A silver-haired man wearing glasses was slightly bowing his head. Thinking he might be the librarian, I greeted him first.

“Hello.”

The man nodded slightly. Judging from his gaze that slipped past through his thick glasses, he seemed to be the type who found it difficult to interact with people.

“I’d like to borrow some books. Is the library director here by any chance?”

I was told that while maids could enter the library, permission from the director was needed to take books outside. I planned to quickly borrow a few books and return to my room before catching the eye of Floria or her close associates.

The man who had been silently blinking for a moment slowly opened his mouth.

“That’s me.”

“Pardon?”

“I am the library director.”

“Ah…”

I had imagined the library director to be an elderly gentleman with a dignified white beard, so I swallowed hard. With his youthful appearance and casual attire, looking about my age, I hadn’t thought for a moment he could be the director. Realizing my rudeness, I quickly bowed my head.

“I’m sorry. I thought you were a librarian.”

While not a major position, the library director was still an honorary role not just anyone could take on. In other words, this timid-looking man before me was at least a count.

“The librarians left work early. Is there a book you’re looking for?”

The man asked politely, still unable to make eye contact. Judging by how he didn’t speak down to me despite my maid’s uniform, he seemed to have a serious personality that didn’t treat people differently based on status.

“Ah. Well, I’m looking for books on magic.”

“This way, please.”

The library director led the way, still unable to meet my eyes. Following him, I soon pressed my lips together.

“All the books here are about magic.”

“…”

Damn. Even just hearing the number 7,000 was overwhelming, but seeing the endless shelves of books before me made me feel like losing my resolve.

“Then take your time looking.”

“Um, wait a moment.”

I quickly stopped the library director as he was about to leave. He turned back with a puzzled expression.

“I’m short on time, so could you help me a little?”

“…Please speak.”

“Is there perhaps a book related to fairies among these? Something that summarizes the key points rather than covering the basics.”

“For such a book…”

The library director looked around the bookshelves and pulled over a ladder that was placed nearby.

“Please wait a moment.”

The library director stepped onto the ladder. Though he was quite tall, the books were shelved so high that he had to stand on tiptoe even on the ladder. His outstretched hand reaching for the book looked precarious and made me quite anxious.

“Be careful.”

While I was feeling more restless watching him, he pulled out a book. Seeing in his hands, I inwardly marveled.

‘As expected of the library director!’

I wanted to applaud his ability to grasp exactly what I wanted at once without detailed explanation. If I could receive such help going forward, I might not need to painstakingly search through that overwhelmingly large number of books.

Just then, the library director, who was pulling out another book, seemed to lose his balance and wobbled.

“Oh, you’re going to fall. Be careful!”

The library director’s posture crumbled and he fell backwards in an instant. Even in that urgent moment, he shouted to me.

“Mo-move aside!”

But there was no time to dodge, and thinking he might hit his head if he fell like this, I reached out to catch him. With a dull pain in my chest, I was pushed back by his weight and landed on my bottom.

“Ugh!”

Momentarily breathless from the pain that struck my whole body, I soon came to my senses and checked on the library director first.

“Are you alright…”

Oh my, goodness.

I blinked my eyes, breathless for a different reason. Where did this beautiful boy suddenly appear from?

Clear blue eyes that you’d believe goldfish were swimming in, and gentle eyes surrounding them. Lips like cherries and an innocent appearance that looked ready to shed tears at any moment were further accentuated by his snow-white skin.

At the edge of my vision, I saw the library director’s thick-framed glasses rolling on the floor.

‘No way, this isn’t a shoujo manga, how can someone look so different just from taking off their glasses?’

Even his sickly charm flowed from his pale face trembling finely. Not just his appearance, but how a person could change in an instant was so fascinating that I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

“I-I’m so sorry.”

The library director, his face flushed red, tried to hurriedly get up in embarrassment. But contrary to his urgent feelings, he just floundered with clumsy movements. When I pushed his back to help, the library director finally collected himself, furrowing his brow and squinting as he looked around. He seemed to be searching for his glasses.

‘What a waste to cover that face again.’

Though I wanted to pretend not to notice, I couldn’t leave him like that, so I found his glasses and held them out. The library director hurriedly put on his glasses and brushed back his disheveled bangs with his hand.

“Th-thank you. Are you hurt anywhere…”

The library director glanced at me furtively, still unable to make eye contact.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s a relief.”

The library director sighed with a relieved expression. Unlike him, whose expression had relaxed considerably, my eyes widened.

“Oh my, your nose is bleeding.”

“Ah.”

No, why is his nose bleeding when he didn’t hit anything? Even I, who took the impact with my whole body while catching him, was fine. Unlike me who was dumbfounded, the library director covered his nose with the back of his hand as if it were no big deal.

“I have a weak constitution, so I get nosebleeds often…”

The library director’s ears turned red as if embarrassed.

“Ah… Oh, use this.”

When I took out a handkerchief from my pocket and held it out, the library director startled and waved his hands.

“No, it will get dirty.”

“It’s alright. I carry it for times like this.”

After looking down at the handkerchief for a moment, the library director carefully accepted it.

“Then I’ll wash it clean and return it to you.”

I nodded and looked at him. His face had become pale in the meantime, seeming not just sickly in appearance but truly ill. I looked with concern at the man waiting for his nosebleed to stop, then picked up the books he had dropped.

, and other titles that all appealed to me.

As I looked down at the books with a satisfied expression, the library director who had been quietly watching me spoke.

“You seem very interested in fairies.”

“Yes. They’re romantic beings, aren’t they? I’d like to borrow all of these, if that’s alright?”

The library director took one of the books I was holding and opened the back cover. Then he showed me a card he took out from a pocket folded inside the cover.

“Write your name here and give it to me.”

“Thank you!”

When I smiled brightly at the permission granted more easily than expected, the library director turned his head away. His red ears showed how extremely introverted he was.

“Just a moment. I’ll write my name and give it to you right away. A pen…”

As I looked around for a pen, the library director took out a fountain pen from his chest pocket and held it out.

“Take your time.”

Though a bit timid, he was a gentle and thoughtful man who even held out the pen nib facing the other way.

If only it weren’t for those damn glasses. Lamenting the shining beauty hidden behind the glasses, I wrote my name on the card with the fountain pen he gave me. The library director gazed down at the card I handed back.

“Then I’ll be going.”

“Um.”

As I hurriedly said goodbye and turned to leave, eager to go read, the library director stopped me. Thinking he might have something to say, I turned my head, and he bit his lip.

“Is there something you wanted to say?”

“…If you feel any discomfort tomorrow or later, please let me know. Accidents usually feel worse the next day.”

It’s not like it was a car accident, just landing on my bottom. Still, thinking what a kind person he was, a smile naturally formed.

“I will.”

After answering cheerfully, I turned and left the library. Somehow, I felt the library director’s gaze on my back.

Upon hearing that the Queen had visited the Second Prince’s Palace, I snuck into the garden like an assassin.

“They said she was having tea around here…”

As I wandered the garden, hiding here and there to avoid being noticed, I quickly hid my body behind a building wall and peeked out with just my face. I could see two people sitting under a gazebo in the distance.

‘Found them!’

The middle-aged woman with her blonde hair braided up and adorned with fancy hairpins resembled the Second Prince so closely that I could tell at a glance she was the Queen. As described in the novel, the Queen looked unbelievably young for having a grown son, and was extremely beautiful.

However, that beautiful face was heavily tinged with a harsh temperament.

‘At least the description of the Queen seems similar.’

The reason I’m secretly watching the two of them like this is because I want to confirm if the original story is progressing as I know it.

Originally, Reneola Violet, who should have been taken out of the story after having her eye pecked by a pigeon, entered the castle because I had possessed her. I wanted to be sure if this was the only thing that had changed due to my possession.

“You still can’t use honorifics properly.”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty the Queen.”

“Sigh… To think the future queen of a country can’t even use honorifics properly…”

The Queen rubbed her forehead as if getting a headache. Watching the Queen who uttered two complaints for every sip of tea, I let out a sigh of relief.

In the original story, the Queen had high expectations for her son, Prince Eric, and thus didn’t look favorably upon Floria. She thought that for Eric to ascend to the throne over the First Prince, he needed strong in-laws.