The Prince’s First Love Was Me Chapter 6

I nodded, then belatedly realized that Liam Nixon was my name and widened my eyes in shock.

‘Why is my name on that list? Weren’t they only supposed to pick three people? That’s how it happened in the book!’

Although things had changed a little here and there, Paul had still been called, so it didn’t seem like the story had strayed completely from the original.

In any case, now that I’d made it this far, I didn’t need to worry about what would happen next.

The moment Paul sang in his sweet, beautiful voice, Aaron would inevitably fall for him.

After that, everything was destined to proceed smoothly on its own.

The dozen or so men who hadn’t been called left all at once, while the four of us who remained waited quietly for further instructions.

After clearing the room, Chris stood behind Aaron and looked at us.

“Each of you will demonstrate one special skill you’re confident in.”

At this sudden request, the other three men, excluding me, began fidgeting awkwardly, looking troubled.

I understood. It must have been bewildering to be summoned out of nowhere and told to show off your talents.

Still, what could they do when someone important gave them an order?

Everyone hesitated, glancing around to see who would go first. Then, out of nowhere, a man wearing a stylish baker-boy cap raised his hand.

“I will recite a poem I’ve written myself.”

For someone like me, who could only remember the line “Your sight is loathsome to me” from a poem, this was quite a shock.

It was impressive enough that he’d written a poem himself, but he’d even memorized the whole thing.

And thanks to his resonant voice, his recitation was excellent, too.

After him, the second man reenacted a scene from a popular play.

“My lady, you might as well kill me before you leave!”

Was he a professional actor? He delivered the heart-wrenching scene effortlessly, his performance full of raw emotion.

Even I, who had no idea what the play was about, could tell how brilliantly he conveyed the character’s feelings.

A small gasp escaped Paul’s lips beside me.

‘Hmm. I thought these minor supporting characters would be terrible at their special skills, but they’re surprisingly impressive! Still, Paul is the main character, so there’s nothing to worry about, right?’

“I will sing.”

At last, Paul shyly stepped forward and began with a line in his smooth, mellow voice.

Before he opened his mouth, his earlobes had turned red, and he’d looked as though he didn’t know what to do with himself. But the moment he began singing, he suddenly became confident and composed, as if his earlier shyness had never existed.

‘There, there, my baby. Don’t be nervous! That’s it! Oh my goodness, you’re amazing! What’s with that voice?! Even my earwax is turning into sugar!’

I stuffed down all the embarrassing squeals threatening to escape and watched Paul with my hands clasped tightly together.

Paul had kept his eyes closed from the very beginning. But as the song reached its climax, he slowly raised his eyelids, his face immersed in emotion.

Aaron had been watching him intently, and their gazes met in midair.

‘Sniff. What a beautiful couple.’

I smiled fondly as I quickly took in this historic moment between the two of them.

Aaron could hardly take his eyes off Paul.

He even seemed lost in thought, as though Paul’s singing had reminded him of an old memory.

‘See? They’re destined to be together.’

Overcome with emotion, I wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

‘But what am I going to do?’

I’d been so distracted that it wasn’t until my turn was right around the corner that I finally started to panic.

It would hurt my pride to do something someone else had already done. But I didn’t want to put on a half-hearted performance, either. Should I show off the dance moves I’d been practicing all this time?

Before I came to this world, South Korea had been swept up in a full-blown K-dance craze. I was one of the people who had gotten caught up in it, too.

Although my body wasn’t very flexible and I tended to creak like a robot that hadn’t been oiled whenever I danced, I’d practiced so many times that I’d managed to pick up the basics.

“I will dance.”

No matter what I did, I wouldn’t be able to move people the way Paul had, so I decided to let go of the pressure and simply enjoy the moment.

After boldly declaring my intention, I turned to the side with a determined expression.

“Paul, can you sing something upbeat? I’d feel embarrassed dancing without music, so it’d be great if you could help me out.”

It was a clever plan with two benefits.

Not only would I get to hear our pink squirrel sing again, but I’d also avoid the disaster of dancing without any music.

Paul’s voice had warmed up by then, and he readily agreed. Soon, I began enthusiastically shuffling to a song I’d never heard before.

Forward and back! Forward and back! Side, side, side! Forward and back! Forward and back! Side, side, side!

As my legs moved faster and faster, my breathing grew increasingly ragged.

I focused every ounce of my attention on my legs as they went wild, leaving me no time to worry about my arms flapping around like crazy.

And now, for my secret weapon.

Twerking.

I’d actually learned how to do this one properly.

I focused on the muscles at the backs of my thighs, shook my butt up and down, bounced it, and shook it! Shake it! Shake it!

As the music grew faster, my twerking picked up speed, too.

Of course, if I’d been wearing a dress, it would have been a pretty embarrassing sight. But since I was wearing loose trousers, I didn’t feel particularly ashamed.

No matter what kind of chaos I caused here, the outcome was already decided. All I could think about was giving it my all before leaving.

“Whew. Thanks, Paul. You were amazing.”

After finishing my dance routine, I caught my breath and patted Paul’s shoulder.

Paul simply shrugged as though it had been nothing.

“Your Highness?”

Something was wrong with Aaron.

He had buried his face in both hands and bowed his head.

Chris, looking flustered, called out to him several times, but Aaron didn’t answer. His shoulders merely trembled slightly.

I scratched my forehead.

Since this had happened right after my performance, I couldn’t help feeling like it was my fault. I was worried I’d done something wrong.

Chris also seemed quite taken aback by this unexpected situation.

How much time had passed?

After letting out a deep sigh, Aaron lowered his hands from his face and looked straight ahead.

The moment I saw his frowning expression, my mouth went dry.

Had I done something wrong?

“Your name was Liam, right?”

“Huh? Yes.”

“…Sigh.”

Aaron sighed once more and narrowed his eyes.

Had I been too much of a show-off? Now that I thought about it, I’d gotten a little too carried away.

Wiggling my butt around in front of a prince without knowing my place…

I should have stopped after the shuffle. Since it had been so long since I’d had a chance to dance, I’d gotten carried away without realizing I’d crossed the line.

‘Still, there’s no need to be this upset about it. You’re hurting my feelings.’

The Aaron I knew rarely got angry over anything.

Had I really been that rude?

Just as I was pursing my lips and blaming myself—

“Everyone leave except Liam.”

Aaron’s signature gentle command suddenly rang out.

Huh? Why?

Paul had to stay!

Paul couldn’t be kicked out!

Completely unaware of my despair, Aaron picked up the tea beside him and leisurely wet his lips.

“The proceedings are now complete. Everyone except Liam may return home.”

Chris repeated the order.

At last, the three men who had been standing there dumbfounded hesitated before making their way toward the door.

“I’ll wait downstairs.”

Paul whispered quietly to me before following the others out of the room.

I watched him walk away with a miserable expression.

‘How can you just leave?! You’re supposed to be here! You’re the main character!’

I wanted nothing more than to grab Paul’s trouser leg and hold on, but out of respect for the person who had selected me, I decided to stay quiet for now.

“Please come forward.”

When I hesitated awkwardly, Chris gestured politely toward the space in front of Aaron.

With stiff steps, I slowly narrowed the distance between us.

Now it was just Aaron and me.

He leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed, looking up at me with an intrigued expression.

‘Is this really okay?’

I didn’t know the etiquette of this world, but I felt terribly uncomfortable standing above a prince and looking down at him.

After some hesitation, I lowered my gaze to the floor, only to raise my eyes again a moment later.

I was curious about Aaron’s reaction since he hadn’t said anything.

At that moment, our eyes met.

Just as I realized it was too late to look away, the corners of his mouth curved into a smile.

That gentle smile made the corners of my own mouth twitch helplessly again.

‘I told you not to smile so prettily. You wicked little prince!’

Aaron looked at me, grinning foolishly as though he were enjoying himself immensely.

“You have a talent for driving people crazy, Liam.”

‘Ha! Look who’s talking. I’m the one who’s going crazy because of you!’

I didn’t even know exactly what Aaron meant, but just knowing that he was looking straight into my eyes and smiling at me made me so excited that I could barely handle it.

But I couldn’t just stand there being happy forever.

Aaron had chosen me, and the original story had taken a huge turn off course. Before things became even more impossible to fix, I had to get Paul back into his rightful place.

I struggled to regain control of my wavering mind, looking for a chance to escape.

Once I got past this hurdle, there would surely be a way to set the original story right somehow.

“As it happens, people often call me a lunatic. And what does that mean? It means I’m not right in the head. So, I’ll be taking my leave now…”

Just as I was about to make a natural exit according to my plan, Aaron called out to me in a soft voice.

“Liam.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s date. You and me.”

“Yes. Wha—WHAT?!”

I jumped in shock, my whole body jerking as I stumbled backward.

‘Why are you suddenly going full speed ahead?!’

As I blinked at him in disbelief, Aaron gave me a mischievous smile.

His lips curled upward, revealing dimples so breathtakingly beautiful that I couldn’t look away.

‘No, that’s cheating! You can’t seduce someone with your face! How is anyone supposed to resist that?!’

People who were attracted to good looks could fall in love in an instant, even with someone they’d never met before, as long as that person was handsome.

But what if the person in question was your ultimate favorite character?

And what if that favorite character actually confessed to you?

‘I’d completely lose my mind.’

Just keeping a grip on my sanity was a miracle!

Aaron had been watching me quietly when he suddenly stood up and strode forward, closing the distance I’d put between us.

Then he bent down to meet my gaze, leaving me no chance to escape.

‘W-wait a second, sir! You can’t do this to me! I want to… I want to follow the original story!’