“…I’m sorry.”

Barmas apologized to Romei. It was the first genuine apology of his life, coming straight from his heart.

The unfamiliar words flowed so naturally from his lips that Barmas surprised himself. He had never imagined saying such things before.

Right now, Barmas was doing things in front of her that he had never once considered doing in his entire life, either willingly or unwillingly.

He had cried in fear of someone leaving his side, begged someone not to leave him, sincerely confessed his love, and admitted his wrongdoings.

All in one night, for just one person.

But there was no response from Romei. When he had confessed his love, she had at least turned to look at him with surprise, but now she was completely ignoring him.

Perhaps she considered this apology just another performance to keep her, like his love confession. With her eyes still closed, she replied dismissively, speaking with complete indifference.

“…Try that with the next person.”

Then, seemingly too tired to say anything more, she promptly fell asleep. In the dim light, he could see her facial muscles softly relaxing.

Soon after, the sound of her steady breathing filled the room. Outside the window, the pitch-black darkness was receding, giving way to a bluish dawn.

Barmas remained awake alone in the room, quietly gazing at Romei’s face bathed in the dawn light. And he made a decision.

He would do whatever it took to make her happy during the moments she spent with him. Even if that was ultimately just his selfishness.

* * *

After her conversation with Barmas that had yielded no progress whatsoever, Romei opened her eyes again around noon one day.

She had intended to sleep like the dead until Barmas completely gave up and discarded her, and that was exactly what she did.

Of course, she hadn’t slept continuously the entire time. Her eyes would occasionally open, but she would quickly fall back asleep as soon as the drowsiness faded.

Because of this, all that remained in Romei’s memory of the past few months was pitch-black darkness where she couldn’t see an inch in front of her, the fleeting faces of some servants, and the murmuring voice of Barmas.

In this way, Romei had let time pass while she existed like a breathing corpse, with barely any memories remaining.

And now, she had suddenly awakened once more, overcoming both sleep and death.

“…”

Everything was quiet, and a cool breeze blew through the slightly opened window.

For a moment, she thought she caught the fresh scent of flowers on the breeze, but Romei dismissed it as her imagination. There were no flowers to be found anywhere in this vicinity.

Romei lay still, silently staring at the ceiling and blinking. Whether her body was starting to adapt to the long sleep or preparing for death, the intervals between her waking periods were gradually lengthening.

‘If this continues, I’ll surely die.’

Barmas had said he wouldn’t discard her, but if things continued this way, he would have no choice. He wouldn’t have a hobby of playing with a toy that had stopped breathing.

‘When that time comes, it will prove that his declarations of love and his pleas for me to stay by his side were all lies.’

That’s what Romei thought.

She never learned why he wanted her so desperately that he would beg her to stay by his side, but now she didn’t care either way. She only wanted to enjoy freedom as soon as possible.

“Are you awake?”

Breaking the peaceful silence, Barmas approached and greeted her. At the sudden sound of his voice, Romei moved her eyes to look at him.

She had thought no one was in the room because it was too quiet, but apparently Barmas had been watching over her.

She had been lying still without making a sound, merely blinking her eyes, so she couldn’t understand how he knew she was awake.

Reading her thoughts, Barmas answered.

“Your breathing sounds different when you’re asleep and when you’re awake. That’s how I noticed.”

“…I didn’t ask.”

“I know. I’m just telling you because I thought you might be curious.”

Though Romei deliberately provoked him, Barmas responded with a slight smile.

Romei stared at him blankly. He had claimed to have reformed that night, but there was clearly something wrong with his head.

While Romei was nurturing a small but certain doubt in her mind, Barmas straightened his back and asked. It was a strangely ordinary question that made it all the more unusual.

“Now that you’re up, shall we get you washed and fed?”

“…”

“What? Do you dislike even the food I give you?”

Barmas asked, but Romei didn’t answer. She didn’t particularly want to eat anything, nor did she want to accept his pretense of kindness.

Instead of getting angry at her lack of response, Barmas shrugged his shoulders, acting like he had expected this reaction, and moved away from her with an indifferent expression.

There was a rattling sound of him taking something out of a drawer, followed by the sound of water being poured into a cup.

Then Barmas returned to Romei’s side with the water cup.

She thought he was trying to make her drink water if she didn’t want food, but contrary to her expectations, Barmas placed the cup on the bedside table and got into the bed. Then he suddenly lifted Romei’s body and held her in his arms.

“…”

Finding herself suddenly in his embrace, Romei looked at Barmas with slightly bewildered eyes. However, he proceeded to his next action with extreme familiarity.

He supported her head with his arm, took a sip of water from the cup on the bedside table, and then pressed his lips against hers.

“…!”

Before she could even be surprised, cool water and a pill pushed through between their sealed lips.

Without time to refuse, Romei unconsciously swallowed the pill along with the water. After hearing the clear gulping sound, Barmas separated their lips.

Then Romei asked him.

“…What did you just do?”

“You swallowed it and you don’t know? It’s medicine. Since you don’t want to eat.”

“An aphrodisiac?”

She asked this because that was the only kind of drug he had ever given her, but Barmas frowned, seemingly offended, and answered with a touch of irritation.

“I don’t know why you think I would give an aphrodisiac instead of food to someone who isn’t eating, but it’s not that. It’s just regular medicine. The kind that helps you survive without proper meals.”

“…”

“You don’t need to worry that I’ve poisoned you. Like I said before, I have absolutely no intention of discarding you.”

Barmas said this while wiping away the water that had trickled from the corner of Romei’s mouth with his thumb. His touch seemed quite affectionate and familiar.

However, what mattered to Romei wasn’t his affectionate touch but the fact that he must have been regularly giving her medicine like this to prolong her life.

‘No wonder I’m still alive despite having done nothing but sleep without eating or drinking all this time.’

Romei couldn’t understand why he was making such futile efforts to keep her alive.

Moreover, her body no longer responded to their physical union the way it once had. From his perspective, it would be more efficient to give her aphrodisiacs or poison.

But Barmas spoke up, seemingly having anticipated even this train of thought.

“I won’t give you anything harmful. That’s what I’ve decided.”

“…”

“From your perspective, it might seem selfish, but I can’t help it. I’m a devil, so I’m naturally rotten.”

“…That’s true.”

Romei agreed, having heard something true from him for the first time in a long while. Her inner thoughts had naturally slipped out.

“When I wanted to live, you were desperate to kill me, but now that I want to die, you’re desperate to keep me alive—just like a contrarian frog.”

“…Rather than a contrarian frog, I’d prefer you think of it as locking the stable door after the horse has bolted.”

“I don’t see the difference.”

In response to Romei’s indifferent retort, Barmas inwardly replied that there was indeed a difference.

From her perspective, it might seem like he was being unreasonable and throwing a tantrum, but surprisingly, Barmas was currently acting quite rationally and reasonably.

He was simply doing something so foolish that even a passing dog wouldn’t do—losing Romei first, then trying to hold onto her and waiting for her return.

Therefore, from his perspective, the latter was more appropriate, but since both involved futile actions, he didn’t bother to say it aloud.

Instead, he changed the subject.

“Since you’re awake for the first time in a while, is there anything you want to do?”

“…”

“I know you’ll be awake for a little while. How about a bath? You haven’t sweated much, but just in case.”

“…”

“If you want to go back to sleep, that’s fine too. I’ll even sing you a lullaby.”

“…No, thanks.”

Romei, who had been quietly listening to him, expressed her displeasure at the mention of a lullaby.

She didn’t want to do anything, was already exhausted from being asked about her wishes, and a lullaby? She didn’t want to hear that even in her dreams.

Barmas briefly showed a hurt expression before lightly grumbling and laying Romei back down on the bed.

“I don’t understand why you’re reacting that way. Believe it or not, I was quite popular. Quite a few humans fell for my voice.”

“…I see.”

Romei responded insensitively. It wasn’t information she particularly wanted to know, nor was she interested.

Despite thinking this, Romei unconsciously added more. It seemed that when the will to live disappeared, words came out directly without passing through thought.

“Your voice is certainly captivating, but it also feels equally dangerous, so I doubt you were that popular.”

“…”

“Still, it seems there was demand. Do people tend to be drawn to danger…?”

Even though he knew she had spoken without any particular meaning, Barmas’s heart began to beat foolishly at the fact that she had described his voice as captivating.

The situation was serious, and Romei was trying to leave him through death. Yet, the corners of his mouth kept curling up slightly.