Chapter 46

Roused in a stupor, Elwin sat frozen in absolute disbelief. He blinked, desperately wishing the vision before him would dissolve into the remnants of a dream, but Dwight remained stubbornly solid.

“How… how did you get in here…?”

The moment he forced the words past his throat, Elwin realized he was panting. An unnatural, suffocating fever rushed through his veins, making his flesh prickle and his pulse throb with a frantic rhythm. Deep within his core, something instinctual whined and vibrated.

What is happening to my body? It is too early for this.

As a fully matured Omega, Elwin recognized the warning signs all too well. It was the volatile threshold of heat, yet his cycle was weeks away. This sudden onslaught was terrifyingly unnatural.

He inhaled sharply, realizing only now that the chamber was saturated with an unfamiliar, cloying aroma. It was far too vivid, too predatory to be the lingering vapors of the wine he had consumed at dinner.

“Mr. Dwight… what is the meaning of this? Ah… this scent. Please…”

It was Dwight’s pheromones. The heavy scent, which Elwin had barely tolerated in passing, had completely devoured the air in the bedchamber, coiling around him like a physical brand.

At Elwin’s choked plea, Dwight let out a low, mocking chuckle. “You know exactly what this is. There is no need to play the blushing virgin.”

“What…?”

“The aphrodisiac should have taken hold by now, so shouldn’t your lower half be twitching open in invitation? Do not waste my time pretending to be shocked. You should be thanking me for presenting myself.”

An aphrodisiac?

Had his evening wine been spiked? Even as Elwin desperately tried to piece together his hazy memories, the internal fire intensified, threatening to drag him into a helpless heat. Summoning every ounce of willpower, he fought to suppress his own responding pheromones.

“Return to your quarters… ah. If you withdraw now, I will ensure this remains between us.”

Dwight snorted derisively at the breathless threat, unleashing an even thicker, stickier wave of his scent. The sheer force of the dominant Alpha pheromones crashed over Elwin, causing his stomach to heave in physical revulsion.

“Ah… stop…!”

Dwight’s lips stretched into a cruel, triumphant grin as he watched Elwin shudder on the mattress. The moonlight illuminating the room revealed his own face flushed with matching arousal.

The thick pheromones in the room were a double-edged sword; they were provoking both of them. Thoroughly affected by the drug, Elwin’s body began to exude a sweet, honey-like counter-scent. With the predatory gleam of a beast cornering its prey, Dwight advanced toward the bed.

“Elwin! Screeech! Elwin!”

Perched upon his stand, Echo the parrot flapped his wings frantically and shrieked. Dwight whipped around toward the writing desk, his face twisting in annoyance.

“Stupid bird! Hold your tongue!”

“Kaaak! Stupid! Aaaak! Stupid!”

Mocked by his own insult, Dwight’s neck flushed crimson with rage. “Quiet, you miserable pest! Nothing in this wretched estate is worth a damn!”

Dwight swung his arm in a wide arc to seize the bird. When the startled parrot darted away to evade his grasp, Dwight pursued him with clawed fingers, clearly intent on wringing the creature’s neck.

“No!”

Horrified by the violence, Elwin lunged instinctively from the bed and grabbed Dwight’s arm. Despite his frantic efforts to hold the man back, Dwight’s superior strength prevailed. He snatched Echo by the throat with one hand and slammed him brutally onto the floorboards.

“Echo! No, let go! Let go of him!”

Gray feathers drifted through the air as the parrot let out a weak, pitiful squeak. Elwin tried to scramble toward his pet, but Dwight’s arms instantly locked around his waist, dragging him backward despite his desperate struggles.

“Ah… let me go…!”

With a rough heave, Elwin was flung back onto the mattress. The violent struggle left his head spinning, and the premature heat began to flare unchecked throughout his trembling limbs.

Dwight chuckled darkly at the sight of the helpless Omega. Intricate red veins spidered across his wild, unblinking eyes.

Leaning down, Dwight whispered against his ear, “Is this not what you wanted, Mr. Elwin?”

“What… are you talking about…?”

“You were practically begging me to notice you.”

The cruel truth of the statement stung; Elwin could not deny his past efforts to secure the match. When he tried to push himself up to flee, Dwight seized his wrists and pinned them ruthlessly against the sheets.

“Why play hard to get now? I am finally offering to take you, so stop acting as if you are worth more than your station.”

“Release me! Ah! Let go of me!”

“Tsk. Do not make this difficult. You are an Omega—just act like one and spread your fucking legs quietly!”

Pinning Elwin’s wrists with one hand, Dwight wedged his knee between Elwin’s thighs.

As Elwin thrashed violently to block him, Dwight sneered and flooded the room with an even denser layer of his suffocating pheromones.

The cloying scent began to dissolve Elwin’s rational mind, leaving only a sticky, agonizing fog. He detested every second of it, yet his biological instincts roared in response. Tears of sheer terror gathered in his eyes as he felt his sanity slipping away.

How did I end up in this nightmare? Where did I make my mistake? If only Dwight had never set foot in this manor. If only I had never devised that foolish scheme to marry him. No… if only I hadn’t been born an Omega. If only I hadn’t harbored the naive delusion that a mere Omega could protect this family.

“Ahaha. See? This is much easier for both of us, isn’t it?”

As Elwin’s body finally went limp under the oppressive heat, Dwight inhaled deeply, savoring the sweet pheromones. Elwin weakly turned his face away from the approaching hand.

Thump. Thump, thump.

The sudden, sharp rap on the bedchamber door was like a single ray of light cutting through his dark despair. Elwin’s eyes flew open. He parted his lips to scream, but Dwight’s heavy hand instantly clamped over his mouth.

“Mmph… mmph!”

Dwight glared down at him in silent threat, but the interruption gave Elwin a renewed burst of adrenaline. He began to thrash wildly, his eyes fixed on the door with desperate hope.

Please… even if I cannot answer, just come in. Please.

The metallic rattle of the doorknob echoed through the silence, but the door remained firmly shut. Hearing only the futile clicking, despair washed over Elwin’s blue eyes. Dwight smirked maliciously, knowing the bolt was thrown.

“Hush. Quiet down now…”

Taking advantage of the smug whisper, Elwin sank his teeth deep into the flesh of Dwight’s hand. As the Alpha shrieked and recoiled, Elwin screamed with all the breath left in his lungs:

“Help me!”

Though there was no reason for it, Elwin felt an absolute certainty about who stood on the other side of that threshold. He screamed again, pouring his entire soul into the name:

“Leon! Leon…! Ah!”

Dwight seized him by the hair, violently twisting his head to the side. The sudden pain stole Elwin’s breath, and his vision swam.

“Shut your mouth! Stop fighting me!”

The rattling at the door grew incredibly loud, shaking the frame, before suddenly plunging into dead silence. Dwight craned his neck to listen, then let out a breathless, mocking laugh.

“What a pity, Mr. Elwin. It seems your knight in shining armor has abandoned you.”

With a cruel sneer, Dwight slammed Elwin’s face down into the pillow and reached for the collar of his nightshirt. With his face buried in the linen, the nightmare felt entirely detached from reality.

“If you submit, I promise to be gentle—”

Dwight’s oily whisper cut off into a sharp, startled gasp.

A deafening crash exploded through the room.

Before Elwin could register the sound, the heavy weight pressing down on his back vanished. Dwight was violently ripped away, followed by the dull, heavy thud of a body crashing onto the hardwood floor and a sharp cry of agony.

“Ngh… Argh! Who the hell—!”

Dwight’s outrage was abruptly silenced by the sickening, rhythmic thud of flesh striking flesh.

Elwin weakly lifted his head from the pillow. The heavy oak door had been completely torn from its hinges, lying splintered on the floor. Nearby, Dwight lay crumpled and bleeding, systematically beaten to a bloody pulp.

Standing over him was the towering figure of Leon. The man who had just dismantled a solid door and demolished an Alpha in a matter of seconds turned to Elwin, his expression melting into one of absolute tenderness and vulnerability. His gaze overflowed with profound worry.

“Mr. Elwin, are you unharmed?”

Leon’s clear, striking eyes were exactly as Elwin had envisioned them—a brilliant light in his darkest hour.

The tears that had pooled in Elwin’s eyes finally spilled down his burning cheeks.