While Count Ilya Vasari exchanged brief pleasantries with the blond omega Nile Lucius, the brown-haired person who had gotten down from the carriage with them didn’t know what to do. He hesitated, then pressed himself tightly behind Nile, almost clinging to his back. Seeing that brown, shaggy-haired figure, Ilya Vasari tilted his head, a puzzled look crossing his face.
“That one is….”
Marquis Lucius, noticing Ilya’s expression, reached out and grabbed the nape of the brown-haired figure who was practically hiding behind Nile, yanking him forward. The marquis’s grip was so rough that the brown-haired man couldn’t withstand the force and was thrown headlong to the ground.
“Stand up straight.”
The marquis roughly seized the nape of the person he had nearly slammed into the dirt and hauled him up. The brown-haired man staggered, barely managing to get back on his feet. Seeing that, Nile hurriedly pulled him to his side as if to shield him.
“This child is my personal attendant. I’ve kept him with me for a long time, so I don’t want to be separated from him.”
As if the attention focused on him was unbearable, the brown-haired head drooped low. Ilya Vasari briefly swept his gaze over the man’s shabby appearance, then let out an awkward sigh.
“All workers within the castle must undergo thorough background checks. It would be better to leave that one behind, Nile. There are plenty of capable, clever servants here. I’ll attach someone new to you—someone you like as much as possible.”
On the surface, it sounded like a suggestion, but in truth it was little more than a notice. Nile glanced once at the brown-haired figure hiding behind him, then bit his lip. He turned pleading eyes toward Marquis Lucius. Receiving that look, the marquis frowned in irritation, then opened his mouth.
“That one’s a beta born of Nile’s mother. He insisted on staying together, claiming they’re full siblings, so I stuck him on as a servant. He may look like that, but he doesn’t know how to slack off and he keeps his mouth shut. He’s perfect for menial work. Let him come along. More hands are always better, aren’t they?”
As if he truly couldn’t be separated from him, Nile pushed the small, brown-haired man even closer behind himself. Ilya wore an expression that said some unnecessary baggage had tagged along, but faced with the stubbornness of a precious omega destined to bear the duke’s heir, he reluctantly nodded.
Count Ilya Vasari took a sealed scroll from inside his coat and handed it to the marquis. It was a deed—rights to a small but fertile territory. The price paid for Nile. After confirming the document, Marquis Lucius nodded, and Ilya gestured backward with his hand. Two knights set down a large metal chest in front of him.
“In addition, though it’s modest, this is Duke Castiya’s token of gratitude.”
The marquis didn’t bother checking the contents and had it loaded onto the carriage. There was no need to look—surely it was filled with gold coins.
“It’s His Grace’s sincerity, so I’ll accept it. If His Grace finds Nile unsatisfactory, feel free to visit again at any time. House Lucius has many beautiful and exceptional children, after all.”
Marquis Lucius smiled, lifting one corner of his mouth to bare his teeth. At that vile smile—worthy of the title ‘the Empire’s slave trader’—a flicker of displeasure crossed Count Vasari’s eyes, but only for an instant. The count nodded, and the Lucius entourage departed the castle with the large chest brimming with gold coins.
“All right, all right. Off you go back to your duties.”
Count Vasari waved away the onlookers gathered around. Having already had their fill of Nile’s appearance, they dispersed in small groups, expressions tinged with regret as they returned to their work.
“Shall we go inside, then?”
Count Vasari invited Nile in with a courteous smile. He was a beautiful, healthy omega purchased at great expense. Unless one had particularly twisted personal tastes, there was little reason to abuse or mistreat him—especially since he was meant to bear the heir of the ducal house.
Nile Lucius was assigned his quarters. A lavish room filled with sunlight, complete with maidservants to attend him. He had nothing he was required to do. All that was expected was that he diligently groom himself and enjoy a comfortable, prosperous daily life. If he bore the duke’s heir, all the better. If, after a certain period, he was not chosen by the duke or failed to produce an heir, he would be sold again just as he had been bought—or sent somewhere as a gift to someone else.
After a few days, Nile’s presence blended smoothly into the castle. And the small, brown-haired man who had followed him faded from the memories of those within the castle—until he disappeared entirely.
***
“Oh, oh, no. Not today.”
Ilya appeared like a ghost at a sharp corner. The gray eyes that met him chilled instantly at the sight of Ilya blocking his path. Even at rest, those gray eyes looked cold and detached; once an actual chill settled into them, merely being stared at was enough to make one flinch under the pressure. But instead of backing down, Ilya calmly stretched out his arm, blocking the way even more thoroughly.
“You’re having dinner with Nile tonight. You at least have to face him before you can fuck him or put a child in him, don’t you?”
“Don’t do anything unnecessary. Even you are making me want to punch you.”
“Ah, of course, if you don’t want to waste time dining and chatting like you’re shopping for a marriage partner, I can shove him straight into your bedroom instead. Frankly, that’d be much more convenient for me.”
“Move.”
Mihail spoke in a menacing tone. It was the kind of look that suggested he might actually throw a punch. It wasn’t an empty threat. Like most alphas, Mihail had no qualms about using physical strength far beyond that of ordinary humans. And having grown up trading blows with his full-blooded brother Ilya since childhood, even now there was little hesitation between them when it came to swinging fists.
“The Emperor’s envoy arrived again today.”
Ilya said this as he grabbed Mihail’s arm while Mihail tried to pass him. Irritation flared instantly in those gray eyes.
“So at least make it look like you’re trying.”
“Tell him I’d rather sit down and eat with a pig.”
“Listen, Mihail. Nile is your property. You paid a fair price to House Lucius for him. Once payment is made, they don’t interfere in the slightest. As long as you don’t get tired of him and sell him off again, he’ll belong to you until he dies. Unless you want it otherwise, he’s not someone who’ll be passed around different houses, bearing children everywhere. That’s exactly why we chose an omega from House Lucius instead of negotiating a marriage with some prestigious family.”
“That doesn’t mean he doesn’t stink.”
“It’s the Emperor’s order. You should at least pretend to obey.”
Instead of persuading him assuredly, Ilya once again threw out the Emperor’s command.
As always, this too was half a joke, half a taunt from the Emperor toward his half-brother—but regardless, it was an official imperial decree. Those in power were sensitive about authority. When a subordinate disobeyed an order, playful intent could quickly curdle into suspicion and rage. Especially when that subordinate was one of the few Dominant Alphas, and a brother who stood just behind the Emperor’s own son in the line of succession.
Mihail glared at Ilya for a moment, then nodded with a displeased expression.
“Then shall we go to dinner, Your Grace?”
With theatrical exaggeration, Ilya turned and stepped aside, opening the path ahead.
The place Mihail was led to held a small table that would be cramped with even four or five people, two chairs facing each other, and beside them, a bed decorated in a way that was suggestive and unmistakably deliberate. After taking in the room, Mihail didn’t hesitate for even a moment—he immediately turned to leave. But the Ilya behind him slammed the door shut and locked it from the outside, thwarting his escape.
“Not opening it? You want to die, Ilya Vasari?”
He shoved at the closed door, threatening savagely, but it didn’t budge. Grinding out a curse under his breath, Mihail finally turned back toward the interior of the room.
Someone was standing beyond the perfectly set table. A stunning beauty with honey-soft blond hair and blue eyes. His build was relatively small, but beneath his clothes, his flat chest and a silhouette utterly unlike a woman’s made it clear he was male. No—he wasn’t an ordinary man. He was an omega, radiating a thick, unmistakable pheromone.
The blond man, Nile, looked extremely tense. With both hands clasped and hanging down in front of him, his face—tilted up to look at the Duke of Castiya—was faintly flushed.
“Pleased to meet you. I am Nile—”
“Don’t speak.”
The man had cautiously opened his mouth to introduce himself, but Mihail cut him off.
“Your Grace….”
Nile called to the duke, eyes wide with confusion.
“I told you not to open that mouth. It reeks.”
Mihail spoke in a tone heavy with contempt, lifting his arm to cover his nose and mouth with his sleeve as he frowned deeply, as if he’d caught the stench of a sewer. Startled, Nile buried his nose in his own clothes to check, but all he could smell was the sweet scent of perfume.
As Nile panicked, his body scent thickened. His omega body was responding instinctively to the Dominant Alpha standing before him. The small room quickly filled with dense pheromones. Mihail’s face twisted, almost monstrous in its distortion.
“Disgusting.”
Spitting the word out, Mihail tore off his shirt entirely and wrapped it around his face to block the smell. Then he turned and kicked the locked door with all his strength.
Bang! Bang!
Each kick dented the thick, sturdy door a little more. After five or six blows, the large iron nails and hinges gave way, and the door began to splinter apart. Faced with that overwhelming strength and unrestrained violence, Nile retreated into the corner of the room, his face drained of color.
Crash!
At last, a hole was punched clean through one side of the heavy wooden door. Mihail shoved his hand through the opening and unlocked it from the inside. Bang! He kicked the door open and stormed out. Watching his retreating back as it disappeared down the corridor, Nile slowly slid down to the floor.
Drawn by the thunderous noise, people had gathered to see what was happening. Taking in the shattered door, Nile sitting inside in terror, and Mihail’s back vanishing with rough, furious strides, they clicked their tongues as if to say, Just as expected.
