From the moment Ian opened his eyes that morning, he was in a good mood. The weather, like his mood, was bright and clear—cool and pleasant, a perfect day for a boat ride.

On the way to the pier, rows of street stalls lined the path, bustling with people even early in the morning. As he passed through, a large-brimmed straw hat caught Ian’s eye.

“Looking for something in particular, sir?”

While Ian was staring at the hat hanging behind the stall owner, the man quickly took it down and added,

“If you tie it with a ribbon and give it as a gift, the lady will love it even more. We have many colors available.”

At that, Ian glanced over his shoulder toward Diana, who was almost at the pier.

“…Make it with a yellow ribbon.”

“An excellent choice, sir.”

The vendor swiftly decorated the hat with the ribbon and handed it to Ian.

It was a hat he bought almost absentmindedly, but watching Diana grow farther and farther away made his steps quicken without him realizing.

Fortunately, she hadn’t boarded the yacht yet and was laughing as she watched Dale and Grinelda’s silly bickering.

To his eyes, they looked nothing but foolish, but she didn’t seem to think so. Well, since they managed to make the princess—who hardly ever smiles—laugh, perhaps they weren’t such fools after all.

Ian quietly watched Diana’s smiling face, then gently placed the hat on her head.

Her reaction was predictable, but seeing her round eyes widen in surprise made him want to tease her even more.

The hat suited her far better than he expected. It was a little big for her head, but the way she looked up at him from under its brim was undeniably charming.

“All done.”

For no reason at all, he fiddled once more with the ribbon that was already tied neatly.

The yacht cut swiftly through the current as soon as it departed. Ian found himself watching the yellow ribbon on her hat fluttering in the river breeze, and soon stepped closer to her.

But when he saw her glancing at Jerome, an unwelcome irritation rose in him.

“You told me to stay close to you today.”

He squinted, pretending it was the sunlight in his eyes, though it was really because of his annoyance.

“Jerome’s already misunderstanding our relationship.”

He wasn’t sure why that made him so suddenly angry.

“And what’s so wrong about being misunderstood?”

To hide the edge in his voice, Ian forced a teasing smile. Diana said nothing for a moment.

“I just prefer not to create misunderstandings in the first place.”

“……”

There it was again. That clear boundary she always drew.

Those sharp eyes warning him exactly where the line was, how close he was allowed to get.

Whenever she looked at him like that, a dull ache bloomed somewhere near his chest.

It became unbearable to meet those eyes, so he looked away first.

“Do you remember when I showed you the riverside villages the other day?”

He changed the subject, but his mind was still restless.

He disliked how his mood kept swaying like the churning waters beneath the yacht.

“Ian! Come over here. The captain’s prepared some wine for us!”

When Dale called him, Ian cast a quick glance at Diana, who was still gazing at the riverside village.

“I’ll stay here a bit longer.”

Perhaps feeling his gaze, she spoke.

“Go on. You like wine, don’t you?”

“Have you been researching me, Your Highness?”

That made her finally look back at him.

“Who knows?”

“……”

“I just thought you would.”

The faint curve of her lips held a somewhat enigmatic smile.

Did she know something? Was that why she kept drawing those lines first?

“If you’re curious about anything, you can just ask. I’d welcome Your Highness’s interest anytime.”

He tried to sound relaxed, but when she gave no reply, his lips felt even drier.

“I’ll leave your seat empty. Join us whenever you wish.”

He didn’t like how hurriedly he left, but truthfully, Ian was afraid.

Afraid that, whatever it was, Diana might know something about him.

Normally, even listening to Dale’s trivial problems would ease his mind, but today, no matter what, his thoughts kept drifting back to her. It was suffocating.

What was he so afraid of?

She was nothing more than someone to use, a target he needed to win over.

Then why did he feel so powerless before that invisible line she drew?

Crossing such a line shouldn’t be so hard. Just like yesterday—he had climbed up to her balcony, to her very room, yet hadn’t even touched her fingertips.

“…So you don’t want to be hated. You want to remain a good person in her eyes, isn’t that it? Are you listening to me, Ian?”

Dale suddenly shoved his face right in front of Ian’s.

“…Yeah. I’m listening.”

“Liar. Is my friend’s story that boring? He really came to me with a serious problem, you know!”

Ian let Dale rant, drinking his wine quietly. But before long, his gaze slid back to Diana again.

And at that moment, she turned to look in his direction too.

“……”

Ian slowly swallowed the red wine that had been lingering in his mouth.

Even though they had been looking at each other for so long, she still felt so distant. It felt as though the two of them were the only ones in the world at this moment, yet that distance remained.

Ian lifted the corners of his lips in a deliberately relaxed smile to hide his tangled emotions.

He knew well that the game had already begun. And he also knew that the outcome would be decided by who could conceal their true feelings better.

He had no intention of losing this game.

* * *

By the time the yacht made a wide loop along the Elten River and returned to the dock, the sun had not yet set, but they decided to begin an early dinner.

A grand feast was prepared on the terrace of a riverside restaurant.

Diana seemed to have grown close to Grinelda in the meantime. The two had taken a separate table and were engaged in an endless stream of conversation.

Diana laughed frequently as she talked with Grinelda. Ian thought she had smiled more today than on any other day since he met her.

‘…She told me to stay close, but look at this.’

It was nice to see, but whether it was intentional or not, she hadn’t cast a single glance his way for quite some time.

“Why the long face? Don’t tell me you’re already drunk?”

Dale slurred slightly as he spoke to Ian.

“You’ve never seen me drunk.”

Ian replied as he poured wine into his empty glass.

“True. You hold your liquor too well. It’s almost inhuman!”

“Did it ever occur to you that maybe you just get drunk too fast?”

“I take it you like drinking, Lord Ian?”

Jerome, who was sitting at the same table, joined the conversation.

“What’s your favorite drink? Whiskey? Wine?”

“I simply like to pair a light wine with a meal,” Ian answered, taking a sip.

“I see. I personally like whiskey. Her Highness shares my taste as well.”

Jerome kept throwing out unnecessary comments, as though fishing for a reaction. Ian’s brow twitched.

“I didn’t know Her Highness preferred strong liquor!”

Dale seemed genuinely surprised.

Jerome gestured toward Diana. Two ornate bottles of whiskey sat in front of her.

“Grin is already tipsy… but Her Highness seems perfectly fine.”

It was true. Just as Dale said, Ian sipped his wine while quietly gazing at the profile of her face. When he turned his head, feeling someone’s stare, his eyes met Jerome’s.

The two of them locked eyes as if in a silent duel, each lifting their glass without looking away. At that moment, Dale suddenly shoved his hand between them.

“Ian! Hey, I’m asking you… what’s your, uh, first memory? You know, the first one in your life!”

“What nonsense are you spouting now?”

Ian irritably pulled Dale’s palm away from his face.

“Your first memory! What’s the very first thing you remember?”

Even as he glared at Dale in irritation, the alcohol made him let his mind drift through old memories.

He thought he could almost see a familiar face reflected in the still surface of the red wine.

Out of nowhere, the winter of heavy snowfall came to mind, and the drunken haze made it impossible to push the memory away.

He kept recalling the scene of her bright red blood dripping onto the snow.

Ian thought of her eyes—eyes so much like his own.

The first memory he had was of saving her.

The mother who, at some point, had stopped replying to any of his letters.

He must have been around eight when he saved his mother. There were no memories before that.

He remembered his father’s face on the day he escaped with her after an assassin’s attack.

At the time, he desperately needed someone who could protect both him and his mother.

But… perhaps walking into the fortress with her of his own will was the start of all this misfortune.

“…What about you? What’s the first thing you remember in life?”

Ian asked Dale, trying to shake off his thoughts.

“For me, it’s when Her Highness pressed on my lower stomach!”

“……”

Ian froze, wineglass in hand, and gave him a look of sheer disbelief.

“Of course, Her Highness pressed only very gently. Probably to check if it was really appendicitis. But at that moment, it felt like… like I died and was reborn. It was so intense I can’t even recall any memories from before that.”

His earnest tone made it all the more absurd. Jerome’s face was also twisted, trying to suppress his laughter.

“Grinelda would cry if she heard that,” Ian muttered with an eye-roll, irritated.

After spouting more nonsense a few times, Dale eventually began nodding off. Thanks to that, Ian was left sharing a silent drink with Jerome.

“Lord Ian.”

The one to finally break the seemingly endless silence was Jerome.

“What do you think of Her Highness Diana?”

“……”

Ian set down the glass he had been about to raise and looked at him.

When Ian didn’t answer, Jerome continued as if talking to himself.

“Her Highness is a strong person. Most people completely misunderstand her.”

“……”

“She’s doing well. She’s holding out in that lonely position better than anyone realizes. So please, stop shaking her, Lord Ian.”

Ian set his wineglass on the table with a sharp clack. But Jerome didn’t so much as blink as he met Ian’s gaze.

“That’s a bold remark. Not to me, but to Her Highness. What could someone like me possibly shake in her?”

“Vest.”

“……”

“When I checked Her Highness’s luggage this morning, I noticed that piece had already been returned to its owner.”