Merlin, a cold and sharp-tongued merchant, receives a young woman as payment for a debt. But Via is not as docile and simple as she seems. Deeply calculating, she hates anyone who treats people like possessions, and that includes Merlin, of course… Yet as they spend day after day together, Via realizes that Merlin is not as cold as he appears. Beneath his icy exterior, he has a warm heart. Little by little, she accepts this steady, dependable man, while Merlin falls for Via, whose life has been full of hardship yet who still faces it with a smile and even has a bit of a mischievous streak.
Their peaceful days do not last long. Merlin never expects that when Via becomes an exalted countess, she will abandon him without a second thought and say cruel words that chill him to the bone, wounding him deeply.
Merlin secretly swears that this time, he will clip Via’s wings one by one and put shackles on her with his own hands, turning her into a canary who belongs only to him and keeping her by his side for the rest of her life!
