Chapter 10

　　"Daniel, how many years have you been studying?" she asked, her voice deliberately stern.

　　Whenever she scolded him, Daniel froze like a startled deer. He was like an automaton, conditioned to obey her every command.

　　"Three years…"

　　"That’s right, three years. You only have two more to go before you can enter the Royal Academy, and you want to quit now? You’re already on a scholarship, and your grades are good enough to earn you one there, too. Does giving that up make any sense?"

　　"But… you…"

　　"I told you not to worry about me!" she snapped, her frustration boiling over.

　　Daniel pressed his lips together, his head sinking even lower.

　　"I’m an adult," she said, her voice softening slightly. "I can take care of myself. But you can’t. That’s why I have to protect you… How many times do I have to repeat myself, Daniel?"

　　"I’m sorry…"

　　Johanna gazed down at the top of his head as he fidgeted with his hands, and she let out a small sigh. Her sweet Daniel never acted childishly like other boys his age, always mindful of their family’s circumstances. When he first started school, he never played with friends, focusing only on his studies. It was only after she gently urged him to have some fun that he began going out once or twice a week. She felt lucky to have such a good brother, but her heart ached for him.

　　If our family were normal… if Father had at least worked and brought home money, you wouldn’t have to worry about survival at such a young age.

　　"Really, don’t worry… okay?" she whispered. "Nothing bad is going to happen."

　　"Okay…" he mumbled, his head still bowed.

　　Johanna gently stroked his hair, then pulled him into a tight hug and awkwardly changed the subject. She had been angry out of frustration, but scolding him had only made her feel worse.

　　"Should we have dinner? I think there are still some pasta ingredients left."

　　"Yeah, that sounds great! I’ll help!" Daniel’s head shot up, a bright smile spreading across his face.

　　A soft smile touched Johanna’s lips in return. If I had known his exams were ending today, I would have bought some meat. She would sooner starve herself than let her brother go hungry.

　　They made dinner together, then sat in their small living room, which doubled as a parlor, talking quietly. Only when drowsiness began to set in did they retreat to their separate rooms.

　　By the way, your pheromones smell amazing, Johanna.

　　They do?

　　Yeah. They smell just like the scarlet flowers that bloom in our school garden every fall. What were they called again…? I can’t remember.

　　Daniel’s voice, echoing in her mind, began to fade. Curled on her side, Johanna slowly drifted into sleep and then into a dream.

* * *

　　The day to pay the 2,700-Rubel interest was fast approaching. In just one week, she would have to face Ilian Redis again—a prospect she dreaded. She suspected he was the Alpha the doctor had warned her about, the one whose pheromones would feel overwhelmingly strong.

　　All week, Johanna had worked on her illustrations while Victoria’s proposal tormented her. In truth, she was repulsed by the idea. Who could take the task of bearing a child lightly? But she was trapped, her back against a cliff.

　　If she failed to make the payment, Ilian Redis would undoubtedly drag her to one of his establishments and force her to work. She might get lucky and only have to wait tables, but she knew the world was not that kind. He would find some dirty way to inflate her debt until she was forced into prostitution, and from that world, there would be no escape. The only future she could envision was dying a miserable death from some disease.

　　And after I die, Daniel will be his next target.

　　That was her greatest fear. The thought of her brother, a Dominant Alpha, being taken by those thugs and used as a stud or a fighting dog—she could not let his life fall into such an abyss.

　　If she signed the contract with Marquis Neuwitz, the advance would be enough to pay off a portion of the debt. And once the contract was fulfilled, she would have more money than she could imagine.

　　Then I could clear the debt completely. The sum Victoria had hinted at was astronomical. It would be more than enough. They could even move after it was all over—away from this top-floor flat with its fickle hot water and leaky ceiling, to a place where they could live comfortably.

　　The problem was the price.

　　Johanna agonized all day, weighing her options. Late that night, as she gazed at her brother’s innocent face, peaceful in sleep, she made her decision. There was no other way. Her father was still gone, and there was no one left to ask for help.

　　She had to choose between the worst option and the second-worst.

　　She would choose the one that was slightly less miserable. The future where she could protect her brother.

　　The only thing that still gnawed at her was that the other party had to be him.

　　Leonid Neuwitz would have surely erased a fleeting encounter like theirs from his memory.

　　But for Johanna, it was a memory she could never forget.

* * *

　　Johanna accompanied Victoria to the Weimar Mansion on a particularly overcast Tuesday afternoon. Despite the gloomy, rain-threatening sky, the gardens, landscaped with meticulously manicured evergreens, were a vibrant, beautiful sight. The grounds were as vast as the royal palace, and the mansion itself was a monument to luxurious, imposing grandeur. This was, without a doubt, the home of the most powerful family in the kingdom.

　　Johanna first met with the Marquis’s aide for a brief interview, submitting the medical report that proved her Omega status along with her personal information. Afterward, she was separated from Victoria and led to a drawing room. The vast, splendid interior was immediately intimidating.

　　What would it feel like to live in a palace like this? She could not begin to imagine.

　　She waited for twenty minutes before he finally appeared: Leonid Neuwitz Rinke Elderic.

　　The moment he stepped through the door, Johanna shot to her feet. She stood awkwardly, her hands clasped before her, and felt his discerning gaze sweep over her from head to toe. From the instant he appeared, her heart began to hammer against her ribs like a wild, trapped thing, and she struggled to keep her composure.

　　The last time she had seen him was four weeks ago. Her heart fluttered at the sight of her first love, as handsome as ever. His near-perfect features were cast in deep shadows, like those of a marble statue. His large, solid Alpha physique and unapproachable aura seemed to command the very air around him.

　　As a newspaper illustrator, she often had to accompany reporters, which had granted her the secret good fortune of seeing and sketching him in person. The first time had been when she was sixteen. Naturally, Leonid Neuwitz had never spared a glance for the plainly dressed illustrator standing behind the journalist. She had harbored a faint hope that he might recognize her, but she had quickly accepted that she would never merit even a fraction of his attention.

　　They lived in different worlds. He was a great noble who could sway the fate of the nation; she was the daughter of a fallen house that had long since lost its title. That they were meeting again like this, to actually speak, felt like a miracle.

　　"Miss Johanna Lucerne?" he asked.

　　"Yes. It is a pleasure to meet you. An honor."

　　"An honor? Hardly," he scoffed, a faint smirk on his lips as he sat on the sofa opposite her.

　　Johanna wet her dry lips with her tongue, watching him cautiously. As she remained standing, he shot her a cool glance and commanded in a voice devoid of any warmth, "Sit. Do not make me strain my neck."

　　"My apologies." She bowed her head and quickly sat. The plush velvet sofa was so soft it felt like sinking into a cloud.

　　"Doctor Odeur recommended you," he stated.

　　"Yes, that’s right."

　　Odeur was Victoria’s family name. The fact that the Marquis himself used the honorific "Doctor" spoke to the immense trust Victoria had earned.

　　"I assume you have been briefed on the precautions," he continued. "Our meeting, our conversation, my objective—all of it is confidential. Nothing leaves this room."

　　"Of course. I understand."

　　"You presented as a Dominant Omega… not long ago. It must be jarring, suddenly having to live as an Omega."

　　Leonid lifted his gaze from the documents, his eyes meeting hers directly. When those beautiful eyes—the color of twilight, of whiskey in a glass—fixed on her, she found it hard to breathe.