William nodded and fiddled with my hand. Even though his playfully moving fingers were cute, my breathing became rough as the Alpha’s heavy scent permeated my nostrils.
Ajun, no, Daniel, get a grip. This is just hormones at work! The moment you lose to hormones, it’s clink-clank time!
It seemed like it would be less intense if I let go of his hand, but William didn’t seem to have any intention of letting go. My hand felt exactly like it had become a liquid monster toy.
“Hmm… Rather than that, it’s just that the way Aren treated me was like you.”
“……!”
In that instant, I froze solid right there. The fact that Aren treated William like I did meant that Aren also had a purpose like mine.
What could that purpose be? Was he planning to win William’s favor like in the original story, then stick by his side to turn him into a tyrant?
My hands and feet trembled.
“Daniel, why are you shaking like that? You’re even breaking out in cold sweat…”
William worriedly wiped my forehead.
I had no idea just how much and in what way the original story had gotten twisted. I thought Kalroy was the villain, but there was the mastermind Kelton behind him, and Aren, who contributed to making William a tyrant, has an ambiguous identity…
According to Behern’s words, Aren resembled someone he missed, but what? What could it be?
I felt like I was missing something important.
“Your Highness, what kind of conversation did you have with Duke Aren?”
“Well, nothing much. Just conventional talk. He asked about my health… Oh, before that!”
William raised his voice as if something had come to mind. I swallowed hard and listened carefully.
“As soon as Aren paid his respects, he hugged me and said, ‘How much hardship you must have endured all this time.'”
“Pardon? He hugged you?”
“Don’t you think it’s strange too?”
When I nodded, William continued with a confused expression.
“Duke Aren is so famous that I’d seen him from afar, but it was my first time seeing him up close, yet he acted like someone who’d known me for a long time…”
I sharply inhaled. An unknown premonition was gradually taking shape and swelling up inside my body.
“I’m not the type to like strangers getting close to me, and I should have definitely disliked it, right? But strangely, it didn’t feel bad.”
William flinched when he saw my expression. He probably mistook it for me being anxious. Judging by how he immediately corrected himself.
“Still, I was on guard! I didn’t accept everything.”
Though it was cute seeing the prince, who was rumored to have a nasty personality, watching my reaction and correcting his words, now wasn’t the time to pay attention to such things.
“I see. You did well. It would be good to think a bit more about Duke Aren.”
Just then, suddenly the sound of murmuring came from outside.
“No, you cannot. Right now His Highness is…”
I could hear Behern trying to stop someone.
“Why. When a big brother wants to come to his little brother’s room, even that’s not allowed? How dare a mere servant insult the Crown Prince!”
I could hear Kalroy ranting like a madman. The next moment, the door burst open. Daniel and William simultaneously looked toward the door.
“C-Crown Prince Your Highness?”
Kalroy, furious to the top of his head, walked toward where Daniel and William were. Without realizing it, I stood between William and Kalroy, protecting William.
Kalroy glared at me with a face turned blue, as if he wanted to kill me.
“Ha! A lowly Omega like you dared to run away while I was collapsed?”
Behern’s face crumpled wildly upon hearing those words. I was equally shocked. If I hadn’t explained the situation to Behern and William beforehand, I would have easily been misunderstood as a spy.
But why was Kalroy suddenly bringing up such words? There would be no benefit to him if these people found out that he had made me his spy… Don’t tell me he’s planning to expose the fact that I’m a spy to make William hate me?
Goosebumps ran down my spine.
I had been trying to look favorably upon him, feeling sorry that he’d been playing a puppet role all this time, but to think he came barging in here with such crazy thoughts!
I wanted to rant and scold Kalroy with all my might, but knowing that would endanger my life, I pulled myself together and knelt before Kalroy.
“Your Highness, this is unjust. When did I ever go to Your Highness?”
Quick-witted William and Behern seemed to realize I was deliberately lying, as they didn’t intervene between Kalroy and me and appeared to be observing how I would handle the situation.
Kalroy became even more agitated.
“You came just a while ago and left! I was so shocked when I opened my eyes and you weren’t there… No, I can’t stand being angry at you for disobeying my orders when you’re just a lowly Omega!”
For someone saying he couldn’t stand being angry, his voice and expression were somehow strange. Kalroy cleared his throat with a “ahem” and grabbed my hand, saying:
“Filthy thing! I’ll personally take you away, have you cleaned thoroughly, then question your crimes.”
Kalroy’s words were so absurd I couldn’t even laugh. If I’m so filthy, why are you gripping my hand so tightly?
Was this guy always this kind of character?
I had been thinking since yesterday that the plot was developing strangely, but I was too busy protecting my own life to have time to think about what kind of feelings Kalroy had for me. Although this was inside a BL novel, the protagonist was clearly William, and the uke was still the companion Omega who hadn’t even appeared yet.
Was the original story suddenly changing into a world of two gongs and one shou with me as the main uke?
That can’t be. This is probably just my imagination or because I’ve read too many BL novels.
“Crown Prince Kalroy, aren’t my hands filthy?”
Kalroy was startled and pulled his hand away.
“Of course they’re filthy! What are you saying?”
His act of shuddering and shaking his hands off was quite something. Yet he can’t even take his eyes off me while putting on airs!
After thoroughly mocking him in my mind, I asked Kalroy a question he couldn’t deny.
“Yes. I am filthy. How could a filthy lower-class Omega like me be able to enter Your Highness’s precious room? I’m not even an Omega who was formally selected and granted access.”
“What, what?”
“Am I wrong?”
Flustered Kalroy’s face turned red as he began to stammer.
“No… No! Of course not. There’s no way I would have let a filthy, lowly Omega like you into my room. I must have been mistaken about something. Well then, I’ll be going now!”
It seems he gave up on taking me away since the situation wasn’t flowing as he wanted.
Kalroy hurriedly turned around. The face of the knight waiting outside was rotting away. The knight must be having a hard time too. Having to assist a crown prince who’s both a puppet and mentally younger than William… A wordless exchange of glances passed between us two. The knight coughed pretending not to know anything.
“Big brother!”
That’s when it happened. When William’s voice was heard…
The surroundings instantly froze solid. Having adapted to the atmosphere of this place, I too knew how much impact the single word “big brother” carried.
And for good reason – William had never called Kalroy “big brother” before. Moreover, Kalroy hated William enough to tell him to keep his mouth shut. Of course, addressing him first was also forbidden.
Despite this situation, the fact that William called Kalroy not “Your Highness” but “big brother” probably meant he wanted to have a proper confrontation. Although William’s position had risen, it was still premature. My heart sank.
I was scared that Kalroy might draw his sword like a madman and harm William. So I stood protectively in front of William without moving a single step. Kalroy, who had been in front, stopped walking and turned around.
“Big brother? Did you just call me big brother? When did I ever have a little brother like you?”
I wished he would stop here, but William didn’t seem to have any such intention.
“Since I am a prince of the Stamili Empire, Crown Prince Your Highness would indeed be my big brother. Even if you asked a passing dog, that seems clear, but did I make some mistake?”
My heart sank again.
Clutching my heart and looking ahead, Behern’s face had turned deathly pale, and the knight stood with his mouth agape, unable to say anything. William pushed me aside and moved to the front. I tried to put strength in my feet to avoid being moved, but my body shifted as easily as paper scattering in the wind.
“You’ve really decided you want to die!”
“Big brother, even if you’re going to kill me, please apologize before you go.”
“What, what did you say?”
William pointed at the Crown Prince’s waist with his fingertip.
“No matter how much you are the Crown Prince of the Empire, you cannot enter a prince’s room armed without prior arrangement.”
My worried feelings were brief – stuck far away in a corner of the room, I quietly exclaimed “ooh” in admiration. Unlike me, who had tried to somehow smooth over the incident, William seemed to be thinking of escalating this incident further to use it in a direction favorable to his power.
For something a mere ten-year-old had thought up, it was tremendous. Was this the Dominant Alpha characteristic that only royalty possessed? Goosebumps rose on my forearms.
The Crown Prince also seemed shocked as he just stood there trembling. That’s when the knight, who had been observing the situation, stepped forward.
“Prince Your Highness… I am Knight Rob Esher. May I have a word?”
When the knight, who had been taciturnly keeping his mouth shut, spoke up, William looked toward him with an interested expression. Kalroy hid behind the kneeling knight, trembling as if having a nervous breakdown.
“Actually, Crown Prince Your Highness is suffering from an illness.”
“He’s suffering from an illness?”
“We’ve been keeping it secret, but it’s true. His memory comes and goes right now, so that’s why he acted this way. I beg Prince Your Highness to show mercy.”
While everyone was shocked, I held my breath and stared at Rob.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
