Chapter 1
How to End a One-Sided Love
A handsome young man sitting by the window turned the pages of a book.
As the pages flipped with a soft rustling sound, his beautiful lips—tinged with a faint red—moved slightly.
Sunlight passing through the window made his long silver hair shimmer.
Beyond his round glasses, jewel-like eyes that sparkled like stars in the sky captured my gaze.
It was a breathtaking sight.
I stood there, completely transfixed, watching him.
For seventeen years of my life, I had never believed in love at first sight. I had never thought it possible to give my heart so easily to someone whose personality or background I didn’t even know.
But that was all in the past. More precisely, that was how I felt before I met Senior Noah.
I still remember that day vividly. It was the seventh day after I entered the academy.
Back then, I was just an ordinary freshman struggling to adapt to an unfamiliar environment and a grueling schedule, without even the time to hope for any special encounters.
I had thought those days would continue on like that indefinitely.
That day as well, during a break, I stopped by the library and was carefully returning a book to its original place. If it was misplaced, the strict librarian would surely get annoyed.
Even the sound of footsteps was elegant. Was this what my tutor meant by a noble’s walk?
Those graceful footsteps stopped right beside me.
Without thinking, I turned my head to the side—and my breath caught.
My mouth fell open as if something had pulled it from below.
The face of the male student standing beside me was so radiant that it stunned me.
Only because of his tall height and solid build could I barely accept that he wasn’t a woman. His face was that beautiful.
A man…? No, a person? Or a statue that escaped from a temple? What kind of statue is painted like that?
His long silver hair shimmered so clearly it looked like diamonds, and his golden eyes were as deep as a lake. His nose was straight and refined, more perfect than any plaster bust in an art room, and his skin was as pure as freshly fallen white snow.
Wow… so beautiful…
He was standing by a sunlit window, and his pale silver hair swayed in the light like mist, strand by strand.
In other words, it was more than enough to shake the heart of an unsuspecting newcomer from the countryside.
Looking down, I noticed a blue name tag indicating he was a second-year student, with his name embroidered in white thread.
Noas Uriel.
He was the one already renowned as a magical genius even before entering the academy.
Now that I think about it, when I came to take the entrance exam, I once saw the rankings posted in the academy hallway. That name written next to the number one.
So that’s him. That person was that beautiful.
Without even realizing how rude I was being, I stood there, completely absorbed, taking in his face to my heart’s content.
I didn’t even move aside as he passed by me, leaning slightly to squeeze past the bookshelf.
I even tried to keep his figure in view until the very moment he walked away after borrowing his book.
The moment his silver hair swayed and disappeared from sight, I realized my heart had been beating abnormally fast all along.
That was the historic day my longest one-sided love in life began.
I had now been in a one-sided love for two years.
Noas Uriel. A skilled mage and my senior by one year.
It wasn’t a love that would go down in history, but it was quite sincere, and I had grown accustomed to liking him almost out of habit.
“If that’s the case, just confess already.”
Ah, there it is again. If I had the courage for that, I would’ve done it long ago—why would I still be like this?
At Dora’s exasperated remark, I buried my face in both hands and let out a deep sigh.
“How am I supposed to confess…?”
I was just the daughter of a minor noble family. He was the son of a high-ranking marquis house. That wasn’t a gap that could be bridged just because one happened to be born with magical talent.
“That’s how everyone is. People confess and get rejected all the time.”
Dora said with a snort.
Easy for her to say. She was the one who cried and collapsed onto her dorm bed just a month ago after being rejected by a classmate.
“I don’t want to get rejected…”
With a pitiful expression, I looked back out the classroom window.
The handsome silver-haired young man was sitting in his seat, reading a book.
A girl with lovely pink hair approached him with a gentle smile.
“Noah, you’re early.”
As she called his name, Senior Noah lifted his head.
At the same time, I felt my shoulders shrink involuntarily.
“That’s Senior Flora.”
Dora whispered into my ear.
Flora Ivy. Noah’s childhood friend who had everything perfect—and also the reason I had been unable to confess for two years.
Birds of a feather flock together, and Senior Flora was just as extraordinary as Senior Noah.
Not only was she a divine ability user, but she was kind, beautiful, and intelligent—there was no need to list more. In short, she was perfect.
Soft, wavy pink hair. Sweet sky-blue eyes.
With someone like her beside him, would there even be any room for someone like me?
Feeling dissatisfied, I fiddled with my plain yellow hair and lowered my head.
Meanwhile, Senior Flora, who had been chatting warmly with Senior Noah, glanced briefly in our direction.
“Oh, Kate’s here.”
She smiled and waved toward us.
After sending Dora off, I forced a smile and opened the door to the clubroom.
“Hello, seniors.”
“Hello. You must’ve had a tough time preparing for exams. Did you manage to read the book well?”
Senior Flora laughed cheerfully and patted my back.
Instead of replying, I lifted the book and smiled.
“Hello.”
At Senior Noah’s late greeting, I hesitated slightly and bowed.
Letting out a barely audible sigh, I pulled out a chair and sat down, then subtly turned my head to glance at Senior Noah.
Seeing his cloud-like silver hair made my heart flutter again.
A junior in the same club, and in the same department. That’s all I was to him.
If he at least saw me as a diligent student who studied well, that would be enough.
No—if he was even aware that I existed, that alone would be enough.
If it weren’t for this club, we probably would never have exchanged a single word in our lives.
There must be dozens of girls like me in this academy.
It’s only because we’re in the same club that he acknowledges us at all; to him, all of us are probably the same.
Resting my chin on one hand, my hair slipped down and covered my eyes. I blew it away with a puff of breath.
“Alright, everyone!”
Senior Flora clapped the table with a thick book in her hands to gather everyone’s attention.
“Let’s share our impressions.”
I opened my book with a somewhat unenthusiastic motion.
In truth, the reason I had even joined this once-uninteresting reading club was because of him. Aside from Senior Flora, no one here had actually joined because they loved literature. It was a chain: Noah joined at Flora’s request, and I joined to see Noah.
“Kate, you go first.”
At Senior Flora’s prompt, I quickly focused my eyes on the book.
“Yes, ma’am.”
It was a classic novel written by an author with a difficult-to-pronounce name, bound in a black hardcover with a striking design.
It was already hard enough to find time or motivation to read during exam season, but I forced myself to read it to make a good impression on Senior Noah.
Holding the thick book in one hand, I glanced at Noah and began speaking.
“I felt that the portrayal of the protagonist’s love was a bit too shallow.”
“Oh, really?”
Senior Flora’s eyes sparkled, intrigued by the fresh perspective.
Encouraged, I continued. Even with preparation, speaking in front of seniors was always difficult.
“Liking someone means you can’t take your eyes off them, your gaze keeps drifting toward them… that sort of feeling.”
I started confidently, but gradually my voice weakened.
As I tried to finish, I suddenly felt a gaze on me. Looking up, I met a pair of golden eyes with an unreadable expression.
“…!”
I quickly lowered my head. Please, I hoped he hadn’t seen my expression.
He was probably just focusing on my presentation, but for a brief moment, it felt like my heart had dropped.
“That’s another way to look at it. Thank you for your thoughts, Kate.”
Senior Flora smiled kindly. Thankfully, she didn’t seem to have noticed anything.
Even as I felt the gold eyes behind the glasses still on me, I shut my eyes tightly and bit my lip until it almost hurt.
“Starting next week, we’ll be studying for exams, so there won’t be any club activities. Good luck on your tests, everyone!”
“Yes, good luck on your exams.”
Seeing Senior Flora off, I left the classroom hugging the thick book.
As I walked, I paused and looked back into the room.
Senior Noah, looking at Senior Flora, was smiling—an expression rarely seen. It was truly a rare sight.
What could they be talking about so happily?
“They look good together.”
I found myself thinking that without meaning to.
I knew my place. I had never expected this feeling to be returned. Still, it was impossible not to feel a hint of envy.
“If only I didn’t exist…”
Maybe I should just quit.
Muttering bitterly, I turned around.
For some reason, I seemed to be thinking about Senior Noah more than usual today.
My steps dragged as I walked, and my strength seemed to drain away.
My mood was nothing but gloomy.
“I’m here to return this book.”
“Write down the title and put it back in its place.”
At the librarian’s indifferent reply, while dusting a book, my already gloomy mood sank even lower.
“Sigh…”
How many times have I sighed today? My lifespan must be shrinking.
No, forget it. Exams are in two weeks—just focus on studying. In fact, this is good. Don’t think about Noah Senior. Stay sharp and study.
Clenching my fist in determination, I was about to leave the library when a certain book caught my eye.
“There’s no title?”
Frowning, I approached the bookshelf.
What kind of content is inside for the cover to be so flashy?
The academy library mostly had academic texts and literature, with only a rare popular novel—and those were usually always checked out. A book like this seemed out of place. Was it newly acquired?
“Excuse me, ma’am, I—”
I opened my mouth while holding the book, but the librarian seemed too busy wiping dust off an encyclopedia to notice.
In the end, I gave up calling her and sat down at a nearby desk.
I casually opened the book and began reading, then let out a small hum and raised my eyebrows.
“Oh.”
This is… quite risqué.
Why on earth is something like this in a school library?
Whistling softly, I turned the pages. Just flipping it open randomly revealed a scene of two people kissing—quite something.
Curious about how the two characters ended up doing something like that in a classroom, I flipped to the beginning of the novel.
As I quietly scanned the pages, my eyes suddenly stopped.
My expression gradually stiffened.
