It’s said that humans are creatures capable of getting used to anything, but there are some things you never get used to no matter how many times you experience them. Perhaps he wouldn’t get used to this even if he did it for the rest of his life……. ‘No, maybe it’s just because I’m not fully human…….’

Isaac thought as his blood was sucked away. This time, too, the sensation remained utterly unfamiliar, and goosebumps erupted all over his body.

The Prince, biting his neck and sucking his blood, was like a beast devoid of reason again today. His body radiating intense heat, his rough breathing, his eyes devoid of reason with only instinct remaining.

Pinned by the neck to him, who fearlessly sucked in the only saving blood amidst his terrifying pain, Isaac felt his blood being drawn out like a waterfall from his neck. The fear of death rushed in vividly at the thought that the Prince, completely devoid of reason, might just kill him like this.

‘This time, I might really die.’

How much time had passed in that chilling fear that gripped his heart, when suddenly the Prince seemed to detach from Isaac’s neck. For a brief moment of relief that it was finally over, the Prince slowly slithered up from his neckline like a beast. The sensation of his nose and lips slowly tracing down the skin makes the hair on the back of his neck stand up all over again.

The Prince’s face stopped over Isaac’s chest. As if sniffing him, the breath tracing over his chest for a moment was ticklish and eerie…….Just as he was thinking the mood is getting a bit weird……, Isaac felt the sensation of teeth biting into his flesh and thought, Well, of course.

Right above the heart. As if trying to drink the blood straight from the heart, the Prince, having bitten into his chest, swallowed the blood. It felt as if his very life was draining away completely. Fear rushed in once again.

He felt his fingertips turning cold. Only when his head grew dizzy and a numbness spread down to his toes did he finally feel the Prince’s rough breathing calm down. Hearing the peaceful, even sound of breathing, he realized the Prince’s pain had subsided and he had regained his reason.

Yet, as the Prince remained pinned on top of him, swallowing blood and not pulling away for a while,

“……Excuse me……, I’m really going to die at this rate…….”

Right around the time he thought he actually, truly might die, Isaac barely managed to mumble in a fading voice. Whether that voice really sounded like someone on the brink of death, the Prince swallowed a couple more mouthfuls before obediently lifting his head. Only when he met those vivid, clear blue eyes did Isaac feel completely relieved and let his entire body go limp.

The Prince seemed to slowly pull away from Isaac’s body. Then suddenly, he bit down hard on Isaac’s forearm, which was draped limply on the bed.

“OWW!!”

Isaac, who hadn’t been able to let out a peep until now, shrieked a sudden scream as pain that felt strangely disconnected from a life-threatening crisis struck him.

No, if you’re going to bite my forearm, bite the outside, why bite the soft flesh on the inside……. When Isaac tried to pull his arm away, swallowing his tears tight, the Prince surprisingly let him go obediently.

Thinking he’d get bitten even harder if he just lay there limply, Isaac shakily steadied his wobbly body and sat up. He locked eyes with the Prince, who was licking the blood smeared on his fingertips…….’Scared the hell out of me.’

“The taste is different.”

“Pardon?”

As if waiting, the tigers that had been enthusiastically licking his legs, neck, and chest suddenly surrounded Isaac, who wiped away a stray tear forming in the corner of his eye and gave the Prince a bewildered look.

“The taste of the blood is different. The neck, the chest, the arm, all of them.”

“…… Is that so? It’s all my blood, though……, that’s strange.”

When Isaac tilted his head, the tiger licking his neck suddenly spoke up.

「What’s strange about it. Even if it’s cut from the same cow, does the sirloin, tenderloin, and rib eye all taste the same?」

「Of course, they have to taste different so you can pick and choose according to your preference. But still, the chest blood is the best. It’s closest to the heart, so it’s the richest and freshest.」

「No, no, it’s the forearm. The old blood well-aged near the vein is delicious.」

「You guys don’t know the savory taste of neck blood! You’re still a long way off from calling yourselves gourmets!」

“…… What do you guys think human meat is……, stop licking! Get away right now! I said take your mouths off and get away?!”

Isaac suddenly lost his temper and violently shook off the tigers clinging everywhere. 「Look at him chasing us away right after he’s done getting hurt,」「So petty, so petty,」the tigers grumbled, smacking their lips in regret as they retreated.

As Isaac rubbed the skin where the wounds had vanished without a trace exactly as they said, yet the missing blood had not replenished, he shook his head as if throwing it off.

“All three areas have distinct flavors. Yeah, the taste is quite excellent. What about the other parts…….”

The Prince mumbled as he swept his gaze down Isaac’s body. Feeling those piercing blue eyes so vividly that Isaac’s body trembled with a shudder, the Prince’s eyes narrowed slightly. He looked satisfied with that reaction.

“I’ll leave the next new moon for later.”

With those words, the Prince stood up easily from his spot. Seeing that, Isaac grumbled internally, Now that I see it, this guy has a surprisingly mean streak in him.

Perhaps to wash away the sweat that had drenched his entire body while enduring the pain, the Prince entered the massive bathtub on one side of the bedroom and submerged himself up to his head. Only when he heard the cool sound of water did Isaac finally realize that his ordeal for today was over.

He felt like more blood had been taken today than last time. His head was spinning dizzyingly. Since it was the night of the new moon, he would recover quickly, but on any other day, he would have collapsed from anemia ten times over.

Isaac sighed and slowly moved his body. Rolling his neck left and right and checking his shoulders, he confirmed his own safety. ‘I survived again today. Thank God.’

「Hey, don’t you think he looks incredibly unholy right now? Not fitting for the duty of a witch,」 the tigers whispered to each other, but Isaac ignored them and did some bare-handed stretches. The Prince stepped out of the bathtub. Wiping the water off his body with a dry towel draped next to the tub, he suddenly stopped and stared blankly at one spot. Following his indifferent gaze, Isaac flinched. The Prince was looking at the side of the bedroom door. Specifically, at the escort standing stiffly beside the bedroom door, keeping watch.

Beside the bedroom door stood an ordinary, plain-looking escort. Wearing the exact same face Isaac saw in the mirror every day.

Only Isaac and the three tigers knew that this wasn’t an actual person, but an illusion of a human shape.

“…….”

Isaac stared at the Prince, who was gazing piercingly at the escort, with anxious eyes. Did he sense something? Why is he looking at it like that? While Isaac watched nervously, the Prince started walking towards it. Isaac’s heart plummeted.

The Prince stopped one step in front of the escort. As the Prince silently reached out a hand toward the escort, who maintained a tense demeanor with a hardened expression, Isaac stood completely frozen, holding his breath.

Watching the Prince lightly sweep his hand from the escort’s head to his shoulder as if patting him, Isaac stood rigidly, barely breathing.

“You’re clearly touching him, but it doesn’t feel like my hand is touching anything.”

The Prince mumbled.

「Even if you’re in the same space, this is a different space separated by a magical barrier.」

One of the tigers answered, looking back at the Prince, who was briefly lost in thought.

“How do I look to his eyes right now?”

「Exactly as you looked right before the barrier was deployed.」

「If you were asleep, then you look asleep; if you were in pain, you look like you’re in pain.」

The Prince fell back into thought, looking at the escort. Isaac recalled the time the new moon magic was manifested. The Prince was trapped in the center of a boiling, searing pain. The sight had been so pitiful that Isaac had approached him first, telling him to bite anywhere.

“But why did he suddenly…… did that guy do something?”

Isaac looked at the Prince, who was silently staring at the escort, with a worried gaze, and cautiously asked. Staring at the escort a little longer, the Prince replied briefly, “No,” and turned around. As he walked back this way, looking at him, Isaac sighed inwardly. I know I shouldn’t get caught, but I couldn’t help but feel incredibly anxious when he stared at it so piercingly like that. But why was he looking at it like that…… ‘It’s nerve-wracking. It’s nerve-wracking.’

“He’s different from the escort last time. Is he a new arrival?”

As Isaac feigned ignorance and asked, the Prince gave a barely perceptible nod, replying with only an “Mm.”

“Is he good at his job?”

When Isaac asked again, pretending not to know, he startled and clamped his mouth shut as the Prince’s gaze suddenly shot toward him intensely. ‘What. Did I say something wrong? Did I ask the wrong question?’ He felt like a thief with numb hands and feet.

“Why do you care about my escort?”

The Prince asked, staring at Isaac as if trying to pierce through him. Isaac stuttered, mumbling quickly, “No, well…….”

“He just happened to be there. I don’t care at all. Not even a little bit.”

Isaac cut him off sharply. Sweating down his spine under the Prince’s silent gaze. He shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place. He shouldn’t have even brought the topic up. As he belatedly regretted it, the Prince suddenly spoke slowly.

“There are usually two reasons why a witch takes an interest in a human.”

Isaac, who had been avoiding his gaze by rolling his eyes downward, looked at the Prince in confusion.

“Either the human’s greed is so immense and ugly that it calls to something wicked, or,”

The Prince paused for a moment before continuing.

“Or they covet the human’s flesh.”

The moment the Prince’s words dropped, Isaac was relieved. Neither was true. Having safely bypassed at least the part Isaac had been worried about, Isaac smiled comfortably and breathed a sigh of relief. He was about to open his mouth, ‘Haha, neither of those is true,’ but froze. He was hit by the sudden realization of ‘Then what should I answer when he asks why I took an interest again?’ The moment he opened his mouth, unable to say a word, the Prince facing him slowly continued.

“Judging by the character of that escort, I doubt it’s the first.”

“…….”

“They say witches enjoy sex. Do you covet his body?”

Isaac blinked. ‘No, absolutely not. Of course, I love my body, but probably not in the way you’re thinking……. Where on earth do I even begin to explain this?’ As Isaac blinked, unable to say a word, the Prince’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“I thought witches preferred flashier, beautiful types, but your tastes are surprisingly plain.”

The Prince, who had been speaking as if to himself, suddenly stopped. He seemed lost in thought for a moment before speaking in a puzzled tone.

“But wasn’t my appearance the reason you were first summoned by magic? If so, your taste isn’t plain at all.”

Saying that, the Prince stared intently at Isaac, and Isaac had no idea what he was thinking. Isaac was sweating bullets. He didn’t know how to explain this feeling of not being able to answer that it wasn’t like that either. Just then, as if suddenly struck by a thought, the Prince raised an eyebrow.

“Ah. Right. Come to think of it, what a witch loves is the blood of a pure virgin. Is that why he caught your eye?”

“I suppose a virgin at that age isn’t exactly common,” the Prince mumbled as if he finally understood, and his words struck Isaac’s chest like daggers.

No, it’s absolutely not like that. It was the wrong question from the very beginning. More importantly,

“……Is it okay to just cruelly expose someone’s private and secret history like that……?”

Isaac hugged his stinging heart and mumbled, but the Prince simply gave a cold snort.

“Whether I say it or not, you probably already knew. Aren’t your kind, the witches, able to smell that kind of thing like ghosts?”

Isaac, who had smelled absolutely nothing of the sort and hadn’t noticed at all, felt wronged. But because it was true that witches could discern a pure human at a glance, he had no words to defend himself. Besides, if he argued ‘That’s not why I took an interest in that escort,’ what would he say if asked what the reason was then?

To Isaac, who was just moving his lips with a face like he was chewing bugs, the Prince leaned back comfortably on the sofa and asked.

“But doesn’t the witch kind disregard gender? No matter how I look at it, you seem to be a male.”

“Yes, that’s right. They do disregard gender. It’s a bit more free-spirited than humans, but.”

The Prince, sitting obliquely with his chin resting on the back of his hand, looked at Isaac for a moment before asking.

“So, how many women have you seduced?”

“That’s a secret.”

“…….”

“…….Not as many as you, Prince Kyan.”

Unable to withstand the piercing stare, Isaac added quietly. Well, it wasn’t a lie anyway. The Prince muttered “I see” while keeping his gaze fixed on Isaac.

“But I’ve never slept with a witch either.”

Saying that, the Prince’s gaze, which hadn’t moved an inch, became intensely burdensome. He probably didn’t have any other intentions, but facing that context and that gaze simultaneously, the pressure pierced the heavens. So Isaac averted his eyes as if avoiding it and spoke.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t look at me like that……. It feels a bit wrong to transcend species and gender all at once…….”

When he said that, the Prince’s gaze cooled. His originally cold eyes became even colder, feeling like they might freeze his heart.

Flinching, his breath catching as he looked at him, the Prince, who had been casting a dry gaze for a while, finally spat out lowly.

“I have not the slightest intention of coveting sex indiscriminately, like beasts and humans do.”

“——.”

Contained within those firm words were contempt and hatred. Nothing else. And though Isaac already knew this, the sudden reminder struck him anew.

Ah, right. That was the only thing this man wanted. The eradication of witches. Eliminating all witches was the only thing he desired. That hatred was his sole and absolute desire driving him. Isaac quietly took a deep breath into his heavy, chilled heart. He hoped his heart would lighten even a little, but it had no effect. Raising his hand, rubbing the area near his heart, he let out a sigh.

He had said that eliminating all witches in this country would break his curse. Perhaps when this man had eliminated all the witches in the world, he would cut down Isaac——the witch who had constantly given him blood——without mercy.

…… What about half-bloods. Do even half-bloods need to completely disappear for the witch’s blood to be fully erased?

Isaac thought gloomily, but knowing the answer wouldn’t come from looking, he just shook his head slightly. Perhaps because he felt heavy inside, his throat felt completely parched.

Swallowing dryly, he unconsciously looked around, but saw nothing suitable to quench his thirst. Even the water kettle on the side table had fallen and rolled onto the floor, perhaps knocked down when the Prince was thrashing in pain. Only when Isaac noticed his gaze resting on the empty kettle did the Prince speak.

“Why don’t you drink tea like last time? I happen to be thirsty too.”

“Pardon? Ah……, no, I can’t use magic anymore today…….”

“Have you already made your wish? What was it?”

The moment the Prince’s indifferent question flew at him, Isaac froze solid. What had he made his wish for…… that illusion guarding the bedroom door right now, that was exactly it.

There was no other way. Today, he had to stand guard while guarding the Prince’s bedroom, and at the same time, bound by the contract, he had to come here and give his blood; he couldn’t get caught by the Prince either. To satisfy all those conditions, he had no choice but to spend his remaining wish here.

Damn it, this meant he couldn’t use a single one of the three wishes for himself. What a waste……. Still, it would be nice if he could get a free pass like ‘Please let me expertly dodge questions like this’ at times like this.

The Prince was gazing intensely at Isaac, who was frozen stiff and unable to speak. At first, it was an indifferent gaze, but as Isaac’s expression hardened and he didn’t know what to do, it gradually changed to confusion. Then, leaving the Prince quietly lost in thought in front of him, Isaac was practically breaking into a cold sweat.

“…….Right, to live mixed among humans, there must be many things you need.”

The Prince finally said. Isaac pressed down his pounding heart and muttered, “Yes, well, something like that.”

Fortunately, the Prince didn’t seem inclined to pry any further, but he couldn’t help but fear those narrowed eyes. Isaac tried hard to avert his gaze, thinking that next time he needed to quench his thirst, he would definitely bring a large water bottle in his arms.

“Witches do not trade with humans using magic.”

The Prince suddenly spoke. The Prince quietly observed Isaac, who flinched and fell silent, and muttered as if talking to himself.

“If you can only use a limited amount of magic on the new moon…… you are not a proper witch.”

That low assertion pierced into Isaac’s chest.

Isaac didn’t answer at all. And the Prince didn’t press him any further. He simply fell into silent thought.