“Don’t lie.”

Leah was dumbfounded.

“Why would I lie to someone I just met?”

“There’s no law saying you wouldn’t.”

“Can you believe this person?”

Leah shook off his grip on her arm, crossed her arms, and stared at him.

“Look who’s talking, accusing people of being liars. If you don’t believe me, why don’t you go out and ask someone else?”

“You’re the one who woke me up.”

This is going nowhere.

Leah brushed her hair back.

“Whatever. I was going to ask how to get out of here, but I’ll figure it out myself. You just keep looking for your dragon.”

Leah turned around sharply and took a step.

Wobble.

Her sprained ankle gave way immediately as she put weight on it.

“Aaah!”

Whoosh!

As she lost her balance, the floor suddenly gave way, and something came flying.

“Dangerous!”

The man lunged forward and pulled her back.

Caught off guard and pressed against his firm chest, Leah’s eyes widened.

His long silver hair cascaded in front of her eyes before settling, and she noticed his veined right arm.

“An, arrow…?”

“It’s a trap.”

The man spoke calmly while firmly gripping the arrow in his hand.

Oh my god! Did he just catch a flying arrow with his bare hand?

Leah asked with a trembling voice.

“If, if you were suspicious of me, why did you save me?”

He answered bluntly.

“I couldn’t just let someone die.”

Leah blinked. She was so surprised that her thoughts came out as words immediately.

“Wow. You looked normal but I thought you were twisted inside…”

The man’s cold expression cracked.

“Twisted inside…?”

***

The man was dumbfounded.

To him, who had been called the guardian of mana and the embodiment of justice and morality, to be called twisted inside.

‘As soon as I wake from the seal, I hear nonsense.’

The man said stiffly.

“This is the first time I’ve heard anyone speak to the guardian like that.”

“Guardian?”

Leah tilted her head and asked.

“What’s a guardian?”

“You don’t know about the guardian?!”

“No. First time hearing about it?”

He looked at Leah with a shocked face.

“How… That can’t be. Surely you must have heard about me? Woman… no, ahem.”

Flustered and speaking hastily, he paused for a moment to choose his words.

“Ahem. Young lady, you look like someone who has studied history and etiquette?”

“I did study those, but this is the first I’ve heard of a guardian.”

The man’s pupils shook as if there was an earthquake.

“If you don’t know about the guardian, do you know about the Magic Tower?”

“Magic Tower? Like the final stronghold of mages from stories?”

Just what does this woman know?

He was now at the point of sighing.

‘This is strange.’

Given that she had entered this place, a dragon’s lair, she couldn’t be an ordinary person.

Yet she knew nothing about the guardian, the Magic Tower, or dragons.

‘Well, I suppose I’m just as confused about what’s going on.’

He thought bitterly.

He vaguely remembered being betrayed by the dragons and sealed here.

But the exact details were hazy. The dragons must have done something to his memories.

The man carefully examined Leah and spoke.

“…If you truly know nothing as you say, how did you end up here?”

His eyes sharpened.

“Who sent you?”

“Huh?”

“Is there a war going on outside?”

“Huuh?”

That’s when it happened.

Grooowl.

An incredibly loud sound echoed.

“…”

“…”

Leah pointed at the man’s stomach sheepishly.

“Um, looks like the war is happening right there?”

***

Grooowl.

Helix was confused by the sound coming from his own stomach.

Since becoming a guardian, he had never felt hunger, cold, or such sensations. Mana had made his body more than human. And yet…

‘How can I be hungry?’

Leah looked at him sympathetically as he panicked.

“How did you end up starving in a place like this?”

“…It’s not like that.”

“Wait a moment.”

Leah rummaged through her clothes and pulled out a snack pouch.

“These are my favorite bakery’s signature cookies…”

She paused for a moment.

Come to think of it, did she buy these in the capital before coming here for recuperation?

‘I was so busy packing, I don’t think I stopped by. Did the maids pack them?’

Leah handed the pouch to Helix.

“What is this?”

“It’s for you to eat.”

“You’re giving this to me?”

“You’re hungry, aren’t you?”

Helix expressionlessly looked down at the small snack pouch. He didn’t know what expression to make.

“…”

During his seal, which felt like a long sleep, Helix sometimes wondered.

What would the world look like when the seal was broken? How would the world receive him?

‘…It probably won’t be much different from before the seal.’

He had thought that whoever woke him would be trying to use his power for their own gain, but the woman before him kept acting unpredictably.

Far from trying to use him, she didn’t even seem to know who he was, and she spoke rudely, got angry, looked at him with pity, and treated him casually.

Even this small snack pouch that Leah was offering seemed too…

‘Trivial.’

Did she really come here not knowing anything about this place or himself?

As he stared intently at the snack pouch, Leah said.

“Open it.”

Rustle.

Helix’s eyes widened.

A rich and sweet aroma enveloped his nose.

“Those are delicious.”

Following Leah’s words, he carefully extended his long fingers and picked up a cookie.

Crunch.

He closed his eyes. Leah was right.

‘How can this be so delicious.’

It was ecstatic.

He knew the dragons had sealed his power along with him, but he hadn’t expected his senses to become sharper without his power.

‘…Or perhaps confectionery techniques have advanced in the meantime?’

Crunch crunch.

‘How long was I sealed away?’

Munch munch.

Leah clicked her tongue.

“Eat more slowly.”

“…This is amazing.”

Helix marveled.

“Were cookies always this delicious?”

Leah puffed out her chest.

“Everything I say is delicious is delicious. I’m always serious about food.”

“…I can truly feel your sincerity.”

“That’s what I’m saying. It’s really my favorite bakery’s signature item.”

“Then you should eat some too.”

He carefully extended the cookie pouch toward Leah.

She smirked.

“Will one pouch of cookies be enough for someone your size? Just eat them all.”

“No. If it’s really your favorite, you should at least taste it.”

Leah looked at him with fresh eyes.

To offer to share something delicious when his stomach was making those sounds?

‘…Is he actually a better person than I thought?’

She had thought him rude for speaking informally and being pushy, but unexpectedly he was considerate and attentive.

She smiled and picked up a cookie.

“Then I’ll just have a taste.”

Crunch. As she took a big bite, happiness spread across her face.

“As expected, it’s delicious no matter when I…”

Unable to finish her sentence, Leah dropped the cookie pouch.

Splat.

Her fingertips froze.

Sensation disappeared.

Her body was chillingly cold, but her eyes, lips, and stomach felt like they were burning.

Everything went pitch black before her eyes.

“Young lady?”

Surprised to see her collapse while still holding the cookie with a smile, Helix caught Leah in his arms.

She was so light in his arms. He furrowed his brow.

An energy that he hadn’t felt until just now was flowing erratically from Leah. It was an energy all too familiar to him.

“This is…!”

***

Meanwhile, in the capital of the Kingdom of Peiren.

In the middle of the bustling street, the central plaza was filled with lily fragrance unseasonable for the time of year.

The Peirlily Fan Club had filled the streets with lilies, one by one, praying for her return from recuperation.

“Goodness. What’s all this fuss about Peirlily?”

“At this rate, won’t the Lily of Peiren become more popular than the prince?”

Citizens shook their heads at this unprecedented situation, while social gossips spread rumors.

Regardless, the devoted fans held lilies and shouted at the top of their lungs.

“Please come back soon, Peirlily!”

“Don’t get too healthy! We can’t lose your delicate charm!”

If Leah had heard this, she would have swallowed her rage thinking ‘Get lost, you lunatics! Are you saying I should suffer and die for your viewing pleasure?!’ but popularity always attracts flies.

Moreover, it wasn’t just the obsessive fan club that would raise her blood pressure.

“Peirlily…”

A man anxiously muttered while looking at the lilies in the central plaza from his mansion’s terrace.

Baron Randall Durford.

If the Peirlily Fan Club members were flies, Baron Durford was a horse fly.

He was the illegitimate son of Grand Duke Calosi, the king’s uncle, and while not officially recognized as royalty, he received treatment befitting quasi-royalty. After all, he was the beloved son of Grand Duke Calosi, who was said to be able to make birds fall from the sky.

Taking after his mother, who had been a famous actress, he had been quite handsome in his youth, and he owned territory near the capital.

However, if you asked Leah about Baron Durford, there would be only one answer.

‘That insufferable stalker bastard.’

Among all the clingy stalkers, he was the most persistent, had the most time, and the most money. He was a madman who even took out private loans to buy a mansion near House Piert just to follow Leah around.

Then he would appear at every party and gathering Leah attended, buzzing around like a mosquito.

‘Surely a man of my standing should marry a young and virtuous lady from a good family, right, Lady Piert? You’re nineteen this year… exactly half my age! It’s perfect!’

‘I need to make a good marriage to elevate the royal family’s status… with someone pure like a lily, for instance. Of course, pure ladies tend to lack in figure, but a voluptuous body isn’t an important virtue for a wife. We’re not talking about a mistress, after all! Hahaha!’

Even when Leah would give him cold looks thinking ‘Is he insane?’ and ignore him, his passionate stalking never ceased.

The Baron was determined to get his hands on Peirlily no matter what.

How envious other men would be to see her standing beside him like a water-soaked lily. All the nobles in the capital would be sick with jealousy. Just thinking about it made him feel proud.

Moreover, with Peirlily as his match – perfect in family background, beauty, and age – even the royal family wouldn’t be able to ignore him, and his father would surely praise him openly as better than his legitimate children.

‘But to think Peirlily went to the north for recuperation!’