Chapter 2 – Crown Prince Narish’s Confusion

Today, I called in Duke Oryuga Nobizel’s son.

There are a few Omega candidates at the academy for marriage, but the top choice has become Baron Neiny Rizen’s son, who is smart and skilled in magic.

Until now, Oryuga Nobizel, the duke’s son who has had the greatest magical power in history, was the strongest candidate. But lately, his bad behavior has been a problem. The emperor instructed me to consider Baron Neiny’s son as the top candidate instead. I decided to tell them both.

Since Omegas want to find their mate Alpha as soon as possible, they need to think about their future early. During their heat, it’s best if their bonded Alpha is there for them rather than relying on medicine, which can have side effects. Also, while an Alpha can have many mates, an Omega bonds only once for life.

I thought it was better for them to know this to keep their options open.

I understand that Oryuga is attached to me, but this is a different matter. He’s still a noble’s son, and he can’t keep throwing tantrums forever. He also needs to find his bonded Alpha.

I informed his older brother, Ninreney, just in case, and he asked me to please tell his younger brother directly, saying that might make Oryuga take the matter seriously.

So, I told him…

Oryuga froze, his large scarlet eyes wide open. They looked as if all color and sparkle had drained out — oddly the same shade as the tea I’d prepared today.

When he first entered the room and saw Neiny sitting next to me, he was angry, but his eyes still shone brightly. But now, those scarlet eyes showed no color or emotion at all.

“Are you listening?” I asked, worried since he seemed almost breathless.

His gaze met mine, but his face showed no emotion. Nobles are said to hide their feelings, but this was different. Even a puppet would show more expression.

Oryuga is beautiful. As an Omega, he has big eyes with long lashes, soft pink lips, and smooth pale cheeks. His slender jaw and delicate shoulders make him look like someone you want to protect. But his personality is violent. He’s known for being short-tempered and selfish.

“…….”

“Oryuga?”

He stared silently, then looked down at the tea on the table. His long lashes cast a shadow over his scarlet eyes.

When he lifted his eyelids and looked back at me, his eyes had a new kind of heat — different from the warmth he once showed me.

“…I’m listening, Crown Prince Narish,” he said quietly and slowly.

His voice wasn’t a flattering high-pitched tone or a playful one, just calm and soft, which made me stop in surprise.

Even after I told him that Neiny was the top candidate, Oryuga smiled quietly.

I wondered if this was really Oryuga. When I repeated the message, asking him to keep that in mind, he slowly smiled again and nodded.

What could this mean?

The Oryuga I knew would have yelled insults at Neiny and spilled the tea. That’s why I had Neiny sit next to me. But now, Oryuga just smiled quietly.

A strange feeling grew inside me.

Why now? I wanted to watch his change a bit longer, so I invited him for tea. But instead, he asked Ninreney to bring some sweets as a gift and left.

“Wasn’t the tea party supposed to be just the two of you?” Ninreney asked, confused.

That was the plan. I had soldiers waiting outside because Oryuga tends to get violent. He’s bad at magic but has a huge amount of magical power, so I didn’t know what he might do if he lost control. If he went wild, I planned to have the soldiers take him away.

Neiny, sitting beside me, grabbed my sleeve with trembling hands.

“I’m sure he’s planning something.”

Neiny, who has been treated badly by Oryuga, looked scared.

“Sorry about my foolish younger brother,” Ninreney apologized.

I crossed my legs and rested my hands, thinking quietly.

Ninreney looked uneasy but said nothing, waiting for me to finish thinking.

After attending the tea party with Crown Prince Narish and Neiny at the royal castle, Ninreney hurried back to the duke’s mansion in the capital.

He was going to report Oryuga’s behavior to their eldest brother, Bizet Nobizel.

I had planned to leave the castle immediately, but Narish had asked Ninreney to stay for the tea party.

His deep blue eyes were smiling, but the smile didn’t reach them.

Originally, Narish and Neiny were supposed to have tea alone. I thought Narish invited Ninreney to keep some distance between himself and Neiny.

Since the Emperor had told Narish to choose Neiny as the top candidate, their engagement was almost decided.

So the two of them should have been spending time getting closer.

But Narish made Ninreney stay.

He must have noticed something strange about Oryuga today.

And he decided to delay making a final choice on his own.

Ninreney rushed home on the carriage to report to Bizet as quickly as possible…

“Eh!? My allowance is negative!?” I heard Oryuga shout from Bizet’s study.

The steward standing outside looked troubled.

Noticing me, the steward knocked and invited me in after Bizet allowed it. I caught my breath and entered.

“Welcome back.”

“Ah, thanks. I just heard the whole story from Oryuga.”

Bizet is the oldest brother, two years older than Ninreney. He inherited the duke title and works in the capital. Their parents live in a separate estate, and the four brothers live in the capital mansion.

Bizet looked a little tired.

“Welcome home, Ninreney,” he said.

For the first time, maybe ever, Oryuga greeted us.

“Ah… I just got back. I heard something about allowance. What’s going on?”

Oryuga clenched his hands and made a face like he might cry, despite his large eyes.

“They say I don’t get an allowance anymore.”

That makes sense. Every month, massive bills arrive — for clothes, jewelry, and food. I wonder how he manages to spend so much even though he has no friends.

“Here, have some sweets to calm down.”

I gave Oryuga the sweets Ninreney brought as a gift.

“Ah! Sweets~!”

His face lit up instantly.

“What else do you want to spend money on?”

Bizet asked while opening the box of sweets Oryuga was unpacking.

“Uh, I’m thinking about living without a fiancé.”

Oryuga said this while happily eating a small cream-topped pastry.

Bizet looked surprised.

Oryuga is aware that he’s a beautiful Omega.

He always wears different clothes, jewelry, and styles his long light-brown hair neatly. Even now, he looked perfect, wearing the same outfit he had on when he left the castle. The servants did a good job making him look elegant, though the amount of jewelry could easily seem tacky.

“How do you expect to live without a mate?” Bizet sighed, looking Oryuga up and down.

Oryuga seemed to notice his own appearance for the first time and exclaimed:

“Should I sell these jewels then?”

“Wait.”

“You fool! If the duke’s family suddenly starts selling jewels, people will gossip, won’t they!?”

Rumors could start that the family’s business failed or that Oryuga got into trouble.

“No way.”

“Too bad~,” Oryuga said sadly, still holding a cookie.

Until this morning, Oryuga would never have done this — eating while standing and with his hands. Omegas should be elegant and beautiful.

That was Oryuga.

Even when he acted out, he was beautiful.

He would have tossed his tea elegantly, holding the cup lightly.

Now, crumbs fell as Oryuga looked surprised.

Bizet stood up and wiped the cream from the corner of his mouth.

“You’re no longer the top candidate, but you’re still a candidate, you know?”

Bizet said, trying to comfort him.

“Really? But that’s fine with me.”

Even though he was no longer Crown Prince Narish’s fiancé, Oryuga didn’t mind.

“So what do you mean then?”

I asked, and Oryuga thought for a moment.

“Well… I want to start thinking about my future and learn to live on my own. Money’s important, so I want to save it.”

His answer was surprisingly straightforward.

Bizet explained:

“If Narish won’t be your fiancé, you might meet another Alpha. You should study hard, learn to control your magic, and show everyone you’re an outstanding Omega. That way, Alphas will come to like you.”

That was common sense, but Oryuga hadn’t done that until now.

“Study…”

“Yes.”

“Got it. I’ll study.”

Oryuga nodded honestly.

Bizet was surprised by how obedient he was. Oryuga, who used to say beauty was all that mattered, now seemed sincere.

I told him that by cutting unnecessary expenses, his allowance could recover over time.

He agreed to that too.

Oryuga left the room, saying he had a plan now.

After seeing him off, I reported today’s events at the castle to Bizet.

“Oryuga’s acting strange.”

“Yes. And I think Crown Prince Narish might be interested in him, which could be good or bad.”

Bizet raised an eyebrow.

“Huh. He seemed totally uninterested before.”

That’s true. Narish never cared about the candidates, treating them like pieces on a board. But no one noticed this because of his kind appearance.

Oryuga had been smitten by the prince’s typical princely charm.

“We’ll have to wait and see. If Narish looks like he’s going to marry the baron’s son for sure, we’ll think about Oryuga’s future engagement candidates.”

“Understood.”

I nodded to Bizet’s decision and started planning for what comes next.