“Please! Please! Please—!!”
Chaika clutched Mihail’s clothes and screamed over and over as if in the midst of a seizure. The physician and servants rushed over, trying to pry Chaika away. But Chaika refused to let go of Mihail. Fearing that Chaika might get hurt, Mihail waved the physician and servants back when they tried to force him off. The physician pulled a small glass vial from his chest pocket and removed the stopper.
“I don’t want it! I don’t want to become an omega! I hate it! You hate it too, Lord Mihail! That’s why—! That’s why—!”
Chaika screamed wildly, grabbing Mihail and shaking him. Instead of Mihail being shaken, Chaika’s own small body was violently jolted. Watching him, Mihail found himself wondering how such a small, fragile body could contain that much strength.
“Your Grace.”
The physician raised the thumb-sized glass vial as he called out.
“Chaika.”
Mihail quietly spoke Chaika’s name. At that single, soft call, Chaika’s frenzied movements stopped as if it were a lie. His pupils were blown wide, his face twisted from crying and thrashing, his hands gripping Mihail’s clothes tightly enough to tear them. Everything froze, as though time itself had stopped.
Everything—except the tears. They continued to stream down Chaika’s face, slipping past the corners of his eyes and falling freely.
Mihail cupped Chaika’s cheek with his hand. Chaika’s eyes widened even more. Since discovering that Chaika was an omega, this was the first time Mihail had touched him. His tear-soaked cheek was warm, flushed with heat.
“Chaika.”
When Mihail called him again, Chaika let out a small, hitching sob, then obediently buried his face into Mihail’s hand that held his cheek. As if it were a place of refuge, he leaned into the palm and closed his eyes. In that instant, it felt as though Mihail had been struck in the solar plexus—his chest aching, heavy, and tight. He wanted to pull this small body into his arms immediately.
The physician brought the opened vial up to Chaika’s nose. As Chaika inhaled, the volatile medicine took effect, and his body quickly went limp. Only after Chaika lost consciousness did Mihail finally pull the small body tightly into his arms.
Ah—.
The moment he held him, a soft exclamation escaped Mihail’s lips. An indescribable sense of fulfillment and satisfaction surged through him, blooming into rapture and shuddering pleasure that pierced his entire being.
Mihail stood there for a long time, holding Chaika. He couldn’t let go. He couldn’t move. It felt as though time had stopped—no, as though he desperately wished it would stop. Everything was perfect. Complete.
At last, Mihail admitted it. No excuse or justification would work anymore. Beta, omega—it didn’t matter. Even if he were an alpha, it wouldn’t matter. Even if he weren’t human but a beast, it wouldn’t matter. As long as it was this one. This one alone was perfect.
“Your Grace. The effects of the medicine won’t last long. It would be best to lay him down comfortably on a bed and let him sleep deeply.”
The physician approached carefully and advised him. Mihail glanced down at the lovable body in his arms once more and nodded. Then, carrying Chaika, he stood up. The direction Mihail headed in was not the Black Tower, but the manor.
Chaika, who was moved from the Black Tower to the manor, was placed in the room previously used by Nile. Originally, Mihail had intended to carry him into his own bedroom, but due to the physician’s strong objection, Chaika was relocated to Nile’s former quarters instead. Chaika was already struggling with his first heat cycle as an omega; the presence of a Dominant Alpha like Mihail would only overstimulate him and worsen his suffering. With no choice, Mihail laid Chaika down in Nile’s quarters, far from his own bedroom, and returned alone.
What had happened in the garden had likely been an anxiety-induced panic attack just before the onset of heat. From then on, Chaika couldn’t even manage a walk in the garden—he couldn’t get out of bed at all, curling up and groaning in pain. The pheromones that had been forcibly neutralized and suppressed with poison, combined with the approaching heat cycle, proved too much for his body to withstand.
The physician spread a blanket beside Chaika’s bed and stayed there day and night, eating and sleeping on the floor while tending to Chaika whenever his fever spiked. Mihail sent people constantly to receive updates, but he himself couldn’t go. The physician had warned that the added influence of a Dominant Alpha could further deteriorate Chaika’s condition.
Chaika’s condition was worsening far more than expected, and being unable to see him personally drove Mihail nearly mad.
Servants ran endlessly through the corridors, reporting on Chaika’s state several times an hour. Mihail forgot to eat, forgot to sleep, relentlessly hounding the servants to bring him news of Chaika. A wise butler finally gathered them and organized a rotation so they could take turns, allowing them at least a moment to breathe. Days passed like that, Mihail’s nerves stretched to their limit.
“Your Grace.”
The butler set a teacup down on the table. Since Mihail barely ate at all, alcohol and tea were about the only things he consumed.
“Chaika?”
Mihail asked automatically.
“You should hear this while drinking your tea.”
The butler slid the cup toward him—an unyielding suggestion that he wouldn’t report otherwise. With a heavy sigh, Mihail lifted the cup and took a sip.
“…Has his condition changed?”
Noticing that the butler seemed slightly different than usual, Mihail asked. The butler bowed his head a little and spoke carefully.
“A message arrived from the physician earlier. He believes the heat cycle will begin sometime late tonight or in the early hours of tomorrow morning.”
“……”
Even without having entered heat yet, Chaika had already been writhing in agony. Mihail had wished it would come sooner rather than prolong the suffering—but now that the moment was close, his head spun.
“The physician has asked which course of action you intend to take.”
After saying that, the butler paused to observe Mihail, then continued.
“Since you hadn’t given any instruction yet, I took the liberty of preparing in advance. We have a beta with sexual experience, no history of venereal disease or other illnesses, and a tight mouth. He’s been blindfolded and confined to a windowless room since being brought into the castle, so once compensated afterward, he won’t even know whose bed he shared. Additionally, I’ve compiled a list of outer-castle knights who are suitably aged, experienced, and discreet. Choosing any of them would leave no complications.”
The seasoned butler was thorough to the extreme. Even without a single directive from Mihail, he had already prepared multiple contingencies. Yet despite all that, the butler only held the paper listing the knights’ names—he didn’t hand it to Mihail. Having served him for so long, the butler already knew the outcome.
“…Make sure everything is thoroughly prepared.”
“I will relay your will.”
That alone was enough. Having confirmed Mihail’s intent, the butler bowed and withdrew. Mihail gazed at the sunset outside, the sky dyed a deep crimson as the sun sank low. The time was drawing near.
Contrary to how the days of the past week had felt like entire years, night arrived with startling haste. Standing by the window, watching darkness fully envelop Castiya Castle and the moon rise to the center of the sky, Mihail finally turned away.
A place he had refused even to look at, much less approach, simply because an omega—Nile—had once stayed there. Now, Mihail was walking there of his own accord. Because it had been assigned as far as possible from Mihail’s own quarters, the walk felt all the longer.
Even before Chaika’s bedroom door came into view, the thick scent of pheromones was already pulling Mihail toward it. It was an overwhelming stench—so dense it could only be described as vicious. A lethal fragrance that seemed capable of paralyzing reason in an instant guided his steps, seducing him, drawing him in. Half of Mihail’s rationality was already being devoured by Chaika’s pheromones.
When Mihail finally reached Chaika’s bedroom, two knights bowed their heads and opened the door. Mihail stepped inside as if possessed. The physician standing beside the bed bowed and slipped out of the room. The door closed, leaving only Mihail and Chaika behind.
“…Hngh… u….”
The pheromones that had seeped into the corridor and drawn Mihail in now filled the room completely. Chaika’s pheromones, unleashed by heat, were meltingly sensual and ornate—yet at the same time unbearably obscene and lewd.
“…Nn… ngh… hng.”
Chaika was curled tightly atop the bed, whimpering. His body, wrapped up to his head in a thin sheet, was visibly trembling with spasms. Unable to withstand the surging lust, he let out intermittent moans, each one heavy with pain and confusion.
Mihail had gone through multiple rut cycles himself, and he knew the agony of having to suppress one’s instincts during that time. An omega’s cycle was far stronger and more brutal than an alpha’s. And Chaika was enduring it with that small body.
Without a word, Mihail approached the bed and carefully pulled the sheet down from Chaika’s head. Chaika’s face was flushed deep red, his hair soaked with sweat and sticking messily to his cheeks.
“Chaika.”
Mihail placed one knee on the bed and cupped Chaika’s face. Chaika’s tightly shut eyes slowly opened.
“…Mi… hail… Lord.”
Chaika murmured faintly. The violet eyes staring up at Mihail were already more than half unfocused. Chaika reached out toward him, his hand trembling violently as it extended. With great effort, he managed to grasp Mihail’s wrist, his face contorting as if he were about to burst into tears.
“…The medicine… please…. I hate this. I hate this so much.”
That was all Chaika managed to say before he broke down into a grief-stricken sob.
