The nobles feared him, but at the same time coveted the power he held.

Those who once wouldn’t even glance at him now knelt before him of their own accord.

From then on, Noel ruthlessly pushed away those who approached him.

Because their intentions were clear as day.

However, there was just one person.

Someone whose purpose he couldn’t figure out even after keeping them close and observing for a long time.

That was Yvette Blanche.

[“…Come to think of it, we first met in front of that tree.”]

Noel chuckled.

In fact, his first meeting with Yvette wasn’t particularly special.

The two were asked for an interview by a newspaper for being the top students of their year.

At the time, Noel was about to graduate, and Yvette was a new student who had just entered.

The reporter suggested conducting the interview outdoors, citing the good weather as an excuse, and Noel and Yvette easily agreed.

Even for top students, it was better to get some fresh air than to be cooped up in a classroom.

[‘She was rather reticent back then.’]

If his memory served him right, Yvette of the past was quite taciturn.

She didn’t open her mouth at all except to answer the reporter’s questions.

Her face, not holding even a hint of a smile, was stiff to the point of being chilling.

He could still vividly remember the reporter looking uncomfortable because of it.

[“For the last question. What are your dreams?”]

It was towards the end of the interview.

The reporter asked the two a cliché question, and Noel lied with a pretty facade about wanting to become a good lord.

He knew that even if he answered honestly here, no one would care.

However, unlike Noel, Yvette answered quite sincerely.

[“You need a future to have dreams.”]

Her monotone voice carried a resignation unbefitting her age.

At this unexpected answer, Noel unconsciously turned to look at Yvette.

He was met with an empty gaze.

[“I’ve never thought about the future. So I don’t have any dreams.”]

With those final words, Yvette excused herself and left first.

It was quite a rude exit, but no one could stop her.

Because her expression as she said she had no dreams was colder than ever before.

***

[‘That was already 7 years ago.’]

Noel, finishing his reminiscence, slowly ran his hand over the tree.

Despite the long passage of time, the old tree seemed unchanged.

[‘Unlike someone else.’]

 Noel clenched his fist tightly.

Back then, he couldn’t understand Yvette’s attitude.

But now, he knew why she had acted so coldly.

Yvette was practically born with her death date set.

Asking someone like that about their future dreams was too cruel.

[‘I should have at least offered a handshake then.’]

Then Yvette wouldn’t have had to live in anxiety until now.

This thought that crossed his mind made Noel pause.

[‘…This is serious.’]

Since when did he start worrying about others to the point of having such thoughts?

As Noel was smiling self-deprecatingly, he turned his head.

And at that moment.

As if on cue, a familiar voice was heard not far away.

***

After parting with Kervel.

Yvette immediately returned to the party venue to find Liliana.

However, Liliana was nowhere to be seen, as if she had hidden somewhere.

‘Noel seems to be still busy too.’

Yvette glanced at Noel, who was still surrounded by people.

‘If I go now, I’ll get caught up too.’

She was not yet accustomed to the nobles’ way of speaking.

Rather than barging in and making a mistake, it seemed better to hide for a while until Noel managed to break free on his own.

With that, Yvette left the party venue and took a short walk around the academy.

She intended to soothe her unsettled feelings and also take a look at the places mentioned in the original story.

The first place she headed to was a small fountain near the party venue.

She was a bit worried it might be crowded, but fortunately, the area around the fountain was quiet.

As she approached the fountain, the first thing that caught her eye was the colorful pebbles.

Thanks to them, the water’s surface reflected the sunlight beautifully.

It was exactly as described in the original work.

“I came here just in case, and it’s really here.”

This fountain was the place where Noel would confess his love to Liliana about half a year from now.

“Seeing it like this is quite fascinating.”

Yvette muttered as she stared blankly at the fountain.

Seeing this place made her realize anew that she was inside the novel.

‘…If I hadn’t possessed this body, would Noel and Liliana have fallen in love as in the original story?’

As she survived, many parts of the original story changed.

Baron Larishi, who should have become Count Blanche, became a man chased by gambling debts, and Noel, the male lead, became the fiancé of an extra character.

Now, it was impossible to even guess how the future would unfold.

‘This is all because of that damn curse.’

Yvette sighed deeply, looking at the fountain as if the ground might cave in.

If Kervel hadn’t placed such a ridiculous curse, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.

‘What wrong did the Blanche ancestor do in the first place for Kervel to place such an absurd curse!’

The reason why he cursed the Blanche family was not specified in the original work.

She could only vaguely guess that they must have done something wrong to Liliana.

‘Only Liliana can move Kervel.’

If his way of thinking had been just a little more normal, she would have thought him a purely devoted man.

Unfortunately, in Yvette’s mind, Kervel was just labeled as a madman.

“May he trip on a stone while walking and break his nose.”

As she prayed with sincerity, at that moment.

 “…I hope that’s not about me?”

A familiar voice rang out from behind, and a shadow fell over her head.

“Noel?”

Yvette turned around in surprise.

She saw Noel looking at her with his brow slightly furrowed.

“I wondered where you went, and here you are.”

At his casually thrown words, Yvette felt guilty.

Originally, she had planned to just look around a bit and go back.

It seems time passed much faster than she thought.

“I’m sorry for leaving without saying anything. You looked so busy, I couldn’t interrupt.”

Yvette smiled awkwardly and avoided his gaze.

Perhaps it was because her hope of breaking the curse today had been crushed.

Somehow, she couldn’t look him straight in the eye.

“And here I thought. You had abandoned me and run away.”

Noel muttered, looking at Yvette in a tone that was hard to tell if it was a joke or serious.

Feeling guilty once again, Yvette forced a smile.

“Come on, no way. How could I…”

“Next time, even if I look busy, tell me before you go. I was worried.”

“Yes, I understa… What?”

Yvette, who had been answering unconsciously, suddenly raised her head.

She saw Noel smiling with an unreadable expression.

”Because I was worried,’ he says.’

Yvette unconsciously looked around.

‘Is there someone else around? Is that why he’s saying such things?’

But no matter how much she looked, only the two of them were near the fountain.

‘What? Then could it be, not an act but sincere?’