CH 17

“That’s impossible. Especially for those with dominant traits like us, if we don’t properly regulate our pheromones, we can easily cause trouble for those around us.”

“Even if you go live in the mountains?”

It must have been quite shocking.

Leia could clearly see what was going through Carl Lindbergh’s small head and spoke coldly.

“Carl Lindbergh, it’s easy to say things like that because you haven’t experienced a heat cycle yet, but being in heat without a mate is excruciatingly painful.”

Leia, who had been through it before, advised with sincerity.

“Anyway, you don’t have a choice. The Crown Prince is going to go ahead with the national marriage in exchange for your help. There’s only one reason: it’s rare to find an Omega who can handle the Crown Prince, and you’re a pretty good candidate among them.”

Carl Lindbergh got goosebumps and rubbed his arms.

“If you hate it so much that you want to die, I’ll try to find another way. But get rid of the idea of running away recklessly.”

It was pitiful to see him looking sad with the corners of his eyes drooped and she felt sorry for him, but she didn’t try to comfort him.

Leia herself knew well as an alpha. 

The more dominant one was, the quicker they would notice their mate and the more limitless their desire and obsession would be.

It’s also like a young dragon with boiling lava inside, who wouldn’t miss a prey that fell into its grasp with very little choice.

It was none other than Leia Lindbergh who enclosed Carl Lindbergh’s pheromones when he wrote the letter.

Adrian Heineken may seem like he goes his own way, but he is actually someone who pays attention to the details, and if he didn’t like Carl’s pheromones, he would never have helped Lindbergh.

The Mochu Mountains with magic stones? If Lindbergh is ruined, then it would belong to Heineken anyway.

Kitchener wouldn’t be able to dig up those magic stones even if he could come back to life after dying.

Even if a fox takes the place of a tiger, it is still a fox, and he overlooked the dragon with an open mouth, not the tiger, next to it.

When Leia Lindbergh went along with Carl’s reckless plan to save the Lindberghs, somehow, it was because she had a hunch that Adrian Heineken would like the present Carl Lindbergh.

If he actively helped Lindbergh, even if it was for the sake of Carl, the people would be at ease sooner.

In fact, it was something she wanted to do on her own.

Is there anything more painful than having to borrow someone else’s hand to save your country? 

Rubbing the stiffness in her neck, Leia couldn’t help but laugh when she heard Carl’s small voice.

“It’s not that I hate it enough to die, but it’s still scary.”

No matter how much he thought about it, there was only one hole for a child to come out of, and it was an organ that he would have to use for the rest of his life. He whimpered, saying ‘What should I do?’

He couldn’t stand still, fidgeting his fingers as if he was really scared.

“Don’t worry, you can do it. There are only 2,000 male Omegas in the entire continent, and they’re all alive and well even after giving birth.”

“Is that so?”

Leia found her younger brother’s awkward laughter so cute that she finally smoothed her brother’s hair for the first time.

The feeling of the thin but abundant hair wrapping around her fingers felt so good.

Startled by Leia’s sudden touch, Carl briefly flinched but soon closed his eyes and obediently leaned his head to her touch.

Since when did this devil look cute?

Leia awkwardly pulled her hand away because Carl had been too adorable lately, so much so that she almost forgot about his past misdeeds. 

Carl lamented, saying, “It felt good,” as he followed her touch. 

The way he opened his eyes narrowly and laughed was exactly like the dog he was raising.

Leia couldn’t help feeling guilty for putting this child directly in the mouth of the predator, but it was too late to undo what had been done.

“First, it was your servant, and now your sister?”

“Gasp!”

Carl Lindbergh gasped, almost jumping out of his seat.

Leia glared at the Crown Prince standing in front of the door with a frown.

“Please respect our privacy.”

“I’m afraid this is all my land.”

The Crown Prince smirked, ignoring Leia’s complaint.

“And I’ve been knocking on the door since earlier. I didn’t even take a single step into the room even after the door opened.”

The Crown Prince added in a slightly whiny tone, glancing at Carl, as if making an excuse.

Carl belatedly straightened his posture and bowed his head. 

Although they were of the same age, the Crown Prince was clearly his superior. Leia just stood still.

“Your Highness, what brings you here so early?”

“I went and came back because my Father summoned me. Although he delegated this task to me, since I lack experience, there are many things I need to seek advice on.”

The Crown Prince strode into the room.

With his long legs, it only took a few steps for him to reach the table.

He was about to spread the map on the table, but he glanced at the Prince’s notes.

“I see you had a meeting of your own here.”

“Yes, but it wasn’t anything important.”

“What was it about?”

“Really, it wasn’t important.”

The Prince, who hadn’t seen the Crown Prince since the subject of the national marriage had come up, smiled awkwardly as he put the paper away.

The crown prince responded with a polite smile and said.

“You’ll be my fiancée soon, so after that, let’s promise not to keep secrets from each other. Because I’m the kind of person who needs to know everything about the other person to keep my temper in check.”

The Crown Prince naturally took the seat next to Carl and gently pulled him over to sit down.

Leia noticed that the Crown Prince was aware of the Prince’s discomfort.

“I’ll be straightforward since Princess Leia needs to know too. I want to marry the Prince.”

You probably know why.

With that, the Crown Prince furtively released his pheromones.

“But you’ll have to propose properly.”

Leia released her pheromones to the Crown Prince, who dared to show off his superiority as an Alpha in front of her.

The Crown Prince increased the amount of pheromones as if it was funny

“It’s not just a marriage, it’s a national marriage to promote the friendship between our countries. Heineken likes things fast and precise.”

The Crown Prince slipped an arm across the Prince’s back.

It wasn’t even direct flesh-to-flesh contact, but Carl winced.

“I’ll put the answer on hold. Our child is growing late.”

Leia reached across to Carl and took her brother’s hand.

They looked like the sweetest, friendliest sibling in the world.

The Crown Prince raised one eyebrow as Carl, who was alternately looking at Leia’s beaming face and his hand, blushed as he had earlier.

It looked like defeat for the Crown Prince, who wasn’t even allowed to touch his skin.

However, instead of being angry, the Crown Prince smiled brighter and closed the gap between him and Carl Lindbergh, bumping their thighs together.

“It’s probably because he couldn’t focus on Lindbergh. Don’t worry. We, Heineken, will take care of it from now on.”

With that, he looked down at the Prince with a deep gaze.

Carl tried to avoid his gaze, but his face was so attractive that he was soon captivated as if he were possessed.

Leia raised her upper lip.

She couldn’t stand it that it seemed like she would ask, ‘What have you done to the Prince for him to become like this?’

“Look here, Your Highness the Crown Prince Adrian Heineken. Releasing pheromones without the other person’s consent is the height of impoliteness.”

The Crown Prince leaned forward towards Leia and apologized half-heartedly, saying, “Excuse me, my pheromones are just too strong.”

Only Carl Lindbergh was confused by this sudden tension.

The Crown Prince was eyeing the strand of hair of Carl she had touched earlier.

It was a look of intense desire and longing.

Leia briefly considered whether she should just grab her brother and run away right now.

“The good news is that it seems the Lindbergh royalty will soon request support from Heineken.”

“As expected.”

It was truly an eye-opening news.

The main goal was to pretend to support the royal family and then strike the privileged class from behind and raid their warehouses.

I raised my hand slightly to voice my opinion.

“Since it’s come to this, how about I lead the vanguard of Heineken’s reinforcement?”

It was better to go in openly and steal rather than sneak around like a spy.

“Hmm? Will it be okay? It seems dangerous.”

The Crown Prince asked if it would be better to wait until things were more organized before infiltrating again, but I shook my head.

“The location of the royal seal changes every time. Even though it’s inside the castle, if they realize that Heineken are not on the side of the Lindbergh royal family, Kitchener may disappear with the royal seal. I would like to find and retrieve the royal seal while it’s still in the castle, if possible.”

The Crown Prince still folded his arms as if he was not pleased.

I was stunned by his simple gesture, for I could see his firm triceps pressing tautly against his shirt.

I swallowed hard, thinking, ‘Wow, if he pressed me down with that forearm, I wouldn’t be able to move a muscle.’

“It’s just a matter of time. Kitchener will definitely be caught. It’s better to just inscribe a new Royal Seal.”

Leia shook her head at the Crown Prince’s suggestion of inscribing a new Royal Seal.

“Heineken’s legitimacy will be questioned. This matter should be nothing more than Heineken providing assistance upon the request of the Princess and Prince of Lindbergh, and receiving compensation in return.”

“That’s right. Even though neighboring countries have been coveting the Mochu Mountains, they’ve been quiet because the Empire stayed still, but if Heineken appears to have invaded out of greed, they will have other thoughts as well.”

If done wrong, the long-held alliance could be broken.