Strands of silver moonlight slipped through the gaps in the clouds, casting a quiet glow over the world below.
They settled upon the basin of a secluded waterfall in Mount Hua Sect, where the water flowed endlessly, untouched by the passage of ti.
And there, in the basin, atop a small frozen platform, lay two figures.
A boy in swim trunks, pinned down by a girl who was kissing him.
The kiss was brief—just a mont, a brush of warmth amidst the cold night air—but when they pulled apart, both were left breathing hard, the space between them charged with sothing neither quite knew how to handle.
Then—
SPLASH!
The ice beneath them shattered, sending both of them plunging into the water.
"Sera!" Arthur sputtered as he surfaced, running a hand through his soaked hair. But Seraphina was already gone, disappearing beneath the water like a phantom.
"Talk tomorrow!" her voice rang out from the other end of the basin before she swam away, faster than seed reasonable.
Arthur exhaled, watching her retreat before sighing and making his way out of the water.
'What… did I just do?'
Seraphina floated beneath the surface, her silver hair swirling around her like a halo as bubbles drifted up toward the moonlit sky.
Her fingers touched her lips.
Soft.
She had kissed Arthur.
She had kissed Arthur.
She had kissed Arthur.
A tremor of realization rippled through her, unspooling her normally composed thoughts into sothing completely unruly.
How…
Why…
Who…
Her mind refused to function properly.
It had started as nothing more than curiosity.
Entertainnt.
At first, it had been amusing—watching Rachel and Cecilia, two fellow princesses, completely lose their minds over Arthur, fighting over him like he was so rare treasure.
She had found it… fascinating.
But then, sohow, sowhere along the way, she had fallen in love with him, too.
Seraphina groaned, squeezing her eyes shut as if that would undo reality.
This was not how things were supposed to go.
And yet—
She rembered sothing.
A book.
A particular book she had purchased, its title now etched into her mind with an almost ridiculous clarity.
101 Ways to Seduce a Man.
One of the chapters had been very specific.
"Invite him to swim in private. Wear sothing that will attract his attention."
Seraphina had read it. Absorbed it. And, rembering how Arthur had looked at her before, she had tested it.
And…
It had worked.
Too well.
Her thoughts spiraled back to that mont—the way his gaze had lingered, the subtle heat in his expression.
Seraphina glanced down at herself.
Her face burned, despite the freezing temperature.
With a sharp inhale, she dunked her head underwater, letting the cold shock her system back to normal.
…It didn't help.
"...I shouldn't lose," Seraphina muttered to herself as she stood alone beneath the stars.
Rachel had her charm—an endlessly energetic, kind, cheerleader-like presence that made people feel warm just by being near her. Cecilia had her dark charm—seductive, teasing, confident in a way that made it impossible to ignore her. And then there was Rose, who was like flowing water—graceful, adaptable, effortlessly complenting Arthur's personality in a way that felt natural.
Seraphina couldn't lose to them.
Not because of pride. Not because of competition.
But because, for the first ti in her life, she had found soone precious to her—soone who ant sothing beyond obligation, beyond duty.
Soone she wanted.
"I'll… be more provocative," she declared, clenching her fists in newfound determination.
Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan.
And, much to her frustration, the problem wasn't Arthur.
It was her.
The next day, when she saw him approaching in the training grounds, her body reacted before her mind did.
Her face flushed instantly. And before she could stop herself—
She turned on her heel and walked in the opposite direction.
No. Not walked. Fled.
'What the hell am I doing?!' she scread internally, trying to force herself to stop. 'Focus, Seraphina!'
That did absolutely nothing.
By the ti the sun had set, she realized—with dawning horror—that she had successfully avoided Arthur for the entire day.
She had not spoken to him once.
She sat on the stone steps outside her living quarters, staring up at the night sky in a daze.
"...I didn't talk to Arthur even once," she muttered, as if saying it aloud would sohow make it less pathetic.
The realization sank in, heavy and stupid.
She pursed her lips.
'I wish I could be as shaless as Cecilia,' she thought bitterly.
Cecilia had kissed Arthur and acted like it was just another Tuesday.
Seraphina kissed Arthur and proceeded to behave like a malfunctioning automaton, barely capable of eye contact.
She exhaled sharply, covering her face with her hands.
This was not how this was supposed to go.
"Well, well," a familiar feminine voice drawled. "Looks like the little girl has finally grown up. Boy trouble?"
Seraphina jumped slightly before turning her head toward the speaker.
"Master i!" she greeted, straightening instinctively.
Master i, a mid-Immortal-ranker of Mount Hua Sect, stood there with an amused smirk. In her fifties but looking nowhere near it, i had long black hair, sharp dark eyes, and the kind of effortless grace that made her presence impossible to ignore. She was one of the few people Seraphina was truly close to—soone who had guided her through childhood and into the warrior she was now.
"What is it?" i said, dropping down to sit beside her on the steps. "Mind telling this old hag?"
Seraphina hesitated, fingers fidgeting against the fabric of her robe.
i's lips quirked. "My, my," she chuckled. "It really is boy trouble."
Seraphina twitched slightly.
"It must be that boy you brought here again," i continued, a knowing glint in her eye. "Arthur Nightingale, isn't it? The one who beat Lucifer Windward."
Of course i would put the pieces together that fast.
As one of the Masters of Mount Hua Sect, she was well aware of the Prophecy—and the fact that Lucifer Windward was widely believed to be the Second Hero. Which ant she also knew about the boy who, at the sa age as Lucifer, had beaten him in a fair fight—an event that had sent waves of confusion through every powerful figure who had ever taken the Prophecy seriously.
Seraphina swallowed, her cheeks warming.
"...Yes," she admitted quietly.
i humd. "He is a cute one," she mused, tilting her head. "I can see why you fell for him. So—what's the problem?"
Seraphina exhaled sharply.
"I… kissed him," she confessed.
There was a beat of silence.
And then—
"Wow!" i said, her voice genuinely shocked. "I didn't know you were so brave!"
"But," Seraphina muttered, shifting slightly where she sat. "It happened a bit weirdly. And… there are also these three girls…"
She exhaled and, after a brief mont of hesitation, laid everything out before Master i. The whole ss. The kiss. The way she had imdiately proceeded to avoid him like a coward. The other girls—Rachel, Cecilia, Rose—each of them undeniably drawn to Arthur in their own way.
i listened patiently, nodding along, occasionally humming in thought.
Then, after a long pause, she gave her verdict.
"So he's trash," i declared.
Seraphina jerked upright. "Master i!"
"What?" i shrugged, entirely unbothered. "He's playing with the hearts of multiple young girls at the sa ti. That is, by definition, trash behavior, young lady."
Seraphina opened her mouth. Closed it. Frowned.
"But…" she started hesitantly. "I like him."
i nodded sagely. "Ah. So he's incredible trash."
Seraphina twitched.
i ticked off on her fingers. "The future Saintess, the Archwitch, the heir to Vakrt, and now you—the girl who never cared about any boy before this. He managed to capture the hearts of three princesses and a count's daughter in under a year." She let out a low whistle. "That's a level of efficiency I can almost respect."
"Don't call him trash," Seraphina muttered, her voice quieter now.
i held up her hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. I won't."
She tilted her head slightly, watching Seraphina carefully. "But now you're afraid you'll lose him to the others?"
Seraphina pursed her lips.
She hated how accurate that was.
"I wouldn't worry about that if I were you," i said casually, stretching her legs out in front of her.
Seraphina frowned. "Why not?"
i gave her a knowing look. "Because if he's not trash, then what you think will happen… won't happen."
Seraphina narrowed her eyes. "And if I am wrong?"
"Then, my dear," i said, sighing dramatically, "you should be very worried."
Seraphina huffed. "He's not trash."
"Then don't worry," i shrugged, completely unbothered. "Just because he likes multiple girls doesn't an he values any of you less. From what I've seen, he seems to like all four of you equally, so I wouldn't waste ti panicking over being abandoned."
Seraphina was quiet for a mont, processing that.
"So… I was worried for nothing," she muttered finally, exhaling.
"Yep!" i said cheerfully. Then, after a beat, she added, "And I have to say, that was an incredibly cute look on our Ice Princess."
Seraphina twitched.
But before she could react, i continued, tone turning just a shade more thoughtful.
"But there is sothing else."
Seraphina looked at her warily. "What is it?"
i smirked. "Even if he does love you all equally, you do realize that not all of you can be first."
Seraphina froze. "First?"
i chuckled. "Oh, Sera. You know what I an."
The implications hit Seraphina all at once.
First. The first one to be with him. The first one to be his wife.
Official order mattered in these things.
Typically, status determined everything—but her status was equal to both Cecilia Slatemark and Rachel Creighton, aning they could contend for that position just as much as she could.
i turned to gauge her reaction—expecting an indignant protest, a logical counter, maybe even a rare mont of Seraphina's competitive streak flaring to life.
Instead—
Seraphina sat there, face completely red, fingers clenching her robe.
"D-doing that with Arthur," she mumbled under her breath.
i blinked.
Then grinned.
"Oh my gods, you got cute again!" she laughed, throwing her head back. "I really should thank him for that."
Seraphina glared at her, though the effect was sowhat ruined by the fact that she still looked thoroughly flustered.
i stood up, stretching lazily. "Talk to him, Seraphina," she advised, voice softer this ti. "Don't be embarrassed about your feelings."
And with that, she walked away, leaving Seraphina alone under the stars—still blushing, still thinking about firsts, and absolutely, completely helpless against her own traitorous thoughts.
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