* * *

Dalia realized what she had done wrong and her face turned pale. The bead, the gift from Cedric, the one that Adrisha left on the floor when she was using magic.……

“Th, th, that, that was……”

“I was with Meldon when you broke that quartz piece.”

“……that……”

“You cherish the quartz piece that Meldon gave, and throw the bead I gave you on the floor?”

Cedric was just talking calmly, so why was her heart aching?

He looked at Dalia with a sad expression.

“I’m hurt, Dalia.”

“No, I didn’t mean to do that……”

“As expected, you didn’t want to receive a gift from someone who gave you a bead with killing magic, didn’t you?”

“Th, that’s……”

“I’m afraid you might be dragged away by those fanatics…… It contained the maximum amount of my reverse attribute magic…….”

Cedric lowered his eyes sadly.

“Sir, Sir Cedric!”

Dalia blocked his path and grabbed Cedric’s hand with both of her hands.

His gaze reached Dalia’s hands so quickly that she didn’t even notice, and returned to her face.

Moves.

Unexpectedly, Cedric didn’t say anything, then he put some strength to his hands to pull them out.

Dalia became nervous. Because he had never done anything like this to her.

‘He must be really angry!’

She held his hand tighter as he tried to escape.

“…….”

Cedric lost strength in his hands.

Driven by the momentum, Dalia held his hand tighter and said.

“I’m sorry. It’s not that it’s not precious, it’s just that the situation was so urgent……”

“……It’s okay, so let go of this……”

“Is there anything I can do for Sir Cedric?”

Dalia leaned her upper body toward Cedric.

His eyes shook. He looked alternately between her eyes and his caught hands then lowered his head.

“Alright, do whatever you want.”

His voice somehow sounded weak, so Dalia looked at Cedric.

Then she found his ears that peeked through his golden hair, were slightly pink.

“You always put me on the spot.”

Thanks to this, Dalia also turned red.

The atmosphere was awkward, and since there was no other place to go, Dalia took Cedric to her room.

He followed her lead. Dalia pointed to her bed and said.

“Please sit here.”

The two sat side by side on the bed.

After some time, Cedric went out to the balcony without saying a word and came back after a while.

Now he looked fine as if nothing had happened.

Having completely regained his usual attitude, he folded his eyes beautifully and sat next to Dalia with a smile.

“So, what are you going to do for me now?”

Dalia was in awe.

‘Sh, should I say that he’s brazen?’

He turns red even by just holding hands……

“Right, I have something for you.”

“What is it?”

“Put your hands together.”

Dalia put her hands together in front of her chest as he instructed.

Cedric smiled and showed Dalia his palm. A radiant light flashed on his palm as a transparent piece of quartz floated up.

Dalia exclaimed with admiration. It was amazing and beautiful.

“What Meldon gave you was what I made for you. If you break it, it will send the signals to the owner.”

Cedric said calmly and turned his hand over once. Then the floating quartz fragments increased to five.

“Okay, now.”

Cedric looked at Dalia.

Dalia quickly reached out her hands. Cedric dropped the pieces into Dalia’s hands.

“I can make even 100 of these for you. I don’t do things and give anything with shallow tricks like Meldon.”

Cedric didn’t change his tone, but he looked sulky for some reason.

He continued to speak.

“I can use magic and have more people who can use it than him. In any situation, it is more helpful.”

“…….”

“I can make it in any color you like.”

Dalia couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter. Cedric looked at her, frowning.

“You’re mean. I was being serious.”

“No, I’m just……”

“So don’t take what Meldon gives you. You will do that, right?”

Dalia hesitated and nodded.

In fact, it was an act that didn’t suit her, whose motto in life was to accept what was given.

But it was five versus one. Of course, she had to choose several.

Cedric smiled. Then he pulled out a bunch of paper that had been folded several times from the inside pocket of his shirt.

“Book report, I’m here to get tested. We were supposed to exchange it, right?”

“Ah.”

It was what Dalia had written in the letter before she came here. It seemed he remembered it.

“You’ll see it when you come back anyway, but I’ll show it to you first.”

Dalia somehow felt like she was receiving a letter, so she received the bundle of paper. Again, it was very thick and the handwriting was very pretty.

She was a little scared of what might have been written in those pretty letters again this time, but Dalia smiled with the paper in her arms.

“I’ll read it later. Ah, mine too…….”

She also read while dozing off, but she had a book report that she wrote from time to time.

She went to her desk and rummaged around for a while until she found what she had written and gave it to Cedric.

As soon as he received it, he turned to the first page. Dalia was surprised and covered it with her palm.

“Re, read it later!”

“Why?”

“It’s embarrassing.”

It feels like she wrote a lot of embarrassing words in the middle, but still!

In addition, the pen slipped while she was dozing off in the middle, leaving marks everywhere.

“Really? Then, I’ll do that.”

Cedric gently covered the cover. He smiled as he smoothed over the title and name of the book report written in Dalia’s handwriting on the cover.

“Your handwriting is so cute because the tip is curly like a pig’s tail.”

“……You are not teasing me, aren’t you?”

“That’s not true. I mean it.”

Unless he’s teasing her, there’s no way you can call a human’s handwriting a pig’s tail.

Dalia narrowed her eyes. However, Cedric kept a satisfied smile on his face, and held Dalia’s book report in his hand.

“It’s like having a diary exchange. I heard that you do such things with your close friends?”

He smiled with his eyes gently.

Goodness, diary exchange. Dalia was taken aback because it seemed like it was the least suitable word in the world for him.

“…… I didn’t know that Sir Cedric would want to do diary exchange.”

She wondered if it was too straightforward, but Cedric looked at Dalia without any hesitation.

“I’d like to do it with you. Do you want to?”

“Uh, uhh, I need some time to think……”

Cedric turned to Dalia and smiled.

“I just changed my mind.”

Dalia was terrified every time Cedric was like this. Her shoulders stiffened and she looked at him.

“Wha, what changed?”

“After all, it’s too early to get married from the first meeting.”

‘Did you only realize that now?’

Dalia did not have the courage to say that to the prince. Instead, she smiled awkwardly.

Cedric slightly leaned his upper body towards her. As his marble-like handsome face came close, Dalia felt her face heat up for some reason.

As expected, it was a face that was bad for her heart.

“Let’s be friends first.”

“Yes, yes?”

“We’ll think about it then. What do you think?”

Dalia, who was too deep in thought, couldn’t properly hear what he was saying.

She asked back awkwardly.

“What is…….?”

“Becoming friends.”

“Ah, sure!”

‘Yes, friends are good, friends.’

Dalia had a thought. It’s much better than using a handsome face like just now and fluttering like crazy. Besides……(*t/n: yeah I don’t get this part)

“Even now, I think of Sir Cedric as my friend.”

“……Really?”

“Yes, you even come here to help me.”

Dalia smiled and nodded.

Cedric lowered his eyes. It seems like he was a little shy.

A warm atmosphere was created that warmed the hearts of those who saw it. No, it’s only Dalia who thought that.

But then, Cedric raised his head again and placed his hand on Dalia’s.

“Since we’re friends now, can I go to your house whenever I want, just like Adrisha?”

“……Yes?”

“That’s right, because we’re friends.”

“…….”

‘I think I just said something wrong.’

Dalia had a thought then.

To never relax her guard against Cedric. Dalia vowed once again.