Only a week had passed since the ball at House Decora, and Maur’s winter break was already over.

Spring had arrived. The Imperial Grace Academy was about to begin a new semester.

The heroine was about to appear.

Imperial Grace Academy, Golden Auditorium, opening ceremony.

A priest of the Church of Light, clad in white robes, stood at the highest point, recounting the history of the Kachibia Continent with unwavering patience and deep devotion.

“We humans are born with original sin. We committed grave transgressions in the divine realm and were exiled to the mortal world. Back then, the Kachibia Continent had no seasons—the entire world lay frozen in endless winter…”

Reciting this history was a long-standing tradition at the Imperial Grace Academy’s opening ceremony.

Yet while other students listened with rapt attention and fervent devotion, Maur’s expression brimmed with impatience—bordering on irritability.

*Ugh, so annoying! Still no progress on annuling the engagement with Athena, and zero clues about the heroine!*

Irritation.

Pure irritation!

The situation had worsened solely because his recovered memories were fragmented.

Though Maur somehow retrieved glimpses of his past life through dreams, most remained hazy—and faded further with time.

Only the game’s predetermined fate for his current role—the villainous young master—stayed somewhat clear upon waking.

Everything concerning the game’s heroine felt shrouded in thick fog, impossible to discern.

Maur could only piece together clues from the game’s title, *The Lost Continent’s Love Song: The Black Dragon’s Shrine Maiden*, and the various doomed endings tied to his character.

But this was like finding a needle in a haystack.

Racking his brain, he could only tentatively conclude—from Athena’s annulment line—that the heroine must be enrolling this spring… as a freshman.

After all, in one doomed ending post-annulment, Athena had whispered: *“She had already been by my side… yet I missed her. I missed the most beautiful spring.”*

Key words: *spring*, *already appeared*.

Athena, born extraordinary, had symbolically attended the Imperial Grace Academy for just one semester before graduating at sixteen.

She then spent most of her time at the Luminous Temple or assisting Her Majesty the Empress.

The *only* event linking *spring* and the academy? This year’s opening ceremony.

This was Maur’s final semester—he’d turn eighteen soon.

Athena had repeatedly expressed wanting to serve as the officiating priest this year to bless him: recite the standard Kachibia history, then bless the freshmen and the senior representative.

This was her *only* chance to interact with academy students!

And since the game’s heroine *had* to be a student here… Maur now strongly suspected she was among this spring’s freshmen.

To crush that possibility, Maur had fabricated excuses to send Athena to the borderlands early.

But she’d inevitably return in three months for his birthday engagement ceremony.

If Maur hadn’t found and eliminated the heroine—or annulled the engagement with Athena by then—a doomed ending awaited him.

An inescapable fate. A destiny the villainous young master could never flee without fighting back.

Yet identifying her among over two hundred freshmen? Nearly impossible.

Even with the roster in hand, Maur stood no chance.

From the podium, the priest continued fervently:

“…Yet some humans, amid such hardship, never complained. They prayed daily, followed divine teachings, and worshipped the Divine with unwavering faith.”

“Moved by their devotion, the Divine divided the year into seasons, granting spring and summer as rewards.”

“But burdened by original sin, humanity received only four pleasant months within the year’s eleven.”

“To atone, the Divine forged autumn—a season of harvest labor—and preserved winter’s biting cold, stretching them to seven months.”

“This is the Divine’s mercy. We must thank, praise, and worship the Divine with all our hearts.”

Indeed, this world held only eleven months yearly.

Spring and summer: two months each. Autumn: three. Winter: four.

Due to this cycle, the Imperial Grace Academy held one term—from early spring to early autumn. The rest was winter break.

Maur sat dead center in the front row of the Golden Auditorium.

The most conspicuous seat—normally reserved for the top student. Yet since his enrollment, it had been *his*.

Every year, he’d nap here during the ceremony.

This year? Forced to obsess over finding the heroine.

Worse—the priest droned on endlessly.

Reciting common history, then abruptly breaking into hymns and sacred verses.

*How much longer until the blessing ceremony starts?*

“Enough!”

Maur shot to his feet. Wind magic swirled beneath his soles. He leaped to the podium, shoved the priest aside, and seized the center stage.

“Skip the pointless preamble.”

“I declare—*I* am in charge now. Blessing ceremony begins *immediately*. All freshmen, step forward!”

He’d inspect each one himself.

If she was truly the Black Dragon’s Shrine Maiden, she *had* to have a tell.

Get close. Examine carefully. He’d find a trace.

Whether this was outrageous? Others’ reactions? Irrelevant.

He only wanted to find that damned heroine.

Silence swallowed the auditorium.

Then—hushed whispers rippled through the hall.

“G-Good heavens… Who *is* he? Interrupting a priest!?”

“…Though… he *has* been speaking forever…”

“This is disgraceful! That’s a priest from the Luminous Temple!”

“Isn’t that Lord Maur of Violet County Manor? The noble engaged to Lady Athena?”

“Rumors said he was arrogant… but *this* brazen?”

Below, Lilith barely suppressed a pained grimace.

*What is that guy *thinking*?! This is way too extreme!*

*Is he openly slapping the Luminous Temple’s face?!*

Even to annul the engagement with Athena…

Wait.

*Is that… exactly why he’s doing this?*

Risking public clash with the Luminous Temple. Tarnishing his own reputation.

…What *is* he really thinking?!

As Lilith watched Maur command the stage, his words from that morning carriage ride echoed vividly—his starlit eyes locked on her:

“I’ve decided, silly dog. Let’s get engaged.”

Had that been a thoughtless joke?

If not…

If *not*…

Her heart suddenly hammered against her ribs.