Seiyad had always believed he had to follow Ressas’s orders. Of course, he still thought Ressas was right most of the time. But at least for this one command, he felt he had to refuse. Remembering the past few months—months during which Ressas had endured so much alone, hidden from view—his heart steeled.
Seiyad decided that he would no longer leave Ressas to face things alone.
His beloved lord was hiding far more than he had expected. Even setting aside the unknown knowledge Ressas possessed, Seiyad had no way of guessing what he was going through, or what thoughts weighed on him. But there was one thing Seiyad could say for certain—Ressas treated his own suffering and his own life as if they were utterly insignificant.
With all that in mind, Seiyad couldn’t just ignore what Ressas had said—that he would give everything he had to kill the Devil. From the moment he heard those words, they had left him uneasy. Now, they were branded into his chest like a cruel premonition.
So, Seiyad wanted to show Ressas who he truly was, just as Ressas had once done for him. It was because of Ressas’s constant whispers of love and tender consideration that he had managed to crawl out of the abyss. Seiyad wanted Ressas to feel that same warmth.
“…We don’t know when or how the Devil might strike, so it’ll be too dangerous for the Duke of Vetria to go alone. The northern forest can be handled well enough with the Grand Duke and Cecilia’s power.”
But whatever he was thinking, Ressas gently refused his suggestion. As he pressed his lips tightly together and averted his gaze, Seiyad frowned.
“I spent all summer scouring that forest, and even I couldn’t manage it alone. While staying hidden, I only made it halfway through. Beyond that point, there were dozens of high-level Nir’a guarding the core.”
Every word was true, and Seiyad didn’t even blink as he refuted him. The northern forest was, after all, the largest region in the entire kingdom, and accordingly, the number of dormant Nir’a was immense. Revealing himself to retrieve the sword would mean having to face a great many of them.
He could kill them. Back in the south, he’d felt a power within himself unlike anything before. If he used it, he could manage it somehow, but…
“No. The Grand Duke can do it. Considering what you did in the south, finding the sword in the forest should be simple.”
Apparently, Ressas knew this as well. Even though he spoke with caution, his tone was certain. The abrupt shift in formality and distancing himself the moment the situation turned unfavorable was irritating, and Seiyad’s mouth hardened. At that, Ressas fell silent, eyes wide and frightened.
“I think I can protect the Marquess of Saklani on my own, Your Highness.”
As the tension in the room began to spike, Stella, who had been quietly drinking her wine the whole time, interjected calmly.
“We only need to be careful for that one week traveling from the East to the capital. We don’t know the full extent of the Devil’s power, but if his life is the target, I can protect him. And even if the Marquess does end up dying, if Prince Aster invades the capital with foul intent, wouldn’t that give us legitimate grounds to subdue him? That would be treason, after all.”
Surprisingly, Stella’s words struck the core of the matter. It would certainly be more convenient in many ways if the Marquess personally took action, but even if he died, once Aster revealed his power, they would gain legitimacy in opposing him. The information the Marquess had already shared made him valuable enough.
“Anyway, since it’s the Grand Duke here who commands Tither, I’ll follow Seiyad’s plan.”
“In that case, I’ll count on you, Stella.”
“Mm, you two talk it over. I’ll visit the castle tonight after speaking with the Marquess. I need to gather knights and inform Mother in advance.”
Stella moved quickly. Setting her wineglass down, she offered a respectful nod to Ressas, then quietly closed the door behind her, as if telling them to talk things through. As the door opened, the attendants waiting outside peeked inside with visibly nervous faces.
“Wait, Duke of Vetria—”
Flustered, Ressas tried to follow after her, but Seiyad grabbed him. He caught the wrist of the young man who dared try to flee before him, using a force that made resistance impossible. Ressas stumbled and came to a halt.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
His voice dropped low and tight as he interrogated Ressas. The young man flinched under his grasp. Just moments ago, he’d clung to him with such desperate need, and now he was trying to run—it was maddening.
“Grand Duke, we don’t have much time. To face the Devil, we—”
“Use my name.”
He was annoyed by the endless repetition of Grand Duke, Grand Duke, as if that were all he was. Seiyad spoke with a furrowed brow. At that, Ressas finally fell silent. After a brief pause, a soft, low voice called out his name.
“…Eid.”
“As Your Highness said, I know the situation is dire. Many have already died, and at any moment, that thing might possess someone and cause yet another senseless death. So yes, we must move quickly. That’s why I’m saying, let’s go north together, find the sword, and kill the Devil—together.”
“We’ll be better off acting separately.”
“To kill the Devil, you need the sword. Until I retrieve the relic, what do you even plan to do on your own? Tell me.”
Seiyad stood from his chair and pulled Ressas toward him. The boy, taller in frame but inwardly still just that—a boy—couldn’t be trusted not to do something reckless. As he looked into those anxious violet eyes, Seiyad whispered.
“What’s so important that you’d send your lover into danger alone?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Ressas’s eyes flew open. His long, dark lashes fluttered in shock before his pupils contracted. His pink lips parted wordlessly as he froze, and after a pause, he asked in disbelief.
“L…lover?”
“Yes.”
“Me? With you, Eid… as lovers?”
At this point, Seiyad began to truly wonder what Ressas expected from him. It was obvious he cared for him deeply—so deeply he’d throw away his life without hesitation. He’d seen with his own eyes how, despite his fear, Ressas still responded to his confession. And yet, even after all of this, he still hadn’t considered the possibility that they might be lovers? The thought was baffling.
“I did tell you I love you, didn’t I?”
At that, Ressas’s face turned crimson as if someone had spilled red paint across a blank canvas. His skin was so pale that the flush blooming over his face stood out starkly. The raw emotion he wore across his entire body made Seiyad pause for a moment. Seeing just how fully and vulnerably he showed his feelings—it was suffocatingly lovely, almost painful in its beauty.
“And since you confessed your love to me countless times as well, isn’t it only natural for two adults who love each other to become lovers?”
He knew full well that they were facing a dangerous being that demanded their lives. This wasn’t the time to freely indulge in affection. And because of that, Seiyad wanted to forge something they could rely on—a reason to endure this brutal moment. People who have something to protect hold on longer than those who have lost everything. And those who carry love in their hearts… they gain the strength to overcome the darkness.
“…Can I really do that? Someone like me, how could I possibly be Eid’s lover? Eid should be with someone who’s not—someone who isn’t—”
Just as Ressas was about to utter something foolish, Seiyad decided to press in.
“Are you saying you’d rather I meet someone else, fall in love, and build a life with them?”
Ressas fell silent. His lips moved as though he wanted to say yes, but no sound came out. He couldn’t bring himself to voice it.
“Would you like to see me kiss someone else, do all the things you did for me, with someone else—”
“I don’t want that!”
At last, Ressas shouted in a pained voice, cutting him off. His face had gone deathly pale. In a complete shift from earlier, he grabbed Seiyad with wide, wild eyes, his breathing ragged. There was something terrifying about the way he looked—his violet eyes burning like fire, his hands clutching Seiyad’s waist with a desperate strength.
“I’ve seen enough of you next to someone else. I don’t want to see that again, ever…!”
It was as if Seiyad had done that—been with someone else—and Ressas was reacting viscerally. Seiyad had believed only Guides could sense emotional waves like this, but Ressas was so agitated that even he could feel the trembling energy radiating from him. Surprised, Seiyad blinked. Ressas pulled him in so tightly there was nowhere left to go, pressing Seiyad into his embrace with all his strength.
“Even when you walked in with the Duke of Vetria, I could barely breathe. Don’t say things like that…. I’m insane enough to lose my mind just from you being in the same room as someone else….”
‘If you care about me this much, why do you keep trying to push me away?’
Wrapping his arms gently around the desperately confessing Ressas, Seiyad slowly stroked the back of his neck. He could feel the unsteady thrum of his pulse beneath his fingers. It made him both angry and heartsick—angry that someone so visibly in love had tried to convince himself he couldn’t be a lover, and pained by how fragile he was beneath the surface.
“Then will you be my lover?”
“…If you really mean it—yes. Please… I want that, so much.”
Completely surrendering, Ressas buried his face into Seiyad’s shoulder and mumbled. The once composed young man looked like a child now, clinging to him. His shoulder felt warm—he was probably crying again. It stung Seiyad’s heart to think someone so prone to tears had been fighting the Devil alone all this time.
“Then don’t ever say you’re going to go alone again. Two is better than one. At least for us—that’s the way.”
For those who had grown used to swallowing their pain in solitude, they needed someone to reflect back what they themselves could not see. Seiyad realized this as he looked at Ressas. And he hoped that one day, Ressas would take the words he used to comfort others and finally apply them to himself.
“Promise me, Ressas.”
At Seiyad’s calm urging, Ressas looked up. Though nothing had happened, he looked as if he’d been through a war. His wide, startled eyes finally softened into submission.
“…Alright, Eid.”
The way he gazed at him—as if Seiyad were the only person in the world—was heartbreakingly tender. It made Seiyad resent the version of himself who had once tried to hate someone this beautiful. And because he had made Ressas suffer, he now wanted to be the one to heal every wound.
So they would kill the Devil—the one who had twisted everything.
Back when he was lost in the fog, Seiyad hadn’t been certain he could defeat it. But now that he had something to protect, his heart was steel—forged in purpose. His goal was no longer some vague obligation out of reach.
Seiyad would fight to protect the one he loved.
He would survive—and live to see the future they would share together.
BOOM SHAKALAKA YES GAWD
Thats my man yea hold him and not let go