“My one and only star.”
Aster whispered, his lips so close they nearly brushed. With the soft murmur, warmth radiated from Aster’s hand. Unlike the refreshing and crystalline power of Ressas, Aster’s energy was always like this—comforting and gentle.
The overwhelming sense of ease stilled the turbulent thoughts inside Seiyad, making him feel submerged beneath a night sky. Everything lost its meaning, and the emotions that once boiled within him dulled into numbness. At one point, he had truly believed this was perfect peace made just for him—because the more vividly he felt, the more he suffered.
Even now, that sensation returned. He wanted to forget what was throwing him into confusion and simply follow what he knew without thinking. Kill his mother’s enemy. Kill Nir’a. Find peace in that alone, without any other thoughts. That’s what Seiyad was good at—hiding in darkness and killing.
His consciousness tried to slip along that familiar path. Just as it had for an entire previous life, it still felt like Aster held the answers. The way Aster had once treated him as less than a thing—that was in the past. And now, wasn’t he the one with the power to bring down his mother’s killer? So just, like this…
Was he really going to kill all those people again?
A voice rang out sharply in his mind, snapping him awake. He blinked and realized his face was buried against Aster’s neck. Just like back then—clinging to the peace Aster offered, intoxicated by it.
Trying not to show his discomfort, Seiyad let out a quiet breath. The wounds on his back were healing under Aster’s power, and the sensation of flesh knitting together made his insides crawl. He took a deep breath, trying not to be pulled into Aster’s power, and the sound of him swallowing reached Aster’s collarbone.
Aster’s hand, which had been resting gently on Seiyad’s back, suddenly tensed. His chest rose sharply, and then his warm arms wrapped tightly around Seiyad’s waist. Their bodies pressed close. Startled by the sudden closeness, Seiyad looked up—and those blue eyes were shimmering, locked onto him.
“Eid.”
That flicker in Aster’s gaze was almost amusing. All the things he hadn’t seen back when he had been so blindly loyal to Aster—now they stood out clearly. As Seiyad’s heart, dulled for a moment, began to brace itself again, the realization he’d come to just before meeting Aster resurfaced in his mind.
There was something else inside Aster’s power of Purification.
And that something had driven Seiyad into a deadly Rampage.
Because of those two truths, Seiyad had tried to escape Aster. But in all that time, he had never once doubted whether Aster actually understood his own power. After all, he was the rightful crown prince of Solias—and had nothing to gain from Seiyad’s Rampage.
But what if Aster did know exactly what he was doing?
The chilling thought wiped the expression from Seiyad’s face. He started to pull back, but Aster’s arms tightened, refusing to let him go.
“That’s enough.”
Like a tame beast unwilling to release its prey, Aster’s eyes burned with dissatisfaction as Seiyad tried to slip away. He pulled Seiyad back in and pressed his lips to the crook of his neck.
“You’re suddenly getting prickly again. But I thought I’d only done things today worthy of praise.”
His voice sounded genuinely hurt, pouting like a child. The brush of lips on Seiyad’s neck was like an ant crawling across his skin—unbearably ticklish and wrong. A chill ran down his spine. Seiyad endured it, trying not to show too much rejection.
“Those wounds could’ve been healed back where we stood. Wouldn’t you consider leaving them until now inefficient?”
“You’re stubborn. If I hadn’t done it this way, you wouldn’t have admitted that you still needed me. I need you—and you need me too.”
Aster’s lips, which had been wandering along Seiyad’s long, firm neck, suddenly delivered a sharp sting. A fleeting pain—like the prick of a scorpion’s tail.
This is as far as I’ll tolerate. I’ve endured enough.
Seiyad raised a hand and grabbed Aster’s arm. He didn’t need to use much strength—Aster didn’t resist.
“Would you still say that if I became completely useless?”
At Seiyad’s pointed question, Aster tilted his head slightly. Then, slowly, his eyes curved in clear delight. His thin lips stretched into a smile so sincere it was almost blissful.
“Of course.”
Before Seiyad could even object, Aster whispered:
“Because if you’re broken, you’ll never be able to leave me. What could be better than that? You won’t have anyone else in the world but me.”
At that moment, Aster looked the happiest Seiyad had ever seen him. His long-lashed blue eyes even seemed innocent. But each word that left his mouth felt like ice crawling into Seiyad’s soul, making his skin crawl.
What Seiyad faced now was something far darker and deeper than mere possessiveness. He could feel it. Aster slowly brushed Seiyad’s cheek, now frozen in place.
“Tomorrow will bring even more joy. I’ll give you the household of your mother’s killer as a gift of courtship, Eid. Then you’ll understand my sincerity.”
The words Aster spoke were utterly incomprehensible by any normal logic. After lowering his hand from Seiyad’s cheek, he opened the door slowly. Stepping back with elegance, he murmured:
“It’ll take time before you lie beside me again like before. But it’s soon. For now, I’ll let you go—so fall asleep thinking of me.”
Aster’s voice settled in Seiyad’s ear. He smiled faintly at the expressionless Seiyad, then turned his body. A soft hum drifted down the hallway.
It was the lullaby often sung to children—The Story of the Little Star.
The careless humming made it hard to breathe. Seiyad, escaping into the room to get away from Aster, stood by the curtained window, pushing through the suffocating dark that let in not a single ray of light.
As he flung open the window with frantic hands, only then did he feel like he could breathe again. Slowly surveying the world outside, he saw the bright moon casting its light down upon him. It was impossible not to look—it practically demanded his gaze.
The moon had looked the same the first time he met Ressas. A massive moon, low enough it seemed it might crash into the earth, and for some strange reason, it had been comforting to stare at.
After catching his breath for a moment, Seiyad scanned the scene beyond the window. He’d wasted enough time. Now was the moment to dig into the new truths he had uncovered. His thoughts returned to the “Devil” Bridehit had mentioned.
A familiar word. “Devil” had followed Seiyad all his life.
Even so, he had never once considered that such a thing might be tied to everything happening now. Rubbing his lips with his fingers, Seiyad recalled what Aster had said earlier.
“The more broken you are, the more delighted I’ll be…”
The more he turned those words over in his mind, the more he began to wonder if Aster had deliberately contributed to his Rampage. The mere thought made his skin crawl, and yet, no matter how he tried to shake it off, his thoughts kept circling back to it.
If Aster had truly played a part in driving him into Rampage—if he had wanted Seiyad dead—then his goals aligned with those of the Devil.
And yet he couldn’t grasp the reason why. Try as he might, Seiyad couldn’t imagine any motive Aster might have to wish for the fall of the kingdom. Aster was possessive, and his sense of power and control was ironclad. There was no rational explanation for why someone like him would willingly let go of something he already possessed.
‘The Devil. Sirkhan Shildras. Aster Raman Solias.’
Turning the three names over in his mind, Seiyad finally concluded that the only clear lead he had was Sirkhan Shildras. If he wanted to understand the enemy’s intention, he had to understand the enemy first. That was the most basic rule of engagement.
Fortunately, this time around, Seiyad wasn’t acting alone. He’d already sent word to Desertus—his orders were in motion. The information he now needed was exactly what he’d tasked Tiaki with. It was about time they made contact.
***
The more urgent the heart, the faster time passed. During the night, Seiyad concealed himself and visited the southern outpost of Desertus to leave a message for Tiaki. Tiaki had said he would make contact once he found something, and that had been about ten days ago. Since no word had come, it likely meant he still hadn’t uncovered anything. Still, just in case, Seiyad engraved a coded message instructing Tiaki to come to Shildras Castle and returned.
From early morning, the Duke of Shildras’ estate was in a state of unrest. Some injuries had occurred, but they had been expected. The Tithers, the combat unit, were unscathed, so the forest suppression operation resumed as planned. After breakfast, a royal order arrived for everyone—including Seiyad—to gather at the forest perimeter.
Before departing, Seiyad searched the estate, hoping to speak with Bridehit about what they hadn’t finished discussing the day before. A conversation like that wouldn’t be appropriate in a crowded setting, and once they entered the forest, there would be no opportunity for it.
As he retraced his steps from last night along the corridor, he happened to cross paths with Ressas coming from the opposite direction. Seiyad knew it was him before even meeting his eyes—Ressas’ distinct energy stirred his senses first. Following that feeling, he lifted his gaze and saw Ressas in the distance.
Their eyes—purple and piercing—met. Ressas had clearly already spotted him as well, and his gaze remained locked as they both walked toward each other.
Through the window where the clear morning sky poured in, a fresh breeze swept through. White curtains billowed and fell like waves, repeating the motion. For a moment, they puffed up like clouds and wrapped around Ressas, creating a fleeting image so striking that Seiyad found himself staring without meaning to—then sharply turned his head away.
There was no reason to acknowledge Ressas inside this estate, where Aster’s eyes and ears could be anywhere. So Seiyad deliberately adopted a colder air and walked on with a blunt demeanor. As the distance closed and it became impossible to pretend not to notice him, Seiyad stopped walking first.
“Your Highness.”
He offered a respectful greeting in a neutral tone, stepping to the side of the hallway. Ressas halted. Seiyad bowed his head, silently conveying he had no intention of engaging further.
For a moment, he thought Ressas would just pass by. He began to straighten his posture—only for their eyes to meet again. No, more accurately, he met Ressas’ eyes staring fixedly at his neck.
“It seems you slept with your window open last night, Duke.”
Ressas’ pale face was curiously devoid of expression. He leaned in slightly, drawing closer, his gaze scanning Seiyad’s neck with intense focus.
“A bug appears to have bitten you.”
What nonsense is that?
Even as the thought crossed his mind, Seiyad raised a hand to touch his neck. As his fingers brushed the spot Ressas was staring at, something clicked in his memory.
It was the very place Aster had teased with his lips last night.
