“Why was I born like this.”

Bang! The sound of someone hitting the bathroom wall hard while lamenting their fate was heard.

‘Who is it? I’ve never seen anyone taking a bath at this hour before.’

Rukna, who had stiffened up, held her breath.

“How much more effort do I have to put in here to be okay? I can’t even rip out this damned heart and tear it apart.”

The low voice resonating from inside sounded ominous.

Rukna immediately swallowed dry. Strangely, her feet wouldn’t leave the ground.

“If only I had the holy sword, this wouldn’t have happened. I’ll find the bastard who took it and kill them. I’ll kill them.”

Bang. Bang. After the sound of hitting the wall as if to destroy it repeated a few times, a short ‘swoosh’ of water was heard.

What should I do? It’s Matian.

‘I, I should run away. I need to run.’

The chilling voice saying he’d kill the one who took the holy sword echoed in her head.

Rukna took a step forward with her trembling legs, trying her best to muffle her footsteps.

The heaviness in her steps wasn’t just due to fear.

Hearing the voice mixed with sorrow, she felt an inexplicable sense of guilt and regret.

Although she tried to leave the place as quickly as possible, the heavens didn’t help Rukna.

Matian, bare-chested with only pants on, walked out faster than Rukna could exit.

He stopped abruptly upon seeing Rukna.

The shirt tucked under his side had a heart-shaped brown medicine stain on it.

“Ma, Matian? You took a bath so early in the morning. You’re really diligent.”

Rukna greeted awkwardly, startled as if she had stepped on her own foot.

“…Ha.”

Matian sighed deeply, rolling his eyes upward as if tired.

Although the corners of his mouth habitually held a gentle smile, anger was evident on his face.

‘Did Professor Gale tell him that I saved him? There’s nothing else that could make him this angry.’

It was unfortunate that the professor who seemed to keep secrets well had spoken.

Rukna bit her inner lip while looking for a chance to escape.

It would be best to disappear before he could speak.

‘Now’s the time!’

Just as Rukna was about to take her next step quickly.

“Rukna Golden, so it was you.”

Matian, who had caught on to this with uncanny perception, called Rukna’s name and grabbed her ankle.

“The kind benefactor who took me to the infirmary.”

Although the soft voice called her a benefactor, somehow an ominous feeling of being about to be devoured flowed from it.

Matian walked right up to Rukna while brushing up his wet hair.

The cold soap scent wafting from him, with his back to the wind, choked Rukna’s breath.

Then, Matian’s upper body, perfectly divided by muscles, filled Rukna’s view.

‘Even if I think of him as just another man, isn’t this distance too close?’

He was the type who didn’t respect personal space while pretending to be a gentleman and acting kind on the outside.

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Rukna lowered her gaze a bit more.

Then she saw distinct abs and black pants covering his thick lower body, but that was equally embarrassing, so she had to raise her head again.

This time, what came into view was Matian’s face with wet hair carelessly hanging down.

Even though the cold dawn wind touching his skin, which hadn’t fully dried yet, should have been chilling, he showed no sign of shivering.

His round eyes, as if molded by gathering the deep blue of dawn, stared intently at Rukna.

‘Smiling like that in such a state makes him even scarier.’

It was Rukna’s role to shiver from the eerie chill. Yet, she couldn’t escape his gaze.

She could hear her own heart pounding inside her ears.

Anyone’s heart would race if such a half-naked handsome man came so close.

As soon as she managed to avert her gaze to empty space, Matian’s voice was heard.

“Well, now that I see your face, I’m certain.”

“Wh, what do you mean?”

While denying it, Rukna was once again caught in Matian’s gaze.

His hand reached out towards Rukna.

‘Is he going to hit me? Come on, does he think I’ll just stand here and take it?’

Rukna immediately took a step back and raised both arms in a defensive stance.

However, making her aggressive preparation look foolish, Matian’s hand gently touched her forehead.

He wiped her forehead lengthwise with his thumb, then showed it to Rukna.

Red medicine that hadn’t been fully washed off while washing his face was smeared on his finger.

“This is the medicine only the school nurse uses, isn’t it?”

“…Ah.”

Rukna glanced at Matian. His confident blue eyes flashed as if ready to kill if she lied.

Rukna had no choice but to nod and admit it.

“Yes, that’s right. I did it.”

“Why did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“Why did you take me to the infirmary?”

“Well, because you had collapsed.”

Why are you asking something so obvious? Rukna grumbled, pouting her lips.

But Matian furrowed his brow as if he couldn’t understand that answer.

“Even if I lost my memory…”

Matian quietly looked into Rukna’s eyes, trying to discern if there was any lie.

Her green eyes, resembling their owner, met his gaze before trembling slightly and rolling away to some empty space.

Her long eyelashes blinked busily, and her cheeks began to turn red.

For a moment, Matian almost burst into laughter.

He had occasionally seen strange men who blushed at him, but they had all been repulsive…

‘Did I just think Rukna was cute?’

This was the first time, and it was bewildering. He couldn’t find the cause of this odd thought stretching out towards Rukna.

Are you crazy, finding another man cute? There’s a limit to delusions.

“Anyway… thank you.”

So an unplanned expression of gratitude slipped out.

Originally, he had intended to half-kill the guy who had witnessed his weakness to prevent him from speaking carelessly.

How strange. Scratching his forehead, Matian added the advice he had originally intended to give.

“But next time, even if you see me, just pass by.”

“Why?”

“I told you before. I have a demon’s heart. I’m saying this because I might rampage like a demon if my patience runs out.”

Matian left this serious advice before passing by Rukna to return to the dormitory.

Rukna watched Matian’s retreating figure with wide eyes.

And then.

“Is he a madman with just a normal face?”

…she muttered very quietly.

Returning from early morning training, Rukna found a letter in the mailbox in the first-floor lobby.

‘It’s a letter from Giselle.’

The Golden family seal was stamped on the red wax sealing the beige high-quality envelope.

Rukna carefully opened the letter. The letter paper, filled with beautiful handwriting befitting her, was truly…

‘It feels like something terrible will happen if I don’t write back.’

It was saturated with longing for Rukna.

Hello, Rukna. Are you doing well?

I’m picking up my pen again like this because there was no reply to my last letter. Have you perhaps forgotten me? If I’ve been forgotten along with your forgotten past, I think it would be better to just die.

In just five sentences after starting, Giselle was already discussing death.

I visit the underground prison where we built memories together every day. I’m happy when I sit here because it reminds me of you. Do you remember the day we were locked up together, when you carved your name on the wall? I’m writing this letter here while looking at that name.

No, why are you writing a letter in a cold prison when you have a perfectly fine room! Rukna quickly checked the back of the letter paper.

Seeing the gray stone dust on it, it seemed to be true.

I don’t dare hope for a reply, Rukna. My Rukna, the perfect creation molded by God, must be busy living while being loved. So instead, could you at least send a lip print on the letter paper?

They say that to become an elegant lady, even a single sentence must be filled with dignity. So I’ll end it here. If it gets longer, I keep writing lewd sentences.

With love. Giselle Golden.

Lewd sentences, she says. Rukna stretched her lips long.

She wasn’t particularly curious about the content Giselle had omitted.

‘Come to think of it, I forgot to reply to the last letter.’

Rukna took out letter paper from her desk drawer and quickly wrote a reply.

Then she put the letter in a white envelope embossed with the military academy seal, which was rationed to cadets twice a month.

‘Let’s put the letter in the mailbox near the main gate and move to the lecture hall.’

Rukna left the dormitory and headed for the main gate.

Walking across the central flower bed, which formed a perfect symmetry left and right, the fragrant flower scent pricked her nose.

The area near the main gate, which she reached like that, was bustling with students coming and going to the shopping district.

As if it were market day, two postmen were wandering among the cadets.

‘I could just hand it directly to the postman, couldn’t I?’

Rukna took out the letter from her jacket’s inner pocket again.

After straightening out the slightly crumpled corners, she raised her head to find that the postmen who were visible just a moment ago had disappeared.

‘Where did they go in that short time?’

Rukna walked to the red mailbox, looking around.

The large mailbox that came up to her waist looked quite similar to the mailboxes she had seen in her previous life.

‘Do I need three stamps to reach Golden territory?’

After checking the distance-based rates posted on the mailbox, she licked the back of the pre-purchased stamps and stuck them on.

That’s when the flower bed right next to her caught her eye. A small, pretty yellow wildflower blooming among the grass.

‘It resembles Giselle.’

She plucked one and tucked it into the envelope.

If it’s Giselle, she would love even this small single flower very much.

“My, my, what a sight.”

Just then, Bolton was seen approaching with a swagger, along with a sarcastic voice.