35. Expect Too Much

"Gosh! You know that is hard to believe, right, Grace?" Sarah said.

"Believe me, Sarah; I'm more depressed than you about this because I experienced it myself. Now you should understand why from the beginning, I was reluctant to explain it to you all," Grace replied.

"Fine!" Sarah clucked. "So, Adro comes from another world, and he's a prince who was about to get married, and now he can't go back to his world because the door that brought him here is broken?" Sarah shortened Grace's lengthy explanations.

"That's correct. But if you don't believe it, that's okay. I won't force you," Grace said. Even after explaining at length, she still heard clear doubt in Sarah's voice.

"No. No. I do believe it. Well, more precisely, what I believe is that you're not lying to me. But that doesn't rule out the possibility that you're the one being used by him, right?"

"I don't know about that, Sarah… I hope he is indeed a good guy. But again, I'm very sure that Adro came out of that door. There's no reasonable explanation for how he could suddenly appear there," Grace rubbed her forehead.

"I see. But can you tell me Adro's full name? I want to ask my people to find out about him. If it's true that he doesn't come from this world, his name won't be registered anywhere, well... even though he could have made up a name by now," Sarah said.

Grace chuckled, shaking her head. "You're really critical, Sarah."

"Of course I have to be! If it's true that he has been deceiving you, I'll give him a lesson!"

"Okay... Please calm down a bit. So far, Adro hasn't done anything wrong. Trust me," Grace replied, then paused for a moment to recall Adro's name. "Adro Alymer Groendez. He said that the name of his kingdom is Groendez a Lend."

"Noted it down," Sarah said. "I'll give this information to my people. Usually, it only takes them half a day to find out about someone by their full name. I'll hang up. Good night."

"Thank you, Sarah. Good night."

Placing her phone beside the pillow, Grace sighed. She wasn't surprised at Sarah's high level of suspicion. But if it turns out that Adro is indeed a scammer, what would happen next?

"Is it wrong if I hope he indeed comes from a fairyland? If he deceives me, it means I have to kick him out and even report him to the police, right? But... even just imagining it, I can't bear it."

***

Since Sarah left, Grace had commuted to campus by bus. And this morning, she was lucky to get a seat.

Feeling her phone vibrate, Grace took it out of her bag to find a message from Sarah.

'Grace! The results are out. My people couldn't find Adro's name anywhere. So, there are two possibilities: he's faking his name or he's genuinely a fictional creature.' - Sarah.

'Oh, that's good. But I'm very sure that he really comes from another world.' - Grace.

'Yeah, okay. I'll still have my people look into it further.' - Sarah.

'Anyway, Sarah, can I ask for help that you might not like?' - Grace.

'What is it?' - Sarah.

'Because Adro doesn't have an identity, and it's proven that his name is not registered anywhere, can you help him with something so that he can get a job and make a living as an independent man here?' - Grace.

'Sure. I'll ask my people to do it.' - Sarah.

'Thank you very much, Sarah. Sorry, you have to help Adro. I know you don't really like him.' - Grace.

'Nope. I'm not helping that guy, but I'm helping you. The sooner he becomes independent, the sooner he leaves your house. I have my own goals.' - Sarah.

'I can see that. Well, then. Have a pleasant day, Sarah!' - Grace.

Even though the information about Adro's name not being found anywhere should be somewhat disappointing, Grace felt relieved because it meant Adro wasn't a bad person. And on the other hand, it meant Adro didn't have to leave so soon.

As usual, campus today felt like hell for Grace. However, her goal to quickly get through the day and return home to meet Adro made her unconsciously ignore all the sneers and painful looks from people.

Upon arriving home, Grace rushed to Adro, who greeted her warmly as usual.

"Identity?" Adro repeated.

Grace nodded. Her hands were clasped in front of her chest. "With an identity, you can get a job and move around without any problems. Sarah is amazing. She said she would create fake data for you. I don't know how she's going to do it, but we can trust her with that."

After being silent for a moment, Adro looked at Grace again. "I think Sarah doesn't really like me?"

Adro's question turned Grace's smile sour. "Well, about that... she has her own reasons for helping you. But you don't need to worry because she won't do anything bad. You know, she's my best friend."

"I know." Adro smiled faintly. "I will repay her favor when my condition is settled. Besides that, I thank you because I'm sure you asked her to help me, right?"

"Th-that's true, but it's not difficult to do," Grace coughed.

Observing Grace turn her face to the side, Adro smiled again. It didn't take a long time to understand the habits of the girl in front of him. Grace was a shy girl who would even hesitate to acknowledge her favors to others. She lay flatly on the ground.

"That doesn't negate the fact that you have helped me again," Adro said. "In return, what can I do for you?"

Wide-eyed, Grace turned to Adro. Then she shook her head quickly, shaking both palms in front of her chest. "That's not necessary. I don't want you to do anything."

"Oh, come on..." Adro smoothed Grace's messy hair because she shook her head too hard. "You helped me with everything. At least let me save my self-esteem. You know I'm a prince."

Feeling warmth in her cheeks, Grace used the corner of her eye to see Adro's hand still floating beside her face. The gentle touch on her strands of hair made her shiver, and her heart seemed to stop when those warm fingers brought a bunch of her hair to be tucked behind her ear.

"You have a beautiful face. It's a shame you keep covering it with your hair," Adro smiled, pulling his hand down. "I want to help you with something. Try to think about what I can do for you."

Clearing her throat, Grace tried to pull herself together. She was sure her cheeks were now tomato red, and she hoped Adro wouldn't notice. Why did he suddenly touch her hair? Perhaps it was his habit that was covered before.

"I… " Grace remembered one thing. "I have a painting project, but I still don't have a good idea or object to paint. Maybe you can help me with that?"

"I see... Can it be anything?" Adro asked.

Grace nodded slightly with a slightly lowered face. At first, she was going to paint a night lake landscape, but because Adro offered help, she thought about changing her painting idea. Instead of the darkness of the lake at night, why not try painting something bright and beautiful, like the figure of a fairy tale prince?

"I-"

"In that case, how about you paint my future wife?" Adro said directly, making Grace swallow her words back.

"Your… future wife?" Grace repeated.

"Her name is Princess Joselyn Marigold, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life. With your painting ability, I'm sure you can bring her appearance to life on canvas. I believe that painting will be truly amazing." Adro smiled brightly.

Swallowing what felt like gravel in her throat, Grace couldn't believe she had to experience a stabbing sensation in her heart after hearing what Adro said.

Why did she have to feel like this? Adro just expressed his opinion about his future wife. Did Adro's kind treatment make Grace forget that he already had a woman he loved?

"What do you think? If you are interested, I will describe her to you," Adro continued.