Felyn glanced at the faint scratch on Zervanie's ankle. If not for the pained expression on her face, he would’ve thought she’d just tied a red ribbon around it.

Her silver-polished toes rested on the grass, looking like a slice of green cake—pleasing to the eye, but nothing worth fussing over.

“Does it hurt?” he asked.

“Mm... a little. But not so much now,” Zervanie murmured, lightly swinging her ankle.

She hadn’t expected Felyn to crouch beside her like a scoundrel. All she wanted was to get his attention.

She was honestly scared. If this kept up, their relationship would never move beyond "good bros."

So she tried everything she could to emphasize her femininity, to constantly remind Felyn: I’m not your bro—I’m a blooming young lady!

But judging from Felyn’s reaction right now, it was clear he didn’t see her as a girl at all.

What am I to him, really?!

“You have a healing seal, right? Just apply it and you’ll be fine,” Felyn said casually.

Felyn’s worried about me! What a sweetheart! I'm so touched!

Just as Zervanie was getting carried away in her thoughts, Felyn gave her a suspicious glance.

“What’s with that look? You’re not assuming I’m worried because I like you, are you?”

Thanks to Adeline, Felyn had become especially cautious these days. He didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea.

“N-No! Of course not! Hahaha… as if I’d be that confident. No way I’m like Adelina who—wait.” Zervanie panicked and accidentally blurted out her real thoughts.

Realizing what she’d just said, she immediately covered her mouth, sneaking glances at Felyn’s expression.

“I wasn’t trying to badmouth Adeline or anything,” she stammered. “It just slipped out—I swear…”

“You know Adeline?” Felyn raised a brow as he closed his lunch box, surprised.

“We’ve met a few times,” Zervanie replied softly.

“I see. What do you usually talk about?”

Felyn was hoping to learn more about Adeline’s preferences and mood, maybe find a way to improve the quality of his service contract.

“Oh, you know… girly things. Dating, everyday stuff. Nothing important,” Zervanie tried to dodge the question.

In truth, she and Adeline had barely spoken—and when they did, it was all about Felyn.

Especially about how her "fiancé Felyn doesn’t want her anymore."

No way I could admit to that now!

Felyn lay back on the grassy hill, arms behind his head, enjoying the peaceful afternoon sun.

The lakeside was deserted. The surface of the water was still. The only sounds were wind brushing the grass—like the world itself had forgotten this place.

“You talking about romance and daily life is kinda surprising,” Felyn remarked.

“I’m a girl too, you know. Isn’t it normal to talk about that stuff?” Zervanie pouted, stretching out her long legs and resting them beside him. She leaned back on her hands and peeked at Felyn.

The more time she spent with him, the more she wondered: What do I mean to him?

“I just figured… you’re always busy with performances, and you don’t really have dating experience. Didn’t expect you and Adeline to have much to talk about.”

“You don’t need to have dated someone to talk about love!”

Zervanie was excited—they were talking about romance! What a rare opportunity!

She glanced around, looking for anything suspicious.

She read enough romance novels to know that just when the mood reached its peak, something always ruined it—a monster attack, a random stranger cutting in, something stupid like that.

Not this time. She wasn’t going to let anything ruin it.

The corner was still quiet.

Then… maybe it was time to ask that question?

“F-Felyn, don’t you talk about love stuff with your friends?”

“I don’t,” he said flatly.

“Why not?”

“I don’t have any friends. Not just love stuff—anything, really. There’s no one I can talk to.”

…

Why did that sound so sad?

“I-I’m your friend now, right? You can talk to me if you ever need to.”

Felyn looked up and met her eyes.

He said nothing.

Her heart started racing. She blinked and tucked a wind-blown strand of hair behind her ear.

“W-What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just thinking… maybe you don’t have any friends either, and that’s why you’re trying to be mine.”

He paused, then added, “Kinda pathetic when you think about it.”

“What?!” Zervanie lightly slapped his shoulder, flustered. “Why am I the pathetic one?! I was worried about you!”

“I’m not pathetic! And seriously—do you think I’m some brainless stage doll who only knows how to sing and smile?”

“Isn’t that what you are?”

“No, I’m not!”

Felyn brushed his hand across the grass, flattening it where the wind had rippled it.

He wasn’t mocking her. He really thought that.

From his point of view, Zervanie had barely interacted with boys her whole life. Her idol career had distanced her from real human connections.

So the moment someone treated her kindly, she latched onto them. Even to the point of wanting marriage.

“I do have dreams about the future…” she mumbled, resting her head sideways on her knees, absentmindedly tracing circles around her ankle.

“I don’t want to be a singer forever. Just a few more years—once I’ve saved up enough, I’ll quit.”

She wanted to keep her smile for herself.

And for him.

“I want to travel the world. Go fishing by a lake. See what a Demon King looks like.”

“I want to have a bunch of kids—tons of them. I can afford to raise them, after all.”

“Your husband’s going to have a rough time,” Felyn commented dryly.

“H-He will?” Zervanie hugged her knees tighter.

Wait—does Felyn not like kids? Or… or maybe he thinks doing that kind of stuff too much is boring? Too repetitive?

“I’d do my best to keep you happy… if you wanted anything, I’d learn it… I’d do it all…”

She pressed her forehead against her thighs, her voice muffled, her heartbeat so loud it was tripping over her own words.

She didn’t even realize she’d just implied that Felyn was the husband in question.

“Hold on,” Felyn said suddenly. “Are we even talking about the same thing? I meant your husband would be too busy taking care of you to deal with all those kids. What the heck were you talking about?”

“N-Nothing! I didn’t say anything!!”

Zervanie flailed in panic. Today is cursed. Absolutely cursed.

Monsters! Please, now’s your cue! I’ve said everything embarrassing already, just come interrupt us! PLEASE!

She was ready to dig a hole and crawl in forever.

As if answering her prayer, a gust of wind carried distant echoes.

Felyn felt the grass tremble beneath them and sensed a surge of magical energy from far away.

“Zervanie, stop covering your face. Snap out of it. A monster’s coming.”

(End of Chapter)