She was the youngest sister of the family. Sheltered. Protected. Far too innocent for the kind of world he lived in. And unfortunately for her, she was the key to his freedom. For him, it was supposed to be simple. Get close to her, finish what he came for, and leave before any of it could matter. Quick. Clean. Forgettable. She was never supposed to get under his skin. Never supposed to make him laugh when he hadn't found anything amusing in years. Never supposed to look at him like there was still something good left in him. But somehow, she did. And the worst part? The closer he gets to freedom, the harder it becomes to let her go. Tropes: * Forced proximity * Flirty x sunshine * Protective tension * Angst * He fell first * Touch her and die vibes * Emotional slow burn * Forbidden attachment ---- ✨ 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗮 𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸! 𝗜𝘁 𝗴𝗼𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗼 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹-𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗰𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴.

✨️🥇First place - The Slowest Burning Romance Book in the Fabulation mini Awards🥇✨️ ✨️🏆 First place - Best original character in the Golden Ink Awards 🏆✨️ She wanted to save her favorite fairytale character, the derelict second male lead. To rescue the kidnapped princess, he went as far as sacrificing his one-of-a-kind magical companion. But at the end, she married the crown prince of the neighboring kingdom. Just because one was born as the king's son, he got the main lead position. The orphan stood at the second place, despite being a prodigy in swordsmanship. She could not bear to see the second male lead dying all alone and broken-hearted. So, I helped her change the fate of the second lead. *************************************************** Book cover by Lyuu @Lyuuxyv Thank you so much for your beautiful artwork, Lyuu! Dear readers, you can go check her amazing ongoing story: "ROYAL BONES - Shattering Tradition, Crowning Justice" Disclaimer: This story will contain depictions of child abuse, violence and death. Reader discretion is advised. I'm not a native English speaker. Please excuse the grammatical mistakes and do not hesitate to let me know if you find one! Best ranking: #1 second male lead syndrom (2025-11-06) #1 magical creatures (2025-11-11) #1 light novel (2026-01-07) #2 fantasy creatures (2025-11-06) #2 swordsman (2025-12-20) #5 phoenix (2025-12-20)