My older sister is a villainous rich girl.

...For me, the urge to fall in love is like going to the mall and buying a ton of stuff, only to find it's raining outside. Occasionally, I might feel like sharing an umbrella with someone. But once the rain stops, I think, "This is good enough, being alone is enough."

Surely no one in this world would understand such emotions?

Nobody will understand.

—Chris's Secret Diary

*

Wayne closed his diary and rubbed his temples in frustration.

He hadn't thought much of it before when he simply treated it as a quest item, but now he had to realize that it wasn't right to spy on other people's thoughts like this.

Miss, you should at least remember more about the plot and stop writing so many sentimental laments!

Wayne could actually understand her thoughts.

In this unfamiliar world, Chris had no one to confide in, so she could only record what she wanted to say in her diary, as if she were talking to herself.

"Maybe... we shouldn't watch it anymore?"

The main storyline is pretty much the same; it doesn't really matter whether you watch it or not.

He didn't want to face social death along with Chris if their identities were ever exposed in the future.

Wayne carefully put the diary back as it was, picked up the borrowed art book, and sat on the sofa near the door, flipping through it idly.

After a while, Karen knocked on the door.

"Young Master Wayne, your friend, His Highness the First Prince, has come to visit."

?

We just struck up a conversation yesterday, and today they're already eagerly coming up to me?

He tidied himself up and went downstairs to greet him.

Richard's eyes lit up when he saw him from afar, and he greeted him happily: "Wayne, yesterday was too short, we didn't finish our conversation."

???

What the heck? Was there something left unsaid yesterday?

In the living room, Ashville looked at Richard with a loving expression and smiled very gently.

Chris sat obediently next to her mother, and when she noticed Wayne coming over, she kept winking at him.

Wayne was completely confused and didn't quite understand what she meant.

"Chris," Mother spoke.

"Yes!" Chris shouted, instantly sitting up straight.

Ashville frowned, then calmed herself down with a deep breath.

"The presence of the First Prince at my humble abode is truly an honor."

"Madam, you flatter me. Wayne and I hit it off immediately and are now very good friends." Richard maintained his perfect smile and gave an impeccable reply.

As he spoke, he very naturally winked at Wayne. "Wayne, right?"

"Ah...yes."

"Since you're here to hang out with your friends, I won't disturb you any longer. Chris, take them to the study."

"Okay, okay."

Ashville gave Chris a warning look, then casually lifted her skirt and walked away.

"Your Highness, please come this way."

"Chris, don't you always call me by my first name, Richard?" the First Prince suddenly chuckled. "Why are you being so formal today?"

"..."

Chris gave an awkward but polite smile and said meaningfully, "A person is always a little different when they grow up than when they were a child."

Hearing this, Richard nodded in understanding. "That's true."

They're all elementary school students, yet they're all speaking in riddles with increasing skill; the scene just looks so incongruous.

Wayne glanced at Prince Richard, then at Chris.

"You guys chat first, I'll go get some snacks."

He really had nothing to talk about with the First Prince, and he had finally figured it out: Richard was a scoundrel who lacked martial ethics and was using him as a cover; his real purpose was probably something else entirely.

So Wayne decided to go for the yo-yo first.

Chris reacted quickly, grabbing Wayne by the collar. "Wait! I'll go with you."

"Um, isn't it a bit inappropriate to leave His Highness here alone?"

Richard's lips twitched. If you know that, don't say it out loud.

"It's alright, I'll wait for you here," he said understandingly.

In the Duke of Winchester's mansion, at an inconspicuous corner of a corridor.

"Didn't you see me giving you those really hard looks?" Chris complained angrily.

"...I thought your eyelid was twitching."

Chris silently rubbed her forehead. "Indeed, people's joys and sorrows are not shared."

"So, what are you trying to say?" Wayne asked.

Chris perked up and grabbed Wayne's hand: "Wayne, find a chance to send Richard away later."

Wayne astutely sensed her meaning. "You don't welcome His Highness?"

"It's not that I don't welcome him..." Chris stammered for a while before finally saying, "I'm afraid if he stays here too long, Mother will start arranging my engagement with the prince again."

That's the problem.

"I sense that His Highness doesn't seem to mind?"

"Of course he doesn't mind! With me standing in front of him as a shield, I can at least ward off 90% of the bad romantic prospects."

That's exactly how the original story unfolded.

His Highness, tired of the endless courtship from women of all ages, agreed to the royal family's proposal for a political marriage with the Duke of Winchester's daughter.

So, the engagement in the original work took place around this time.

Hmm, Richard has been busy all day, could it be that he's trying to find an opportunity to win over the Duke Elliott family?

He really is a scheming boy!

Wayne's expression was complicated.

It's like having your own pink and tender pig being eyed by a cabbage.

"...I don't want to marry anyone, and this engagement must be broken up," Chris said firmly.

"How about leaving His Highness with some unforgettable bad impressions, so that he'll back down?"

"Although I don't really want to say it myself, I'm confident that my reputation in the outside world is definitely not good," Chris said tactfully.

In reality, she was more than just "not good"; arrogant, domineering, extravagant, and oblivious to hardship were all synonymous with her.

To date, only a few close people know about this other side of her.

Despite his formidable reputation, His Highness remains fearless; he is indeed ruthless.

"Can't you just refuse directly?"

Chris shook her head gently and said sadly, "I'm afraid Father and Mother wouldn't want to see that outcome."

"That makes things difficult," Wayne said thoughtfully.

"It's not difficult." The young girl's eyes were firm: "As long as Prince Richard goes up to the main campus, he will meet his true love."

Good grief, so that's what you were planning!

"How do you know what the future holds?" Wayne looked at her with innocent, pure eyes.

Chris couldn't bring herself to say it for a long time.

"Anyway... your thoughts will always be different when you grow up than when you were a child. You'll understand when you grow up," she replied, as if dealing with a child.

"Wayne, tell me honestly, is your sister good to you?" she asked pitifully, blinking her big eyes.

"……Good."

"Please do me this favor, it's a matter of life and death for me!" Chris pleaded.

"In short, we need to minimize the time His Highness spends with me and other family members. I will also try other efforts at the same time. As long as we can delay it until he turns 15 and starts school, everything will be fine."

Having devised the basic plan in this way, she clasped her hands together in a prayerful gesture:

"I hope everyone is alright."