Episode 1. Secret Dream
There was a man walking quickly down a magnificent and beautiful hallway.
His blonde hair was neatly combed back, and hia thick eyebrows were neatly arranged beneath hia smooth forehead.
The pinnacle of hia beautiful face, perfectly symmetrical with a straight, high nose bridge at its center, was his reddish green eyes.
Eyes that are a mixture of majesty and arrogance of one born to rule.
But his footsteps as he walked down the hallway were filled with a sense of impatience, unlike his leisurely expression.
As he turned the corner, climbed the stairs, crossed the landing, and crossed the hallway again, a beautiful white door appeared.
The beautiful face, once as emotionless as a statue, finally cracked.
As he suddenly opened the door, he felt as if a blinding white light was pouring in.
A gentle breeze seemed to blow in, and the seasons that had been at a standstill seemed to flow again as soon as the door opened.
The man's gaze remained fixed on one spot.
Her wavy, jet-black hair stood out in the all-white room. Her round, light-filled forehead, eyebrows as dark as her hair, her jet-black eyes beneath them, and her round ears, each adorned with hair.
Sensing presence, she slowly raised her head.
When their eyes met, her large eyes grew slightly larger, and her red lips parted, revealing pearly white teeth.
The man held his breath for a moment.
“Noah!”
At the bright, joy-filled voice, the man who had been standing motionless until then approached her. A sense of impatience washed over him, as if her clear face might vanish at any moment.
Noah leaned over her on the sofa, carefully supporting her slender neck with one hand and biting her rose-red lips.
The scent that brushed his nose and the soft sensation that wet his lips made his stomach boil and tingle as if it were about to melt.
"Ha..."
A burning thirst surged through him, his breath ragged and thin. All his senses seemed to be pressing him.
Noah tilted his head a little further, burying it in the crook of her neck. He then bit down on the hem of her dress, which was barely clinging to her slender, white shoulders. Then, her dazzlingly white skin, contrasting sharply with her dark hair, was revealed.
“Noah...”
As the excited voice pierced his ears, it felt like even his head was melting with heat.
Noah took a deep breath and carefully swallowed the soft, hunched shoulders. A sharp voice tickled his ear, and a soft, squishy sensation lingered on the tip of his tongue.
He felt like it would be okay if the world ended like this.
Feeling fingers carefully stroking his hair, Noah lifted his head. A clear, elegant face was staring back at him.
Noah whispered, looking into his face reflected in her pitch-black eyes.
“Olivia.”
Noah's eyes snapped open.
There was a man walking quickly down a magnificent and beautiful hallway.
His blonde hair was neatly combed back, and hia thick eyebrows were neatly arranged beneath hia smooth forehead.
The pinnacle of hia beautiful face, perfectly symmetrical with a straight, high nose bridge at its center, was his reddish green eyes.
Eyes that are a mixture of majesty and arrogance of one born to rule.
But his footsteps as he walked down the hallway were filled with a sense of impatience, unlike his leisurely expression.
As he turned the corner, climbed the stairs, crossed the landing, and crossed the hallway again, a beautiful white door appeared.
The beautiful face, once as emotionless as a statue, finally cracked.
As he suddenly opened the door, he felt as if a blinding white light was pouring in.
A gentle breeze seemed to blow in, and the seasons that had been at a standstill seemed to flow again as soon as the door opened.
The man's gaze remained fixed on one spot.
Her wavy, jet-black hair stood out in the all-white room. Her round, light-filled forehead, eyebrows as dark as her hair, her jet-black eyes beneath them, and her round ears, each adorned with hair.
Sensing presence, she slowly raised her head.
When their eyes met, her large eyes grew slightly larger, and her red lips parted, revealing pearly white teeth.
The man held his breath for a moment.
“Noah!”
At the bright, joy-filled voice, the man who had been standing motionless until then approached her. A sense of impatience washed over him, as if her clear face might vanish at any moment.
Noah leaned over her on the sofa, carefully supporting her slender neck with one hand and biting her rose-red lips.
The scent that brushed his nose and the soft sensation that wet his lips made his stomach boil and tingle as if it were about to melt.
"Ha..."
A burning thirst surged through him, his breath ragged and thin. All his senses seemed to be pressing him.
Noah tilted his head a little further, burying it in the crook of her neck. He then bit down on the hem of her dress, which was barely clinging to her slender, white shoulders. Then, her dazzlingly white skin, contrasting sharply with her dark hair, was revealed.
“Noah...”
As the excited voice pierced his ears, it felt like even his head was melting with heat.
Noah took a deep breath and carefully swallowed the soft, hunched shoulders. A sharp voice tickled his ear, and a soft, squishy sensation lingered on the tip of his tongue.
He felt like it would be okay if the world ended like this.
Feeling fingers carefully stroking his hair, Noah lifted his head. A clear, elegant face was staring back at him.
Noah whispered, looking into his face reflected in her pitch-black eyes.
“Olivia.”
***
Noah's eyes snapped open.
A heavy breath, not typical of someone who was sleeping, escaped between his smooth lips.
He tried to calm his mind and gather his confusion, but cruelly, a familiar ceiling came into view.
Noah held his breath without realizing it and closed his eyes again.
“You crazy bastard...!”
He spat out a curse through his teeth and rubbed his face repeatedly. Still unsatisfied, he slammed the back of his head against the pillow several times.
The only sound in the quiet bedroom was his heavy breathing.
Noah gasped, threw off the covers, and sat down on the edge of the bed. He rested his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his palms.
Regardless of his will, a hallucination he had never heard before echoed.
'Noah...'
Noah ended up bursting into laughter at the sound of his name being called in a clear voice.
"You're crazy. Your desires have built up. What the heck..."
He bent his sturdy back and tried to suppress the emotions that were not subsiding.
Her voice, as clear as a grain of sand, never once trembled, and she never dared to speak his name. No, she couldn't.
The word that voice contained was not 'Noah'...
'Your Highness.'
He had never met those dark eyes, clouded with passion, nor had those slender arms ever wrapped around his neck.
It's all just an illusion created by Noah Astrid.
“I feel sick since this morning.”
Noah scoffed at himself and looked at the silver flashlight on the nightstand. It had worked fine for a while, but it finally broke yesterday.
Olivia.
It was a name he thought he would forget in a month, but it just wouldn't leave his mind.
Is that all?
It's not even puberty, so it makes no sense to dream like that now.
Noah clicked his tongue in annoyance and, to distract himself, roughly opened the newspaper on the nightstand.
Noah's eyes, which had been scanning the newspaper since it began with an article about the fallen Polya dynasty, were fixed on one spot.
[Olivia Liberty appointed as the first female professor.]
This is the name again.
Noah's crumpled gaze slid down to the black-and-white photo beneath the title.
An elegant woman wearing a shirt and a flared skirt was smiling brightly at the front.
Just like in the newspaper where he first saw her two years ago.
About two years ago.
Heraldton, the capital of the Herodian kingdom, is a grand mansion located on the Upper River, a land area renowned for its high land prices.
Noah, who had finally managed to attend the last event yesterday and returned home around midnight, woke up early in the morning.
“Sigh... Shit.”
He's tired, but he feels terrible since morning.
How could he possibly feel good when the results of yesterday's event hell were about to be thrust upon him?
Noah turned his gaze and looked at the side table.
Exactly that one.
Today's morning paper.
Noah quickly reached out and grabbed the newspaper, starting from the front page.
He never wanted his face to be on the front page as much as he did today, but life is never that easy.
The moment he saw his uncle's face, as big as a door, Noah squeezed his eyes shut and let out a series of harsh curses.
“Oh, shit. This is fucking bullshit!”
Noah jumped up from his seat and threw away the newspaper with his uncle's hateful face in his hands, his hands stained with irritation.
With this, all the efforts he had made yesterday went down the drain.
Although he tried to cover up by attending as many as seven events, he could not prevent his uncle's face from taking up the front page.
“Why are you telling me to clean up my uncle’s shit!!”
The King will be furious again today and summon him.
The mere thought of it made Noah furious, so he got up, grabbed a cigarette, and went out onto the balcony. Just as he was about to light one, the mansion's head maid, Mrs. Betty, entered the room, pushing a tray.
Noah leaned against the balcony railing and looked up at the sky.
“Thank you. I’ll leave it there.”
The Prince seemed quite displeased.
Mrs. Betty quickly set the food on the table and glanced at the Prince.
The smooth facial lines and harmoniously positioned facial features, as if delicately sculpted by a craftsman, were so wonderful that even a fleeting glance was enough to be awe-inspiring.
Although he was tall and had a sturdy physique, he had a delicate and graceful air about him, perhaps because of his beautiful face or his elegant body movements.
Since Noah was generally polite and respectful to those below him, it was not uncomfortable to serve him.
However, Prince Noah never had any emotional interactions with his servants, and if a servant dared to cross that line, he was mercilessly fired.
Mrs. Betty poured freshly brewed tea into a cup and turned around quickly.
After confirming that she had left, Noah picked up the newspaper he had thrown on the bed and sat down in front of the steaming food.
Noah, sipping hot black tea in the middle of summer, looked at his uncle's photo with cold eyes and turned a few pages of the newspaper.
Despite participating in as many as seven events, there was disappointingly little mention of him.
“All that hard work was in vain.”
Noah, who was about to close the newspaper while muttering bitterly, stopped for a moment when he noticed something.
Olivia Liberty was selected as Herrington College's top graduating student and even received an invitation from First Lady Pulder.
Noah's gaze slid down from the title.
In the small photo, about the size of a palm, a woman wearing a neat shirt and a flared skirt was standing next to his aunt, Professor Marguerite, smiling.
The face that smiled shyly was quite pretty.
“Herringington College’s top graduate... Olivia Liberty.”
As Noah rolled Olivia's name around in his mouth, he heard a rushing sound. Noah's brow, which had briefly softened, furrowed again.
The door opened with a quick knock, enough to set off a neurosis, and Secretary Meson barged in.
Before he could even open his mouth, Noah stood up, putting the newspaper down on the table.
“10 minutes.”
Meson closed the door behind him as if it wasn't worth opening his mouth, and Noah pulled the rope.
After all, the completion of fashion is the face and the body.
How can that perfect look be achieved in just ten minutes?
Noah, dressed in a white naval officer's uniform, sat neatly inside the carriage, checking documents. His honey-blonde hair, polished with pomade, shimmered in the sunlight streaming through the carriage window.
Meson, who had lowered his gaze because his eyes were dazzled, watched Noah sign in flowing handwriting.
Even signing is elegant. If he took a picture of this and sold it, he would make quite a bit of money. Oh, of course, he died at the hands of His Highness the Prince before that.
Noah felt his gaze and opened his eyes to look at him.
"Why."
A fragile and delicate atmosphere strangely permeated the perfectly uncluttered attitude.
Meson shook his head quickly.
“Are you done?”
Noah put the fountain pen in his jacket pocket and handed the documents to Meson.
"I heard Wilhelm is opening a branch in the capital. We'll increase our investment."
“20%.”
"Yes, I understand. And there are three events you'll be attending today: one at 4 p.m., one at 5:30 p.m., and one at 7 p.m."
Noah's curse was heard, but Meson pretended not to hear and continued speaking.
“You will be going straight from the palace to the Naval Residence, so I will come to pick you up at the residence by 3:30 PM.”
“...You don’t have to come. Just don’t come.”
“That can’t be.”
Meson shrugged, and Noah remained silent, staring out the window with a weary look.
Three cases today, too.
Unless he can somehow divert the media's attention and appease the King, the merciless hell of the event will continue tomorrow and the day after.
As the golden bars of Herod's palace came into view in the distance, Noah asked Meson.
“Do you know Olivia Liberty?”
Meson, who had been looking at the newspaper, raised his head.
"I know. Who in Herod doesn't know that woman? Isn't she provocative?"
"You're reading Olivia's article," Meson said, pointing to her photo. Noah laughed at him, as if he were dumbfounded.
“Are you offended by that picture? Isn’t that a problem?”
“Youngest student from the Herod Commons, first female student, and top graduate of Herrington College!”
Meson folded his fingers and spoke passionately.
"This alone is enough to make me happy, but look at this face! Honestly, would news of a college student from across the ocean, from Pulder, even make it into Herod's newspaper? Why do you think it did? Even His Highness the Prince, who attended seven events yesterday, wasn't even included!"
“...”
Meson, who had been proudly raising seven fingers, quickly closed his eyes and apologized to the feast of curses conveyed through his eyes.
"Sorry."
“So, what are you trying to say?”
The voice he spoke in was so cold it was almost unbearable. Meson muttered, watching his expression.
"Anyway, she's popular, Olivia Liberty. Everyone knows her. In a good way, of course. Here, Princess Marguerite looks great in the picture, too."
Maison muttered, pointing at Princess Marguerite in embarrassment.
At that moment, the carriage carrying them passed through the golden gate of the palace.
Noah is already suffocating. Damn it. Why am I being called in to handle this situation? The more he thinks about it, the angrier he gets.
It's all just an illusion created by Noah Astrid.
“I feel sick since this morning.”
Noah scoffed at himself and looked at the silver flashlight on the nightstand. It had worked fine for a while, but it finally broke yesterday.
Olivia.
It was a name he thought he would forget in a month, but it just wouldn't leave his mind.
Is that all?
It's not even puberty, so it makes no sense to dream like that now.
Noah clicked his tongue in annoyance and, to distract himself, roughly opened the newspaper on the nightstand.
Noah's eyes, which had been scanning the newspaper since it began with an article about the fallen Polya dynasty, were fixed on one spot.
[Olivia Liberty appointed as the first female professor.]
This is the name again.
Noah's crumpled gaze slid down to the black-and-white photo beneath the title.
An elegant woman wearing a shirt and a flared skirt was smiling brightly at the front.
Just like in the newspaper where he first saw her two years ago.
***
About two years ago.
Heraldton, the capital of the Herodian kingdom, is a grand mansion located on the Upper River, a land area renowned for its high land prices.
Noah, who had finally managed to attend the last event yesterday and returned home around midnight, woke up early in the morning.
“Sigh... Shit.”
He's tired, but he feels terrible since morning.
How could he possibly feel good when the results of yesterday's event hell were about to be thrust upon him?
Noah turned his gaze and looked at the side table.
Exactly that one.
Today's morning paper.
Noah quickly reached out and grabbed the newspaper, starting from the front page.
He never wanted his face to be on the front page as much as he did today, but life is never that easy.
The moment he saw his uncle's face, as big as a door, Noah squeezed his eyes shut and let out a series of harsh curses.
“Oh, shit. This is fucking bullshit!”
Noah jumped up from his seat and threw away the newspaper with his uncle's hateful face in his hands, his hands stained with irritation.
With this, all the efforts he had made yesterday went down the drain.
Although he tried to cover up by attending as many as seven events, he could not prevent his uncle's face from taking up the front page.
“Why are you telling me to clean up my uncle’s shit!!”
The King will be furious again today and summon him.
The mere thought of it made Noah furious, so he got up, grabbed a cigarette, and went out onto the balcony. Just as he was about to light one, the mansion's head maid, Mrs. Betty, entered the room, pushing a tray.
Noah leaned against the balcony railing and looked up at the sky.
“Thank you. I’ll leave it there.”
The Prince seemed quite displeased.
Mrs. Betty quickly set the food on the table and glanced at the Prince.
The smooth facial lines and harmoniously positioned facial features, as if delicately sculpted by a craftsman, were so wonderful that even a fleeting glance was enough to be awe-inspiring.
Although he was tall and had a sturdy physique, he had a delicate and graceful air about him, perhaps because of his beautiful face or his elegant body movements.
Since Noah was generally polite and respectful to those below him, it was not uncomfortable to serve him.
However, Prince Noah never had any emotional interactions with his servants, and if a servant dared to cross that line, he was mercilessly fired.
Mrs. Betty poured freshly brewed tea into a cup and turned around quickly.
After confirming that she had left, Noah picked up the newspaper he had thrown on the bed and sat down in front of the steaming food.
Noah, sipping hot black tea in the middle of summer, looked at his uncle's photo with cold eyes and turned a few pages of the newspaper.
Despite participating in as many as seven events, there was disappointingly little mention of him.
“All that hard work was in vain.”
Noah, who was about to close the newspaper while muttering bitterly, stopped for a moment when he noticed something.
Olivia Liberty was selected as Herrington College's top graduating student and even received an invitation from First Lady Pulder.
Noah's gaze slid down from the title.
In the small photo, about the size of a palm, a woman wearing a neat shirt and a flared skirt was standing next to his aunt, Professor Marguerite, smiling.
The face that smiled shyly was quite pretty.
“Herringington College’s top graduate... Olivia Liberty.”
As Noah rolled Olivia's name around in his mouth, he heard a rushing sound. Noah's brow, which had briefly softened, furrowed again.
The door opened with a quick knock, enough to set off a neurosis, and Secretary Meson barged in.
Before he could even open his mouth, Noah stood up, putting the newspaper down on the table.
“10 minutes.”
Meson closed the door behind him as if it wasn't worth opening his mouth, and Noah pulled the rope.
***
After all, the completion of fashion is the face and the body.
How can that perfect look be achieved in just ten minutes?
Noah, dressed in a white naval officer's uniform, sat neatly inside the carriage, checking documents. His honey-blonde hair, polished with pomade, shimmered in the sunlight streaming through the carriage window.
Meson, who had lowered his gaze because his eyes were dazzled, watched Noah sign in flowing handwriting.
Even signing is elegant. If he took a picture of this and sold it, he would make quite a bit of money. Oh, of course, he died at the hands of His Highness the Prince before that.
Noah felt his gaze and opened his eyes to look at him.
"Why."
A fragile and delicate atmosphere strangely permeated the perfectly uncluttered attitude.
Meson shook his head quickly.
“Are you done?”
Noah put the fountain pen in his jacket pocket and handed the documents to Meson.
"I heard Wilhelm is opening a branch in the capital. We'll increase our investment."
“20%.”
"Yes, I understand. And there are three events you'll be attending today: one at 4 p.m., one at 5:30 p.m., and one at 7 p.m."
Noah's curse was heard, but Meson pretended not to hear and continued speaking.
“You will be going straight from the palace to the Naval Residence, so I will come to pick you up at the residence by 3:30 PM.”
“...You don’t have to come. Just don’t come.”
“That can’t be.”
Meson shrugged, and Noah remained silent, staring out the window with a weary look.
Three cases today, too.
Unless he can somehow divert the media's attention and appease the King, the merciless hell of the event will continue tomorrow and the day after.
As the golden bars of Herod's palace came into view in the distance, Noah asked Meson.
“Do you know Olivia Liberty?”
Meson, who had been looking at the newspaper, raised his head.
"I know. Who in Herod doesn't know that woman? Isn't she provocative?"
"You're reading Olivia's article," Meson said, pointing to her photo. Noah laughed at him, as if he were dumbfounded.
“Are you offended by that picture? Isn’t that a problem?”
“Youngest student from the Herod Commons, first female student, and top graduate of Herrington College!”
Meson folded his fingers and spoke passionately.
"This alone is enough to make me happy, but look at this face! Honestly, would news of a college student from across the ocean, from Pulder, even make it into Herod's newspaper? Why do you think it did? Even His Highness the Prince, who attended seven events yesterday, wasn't even included!"
“...”
Meson, who had been proudly raising seven fingers, quickly closed his eyes and apologized to the feast of curses conveyed through his eyes.
"Sorry."
“So, what are you trying to say?”
The voice he spoke in was so cold it was almost unbearable. Meson muttered, watching his expression.
"Anyway, she's popular, Olivia Liberty. Everyone knows her. In a good way, of course. Here, Princess Marguerite looks great in the picture, too."
Maison muttered, pointing at Princess Marguerite in embarrassment.
At that moment, the carriage carrying them passed through the golden gate of the palace.
Noah is already suffocating. Damn it. Why am I being called in to handle this situation? The more he thinks about it, the angrier he gets.
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