Chapter 1

　　Worldbuilding Guide

　　*Omegaverse*: A realm populated by beings exhibiting Alpha and Omega characteristics.

　　Alpha: Individuals who possess pheromones that entice Omegas. They are born with physical strength far surpassing that of ordinary humans. Dominant Alphas form the ruling class of society.

　　Omega: Individuals who possess pheromones that entice Alphas. They are born with a captivating beauty that can bewitch others. They often have congenitally weak bodies. Omegas can become pregnant regardless of their sex.

　　Beta: Ordinary individuals who do not possess pheromones. They are common people who cannot sense the pheromones of Alphas or Omegas.

　　Prologue

　　Thunder roared through the sky. Lightning ripped through the dark, stormy skies, and then the downpour began.

　　Johanna hurried her steps toward the boarding house. The deep hood of her cloak offered some protection, but she knew she would be soaked to the bone in moments. Here, in the warm southern province, rain was a constant companion even in the dead of winter, never turning to snow. She usually remembered to carry an umbrella, but her mind had been so scattered these past few days that she had forgotten it.

　　"You must be careful, now that you’re carrying a child."

　　"Make sure to eat regularly. As for suppressants… it’s best to avoid them during pregnancy, if at all possible."

　　"By the way, who is the baby’s father?"

　　The doctor’s words, a refrain that had played in her mind a hundred times over, echoed once more. Johanna’s hands moved unconsciously to cup her lower abdomen, her teeth sinking into her lip. When she first learned she was pregnant after arriving here, she had desperately prayed it was a mistake. She felt a pang of guilt for the baby, but her circumstances left her no other choice. The baby’s father… her relationship with Marquis Neuwitz was well and truly over.

　　She could never go back to him. It was for the best, for both of them. But what about the child inside her? The question she had agonized over for days, the one to which she still had no answer, resonated in her heart.

　　"Is it raining hard out… oh? Goodness! You’re soaked through!"

　　The moment she opened the door and stepped into the entryway, the landlady, Mrs. Dreville, rushed to greet her. With a keen interest in gossip, Mrs. Dreville had always been curious about Johanna, the young woman who had appeared in the city so suddenly. Her prying could be excessive, but she wasn’t a bad person. As long as she refrained from subtly digging into where Johanna had come from, she was generally kind.

　　"And you are with a child! You can’t be walking around in a downpour like this! Goodness me."

　　Mrs. Dreville quickly fetched a dry towel. After Johanna pulled back her hood, the landlady began patting her drenched hair. The rain had been so torrential that her hood was instantly saturated, leaving Johanna looking like a drowned rat from head to toe.

　　"Are you alright? Not feeling a chill, are you? Come, let’s get you to the fireplace."

　　Mrs. Dreville guided Johanna toward the first-floor drawing room. Perhaps it was the gloomy weather, but the boarding house’s narrow hallway felt especially dark today. Taking the now-damp towel from Johanna, Mrs. Dreville’s eyes widened as if she’d just remembered something.

　　"Oh, no! I completely forgot to tell you. You have a visitor, miss."

　　The unexpected news stopped Johanna in her tracks, about twenty paces from the drawing room. She turned to Mrs. Dreville, her expression puzzled.

　　"…A visitor?"

　　"Yes. But the man… I shouldn’t say this, but he seemed a bit… unhinged. And with his looks and the clothes he’s wearing… he has to be a nobleman. What is he to you?"

　　In an instant, all expression drained from Johanna’s face. A nobleman? Her mind raced. There was only one nobleman in this city who might come looking for her: Karl Babenhausen. An artist who worked under the pseudonym Jeremy Baselitz, he traveled extensively in search of inspiration. It was for that reason he had come to this seaside city. Their meeting here had been pure coincidence and, in a way, an unexpected stroke of luck. He was the one who had saved her when she’d found herself in danger not long ago.

　　"He was soaked from the rain, too. I can’t imagine a nobleman traveling without a single attendant… I told him to wait in the drawing room. It didn’t feel right to give him your room number without verifying it with you."

　　"That man, was he perhaps… No, never mind." Mrs. Dreville was a Beta, born without the traits of an Alpha or Omega. She couldn’t detect their pheromones, so asking if the man was an Alpha was pointless. "What did he look like, exactly? His hair color, for instance…"

　　She asked for generic features for identification. The guest waiting in the drawing room was most likely Karl, but she couldn’t be certain. She didn’t think he would come all the way to this remote southern town to find her, but…

　　"Let’s see… his hair was black as a crow’s feather, and his eyes… gold? No, darker. Like the sunset. I’ve never seen eyes that color in my life."

　　As the landlady’s words registered, Johanna’s heart, which had been beating with relative calm, plummeted into a bottomless abyss. Black hair and sunset-colored eyes. Black hair was common enough, but eyes that burned like the evening sky were exceedingly rare. Like Mrs. Dreville, Johanna had only ever met one person with such eyes: Leonid Neuwitz Rinke Elderic.

　　It was him. As if mocking her foolish hope that it couldn’t be, he had found her. A powerful intuition, nearly a premonition, washed over her. If she opened that door and stepped into the drawing room, she would come face to face with him and no one else.

　　Johanna’s heart hammered against her ribs.

　　"Oh my, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Mrs. Dreville cried out, her arms shooting out to steady Johanna as she suddenly swayed.

　　Johanna fought back a wave of dizziness and gasped, "Did you… did you tell him?"

　　"Hm?"

　　"Did you tell him that I’m pregnant?"

　　At the strange question, Mrs. Dreville frowned, her expression baffled as she shook her head. By now, she seemed to realize something was deeply wrong with the situation.

　　"What are you talking about? Of course not. I don’t even know who that man is."

　　Johanna’s legs gave out, and she sank into a crouch. It was a small mercy in a sea of misfortune. She couldn’t predict how Leonid would react if he knew. Even if she had to face him again one day, it couldn’t be now. Not like this, completely unprepared.

　　"Madame…"

　　"Yes, what on earth is the matter?"

　　"Please, don’t tell him I’m here. I’m begging you." Fearing her voice might carry into the drawing room, Johanna pleaded in a desperate whisper. She rose to her feet and began to back away, hesitant and shaky, like a terrified animal cornered by a predator. "Please."

　　Her face, already pale, was now as white as a ghost’s. A terrible premonition taking root, Mrs. Dreville asked cautiously, "The man in there… is he dangerous? Is that it?"

　　"No, it’s not like that. It’s just… complicated. Please, just don’t say anything."

　　"Well, if you’re asking, of course I’ll do as you say, but…"

　　"Thank you, Mrs. Dreville. We’ll talk later." Johanna squeezed the landlady’s hand before letting go and fleeing as if she were being chased.

　　Left alone in the dark hallway, Mrs. Dreville stared after Johanna and muttered to the empty air, "My, what in the world is going on…"

　　With the windows shut against the storm, the boarding house was silent. Only the occasional flash of lightning and the subsequent crack of thunder disturbed the grim quiet. Guided by the faint glow of the cheap mana stone lamps mounted on the walls, Johanna climbed to the second floor. The upstairs hallway was even darker than the stairs, nearly pitch-black.

　　She reached her room, slipped inside, and quickly closed the door, leaning against it to catch her breath. Her heart throbbed with a frantic, unsteady rhythm. The room looked just as it had that morning: a small space, filled to capacity with a single bed, a wardrobe, and a desk, that had been her only sanctuary for the past three weeks. She felt utterly lost, with no idea where to go from here.

　　But there was no time to stand idle. Without turning on a lamp, she navigated the darkness with swift resolve. She pulled a large bag from the wardrobe and began to shove her belongings inside, one after another. A chaotic tangle of thoughts swirled in her mind, but she forced herself to ignore them. After packing her sketchbook and pencils, she straightened the bedding one last time. She shook out the blanket, smoothed it neatly, and lifted the pillow.

　　The object hidden beneath came into view, and Johanna’s eyes darkened.

　　A tourmaline necklace, its teal-green gem a perfect match for her eyes, shimmered with a soft glow in the gloom. She stood frozen for a moment before an irresistible force compelled her to pick it up. The teardrop-shaped stone, suspended from a thin platinum-gold chain, swayed like a cradle. It was the first gift Leonid had ever given her. When she had left him, she’d left the wedding ring behind, but she couldn’t bring herself to part with this.

　　A feeling she had likewise been unable to discard pierced her heart like a dagger. Tears welled, hot and unwelcome, and she clenched her jaw to fight them back. She and Leonid… they were never meant to be. Looking back, it was obvious.

　　"The contract is for one year. I need a Dominant Omega who can bear my heir within that time."

　　"As an Omega yourself, Miss Lucerne, you must know it’s difficult for an Extreme Dominant Alpha like me to produce a child. The chances are only viable if the partner is also a Dominant Omega."

　　He had needed an Omega to bear his heir, and she had needed money. When had such a simple arrangement become so discordant? The bitter irony of carrying his child now was almost too much to bear.

　　Johanna let out a hollow, self-mocking scoff and finished packing. First, she had to get away. Then… and then… She sorted through the chaos in her mind, pulling out only the most feasible plans. Hoisting the bag, which was as messy as her thoughts, she stood and turned toward the door.

　　Suddenly, she heard someone climbing the stairs.

　　The dull, heavy sound of low-heeled shoes echoed in the quiet space, punctuated by the groaning protest of the old wooden floorboards. Johanna froze, her hands clutching the bag. A wave of dread swept over her. The footsteps grew closer, then stopped directly outside her door.

　　A cold sweat trickled down her spine. Pale with fright, she took an involuntary step back.

　　With the grating of old hinges, the door began to open, slowly. Before she could even make out the intruder’s face in the sliver of darkness, she sensed it: the pheromones of an Alpha, flooding the room. The scent was like a snowy winter landscape—cold yet comforting, like sipping warm tea while gazing out at a garden blanketed in white.

　　The familiar scent wrapped around her, overwhelming her senses until she could barely breathe. Her Omega body, pregnant with this very Alpha’s child, rejoiced at the sublime pheromones it hadn’t felt in so long, threatening to run wild. Feeling her own nature awaken for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Johanna stood rooted to the spot, trembling uncontrollably. She tried to smother the Omega pheromones rising from her, but it was useless. Just as they had on countless nights spent tangled together, the Alpha and Omega scents mingled, thick and potent. Her sweet floral fragrance was devoured by his bittersweet aroma of tea. His pheromones, as always, savaged and consumed her.

　　"Ah." A low, hoarse sound escaped her lips.

　　When the door finally swung wide open, Johanna’s legs gave out. She sank to the floor, her head tilting up just as she fell. Her premonition had been right.

　　The man, Leonid Neuwitz, stood on the threshold, a towering figure separating her small world from everything beyond it. His eyes, a raging storm, bore down on her.