Across the street from the gates of Cromwell University stood the Rose Pavilion Café.
As always, the place was packed with students from the university. Waiters moved elegantly through the crowd carrying trays, while the students inside either discussed their futures or flirted and joked with one another.
Near the windows, however, sat a young man and woman facing each other.
The girl wore the uniform of Cromwell University. The man opposite her, meanwhile, wore an exquisitely tailored tailcoat. Judging from the pure gold brooch pinned to his chest, engraved with a complicated family crest, he was clearly a noble, and likely from a family of considerable rank.
The girl, on the other hand, was probably a commoner. Although extremely beautiful, her attire was plain, and she bore none of the symbols that represented noble status.
After thanking the waiter who delivered her black tea, the girl looked toward the young man and said:
"Cote, I invited you here today mainly because I wanted to ask you something."
After elegantly taking a sip of his coffee, the man named Cote replied:
"My dear Natasha, even if you refuse to visit my estate or villa, we could at least have taken a private room directly. Sitting out here in the main hall is rather dull."
The girl sighed helplessly.
"Cote, I know you're interested in me, but I haven't decided to accept your pursuit yet. There's no way I can be alone with you. That would be unfair to my future husband."
Cote widened his eyes dramatically.
"If you don't intend to accept my pursuit, then why invite me here? Don't tell me you're trying to keep me hanging? Oh, my dear Natasha, my heart is shattered!"
The girl looked even more helpless.
"For that, I should apologize. But didn't I already say I'd pay for today's expenses as compensation? Besides... I truly don't know whether I should accept you or not. Cote, you understand, don't you? The gap between us is simply too large."
At the end of her sentence, her expression dimmed slightly.
Cote was a high-ranking noble.
She was only a commoner.
Though she was the daughter of a banker, a commoner was still a commoner.
Hearing her concern, Cote nodded softly before saying gently:
"Very well, let's not talk about that anymore. So then, Natasha, what exactly did you want to ask me?"
The girl bit her lip before leaning slightly forward and lowering her voice.
"Aire and I are close friends. At the tea party a few days ago, for some reason she drank an entire bottle of red wine by herself and got completely drunk. Then she started saying all sorts of strange things."
"She said that after the Holy Night Festival, the whole world would change. She also said that all her efforts over the years had become a joke. But whenever I asked her what exactly happened, she absolutely refused to explain."
"And recently, I've noticed that the students from the Noble Faculty have all been acting strangely too."
"You're the legitimate son of a high-ranking noble family, Cote. Can you tell me... what exactly is happening?"
Cote nodded thoughtfully.
"Your Flower Faculty's Miss Aire? The second daughter of a baronial house? Mm... reality has indeed been rather cruel to her."
Though Cote still hadn't answered directly, his words already confirmed the girl's suspicions.
Something major really was about to happen!
Thinking this, the girl hurriedly asked:
"Then what exactly is it?"
Yet Cote chose to avoid the question entirely. Instead, he smiled and said:
"I can't allow a lady to pay for me. Let's leave it at this for today, my dear Natasha."
As he spoke, he stood and called over a waiter, clearly intending to pay and leave.
But at that moment, after spotting something near the entrance, Cote suddenly whistled before sitting back down again. Crossing his legs, he looked toward the doorway with great interest.
"My heavens, Natasha, look over there. That Tulip from your Flower Faculty! Oh my, she actually brought a man to the Rose Pavilion!"
"Wait, that guy looks like a commoner? Natasha, I guarantee today's events are definitely making it into the school newspaper!"
The girl also turned to look before letting out a small gasp.
Because she had just seen Audrey Hepburn walking in with a thoroughly helpless-looking Mozo beside her. After saying something to the receptionist, the two headed straight toward the private rooms upstairs.
Along the way, they triggered waves of shocked murmurs and exclamations from the surrounding students.
The Tulip of the Flower Faculty, Audrey Hepburn, was one of the three most famous beauties in all of Cromwell University. She was admired by countless students and even nobles.
Yet there had never been any rumors surrounding her before.
And now, today, they were witnessing this Tulip openly bringing an unfamiliar man into the Rose Pavilion, the university's famous dating hotspot.
And not just that, they were heading directly for a quiet private room upstairs.
Almost immediately, students began asking around curiously if anyone knew who Mozo was.
Even after the pair disappeared upstairs, the discussions only grew louder and more animated.
Under the table, Cote's fingers unconsciously rubbed together.
Then, in a spot no one could see, a half-transparent little sprite quietly appeared beside him. But almost immediately afterward, it vanished again at Cote's slight shake of the head.
"Now that sort of behavior certainly doesn't qualify as noble."
After saying this, Cote stood once more and bowed toward the girl.
"Please forgive me, my dear Natasha. I must take my leave."
"As for your concerns, I can only say this: for both you and me, it won't be a bad thing. As for the specifics... please patiently await the arrival of the Holy Night Festival."
With that, Cote paid the bill and left the Rose Pavilion.
Leaving Natasha sitting there alone in confusion.
Not a bad thing? For both of us???
Meanwhile, after leaving the Rose Pavilion, Cote quickly ran into the apartment building across the street and rushed up to the third floor. There, he removed the brooch from his chest and casually tossed it onto a nearby cabinet.
Then, with practiced familiarity, he pulled out paper and pen from the cabinet.
With a rub of his fingers, the half-transparent little sprite from earlier appeared once more.
Excitedly, Cote pointed toward the second floor of the Rose Pavilion across the street.
"Go forth, my dear little Natasha! Right now, I'm not a noble. I'm the newspaper marshal capable of uncovering any gossip imaginable, the mysterious Partygoer!"
The little sprite gave Cote an exaggerated military salute before spinning excitedly in midair and charging toward the second floor of the Rose Pavilion.
Then, under Cote's eager gaze, it slammed headfirst into the window like a comedic cartoon character and painfully tumbled downward...
The corner of Cote's mouth twitched.
But moments later, the little sprite reappeared completely transparent and flew back up again.
This time, it passed straight through the tightly shut window as though it were intangible.
Then it promptly smashed face-first into an invisible wall of air.
With another exaggerated cry of pain, it dropped all the way to the first floor again.
Cote slowly lowered his pen and paper in disbelief before stroking his chin seriously.
"A barrier? A Beyonder? Who is it?"