The Princess’s Love? (2)

Princess Mezlen suddenly confesses to me that she seems to have fallen in love out of the blue, recounting what happened to her last week.

Naturally, I couldn’t help but feel quite bewildered by this side story of hers unfolding in places I didn’t know about and with people I wasn’t aware of.

‘If she fell in love in just a week, the person must be anything but ordinary.’

Of course, if it were someone like the Hero with a compelling backstory and a redemption arc, falling in love in a day, let alone a week, would be entirely possible. After all, in the original story, Mezlen started showing interest in the Hero right after getting entangled with him on her first day at the academy.

The problem is that the Hero spent the past week participating in the Geology Exploration class just like the rest of us.

I had already warned him not to go around flirting with other girls, so there’s no way he’d suddenly get involved with Mezlen now.

‘That means we can exclude the Hero for now, and focus on the remaining male characters who might have charmed Mezlen…’

To be honest, I couldn’t quite figure out who it might be. Most of the notable male characters also attended the Geology Exploration class.

The Hero and Ethan are obvious, and then there’s Thomas, a member of the Hero’s party, as well as Karaham and Gwyn-all of whom I confirmed were present in the Geology Exploration class.

That leaves Serdic, a second-year from the Technology Department, as the only somewhat prominent male student left at the academy, but well…

‘He’s supposed to end up with Kael later, isn’t he?’

Since he’s destined to be paired with another heroine, in a way, he’s the last person who should be involved with Mezlen right now. If Mezlen has taken a liking to Serdic, I might actually have to sabotage things rather than support them.

Besides, Mezlen doesn’t seem like the type to be into someone with Serdic’s gentle, easygoing personality, so I had to rule him out too.

…No choice, then. I’ll just have to ask her directly.

“Congratulations on finding love, Princess Mezlen. I sincerely mean it.”

“Th-thank you, Lilith-nim…”

“In that case, could you tell me the name of the person you’ve fallen for?”

“Well… I don’t know it…”

“Huh?”

“S-someone like me can’t possibly memorize the names of every single person at the academy, right…? When someone as noble as me talks to others, it’s basic etiquette for them to introduce themselves first…”

“……”

Right, what was I even expecting? That’s just how this narcissistic princess is.

Still, in a way, this might not be such a bad situation. The key to making Mezlen happy is for her to harbor strong affection for someone, after all.

Finding her a good match is one thing, but getting Mezlen to actually love that good match is another-and the latter is far more difficult. So, in a sense, the harder condition has already been met.

‘The problem is, the person Mezlen fell for could be some random skeleton nobody knows about.’

If it were just some nameless side character, I wouldn’t have to worry too much. Most men from the Empire would jump at the chance if they heard a princess had taken a liking to them.

Even if the guy is a bit lacking, the Empire could properly educate him to meet Mezlen’s standards as a suitor, and if he’s a commoner, they could grant him a suitable title.

Mezlen herself is quite beautiful-if you ignore her personality-so she’d make an excellent partner. And even her personality would improve if she genuinely loved someone, so that problem would solve itself too.

‘The only real variable is if the man in question has a reason why he can’t marry Mezlen…’

I’d say the odds of that are about fifty-fifty. At Lumina Academy, there are quite a few couples like me and Ethan-no, Lilia and Karaham-who are already engaged and living together.

Regardless of how advantageous marrying Princess Mezlen might be, breaking off an existing engagement isn’t politically wise. Even if it’s just a political marriage where they’ve only exchanged names and never even met.

‘If Mezlen fell for a man who’s already engaged-or worse, married…’

Then things would get really messy. The royal family, the man’s family, and his fiancée’s family would all be dragged into the chaos.

Of course, in such cases, Mezlen-the unexpected troublemaker-should be the one to back off. But the problem is, Mezlen isn’t the type to let go easily once she’s fallen for someone.

“If you don’t know his name, could you at least tell me what kind of man he is, Princess Mezlen?”

“Hmm, well… First of all, he had this refined, classical elegance about him…”

“Refined, classical elegance… So he’s likely a noble.”

“And his gaze was so intense and full of life… He effortlessly took down bad guys with just a single sword, but he didn’t kill them-just knocked them out. That shows he has incredible skill…”

“An intense gaze and exceptional swordsmanship…”

“Gaze full of life”… Does that just mean he has a strong presence?

In Lumina Academy, characters with a strong presence are usually notable ones, so I should be able to recognize him if I hear his name.

And since swords were mentioned, he’s probably from the Swordsmanship Department. Of course, there are people like me who carry a sword as a secondary weapon even if they’re not in the Swordsmanship Department, but given his high skill level, he’s likely from there.

…And if he’s a noble, that means there’s a good chance he’s already engaged, which isn’t a good sign.

‘All the notable swordsmen are already taken, leaving only those who shouldn’t get involved with Mezlen.’

The Hero, Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, is an obvious no, and Karaham is already part of a perfect idiot couple with Lilia.

Ethan is engaged to me-no, to Princess Rainy-and Machart is a villain who’s already dead.

And Antonio, who enrolled as a first-year this year, is currently in a budding romance with Agnes… Though if it were Antonio, Mezlen would know his name, and incest would make no sense anyway.

‘These are pretty much the only main characters in the Swordsmanship Department.’

Maybe “gaze full of life” doesn’t mean he has a strong presence, but rather that Mezlen is just seeing him through rose-tinted glasses? People always look more attractive when you’re in love.

Lumina Academy has eight departments, so the main and supporting characters are spread out evenly. Right now, with Ethan redeemed and Karaham not having turned evil, the Swordsmanship Department seems unusually packed with male characters, but in the original story, Ethan and Karaham were antagonists, not side characters.

Most of the main and supporting characters from the Swordsmanship Department attended the Geology Exploration class, so it’s almost certain that Mezlen’s crush isn’t a major character. Still, I needed to figure out who it was, so I pressed Mezlen for more details.

“Since he’s skilled with a sword, he’s probably someone from the Swordsmanship Department. Do you remember any other distinguishing features, like his height, hair color, or anything else?”

“He was quite tall… And his hair color was… Oh.”

Mezlen suddenly stops mid-sentence with a gasp as she answers my questions one by one.

Wondering what’s wrong, I tilt my head and meet her eyes, only to see her hurriedly cover her mouth and cut herself off, eyeing me warily.

“Oh, no…! Now that I think about it, I can’t tell you…!”

“……Huh?”

“Y-you think I don’t see through your scheme, Lilith-nim…? You’re just curious about the man I like so you can seduce him before I do, aren’t you?! Do you think someone as clever as me wouldn’t notice that trick…?!”

“No, what are you talking about…?”

“Don’t play dumb! I know full well that Lilith-nim is infamous at the academy for being a genius at seducing men…! You’re planning to use those same tricks again, aren’t you?! Flaunting that vulgar body of yours shamelessly…!!”

“……”

Her eyes dart rapidly over my chest and hips before she spits out those words. Seriously, what kind of insult is “vulgar body” to someone’s face?

Sure, Lilith’s body is one of the most voluptuous in the Lumina Academy universe, with exaggerated curves, but it’s ridiculous to assume I’d seduce her crush just because of that.

And besides, why would I even bother chasing another man when I’m in a temporary relationship with Ethan? There’s no way any other male student at the academy could be more impressive than him.

Not to mention, my personality from my past life was that of a unicorn-this kind of love triangle nonsense doesn’t suit me at all.

“Princess Mezlen, I swear on the heavens that I have absolutely no intention of becoming romantically involved with the man you’ve fallen for…”

“A-anyway, I’ll handle my own love life…! I’d appreciate it if you stayed out of it, Lilith-nim…!”

-Tap-tap-tap!

“Wait, Princess Mezlen…!”

Without waiting for my explanation, Princess Mezlen abruptly stands up and flees as if escaping.

Left dumbfounded by her absurd behavior, I have no choice but to remain seated.

‘…Ugh, whatever. If she’s going to be like this, she can figure it out herself.’

If she comes asking for help later, I’m definitely not helping.