TOPWL 140

“Did you have a nightmare?”
Khalid spoke gently, stroking Yudit’s back. Yudit, drenched in sweat, nodded.

“I was being chased… by Reginald and Hiore… Then the palace corridor started writhing like it was alive…”

The words came out scattered and breathless in his dazed state. Khalid pulled him into a firm embrace, patting his back.

“You’re okay now. You’re safe. I’m here.”

Yudit’s erratic breathing slowly calmed under Khalid’s steady hand. Once he felt Yudith has settled, Khalid met his eyes and asked,

“Do you have dreams like that often?”

“It used to be reality… But lately, not so much.”

“Maybe it was because of the visit to the palace. You won’t have to go back for a while.”

Yudit relaxed into Khalid’s arms and closed his eyes.

“When I was going through puberty, Hiore and Reginald were… truly cruel. They pretended to treat me like royalty, at least outwardly, but the servants… they didn’t even try to hide it. It was like kids crushing insects for fun. One died every other day.”

Whenever Yudit closed his eyes, those days came back vividly.

“It started as mindless beatings, then turned into… experiments. How far they could go before someone died, what kind of treatment could keep them just barely alive. They were especially brutal to Omegas. To them, Omegas were nothing more than waste. That’s why… I always hoped I wouldn’t become one.”

Yudit’s body started trembling again.

“O-One day, I went out to the garden… and saw an Omega being trampled by them. I knew him. He’d been brought in to ‘educate’ the princes, and when they were done, he was just a body for testing. I don’t know what drugs they gave him, but even while being brutalized, he was in heat…”

Yudit’s expression clouded as the memory took hold of him.

“I got caught too. They beat me as well… But for some reason, that Omega—he shielded me with his body. He got it worse than I did, but he still protected me.”

“Your Highness, are you okay? Thank goodness… I—I know this is sudden, but… could you mate with me? No, no—sorry. Forget it. Just… just kill me. Please. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Your Highness.”

That Omega, face swollen beyond recognition, whispered those words. Two days later, he was freed from that life. Yudit remembered it so clearly that he could still count the teaspoons on the garden tea table.

“I couldn’t do anything. Not even for the person right beside me. And worse, I was trembling with fear it would happen to me. Pathetic.”

Yudit confessed it all, as if offering penance. Khalid listened in silence, nodding now and then.

“After that, he started showing up in my dreams sometimes. I was him. Begging Hiore and Reginald to satisfy me, even as they trampled me. That… that was the thing I feared most in the world.”

When a physician once told him he likely wouldn’t function as an Omega, Yudith has felt nothing but relief. He thought it was the one prayer God had answered. But not long ago, he had a second manifestation. Lost all reason and clung to Khalid like a beast. Now, Yudit was terrified again. If he went into heat in the palace… and ended up begging Hiore and Reginald…

“Someone like me… do I deserve to sit on the throne? I couldn’t even save one person who reached out to me, and now I’ve become a Dominant Omega too…”

Then Khalid reached out and covered Yudit’s eyes. Light filtered softly between his fingers.

“Don’t spiral too far.”

“…Okay.”

“But… I’ve had thoughts like that too.”

“You have?”

“Yes. A little different from you, though. An Omega’s pheromones are the strongest form of aphrodisiac to an Alpha. When they release pheromones, it’s like flooding the area with a powerful stimulant. I used to dream of an Omega approaching me like that… and then killing me. There were even some real attempts.”

“…Oh.”

Khalid gently brushed Yudit’s soft cheek with his fingers as he continued.

“You had a second manifestation… because of me. For that, I’m sorry.”

“It’s not because of you.”

The constant exposure to a dominant Alpha’s pheromones had certainly played a role, but Khalid had never forced anything. If he hadn’t been by Yudit’s side, Yudit probably would’ve died long ago. No—he would have, without a doubt.

“But instead of just feeling sorry for you… I’m going to eliminate everything that hurts you.”

Khalid wrapped him in his arms and whispered into his ear.

“I’ll wipe away anything that makes you feel even a little unsafe, so you can walk barefoot and never be cut.”

It sounded like a vow. Like a love confession. The sweetness of it almost made Yudit’s mouth water.

“…Thank you.”

“And the rest of your worries? They’re simpler than you think. If you become emperor, would you be like Reginald or Hiore, trampling others underfoot?”

“Of course not…”

“Right. But if you don’t become emperor, they’ll seize absolute power—and they’ll crush even more people than before.”

Khalid poked the center of Yudit’s chest with his index finger and said,
“You’re the only one who can stop them. Not even I can do that.”

“…”

“With everything you’ve been through, isn’t that reason enough to keep moving forward?”

“…You’re right,” Yudit said, looking up at Khalid.
“Thank you, Khalid. You’ve given me so much strength.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Yudit closed his eyes as he rested in Khalid’s arms.
How did someone like this come into his life?
For a moment, he wondered if all the misfortune in his past had been the price for the fortune of meeting this man. But then came a flicker of fear—would there come a time when Khalid grew tired of someone like him? He wanted to grow stronger, to stand as his equal. No, more than that—he wanted to become someone who could support him in return.

Yudit reached out and traced Khalid’s face—his forehead, the bridge of his nose, his cheekbones, his jaw, his lips—and then—

Chomp.

Khalid bit down softly on Yudit’s fingers, not hard enough to hurt. The ticklish sensation made Yudit giggle.

“Can’t sleep?”

“A little.”

“Me neither. Perfect. Tell me about your visit to the palace today.”

Yudit hesitated for a moment, then slowly began recounting the day—the Emperor seeming to take a liking to him, though he didn’t understand why, and the brief encounter with Hiore.

As he listened, Khalid brushed Yudit’s forehead and smiled.

“The Emperor was probably pleased with you.”

“Pleased with me?”

“Yeah. Someone who’s soft-hearted and lenient, who understands the value of absolution even while giving it to his enemies—he must’ve decided you weren’t a risk to pair with Azil. Honestly, if the Emperor were ten years younger, he might’ve been more cautious. But when you’re old, those things start to feel like a hassle.”

Khalid didn’t hold back when talking about the Emperor.

“You’re harmless and good-natured, so he probably figured keeping you alive and pairing you off as my mate was more beneficial than disposing of you. You’re compassionate and intelligent—he likely saw you as useful if tied to Azil.”

There was weight behind Khalid’s words. After saying it, he glanced at Yudit, suddenly checking for a reaction.

“What is it?”

“Hmm… I wondered if I was too blunt. He’s still your father.”

“Khalid, I don’t consider that man my family. So there’s nothing to be hurt over.”

Yudit’s only family had been his mother, for as long as he could remember. And surely the Emperor didn’t see him as family either.

“My family’s been just one person for a long time now. And there’s only one person I’d ever want to become family with.”

Yudit suddenly confessed what was in his heart. Khalid was silently grateful the room was dark.

“…It’s the same for me.”

Yudit smiled softly and hugged Khalid close. The arms that held him were so big, so warm.

***

The next day, the prisoners were released. The Emperor had acted faster than expected. A total of four people were freed.

Their health, unsurprisingly, was in terrible condition. One’s organs had begun to fail from prolonged starvation, another had lost toes to frostbite and suffered permanent damage, and a few clearly didn’t have much time left.

Yudit gave them two choices:
One, to go somewhere peaceful and recover in comfort.
Or two, to follow him to Khalid’s territory.

The result was unexpected. All of them—except for the one whose health was too far gone—chose to go with Yudit.