The Male Leads Were Stolen By The Extra [EN]: Chapter 148

Side Story 1 <1>

Spring. A season when new life sprouts, painting the world in vibrant green.

With spring, a blessing that heralds the start of the year, the Grand Duke’s castle in the North buzzed with energy.

And today…

The Grand Duke’s castle was in an unusually festive mood.

“Mom! Can I see His Excellency the Grand Duke today, too? And tour the castle grounds?”

“Of course, you can. You’ll be able to see Her Grace the Grand Duchess as well.”

“Wow!”

The little girl, clutching her mother’s hand with her tiny fingers, sparkled with excitement.

“Let’s go quickly!”

About six years old, the child hurried ahead with her short legs, urging her mother on.

The mother smiled, cautioning her to be careful not to fall, and quickened her pace.

“Wow! It’s really big!”

The child, having arrived after a long walk, looked up at the castle with wide, sparkling eyes. The child’s mother, a step behind, caught her breath and raised her head.

The Grand Duke’s castle, so immensely large it was hard to fathom, stood before them.

It was the first time they had seen the distant castle, always viewed from their village, this close.

The magnificent castle, too grand to take in at a glance, exuded an imposing aura.

“Mom! Hurry! Hurry!”

The child grabbed her mother’s hand, pulling her along. But the mother hesitated, unable to easily move her rooted feet.

She knew that anyone could enter the Grand Duke’s castle today, but the castle’s imposing presence was overwhelming.

Of course, the massive gates of the Grand Duke’s castle, which were usually firmly closed, were wide open as if welcoming guests. The knights standing on either side of the gate simply watched the mother and daughter without any particular attention.

The woman glanced at her own clothes, then at the knights neatly dressed in their uniforms.

“……”

She was speechless.

She had chosen the neatest and most expensive dress she owned for today.

This dress, bought from the next village, was even envied by her close friends because the design looked very luxurious compared to the price.

So, she naturally thought it was good enough, but standing in front of the castle, she couldn’t help but feel shabby.

The slightly worn hem of her skirt, visible only to her, bothered her more and more.

“Mom!”

As the woman was contemplating whether to just turn back despite her child’s eagerness, wondering if she would only be embarrassed…

“Welcome! Welcome, pretty little guest!”

A petite young lady with a large basket, who had appeared unnoticed, greeted them.

“Miss! What is that?”

“Yujin!”

The woman was startled and called out her daughter’s name as the child let go of her hand and ran to the young lady with the basket.

“I’m sorry. She’s still a child and doesn’t know any better. I’m really sorry.”

The woman, who quickly scooped up her child, repeatedly bowed her head in apology.

The young lady was wearing clothes that looked incomparably more expensive than her own. She worried that even a minor discourtesy might harm her child.

“Oh, my. There’s no need to apologize! You’re guests, after all. I’m Ella. You said your name is Yujin? This is a corsage.”

Ella bent her knees to meet the eye level of Yujin, who was held tightly in her mother’s hand.

“Corsage?”

“Yes. It’s a corsage made from Mandria flowers blooming in the castle garden. You can wear it as a bracelet or decorate your clothes with it.”

Ella quickly made a bracelet out of deep pink Mandria flowers and put it on the child’s thin wrist.

“Wow… it’s so pretty…”

The child couldn’t take her eyes off the bracelet on her wrist, examining it from every angle.

Ella smiled, pleased, and handed a corsage made of yellow Mandria to the child’s mother.

“It would go very well with the dress you’re wearing!”

“……Thank you.”

“And this is a thank-you gift.”

“A thank-you gift?”

The woman looked at Ella, surprised by the corsage and the well-packaged box suddenly placed in her hands.

“It’s a gift from the Grand Duke and Duchess to the guests attending today’s wedding.”

“Really? I didn’t prepare anything…….”

“They specifically asked you to come empty-handed! Now, don’t waste time here and go inside! The wedding will start in an hour.”

Pushed along by Ella, the woman passed through the massive gates with her child. The knights guarding the gate did not stop them.

Only then did the woman take her child’s hand and head towards the garden with a slightly more confident attitude.

“Oh, my! Jane, you came too! Come and try this!”

As she was guided by people standing here and there along the way, she arrived at the garden, where a friend from the house behind hers called out to her.

The Grand Duke’s castle garden, decorated like a painting, was already packed with people.

They were all people the woman knew: merchants she encountered every time she went shopping, and people from her village.

Only then did the woman realize that she had really been invited to the wedding of the Grand Duke and Duchess.

At first, she naturally thought that it would be a feast for the nobles, but an announcement had been made a week ago.

On the day of the wedding, the Grand Duke’s castle would be open so that everyone could freely watch the wedding.

Anyone could attend the wedding party, and anyone who wanted to could attend without gifts or compensation.

She had doubted it, but it turned out to be true.

“Mom! Look over there!”

At Yujin’s voice, the woman turned her head.

In another garden, slightly away from the garden with abundant food, a long white carpet was laid out.

On both sides of the carpet, splendid flowers that evoked admiration were lined up.

At the end of the long carpet was a dome-shaped white pavilion. The carpet was the wedding road, and the pavilion was the place where the ceremony would be held.

“Are they getting married there? Right? I saw it in a fairy tale book!”

“Yes. It seems so.”

The woman smiled as she watched Yujin, who was jumping up and down with excitement.

The woman was completely immersed in the party. The table decorations, the dishes, and the entire party exuded a sophistication she had never seen before in her life, which felt awkward, but the presence of many acquaintances created a comfortable atmosphere.

“To invite the commoners of the territory to one’s wedding, not just the nobles… You won’t find a lord like this anywhere else.”

“Besides, all the food is free. I feel sorry for coming empty-handed, but they even give out thank-you gifts.”

The people at the party praised the owner of the Grand Duke’s castle. The woman nodded in agreement.

“Umm… I want to go somewhere else.”

Young Yujin, feeling bored among the adults, let go of her mother’s hand and slipped away.

As she passed through the crowded garden, the voices ringing in her ears gradually faded away, and soon it became quiet.

“It’s really big!”

Yujin, turning her head from side to side, diligently explored the endless garden, and then discovered a garden blocked off with a ribbon.

With no one guarding it and not knowing that it was a barricade to prevent entry, Yujin easily passed under the ribbon with her small body and went inside.

As she passed through the lush grass and trees and went further inside, Yujin’s eyes shone like stars.

“Wow!”

It was a Mandria flower field blooming in a riot of colors.

Yujin’s short legs, which were about to run, stopped abruptly because there was something huge standing next to the flower field that she hadn’t noticed.

“A bird! A bird! A big bird!”

“Phooong.”

“Heup!”

Yujin covered her mouth with her small hands, but the huge head and beak that had already heard the sound turned towards her.

“Hmm? Griffin, is someone there?”

Then, along with a gentle and elegant voice, the person behind the griffin slowly walked out.

“A child? This area is supposed to be off-limits.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. I just, just…”

Yujin was startled by the questioning voice and quickly lowered her head.

She heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Her small fists, clutching her clothes, trembled, fearing she would be scolded.

Just as the feet of a large bird and the legs of a person were about to fill her tearful vision…

“Flowers……?”

Yujin’s world was filled with beautifully blooming flowers.

When she quickly raised her head, a woman who had already approached was holding out a bouquet of flowers.

“Wow… an elf.”

Yujin opened her mouth without realizing it.

The person in the pure white dress looked just like an elf in the forest.

The sparkling black hair and the amber-like brown eyes were all mysterious. She looked like the main character of this world, or rather, a princess from a fairy tale.

“Haha. An elf? Thank you. The flowers are a gift. You wanted to see this, right?”

Yujin blankly nodded and received the flowers. She couldn’t take her eyes off the elf who smiled a lovely smile like the flowers.

“And you mustn’t tell anyone that you saw a bird here today. It’s a secret. Shh.”

“Shhh!”

Yujin followed the elf’s action and brought her index finger to her lips.

“Eun-yeong.”

It was then. This time, another thick, low voice echoed in the quiet garden.

“Go back carefully.”

“Yes.”

Yujin stared blankly at the elf who stroked her head and turned to walk away.

“You were here.”

The man who strode up stood next to the elf. The man, with his incredibly tall height and huge body, was a truly handsome person even in the eyes of a child.

If the elf was like a princess in a fairy tale, he was like a prince.

“Why does this bastard keep coming?”

The man frowned as if dissatisfied with the sight of the huge bird.

“He must like Tan [the griffin’s name].”

“Phoo-oong!”

The bird made a noise as if sulking and turned its head away.

“……Yujin! Yujin!”

Her mother’s voice was heard from afar. Yujin, realizing she had been caught, took the steps she had been holding back.

But with a feeling of regret, she turned her head, and the man was gazing intently at the elf with very affectionate and warm red eyes, as if he had never frowned.

“Beautiful.”

Soon, with a voice as warm as flowers blooming, the man hugged the elf and kissed her forehead.

The scene, with her heart fluttering and her fingertips tingling, was like a painting.

The sight of the two men and women looking at each other lovingly was etched in young Yujin’s heart for a long, long time.

And when she grew up a little more…

When someone asked if she had ever seen love, Yujin knew that those two people were love itself.