It was nothing more than a suffocating obsession directed toward someone he considered his equal.

And that realization dragged me even deeper into despair.

***

“What am I to you?”

In the darkness, a version of myself from the past flickered by.

Back then, I had been so naïve believing that as long as I was in D’hiver’s arms, there was nothing in the world to fear.

“Violette… you?”

The D’hiver who had once held me so gently had answered like this.

“The most important person within me.”

But now, the face of the man standing before me twisted grotesquely.

Thud.

As if a mask had fallen away, his face dropped to the ground.

And inside it was something pitch-black, something without even a discernible expression.

My lips trembled.

“Did you really have to ask?”

The voice echoed sharply in my ears.

Even the warmth of those past memories was denied to me, the wound twisting into a nightmare that tore through me.

“Something that resembles Zesti.”

That once-familiar voice warped into something unbearably grotesque.

“The one thing that can end my wretched life.”

In an instant, I shot up from where I lay, gasping for breath. My short scream echoed through the familiar room.

“What is it?”

At the voice that rang inside my head, I turned, still struggling to breathe.

Teslai was there.

I shook my head weakly and buried my face in my hands. But my hands couldn’t hide the sobs or the tears. Trying to suppress it all, I murmured,

“I want it to stop. Everything…”

“…Such a fragile heart.”

Teslai clicked his tongue.

At that moment, a faint light slipped through the gaps between my fingers.

Then—a human voice followed.

“You, you know… wherever you go, you’d be cherished. Humans are creatures drawn to beauty, after all.”

I lifted my head sharply.

A man stood there—young enough to be called a boy, yet old enough to be a man. His age was impossible to place.

Ignoring his words, I whispered hoarsely,

“Teslai?”

“Yes.”

He stepped closer.

Teslai—now in human form—reached out and patted my head.

Perhaps because he had once been a sword, his touch was cold, like metal.

And yet… why did it feel better than that empty dream where I felt nothing at all?

Blinking as I looked at him, I asked the question that mattered most.

“…Where is D’hiver?”

“He’s gone to rest for a while. It was quite a blow.”

“A blow?”

At my question, Teslai scratched his cheek, then smiled lightly as if it were nothing.

“You turned back time, didn’t you?”

“Is that really such a big deal? Even for someone like him?”

“It is precisely because he is what he is that it becomes a great blow. Something that did not exist has now come into being. Still, after a day or two of rest, he should recover. And…”

Teslai’s gaze swept over me.

“It is not something that leaves the one who performed the magic unscathed, either.”

The one who performed it…

Me?

But I… couldn’t quite understand.

Was it because both my body and my heart were already in ruins?

“Child who holds the right, it is forbidden for a human to tamper with time.”

At those words, I let out a hollow breath.

The one who had tempted me with sweet words—who had told me to do exactly that—who had that been?

“…You were the one who told me to go to the past.”

At that, Teslai looked me over with clear, unreadable eyes.

From head to toe—like observing a test subject.

“Your position is… rather special.”

“Special?”

“Right now, you are… yes, in a truly ambiguous state. A human who has made a pact with a transcendent being—and one who can become one.”

His words grew more cryptic.

“That is why even I could not see you clearly. In the end, you are still nothing more than a human standing at the threshold of transcendence. And so, by turning back time, you must pay the price.”

“…A price?”

“Your most precious thing. The very thing you desire above all else.”

My most precious thing.

…Love.

To love.

To be loved.

That was all I had ever wanted.

That must be what I treasured most.

Perhaps that was why my sister’s words suddenly came back to me.

That the moment she saw my face, all her desire to treat me kindly had vanished.

I lifted my head sharply and grabbed Teslai by the arms.

My voice trembled as I asked,

“Then… does that mean I have to live like this… forever? Without being loved by anyone?”

“If that is what you cherished most, then yes.”

His calm answer shattered my heart.

And then, the voice that had once lured me returned to my mind.

“So you’re saying… you offered me that, knowing I would end up like this?”

“Don’t take it to heart. To me, that is simply how things are.”

The answer was absurd. But what set this sword apart from D’hiver was that its gaze remained clear—transparent, untouched.

“I am a divine sword. I judge the humans who may become transcendent, and I turn them into such beings. That alone is the mission bestowed upon me by the divine. I exist solely for that purpose.”

…This thing wasn’t normal either.

Then again, was it even meaningful to speak of something like a sword in terms of normal or not?

“So, if that is what you desire most—”

Teslai leaned in close to my ear.

A whisper like a devil’s temptation fell against me.

“Then become a transcendent being.”

A cold hand settled on my shoulder.

A temptation more intoxicating than anything else tried once again to ensnare me.

“If you do, the price you paid will be undone. Everything you desire will be yours, and the world will become one made for you.”

“I can already do something like that.”

But I didn’t yield to the sweetness of that voice.

I brushed away the cold hand on my shoulder.

“I could just create a doll that pretends to love me.”

It wasn’t something I had never considered.

It would be easier than breathing, to create substitutes for Blanche, for Suki.

But the reason I hadn’t—

“…because it would be fake.”

I knew all too well how hollow it was to exist within that fabricated comfort.

“It wouldn’t truly love me.”

In the end, that was why I had been disappointed, why I had been hurt by D’hiver.

Letting out a long sigh, I staggered to my feet.

I needed to return to the Silcania estate.

To find what my mother had left for me.

That had been my original purpose but I had forgotten it completely in my anger.

Ah… there had been truth in his words, after all.

I needed to calm down and think.

I reached out toward the firmly shut door.

But that wretched sword stopped me.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“To my family.”

“Why?”

“…Yesterday, I was so angry that I forgot. The reason I went to them in the first place.”

As my quiet murmur fell, a low laugh sounded behind me.

But that was all.

The sword didn’t stop me.

Just as I was about to throw the door open and leave—

Crackle!

A sharp current shot through my fingertips the moment I touched the entrance.

Something blocked me.

I couldn’t step outside.

I stood there blankly, then reached out again.

Thud!

The doorway pushed me back, refusing my passage.

“What is this…?”

“You cannot leave.”

At my stunned murmur, Teslai answered with a mocking whisper.

“Think about it. Do you believe D’hiver Keith would let you go? Especially in your current state?”

…He was right.

Once, I had thrown myself into a carriage without hesitation.

Of course he would try to prevent that at all costs.

So this room had become a prison tailored just for me.

…It was only natural.

And yet, at this moment, it still hurt.

In the end, something inside me snapped.

I thrashed wildly, like a madwoman.

I tried the door, then the window—tried to throw myself outside.

I even used magic.

But not a single step—not even one—could I take beyond that room.

Exhausted from struggling, I bit down hard on my lip.

Staring resentfully at the door, I finally gave up and collapsed onto the floor.

Though the room was filled with all kinds of things, it felt utterly empty.

Blinking blankly, I pulled my knees to my chest.

I didn’t want to look at anything here.

I didn’t even want to breathe.

I just wanted to scatter into dust and disappear somewhere far away.

The sun that had once filled the room with light faded into darkness.

In the pitch-black room, sitting there alone—time felt endlessly miserable.

Only my silent tears remained, offering what little comfort they could.

Then, the door burst open.

A faint light spilled inside.

“Violette.”

D’hiver, unchanged, called my name as he walked toward me.

With every step he took, it sounded as though shards of glass were shattering beneath his feet.

“What is all this…?”

“What kind of mess have you made?”

At last, warmth touched my shoulder.

Startled, I stiffened and shrank back, answering sharply,

“Leave.”

“Don’t be like this—”

“I said get out! I don’t even want to look at you!”

At my outburst, he didn’t move an inch.

Instead, he stepped closer and seized my arm, forcing my head up so I had no choice but to look at him.

“How long are you going to keep being angry?”

…How long?

To me, it had been something heavy—something shattering.

But to D’hiver, who had feared all of this, it seemed to be nothing at all.

Was my shock… my despair… truly that insignificant to him?

A hollow laugh slipped out.

“…Let me go.”

I turned my head away from him.

Pale moonlight spilled down over me.

“I don’t want to live here. I think I’ll calm down if I don’t have to see you.”

“That’s not possible.”

I bit down on my lip.

Through the small gap, my trembling voice escaped.

“Why?”

“Why?”

D’hiver’s voice dropped.

His crimson eyes gleamed with something dangerous.

“Do I need a reason?”