Chapter 53

They say that humans can grow accustomed to anything given enough time. Yet, some horrors remain impossible to reconcile, no matter how often they are repeated. Isaac doubted he would ever acclimate to this, even if it plagued him for the remainder of his life.

Or perhaps it is simply because I am not human, he mused, his focus drifting as he felt the essence of his own life ebbing away.

Even tonight, the prince—currently tearing into the flesh of his neck—looked less like a man and more like a creature stripped of all reason. Heat radiated from Kaiyan’s body in waves, his breaths arriving in ragged, desperate hitches. Nothing remained in those eyes but raw, predatory instinct. Kaiyan had finally unearthed a source of salvation from his unbearable suffering, and he was drinking without restraint.

Pinned beneath him, with the prince’s fangs buried deep in his jugular, Isaac felt his blood surging outward, as relentless as water cascading over a precipice. A sharp, crystalline fear of death pierced his chest.

The prince has lost all capacity for reason. At this rate, he might accidentally kill me. Perhaps I really will perish this time.

Isaac existed in a state of suspended terror, lost to the cold void of time.

Then, with a sudden jerk, the prince pulled back. Isaac had barely registered the relief when Kaiyan slowly lowered his face, nuzzling downward from the side of Isaac’s throat with the predatory precision of a wild beast. The tips of his nose and lips traced the sensitive skin, a slow descent that sent a violent shiver cascading down Isaac’s spine.

The prince finally halted over Isaac’s chest. For a long, agonizing interval, his breath hitched against the skin, as though he were savoring its fragrance. The sensation was maddeningly ticklish, yet freezing cold.

This feels strangely sensual…

Kaiyan sank his teeth into the flesh. He bit directly over Isaac’s heart, as though intending to tap the source itself. As he swallowed, it felt as if Isaac’s very soul were being pulled from his body.

Fear flared anew. Isaac’s fingertips turned numb and icy, and his vision swam as lightheadedness drifted down to his toes. Only then did Kaiyan’s harsh, frantic breathing begin to stabilize.

When Isaac heard the prince’s respiration settle into a peaceful, rhythmic cadence, he understood the fever had broken. The pain receded, and reason returned. Even so, Kaiyan remained draped over him, greedily savoring the flow.

“Um… I really think I am going to die at this rate…”

Only when Isaac genuinely believed the end was imminent did he manage to force the whisper from his throat. Perhaps he truly sounded like a man on the brink of death. Kaiyan swallowed two more mouthfuls before obediently lifting his head. As Isaac locked gazes with those clear, sharply focused blue eyes, his tension evaporated, and his body went completely limp.

Kaiyan seemed poised to retreat, but then, with sudden, sharp intent, he bit Isaac’s exposed, defenseless forearm.

“Yow!”

Isaac had been incapable of uttering a sound while his life was in genuine jeopardy, but the moment a pain arrived that promised no fatal outcome, he shrieked. If he had to bite my arm, could he not have chosen the outer side? Why must he torture the soft, inner flesh?

Hot tears pricked Isaac’s eyes as he reflexively tugged his arm away. Unexpectedly, Kaiyan released him without a hint of resistance. Deciding that remaining sprawled on the ground would only invite further predation, Isaac struggled into a sitting position. The prince sat before him, delicately licking the droplets of blood from his own fingertips. Their gazes locked.

Isaac recoiled.

“The taste is different.”

“What?”

Isaac wiped a single tear from the corner of his eye. Surrounded by tigers that had approached as if awaiting a signal, they began fervently licking his forearms, neck, and chest. He looked questioningly at the prince.

“The blood tastes distinct. The neck, the chest, the arm—all unique.”

“Does it? It is all my own blood… That is bizarre.”

Isaac tilted his head, perplexed. The tiger currently rasping its tongue against his neck suddenly spoke.

「What is strange about it? Sirloin, tenderloin, and ribs come from the same cow, yet do they all taste identical? Naturally, different flavors allow one to choose according to preference.」

「But blood from the chest is superior. It is closest to the heart, so it is the richest and freshest.」

「No, the forearm is objectively better. Blood near the veins is properly matured and possesses a deeper, more robust flavor.」

「Fools who cannot appreciate the savory richness of neck blood! You have a long way to go before you can call yourselves gourmets!」

“You are all treating me like common livestock!” Isaac erupted. “Stop licking me! Get off! Take your mouths off me and move!”

He shoved the tigers away as they clung to various parts of his anatomy.

「Look at him, driving us away the instant his wounds have healed.」

「How stingy.」

「How shameless.」

The tigers retreated with audible reluctance, smacking their lips. As they had implied, every single wound had vanished without a trace. Isaac stroked his unmarked skin, feeling hollow. The blood he had lost, however, had not been replenished. He shook his head repeatedly, trying to clear the lingering dizziness.

“All three areas possess distinct qualities,” Kaiyan observed. “Yes. The taste is quite exquisite.”

His gaze traveled with lethargic intensity over Isaac’s body. Isaac felt those sharp, azure eyes piercing him, and he could not help but tremble. The corners of Kaiyan’s eyes narrowed into a faint, predatory smirk. He appeared profoundly satisfied with the reaction.

“We will reserve the other areas for the next new moon.”

With that, he rose effortlessly to his feet. Now that I look closely, he possesses a surprisingly spiteful streak. Isaac kept the biting remark locked behind his teeth. Perhaps intending to wash away the sweat that had drenched him during his ordeal, Kaiyan stepped into the enormous bath recessed into the bedroom floor, submerging himself completely. Only when Isaac heard the cool, refreshing rush of water did he feel that tonight’s trauma had reached its conclusion.

Kaiyan seemed to have consumed even more blood than during their last encounter. The room tilted dangerously around Isaac. He would recover quickly because it was the night of the new moon, but on any other day, he would have collapsed from anemia long ago.

Sighing, Isaac moved with agonizing slowness. He rolled his shoulders and tilted his neck, checking that his anatomy remained intact.

He had survived once again.

Thank you, God.

「Did he just think something extremely irreverent?」

「Entirely unbecoming of a proper witch.」

Isaac ignored the tigers whispering among themselves and continued his simple, grounding stretches.

Kaiyan emerged from the bath. He dried himself with the towel hanging nearby, then suddenly froze, staring intently at a single point in the room.

Isaac followed his gaze without thinking and flinched.

The prince was looking past the bedroom door—specifically at the bodyguard standing perfectly rigid beside it, maintaining his vigil.

An unremarkable bodyguard stood post beside the bedroom door, his face a perfect duplicate of the one Isaac viewed in his own mirror every morning. Only Isaac and the three tigers knew that the figure was a mere phantom, a hollow shell draped in human skin.

Isaac watched, nerves fraying, as the prince stared fixedly at the guard. Had he glimpsed a crack in the deception? Why was he scrutinizing the ‘man’ so intensely?

As Isaac watched, his pulse hammering against his ribs, Kaiyan strode toward the illusion. Isaac’s heart immediately plunged into his stomach.

The prince stopped a single pace away. He studied the figure—which stood rigid with artificial tension—and extended a hand. Isaac ceased breathing, his muscles locking as Kaiyan swept his palm from the guard’s crown to his shoulder in a slow, tactile investigation.

“I am clearly touching him, yet I feel nothing beneath my hand,” the prince murmured.

「Although it occupies the same physical space, the barrier has separated this area into an entirely different dimension,」 one of the tigers replied.

Kaiyan mulled this over, then pivoted toward them. “How do I appear to this man at this very moment?”

「Exactly as you appeared the second the barrier manifested. If you were asleep, he perceives you slumbering.」

「If you were writhing in agony, he perceives you in that same state of torment.」

Kaiyan fell into a contemplative silence, his eyes drifting back to the guard. Isaac was instantly transported back to the moment the new-moon magic had surged to life. The prince had been caught in the throes of a white-hot, boiling agony—a sight so pitiable that Isaac had been compelled to approach and offer his own skin for Kaiyan to bite, hoping to provide any outlet for the pain.

“Why are you suddenly questioning this?” Isaac finally ventured, keeping his eyes on the prince. “Did he do something to catch your attention?”

Kaiyan lingered on the guard for another heartbeat, “No,” and turned away.

Isaac exhaled, a wave of relief washing over him. It was impossible for Kaiyan to have uncovered the truth, yet the weight of such intense scrutiny had been suffocating.

Still, the underlying question gnawed at him: why had the prince studied the decoy so intently? The lack of an answer bothered him far more than he cared to admit.

“That’s a different guard from last time, isn’t it?” Isaac asked, feigning casual ignorance. “Is he a new addition?”

Kaiyan offered a curt, barely perceptible nod. “Mm.”

“Is he at least competent?”

Isaac pressed, continuing his charade. The prince’s gaze shifted, landing heavily upon Isaac. Isaac recoiled as if struck.

Had he blundered? Was that the wrong question to ask? His extremities tingled with the sharp, guilty panic of a thief caught in his own shadow.

“Why are you so interested in my bodyguard?” Kaiyan’s eyes seemed to bore straight through him.

“Well, I… I’m not, really,” Isaac fumbled, searching desperately for a plausible exit. “He just happened to be standing there. I have no interest in him. None whatsoever.” He kept his tone firm, though sweat began to trace a path down his spine under the prince’s silent observation. I should have kept my mouth shut. I never should have brought him up.

As Isaac spiraled into belated regret, Kaiyan spoke, his voice measured and slow. “When a witch takes an interest in a human, it generally stems from one of two motivations.”

Isaac, who had been focused on avoiding the prince’s eyes, looked up in confusion.

“Either that human’s greed is so vast and grotesque that it acts as a beacon for dark things, or…” Kaiyan paused, his eyes narrowing. “The witch simply covets the human’s flesh.”