Sirinü opened his previously closed eyes.
He saw the road rushing past through the window.
At that moment, a warm, stinging pain spread through his eye, partially covered by the eye patch.
The pain in his left eye was a sign—an omen that a monster was nearby.
Still gripping the eye patch with his hand, Sirinü pounded on the wall of the carriage.
The coachmen, hearing the sound, sharply pulled the reins.
Before the carriage could slow down, Sirinü leapt out and swiftly scanned the surroundings.
‘On the cliff.’
Without hesitation, he sprinted toward the source of the monster’s aura.
The cliff wasn’t high, nor steep. He landed at the edge with ease.
“Kaaargh!”
A monster let out a piercing shriek.
Sirinü drew the cold blade from his hip and plunged it into the monster’s chest.
He had slain only one, but more monsters were approaching—growling and swarming.
Yet Sirinü didn’t flinch.
There had been times in his youth when he’d been abandoned in a forest teeming with far more monsters than these.
With an emotionless expression, Sirinü cut down the monsters.
None of his movements were wasted or frantic.
He stabbed the monsters with the minimum motion necessary, then flung them aside, the blood on his blade scattering across the ground.
‘What is that?’
For a moment, it seemed as if life had been snatched away like smoke. Then, behind the wall, a hunched figure appeared.
‘A person?’
Sirinü narrowed his eyes and focused his gaze in that direction.
“Mmm…”
The figure that had been lying with its back turned slowly shifted. It was a woman.
The monstrous energy in the area was so intense that any ordinary person would have been overwhelmed.
Being this close to the creature, most would have lost their minds.
Yet the woman lying on the ground was clearly sleeping.
Caught off guard by this unexpected sight, Sirinü was momentarily stunned.
He hesitated for a moment, just as the monster, which had been at rest, began to move toward him.
Distracted by the flicker of movement in the corner of his vision, Sirinü almost didn’t react in time as the monster lunged for his throat.
He instinctively raised his arm to block it, squinting his eyes against the sudden impact.
In an instant, Sirinü grabbed the monster’s arm.
The creature let out a shrill, screeching sound and flail wildly.
Its direction turned, straight toward the sleeping woman.
“Damn.”
Sirinü quickly readjusted his grip on his sword. At that moment, the woman’s eyes fluttered open.
“…Huh?”
“Kaargh!”
The monster let out a piercing screech as it rose to its feet.
“What! Someone help me!”
The woman was frozen in fear, unable to move, her only response was a strangled cry.
The monster shoved her aside with brutal force, moving faster than Sirinü had anticipated.
The woman instinctively raised her hand to shield her face.
As the monster’s clawed hand touched her, a burst of flame erupted at the point of contact.
The creature howled in agony and jerked back, its flesh searing.
Sirinü seized the chance. He lunged forward and sliced through the monster’s throat.
With a final gasp, the monster’s form wavered and vanished into the air.
Sirinü’s gaze lingered on the woman still sprawled on the ground, her pale gray eyes wide with shock.
In the instant that our eyes met through the haze of smoke…
I sensed it.
“Is this what they call a fateful encounter?”
It wasn’t like I’d never admired a good-looking guy during my school days. But back then, it had just been a hobby, a way to find something fun in the dull routine of school life, shared with friends.
When I saw handsome celebrities, I’d just think, wow, handsome, and move on. Never had someone’s appearance struck such a sharp pang in my heart like this.
I used to think, handsome is good, but charm is more important.
I regretted every day I’d wasted before this.
A man just needs a handsome face and a good body. My past self… you understood that, right?
“My blank fangirling life has all led up to this moment, to meet you…”
I realized my mouth was hanging open, unable to close, as I gazed at this divine figure before me.
With no double eyelids, his long, sharp eyes curved upwards at the corners.
‘Those eyelashes… so wonderful, I could even avoid the rain underneath them…’
Below, the violet eye was exactly the shade I’d always adored.
‘Ha… how can a person’s eyes be violet?’
The handsome figure before me, with an eye patch on his left eye and a uniform that fit him perfectly—
‘Is this concept insane?’
He turned his face slightly to the side, thick black hair brushing against his temple in the breeze.
‘Sexy.’
His long, slanted eyes, the sharp nose that anchored his face perfectly, the lips pressed together with the faintest curve at the edges—
He wasn’t just handsome. His body was breathtakingly sculpted as well.
His broad shoulders tapered down in a way that made my breath catch.
Had he stuffed a hamburger into his chest to bulk it up, or what?
Why was he so perfectly toned, with every line of muscle flowing like it had been drawn by an artist?
Even his narrow waist was in perfect proportion to those wide shoulders, and his slim lower torso…
“Hey.”
God, this was insane.
How could a person be created like this? Was he even real? Wait—was he talking to me?
Gee… Can you see me?
What’s with his voice? It was so sweet.
I swear from now on I’ll only drink zero-sugar drinks! I’ve got enough sugar right here…
“Hey, can’t you hear me?”
His voice had a slightly snarky edge… that face with that voice, too much.
‘I’ve entered the fandom~!’
I was about to respond, but my heart was pounding so wildly that I couldn’t even open my mouth.
At this rate, my heartbeat was probably louder than my voice.
‘Oh no! My heart! It’s pounding!’
Okay, hearts always pound. But was it pounding because of this breathtakingly handsome man, or because of that terrifying monster from before?
Then I realized I’d almost died because of those monsters, like a scene straight out of the movies.
‘What? Did I almost die? Or maybe I already did? If so, is this beautiful man not just an angel’s face, but actually an angel?’
While I was tilting my head to assess the situation, the angel-faced man drew even closer to me.
I heard the faintest sound of a sigh in my ear.
His pretty, well-shaped lips parted slightly.
Mom, I’m dizzy…
Before I could fully regain my composure, he raised a hand and gently pressed it to my forehead, his fingers moving closer.
Startled by his sudden movement, I gasped.
I saw blood trickling down his wrist, flowing over his hand.
“Huuh?”
Panicking, I untied the yellow ribbon wrapped around my waist and used it to wipe away the blood.
The bright yellow ribbon was quickly stained red.
I was so focused on wiping away the blood that I didn’t realize I was holding the hand of this beautiful man I’d only just met.
He furrowed his brow, twisted his hand, and grabbed my wrist.
“You… who are you?”
As the man grasped my wrist, the not-yet-dried blood touched my bracelet.
Then, a strange sensation crept across my wrist.
Something with a powerful force seemed to bind it.
I looked down and was startled to see that the blood-stained bracelet was shining.
“Huh?”
The blood, crimson and vivid, split into several lines, swirling upward like smoke as it snaked around my wrist and wrapped around his fingers.
When he pulled his hand away, thin threads of blood stretched between our fingers before suddenly bursting into sparks of light.
I looked at him. He looked back at me.
The moment our eyes met, my heart began to race uncontrollably.
My breath quickened, and I felt as if the heat from my blood was spreading outward, warming me from the inside.
Even in this confusing situation, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from his deep, violet eye.
I felt a sudden urge to run my fingers through the tousled hair of the man in front of me and to caress his sharp cheek.
As my breath caught in my throat and parted my lips just slightly, the man’s hand reached out to me, as if something was calling it forward.
The beautifully outstretched hand was so close, and my breath hitched without me realizing it.
Where his hand met my wrist, I felt a sudden warmth that made my heart race.
“Are you… the prophecy…”
It was as if a heavenly spirit had reached down and taken my wrist, and in that moment, the pounding of my heart drowned out every other sound.
‘What kind of mess am I in right now?’
Slowly, I lowered my gaze to check my condition.
A-ha. Me, in a dress, lying half on the grass and half in the dirt, facing the man known to be the most handsome in the world?
I felt my face flush bright red in an instant.
‘Ah, so embarrassing!’
Regaining my composure, I carefully pried the man’s hand off my wrist and gave a polite bow.
“You’ve worked hard!”
Without another word, I sprinted down the hill.
Glancing back as I ran, I saw him standing atop the hill, his expression bathed in the glow of the setting sun.
From here, I could see the manor in the distance, nearly hidden among the trees.
The servants in the garden asked me questions, but I couldn’t say anything.
‘I left it down here, though…’
At the very bottom of the nightstand’s innermost drawer, I crouched down and pulled out the guidebook.
I wondered if the guidebook mentioned anything about accidentally getting involved in a scene like this. I flipped through the pages but found nothing relevant.
Still, after bumping into that genius face, I could at least guess who he was.
“Black hair, violet eye. Isn’t he the first male lead? Sirinü… Even his name sounds beautiful.”
I reread those few lines again and again.
At Elle’s explanation that there was nothing worth seeing besides his looks, I couldn’t help but snort.
“Nothing but looks, huh?”
Just now, I saw he’s really good at catching monsters.
I remembered that scene where that gross-looking monster suddenly went berserk all at once.
And! If a guy who looks like that also had an innocent personality, his life would be rough. That sharpness in his words had an oddly thrilling edge to it.
Never mind, if he has a bad personality,
“It’s not like I’m going to date him or anything.”
Being a fan meant watching from afar, cheering and supporting.
“If he’s good-looking and good at what he does, that’s all that matters!”
I collapsed onto the ground and let out a sigh.
My heart was pounding so hard that even the faintest of these thoughts couldn’t calm it.
I lifted my arm to look at my wrist, but the blood and the strange thread that had been wrapped around it had vanished without a trace.
“What was that?”
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