Chapter 1

A teaspoon of the tears of a loved one, a bouquet of marigolds from the Andelun Mountains, three gold coins with no price.

When a child with ice-blue eyes is born, offer them to Alor’s unfrozen lake.

Only then will the heart melt.

Only then will the angry dragon finally sleep.

Only then will the child live to be twenty-five.

***

“Hey, Sebastian.”

Twenty-two years old, Lottie.

She had a full name, but anyway, Lottie.

“I like you. From the first time I saw you on the day of the entrance ceremony…….”

For the first time in her life, she gathered her courage and confessed to the person she liked.

Whoosh, bang! Fireworks blossomed behind her, decorating the night sky as if cheering her on.

Today was the graduation day of the academy they had attended for five years. The place they stood was the terrace of the grand hall, where the graduation banquet was in full swing.

Standing across from her was her first love and unrequited love.

A man she might never see again.

The second son of the Collins Earldom, Sebastian Collins.

The moment her carefully crafted confession reached him, Sebastian tilted his head slightly and slowly raised one eyebrow.

‘…Ah, even that expression is handsome.’

His pale blue irises, like ice submerged in the northern sea, scattered the reflection of fireworks, shining like a rare gem crafted by dwarves. His sensual mouth, always holding a gentle smile, his strong brow and jaw that complemented his delicate features, and his radiant blond hair, as if soaked in late afternoon sunlight……

He was truly the most handsome man in the academy.

Moreover, unlike his usual loose cadet uniform, he was meticulously dressed in a tailcoat, giving him a strangely neat and elegant air.

A deep blush automatically spread across Lottie’s face.

Actually, her cheeks had already been flushed since she brought him out here. She had drunk some alcohol. Most of the graduates inside were in the same state. Since this was the graduation ceremony of the Royal Academy, where children of noble families and commoners who had passed the difficult entrance exams gathered, all sorts of merchant guilds had generously sponsored good alcohol to win the favor of these elites stepping into society. The biggest benefactor among them was a guild Lottie knew well.

No… Lottie hadn’t just drunk for the atmosphere.

She drank to gather courage.

Because—

“Will we be able to keep meeting outside the academy?”

“Ah, Lottie.”

When Lottie finally finished her long-awaited confession, Sebastian’s brows drooped as if drawn with a brush. His beautiful face, with just that slight change, evoked a desperate sense of regret.

“Thank you for telling me something so difficult. It must have taken a lot of courage…….”

“Th-then?”

“……I’m sorry. I can’t accept your feelings.”

As expected.

With his characteristic calm smile, Sebastian returned her confession with a refusal, and Lottie secretly bit the inside of her lips.

She had expected it. When she called him to this secluded place, Sebastian must have already prepared his words of rejection.

He couldn’t possibly have been unaware of her feelings.

Yes, Sebastian couldn’t possibly not know how Lottie felt.

They say you can’t hide love or a sneeze. Lottie’s five-year-long crush, which began on the academy’s entrance day, couldn’t be hidden either. The fact that she liked Sebastian Collins was known by their classmates, cadets from other years, perhaps even professors, and even the fountain and the clock tower…… All living and nonliving things in the Royal Academy’s campus knew it.

And most likely, Sebastian Collins himself.

She hadn’t exactly concealed her affection, and if he was as popular as he was, he must have noticed her clumsy expressions of love.

Yes, he was used to dealing with women.

The academy’s top “culprit,” the face-dowry aspiring son-in-law, a member of the Ziran Society, a notorious playboy, and… the lackey of Lady Magnusson.

He had so many nicknames related to his connections with women.

Maybe Lottie wasn’t the first to attempt a graduation confession. He was, after all, everyone’s ornamental lover.

So, the reason Lottie had to borrow courage from alcohol was—

“If you’re sorry……. Then, instead…….”

Lottie’s slender throat barely moved.

“Instead, would you kiss me?”

Her amber eyes shone even more brightly, and she secretly caressed the gemstone on her bracelet.

“If it’s not too rude. This might be our last time.”

Please, Tabi Workshop amulet. Please, just as the product description says, make Sebastian’s heart move. I spent a fortune, nearly three months’ allowance, the equivalent of a year’s allowance for most cadets, so please make it worth the money……

So, Lottie’s real goal was different.

She never really expected her confession to be accepted. Of course, she dreamed of the tiny possibility of a miracle. She waited, imagining Sebastian accepting her, saying he felt the same, every night so vividly……

But her crush was Sebastian.

The second son of the fallen Collins Earldom, rumored to have entered the academy to form marriage alliances with noble families. His purpose for entering was clear. He was fiercely loyal to Lady Magnusson, the precious daughter of the Kingdom’s most powerful family and president of the Ziran Society, an association of noble-born female cadets.

The odds of Sebastian accepting Lottie’s feelings were nearly zero. Lottie, who entered through the exam track, was known as a commoner.

Instead, maybe there was hope in another direction.

“I’m okay. It was the first day at the academy, I was just excited. Are you hurt?”

Five years ago, overwhelmed by the crowd at the academy, Lottie had fallen on top of Sebastian, and even knowing she was a commoner, he treated her kindly.

If he could give his lips to everyone else, maybe he could give them to her, too.

So, Lottie wanted her precious first kiss to be with Sebastian.

With the handsome man she liked for the first time in her life, and for five years.

She thought the odds were pretty good. About eighty percent. Though she was different from the noble girls he usually hung out with, Lottie had maintained a close relationship with him these five years. He followed her outside during the banquet when she asked him to, and though she openly showed her affection, he never looked down on her or took advantage.

So… he’d kissed plenty of people, so what’s one more? She hoped he’d kindly give her a kiss, just as he’d always been kind to her.

With the same angelic, gentle smile that made her fall for him at first sight five years ago.

If things went well, maybe she could aim for something even more intimate.

“As a last memory… is that okay?”

Lottie rubbed the gemstone on her bracelet and sparkled her eyes.

Sebastian, looking down at her, had a subtly subdued expression.

He seemed to be thinking. His mouth, usually lightly closed with a gentle smile, was slightly tense, as if he was searching for words.

“…….”

“…….”

The silence grew.

In proportion, Lottie’s estimate of the possibility dropped to forty percent.

No, thirty percent.

Twenty-five percent.

Twenty-three percent.

Twenty-two percent.

Twenty-one point five percent……

‘…Maybe a kiss is too much.’

It’s not like lips wear out, but he must have preferences and standards……

The faces of noble girls rumored to be involved with him flashed through Lottie’s mind. She also remembered the elegant figure of Lady Magnusson, whom he was particularly devoted to. They were all beautiful, and every gesture was full of grace. Lottie could compete with the prettiest girls in Ronda village, but as for noble elegance… she could never catch up, especially not knowing her own status, growing up in the mountains. Not for a while, anyway.

“Exam-track kids seem kind of fierce, so I don’t really like them.”

A passing noble male cadet’s remark suddenly stabbed beneath her heart. Did Sebastian also think it wasn’t worth dealing with anyone but nobles?

“Lottie, hi! We’re in the same group this time. I hoped I’d get paired with someone from the exam track, and it turned out to be you, so I’m really relieved.”

But……. Sebastian had been so kind these five years.

Unlike the pathetic nobles who disparaged commoners for coming in through tough exams, he respected her efforts.

Of course, he was equally kind to all exam-track cadets, the academy’s top “culprit.”

At the same time, he didn’t seem interested in dating Lottie, who wasn’t a noble……

But, if Sebastian was the one who smiled more prettily at her than anyone else, maybe just once.

This last request……

While enduring the silence, Lottie desperately fiddled with her amulet.

“…Are you serious?”

“Huh?”

“If that’s what you want, will you be able not to cry?”

“…What?”

Me?

Caught off guard by his unexpected words, Lottie wore a dazed expression as Sebastian’s large hand suddenly reached out and cupped her cheek. His firm palm was so warm it could heat her flushed cheek from the alcohol.

As his hand pressed close, his thumb went to Lottie’s eye corner.

Following the gentle motion, moisture gathered near her eyes.

‘…Ah.’

She must have teared up without realizing. Her desperation must have been obvious. She should have looked like she’d step back easily after just a kiss…… Embarrassed, Lottie’s face grew even redder.

“Why are you crying over something like this?”

Sebastian’s strong hand gently lifted Lottie’s chin.

“…It’s upsetting.”

In her view was Sebastian’s beautiful face, showing a subtle smile as if he’d made up his mind. Not the angelic, gentle smile he usually wore, but a faint, bitter one.

He turned his head elegantly so their noses nearly touched.

His face drew closer.

Their lips.

Met.

“Hhmm…….”

Lottie’s eyes widened.

Whoosh, bang! As if signaling her skyrocketing odds had passed one hundred percent, the graduation fireworks of the Royal Academy’s 198th class wildly colored the night sky.

In Lottie’s trembling amber eyes, the sparks drew all sorts of patterns.

‘As expected, a kiss must be nothing to Sebastian……!’