Little Pink Starfish

“Big brother prefers formality. If I use my own paper, he might hate it. Nanny, do you think he’ll be pleased? I made it just like he said… but what if he’s disappointed?”

“Your Highness made it solely for the Crown Prince. He’ll be overjoyed. Don’t worry, Your Highness.”

Ignorance is a sin for royalty.

As a child, Ishar had stood at the very peak of ignorance. The foolish voice from those days—when he committed a sin simply to be loved—echoed in his head, and his hands trembled violently.

Unfolding the paper took a second, but it felt like an eternity. What lay inside was exactly what he feared.

A magic formula, each letter pressed with care, written in the unmistakable handwriting of young Ishar.

Anyone familiar with his script would know instantly. Worse, it bore his magic imprint—any mage familiar with his signature could trace the spell’s creator with ease.

“Is something wrong, Ishar?”

Veloan’s voice came from behind—distant. Ishar turned to see him standing quietly at the threshold of the study, not stepping inside. He hadn’t taken his eyes off Ishar since they entered the facility.

“It’s unfortunate that Duke Superzen took his own life, but the remaining evidence and letters in the lab should be enough to prove his crimes. If we search the other floors, we might even find the victims’ bodies.”

Veloan’s tone was calm, almost indifferent. Not a single emotion toward the Duke—because since arriving, his gaze had been fixed solely on Ishar.

The paper crumpled loudly as Ishar’s grip tightened. Then, with steady steps, he approached Veloan. The door shut behind him with a soft click, but he didn’t look back.

The ease of it all—the setup, the lack of resistance, the perfectly convenient revelations—everything clicked at once like gears snapping into place. It wasn’t mercy.

It was design.

“You planned this.”

The words slipped from between his lips in a quiet, tight whisper.

Veloan smiled.

Gone was the soft, wavering vulnerability in Ishar’s violet eyes. Now they were cold and unyielding, reflecting Veloan’s red gaze like glass. And in that red gaze—there was still a hint of amusement.

“You sent the invitation with the coordinates to this lab. In the end, it was you, wasn’t it? To make sure I didn’t send anyone else. To make sure I came here myself.”

Veloan met his eyes unflinchingly.

“Yes. A gift… for you, who waited three years for me.”

At first, Veloan’s gaze seemed calm. But as Ishar looked closer, he saw the truth: a storm, wild and turbulent, hidden beneath the surface. He hadn’t noticed before—it was too savage to be understood as love.

Now he saw it clearly.

Devotion, tinged with madness.

And it made Ishar shudder more than anything else in that laboratory.

“You may give me what’s in your hand, or not,” Veloan said softly. “Do as you please. Regardless of your choice, what I’ve prepared here is enough to eliminate Duke Superzen and the nobles who would wound you later.”

But Ishar didn’t hear the rest.

Only one word rang in his ears: choice.

And the weight of the paper in his hand—his guilt.

If he chose to destroy it and hide his sin, Veloan would go on loving him as he did now. Maybe even more.

But if he gave it up and confessed his crime—this love might change. It might end.

He looked down at the crumpled paper. With Veloan’s skill, he’d likely already read its magical imprint. He would know—without a doubt—that the sin was Ishar’s.

“But he gave me a choice. If I destroy it now… he’ll stay. He’ll love me. He’ll become my empress.”

Wasn’t that why he’d come here in the first place? To erase the evidence?

“But…”

Now that the moment had arrived, Ishar knew what he had to do. He closed his eyes, took a breath—and opened them again with resolve.

He stepped forward and placed the paper into Veloan’s hand.

He met the red eyes head-on and spoke:

“I don’t want to sin against you anymore. Even if this makes you hate me, I can’t—won’t—deceive you, the one I love, to preserve my own happiness.”

He didn’t want to lie to Veloan. He couldn’t.

Veloan was the one who had given him a new life—the first to offer him love in the suffocating tomb of the imperial palace.

Because of Veloan, Ishar had learned to breathe. To feel the seasons. To live.

Veloan had given him spring’s beginning, summer’s sky, autumn’s freshness, and the wonder of winter’s stars.

Wherever Veloan stood—that place became Ishar’s sanctuary.

“Even if you never smile at me again. Even if you treat me with nothing but hatred… I will still love you. I may become pathetic, clinging for just one of your smiles—but I’ll still love you. And for that… I’m sorry.”

“…”

“I love you. More than you can imagine.”

He felt lighter—relieved—having finally said it all. The only regret was not saying it earlier, when Veloan had asked.

But… if I’d said it then, he wouldn’t have believed me.

He might’ve only grown more suspicious, thinking it manipulation.

But why isn’t he saying anything? I can’t read his face at all…

Veloan’s expression was blank—unreadable. Ishar couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

The silence grew unbearable.

Then finally, Veloan spoke.

“Ishar… are you saying…”

His voice was heavy, resonant—and didn’t feel like rejection. But in Ishar’s ears, it sounded like:

“You know your sins… and still want to live with me?”

“…Yes. I want to live with you. Even if you torture me every day for the rest of my life, I want to spend that time with you.”

Veloan’s breath escaped like a sigh—deep and stifled.

“—!”

Before he could react, Veloan tackled him.

Their teeth clashed painfully; the taste of blood filled their mouths. But Veloan didn’t stop.

If anything, the blood seemed to drive him wilder, like a beast. His kiss was rough, consuming, desperate—and Ishar, helpless, opened up.

But in that passion, Ishar felt a strange sense of peace.

“He won’t kill me. He still wants me beside him.”

His hands, trembling, wrapped around Veloan’s back.

“I feel the same as you.”

Veloan pulled back just long enough to speak, breathless:

“How could I ever hate you, Ishar? I still love you.”

The unexpected words stunned Ishar.

He searched Veloan’s eyes—those pleading red eyes—and realized he hadn’t misheard.

“You… truly love me? Even now… you still say you love me?”

“Yes. I want to live with you. To love you. Please—will you accept me as your partner?”

For the first time in his life, Ishar understood what it meant to be too happy to speak.

His heart pounded wildly. His breath caught in his chest.

But Veloan was waiting for an answer—and Ishar found his voice.

“There is only one person in this world who can be my partner. And that’s you, Veloan.”

The radiant smile that bloomed on Veloan’s face, as if he now had the whole world, made Ishar smile back.

<The End>