The bracelet was just… something that Assad bought because Cayden was staring foolishly at the jewelry stand and it bothered him. Well, to be precise, he had seen men loudly choosing items while making a commotion.
It wasn’t anything special to glance at people who were disgustingly kissing each other and chattering noisily. How could one not look at people behaving inappropriately and violating public decency in the middle of a marketplace where many children were visible? They were extremely unpleasant people.
But what was strange was that it was Cayden who kept fidgeting nervously, worried about making eye contact with strangers while looking at the couple.
Why did he look at those people? That odd behavior that somehow caught his eye had been bothering him. While holding the hand of the grown adult Cayden tightly as they toured the market, Assad had to wrestle with a problem he couldn’t solve.
Was it because the disgusting people happened to be standing in front of a jewelry stall? Cayden’s plain appearance kept coming to mind. Among the people of Helio who wore all kinds of jewelry regardless of type, gender, or age, Cayden looked like a northern priest living an ascetic life for god, which made it even more noticeable.
An omega with a spouse looking like a priest. It was quite irritating.
Then, Assad came up with his own answer to the question he had.
My consort must want some jewelry.
That groundless conclusion led Assad to make an impulsively ridiculous choice. He decided to head back to the jewelry stand. It seemed best to go to where those annoying men had been standing.
Amun left Cayden in the art section and retraced his steps. After giving money to a large man who was a guard for some merchant group, asking him to protect Cayden as if guarding the artwork.
Standing in front of the stall where the couple had left, Amun fell into contemplation again.
There were no necklaces that would suit his consort. He didn’t want to abruptly give flashy necklaces that wouldn’t match someone who only wore clothes with high collars, hoping gazes wouldn’t fall on his neck. He couldn’t give earrings to someone who hadn’t pierced his ears either.
Rings were out of the question. Giving Cayden a ring while in the form of the servant Amun was truly inappropriate.
The only option left before him was a bracelet. There was somewhat of a lewd connotation in gifting a bracelet. But it didn’t have an official meaning like rings, which were called eternal pledges of love.
From the beginning, he was far from the creepy type of person who wanted to possess and constrain others. The hidden meaning didn’t matter.
Anyway, Cayden’s face showing tears immediately after receiving the hastily chosen ordinary bracelet had really irritated him. What was so special about a mere bracelet? What was so significant about not leaving his missing consort behind, about finally finding him?
Cayden’s tears had thrown Assad into great confusion. It was the kind of confusion where he felt he needed to wash his face with the golden sand of the desert, reachable after an hour’s ride by horse or camel, to regain his senses.
It was as if someone was twisting his internal organs with their hands, making him feel sick, and for a moment he couldn’t breathe, his whole face burning hot. It was certainly because Cayden, who couldn’t speak properly and only shed tears, looked so frustrating.
Assad had stayed up that night. No, he couldn’t even go to bed. He was angry.
Was he angry at his own foolish behavior trying to find out what really happened to Cayden at the market, using his personal attendants? Or was he angry at himself for acting like an idiot searching for his missing consort?
He still couldn’t understand why he had become so heated. But one thing was certain: Cayden’s tears upon receiving the bracelet had contributed greatly to the anger he felt.
By early morning when dawn broke, a different kind of irritation found Assad.
“But I don’t think I’m the first person to give Cayden a gift. He must have received presents before this bracelet.”
“That’s… not mine to keep. I just thoughtlessly took a gift meant for someone else, not me. I suddenly ended up in the position of His Highness’s companion.”
His consort was delighted with the bracelet that Amun might have given with lecherous intentions, saying it was a gift to cherish for life, yet he claimed the previous gifts weren’t his. That wounded Assad’s pride.
He was someone who could give Cayden better gifts than that modest bracelet.
‘If he doesn’t feel the wedding gifts are his, then I can give him something else. I just need to make it clear that everything in the Western Palace annex belongs to that man.’
He seems dazed now, but once Cayden comes to his senses, he’ll be pleased.
Thinking this, Amun opened one of the jewelry boxes that had arrived for Cayden. As luck would have it, it contained a bracelet. Like the one Amun had given, it also had blue gemstones.
The gems weren’t extremely large. But their color was clearly different from the modest bracelet adorning Cayden’s wrist. They were incomparably more brilliant.
And there wasn’t just one gem. Looking at the jewels nestled between the chains, each giving off a different blue light, made him smile involuntarily. This was what a real gift should be.
There were matching rings and necklaces too. All chosen with his consort’s preference for non-flashy items in mind. Especially the necklace, which was so plain it was almost boring. But that was better than curious gazes falling on Cayden’s neck, so it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that they looked beautiful in that man’s eyes.
“I think these will suit you well, Cayden,” said Amun, turning his body toward Cayden. Along with a comment about how truly beautiful the jewels were.
“But…”
“From now on, you’ll be attending various banquets and gatherings. You should prepare for those times. Being neat is good, but looking like a priest won’t do.”
Amun deliberately cut off Cayden’s words. Having a rough idea of what he was about to say with that troubled expression, he blocked his words. Did he think he would allow the gifts he’d received to be pushed into a corner unused?
“You don’t need to change who you are, Your Highness. Just, from here, let’s make it a little more evident that you are the Crown Prince’s companion. So His Highness doesn’t look like a worthless alpha who doesn’t cherish his partner.”
“A worthless alpha?” Cayden, repeating Amun’s words, was startled. He nodded to Amun, indicating he understood.
But as if feeling uncomfortable, his face gradually turned pale. With each gift shown and explained to him, his face progressively whitened.
‘At this point… he looks more like a ghost than a person.’
His complexion was so poor that such thoughts came to mind.
“Do you not like them?”
“No, that’s not possible.”
“Then, is there something troubling you?”
Cayden didn’t readily answer Amun’s question.
By now, having somewhat adapted to that frustrating behavior, Amun wasn’t irritated. He didn’t feel impatient either. He just needed to wait patiently until Cayden spoke.
Well, as long as his gifts weren’t disliked, that was fine. It seemed something was bothering him, but that wasn’t too concerning either. If the worry rolling around in his consort’s mind was a problem he couldn’t clear away himself, couldn’t Assad just clear it for him?
“They’re too pretty. That’s what’s bothering me.”
But he hadn’t expected this answer.
At Cayden’s slowly delivered response, Amun was momentarily speechless. Too pretty? Why is that a problem? It was difficult to understand Cayden’s words.
“They’re too pretty and sparkly for me to wear, I’ll look really strange… I’m worried the Crown Prince will be ridiculed because of me.”
“…”
“He is beautiful without needing to be drawn to such pretty things, but I’m not.”
Is he trying to compliment someone by putting himself down? Or is he truly sincere? Probably the latter. Amun sighed inwardly.
That man really had an extraordinarily low confidence in his appearance. It was absurd. Even if there were people pointing fingers at the scar below Cayden’s right cheek, there must have been many like Lihet who were attracted to his looks. It was a separate issue from his personality not matching his appearance.
‘A man who looks like that, almost as if he’s been brainwashed…’
He must have become like this from being confined in a farm filled with people with broken personalities.
Still, he couldn’t ask directly. Though unlikely, what if he started crying again? Assad didn’t want to face Cayden’s tears.
It would surely be unbearable. It would be fortunate if he didn’t end up stomping his feet in frustration or jumping off that balcony. If unlucky, a bone fracture might bring him to his senses, but unfortunately, his body wasn’t weak enough to be damaged from falling from just the second floor.
“Are you worried about people’s gazes?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
