# Chapter 14
“I told you, didn’t I? To be careful if you’re going to be with me.”
“Your Grace…”
“No matter how liberal one might be about relationships, how do you think I would feel seeing someone marked as my omega associating with other alphas?”
Though he was speaking kindly, a heavy atmosphere permeated the air. At his voice, lower than usual, Asher slowly blinked his eyes and blushed at the words “my omega.”
Even knowing there was no special meaning behind it, Asher felt his heart flutter. Though he had tried not to be greedy, his emotions kept slipping out of control, and Asher slightly clutched Luke’s sleeve.
“I won’t upset Your Grace again… I told them I wouldn’t attend this gathering anymore from today.”
Asher’s fingertips trembled slightly as he held Luke’s sleeve. Seeing him tremble like a child afraid of abandonment, Luke gently brushed Asher’s hair with his large hand.
A cool mint scent touched his nose. At this faint but subtle fragrance, Asher’s eyelids fluttered.
“…I truly don’t understand.”
“Your Grace…”
Luke didn’t answer Asher’s call. Although his emotions couldn’t be read through his gloved hand, Asher was happy just with the fact that he had brushed his hair.
If he was going to be driven away eventually, he wanted to spend a little more time by his side. That didn’t mean he was planning to become the main love interest of the original work. With such a small desire, Asher released the sleeve he was holding and looked up at him with clear eyes.
“So… would Your Grace meet with me more often?”
“…”
“As you can see, I no longer have anyone to meet, and it’s too lonely and boring to just stay at home every day…”
Asher carefully spoke while gently biting his lower lip. He was worried that Luke might refuse, but fortunately, he didn’t seem displeased. Rather, with a thoughtful gaze, he looked at Asher slowly and persistently.
“Do you want to meet with me?”
His ruby-like red eyes wavered in the setting sunlight. Feeling as though he might get burned just by looking at that intense gaze, Asher fidgeted with his fingertips and carefully parted his lips.
“…Yes.”
“Why?”
“…Pardon?”
“No matter how much I think about it, I can’t understand why you want to meet with me so badly. You don’t seem to desire power or wealth. And it’s too implausible to say you’ve developed feelings for me.”
Luke tilted his head sideways as if he truly couldn’t understand. The gaze visible through that angle was as sharp as an arrowhead. Asher softened his eyes and looked down at his feet.
“I didn’t mean to confuse you. I just wanted to become close with Your Grace…”
It was too late to say he had developed feelings now; from Luke’s perspective, it would be difficult to accept as truth due to past events.
Feeling wronged, Asher couldn’t finish his sentence properly and just bit his lip uselessly.
“You said you wanted to be close with me?”
At Luke’s question, Asher’s face turned as pale as someone who had been hurt. The area under his eyes was reddish as if he might produce tears at any moment, and Asher’s long, dense eyelashes trembled pitifully. At Asher’s behavior, whose true feelings were completely inscrutable, Luke exhaled deeply and spoke in a more subdued tone.
“I don’t understand either. Why I keep feeling this way. In the past, it would have been an emotion not even worth considering.”
“…”
“But seeing how seriously I’m pondering this, it seems you truly are my omega.”
The phrase “my omega,” heard for the second time, settled around his heart like cotton candy. Feeling that sweetish emotion—the kind you can’t forget once tasted—Asher felt a stinging in his eyes.
“Very well. I too shall make time more often.”
“…”
“So I would appreciate it if you would also refrain from meeting others after this time. Since you seem to have forgotten, I am also an alpha with strong possessiveness.”
An alpha’s possessiveness. According to what he had read in books, that desire was described as stronger than an animal’s instinct. Like a beast, once they bit, they never let go, and when they considered something theirs, an alpha’s possessiveness could even drive them to murder to possess it.
Of course, the emotion Luke spoke of would be different from what he had read in books, but somehow, that possessiveness felt like it was wrapping around his ears. But knowing that this possessiveness would eventually be directed at Braden, not himself, Asher raised his lowered head and smiled prettily.
“Yes, I will. I won’t meet with anyone except Your Grace.”
Not knowing that those words would become a shackle in the distant future, Asher smiled as brightly as a fresh flower.
*
After that day, Asher thought his connection with Varhan was severed. More precisely, he had tried not to meet him. But as if by divine mischief, Varhan visited the ducal residence the very next day and “coincidentally” ran into him in the hallway.
“Varhan?”
Asher’s eyes widened at the appearance of the unannounced visitor. He narrowed his eyes as if pleased and waved at Asher.
“Seeing you yesterday and again today. How truly delightful!”
“…Why are you here? Without even sending word you were coming?”
Asher’s eyes slightly furrowed at the unwelcome reunion. He had certainly thought they would never meet again after yesterday, and due to some inexplicable displeasure, Asher didn’t hide the emotions on his face.
“Aren’t you being too obvious? We are friends, after all.”
“…What brings you here?”
“Let’s just say I wanted to see Brother Ember? I sent a message, and he said he wanted to see me right away.”
Thinking about it now, Varhan had mentioned having something he trusted in, and it seemed that was referring to Ember. Ember also viewed Varhan positively. Somehow, Asher felt uncomfortable in his solar plexus.
“Alright then. Go meet my brother.”
He tried to brush past Varhan as if he didn’t want to talk anymore. But Varhan instantly grabbed his wrist and stopped him. An unpleasant feeling flowed through his wrist.
“Where are you trying to go?”
“I’d appreciate it if you’d mind your own business.”
“What if I don’t want to mind my own business?”
“Varhan.”
Asher made a stern expression at Varhan, who kept catching the end of his words like he was talking back. But as if he wasn’t intimidated at all, Varhan smiled brightly and gripped Asher’s wrist tightly.
“I told you, didn’t I? The more upright the flower, the more tempting it is.”
“And so?”
“What do you gain by constantly provoking me? If you’re doing this because you want to catch my eye…”
“Don’t flatter yourself too much.”
Asher shook off the gripped wrist as if he couldn’t bear to listen anymore. He had held it so tightly that the area felt throbbing.
“Ha… fuck.”
Perhaps upset at being rejected, a curse escaped from his mouth. It was a quiet voice that would be inaudible unless one listened carefully, but Asher heard the curse all too clearly.
“What… did you just say?”
“Asher. I’m about to inherit the title of baron soon.”
“…And?”
“I’m saying you have nothing to gain by acting like this toward me. From what I hear, His Grace the Duke doesn’t have feelings for you either. That’s what your brother said.”
Varhan emphasized the word “brother” while maintaining his smile. With a smirk so infuriating that Asher wanted to hit him, Asher stared directly into his eyes.
“I don’t know what that has to do with you, but I told you, didn’t I? To keep it moderate.”
“I want to keep it moderate too, but as you can see, your brother needs to like me a bit more. I just resolved a major problem for him.”
He shrugged with a face full of pride.
“So this time, your brother said he’d do something nice for me. I’m thinking of suggesting something else. It would be better if our friendship grew stronger, right?”
“What are you scheming?”
“Scheming? I feel hurt when you put it that way. I’m just thinking of asking to borrow you for one night for the sake of our friendship.”
Asher’s face was filled with disgust at the idea of being “borrowed” as if he were an object. As if he had no intention of dealing with him anymore, Asher dismissed Varhan’s words lightly and turned his back.
“Aren’t you excited? About how our friendship date will end.”
“…”
“I’m really looking forward to it.”
Asher made no response to Varhan’s words. Treating him as if he were a non-existent person, Asher silently left the hallway. At this, Varhan twisted his red lips crookedly and murmured softly.
“Fine, enjoy yourself to the fullest now. Soon the day will come when you’ll kneel before me.”
With those meaningful words, he hummed a tune more loudly. As if even more interesting things would happen in the future, he nodded to a servant.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
