“Connie Clarence.”

Ryan murmured her name as he watched Connie running quickly with her graduation cap in one hand and her diploma in the other, her graduation gown fluttering.

Today was the first time he had seen her. But her name was already so familiar to him. Connie Clarence was the first reader to send him a fan letter. Of course, Connie would never know that the author she had sent a fan letter to was the prince of this country.

In fact, he had accepted the university president’s request to give a congratulatory speech at the graduation ceremony because of Connie. In her most recent letter, she had mentioned that she was graduating from university today. She hadn’t said which university, but Steen University was the only one holding a graduation ceremony today.

Since writing was his secret, he hadn’t necessarily thought about meeting Connie Clarence when he came to the graduation ceremony. He simply thought it was worth giving a graduation speech just knowing that among the graduates sitting in the ceremony hall was Connie, who had liked his writing before anyone else.

He knew how hard she had studied with her not-so-good brain to graduate from university.

That’s why he was so surprised when the name ‘Connie Clarence’ was called as the top academic achiever, and he saw that small, delicate woman with attention-grabbing hair that was either pink or silver walking up to the podium.

To think that she had studied so hard not just to safely graduate, but to be the top student at Steen University of all places.

The honor of being Steen University’s top graduate was something even he hadn’t achieved. He had lost to that genius-like guy, Eric.

In fact, wasn’t Connie Clarence the first woman to achieve this?

Anyway, contrary to his plans, since he had seen her face, he had intended to return straight to the palace after the graduation ceremony. But somehow he felt a bit regretful. If possible, he wanted to at least personally congratulate her on her graduation.

He swore, unlike what Connie had imagined, it wasn’t because she was surprisingly cute and pretty. No, absolutely not! It was because she was, in the small sense, his most precious reader as an author, and in the larger sense, a citizen of his kingdom.

That’s why he deliberately watched her leave the graduation hall and waited. Even if he couldn’t tell her ‘I am the author you like,’ he at least wanted to say that she had worked hard studying for four years.

However, just as he was about to approach Connie, she grabbed the graduation gown sleeve of a man who happened to be passing by. Her face was flushed red, her gaze trembling.

Anyone could see it was the expression and look directed at someone she liked. Her emotions were so obvious it was almost uncomfortable to watch.

But fortunately, the man left without hearing her confession.

‘……?!’

Ryan frowned as he recalled that moment and realized that he had actually ‘felt relieved.’

It wasn’t ‘relief’ but ‘pity.’

Yes, thinking about it again, his emotion was definitely ‘pity.’

It was natural to feel sorry for the woman who had expressed such active affection for his writing, saying ‘Author, I love your writing,’ but couldn’t even confess to the man she had a crush on.

His eyes moved toward the man who had left without even hearing the confession. That man named ‘Ethan Schwab’ was talking to some woman.

Even his name is unremarkable. What could she possibly see in him?

Miss Connie Clarence, you seem to have poor taste in men. And yet you lie so well.

[Author, I don’t think I’m very smart. It seems like I need to study for three hours for what others can learn in two. That’s probably why I’m always busy. I’m worried because I need to do well on my exams.]

That’s what she wrote in her letter.

And that wasn’t the only lie she had told.

[I’m skinny and small with an appearance that doesn’t stand out much, so I can attend school quietly, almost unnoticed. For someone like me who doesn’t even have enough time to study, this ordinary appearance is an advantage in its own way.]

She probably told such lies thinking I would never see her face.

Still, Miss Connie Clarence, wasn’t that too much of a lie?

Ryan shook his head as he recalled Connie’s face.

Well, since we’ll never meet again, what does her appearance matter anyway?

Ryan started walking back to the palace with a faint smile at his own meaningless thoughts. However, after just a few steps, he stopped and looked in the direction where Connie had disappeared.

A lie, huh……

His pen name was ‘Leonie,’ a name commonly used for women. He had deliberately chosen a female name to hide his identity as a prince……

Hmm…… Maybe I should have just used a common male name.

For the first time, he regretted choosing the wrong pen name.

⁕⁕⁕

[Connie Clarence.

I’m glad to hear you’re going straight to the Steen Foundation School where the staff residence is located. You didn’t have to spend any money while at university since you received scholarships and lived in the dormitory, but you must not forget that you, originally a commoner, were able to enter Steen University thanks to the noble name of Clarence.

And one more thing. You must not forget the kindness I showed by feeding and raising you from age twelve to seventeen after your commoner father died and I adopted you.

Even though you are my only deceased sister’s blood relative, and considering the affection I developed while raising you, I have waited without asking for anything until now, but now that you have a job, shouldn’t you repay that kindness?

When you receive your salary, send 100 grans home every month. We’ll gradually increase the amount as your salary increases.

From your father, Francis Clarence.]

Connie frowned as she reread the letter from Viscount Francis Clarence.

She was scheduled to teach children at Steen Elementary School starting next month.

But if a new teacher’s salary was 110 grans, and he was asking her to send 100 grans, how was she supposed to live?

Moreover, to say she entered university thanks to a noble name……

The Steen Foundation owned everything from elementary school to university and was the largest private educational foundation in the Kingdom of Greet. Established by the Steen marquis family, which had accumulated great wealth since the early days of the kingdom’s founding, it was a prestigious private institution where royal and noble children who entered the elementary school continued all the way through university.

Especially in the case of Steen University, through the Steen family’s continuous investment, they had consistently recruited excellent professors, making it recognized as a prestigious university not only within the Kingdom of Greet but also attracting international students from neighboring countries.

As a result, even students from Steen High School were given only slight priority and couldn’t automatically advance; they needed excellent grades to be admitted.

Of course, as with anywhere, there were exceptions, and some students were admitted regardless of grades by making large donations.

The letter’s claim that she was able to enter because of her uncle’s noble name, ‘Clarence’, must have been referring to such cases, but this was truly an absurd assertion.

Just as there were students who entered through donations, there were also a very small number of poor students who entered with scholarships due to their outstanding grades, and Connie was one of those scholarship students. Unlike her cousin Elaina, who was the same age and the biological daughter of her uncle.

Elaina had truly entered through a donation. Connie didn’t know how her uncle, who always claimed to be short on money, could afford such a donation.

Connie had never missed a single scholarship from admission to graduation for four years, and she had maintained top grades to the extent that even her dormitory was provided free of charge.

This was the result of studying while saving not only sleep time but even eating time, for someone who had neither tuition money nor a place to live.

The university had urged her to stay and continue her studies, but Connie couldn’t make that choice.

Even if she didn’t have to pay tuition, dormitory accommodations were not provided to non-undergraduate students.

Of course, the bigger reason was her uncle, who had been waiting only for her university graduation. He demanded that she earn money as soon as possible to repay the money he had spent raising her and the debt her father had left behind.

She had worked as a maid every single day until she escaped from that house, yet there was still debt……

Despite her disbelief, she sighed.

It was all too easy to imagine what kind of abuse her uncle would inflict if she said she couldn’t send that much.

Anyway, in a situation where she had to send at least some money to meet her uncle’s demands, even if difficult, as soon as she graduated, it was impossible to pay rent as well. In her circumstances, a teaching position at the Steen Foundation was the best option. The Steen Foundation provided quite high compensation to secure excellent teachers, and also offered free staff housing if the teacher wanted it.

Moreover, thanks to the Steen University president’s introduction to the foundation’s chairman, she was hired on the condition that she would be converted to a regular teacher after just a one-year probation period. The Steen Foundation was famous for its long probationary process, taking up to five years before hiring as a regular teacher. But she was offered special conditions because she was the top graduate of Steen University, the most prestigious university.

Anyway, she was now entering a new phase different from before. She was stepping into society not as a student but as a working adult, and becoming a teacher fully responsible for an entire class, not just one or two students. Fortunately, teaching children wasn’t completely unfamiliar to her. Although she didn’t need to pay tuition or dormitory fees, she still needed living expenses, so she had worked as a tutor throughout her university life, and had completed teaching courses to meet the employment conditions.

‘Connie Clarence! You can do it!’