Evelia had been engrossed in books from early morning all day. Just before returning to the prince’s palace yesterday afternoon, Diana had selected a few books to bring to her bedroom, and she simply couldn’t put them down.

The story of Tritan that Diana had told her was so interesting that there was never a dull moment while reading.

“Tritan was a kingdom with a highly developed temple culture, believing in dragons covered in blue scales as their guardian deity…….”

Reading aloud the following passage, Evelia suddenly closed her lips. She then moved her gaze back to the text she had just read.

“A dragon covered in blue scales?”

She recalled an emblem with a blue dragon among the illustrations in the book.

“Did they really believe in the existence of dragons?”

Evelia blinked her wide-open eyes quickly. The thought of serving a dragon as a guardian deity was astonishing. Moreover, the ensuing explanation said that those with divine power could even see the deity they served.

“…Do they mean that there were actually dragons? That people saw dragons?”

She couldn’t believe it. Even in her present time, stories about dragons were orally transmitted. In other words, dragons existed only in legends or imaginations.

But hundreds, thousands of years ago, they not only served but also saw them with full faith…

“I should talk to Diana about this next time.”

Evelia closed the book with a thud, murmuring with a rather serious face. She wanted to read more, but her body was sore here and there due to sitting in one place all day.

“Aah.”

As she stood up and stretched, a groan naturally escaped her mouth. Although her body was stiff, her mood wasn’t bad. She had enjoyed a long-forgotten hobby.

Evelia casually arranged the books on the table and approached the window. The sun was already setting. It seemed that evening was approaching.

“I do feel a bit hungry now that I think about it…”

Rubbing her flat belly while murmuring, Evelia suddenly widened her eyes and moved closer to the window.

A tall silhouette was striding towards the center of the prince’s palace garden.

She hadn’t heard any news that he would be coming. Not believing her eyes, Evelia immediately turned away.

It was unbelievable, but there he was. The man she so deeply desired, the crown prince of the empire.

“Your Highness!”
Evelia hurriedly escaped the Crown Prince’s Palace and stood in front of the man. It was indeed Liurian.

“How did you know to come out?”

Liurian looked down at her with an uncharacteristically surprised face.

“Well… I was looking out the window and saw that Your Highness was coming, so…”

“So you rushed out in one breath?”

A teasing joke returned to his somewhat shy answer. Just with that one word, Evelia’s face became contemplative.

She was still more accustomed to Liurian’s scolding than his jokes. The thought that she had failed to maintain her dignity as a latecomer to the empire flooded in.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I should have been more careful not to become a burden to you…”

Evelia bowed her head and habitually conveyed her apology. They had been getting along exceptionally well, even if only for a few days. She didn’t want to upset him over something like this.

“From now on, I’ll be more careful even with minor actions…”

“I don’t even understand what you mean by being a burden to me.”

Unable to listen to her any longer, Liurian grabbed her shoulders and lifted her head. Evelia looked at Liurian with a surprised face at the unexpected contact.

“Your Highness.”

“I thought you hurried out to greet me; was that not the case?”

“No, Your Highness. I saw you coming to the Crown Prince’s Palace through the window and was so happy that I acted without thinking…”

“If that’s true, then I’m even more confused. I would have been more hurt if you had acted indifferent after seeing me.”

His honey-coated sweet voice pierced through her ears without any filter.

Having experienced him for a few days, she realized he was much more affectionate than she thought, but Evelia still wasn’t used to it.

Every time she faced the affectionate him, her heart raced as if it would explode, and her breathing became uncontrollable. It felt like she was dreaming; reality kept fading away, making it impossible to focus.

It felt like she was sick. Yet, she didn’t hate any of it. Rather, if she had to live like this forever, that was fine; she wanted to face the affectionate him for a very long time.

Evelia couldn’t break free from these thoughts for a long time. What woke her up was Liurian’s voice.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

“No… nothing.”
She belatedly composed herself and lowered her head. Yet, her heart continued to beat loudly, as if he had caught her in a moment of private thought.

“But, Your Highness, what brings you to the Crown Princess’s palace without notice?”

Evelia awkwardly shifted the topic with a smile. She did not want her thoughts to burden him unnecessarily.