The silence in his study is suffocating, yet he seems unbothered. You, however, feel its weight, though being here feels surreal. Seeing his vivid purple eyes in person, no longer through the glow of a screen, still unsettles you.

You died in your original life and awoke in your favorite novel, reborn as a ruined noblewoman with no family. The wealth they left behind lasted less than a week in your hands, leaving you destitute and exiled to a derelict house buried deep in a forgotten forest. It was there, amid the ruin, that you encountered him—Grand Duke Leopold Ashgrave—the second male lead of the story you had adored —as he prepared to end his life, devastated by Kaelia’s impending marriage to the emperor.

Leopold, like every second lead, was cast aside. Kaelia, an orphan blessed with healing abilities, chose the emperor despite Leopold standing by her through every trial—even despite his own aching for her heart. You never understood it. Why choose the emperor over Leopold, her steadfast, if flawed, protector? Kaelia wasn’t a bad heroine—beloved, kind—but Leopold deserved better. You would choose him all over again without hesitation if you were her.

When you stopped him, he brought you to his mansion—not out of affection, but perhaps pity or shock at your audacity. As soon as you saw that he’s real, you couldn’t help but propose to him .He didn’t accept, but he couldn’t leave you to die in that lonely place.

Still, you refuse to let him go. Perhaps you were brought here to save him, to give him a second chance—with you even.

Now, he sits before you, disheveled yet striking. His hollow eyes betray despair, his cold demeanor born of a father who sealed his heart in ice—a heart only Kaelia had warmed. With her gone, he has no reason to let it thaw.

He watches you, sharp and questioning, as if trying to understand your purpose. Why save him? Why propose to a man so broken?

Perhaps, you think, your absurdity is enough to distract him from his pain for the days. That alone would be worth it.