"I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Sophia murmured, her voice carrying an indescribable tremor.

"I wanted too much, I was too hasty, which made you feel so troubled."

Broken and chaotic breath escaped from her mouth, brushing past Celitia's ear, as if cutting her heart inch by inch.

Celitia didn't know how to describe her feelings at this moment.

Her hands trembled slightly, wanting to hug Sophia back, but when she raised them halfway, she forcibly stopped the motion.

"Why are you apologizing?"

After a long silence, Celitia finally spoke, her voice hoarse. "This isn't your fault, and I'm not troubled."

The emotions in her chest were so chaotic that she couldn't distinguish anything, with only a thread of reason remaining.

Just as Celitia had said before, feelings require a response.

Hopeless love would only bring endless torment, living long in the hell of alternating hope and disappointment.

If she couldn't give the other person the response they wanted, she should leave early, stop stringing them along, stop giving them those seemingly beautiful but ultimately unrealizable hopes.

Celitia slowly closed her eyes, trying to steady her breathing and make her voice sound rational and firm enough.

"You are the Princess of Lansca, the most brilliant pearl of Cassia. You have your own life and shouldn't stop for me, much less waver because of me. Even if I leave, you still have many, many things. I'm just the most insignificant one among them..."

"That's not true!"

Sophia interrupted her quite emotionally.

"Lily is my treasure, the most, most important treasure that I finally discovered and finally grasped in my hands. No matter what, I don't want to lose you!"

"Sophia..."

Celitia's voice became even more hoarse, not knowing what to say.

Having once been discarded like worn shoes, even she herself didn't care much about herself—could there really come a day when someone would hold her in their palm and treat her as the most precious treasure?

"If my previous words troubled you and made you not know how to face me, leaving you with no choice but to leave from before me, then I'll take those words back."

Sophia's voice was almost pleading—this was the first time she had ever begged so humbly.

"Please, Lily, don't leave, okay? My wish is really very simple—I just hope you'll stay by my side, that's all."

Her voice carried tears, each word stumbling in her throat, like foam scattered by waves, unknowingly soaking the entire sentence.

Celitia gradually began to waver.

She didn't want to make her cry.

She had clearly made a decision to include her in her protection, to guard her smile, to not let anyone have a chance to make her shed tears.

But why was the person making her sad herself?

Countless times, Celitia once again despised herself.

Such a self who couldn't be open and honest, couldn't confess all the truth to her, who feared being disliked and rejected.

A self who wanted to maintain distance yet was indecisive, still harboring unspeakable greed and unable to let go.

She hated herself very, very much.

Like being in a quagmire—unable to climb out yet not immediately sinking, only able to struggle hopelessly, waiting for the day of drowning to arrive.

"No, Sophia."

Having spent countless resolve to rebuild her psychological defenses, Celitia spoke hoarsely, "I don't want to see you sad, don't want you to regret, don't want to drag you into the abyss..."

Vaguely sensing Celitia's wavering, Sophia's arms hugged even tighter, as if this way they could never be separated again.

"But, Lily, you clearly know that if you just leave like this, I'll be the one who's sad, who'll regret, who'll fall into the abyss. Without you holding my hand, I don't even know where to go. Really, I don't need your response... Just pretend you never heard what I said yesterday, okay? As long as you don't leave and stay by my side, I'll already be satisfied..."

Sophia buried her head in Celitia's neck, tears no longer controllable, flowing from her reddened eyes, soaking her pure white collar and staining it with patches of dark marks.

Both warm and cold.

These tear-soaked words shattered Celitia's last resolve, leaving her completely defeated and routed.

Those walls built of reason, that ice formed of calmness—in this moment, they all collapsed thunderously, shattering all over the ground.

Reason told Celitia that since she couldn't be honest and open her heart, she should push Sophia away and maintain sufficient distance.

Otherwise, someday she would hurt her even more severely than now.

It was better to suffer briefly than prolonged pain—it should have been like this.

However...

Her heart clearly didn't think so.

For the first time, Celitia recognized herself so clearly and directly.

Beneath all the calm thinking and consideration for others, her own unspeakable greed.

That desire burning black in the deepest part of her heart, devouring everything that approached, desperately claiming it as her own regardless of everything.

How much longer could this greed be suppressed?

And would it drag both herself and her into an endless abyss?

Her throat rolled extremely lightly, as if she had drunk a cup of poisoned wine with that nearly forgotten, honey-sweet taste.

"...Okay."

She finally slowly hugged Sophia back, her hands stroking the girl's back, patting gently bit by bit, comforting the trembling body in her arms.

"I won't leave. I'll stay here and won't go anywhere."

Like a moth flying toward flame.

That light was too dazzling. Even knowing that if she continued to approach, someday she would burn completely to ashes from inside out.

But still, she couldn't stop.

"Really?!"

Sophia sniffled and raised her head from Celitia's embrace.

She was truly frightened.

It turned out her liking could become a burden for her.

It turned out that when she didn't have complete certainty, acting on impulse alone and forcibly breaking through that layer of paper would only push things toward an irreversible ending.

Fortunately, Celitia wasn't so resolute. She must still cherish the feelings that connected them.

Then, she would restrain this overstepping emotion, not seek a response, and let the relationship between them return to how it was before.

Let the fantasies that had once surged in her chest fall silent.

Looking into those familiar smoke-purple eyes, Sophia felt they were particularly misty, making even her own reflection blurry, like light smoke about to dissipate.

The girl's eyes trembled slightly as she awkwardly lowered her eyelids, avoiding Sophia's gaze.

"Yes, I won't leave," she said softly. "I'll stay until..."

Celitia didn't voice the rest of her words.

She only very slowly showed Sophia a sorrowful smile.