“Continue speaking.”
“Yes. So, I want to show other Omegas that I look pretty in anything I wear, and take this opportunity to let those annoying nobles know that I’m His Highness’s one and only concubine. That way they won’t covet this position, right?”
As soon as I finished speaking, Erica, who had been listening nearby, coughed and covered her mouth with both hands. Yes, I know too. What I just said were the words that Erica had been chattering in my ear until my ears were about to fall off.
I felt a bit guilty for plagiarizing words with such a clear source without permission, but now wasn’t the time to worry about such things. It was more important to calm William’s momentum as quickly as possible.
Although I had used Erica’s words with tremendous quick thinking to avoid the crisis, William still blinked his eyes and looked at me suspiciously, as if he still couldn’t trust me.
There was no choice. I really didn’t want to go this far, but to remove the stubborn Crown Prince’s suspicion, I had no other option…
I brought my face close to William’s face and smiled sweetly.
“Does Your Highness think I don’t look beautiful right now? That’s why you’re telling me to go change clothes, right?”
William’s mouth fell open and he shook his head.
“No way! Danny looks pretty in anything. Even when you were wearing rags before, you were just pretty… Oh, no. Anyway, if that’s the reason, then it’s fine.”
Permission fell from William. Erica, who had been standing behind him, seemed frustrated and was pounding her own chest with her hands in exasperation, but I knew. Even if Erica acted like that, she was on my side!
Since I had deceived William, who was the hardest person in the world to deceive, having a confrontation with the nobles wouldn’t be difficult.
The Imperial Palace really wasn’t a place where you could live in peace for even a single day. Even a simple action had eyes watching and ears listening, following me around, which was killing me.
William, hurry up and grow up. Only when you become Emperor will I be able to escape from this tiresome Imperial Palace.
I sighed and looked at the smiling William. Then I suddenly remembered a fact I had briefly forgotten.
“Why are You Highness here? You should be greeting the nobles who arrived first.”
“That stuff isn’t necessary. Today’s protagonist is Daniel, so I just need to take care of you.”
I thought what William was saying now was just a simple expression of affection.
However, a moment later, it started getting noisy outside, and I began to hear the voice of the host who unfailingly appeared at Imperial Palace events. I opened my eyes wide and looked at William.
“What’s going on?”
William answered nonchalantly.
“What do you mean what’s going on? What’s strange about calling a host and singers to a birthday party?”
“By, by any chance… surely, I mean, when the host calls my name, I won’t have to go out with Your Highness and wave or give my thoughts, right?”
“Why would you think you wouldn’t have to? Of course you have to. This is a birthday party I’m throwing for the first time in years!”
“……”
I froze on the spot. I could hear a singer’s voice from outside the stage, and soon after, I heard the host’s commentary introducing me and William.
“What are you doing? Hurry up and go out.”
William grabbed my arm and headed toward the stage. An attendant behind us pulled back the curtain. From now on, whether I liked it or not, I had to match the atmosphere.
When I went out onto the stage, the nobles were looking up at the stage. They all seemed surprised by William’s beautiful appearance.
There was a reason they were newly enchanted by William. Due to the trauma he experienced as a child, he extremely disliked revealing himself in front of people.
Unless you were Duke Aren or a noble in charge of the Crown Prince’s lessons, you couldn’t easily meet William. Since such a person had thrown a party, it was understandable that nobles would gather without exception, but still, to gather enough to fill the largest ballroom…
I barely came to my senses and forced a smile. I moved a little slowly so my actions wouldn’t stand out, but also so I wouldn’t be looked down upon.
William slowly opened his mouth.
“Today, for my one and only concubine, Daniel Lambert’s birthday…”
Even before the Crown Prince finished speaking, the ballroom began to murmur. Everyone knew the fact that I was his only concubine, but the Crown Prince openly declaring it in front of everyone was a kind of proclamation, so the nobles were surprised.
Regardless, William continued.
“Thank you for coming to celebrate.”
When the frozen nobles sent applause, William took my hand and raised it, then descended from the stage. I was fortunate that he didn’t ask me for my thoughts, but it was equally burdensome that everyone’s attention was focused on my every step.
William whispered in a low voice.
“Hold your head up high and walk. Today you’re the protagonist.”
“Yes. That’s true, but…”
“Don’t think about anything. Danny thinks too much, that’s the problem.”
William ostentatiously gripped my wrist tightly.
Jealous gazes poured down on me. I wanted to end the party as quietly and without incident as possible, but…
“Danny… I didn’t know our Danny was thinking such thoughts.”
I got goosebumps at the words mixed with a pleased smile. The words I had said to avoid that moment had come back like this… I thought it wouldn’t be good to pretend I knew, so I decided to play dumb and feign ignorance.
“What thoughts?”
“Why are you being coy and playing innocent? You said it just now. That you’d show them you’re beautiful even in everyday clothes so they won’t covet your position.”
I had harbored a faint hope, but it was as expected. It was no different from throwing prey to William, who was dying because he couldn’t obsess over me enough. But I decided to think this was better than becoming prey for nobles who had come in expensive clothes.
“So, Danny…”
“Yes, Your Highness…”
“To prevent nobles from coveting your position, there’s an even better method than showing your beautiful appearance in everyday clothes!”
“……”
I looked at William with my mouth shut, and his eyes were full of mischief. What is he trying to say now? I began to feel anxious.
“Throughout today’s party, I won’t even make eye contact with other Omegas. I’ll only talk to you… and only smile at you. How about that? Then other Omegas will never be able to covet your position, right?”
“……”
I was so dumbfounded looking at William that I thought this couldn’t continue.
“Your Highness… let’s go over there for a moment!”
I grabbed his hand and came back behind the stage. Although there was a lot of whispering behind us about us appearing and then quickly disappearing, no noble dared to block the Crown Prince’s path.
“What’s wrong?”
“You can’t do that.”
“Why?”
William looked at me as if he really didn’t understand. I shook my head and grabbed his shoulders. Then I began to think deeply about what I should say to get through to him.
The reason William shouldn’t show his obsession with me to other nobles was simple.
It would definitely harm William’s reputation. If rumors spread that the Crown Prince had fallen head over heels for a seductive lower-class Omega and was neglecting interactions with nobles, the nobles who harbored ambitions to make their children William’s Companion Omega would naturally turn their backs on William.
However, if I said this, William would obviously sneer and say “I don’t care about such things at all!” so I had to use my head well.
How could I make it so that in this party, I wouldn’t stand out to the nobles’ eyes, and William would appear not as a Crown Prince being manipulated by his concubine, but as a Crown Prince ready to welcome a Companion Omega at any time?
First, persuading William was the most important thing.
I swallowed my saliva and spoke as calmly as possible. I didn’t forget to act slightly sulky.
“Your Highness doesn’t seem to understand my feelings at all.”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The reason I wanted to show the nobles what’s what with my clothes was to show that I could beat you all even without the history of being Your Highness’s bedroom Omega.”
William, who had been lost in thought for a moment after hearing my words, slowly nodded.
“That sounds like you. Our Danny has strong pride!”
“Not understanding such feelings of mine, and trying to have conversations only with me in front of other nobles… That’s not helping me, it’s making me get criticized.”
Even as I spoke, I inwardly prayed, please be fooled, be fooled. If the clever and perceptive William realized that all of this was for his sake, he wouldn’t follow my words.
The most important thing I had learned while living with William all this time was that although William said he would do anything if I said I needed it, he didn’t listen well to other things.
Especially if I suggested keeping distance from me for his own benefit, he would either pester me with a furious expression or show even more severe obsession.
To prevent such things, this method was the best.
William raised his right eyebrow. He seemed to think he should give in since I said I didn’t like it, even though he wasn’t pleased. Whenever he was like that, William, who was much bigger than me, was so cute that I wanted to bite him.
“You’re not pulling another trick like last time, are you?”
At the word “trick,” I widened my eyes and shook my head.
What William referred to as “last time” meant the previous incident. Last time, when William said he would sleep in my room every day, I had said this:
‘Your Highness, His Majesty the Emperor might be angry that the Crown Prince is too lustful.’
The day I had said that as a temporary measure and sent him away, William, who came back to my room again before morning came, was very angry.
‘There’s no way His Majesty would know where I sleep! There was no talk of making separate reports about such things!’
William was definitely a type that was hard to deceive because he was suspicious and smart. Of course, I hadn’t given up immediately at that time.
‘If you’re not afraid of His Majesty, why would I have said such things? Haven’t you heard that even walls have ears in the Imperial Palace? I don’t want to sleep alone in this vast Imperial Palace either.’
William had grumbled at my words but seemed somewhat deflated and didn’t argue further, returning to his own room.
I thought of that time and pulled myself together.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
