Chapter 1.4

An angel fell from the sky.  

…At least, that’s what Evelyn, a new student at the academy, thought the moment she saw the face of the man in her arms.

Why was she holding a strange man in her arms? To explain, the situation needed to rewind by one minute.

Evelyn, who was passing by a secluded path at the academy, heard the sound of a tree branch snapping.  

When she instinctively turned her gaze, she noticed a figure on the tree.  

‘Huh, that looks like a person?’  

Without a second thought, Evelyn dashed forward. At the same time, she summoned the aura buried deep within her heart.  

‘A person is falling. Right now!’  

The blue aura shimmered like a mirage and enveloped her body. Evelyn extended her arms toward the falling figure with her excellent reflexes.  

When the aura wrapped around her body, it created an effect similar to wearing iron armor for a brief moment.  

Although it happened in the blink of an eye, it felt like slow motion. Her aura-covered arms barely managed to catch the falling figure. With a heavy thud, the person landed firmly in her embrace.  

“Phew, that was close.”  

There had ever been a moment when she was more grateful for learning how to use aura.  

“Excuse me, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”  

Evelyn, panting, looked down at the person she had carefully caught in her arms and froze.  

…She thought she had met an angel.  

When her eyes met the white, smooth, porcelain-like handsome face, she felt as if she were floating in a weightless state, her mind turning hazy.  

“Is this your first time seeing someone fall from a tree?”  

“Pardon?”  

“What are you staring at? Stop gawking.”  

Until the angel opened his mouth. His words, sharp and biting, snapped Evelyn out of her daze and back to reality.  

Evelyn glanced up at where the man had fallen from.  

‘He fell from the tree.’  

“Why were you up in the tree?”  

“Do I have to answer that?”  

Not necessarily… 

Evelyn felt a bit flustered.  

Had she not acted quickly to summon her aura, something terrible might have happened. Even though she had caught the man, she might have fallen backward under his weight or even broken an arm.  

She ought to question him properly, but when she looked at his face, no words came out.  

‘A fairy? An angel?’  

His marble-like cheeks glowed faintly with a peachy hue. His long lashes cast delicate shadows over his eyes. His eyes, which captured sunlight, sparkled like the greenery of April.  

There wasn’t a single flaw in his beauty. It was as if an angel had fallen straight from the sky.  

“Have you stared enough? How long are you going to stay like this? Put me down.”  

Despite being saved, the man seemed dissatisfied, ordering her to put him down without a word of thanks.  

“Alright, alright. I’ll put you down as you wish.”  

If he wanted to be put down, she would oblige.  

As a commoner admitted to the academy, Evelyn had grown used to enduring the whims of nobles. She promptly set the man down.  

Perhaps her movement was too fast, for the man wobbled as he tried to steady himself on the ground.  

“Oh, be careful.”  

“Let go of me.”  

When the man’s knees buckled and he looked about to fall, Evelyn instinctively grabbed his arm. Despite her help, a sharp glare was cast her way.  

“How long are you planning to hold onto me?”  

His icy voice carried a tone that seemed to say, ‘How dare someone like you touch me?’ Evelyn quickly released her hand. If he didn’t like it, she had no choice but to let go.  

“Don’t be angry. I only grabbed you because you looked like you were about to fall.”  

To the man, who was acting like a prickly cat, Evelyn raised her palms to show her innocence.  

The man was a head taller than Evelyn, with a slender and well-balanced build.  

Which department was he from? Certainly not the Swordsmanship Department. There was no one with a face like that there.  

Suppressing her curiosity, Evelyn withdrew the aura she had wrapped around her body.  

“Aren’t you going to say thank you?”  

“Do I have to thank you?”  

“Normally, yes.”  

“I didn’t ask for your help.”  

The man answered curtly. His tone exuded an air of superiority, making it clear he was likely a noble.  

“Well, I didn’t save you expecting gratitude. My body just moved instinctively to save you.”  

She didn’t feel upset or annoyed. At the academy, practically everyone she encountered was a noble.  

Commoners were as rare as finding a needle in a haystack. It was strange that she, a commoner, was even here.  

“Did it never occur to you that you might get hurt?”  

“When someone’s falling, there’s no time to think about that. You just act.”  

“You didn’t even know who I was?” 

Though his words were laced with sarcasm, the man’s tone was only sharp. Since he posed no physical threat, Evelyn saw no reason to be afraid.  

“Would you tell me if I asked who you are?”  

“…”  

“If you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine.”  

With a face like his, it would be easy to find out who he was through rumors. If he didn’t tell her, she’d just find out on her own.  

When Evelyn smiled nonchalantly, the man’s expression hardened, seemingly displeased.

The man, who had regained his balance and stood upright, brushed off his clothes. The torn shoulder seam caught Evelyn’s attention.  

“Your clothes seem to be torn, over there.”  

Unable to suppress her meddlesome nature, Evelyn spoke up. 

Had it been torn from getting caught on the tree?  

“Nobles act as if their dignity depends on their appearance. Are you alright with that?”  

To Evelyn, nobles were the type to make a fuss over even a small tear in their clothing. This sensitive handsome man was unlikely to be any different.  

The man frowned at the sight of his torn shoulder seam and pressed his lips together. A shadow fell over his beautiful face.  

“Would you like some help?”  

“You want to help me? Why?”  

“I can’t just stand by and watch someone in trouble.”  

Evelyn couldn’t ignore the struggles of a beautiful person. Chivalry didn’t discriminate between beautiful women and handsome men.  

Though she was still a student and a trainee knight, a knight was still a knight. As a proper knight-in-training, Evelyn couldn’t turn away from such a situation.  

She took off her outer coat and held it out. Though slightly worn and frayed, it was enough to block the wind.  

“Here, would you like to put this on?”  

“You want me to wear that?”  

The man didn’t even glance at the coat before dismissively waving his hand. The coat, struck by his hand, fell to the ground.  

‘……!’  

Whether intentional or not, a flicker of embarrassment crossed the man’s eyes.  

Before the man, who stood frozen, could react, Evelyn swooped down like a hawk and caught the coat just before it hit the ground.  

“Phew, that was close. It almost got dusty. Good thing I was prepared just in case.”  

“……Doesn’t that bother you?”  

“It wasn’t intentional, was it?”  

‘Roses come with thorns, after all.’  

Evelyn decided to generously overlook the man’s mistake. Such prickliness was all too common among nobles.  

“For your information, this is one of the better pieces of clothing I own. It would’ve been a shame if it got dirty.”  

“Did you come from 10 years ago or something? Or is your sense of fashion broken? Even if you gave me that, I wouldn’t wear it.”  

If only his words were as pretty as his face, he’d be like an angel. But the man’s tongue was merciless.  

“How did you know?”  

Evelyn let out a deliberate sigh.