation at Therese’s sudden revelation. I was genuinely surprised at the unexpected arranged meeting between my two friends.
“It seemed fitting both in terms of our position and age. Of course, neither of us had any such intentions, so we just chatted about you while having tea and called it a day.”
In response to Therese’s words, the prince nodded in agreement. Just picturing the tea time of these two incredibly attractive individuals is enough to raise one’s eyesight. I feel kind of sorry that I’m the topic of conversation in such a situation.
It’s quite common for nobles and royals in this world to have their engagements arranged early on. I’ve even heard stories of people being engaged from birth.
And, as I am the daughter of a count, I can’t consider it unrelated. My position within the family is precarious, and I’m sure I could be easily disposed of. Perhaps it’s wise to graduate with good marks, acquire a skill, and have an escape plan.
“Rene’s performance was very good, as was Yoshida’s performance. I’ve always loved that piece, so I was delighted to hear it.”
“I’m glad to hear that. My mother used to play it for me when I was little too.”
Afterward, Yoshida and I received compliments on our performance, and we enjoyed a pleasant lunchtime.
Today as well, Yoshida quietly placed a pudding on my tray. I threw a thankful air kiss, which he caught, crushed, and tossed back at me. I like him.
???
?
As the end of the lunch break approached, I made my way back to the familiar seat. It seems that sitting together as siblings has caused people to talk about what will happen next. I doubted anything would change.
Julius was already seated when I returned, and upon seeing me, he smiled happily. Seeing him like that makes me happy too, and I find myself smiling along.
“Hey, do we have to hold hands? It’s still lunch break, and people pass by this seat, so Julius might end up being labeled a siscon.”
“I don’t care what others think. You’re the most important thing to me, Rene.”
There was no way I could brush it off when someone said something like that to me. On the other hand, my brother, who casually uttered them, maintained a cool demeanor.
“You just had lunch with Therese-chan, the prince, and Yoshida-kun, right? You guys really get along well.”
“Yeah, it was fun! But how did you find us when there were so many people around? Ah, they all stand out, don’t they?”
With friends who shine so brightly like that, they would undeniably catch attention. Julius, however, shook his head slightly.
“No matter how many people there are, my eyes are drawn only to Rene. Always.”
“…”
“And I can’t help but keep my eyes on you. I wonder why?”
Julius squeezes my hand tightly and grins mischievously.
There’s no way I could have known why. And honestly, his words just now made my heart unexpectedly flutter.
If it were directed at someone of the opposite sex other than me, it would be a confession-level pick-up line. Any normal girl would undoubtedly fall for them in seconds.
“I… I don’t know.”
“I see. It would be nice if someday Rene starts looking for me too.”
His fingers glided sensually over our intertwined hands. Feeling the pulsation of my heart, I quietly repeated in my mind, ‘Ethics, ethics.’
It must be the curse of this weird seat that makes me so uneasy. Yes, I reassured myself with that thought.
Sorry for the late updates everyone T_T I could’ve sworn that I scheduled a chapter a few days ago, but turns out I was wrong, so here’s the chapter. I’ll be hopefully updating the chapters according to my usual schedule again starting next week! Thank you for reading this~
If you like the novel and would like to support me, feel free to click the button below to go to my ko-fi! (??`?) Please also consider sending some love by leaving a rating/review for this series on Novel Updates! Thank you ??