The Ice Prince Accidentally Cast His Crush

In the entertainment industry, Oliver Liu already had a reputation: a talented young actor, a face sharp enough to look carved from marble, and an attitude cold enough to qualify as a commercial freezer. Fans called him the Ice Prince.

Not because he wielded an ice sword or lived somewhere near the North Pole, but because you could probably count everything he said in a day on one hand.

Oliver only spoke when he absolutely had to.

Otherwise?

Silence. As if words cost money.

People assumed he was a hardcore introvert. Too lazy to socialize, too lazy for small talk, too lazy to fake friendliness.

What no one knew was that Oliver’s head was anything but quiet.

In there, he was loud. Very loud.

His brain was basically an endless stream of ridiculous commentary that, thankfully, never made it past his lips.

A cat walked by?

“Daaaaamn, look at those whiskers. You look tough as hell. Can you jump like a ninja too, kitty?”

His manager started rambling about his schedule?

“You sound like a broken radio trying to find a signal. Should I buy you an antenna or something?”

His fans screamed at full volume every time they saw him?

“Jesus Christ... do you really have to scream that loud? I feel like I live next to a sheet-metal factory.”

The inside of Oliver’s head was basically his own private comedy show.

Unfortunately, it had an audience of exactly one.

Himself.

And as for his acting career...Well.

If he was being completely honest, Oliver had not become an actor because of some deep artistic calling.

He did it because the money was good.

Very good. And that money funded the true passion of his life:

collecting limited-edition anime figures.

One figure could cost as much as a decent laptop, but to Oliver, that wasn’t irresponsible spending.

That was an investment in happiness.

Even when he joined an idol survival show in Korea, his motivation had absolutely nothing to do with debuting or becoming famous.

His thoughts while filling out the application had been:

“Hmm... how many action figures could I buy with the prize money? Whatever. Might as well apply. If I get eliminated, who cares? I’ll just go back to acting. The important thing is making sure that pre-order doesn’t sell out.”

And sure enough, Oliver got eliminated pretty early.

His expression when the results were announced?

Blank.

His only thought?

“Nice. I can take longer naps starting tomorrow.”

------

That afternoon, the Shanghai sky glowed orange and gold with the setting sun.

Long tree shadows stretched across the park path as Oliver walked at an easy pace, a black hoodie pulled low over his face and a pair of headphones resting around his neck.

He was busy planning the rest of his evening.

Stop by the figure shop. Go home. Play games. Simple and peaceful.

Financially irresponsible in the most emotionally fulfilling way possible.

His phone suddenly buzzed in his pocket. Oliver pulled it out and looked at the screen.

Manager Chen.

He stared at it for three full seconds.

“If I don’t answer, maybe the problem will solve itself.”

The phone kept vibrating.

“Wow. Persistent. Impressive. Annoying, but impressive.”

With the sigh of a man being dragged toward an unavoidable fate, Oliver finally answered.

“Yes?”

“Where are you?”

“Outside.”

“I can hear traffic, genius. I mean where exactly?”

Oliver looked around the park.

“Walking.”

There was a long pause on the other end.

“Sometimes talking to you feels like interviewing a wall.”

Oliver blinked.

Manager Chen continued before he could say anything.

“You have a fitting tomorrow at nine. Don’t stay up playing games again.”

“Okay.”

“And eat something proper.”

“Okay.”

“And please don’t buy another figure this week.”

Oliver’s eyes narrowed.

Silence.

“Oliver?”

“...The signal’s bad.”

Then he hung up.

He stared at the phone for a moment, slipped it back into his pocket, and kept walking.

Then suddenly—

“Ollie!”

Oliver stopped. One eyebrow lifted.

“Wait. Who the hell is calling me ‘Ollie’ like we’re close? Do I know you?”

He turned toward the voice. At the far end of the path stood a young man.

Tall and lean, with slightly messy black hair and a white shirt rolled up to his elbows.

The sunset caught his face at just the right angle, making him look like he had stepped straight out of a shoujo manga panel.

Oliver froze.

His heart immediately picked up speed without consulting him first.

“Whoa, hold on. Why does it suddenly look like someone turned on a spotlight? Are you filming some low-budget romance drama or something? Why are you so damn pretty?!”

The guy smiled. For half a second, time genuinely seemed to stop.

Oliver quickly lowered his gaze, pretending not to care. His eyes betrayed him anyway, stealing another glance.

Outward expression:

Cold. Blank. Almost frozen.

Inside his head:

“Sweet mother of Dragon Ball Super. Is this my soulmate?! Did someone put a giant ‘FOR SALE’ sign on my forehead and this guy came to pick me up?!”

The guy started walking toward him.

Slowly.

Which only made Oliver’s internal chaos worse.

“Oh God. If he calls me ‘Ollie’ one more time, I might actually melt. Also, please stop walking toward me in slow motion like that. I am not emotionally equipped for this.”

Oliver Liu had spent years perfecting the art of looking completely uninterested.

Red carpets, award shows, interviews, or fan events where people screamed his name from two feet away.

Nothing cracked him.

Unfortunately, none of those situations had involved a ridiculously pretty stranger walking toward him under perfect sunset lighting.

“Okay. Be normal.”

The guy took another step.

Oliver adjusted his expression. He relaxed his face slightly.

“Too much. Now you look like you’re about to sell him insurance.”

He tried again. Neutral. Cool. Distant.

“There. Perfect. Emotionally unavailable but expensive.”

The guy was still getting closer.

“Why is he still coming? Did I accidentally make eye contact for too long? Is this how mating rituals work?”

Oliver almost looked away, then decided that would make him look nervous.

So instead, he stood there with the exact expression of a man who definitely had everything under control.

He did not. Not even remotely.

By the time the guy finally stopped in front of him, Oliver’s brain had already gone through approximately twelve disasters, three wedding scenarios, and one completely unnecessary argument about whose surname would sound better after marriage.

“Jesus. We haven’t even exchanged names. Calm down.”

Oliver finally opened his mouth for the first time that afternoon.

His voice was flat. Almost completely devoid of emotion.

“Sorry... Do I know you?”

Meanwhile, inside his head:

“I swear, if you don’t tell me your name right now, I’m naming you myself. Sunset Prince. Yep. Yeah... that actually works. Or maybe I should just call you ‘baby’ and save us both some time. HAHAHA—”

“Oh, right. I’m Julian Li.”

The guy scratched the back of his neck, his cheeks turning slightly pink.

Oliver kept the same cold expression and simply replied,

“Hmm.” A tiny nod.

That was it.

Julian immediately looked nervous, like he had suddenly realized he might have been a little too forward.

From the outside, Oliver probably looked completely uninterested.

Inside?

His brain was doing backflips. And that was how Oliver Liu met his Sunset Prince.

He had no idea that one smile and one brief glance that afternoon would eventually turn into something much bigger. Something so ridiculous, complicated, and completely unexpected...

that not even Oliver’s absurd little brain could have come up with it.