Chapter 3

Ansel didn't know how much time had passed before the sounds from inside the bedroom finally quieted down, like the tide receding from shore.

Stellan emerged, shirtless, his body covered in scratches and love bites. He raised an eyebrow as he studied Ansel, who had only just gathered himself and was preparing to leave.

"Camille, how do you even know a merman?"

"I just picked him up by chance. After you went abroad, I went out to sea from time to time and returned to the spot where you saved me back then. I guess you could call it a form of self-torture. Luckily, I have you back now."

While that memory filled Camille's eyes with deep affection, Stellan seemed reluctant to talk about it. For a brief second, a flicker of guilt passed through his eyes. He chuckled and changed the subject.

"Aren't all merfolk supposed to have beautiful voices regardless of whether they're male or female? How come the one you picked up sounds so raspy?"

"Who knows?" Camille answered with a shrug.

"Then can he grow a tail?" Stellan asked suddenly. "I want to see."

Ansel quietly turned toward Camille.

She'd once been curious about the same thing. So to satisfy her wish, he had transformed his legs into his merfolk tail, only to discover that the transformation felt no different from having his flesh carved away from his bones. The pain had been so unbearable that he'd nearly passed out.

She'd felt terribly guilty afterward. For once, she'd simply held him without doing anything else and even spent the entire night massaging his legs instead.

Yet those former moments of tenderness were shattered the instant Camille spoke.

"Stellan wants to see it, so… go ahead and transform. That's my wish."

She pointed outside toward the suite's private infinity pool.

"Jump in and swim two laps so Stellan can get a better look."

Ansel said nothing. But when the excruciating pain hit, he silently told himself that this was the fourth-to-last wish. Just three more, and he could finally leave.

The moment his tail appeared, he plunged into the water. The agony was so intense that it felt as though his body were being fed through a meat grinder.

As water splashed, Stellan marveled at how beautiful it was.

Camille didn't even spare Ansel a glance. She simply drew Stellan closer, her eyes filled with an overwhelming tenderness.

It wasn't until Ansel finally dragged himself out of the pool, his face drained of color, that a flicker of sympathy crossed her eyes.

"Thank you for enduring the pain to make Stellan happy. If there's anything you want, just let me know."

Ansel just shook his head.

"No need. Fulfilling your wishes is what I'm supposed to do."

Camille stiffened for a moment. Something deep inside her seemed to stir—a strange, inexplicable feeling. But when she looked at Stellan, the man she'd thought she'd lost forever and somehow managed to get back, she decided not to dwell on it.

"Then you can go now," she said to Ansel. "I don't want outsiders interrupting my time alone with Stellan."

So he was the outsider after all.

Ansel felt as though a hole had opened up in his chest, leaving it bleeding and raw with pain. He grunted an acknowledgment and staggered away.

…

The next day, Camille announced to everyone around her that she had a boyfriend—Stellan Loxley.

That was unlike how she'd treated Ansel. During the three years he'd spent by her side, no matter how much people speculated about their relationship, she'd always stayed silent.

Now, she threw a lavish party to formally share the news with everyone in their social circle. She even invited Ansel.

"You've worked hard these past three years. Take some time to think about what you want."

"I want to do three more things for you. Please, make sure you call on me," Ansel answered, his expression serious.

He still needed to fulfill three more wishes. If he didn't, he couldn't go back.

The crowd, however, looked utterly astonished, clearly misunderstanding his words.

"Camille, he's totally crazy about you! You've already dumped him, and he's still deeply devoted to you!"

"I think he's playing the 'push-and-pull' game. He's just hoping for an excuse to keep seeing you."

"Camille, what kind of spell did you put on him? Teach me! I want to learn!"

Amid the teasing, hostility crept into Stellan's eyes.

Ansel offered no explanation. As long as Camille understood what he meant, that was all that mattered.