The body heat felt from the part touching him was disgustingly chilling.The helplessness from the overwhelming difference in physique pressed down on her entire body.Above all, what made her feel wretched was her own desperate effort to find traces of the past in Nick.

When, exactly, had things become so twisted?They had surely gone through the same times, shared the same dreams…When she closed her eyes, she could see Nick’s young, innocent face from when they were seven.Those countless cold, hungry nights when they leaned against each other’s backs as if they were a hearth.Those nights when they weren’t lonely because they had each other.Thinking of it now only made her feel like crying.Damn it, Nick.

“How… did it come to this?”

“From the beginning.”

“…”

“You didn’t know, but I’ve felt this way since the first time I saw you.”

“…”

“I won’t let you slip away again.I found you, nurtured you, made you bloom.So, your end should belong entirely to me.”

Found her, nurtured her, made her bloom.Forgetting the suffocation in her throat, she burst into a cackling laugh.It was so absurd that her lungs ached as if she’d swallowed a gallon of seawater.

Fine, she wasn’t going to deny everything Nick said.After all, it was indeed him who first found Rosetta, starving to death, and took her into the pickpocket gang.From the moment he split his one piece of shriveled bread in half for her, Nick had been her one and only family.

But from the beginning?Her most cherished memories were now thrown into the mud.The steadfast trust she had was cracked from the start.The moment Nick truly betrayed her wasn’t when he incited the seventeen-year-old pirate captain or slipped an unknown drug into her drinking water.It was right now.

Tears, held back for so long, finally spilled down her cheeks.The last shred of affection she had left vanished completely.In its place, only vivid hatred was painted over.He smiled tenderly, rubbing her wet cheek with his thumb.

“Just hold on a little longer.Once this is over safely, we’ll escape to a place no one can find.Not Esperanda, not Tilsen.I’ve got my eye on a fine mansion.You’ll like it too.”

“…”

“No need to overthink it.In a comfortable place, all you need to do is eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.”

Rosetta barely swallowed the nausea rising within her.She twisted her lips as hard as she could, forcing the most mocking expression she could muster.

“And then bear your child?Try it if you dare.If you want to see me bite my tongue and die.”

“Come on, Rose.Do you think I don’t know you?”

He lifted Rosetta’s trembling chin, quaking with hatred.Tilting his head, he brought his lips close to her ear.So close she could feel his hot breath.A demon in human skin whispered.

“I’ll break you beautifully in front of that bastard.If I hold his life as leverage, you won’t even dare think of death.”

From the next day, a tiresome battle of wits began.Rosetta ate every meal Nick sent without fail, but the clothes were an exception.And no wonder—every piece of clothing he sent was the kind a mistress might wear in a bedroom.Rosetta tore and crumpled every piece Daisy brought in.

Of course, Rosetta never once felt ashamed of her body or thought it needed covering.In the scorching midsummer, she’d sunbathe on the deck without caring about the men’s gazes.She could be confident even in just her undergarments.But knowing her nature and still sending such clothes—Nick’s depravity was infuriatingly unbearable.

Nick came to torment her once a day.The fortunate thing was that he was too busy to visit more often.From the sounds, it seemed the ship was making short voyages repeatedly.When it anchored at nearby islands, the chatter and footsteps of people were noisy, but after a few hours, it fell dead silent.

“Um, M-Miss…”

“Yes?”

“D-Do you, um, not want this today either?”

Rosetta snapped out of her thoughts.Daisy was pointing, practically drooling, at candied chestnuts glazed with honey.On a ship, most supplies were precious, but sugar or honey was the rarest of all.Rosetta chuckled, speared a chestnut with a fork, and held it to Daisy’s mouth.Daisy quickly opened her mouth and gobbled it up.

“Does it taste good?”

Afraid even a drop of honey might spill, Daisy nodded with her mouth tightly shut.Her frail body, malnourished, shook vigorously with the nod.Rosetta broke off a piece of bread, soaked it in soup, and brought it to Daisy’s mouth.Daisy eagerly opened her mouth again, like a baby bird.Rosetta reached for the next piece of food and asked casually,

“How’s this ship laid out?”

“I-I came up the stairs.Turned right in the hallway…”

As soon as the bread in her mouth was swallowed, the answer burst out.As Rosetta began spreading butter on another piece, Daisy’s eyes followed, entranced.

“No, I mean its size.It seems like there are a lot of people on board.”

Daisy shrugged.Her gaze, fixed on the bread, sank back into gloom.

“W-Well, that’s…”

“Oh, I don’t mean to put you in a tough spot.If it’s something you need to keep secret, you don’t have to say.”

Regret was written all over the girl’s face.She clearly thought Rosetta wouldn’t share food if she didn’t answer.Before Daisy could dwell on it, Rosetta put a large piece of beef in her mouth.Daisy flinched, as if she didn’t dare eat such a thing, then nearly fell over from the taste of the fine meat.

“When’s the next time we’ll dock at a port?”

“W-We docked today, so… in three days, we’ll reach the next destination.”

Daisy counted diligently on her fingers as she explained.It was only natural that her goodwill toward someone sharing delicious food outweighed her fear of the sailors who scolded her.Rosetta saw her own past reflected in Daisy’s demeanor.She reached out and gently patted the girl’s head.

“The destination’s name?Do you know it?”

“D-Dortreda.”

Dortreda was within Tilsen’s borders, an island at the very edge of the Portmutz archipelago.Daisy swallowed hard and whispered,

“That’s probably the last stop before heading to the battlefield.”

“Why not change into something else?”

Her nerves, on edge all along, snapped at some point, and when she woke, Nick was looking down at her with a slightly crooked expression.Rosetta grabbed the clothes she’d been tearing and crumpling all morning and threw them at his face.

“As long as you send that kind of garbage, I won’t wear a thing.Unless you kill me and dress my corpse.”

Nick calmly brushed the clothes off his head.

“I’ll have new clothes prepared.The Duke wants to see you.”

“…The Duke?”

“The Duke of Baratelli in Tilsen.He’s kindly offered to help us escape to another country.”

In that moment, Rosetta recalled what Cardier had said.If Esperanda’s commander-in-chief was the Imperial Princess, then Tilsen had appointed a duke as theirs.That must be the Duke of Baratelli.Even Rosetta, who had no interest in nobles, had heard of him.If Esperanda had the Montrosa family, Tilsen had the Baratelli.Though their fame lagged far behind…

“Just behave yourself this time.”

“Why should I?”

“Well, you’d better get ready.”

Rosetta scoffed.

“You know I won’t move an inch unless I feel like it.So why are you pushing when you know that?”

The next moment, Nick smiled brightly.

“You’ve softened up a lot in the meantime, Rose.I kept everyone away from you for this very reason.Even that bastard.”

His attitude suggested he was pleased with her change.The implication was so blatant it was impossible to miss.

“You bastard… If you lay a hand on Daisy, you won’t die peacefully.”

“Then I’ll look forward to seeing you in new clothes.”

He grabbed Rosetta’s trembling hand, kissed her knuckles as if branding a slave’s mark, and she wrenched her hand free with all her strength, swinging her fist at his jaw.Her punch landed squarely on his unguarded face.He touched his lips, wincing with an “ow,” and looked back at her.His gaze darkened ominously.With an excessively gentle voice, he whispered,

“I’ll let you have one hit.If it makes you feel better.”

“Let me?You mean you couldn’t stop it?”

Rosetta sneered.Splitting Nick’s lip felt satisfying, but compared to the past when she could’ve snapped his neck barehanded, it was a pitiful revenge.He grabbed her clothes and hoisted her into the air.Rosetta struggled, but her body was no longer the one that could match a man’s strength.All she could do was pound his arm with her fists.

“I should’ve put you in a body like this sooner.I spared you because I couldn’t bear to do it, and now I regret it, Rose.”