TOPWL 126

Yudit clenched his teeth so hard he thought they might shatter, trying with all his strength not to scream.

“……!”

The burning heat that began in his calf spread through his entire body. Pain twisted his limbs, but Yudit forced himself to take slow, deep breaths and accept the agony. Then, step by step, he pressed on—climbing higher up the cliff. Thank the heavens it was dark. If it had been daylight, he would’ve been riddled with arrows by now. With a desperate hope that no more arrows would find him, he reached upward once more.

The road was right there, just ahead.

That’s when it happened.

A shadow fell across him from above. Yudit looked up with despair in his eyes—and froze.

“Khalid…?”

He could hardly believe what he was seeing. Khalid, who should have been in the capital, was standing above, staring down at him.

“Hurry—take my hand!”

Khalid urgently reached out, and Yudit grabbed for him. Khalid’s large, calloused hand completely engulfed his own—and the next moment, his body was lifted clean off the cliff. In the blink of an eye, he was standing on solid ground again, though his legs wobbled from exhaustion. Khalid pulled him into a firm embrace.

“Goddamn it, what happened to you?”

“It was an ambush. Someone drove our carriage into the lake. When we escaped, they tried to kill us. Huyan’s badly hurt, and Shane’s being chased. At this rate, they both might die.”

Fortunately, Khalid was quick to understand. He barked orders to the knights behind him.

“Take out everyone except one.”

“Yes, sir!”

The knights leapt into the underbrush. Yudit thought they were falling at first, but then realized they were moving with expert speed and control. He relaxed slightly. Slumping in Khalid’s arms, cold sweat poured down his face like rain. Without hesitation, Khalid lifted him and carried him toward the carriage.

“Wh-what are you doing here? I thought you were in the capital…”

“I was on my way to see you. Ran into some knights on patrol—they said there’d been reports of suspicious people in the area. We came to investigate and found you. Damn it… Other than your calf, are you hurt anywhere else?”

“I… I’m not sure.”

“We’ll find out soon enough.”

“W-where are we going?”

“My home. It’s the safest place right now.”

Once inside the carriage, Khalid immediately began undressing him. Yudit’s wet clothes clung tightly to his body, making even removing the outer layer a struggle. In the end, Khalid tore them off almost forcefully. Though his bare skin was exposed, without the cold, wet fabric, it somehow felt less chilly.

“Are you cold?”

“I-I’m fine. It’s much better.”

Khalid carefully wiped his body dry with a blanket, then wrapped him snugly. Next came the arrow. Seeing how deeply it was lodged in Yudit’s calf, Khalid bit his lip. A fierce energy surged from him.

“Ugh…”

Yudit suddenly felt sick and clamped a hand over his mouth.

“Motion sickness?”

Khalid handed him a paper bag. Yudit took it—and immediately vomited. Khalid gently patted his back as he retched. Even after everything was out, the headache wouldn’t fade. Gasping for breath, Yudit slumped weakly against the carriage seat, his body feeling like cracked glass—fragile and ready to shatter.

Snap.

Khalid gripped the arrow shaft and broke it in two, tossing the pieces aside. Yudit, feverish and dazed, looked up at him. Khalid frowned.

“I can’t pull it out now. You could get hurt worse. I’ll do it the moment we get home, so hold on a bit longer.”

“I’m okay…”

Strangely, his mind began to fog. Yudit tried to keep his eyes open, but it was no use. His eyelids grew heavier by the second.

“Yudit, you can’t fall asleep,” Khalid said, giving his cheek a light slap.

“But… I’m so… sleepy…”

“No. Just hang in there. Stay awake until we get to the manor.”

His body, battered since the fall, had already reached its limit. Unable to resist the pull of sleep any longer, Yudit closed his eyes. He faintly felt someone shaking him, but his consciousness sank deeper, unable to surface. There was a faint scent of flowers… gentle and far away.

***

Two days later, the duke’s estate had gained two sources of constant commotion. The first was Khalid, and the second was a puppy named Ro, who trailed after him everywhere. The two of them paced endlessly around Yudit’s bedside until, eventually, the physician could stand it no longer.

“The patient needs absolute rest. Either stay quiet, or both of you need to leave.”

Khalid looked at the physician in disbelief.

“Are you giving me orders? The duke?”

“As a physician, my duty is to prioritize the patient. If you don’t like the way I do things, you’re welcome to hire someone else.”

“…I’ll send Ro out and stay quiet myself.”

At Khalid’s betrayal, Ro let out a pitiful whine, but the physician remained utterly unfazed and ushered the puppy out. Once the door closed, silence once again settled over the room. But it didn’t last long. Khalid, unable to endure the tension, rose to his feet once more.

“Please, Your Grace, sit down. I told you—there’s nothing to worry about.”

“He still hasn’t woken up.”

“Humans sleep eight hours even when they’re perfectly fine. And you expect someone who fell off a cliff and took an arrow to the leg to be up and walking the next day?”

Khalid had no retort to the physician’s sharp tone and eventually slumped back into his seat. His face looked haggard, and a thick stubble had grown along his jaw. The physician, looking at Khalid’s worn-down appearance, let out a sigh.

“The arrow removal went well. All external injuries have been treated. There are no issues.”

“….”

Khalid barely held himself back from snapping, Then why hasn’t he woken up yet? The physician placed a hand on Yudit’s forehead and tilted her head thoughtfully.

“I thought it might be a concussion… but today, I’m not so sure. This feels more like…”

She trailed off, uncertain. Frustrated, Khalid pressed her.

“Say it.”

“It resembles… a manifestation.”

Khalid’s expression darkened at her words. It made no sense—manifestation typically occurred between the ages of eleven and sixteen, before puberty.

“Mild fever, tachycardia, and the way his pheromone scent changes by the hour. Classic signs. I only suspected it this morning, but now… I’m nearly certain.”

“Yudit already manifested at sixteen.”

“It’s possible if this is a secondary manifestation.”

“Secondary manifestation?”

Khalid, who had completed his own manifestation as a dominant alpha at fifteen, had never heard of such a thing. But the physician, who had worked among noble families and treated countless alphas and omegas, knew of several cases.

“It’s rare, but it happens. Sometimes a beta becomes an alpha, or an alpha evolves into a stronger one.”

“You’re saying Yudit could become an alpha?”

Khalid looked at the sleeping person as he spoke. It was surprising—but it might not be a bad thing. Being an alpha would certainly help if Yudit were to inherit the throne. Still, perhaps becoming a beta, unaffected by pheromones, would be even better.

As he let his thoughts wander, the physician shook her head.

“Unlikely. From the increasing intensity of his pheromone scent, it appears he’s becoming a dominant omega.”

Khalid could smell it too—the faint floral fragrance lingering in the air. It was growing stronger by the hour, and it made things… inconvenient. His body constantly heated up, and not at the most appropriate times.

“How the hell did this happen?”

“We can’t say for sure, but there are three potential causes. First: if the partner is a dominant alpha, prolonged exposure to that alpha’s pheromones increases the likelihood of manifesting as an omega.”

“We haven’t even done it yet.”

Learning about his superior’s sex life wasn’t exactly the physician’s favorite moment of the day, but she stayed professional and continued.

“It’s not just about intercourse. Cuddling, kissing, holding hands—it all counts. And let’s not forget how often you’ve marked His Highness with your scent. That too was… quite thorough.”

She paused briefly, trying to find a more tactful word than slathered on.

“…Yeah, I did.”

He’d had to. That way, no foolish alpha would dare mess with Yudit when he walked around freely. It had been a necessary act to protect his adorable Yudit. Of course, he couldn’t deny that his own possessiveness might’ve played a part.

“That likely had the greatest influence. The second cause could be the will of the individual. A person’s intent is a powerful force. If he truly, deeply desired to become a dominant omega, it’s not impossible that a secondary manifestation occurred.”