"Ugh, how annoying... Is that guy doing this on purpose?"
Lilith, with her vibrant fiery red hair, walked alone through the increasingly dense crowd of students.
Her noble royal background, combined with her astounding magic talent that had quickly spread since her enrollment, unknowingly built an invisible barrier around her.
Along the path, students—whether nobles or commoners—subconsciously kept a polite yet distant radius from her, not daring to draw near, let alone approach her to chat.
This open space born of awe gave Lilith room to immerse herself in her own thoughts and murmur complaints without being disturbed.
And the thing bothering her most right now was, without a doubt, related to that guy named Greg Sass.
Shortly after her grounding order was lifted, Lilith, unable to contain a certain impulse, had dressed in those plain clothes once more and secretly sneaked into the Academy Dungeon under the identity of Lily Carlo, daughter of a wealthy merchant.
She had wanted to check out that hidden shallow camp and see Greg again. After all, she still hadn't heard him acknowledge her last time.
Of course, that was only a secondary reason.
Her main reason for wanting to see Greg this time was simply because she wanted to taste the roast meat Greg had made last time again.
Mm... at least, that was what she told herself in her heart.
However, her expectations ended in disappointment.
When she quietly made her way to that familiar corner, the camp was completely deserted, leaving only an extinguished campfire and a crude tent she hadn't seen before.
In the open space at the center of the camp, a black cat was lying atop a pile of strangely patterned stone tablets.
Those stone tablets gave Lilith a very strange feeling, as if some sort of whispering was hovering near her ears.
She wanted to move closer to inspect them, but the black cat merely raised its eyes and gave her a nonchalant glance.
With just that single look, an indescribable shiver instantly swept through her entire body, bringing her feet to a dead stop.
In the end, she merely took a few distant glances before quickly returning to the surface with a touch of regret and even more confusion.
After all, her grounding had just been lifted, so she didn't dare risk accidentally getting into trouble at a critical time like this.
"Besides, I clearly heard someone saw him in the academy yesterday morning, yet I haven't heard of him attending any class."
Lilith murmured under her breath with her head lowered, stepping forward with a somewhat vent-like stride as her beautiful eyebrows knitted slightly:
"Why can that guy come and go as he pleases, skipping classes so blatantly, while I have to sit properly in the classroom every single session, listening to theories I've long since mastered? That's so unfair!"
The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt, and her steps grew heavier, as if she were stepping on that annoying guy's face rather than a stone path.
Just as she was entirely absorbed in her inner grumbling, completely unaware of her surroundings, a figure blocked her path without warning.
Lilith came to a sudden halt.
This situation was extremely rare.
Given her status and aura, let alone blocking her path, even if walking alongside her, most people would subconsciously slow down to keep their distance.
Standing directly in front of her like this—an action that was practically offensive—was something she was encountering for the very first time.
Who is so bold?
A touch of curiosity mixed with mild annoyance at having her thoughts interrupted made her look up at the path-blocker.
Then—
Their eyes met.
Lilith's eyes, brilliant as molten rubies, widened slightly, cleanly reflecting the person's face in her pupils.
Greg!?
H-How... is he here?!
And why is he standing right... in front of me?!
In an instant, countless thoughts exploded in Lilith's mind like a startled school of fish, darting around frantically:
What should I do? Anyway, should... should I greet him first?
B-But I'm not Lily Carlo right now! I'm Lilith Kahn!
Under this identity... what valid reason do I have to take the initiative to greet Greg?
Should I do it under the identity of my former prospective brother-in-law?
No, no, no! That's definitely out of the question!
Dear Sister will definitely be unhappy if she finds out, and that relationship is way too awkward—it'll only cause more problems!
Then should I... pretend I didn't see him and just ignore him?
B-But... we talked in the dungeon and even shared roast meat... even if it was as Lily, to him, we're at least... acquaintances? Or friends? Mm, I guess so?
So can I really do... something so cold to my only friend?
An internal war raged inside Lilith. Though she tried hard to maintain a calm expression on her exquisite face, her slightly pursed lips and wavering gaze exposed her inner conflict and helplessness.
She froze in place, momentarily unsure whether to advance or retreat, to speak or stay silent.
Meanwhile, Greg, standing before her, suddenly froze after carefully scrutinizing Lilith up and down.
His original plan was simple: use his new title as a Disciplinary Committee member to find an excuse—like improper uniform wear or grooming issues—to make things difficult for this proud princess, getting a tiny bit of revenge for her teasing him back in the dungeon under Lily's identity.
However, now that he was actually standing in front of Lilith, scanning her thoroughly with a critical eye...
"Tsk..."
Greg cursed internally.
The hem of her white academy uniform skirt was at the perfect length without a single crease. Beneath the hem, black pantyhose wrapped around her straight, slender legs, outlining elegant curves without any snags or stains.
Her vivid red hair, resembling burning flames, was meticulously groomed, smooth and lustrous, looking like flowing molten gold in the sunlight without a single stray split end...
From her hair to her clothes, her entire appearance was completely flawless, perfectly meeting the academy's highest standards for appearance and discipline.
Only then did Greg suddenly remember that before every public appearance, this princess had three highly skilled exclusive maids attending to her!
Their job was to ensure Princess Lilith presented the most flawless image every day.
Trying to nitpick her over surface appearance matters?
That was truly underestimating them way too much.
A bit too hasty! He hadn't considered this at all!
So... what now? He couldn't exactly say, "You're too pretty and it disrupts discipline," could he?
Wouldn't that just be outright complimenting her?!
Rate on N.U.
