CH 35

The Crown Prince met Carl Lindbergh when he was ten years old.

The young Alpha may have thought of the Omega he met for the first time as his own mate, like a gosling.

And that would have been the case in the original as well.

“Can you feel love without pheromones?”

“Well, of course. If everything is attributed to pheromones, then how would you explain the hundreds of people with traits who marry Betas?”

Carl closed his eyes tightly.

In the end, there was only a chemical reaction between the two.

The fact that the Crown Prince appeared lovely. The fact that at that moment, it seemed like he could give up everything for him.

Even this feeling of becoming saddened by the realization that the Crown Prince’s heart does not belong to him.

“Your Highness Adrian, I will go to Lindbergh alone after all.”

Carl, who took a moment to catch his breath, clenched his fist under the table.

“Why?”

Adrian frowned and retorted.

Even Emperor Glenn had a puzzled expression at the prince’s sudden remark.

After meeting Adrian at dinner, Carl Lindbergh smiled in front of him for the first time in several tens of minutes.

“I can’t make it any more complicated than this.”

Adrian’s head felt like it was on fire at Carl suddenly drawing a line, almost causing him to forget where they were.

Someone entered the dining hall and whispered to the Emperor, prompting him to exclaim, “What? The Empress!” before hastily leaving the dining hall.

In the end, the dinner ended ambiguously.

“What the hell was that?”

Adrian, who dragged the prince all the way to the courtyard despite his refusal, asked Carl.

“What?”

Carl shot a questioning look, as if asking why he was acting that way.

Because of that, Adrian, in a frenzy, grabbed Carl’s arm. Carl willingly followed along.

Marco contemplated and then tried to stop Adrian, but a glance from Carl sent Elizabeth scurrying out of the room.

“How are you going to explain this attitude right now?”

No matter what happened, Carl Lindbergh had never avoided Adrian’s gaze, but now he sighed and looked away.

“Did you suddenly become afraid? Did I do something wrong?”

Adrian asked, trying to suppress his anger.

“I was happy because you didn’t dislike me, didn’t hate me. I was as delighted as if I had the sky.”

Suddenly, with moist eyes, Adrian released the strength in his clenched hand and took a step back.

It was because Carl’s forearm was too soft and slender, and it trembled ever so slightly.

“Are you regretting spending the night with me, even though you don’t like me and just wanted to save Lindbergh?”

Is that not about you?

Pretending to like me while trying to suppress your feelings for Belfry?

Because he’s not in a condition to accept you. I don’t want to cause him any more pain.

Even though I thought it might not be the case, my heart kept getting tangled up.

Belfry will soon become an Omega. So I don’t have to be by your side.

Carl felt sorry for his own position.

And at the same time, he pitied the Crown Prince who couldn’t hide his conflicted feelings.

“It’s not like that.”

Adrian’s pheromones were filled with anxiety as he groped for Carl.

That alone soothed the Crown Prince, the heat of two days ago gathering in Carl’s lower abdomen.

That day, they couldn’t do it until the end, but this time, they might be crossing a point of no return.

If they wanted to put everything back in its place, Carl Lindbergh was not supposed to play that role.

“Think rationally. No one knows what might happen if you go. And if something happens to you on top of that, how can I repay that debt to Heineken? So let’s proceed with caution.”

Carl tried to smile calmly.

Though Adrian didn’t fully comprehend it, he found solace in that smile and pressed his hands against Carl’s face, kissing him deeply.

Adrian, despite feeling a pang of sadness at the small gesture of Carl wiping his own lips with his sleeve, didn’t show it.

“When you come back from Lindbergh, I won’t hold back anymore.”

By then, there will be another Omega by your side.

Carl hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“Yes.”

“It’s not just empty words. I truly like you. We’ll become a good match.”

Although Carl was smiling and nodding in apparent agreement, Adrian couldn’t shake off the feeling that his words were falling on deaf ears.

“So please, be careful and come back safely.”

Adrian attached his magic tool, filled with his own wishes, to Carl’s waist.

Carl gently stroked the smooth surface of the magic stone, his lips curling into a faint smile as he spoke.

“Happy birthday in advance. Come to think of it, I might be in Lindbergh on that day.”

He wanted to give something, but the circumstances were such.

Adrian teased, saying that if Carl came back safely, that would be his gift, while Carl appeared with a somewhat awkward smile.

The chilly night breeze cut through the space between the two.

“Who will take care of you, Prince, if I’m not there?”

Upon hearing his words about leaving him and Elizabeth behind, Marco collapsed on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

“I’m not going to my parents’ home for an outing, I’m going to fight a quiet war. If you’re there, you’ll be an annoyance.”

Marco was shocked and speechless, but on this particular day, he couldn’t resist Carl’s overwhelming determination.

Belfry knocked on the door and entered at that moment.

Marco pleaded with Belfry to convince Carl to let him come along, but even Belfry shook his head.

It was impeccable timing.

As prophesied, the eastern dam collapsed, causing a flood, and the Crown Prince urgently received the Emperor’s command to move eastward.

The delicate balance between the two, like walking on thin ice, made both Leia and Belfry, who were watching closely, uneasy. However, Carl, the person at the center of it all, remained unfazed.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Belfry tried to glance sideways to gauge Carl’s intentions, but even that was seen through by Carl.

“No, it’s nothing.”

The two of them took their seats and discussed the internal layout of Lindbergh Castle, mapping out their course.

“Once you enter the castle, please play the role of a prince who is indifferent to etiquette.”

“I can do that confidently.”

Since they had done it before, it wasn’t a difficult task.

And with the current state of chaos in his heart, if he were to go there and meet the King or the Chancellor, it seemed inevitable that his true feelings would show, even if he didn’t want them to.

He was determined to act deliberately and wickedly.

“And for a day or two, don’t make any moves, just stay put. In the meantime, we’ll move our forces, reassuring each lord and pretending to suppress the angry masses.”

After spending the night with the prince, Belfry continuously stole glances at Carl, sensing a change in the atmosphere.

Despite always having a well-groomed appearance and a calm demeanor, there was a seductive aura that seemed to cling passionately whenever they touched.

Was it compliance, or resignation?

In his profound eyes that seemed to be empty of anything, there was instead a glint of brightness.

“Young Lord Hendrick?”

Belfry, who had been lost in observing the prince, quickly covered his mouth with his sleeve, startled.

It was because he worried that he might have drooled.

Carl interpreted that reaction slightly differently.

He was secretly pleased, wasn’t he?

He doesn’t want to show his happiness because he feels sorry for me.

The situation was becoming increasingly complicated.

As he thought about Adrian’s affection now directed towards someone else, an unpleasant emotion washed over him once again.

“The actual operation will begin in two days. We will besiege the castle and have the soldiers occupy each section of the city walls to prevent the placement of barricades while the warehouse is opened. We plan to lure Chancellor Kitchener briefly outside the palace.”

“How will you do that?”

“By setting fire to his private residence.”

“What?”

Seeing Carl’s surprise, Belfry flashed a mischievous smile.

When the Duke of Balvenie visited, it was the Kitchener family that purchased the most luxurious items.

The entire castle, akin to a grand museum, was Kitchener’s pride and joy.

“The only thing the Chancellor doesn’t have is the crown. Does that make it more valuable to him than anything else? No.”

Belfry was confident that Kitchener, who had swept away all the processed magic stones from the Balvenie merchant group, had stored it in his private residence.

“If we set fire to the palace and all the processed magic stones are at risk of being stolen, even Kitchener, who clings to the crown, will be anxious and come looking for them.”

“Then I’ll find the Royal seal in the meantime.”

“Yes, you have a maximum of three days to do that.”

“Three days is enough.”

Carl said confidently.

Belfry took out another magic tool.

“This is a resonating stone. It contains the magic formula that can resonate with the Royal seal of Heineken, so carry it with you.”

It was made as a precaution in case the Royal seal of Heineken was lost. Since the Royal seal of Heineken and Lindbergh are of the same type of magic stone. Belfry laughed, saying he didn’t expect it to be used like this.

“Heineken has various methods like this, so I don’t understand why they didn’t invade Lindbergh earlier.”

Looking at the translucent resonating stone, Carl casually commented, and Belfry responded earnestly.

“Heineken values its relationships with other countries.”

In other words, they’ve been cautious so far, but now it seems like they have an opportunity.

“Still, it’s fortunate for Heineken that the prince willingly provides a justification for our actions.”

As Belfry was gathering the blueprints, he corrected himself, saying, “No, it’s fortunate for His Highness the Crown Prince.”

Carl chuckled bitterly.