Chapter 81: After the Long Night.

I swam alone through the now-transparent water. Still, I wasn’t afraid. I knew the shackles that had bound my ankles, the chains that had tried to drag me down, would never reappear.

Nothing could impede my movement towards sleep.

I quickly emerged from the water and hurried my steps. The scent of lily flowers was already in the air.

A sudden gust of wind blew. A strong wind that made people pause for a moment and blew flower petals into the sky.

But I didn’t hesitate to open my eyes, which had been closed by the wind. The scent of the lily flowers only grew richer in the wind. 

As soon as I opened my eyes, I smiled.

The shrubs that filled the lakeside still had flowers hanging in clusters.

And there he was, in a heap of wind-blown petals.

He was waiting for me, leaning back on a soft cushion made of flower petals.

When I emerged from the dream, I felt the warmth surrounding me. That slightly cool temperature felt warmer than anything else.

As I slowly opened my eyes, his face, appeared as if it had been waiting for me. Just as it had been waiting for me in my dreams.

“……Did you have a good dream?”

“It was a wonderful dream.”

I raised my hand to stroke the corner of his lips as he rose comfortably, and blinked at the sight I saw. Then I quickly chuckled.

My arms were covered in red and blue marks. They were the marks of his lips, and in some places, even the marks of his teeth.

“Are you not sick?”

He asked, carefully touching his lips to the red mark left on the back of his hand.

To be honest, I felt a dull ache that made me hesitate to get up. My inner thighs, where I’d been so tense, also felt sore.

When I couldn’t answer, his brow furrowed slightly. He looked troubled.

“Does it hurt a lot?”

“……I understand you’re worried about me, but why do you look so happy?”

His expression was visibly apologetic, but underlying it was a clear sense of satisfaction. His eyes narrowed, as if they were even more perplexed.

“I guess I can’t help but be a greedy alpha.”

He said, pushing back the hair that was straying over his forehead.

“Actually, I’m probably the worst alpha.”

He moved closer to me. His lips followed the spot where his fingertips had touched. It felt like a whisper of confession was being delivered directly into my head.

His lips, running down the bridge of his nose, gently sucked the tip, then released it. At the same time, his lips briefly touched the tip of mine, then lifted. It was a tender movement.

“I knew a little bit.”

I couldn’t say I was completely unaware of the possessiveness he sometimes displayed toward me. His lips touched my cheek and smiled. Then they returned to mine.

Unlike last night, when he felt like he was going to take everything away, his movements were calm.

He sucked on my upper and lower lips in turn, then released them, then stuck out his tongue and slowly parted my lips.

It felt like exchanging greetings, or perhaps confirming that last night wasn’t a fantasy.

It was when my eyelids were about to fall again in a relaxed mood.

Beep—. An unexpected mechanical sound rang sharply.

Beep, beep. Beep—. This discontinuously ringing sound was familiar to me too.

It was the sound of a short message transmitter receiving a message.

But the pattern of the signal tone was different from what I knew. This signal tone itself sounded like a code.

The signal tone of the transmitter, which I didn’t even know was here until this moment, caught my attention.

As if soothing me frozen stiff, his tongue swept the tender flesh inside my mouth once and slipped out not urgently.

“It’s a signal that the generals have departed from the New Continent.”

When he spoke with wet lips, I inhaled.

“The typhoon wouldn’t have dissipated yet, right?”

“It means they had to depart even if the voyage time becomes longer due to detouring. It seems the justification to delay the King’s order has run out.”

I couldn’t find anxiety in the King’s Brother smiling bitterly. It seemed not because he lost tension but because he already expected it.

“When will they arrive?”

“When autumn deepens.”

His smile became a bit thicker.

“It seems His Majesty our King judged that just before I enter Rut is the right time to hold the victory ceremony.”

It was certainly a judgment that King would make. I couldn’t harbor a foolish hope that his prediction would be wrong.

“Though this side has no intention of playing along with his will.”

Deep darkness was glimpsed in the King’s Brother’s blue eyes. Equally firm determination was also felt.

Vague fear soared. Whatever anyone says, he was the King and the owner of the ‘King’s Heart.’ The one who kept the royal family intact even while the political system was changing, the one possessing the key to operate the royal palace’s barrier.

However, instead of speaking words of worry, I reached out my hand to him.

“I remembered things I have to do.”

He closed his eyes and rubbed his cheek against my hand. Kissed my palm for a long time.

“Still, you can spare time for a kiss, right?”

With a face completely devoid of the sneer directed at the King, he asked me. Moving my hand touching his cheek to wrap around his neck.

My answer disappeared into his mouth. At the conveyed affirmation, the corner of his lips went up briefly and then started biting my lips again. It was a kiss like floating on calm water. Also like floating on clouds.

It was a time hard to believe as reality.

****

Although playing the role of Palmer Jewelry’s manager is impossible now, I haven’t abandoned the thought of making the jewelry shop itself a luxury brand. There must be a way. Although not clear yet.

Just because future plans are not complete, I couldn’t leave Palmer Jewelry in a state of suspended business.

Although no one would think the Beta manager who ruined the shop manifested as a dominant Omega, there will be people looking suspiciously at the point that a thief entered on the very day a dominant Omega appeared.

Since conspiracy theorists sometimes make deductions close to the truth.

It had to be normalized so that the King’s Brother would appear to have no connection with the rumored dominant Omega.

Fortunately, since the catalog for the next season was completed before manifestation, it could appear to run without major problems for the time being.

Palmer Jewelry was also needed to obtain personally necessary gems. Purchasing raw stones directly from the ducal residence lacks probability significantly. Unless we advertise that a jeweler is here.

There was an item that must be made. For none other than myself.

“Do you have anyone in mind as the next manager of Palmer Jewelry?”

When asked while drinking weak coffee after the meal, he frowned with one eye.

“Since the predecessor was so great, it’s hard to find a suitable person.”

I ended up laughing a little. His eyes couldn’t be called objective anymore, but still, it was a definite fact that I had done quite a lot of things at Palmer Jewelry.

“Mr. Palmer also delayed his retirement day after day because there was no suitable person to recommend.”

The difficulty in finding a person to be Palmer’s successor also existed as a reason for my decision to give up university and inherit the jewelry shop.

A person who knows well about gems, has good sociability, strong patience, is skilled in sales yet knows how to back off without burdening customers. I couldn’t satisfy all those ideal conditions either. Especially in the sociability sector.

Actually, it was extremely difficult for one person to do all that.

“I was greedy too. Since I tried to do everything alone. I think it’s good to subdivide roles even now.”

In Jongno, I ran around trying to reduce labor costs due to the downward trend of the shop’s sales. Here, I didn’t have to do that. No, actually I wanted to overwork myself. Not to give room for idle thoughts to intervene.

“A person who can do everything like you is certainly hard to find. You also overworked yourself excessively.”

“I can’t do everything either, but I can’t deny I overworked.”

“I wish you wouldn’t do that in the future. And spare time for me too.”

While tapping the table with my finger unconsciously, a hand stretched long from the opposite side grabbed my finger. The hand with scars tickled the back of my hand with mottled marks.

“I will, try.”

I pulled out the hand under his. The moment his hand flinched and tried to grab my wrist again, I put my finger on the back of his hand. I moved my finger along the trace of the scar.

“Even in that sense, I think it’s better to separate the roles of the manager in charge of customer service and the appraiser. If it’s an appraiser who is clumsy at customer service but strict about gems, it won’t be that difficult to find.”

“Certainly.”

“Presenting a standard is also important. If the standards for gem appraisal are firmly established, raising successors won’t be difficult in the future.”

Just as GIA (Gemological Institute of America) became the standard for gem appraisal on Earth, Palmer Jewelry’s appraisal could become a standard. Although it’s something requiring quite some time.

Even while I was lost in thought for a moment, the King’s Brother’s hand placed under mine remained quiet as is.

If separating the roles of manager and appraiser, a person perfectly suitable for manager came to mind. I opened my mouth tracing his scar again.

“What do you think about Paul?”

“Coachman Paul?”

“Yes.”

Knowing almost nothing about gems was a big weakness, but he already possessed abilities that couldn’t be developed through learning.

“Although he would have to work under another manager while studying gems, Paul could receive the manager position soon. Because he is clever.”

He was a person who could become a good marketer, Paul. And a trustworthy person too.

“I’m confident I can teach effectively. Of course, Paul himself would be willing. And I think His Majesty would be uncomfortable without Paul.”

The hand placed under mine flinched. I felt like I knew which part of my words made him react. I put a little more strength into the hand holding his.