A beautiful young man with flaxen hair cupped the cheeks of a girl with long, black hair.

The black-haired girl’s face was concealed, but the young man looked very happy as he drew closer.

Eivind…?

Before I knew it, Cecily was walking briskly across the roof, ignoring Mark’s warnings.

“Cecily…”

The moment Eivind began to speak, she mercilessly slapped him across the cheek.

“You’re the worst… I believed in you!”

Shedding huge droplets of tears, Cecily ran down from the clock tower.

I had to stop her. How was Cecily going to get down by herself from a roof like this?

But for some reason, I couldn’t say anything.

Ah, I have to keep up with Cecily…

I felt like I mustn’t stay here any longer.

It seemed that Cecily was much more reliable than I was. She used efficient magic from the edge of the roof and made it down to the observation deck all by herself. The students, who’d been watching the romantic performance before the fireworks ha started, started murmuring at her tearful return.

Cecily ran down the stairs without paying any attention to her surroundings.

Flustered, she wouldn’t stop talking.

“How frustrating…! I’m so mad, Nora!”

Does Nora prefer Eivind over Mark?

“No way! I thought he’d make you happy! And yet… and yet!”

Cecily…

What is this girl saying?

I was going to disappear in a few months, anyway.

Make me happy? I’m already happy as I am now.

I had met Cecily, and I was able to spend every day to my heart’s delight—something I couldn’t have imagined 800 years ago.

So, it’s enough. I’m happy as I am.

After all, it was pointless to fall in love with someone who’d disappear, wasn’t it?

Eivind would be happier with someone he could spend the rest of his life with.

He was very clever and calculating, and he had finally realized the truth. What a festive occasion. If anything, I was glad he noticed before he got sad for no reason.

That’s all. I’m relieved.

Even so, I needed to tell Cecily about it properly.

Why won’t my mouth move?

My mouth, which had been making so much noise that Cecily complained about it just a moment ago.

Cecily was really fast. She walked up the steps so slowly, but when she was alone, she reached the ground in no time. As soon as we were outside, a familiar girl kept glancing my way. It was Anita. Could it be… was she worried about Cecily’s date and had come to check on her?

As soon as Anita saw Cecily’s face, she ran over with a pale face.

“Cecily?”

At that moment, I didn’t know what Cecily was thinking, but she handed her body over to me.

Anita caught me as I stumbled.

“What’s wrong? Could it be that Mark—”

“No, Eivind…”

“Lord Dahl?”

I couldn’t make Anita worry. I also couldn’t frame Mark, who had done nothing wrong.

So, I tried to find the words to say.

I wondered why, instead of words, only tears came out.

“Haha… This is troublesome… this is harder than it was 800 years ago.”

“Cecily.”

Anita hugged me. Being in her embrace was so warm.

I took advantage of Anita’s kindness and laid against her chest for a while.

The fireworks were still going.

I wondered if the sound of the fireworks drowned out my sobs.

Then, the next day, in the classroom.

“Don’t come near my Cecily again!”

“Eh?”

Eivind greeted me as usual with a, “Good morning,” which prompted Anita to start a fight. Eivind’s eyes widened, which further angered her.

“You’re the worst for denying it, you beast!”

“I don’t think I’ve done anything to make you hate me that much?”

Eivind looked at me, asking for help.

Yes, he hadn’t done anything wrong.

I had to convince Anita, but I couldn’t even look him in the eye, let alone open my mouth.

“What is going on…?”

“I hate you, Eivind.”

At that moment, Mark barged into the classroom, which was quite an unusual sight. He glared at Eivind without concealing his true feelings.

“Sorry, but I don’t want to see your face for a while. I’ve arranged for someone else to come, so you can enjoy your love life to your heart’s content.”

“Seriously, all I’ve done was hole up in my lab for half a day, and what’s the point of—”

But Mark, not even interested in hearing Eivind’s explanation, turned on his heels in an instant. He glanced at me, then looked back at Eivind.

“I’ve confessed to Lady Cecily.”

“…I see.”

“Thanks to you, I haven’t gotten a response yet, but I’m going to be patient. I won’t hand her to someone as ruthless as you.”

“What is this all about?!”

While Eivind was showing signs of complete confusion, Hana passed behind him. She didn’t even glance at me.  It was as if she had no interest in what was happening.

Then, the bell rang to signal the start of the morning assembly.

The teacher said that winter break was coming up soon.

After thinking about it for a while, I suggested something to Cecily.

I’d like to go to a certain place with you.

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