Ressas’s smile wasn’t exactly a rare sight—but for him, it had been absent for many long years. In the past, he had occasionally glimpsed Ressas smiling at others, but never at him. Across all the years, this was the first time.
The image of Ressas smiling in his memories belonged to a young boy. In both his previous life and this one, Ressas had never smiled before him as a grown man. So Seiyad had vaguely assumed that if Ressas ever did smile again, he’d be no different from the child he once knew—if he were to imagine it at all.
But Ressas, now a fully grown man, smiled in a way Seiyad had never seen before.
Thick brows relaxed into softness, and those beguiling eyes narrowed slightly with charm. Sunlight splintered between the long lashes, casting delicate shadows beneath his eyes. A soundless smile loosened across his rose-tinted lips.
Unfamiliar. So startlingly unfamiliar it made his chest tighten.
The spring sunlight was unseasonably hot. Perhaps it was the heat settling on the back of his neck, but his breath faltered. A strange sensation crept in, leaving Seiyad irritated. He swallowed the tremble behind clenched lips and deliberately stiffened his expression. It felt like he’d been ambushed.
…What is he scheming?
Even last winter, when he’d thought the distance between them had somewhat lessened, Seiyad hadn’t seen even the faintest trace of a smile from Ressas. And now, after such a long absence, to find him smiling like this? If anything, any lingering fondness should’ve long since withered into the ground—not grown.
“No, that’s not it.”
In reaction to Ressas smiling, Seiyad denied it more coldly than necessary. It was the kind of reply that could easily offend, and yet Ressas only smiled wider. Whatever amused him so, the curve of his lips deepened.
“The only person the Duke could possibly be looking for here… is me, no?”
Laughter laced Ressas’s voice at last. What could he possibly find so funny? Wasn’t the Duke of Axid the very figure people feared just by crossing paths with him?
Seiyad scolded himself for letting meaningless nonsense rattle him so deeply and cut in sharply.
“I simply took the wrong path.”
He should’ve left it there—but Ressas wouldn’t stop.
“If someone with the Duke’s sense of direction says that, then perhaps you were thinking of me and ended up here by accident. How enchanting, what a fateful coincidence.”
Seiyad said nothing. He nearly turned on his heel then and there, but the absurdity of it all left him unable to just walk away. In the end, he voiced the impious thought.
“Have you been gravely ill lately?”
He would’ve preferred madness. Because then he could write off everything Ressas said as meaningless rambling. Just imagining that he’d have to face someone acting like this regularly made his spine crawl.
And Seiyad had meant it sincerely—but when Ressas heard those insolent words, he actually laughed. A low, muffled chuckle that carried genuine delight. He even raised a pale hand to subtly cover his mouth. When Seiyad frowned and shot him a threatening glare, only then did Ressas finally stop.
“I always thought the Duke was skilled at hiding his feelings… but now I see you’re actually terrible at lying.”
“What’s the meaning of this? Have you developed a fetish for being despised by those who dislike you?”
The air was thick with spring blossoms, but only frost coated Seiyad’s voice. And Ressas walked right through that frost without hesitation, gazing down at him squarely as he replied.
“I’ve never once said I hated you.”
His face, now stripped of all mirth, was earnest. Seiyad had meant to deny the words immediately, but paused mid-breath. Ressas had expressed disappointment, had pleaded not to be insulted, had described him in harsh terms—but never had he said he hated him.
It shouldn’t be true—and yet…
“I only mirrored what you wanted to see. So you could hate me more comfortably.”
With that calm, placid confession, the guilt Seiyad had buried resurfaced. Just as Ressas had once said—he had done nothing wrong to Seiyad. It was Seiyad who had chosen to sever him.
He still believed it was the right choice for them both. But Ressas had once said such things didn’t matter. He knew it was a lie—and yet, for some reason, that line came back to him now.
“So why have you suddenly changed your mind?”
“Well, that’s simple. You need me now.”
Ressas spoke more easily than he had half a year ago. He seemed fully aware of the power he possessed now. And because Seiyad knew denying the truth behind those words would only make him a liar, he said nothing.
That kind of confidence from Ressas was deeply disorienting, even unsettling—but it wasn’t enough of a reason to avoid him.
“So be honest. You came here looking for me, didn’t you?”
Ressas, who until now had respected the distance Seiyad put between them, began to close the space between them step by step. In no time at all, they were close enough to touch. A fresh, verdant scent lingered in Ressas’s presence.
“Aunt Parma told me that you haven’t received enough Purification Rituals lately. But I didn’t need her to tell me—I can feel it myself.”
A tingling sensation spread across the back of Seiyad’s left hand. Ressas’s fingertips brushed softly, gently against his scar. The subtle energy intermingled with the ticklish touch, seeping into Seiyad’s veins.
The chaotic waves that had churned inside him without rest suddenly reacted—greedily, almost savagely—as they recognized Ressas. Heat surged to the point where his energy entered. The tingling spread throughout his body and with it, a swelling desire followed. He wanted to seize that pale hand, crush it in his grip, and pull the man in front of him into a tight embrace. It wasn’t his own emotion or will—it was instinct, the primal drive of a Tither.
“Beware the ecstasy they bring.”
Whenever he was on the verge of entering deep purification, his mother’s old words would surface out of nowhere—and this time was no different. It had been a while, but they echoed through his mind again.
Seiyad hated this desire born between a Tither and a Guide. It made him feel like he was being deluded by something that didn’t even exist. Like being tricked into thinking he loved someone he didn’t.
“It’s enough for now.”
He swatted Ressas’s hand away on purpose, sharply. Smack. The sound of skin on skin rang out clearly. Ressas glanced down at his rejected hand without a single flinch or step back. He didn’t frown or bite his lip like before. His face held a composed expression, as if he had expected it.
“Then when is the right time for you? Just being near me makes your waves thrash like that. Isn’t it strange to keep holding back?”
He’d pushed him away, but just as Ressas said, Seiyad did crave purification. Just breathing next to him brought calm to his body. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how much of that emptiness could be filled if he rubbed and bit into that pale skin until it left him sick of it.
But the moment he considered giving in to that primal urge, Ressas’s earlier question—Did you come here because you missed me?—flashed through his mind. A stubborn pride rose up. He didn’t want to be completely at the mercy of this man.
“Didn’t the Duke say it himself? That he wanted my help to prevent a Rampage.”
Somehow, Ressas had learned how to handle hearts he used to fumble with. He took hold of the reins so smoothly now.
“I’m simply willing to assist the Duke in using me. Do whatever you want with me. If it’s body heat you need, I’ll gladly offer mine. If you want a kiss, I’ll give it to you anytime. I told you before—I’m your Guide.”
Every word brushing past his ear sounded indecent. Seiyad looked away slightly, but those violet eyes followed him, clinging to his gaze. Ressas’s expression remained harmless—like an innocent deer nestled in a meadow, clear and guileless.
“Was the last kiss not to your liking? If that’s the case, then please forgive me for it. It was my first time tasting someone’s lips, so I know I must have been lacking. The Grand Duke’s lips were sweeter than any apple… I didn’t know how to savor it properly and ended up getting carried away.”
To say such things—with that face…
The spring sun, which had calmed for a moment, now scorched the back of his neck again. Not even Aster had said such things to him. He’d once thought Ressas’s slyness didn’t hold a candle to Aster’s—but it seemed the winter months had pushed him fully off the edge.
“Well, you clearly know this yourself. You’re so clumsy and unskilled compared to the Crown Prince that it’s impossible to feel even a flicker of desire. That’s all.”
Petty resentment flared, and Seiyad brought up Aster on purpose.
For the first time, Ressas’s serene expression cracked. The calm white face hardened for just an instant. His thick black brows twitched faintly, and his violet eyes rippled—wounded.
Seiyad, too, was caught off guard by that reaction. He hadn’t expected such a deep response—especially now that he stood on equal footing with Aster, and had never once shown any signs of feeling inferior to him.
