It has been about a week since the start of the second semester of the second year at Luminor Academy.

To cut to the chase, despite the almost ten days that passed during the break, I haven't been able to gather any information regarding Ethan's "hidden fiancée."

The first possibility—where someone finds their own partner and marries when the time comes—was highly unlikely. Based on what I’ve observed of Ethan so far, he didn’t seem to be involved in any romantic endeavors. In fact, I hadn’t even seen him actively going out to meet anyone.

In general, he was focused on his studies within the academy. Occasionally, he would have conversations with a few nobles (especially professors) or influential figures, but I was always there with him, so those meetings were far from romantic in nature.

“There’s a chance you might’ve met my daughter, who is in the Luminor Academy's swordsmanship club. She’s quite famous, thanks to her looks, even though she’s in a different year.”

“Hm, I’m not sure. Perhaps it’s because I already have a fiancée, but I don’t tend to take much interest in the appearance of other women.”

“Ahem, is that so? Well, there’s nothing to be done about that, then.”

Even when someone tried to casually probe about his supposed fiancée, Ethan would deflect with noncommittal answers like that.

If Ethan were truly in a fake engagement, it made no sense for him to avoid all such interactions. Normally, someone in a fake engagement would still pursue secret relationships with members of powerful families, as is customary among the nobles of this world.

Thus, the second possibility remained: he had already been engaged, but it couldn’t be publicly disclosed.

In most cases, this meant that Ethan’s partner was either a member of the royal family or a foreign royal.

The engagement probably happened a long time ago, before Ethan was cursed and fell into his deep sleep—likely over ten years ago.

'The most probable candidates are… about three people, I guess?'

If it were the royal family, then the second princess, Lushetia, or the fourth princess, Mezlen. If it were foreign royalty, then Princess Rainy of the Nostarina Kingdom.

Of course, all three were well beyond my reach. Not to mention, none of them were currently at Luminor Academy.

Mezlen and Rainy were too young, and Lushetia was simply too dim-witted to have the skills necessary to enroll in the academy.

In fact, the second princess, Lushetia, wasn’t just foolish—she wasn’t even interested in academics, which was a bigger factor. Even if she were that dim, her royal status would have guaranteed her enrollment.

However, Lushetia refused to enroll in Luminor Academy, claiming she was too busy enjoying her life.

'That’s one of the reasons Seraphin despises her.'

In the original story, the only true siblings Seraphin had in the royal family were Lushetia and Antonio.

Above her was a foolish older sister who indulged in luxury, and below her, a younger brother who had lost all will and was disillusioned with life. It was no wonder Seraphin, with no one to rely on, became obsessed with the Hero in the original story.

While Antonio had seemingly come to his senses in this world, that didn’t mean Seraphin’s hatred for Lushetia had lessened.

‘Out of the other two, Lushetia is definitely a no-go.’

If Lushetia truly were Ethan’s fiancée in the original story, the downfall of the Blackwood family would be guaranteed. She was a vile villain who caused stress every time she appeared at Luminor Academy.

Well, there wasn’t much I could do about it. Prying into the affairs of royalty or foreign royals would likely lead to me being discreetly eliminated.

And so, my search for Ethan’s hidden fiancée ended here. As frustrating as it was, I wasn’t willing to risk my life investigating further.

Even if I was acting as Ethan’s temporary fiancée, I couldn’t go around pretending I was the future Duchess. I was merely an employee of the Blackwood family, and Ethan’s personal maid, after all.

‘If only the original story had revealed who Ethan’s fiancée was, it wouldn’t be so frustrating.’

The reason Ethan’s fiancée wasn’t mentioned in the original was simple—Ethan’s death (or disappearance) in the story. Ethan left the plot just before he entered his third year at Luminor Academy.

Whoever his fiancée was must have been thrilled. In the original story, Ethan wasn’t as tall as he was now and had gained an excessive amount of weight, becoming a hideous figure. His fiancée was likely eagerly anticipating the dissolution of their engagement.

And even after breaking off the engagement, there was no way the other party would go around boasting about it, so it made sense that even I, who played through the original story 24.5 times, didn’t know who she was.

‘I mean, there’s no way I’m one of the candidates.’

The only son of the Duke of Blackwood marrying the daughter of a borderland semi-baron whose status was ambiguous? And if they looked into it further, they’d find out I was originally a commoner.

Ethan might take such a risk—but it was highly unlikely, and Lord Harald definitely wouldn’t approve.

‘Well, it’s just a fleeting dream anyway.’

There were only two and a half years left until graduation from the academy.

That’s the amount of time Ethan and I had left together.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

As with most academy games, Luminor Academy also had a "student dining hall."

It wasn’t like the cafeteria from my original world, where food was prepared in large quantities and served. Instead, it was more like a buffet with several dishes lined up on plates, and students took what they wanted.

The food was free—technically, it was included in the academy’s exorbitant tuition fees, so not eating would be a waste. Plus, the quality of the meals wasn’t bad at all.

Ethan, Agnes, and I regularly used the student dining hall.

Agnes and I didn’t have much financial leeway, so we had no choice. As for Ethan, he was a naturally frugal person who avoided unnecessary spending.

He would spend when necessary but saw no point in wasting money, especially in the overpriced dining options on Knowledge Island.

Thus, it became our daily routine to have lunch in the student dining hall attached to the student union. Occasionally, we’d sit with others like the August siblings, Seraphin, or Cerista.

During one such ordinary day, Agnes suddenly commented on my relationship with Ethan.

“Aren’t you two spending too much time together lately?”

“I’m not sure what you mean, Miss Agnes.”

“Is there any reason why a personal maid can’t frequently accompany her master?”

“That’s not what I mean. I’m talking about how physically close you two are.”

During lunchtime, Agnes, sitting across from Ethan and me, sighed and gestured towards us with her knife.

“You don’t need to stick so closely. You’ve been like that ever since the semester started.”

“Hmm?”

“What?”

“Is sticking to each other during meals really necessary? It’s more like showing off. Or are you trying to tell me to go away because I’m interrupting your date?”

“I’ve never once considered you an inconvenience, Miss Agnes.”

“There’s nothing wrong with having more people at the table. Here, Lilith. Say ‘Ah.’”

“Ah… Mmm, it’s delicious, Master Ethan.”

“Ugh, what a show.”

Agnes’ dry remark came after she saw me eat a piece of steak that Ethan fed me with his fork.

To be honest, it wasn’t that I didn’t feel any embarrassment. Sticking so closely to Ethan and feeding each other every other time would be strange if it didn’t embarrass me at all.

But really, embarrassment wasn’t that big of a deal.

If I only had two and a half years left at the academy, I figured I might as well enjoy things while I could. I didn’t want to look back later and regret not having done certain things.

It was a bit unfortunate that the things I wanted to do with a boyfriend in my previous life, I was now doing as a girl in this one, but it was still better than not doing them at all.

“Master Ethan, say ‘Ah.’”

“Ah~.”

“…Sigh. If only Seraphin wasn’t so busy, I could just have meals with her.”

“That’s why I suggested you join the student council. There must be at least two open spots now that Master Ethan and I have left.”

“I don’t have time for that. I’m already busy enough with my research.”

Well, it made sense that Agnes was busy. She was dedicated to her studies and personal research on fire magic.

In the end, Agnes had no one else to eat with but me. And I would spend the next two and a half years with Ethan as much as possible.

If I was going to let him go without any regrets, I needed to make sure I enjoyed our time together now.

“Won’t Prince Antonio enroll next year? You won’t have to witness us being so close once he’s here, so I ask for your patience for just one semester.”

“…What are you talking about? He’s just an acquaintance.”

“Even if he’s just an acquaintance, there’s no harm in having meals together, right? Do you believe meals should only be shared with family, friends, or romantic partners?”

“…I’ve lost my appetite. I’m leaving.”

“All right. We’ll stop, so please take your seat. You too, Master Ethan.”

“Ah, okay.”

“…”

Seeing me and Ethan immediately stop and sit properly, Agnes gave us an exasperated look but eventually returned to her seat and continued eating.

As I watched Agnes quietly consume more carrot-based dishes, perhaps due to my previous advice during our camping trip, I couldn’t help but smile.

Just then, a commotion erupted from one corner of the dining hall, drawing the attention of the three of us.