Kirie’s past in “Searching for a Husband”, is recounted as follows.

He was abandoned by his parents as an infant and was raised by a master who would later become the Lord of the Magic Tower.

Kirie’s master had a peculiar way of teaching—strict gender segregation.

‘Well, elders tend to be conservative, so it’s not that surprising.’

It should be noted that many mages chose to live in seclusion, training in the remote mountains, and his master was one of those mages.

Naturally, Kirie’s small world under such a mentor was filled only with men.

Thus, it was only logical that upon reaching adulthood and leaving his master’s care to venture into the broader world, he carried with him a rather unique set of worries.

“I have no clue how to interact with women…!”

Not surprisingly so, considering his encounters with women could be counted on one hand.

On the other hand, once out in the world, half the people he’d meet would be women.

After much head-wracking, he sought advice from a brother who was well-versed in worldly matters.

This brother kindly taught him everything about interacting with women, from start to finish. A confident Kirie then left the tower.

But there was a significant problem: his advisor was a notorious flirt.

The lessons on how to treat women came from a womanizer.

As an up-and-coming court mage, Kirie, who was now being summoned here and there, diligently applied these teachings. And the result?

‘Well, you can probably guess.’

Being kind is good. But Kirie ended up being overly kind to all women, even to those he had no intention of courting.

Furthermore, he couldn’t gauge what level of kindness was appropriate for women he was not interested in.

Handsome, capable, and endlessly kind—if that’s not advertising for being a flirt, then what is?

It didn’t take long for the rumor to spread that court mage Kirie was an unparalleled playboy.

Halfway through, he realized something was amiss, but by then, the image was set, and he couldn’t suddenly cut off his kindness, or so the story goes.

Above all, he still finds women a tough code to crack, huh? Basically, he just couldn’t say no to a request from the opposite sex.

Look at him. Even now, he’s trembling like a herbivore in front of a predator, looking so wary of me.

I softened my voice to put Kirie at ease.

“So, what you’re saying, Lord Kirie, is that you’ve been cursed?”

“Yes, yes, that’s correct…”

Kirie stammered excessively, stealing glances at me, his violet eyes flickering wildly.

He seemed terrified I would burst out with ‘How can I believe such preposterous nonsense, you pervert!’

“Admittedly, it’s a story that’s hard to take at face value, but I don’t believe a court mage and the favored student of a Lord of Magic Tower would lie.”

“That means…”

“Yes, I believe you, Lord Kirie. And though it’s a bit embarrassing to say, my bed is yours if you need it.”

Joy spread across Kirie’s pallid face.

“Thank you! Thank you so much! How can anyone be so considerate!”

He grabbed my hand firmly, then quickly withdrew it, startled by his own boldness.

“I, I’m so sorry. I got carried away with my emotions and… I’ve made a terrible mistake.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not. I shouldn’t have, to a lady…”

Watching a flustered Kirie, I couldn’t help but smile to myself.

‘So innocent, so utterly innocent.’

Just a handshake and he’s this worked up. It’s a different kind of charm from Eugen’s.

The character I thought was a womanizer turned out to be pure innocence incarnate – such a lovely twist!

Indeed, after Kirie’s secret was revealed, many readers of “Searching for a Husband”, myself included, couldn’t help but express a deep affection for him.

“By the way,”

I found myself curious about the specifics of my affection.

“What does this curse you mention say to you, Kirie? Just curious.”

“Oh, that’s… um…”

Kirie blushed instantaneously, his ears turning a fiery red as he declared with solemn gravity,

“The words are too… too lewd. I simply cannot repeat them to someone as pure as you!”

What in the world could it mean? Had I inadvertently left some vulgar scribbles in the sacred comment section?

I really hope those words don’t sound like some shameless pervert. At most, it would be okay if it’s as far as ‘Kirie, come to my bed. Let your big sister teach you everything from the start to the end!’

‘Well, I guess even that could be scandalous to someone like Kirie.’

Satisfied with my conclusion, I guided Kirie to the bed.

“Alright, it’s late. You should get some sleep.”

“Thank you.”

“Wait, just before that!”

“Yes?”

“Do you have any…sleep habits? Like doing a 360 spin in bed or something?”

“Nothing of the sort.”

“Or maybe you lash out in your sleep if someone touches you?”

“I just wake up normally.”

“Oh, good.”

It seemed I had narrowly avoided the repeat of a nightmare scenario.

“Now, lie down beside me.”

As I spoke, already reclined on the bed, Kirie hesitated and glanced at me with uncertainty.

“Lady, I swear. I’m not a shameless person who doesn’t know to be thankful. I don’t harbor a single dark thought towards you.”

“Ah, okay.”

“Absolutely! I have no such intentions! I mean to say I have no such feelings at all!”

“Got it, now come over.”

So, I’m the one filled with dark thoughts, but not you? I see. Right……

After reassuring me several times, Kirie snapped his fingers.

In an instant, his outfit transformed from the typical robe of a mage to pajamas.

Watching Kirie change clothes without exposing any skin, thanks to magic, I had to admit that magic really has its perks.

And let me add, I wasn’t the least bit disappointed. Not one bit!

“Please, make yourself comfortable.”

Kirie ambled over and eased himself onto the bed, ever so cautiously.

But then…

“Um, Lord Kirie.”

“Oh, you can just call me Kirie.”

“Alright, Kirie.”

“What is it, my lady?”

“I won’t eat you, so relax.”

For a mage, Kirie had a remarkably sturdy build, which he was now curling up to an extreme, glued to the very edge of the bed as if he might tumble to the floor any second.

“No, no! I’m comfortable like this!”

It looked anything but comfortable from any angle.

‘Do you dislike being close to me that much?’

I felt a twinge of hurt at the thought of being regarded as some sort of trash, but I shook off the silly thought almost immediately.

What does it matter, really? Compared to Reynard and Eugen, Kirie was a decent sort.

“…Eek.”

Every time I moved, he jumped, which was distracting to say the least.

Thinking to ease the tension, I struck up a conversation with Kirie.

“You’re quite different from the image I had in mind.”

“Me?”

“Yes, I heard you were quite adept at dealing with the opposite sex.”

“…Rumors and reality often diverge.”

He responded with a voice laden with awkwardness.

“I suppose my conduct should reflect well on my mentor, so I do try to maintain an ideal image. However, from somewhere along the line, my reputation hasn’t turned out so well.”

Where from? It went wrong from the start, my friend. He should have never sought advice from a flirt master.

But instead of chiding him with brutal honesty, I wondered if I should play by the rules of romance for once.

The male lead showing a vulnerable side? That’s an undeniable opportunity for relationship progression.

“Kirie.”

I met his eyes as I spoke.

“There’s no need to go out of your way to present yourself in a certain manner.”

A soft smile played on my lips.

“Even someone who knows as little about you as I do can see one thing clearly—Kirie, you’re a good person just as you are.”

The words of plausible advice flowed effortlessly from me.

“Look at you now, being considerate enough to ensure I’m not frightened. It’s okay to be a little more at ease.”

“…My lady.”

Kirie called out to me quietly.

“Yes, Kirie?”

I waited with hopeful anticipation for his response, harboring my expectations.

If this were a classic romance narrative, this would be the moment where Kirie might think, ‘No way! She seemed like a villain, but she has such a human side to her?’ and begin to see me in a new light.

‘In fact, Aila, the female lead, built up her appeal to Kirie with quite similar words.’

Lost in the novelty of being swept into a novel, I harbored a desire common among romance novel fans—the wish to at least forge a good relationship with the dashing gentlemen around, if not to become lovers…

‘Huh?’

But Kirie’s reaction was odd.

“Ah, I see. Thank you for seeing me in such a kind light.”

He avoided my gaze with an embarrassed expression.

What’s with this lukewarm response? It’s strange. According to my vast romance novel data, this should be the moment he’s moved or bashfully blushing.

Instead, Kirie reminded me of how I floundered on my first day at work, enduring hours of well-meant advice straight out of some self-help book from a superior I’d just met.

Well, maybe this was a realistic reaction. After all, I’d built up all this internal camaraderie with him, a character from the novel, but from Kirie’s point of view, I was someone he’d just met that day.

‘And a woman that Kirie finds intimidating at that!’

Suddenly bombarded with praise and life advice from such a person must be confusing for him.

Ah… maybe the heroine is the heroine, and I am just me.

I, who had become too chummy with someone I’d just met today, stifled the ensuing embarrassment.

‘If someone was going to make me possess someone, they should have at least let me play the heroine, why were they only realistic in these aspects!’

Possessing a romance novel character is definitely not as easy as one might think.