Yuri, who had been staring at my somewhat disheveled face for a moment, suddenly grabbed my hand tightly. With his characteristic cute smile, he asked, “Can’t I just go and make sure they never bother you again?”

“You? And how would you do that?”

“Scare him?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at Yuri’s response.

“Stop it. Maybe Princess Sabina laughed it off because she knows you, but others won’t be so forgiving. Besides, personal revenge is illegal.”

Offering advice that even a child would know, Yuri shrugged his shoulders.

“Mages can do that. Mages are above the law.”

“But Yuri, you’re not a mage anymore.”

“Right. But every curse has a way to be broken.”

“A curse? A way to break it?”

Confused by his cryptic words, Yuri leaned in closer and whispered softly, just for my ears, “You see it a lot in fairy tales. The magical spell that even an ordinary girl can use.”

I understood what he meant. In most fairy tales, this was essential to breaking a curse.

A princess’s kiss.

But Yuri wasn’t a prince under a curse, and I wasn’t a princess.

I frowned.

“Stop talking nonsense. I’m not in the mood for jokes.”

“I’m not joking.”

“Go away.”

I tried to push Yuri’s face away with my palm, but he caught my hand and kissed it instead.

Feeling the gentle yet warm sensation on my palm, I scowled.

At that moment, a shower of golden stars fell from Yuri’s eyes.

It wasn’t an illusion. Just like the sudden burst of beautiful fireworks during the summer festival, tiny lights the size of fingernails spun around me and then vanished.

“Ta-da.”

It was magic.

It was shown very briefly and quietly, so others wouldn’t notice, but it was definitely magic.

“…Yuri.”

He looked at me with eyes shining like a puppy waiting for praise from its owner. After opening and closing my lips like a goldfish for a moment, I sighed deeply and ran a hand over my face.

Come to think of it, if Yuri were an ordinary person, Princess Sabina wouldn’t have been so deferential. There was a reason they found him at the Mage Tower. Yuri had always been a mage. And a very powerful one at that.

Why was someone like him helping me run a mere flower shop?

My mind became a jumble, but I soon shook my head. Yuri had no obligation to reveal everything to a woman he had just met. I was the one who had sought him out and disturbed his quiet life, so I couldn’t say he had betrayed me.

He had always been helping me.

In fact, he was now trusting me enough to reveal his true identity. I had no reason to feel betrayed by him.

I just needed to organize my thoughts, so I cautiously began to speak.

“I’m not going to ask why you lied about losing your magic. You must have your reasons and wounds, and whether you’re a mage or not isn’t important between us.”

Yuri’s face lit up with a bright smile at my words.

“I thought that’s what you’d say, Titi.”

I wondered what kind of person I was to him. I was curious for a moment, but now wasn’t the time to ask.

Knowing that Yuri was a mage, his offer to deal with Robi directly didn’t seem like an idle threat.

But Robi was my family issue, and I didn’t want Yuri, who seemed to want to keep his magic hidden, to use it for such matters. With that thought in mind, I told Yuri, “I want you to do what you want.”

Yuri’s expression clouded at this answer. He briefly looked sad, then kissed the back of my hand.

“This is what I want to do. I don’t care about anyone else. I want to be Titi’s mage now.”

“Yuri.”

“I wasn’t lying to you, Titi. I thought my time as a mage had ended. I couldn’t figure out what to use my magic for. But now I know exactly what I want to do.”

Yuri’s eyes sparkled. The swirling golden stars in his blue eyes once again captivated me.

I began to understand why Princess Sabina was so obsessed with Yuri. She wouldn’t want to lose such beautiful eyes.

Gazing at me with those enchanting eyes, Yuri confessed sweetly, “I want to make you happy, Titi.”

I had laughed it off a few times and pretended not to understand, but this time, I couldn’t. My heart was pounding loudly, and I couldn’t ignore it any longer.

It’s because of Yuri. That’s why my heart was racing like this.

I had vowed never to love anyone again.

Feeling flustered, I shook my head, and Yuri moved a step closer. Despite having the height and build to easily sweep me into his arms, he only looked at me with a serious expression.

“Why are you shaking your head? Are you rejecting me right now?”

“It’s not that…”

I blurted it out reflexively and then froze, feeling stiff.

If it’s not that, then what is it?

As if he could read the turmoil inside me, Yuri narrowed his eyes and smiled. That relaxed smile made me question the sincerity of his confession.

‘If he truly means it, then I…’

Yuri suddenly lowered his head. As his face came closer, I instinctively straightened my back.

His soft pink hair brushed against my cheek and pressed heavily on my shoulder, the strands tickling my neck.

Leaning his head on my shoulder, Yuri spoke in a whiny tone.

“You’re such a difficult problem for me. Even if I made the people who bother you disappear or easily conjured a blue rose for you, I feel like you wouldn’t be genuinely happy.”

“That’s because…”

I’m only human; how could I not prefer the easy path?

‘If Yuri really is a mage, then people like Robi or my father would be nothing to him.’

Yet, as Yuri had said, I couldn’t simply nod in agreement.

“I remember you telling me you were exhausted from people asking you to use magic for them as if it were nothing.”

“I did.”

“Then you shouldn’t do that for me either. Otherwise, you’ll get tired of me just like you did with them.”

I didn’t want to become a burden to Yuri.

Once again, Yuri smiled bashfully.

“Since you’re the kind of person who would say that, I’ve decided to think about how to express my feelings to you.”

He seemed to anticipate my response. Did he know me better than I thought?

I pouted slightly and glanced at Yuri.

“I usually don’t like worrying about things. Normally, I’d just break everything or throw it away and run. But even if it takes a long time, I want to think about how to approach you. There’s only one reason: it’s you.”

At that moment, Yuri straightened up and looked at me. His serious, deep eyes reminded me of his twin, Yujin.

“I’ll say it clearly when there are no interruptions, Titi. I want to live by your side, for you. That’s what I want to do.”

“Yuri…”

I leaned back, trying to shift my weight. The problem was that the chair I was sitting on had no backrest.

“Eek!”

“Oh, Titi!”

As I tipped backward, Yuri caught me in his strong arms. I froze, half-perched on the chair, leaning into Yuri’s embrace.

It was nothing significant. He only pulled me in because I was about to fall.

But…

Thump, thump.

Then why was my heart racing uncontrollably?

Thinking back, Yuri had been a particularly special person to me from the very first meeting.

He was one of only two people in the world who called me by the silly name “Titi.”

The other was Master, making Yuri unique in my current life.

‘At some point, it stopped feeling awkward when Yuri called me Titi.’

Now he was the person who knew all about my unfortunate family situation, the closest person to me.

But being close to someone and being in a romantic relationship were entirely different matters.

‘Get a grip, Titi! Two failed marriages should be enough to ruin a life. I don’t need any more men in my life!’

Just as I was about to slap my cheeks to snap myself out of it, a large hand caught my wrist.