“So that’s what this is—you decided to play games again.”
It wasn’t new. Aster had done this many times before. He enjoyed letting people misunderstand. Almost as a habit, he left behind suggestive traces for those who believed their relationship was deeper and more secretive than it truly was. And yet, he had never shown Seiyad even a hint of real emotion.
“It’s nothing.”
Seiyad answered indifferently. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it and give more attention to Aster’s antics. Regardless of what Aster was planning, Seiyad had no intention of assigning it any meaning.
But to Ressas, it clearly was a big deal. Despite Seiyad’s response, Ressas couldn’t take his eyes off the side of Seiyad’s neck. Meeting his gaze, Seiyad noticed immediately—Ressas looked visibly down. Those lips. A closer look revealed he was biting the inside, just like he had before.
Seiyad couldn’t help but wonder what had upset him this time. They had already agreed that he would continue receiving Purification from Aster, so there shouldn’t be a problem.
“If there’s nothing else, may I be excused?”
The silence made him oddly anxious. As soon as Seiyad spoke, intending to leave before the tension grew unbearable, Ressas finally opened his mouth.
“There’s no need for you to force yourself into something you don’t want, Duke. You do understand that, don’t you?”
His voice carried a weight of seriousness. At the shift in tone, one of Ressas’s knights—Vine—discreetly stepped back. The others followed suit, giving them distance.
Ressas treating him like someone weak made Seiyad uncomfortable. He’d been like this ever since their reunion. Just last night, he fussed over a minor injury like it was a serious wound. Now, he was worried about something as trivial as catching a cold.
“You’re worrying too much. I’m not so fragile as to be coerced into anything—there’s no need for concern.”
He had never behaved weakly enough to give anyone something to criticize, yet whenever Ressas spoke to him like this, Seiyad felt as if he were the helpless one. After that curt reply, Ressas’s expression shifted strangely.
“…So you’re saying you permitted it.”
That slightly trembling voice brought back old memories. Ressas had once warned him not to grant Aster too much, even when Seiyad had agreed to use his own body as part of the contract’s terms. It seemed that memory still grated on him.
Seiyad looked at Ressas, troubled. Aster’s whims could be managed through strict obedience, but Seiyad had no idea how to soothe Ressas. Based on recent experience, giving him something small like when they were younger usually worked, but right now, he had nothing on hand.
While thinking it over, Seiyad scanned their surroundings. Fortunately, no one was near. After a brief hesitation, he averted his gaze and spoke quietly.
“If it really bothers you that much… then Your Highness may cover it again.”
He meant to add that it wasn’t the right time and that he would come find him later tonight—but Ressas moved faster. The moment Seiyad finished speaking, Ressas took his hand.
“Wait for me outside the mansion,” he ordered his knights before Seiyad could stop him.
“Yes, Your Highness!”
“Enjoy yourselves, then!”
The knights, throwing out odd comments, promptly exited the corridor in unison. Seiyad narrowed his eyes and said,
“Too many eyes around here. You’ve trained your knights poorly—royalty should always have guards nearby.”
“With you by my side, I’m safer than I would be with anyone else. And besides, we still have time. No one’s watching us right now. Just for a moment. Just a moment, please.”
Interlocking their fingers, Ressas whispered earnestly.
“Please allow me just a little of your time.”
He could have done whatever he pleased, but instead, Ressas insisted on asking for permission. That gentle pleading made it difficult to push him away.
“…Five minutes.”
He could spare that much. As soon as Seiyad gave his consent, Ressas led him into a nearby room. Seiyad might have had the senses to tell if it was empty, but how Ressas knew that was unclear—until he realized it was Zion Shildras’s mansion. That alone soured his mood. Ressas must’ve visited so often he knew the layout like the back of his hand.
“You seem very familiar with this place. Knowing exactly where the empty rooms are, no less.”
Seiyad’s words were sharp, but Ressas replied gently.
“Yes, this used to be my residence.”
That answer caught him off guard. Glancing around, Seiyad noticed the faint lingering scent of Ressas—like clean bedding and sunlight. The room was steeped in traces of his stay. Just as Seiyad paused in front of the unmade bed, Ressas softly stroked the hand he was holding.
“Didn’t you say your Purification from my brother feels unstable? Please, be careful.”
The gentle brushing of skin made Seiyad’s hand twitch involuntarily. He tightened his grip slightly and responded.
“He was just messing around while healing the wound. I only accept the necessary Purification, nothing more, so you don’t have to concern yourself.”
A subtle warmth flowed in through their connected hands. Ressas was so used to sending his energy this way now that he didn’t even need to be told anymore. The dirty feeling that had clung to Seiyad since last night gradually faded, and he allowed Ressas to continue.
“…Must you stay by your brother’s side, Duke?”
Ressas asked in a low whisper. Seiyad frowned, hearing him revisit the same topic.
“Until Your Highness becomes Crown Prince, I must stay with him to protect Cecilia. There’s no valid reason to keep her by your side unless the prince is removed from his position. As it stands, he’s the one who aligns with her best. Besides, Cecilia resents Your Highness deeply.”
“Contrary to your fears, Duke, my brother would never truly endanger your sister. What he desires has always been you. This is nothing more than a pretext to keep you near. The closer you stay to him, the more your soul…”
Ressas spoke as though he knew Aster intimately. Perhaps it was natural, considering he’d been at the palace, constantly in his presence—but his tone, brimming with conviction, felt oddly off. Unease prickled at Seiyad’s nape as he studied Ressas carefully. When Ressas, whispering with grave intensity, noticed Seiyad’s expression, he abruptly fell silent.
“Why have you stopped?”
“No, I overstepped. I must’ve gone mad, blinded by jealousy.”
He didn’t continue. The unfinished thought nagged at Seiyad, and he pressed him.
“What were you about to say about my soul? Go on—finish it.”
There had always been a subtle dissonance around Ressas. Seiyad had assumed that the half-year since his awakening had been enough time for Ressas to grow into a man—but since their reunion, his behavior had been distinctly more mature. Gone was the impulsive youth who once clashed with him in winters past. This new, composed demeanor kept snagging at Seiyad’s mind—especially since their last conversation about Aster’s Purification.
“What exactly are you so worried about? Sure, I agree the Crown Prince’s power might be wrong somehow, but we still don’t know how it causes harm.”
For an instant, Ressas’s eyes twisted with pain. Just a fleeting grimace, quickly smoothed over by a faint smile.
“You’re right, Duke.”
The transition was fluid, but Seiyad saw through it—it was a forced smile. He’d seen what Ressas looked like when he truly smiled: radiant and breathtaking.
“What are you hiding from me?”
“Nothing. Just… a foolish worry of mine. I must’ve gotten greedy. Being allowed just a small part of you made me lose sight of everything. I only ever wanted to make you happy—without interference.”
The earnest whisper tugged at Seiyad’s heart enough to momentarily make him forget to keep questioning.
“That filthy mark on your neck unsettled me. Even though… it’s not the first time I’ve seen it. I should be used to it. I should’ve endured it. It’s nothing compared to how long I’ve waited…”
Something in those words made Seiyad feel strangely uneasy. Like he’d done something unforgivable to him. He parted his lips, then finally said,
“…If it bothers you that much, then Your Highness may mark me again.”
Ressas’s lips froze in place. He looked at Seiyad, blank and stunned—like a clockwork doll suddenly stopped. Seiyad had just begun wondering what had set him off this time, when Ressas wrapped his arms around his waist. Caught in his embrace, Seiyad stumbled backward.
He landed atop the bed. The instant his body sank into the soft mattress, Ressas’s warm, clean scent flooded his senses. His heart pounded like mad, and with the grace of a poised beast, Ressas leaned over him. Reaching out with his long arms, Ressas gently pinned Seiyad’s wrists to the bed and whispered,
“You often don’t realize what you’re saying, Duke.”
There was no time to respond. Like a man dying of thirst, Ressas dipped down and buried his lips into Seiyad’s neck. A wave of heat flared across his skin, as though it had been seared. The softness of flesh against the firm tendon of his neck was vividly clear—tingling, sensitive.
“Ngh…”
The teasing sensation made his shoulders tense. At the sound, Ressas’s throat visibly tensed too.
His body, suddenly too responsive, reacted each time Ressas’s lips moved. Unlike Aster’s marks, this felt different. It wasn’t like ants crawling on his skin—it was cold down his spine, and a twisting ache in his gut.
When Ressas bit down with his white teeth, Seiyad twisted his bound wrists and threw his head back.
“Ah… ngh…!”
A sharp pang of fear hit as his body sank deep into the mattress. He tensed. Though for a moment it felt like Ressas would restrain him again, he didn’t. He released his hands and let him go. Seiyad sat up at once, his heart racing like a storm had just passed.
“That’s enough.”
With strands of black hair falling over his forehead, Ressas looked down at him with a flushed face, then gave a small nod. As he stepped back with polite restraint, Seiyad sat up as well. Ressas’s eyes lingered on the newly-pressed mark on Seiyad’s neck, and once he confirmed it was there, he smiled with quiet satisfaction.
“Much better.”
Seeing him visibly calm down after leaving a new mark made Seiyad wonder if he’d been too suspicious. Still, something continued to gnaw at him, so he said nothing and sank into thought. Ressas was the one to withdraw first.
“Since you don’t wish to leave together, I’ll go ahead. Take care of your business and come safely.”
“…All right.”
Ressas gave a warm smile and walked toward the door. Watching his retreating back—as if nothing had happened—Seiyad kept his eyes on him. Just as he reached for the door, Ressas paused and looked back. He stared silently for a moment, then spoke, cryptically.
“Purification is the only method that can reach Tither’s soul. Don’t let my brother turn your soul into something lonely. He’s capable of many things. You must always be careful.”
Having finally answered the earlier question, Ressas closed the door before Seiyad could stop him. Like someone who’d said something forbidden, he vanished.
Seiyad opened the door right after. He stepped into the hallway, intent on grabbing Ressas and demanding what he meant—but oddly, he was nowhere in sight. And for him to disappear like that—right before Seiyad, no less—was impossible. Slowly, he followed the trace toward the window.
Looking down from the ledge, he saw Ressas walking toward the knights. Just like before, he had the nerve to use the window like a door. Normally, the man clung to him incessantly, yet in moments like this, he vanished without a trace.
It made no sense. As Seiyad watched Ressas’s figure grow distant, a dark certainty settled in.
That sense of wrongness he’d felt—it hadn’t been a trick of the mind.
Ressas knew something.
The only question now was: had Ressas from his past life known it too?
