When Richard tried to block their approach, Leopold stopped him.

Richard took a few large steps backward.

The young girl, wrapped in a white fur coat, looked at him with her large eyes shining.

Due to her height, reaching only around his shoulders, she had to tilt her head considerably to observe him.

Leopold’s nose reddened from the winter wind. He seemed to be looking down indifferently with cold eyes, as if asking what was going on, but in reality, that was not the case.

The girl with dazzling blonde hair and emerald green eyes, despite wearing a white rabbit-fur earmuff that was as big as her head, looked not ridiculous but rather adorable.

“Why are you standing here in the freezing cold, staring off into space?”

It was an unexpected question.

What was I doing? Being pessimistic about my situation, dwelling on the past, enduring pain, and groaning…

“Even if you’re lost in thought, find somewhere warm to do it. It’s too cold here.”

She couldn’t hear any reply, but she didn’t mind and removed the muffler wrapped around her neck and tied it around Leopold.

Seeing her long and exposed neck made him feel uncomfortable, but he soon focused on her touch.

She firmly clasped his frozen hands with both hands and blew warm breaths into them.

A warm feeling stirred his heart.

It was the first time a girl’s hand touched his body, other than his mother, Christine, and his nanny.

Startled, he tried to push her away, but the warm energy coming from her small mouth moved Leopold’s heart.

What is this. This small and cute creature.

He concentrated on the sight of her thin lips blowing warmth into his hands.

When Leopold looked down at her with her eyes meeting his, his subconscious caused a stir in his lower abdomen.

“I have nowhere else to go.”

He could just go back to the crown prince’s palace. But his mouth moved on its own.

“I have people I need to avoid, so I have nowhere else to go. Would you like to come with me?”

She pursed her lips and made a pouty expression.

But soon, she gave him a mischievous smile.

Her smile was like the sunlight on a spring day, melting Leopold’s frozen heart as if the spring sunshine barely thawed the frozen land.

How long has it been since someone reached out their hand to him? A will to live slowly sprouted in his heart, which had been filled with discouragement, self-blame, and disappointment.

“Yeah.”

After sending Richard back first, Leopold took her to the gardens of the crown prince’s palace.

A light sound of footsteps echoed over the piled snow.

It seemed as though her maid scolded her for blindly following a stranger, but it didn’t matter to him.

A small but warm warmth followed behind him.

The unfamiliar yet strangely familiar experience, as if someone were stirring his heart with their hand, made his lips slightly curl up.

The servants of the crown prince’s palace bowed their heads towards him, but because it had only been a week since Yerin had possessed Ariel, she thought they were greeting him because they knew each other.

Without any doubt, Ariel followed him in the direction he led, and as soon as she entered the garden, her eyes widened in surprise.

‘It’s a greenhouse.’

Even though it was a world without electronic devices, it was a place to have warm wind in the winter. Ah, there was no electricity, but there was magic.

The greenhouse garden built in the crown prince’s palace’s courtyard was a garden made by the former Empress for her son.

Warm and cold winds were generated according to the seasons with magic, maintaining a spring-like temperature.

Ariel nodded her head and looked around.

At the height of her knees, bright yellow mimosa flowers were neatly arranged and in full bloom.

Between the yellow fur droplets, the pure white tulips revealed their presence scattered among the beautiful mimosa flowers.

Ariel couldn’t stop admiring their beauty.

She entered the flower garden and lowered her posture, examining the flowers. She gently brushed the flower petal with her fingertip.

Leopold, who had been observing her, felt a warm sensation in his heart.

With her yellow-blonde hair, white coat, and earmuffs, she fits perfectly into this garden, he thought.

He unconsciously wanted to dedicate this entire garden to her.

“If you knew about this place, why were you standing in such a cold place?”

“Well…”

Due to his appearance after finishing the mission, Ariel assumed he was a knight in the palace.

She briefly wondered how a palace knight could freely enter such a luxurious place, but she didn’t dwell on it.

She was quite satisfied with the fact that she had entered the crown prince’s palace without him knowing, as it meant she could avoid meeting the crown prince even in her dreams.

“Thank you for bringing me here. But earlier, you seemed to be very troubled. Did something happen?”

“No matter how hard I live, my situation doesn’t change.”

Even if a low-ranking knight worked hard, they couldn’t change their fate within the rigid social class system.

Based on the experiences she had in her previous life, she provided an answer to his worries.

“Well… I think I know the feeling you’re describing. It’s like that feeling of inherent limitations, like being stuck in a hole no matter how hard you struggle, right?”

How could she know? She seemed like a child who had never experienced such pain. She seemed more like a noble young lady who received nothing but love and grew up properly. Yet she could read the feelings of a man at rock bottom.

Leopold stared at her with a trembling gaze, nodding his head.

“You just need to step up to another class. Become someone they can’t reach. It seems like you already have the ability to reach that level. Just awaken. Awaken.”

To reassure him, she cheerfully spoke whatever came to mind, and her words struck his heart like an arrow hitting a target.

‘Awaken, awaken.’

Yes. Until now, he had been trying to gain recognition from his parents. But now, to become an existence beyond them and to live the life he desired, he had to live his own life. He needed to possess complete and strong power so that he could keep this lovely child by his side.

In an instant, the foggy and dark aura in his eyes disappeared.

His clear eyes, like red beads, fully captured Ariel, who sat in the flower garden, laughing cheerfully.

But when the maid accompanying her whispered something in her ear, Ariel abruptly stood up in surprise.

“I can’t believe the time has come already. Next time, next time we’ll meet again.”

She hurriedly left the garden without giving him a moment to ask her name.

So, that day, he had a girl whose name he didn’t know in his heart.

***

Feeling exhausted from an unexpected encounter, Ariel went upstairs in a fluster.

Not only was it overwhelming to have a long conversation with him, but she suddenly had to sign a contract for a contractual marriage, and it included a clause stating that they would have a marital relationship.

She developed a migraine due to the stress.

‘I never thought losing mana would have such a big impact in everyday life.’

She stood in front of her door, touching her forehead for a while, before finally entering the room.

She sat in front of the dressing table, took out a cotton pad, and wiped her face.

Her reflection in the mirror looked utterly haggard.

‘Even if I struggle and go crazy like this if Liese appears… He’ll probably easily forget about me.’

Right now, he desires me in the anger of having his first taken away, but if I believe in that naively and give my heart completely? It’s obvious that I’ll be the only one hoping and the only one suffering. Then, it might drive me crazy like the original Ariel.

‘So, let’s connect the two people as I initially planned. That’s what’s best for me.’

She resigned to continue her married life without expecting anything. She also gave up on avoiding getting hurt. The desire to be loved and the desire to love.

They were a show-window couple without any love for each other. Not more or less than that.

Every time she forcefully reminded herself of that, a piercing ache would strike her heart, but she ignored it with cloudy eyes.

Knock, knock.

“Miss!”

“Come in, May.”

As Ariel was about to take off her dress, May entered the room.

May approached her with gentle steps and helped her take off the dress.

May silently performed her tasks without saying a word.

“Why don’t you ask me anything?”

“Please, just tell me when you want to talk.”

May said with a subtle smile.

Just like during their ten years in Kolnman, May knew Ariel’s heart so well.

Ariel responded with a smile in her eyes.

“I should visit the Holy See in a few days.”

“Yes, miss.”

Ariel, now wearing her nightgown, sat on the edge of the bed.

“My head hurts…… I’ll have to get some rest, May.”

“You should eat something.”

At May’s words, Ariel’s previously silent grumbling suddenly growled. And, come to think of it, she hadn’t eaten anything yet.

Hearing that sound, May smiled cutely and said,

“What should I bring you?”

“Hmm…… Then bring me some vegetable soup. Since I’ll be lying down, I feel uncomfortable eating anything else.”

“Yes, miss.”

As May closed the door and left, Ariel lay down on the bed.