The capital’s main library was a moo knowledge—a vast structure of white stone and imposing ns that held up high vaulted ceilings.

  Ihe space was illuminated by floating mana mps, casting a soft yet suffit light for schors to read with ease.

  Endless rows of dark wooden shelves lihe enormous hall, filled with a books aiculously anized scrolls.

  A gentle aroma of old paper and ink permeated the air, and the occasional sound of pages turning or respectful whispers broke the solemn tranquility of the pce.

  Non was seated at one of the long reading tables, surrounded by a mountain of books.

  His expression was tense and focused as he rapidly turhe pages of an old volume on advanced sorcery.

  o him, several books y open, each c its own subject: studies on mana cores, magical diseases, unon curses, theories on energy flows…

  Anything that might give him a clue about what was happening to Emily.

  Despite the restricted access to this library, Non had obtained a special permit thanks to his ret battlefield achievements.

  However, he was not alone.

  To his right, seated with elegand a steaming cup of tea oable, rincess Iris.

  Her dress was a sky-blue adorned with goldeails, her white ce gloves covered her delicate hands, and her long blonde hair erfectly arranged with a discreet tiara—ostentatious enough to clearly signal her status.

  Although the princess was known for her grad patie that moment she seemed on the verge of frustration.

  "Non…" Iris whispered for the third time, leaning slightly toward him.

  There was no response.

  Non remained immersed in his reading, pletely ign her. His eyes raced across the lines of text, his left hand taking precise notes while his furrowed brow betrayed his desperation to find something useful.

  Iris sighed in annoyand tried again, this time with a more insistent tone:

  "Non, you hear me?"

  Again, nothing.

  Several people in the library—from schors to other nobles—began to notice the se.

  Whispers started to spread through the room.

  It was an unusual sight: the nation’s princess being pletely ignored by a mere unknown noble, especially when she was making the effort to speak to him quietly.

  Iris’s jaw tightened. She gripped her cup of tea a bit harder befently setting it down and taking a deep breath.

  "Non!" Iris suddenly excimed, raising her voiough to turn several heads in her dire.

  The young man blinked, lifting his gaze from his book with evident irritation. His voice came out ft and direbsp;

  "What happened?"

  Iris crossed her arms and shot him a pierg look before sighing and straightening up, regaining her posure.

  Then, with a cough, she replied:

  "I wao know if you’d be ied in doing an interview. There are many people in the capital eager to hear your story and…"

  "No," Non replied immediately, smming a book shut with a sharp thud.

  Iris blinked, surprised at how quickly he refused.

  "Wait, at least hear me out…" she attempted to persuade him.

  "I'm busy," he replied bluntly, pig up another book and beginning to leaf through it without even looking at her.

  The princess pressed her lips together, clearly irritated by his indifferenbsp;

  However, instead of losing her patience again, she tried a different approabsp;

  "You could earn a lot of money and gain influence if you accepted. You could use it for whatever you wanted…"

  Non did not look up from his book as he responded:

  "I'm not ied."

  Iris clicked her tongue aed her elbows oable, interg her fingers as she stared at him.

  "Many people want to know about you. You ’t simply ighe impact you’ve made."

  This time, Non did raise his eyes.

  Their gazes met for a few seds before he replied with total indifferenbsp;

  "That doesn’t me."

  Iris felt a small pang in her chest.

  The ess with whion spoke—the way he didn’t even sider her words—was deeply frustrating.

  She had dealt with many arrogant nobles before, but Non wasn’t arrogant… he was just impossible to vince.

  The princess fell silent for a moment, unsure of what else to say. L her gaze slightly, her expression softened.

  In a calmer, almost mencholie, she murmured:

  "At least… will you e to my birthday party?"

  Her question hung in the air.

  The tone was notably sadder, and for the first time, Non looked at her with a bit more attentioiced how her hands tightened slightly in her p and how her eyes, usually full of fidenow revealed a hint of vulnerability.

  No out a sigh.

  Making a princess cry in public would be more troublesome than simply agreeing.

  "Yeah, I don’t mind doing something like that," Non finally responded.

  Iris looked up, surprised.

  Then, a small smile appeared on her lips, as if she weren’t sure whether to be happy or not.

  "Thank you very muon," she said softly, her tone ced with relief. Then, with more fidence, she added: "I promise to make it worth your while."

  Non merely nodded without muthusiasm and replied curtly:

  "Alright."

  The princess watched him for a few more seds, as if expeg something further from him, but notig that Non had already returned his attention to his books, she decided not to press the matter.

  With the elegance befitting royalty, she rose from her seat, smoothed her dress, and picked up her tea cup.

  Then, tilting her head slightly in a courteous manner, she said:

  "I won’t bother you any longer. Have a good day, Non."

  Non did not reply, and the princess didn’t wait for him to. With determieps, she walked away from the table, leaving behind the subtle st of her floral perfume.

  The whispers in the library grew louder as Iris exited the room.

  However, Non pletely ighem.

  For him, there were far more important matters to attend to.

  Non turned his attention back to the books in front of him.

  If there was a solution to what was happening to Emily, he would find it—no matter how long it took.