I Became the Male Lead who was Clinging onto the Female Leads

Chapter 2: I can hear the sound of my life's difficulty level rising (1)

TL/Editor: Raei

Schedule: N/A

Illustrations: Posted in discord.

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After getting thoroughly scolded by Yerina Von Bliss Beruz, Eugene wore a wounded expression the whole day.

'So peaceful.'

This is what one might call a blessing in disguise.

Woo-jin was enjoying the peace that had come after a long while.

But it was short-lived.

Before long, classes at the Royal Academy had ended, and it was time to leave.

"Instead of heading straight back to the dorm, let's stop by the Naiya tavern."

"To drink? What if we get caught?"

"We just need to make sure we don't get caught."

The students, in small groups, left the classroom.

"Ah~ finally going home~"

"Why are you so eager to get back to the dorm?"

"The dormitory is home too. Don't you like it, Celine?"

"I neither like it nor dislike it."

"What does that even mean?"

Tina and Celine, who seemed to have a bit of a friendly relationship, got up from their seats and left the classroom together.

No, they tried to leave.

Suddenly, Eugene, having snapped out of his gloom, shot up from his seat.

"Tina! Celine! Take care!"

"...Sure."

Tina awkwardly twisted the corners of her mouth and waved.

She tried to smile, but her facial muscles seemed to refuse.

How severe must her perception of Eugene be?

"..."

What's worse, Celine left the classroom without giving him a second glance.

Eugene, just give up.

It'll be easier if you give up.

"You don't have to respond. I won't give up!"

Just give up already!

It was only a few minutes since Eugene recovered and already his head was throbbing.

Ah, what a headache.

I even started wishing that he would just get hit by a carriage already.

I need to regain control of this body somehow...

"Huh. Look at the time."

Eugene, having glanced at his wristwatch and been startled by the time, abruptly dashed out of the classroom.

I had a rough idea where he was going.

The Adventurer's Guild.

Eugene was the son of the fallen Barony of Grace and unlike the children of other nobles, he received no other support from his family apart from his tuition fees.

Even the tuition fees for the Lucia Royal Academy were being piled up as debt of the household.

The enormous debt accumulated by the household was at such a level that even the addition of tuition fees made little difference.

'The family has fallen, there's debt, it's all a mess.'

For these reasons, Eugene would go to the Adventurer's Guild and make money whenever he had spare time.

He may have been a fool, a dimwit, a complete dolt, but his talent in 'sword and magic' was genuine.

The 5-star Talent 'Sword Soul' he possessed could, if he dedicated his life to it, make him a Sword Master.

He had this great talent, but it was being wasted due to his infatuation with women,

I am going mad, really going mad.

Anyway, thanks to his talent, he was able to survive while tossing his talents away.

He was so fast that he soon arrived at the guild.

Eugene entered the guild building and asked the receptionist,

"Do you have any requests for me today?"

The receptionist, familiar with this routine, rummaged through the request forms and offered him one.

"A pack of mad wolves is causing trouble on a trade route outside the city. The merchants are at their wits' end. If you can kill these creatures, we'll give you 5 silver per wolf."

"Thank you. I'll be right back."

"Yes. Here's your request form."

Thump.

As the receptionist stamped the request form with the seal, the magic circuit on the paper emitted a faint light.

Now, as Eugene killed the rabid wolves, their death count would be automatically recorded, and all Eugene had to do was collect the money.

'With 5 silvers each, killing just 10 of them would be 50 silvers.'

50 silvers were enough to live off of for two weeks.

No matter how he thought about it, this guy's abilities were quite remarkable.

However, the problem was the way he lived.

'Ugh.'

Whether or not he knew of Woo-jin's throbbing headache, Eugene began to search for wolves on the outskirts of the city.

Eugene was a prodigious genius with the sword, one that might come once every hundred years.

Since he had such talent in swordsmanship, he was able to understand other aspects related to combat without explicitly learning them.

"Over there?"

Eugene differentiated between the various life spread throughout the forest, finding the rabid wolves.

"Grrrr!"

Foam was forming at the wolves' mouths and their eyes had rolled back.

Quietly, Eugene raised his sword and stomped the ground.

The instant he was in range, he swung his sword.

Although slow, there was not a single error in the trajectory of his blade.

Transfixed by his grace, the wolves seemed to be mesmerized as they passed by Eugene.

Quietly, Eugene sheathed his sword.

A thin red line appeared on the body of a wolf.

The line gradually widened to become a massive wound, and soon, the huge body fell into the grass.

'He killed one in a single blow.'

If the wolves had been sane, the entire pack would have fled.

But the rabid wolves didn't run, and six wolves targeted Eugene.

'Really crazy, this one.'

Living like this despite possessing such talent.

"Six of them make 30 silvers. That should be enough to buy a present to improve Yerina's mood, right?"

It's not enough, you fool! You don't have money for gifts!

Woo-jin wanted to bury his face in his hands every time he opened his mouth.

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Raei Translations

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Having collected his reward from the guild, Eugene sauntered down the city streets, his eyes darting this way and that.

"I can't seem to find a good place to buy a gift."

His plan was to buy a gift to appease Yerina's mood, but as night fell, most of the shops closed their doors.

"Guess it can't be helped."

He would have to buy the gift tomorrow.

Woo-jin, taken aback by Eugene's persistence, rubbed his shoulders in discomfort.

Eugene was on his way back to the inn when he paused.

"Hmm?"

Eugene's keen ears, honed by his natural talent, picked up an unusual sound.

It came from a dark alley.

"What's that?"

If it was a matter of danger, he would have to intervene.

As a student of the Royal Academy, destined to shape the future of the Holy Lucia Empire, it was his duty to do so.

Eugene crept silently into the alley, inching closer to the source of the sound.

"I love you."

"Oh my... me too."

He stumbled upon a rather intimate scene.

It was clear at a glance: a dashing gentleman and a beautiful lady entangled in a midnight rendezvous.

'How nice.'

Woo-jin, watching the couple, wore a soft, wistful smile.

'But why does he look like that?'

Eugene, however, did not share his good spirits.

He was as rigid as a rock.

'Hey, why are you looking so scary.'

You're not about to quietly go and ruin someone else's moment, are you?

Even if you're crazy, you have some principles, right? Right?

Woo-jin trembled with unease, imagining the unpredictable Eugene.

"I'm envious."

Thankfully, Woo-jin's worries were unfounded.

"I should confess my feelings tomorrow."

'Hey you crazy bastard, are you even human?'

This was the beginning of a far greater catastrophe.

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Raei Translations

---

Eugene returned to the inn with a hardened face and fell into sleep.

Looking at the face of the crazy kid, Woo-jin fell into deep thought.

Come to think of it, it wasn't that Eugene wanted to be mad.

Rather, he had been forced to conform to the utterly incoherent actions of the user who had controlled him, and as the world tried to inject reason into this, it resulted in his current state.

For 'Eugene von Lennon Grace' to be so desperate as to run into a carriage, there had to be an incident that could drive him to such lengths.

And so, the best scenario for that was heartbreak.

Despite clinging onto the heroines for more than a semester without any progress, it seemed like a confession was forcefully induced in Eugene.

The odds of Eugene's confession succeeding were, needless to say, nonexistent, even if his ancestors were watching from above.

Oblivious to this reality that is known by everyone else, Eugene would confess, suffer heartbreak, and in the ensuing shock, cause a carriage incident.

'He's got it tough too.'

A genius unparalleled in the world, ruined because of some user trying to build a harem.

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Raei Translations

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"Today is a big day."

Eugene was grooming himself as best he could.

He styled his hair with olive oil... the rest omitted.

Why would anyone watch this?

Woo-jin decided to get more sleep until Eugene arrived at school.

When Eugene arrived at school, the day progressed as any ordinary day.

As usual, he tucked snacks and meal tickets under the heroines' desks.

Tina and Celine, being used to receiving gifts from boys, didn't pay attention to it and focused on their lessons.

Even if the girls said no, the boys would still do it.

They could hardly understand the psychology of the boys who showed them blind goodwill.

They simply accepted it and moved on, not paying any more attention than that.

After all, they had their own lives to live.

After enduring a class filled with heart-racing anticipation from the thought of confessing his feelings, it was finally lunchtime.

"Celine, would you like to have lunch together?"

"I have plans with a senior today. Go alone."

"Ah... okay."

Eugene, clutching his chest as if it would burst, walked over to Tina.

"Tina!"

Seeing Eugene's face that looked fit to burst, Tina's face soured.

"....What?"

"If you don't mind, can you come up to the rooftop after eating lunch? I'll be waiting there."

'Just advertise that you're going to confess.'

That line was too clich.

"That's a bit...."

Even Tina, foreseeing the upcoming scenario, overtly showed her dislike.

'He's going to confess, isn't he?'

Even if she tried to ignore it, she couldn't.

The number of boys who confessed to her so far could fill up a classroom.

Eugene's bright red face ready to burst, his nervous hands, and trembling legs.

Everything was clearly visible.

'He's liked me for a long time.'

Tina had noticed a while back that Eugene had feelings for her.

She would have been a fool not to notice.

He always popped up like a ghost when she was stuck, rambling on about this and that.

At first, she mostly ignored him, but out of curiosity, she tried to follow his advice a few times, and it was truly helpful when she was stuck.

Since then, although it was a bother, she left him alone because he was helpful after all.

'But if you ask me if he has any charm as a man...'

He had absolutely none.

To Tina, Eugene was a man who would probably lick her feet if she asked him to.

She couldn't see him as a potential partner.

If he had a royal lineage or a good background, there might have been some room to see him in a favorable light, but even that was not there.

He was the eldest son of a fallen Baron's family.

Even from the perspective of a noble lady, he was a total failure.

'This is tough.'

If any other guy had announced a confession like this, she would have flatly refused and ignored him.

But because of the help she had received from Eugene, she felt conflicted as a fellow human being.

'Ugh.'

After a moment of contemplation, Tina decided,

'I'll consider it as a return for the help I've received so far.'

She would reject him clearly.

She was determined to put a definitive end to it, so Eugene would not hold any hopes again.

No matter how much she thought about it, Tina was sure she couldn't see Eugene as a potential partner.

Even if he was given a lifetime, he wouldn't be able to.

Better a sure pain than a pointless torture of hope.

"Alright. I'll go to the rooftop after lunch."

"Okay! Thank you!"

'Even after seeing that expression...'

You want to go up to the rooftop?

Even to a dating novice like Woo-jin, Tina's eyes clearly meant, 'I'm going to reject you, so prepare yourself.'

'How crushed will his mind be after this?'

Foreseeing Eugene's bleak future, Woo-jin quietly closed his eyes.

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Raei Translations

---

On the rooftop, warmed by a gentle breeze.

Eugene von Lennon Grace and Tina von Elia Florence stood facing each other.

The difference between the two was significant, even to Woo-jin's eyes.

The man was the useless eldest son of a fallen baron's family, and the woman was the only daughter of the Earl of Florence, a renowned beauty, boasting immense wealth.

If these two were to come together, the assumption that Eugene is, in reality, the demon king, and he has cursed Tina into a state of neither living nor dying, seemed more plausible.

If they claim to be linked by pure love, people would likely throw stones.

They simply weren't a fitting pair.

Whether he knew this or not, Eugene, trembling, opened his mouth.

"T-t-t-Tina."

Hm?

I have, actually, since a long time ago

Hm?

At such predictable dialogue, Tina seemed to hold back a yawn, her brows furrowing.

'Just hurry up and get rejected already.'

I wasn't much different.

Since he would be rejected anyway, it would be better to face the pain quickly and end it.

"Tina, I've liked you for a long time! It's my lifelong wish. Please, date me!

He really blurted it out.

Woo-jin naturally turned his gaze towards Tina.

"Is that so?"

As expected, she was completely unfazed, expressionless.

It seemed likely. It's absurd to claim not knowing.

Hm?

"I figured as much. But it wouldn't make sense for you not to know already."

That is.

Anyway, you probably dont want to hear about this, so I'll just give you my answer.

Eugene audibly swallowed.

To cut to the chase, I have absolutely no romantic feelings for you. So, it would be best if you move on.

What did you say?

Eugene's face crumbled as if his world was collapsing.

Why are you making that face?

'He hasn't accept it yet. I'll have to give him a bigger shock.'

Tina steeled her expression, as if to draw a clear line.

Just like when she rejected other men, she spoke with a slight smirk on her face.

Honestly, we dont match, do we? I am the only daughter of the Earl of Florence, possessing the greatest wealth on the continent, and you are the eldest son of a fallen baron's family. If we didnt meet at this royal academy, honestly, would we have been able to exchange words face to face?

Ho, how can you say such harsh words.

I am being realistic. You and I are in different leagues. So, let go of your feelings and find a woman who matches your level to love.

Understand?

With that, Tina turned her back and walked away.

Eugene, engulfed in shock, fell to his knees.

'Aigooo.'

Looking at our fool, Eugene, I lightly clicked my tongue.

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