Little Pink Starfish

It was what Ishar had wanted the most since he took in Veloan. Even when Veloan fell into the abyss and tried to accept death, Ishar had hoped—and hadn’t he prayed?

At the final moment, he had hoped that his beloved disciple had suffered just a little less.

Because I’ll end up hurting Veloan once more…

Throughout their lovemaking, Ishar kept telling himself that he would hand the imperial crown to Veloan as soon as they returned to the capital, then vanish.

At the peak, as Veloan gasped on top of him, the words he spoke almost as often as Ishar’s name were:

“I love you.”

The way he looked at him. The desperate voice. Ishar understood.

Veloan wasn’t convincing himself that he loved Ishar just because he had to become the “empress.”

He truly loved Ishar.

Ishar had never loved anyone before. Not in his past life, not in this one.

Veloan…

That wouldn’t change in the future either, but through the way Veloan looked at him—full of longing and affection—through every touch and gesture, Ishar felt his love.

He felt sorry for having misunderstood, thinking Veloan had loved Yujin.

“As I said earlier, it’s pain you’ve already gone through because of me.”

“I was fine.”

“Then it’s all good, isn’t it? I’m fine too.”

Would it have been better if he didn’t know Veloan so well?

The moment he saw that firm look in his eyes, he knew—this boy would never take back his decision.

At times like this, no persuasion, coaxing, or threats would work. In fact, the more Ishar talked, the more Veloan would harden his resolve—or end up saying something that would hurt them both.

Just like that day, when he confessed he had joined the Kbyulle unit and gone to the abyss.

Veloan clearly wasn’t going to listen to anything right now, so Ishar decided to ask something that had always made him curious.

“Do whatever you want. But what’s the deal with semen? Isn’t it just one of many fluids the human body produces? I don’t sense any particular magic in it.”

“That was a very indecent thing to say. May I kiss you?”

Veloan suddenly pressed his lips toward him. Ishar quickly flipped over, grabbed his wrist, and gently brought Veloan’s hand to his mouth instead.

Veloan ended up kissing his own hand. He laughed deeply, finding it unexpectedly amusing.

…Has he become cheeky?

Or maybe this had always been his true nature. The Veloan in front of him felt strangely unfamiliar—so different from the last version he had seen.

“Even if I return your magical power, your body will instinctively resist it since it’s been inside me for so long. Especially with your aura and magic out of balance—if your magic returns, won’t your aura go wild too?”

“Sounds about right.”

“My semen works to boost your immunity. You could say it helps your body adapt. It suppresses resistance and helps your aura calm down, so you can absorb the magic smoothly.”

“You sound sure of yourself.”

“I am.”

“Did you test it?”

If he had, it must’ve been during the past three years.

Realizing Veloan hadn’t told him everything, Ishar felt a little bitter.

“Let’s say I did.”

“What kind of—!”

Shouldn’t a person be allowed to finish their sentence? Suddenly, Veloan slid his arms under Ishar’s back and knees and lifted him up.

“…!”

As his body rose, he felt the leftover fluid gush out. He flinched. A sharp pain hit him and his eyes trembled.

Damn it.

The place that had taken Veloan again and again ached. With that size and force—of course he wasn’t fine. The unfamiliar pain felt especially intense.

It hurts now—how much worse will it be after sleep? He did massage me, but I’ll probably get sore anyway.

Most of the positions they used had activated muscles Ishar rarely used—not the ones used for swordplay or daily work.

Some positions, Ishar hadn’t even taught him.

As he considered whether to ask for another massage, Veloan carried him into the next room.

It was completely different from the one they had just been in.

Everything was black—the wallpaper, furniture, bedding. Though trimmed with silver, the mood still felt bleak. If anyone stayed here too long, it’d mess with their mood.

“Ah. You look even more lovely like this, Ishar.”

Veloan laid Ishar down on the black-covered bed and murmured in a daze.

He kissed the blue-and-white waves of hair spread out like a curtain across the dark sheets, his face glowing with pure happiness.

It felt cruel to push him away. Ishar let Veloan be and lay down beside him. Once he left that room full of scent and traces of sex, he could finally breathe.

I should wash up before bed.

That was his plan—but maybe it was the fresh bedding. Or maybe it was Veloan’s body curling up behind him, warm and firm.

His eyelids grew heavy, sleep coming on fast.

He had felt strangely awake just moments ago despite being exhausted, but that was an illusion. Sleep took him without warning.

When he tried to sit up, afraid he’d fall asleep as he was, Veloan pulled him close.

The solid chest at his back and warm body heat shattered his resistance.

“Good night, Ishar.”

A soft kiss and a ticklish breath on his neck pulled him into sleep.

---

As expected, when Ishar woke up, pain shot through his entire body. Even though he’d braced himself, it was intense.

He hadn’t felt this sore even back when he was still building his body, before becoming a Swordmaster.

So it really was the positions…

While he was seriously thinking about that, Veloan, who had healed him with magic and even applied hot compresses, answered the unspoken question.

“Ten hours, you say…?”

“Roughly that much.”

Ten hours is ten hours—what’s “roughly” supposed to mean?

Good thing I didn’t die of exhaustion.

Of course, they did rest and talk in between, or just cuddle and share light touches.

Still, the sheer amount of time spent in bed with Veloan left Ishar in shock.

When he furrowed his brow, Veloan, who was gently combing his long pale-blue hair, kissed the crown of his head and spoke again.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t give a clearer answer. But you’re just so lovely, I couldn’t look away.”

“…”

“If you want, I can use time magic to tell you the exact duration.”

Ishar immediately refused. He didn’t want to know the precise amount of time he had spent in bed with his disciple.

“No need. But did you say time magic?”

“Yes.”

With a soft swish, a red ribbon like Veloan’s eyes passed through his vision.

Watching Veloan braid his hair in the mirror, Ishar felt a strange mix of emotions.

He could’ve just tied it simply…

His serious face was just like when he was a child. Ishar couldn’t bring himself to stop him.

“I saw you cast magic on Jishka. But if I’m not mistaken, you used another spell as well, didn’t you?”

“You’re as sharp as ever. That arrogant bastard tried to use you to make a deal with me. I made him pay.”

“What kind of magic?”

“An illusion spell. I bound his body in time, but left his mind free. For one minute, he felt like he was experiencing a hundred years—suffering through the worst horrors he could imagine.”

“Did you kill him?”

“No. I left him alive. Because you went out of your way to find him for me.”

Veloan kissed the end of the neatly braided hair, clearly pleased. Wherever he learned it, the braiding was no amateur work—he’d even tied it with a ribbon.

“I told you not to mess with dangerous magic.”

Back when he taught Veloan, Ishar had never taught him time or illusion spells—mental magic. Not because they were ancient, but because—

“Even if they seem harmless, illusion magic affects the caster too. Time magic can sever your connection to the world and eventually destroy your body.”

“I know. But Ishar…”

Veloan leaned down and wrapped his arms around Ishar’s shoulders. Their eyes met in the mirror.

Even without facing him directly, Veloan’s red eyes glowed, unblinking like wet stone.

He tilted his head and bit Ishar’s ear softly. Ishar flinched, his body trembling. The smiling face looked like the Veloan of the past—but it wasn’t the same.

The Veloan of now felt like a starved beast barely hiding its instincts.

“I have power I can control perfectly. So don’t worry.”