By Zephyria A suffocating silence dominated Ryle’s study. The Secretary, who had been hastily summoned to the mansion, had been feeling a stinging sensation pricking his skin for some time. If he, a Beta, could feel it to this extent, the Alpha Butler must be on the verge of suffocation. As proof, the Butler standing in front of the desk looked almost strangled.
Ryle was originally one to thoroughly manage even a single strand of his pheromones. This moment was evidence that he was incredibly displeased. It was the first time since his uncle had tarnished the name of Vermouth while attacking Ryle.
The sound of tapping on the desk was very consistent, contrary to the fierce pheromones. The Secretary thought absentmindedly that the sound, which rang out without an inch of error, was all the more chilling because of it.
By the way, could what the Butler said be true? The Secretary’s gaze turned to the small bottle that Ryle had been glaring at for some time.
“Say it again.”
“That…, I, found it in the Omega’s room, ahem, that is. In the corner of the bathroom, cough, they said he had hidden it. …I’ve heard it from around, and I’m sure it’s a heat cycle inducer.”
The Butler, who had been stammering as if strangled, finished speaking fairly confidently at the end. He tried to straighten his back, as if he was proud of himself for discovering it. Of course, it was a futile act in the eyes of the Secretary standing next to him.
Ryle’s gaze remained fixed on the small glass bottle.
“Did Jin have time to get something like this?”
Ryle, who had been silent again, suddenly asked. At his question, the Butler’s face turned red again. After much deliberation, he answered in an unsure voice.
“That’s…, I’m not sure about that.”
The moment he heard that answer, the fingers that had been chillingly tapping on the desk stopped abruptly.
“Leave.”
“Yes. That Omega…”
“Leave. Leave Jin as he is.”
“…Yes.”
The Butler asked in a somewhat urgent voice, but Ryle only gave a cold command. The Butler, who bowed his head, seemed happy to escape the pressure of these pheromones and hurried out of the room.
According to the Butler, Hae-jin had directly taken the heat cycle inducer and headed to Ryle’s room. When the Secretary asked why Hae-jin would do such a thing, the Butler said triumphantly that it was obviously for the purpose of getting pregnant.
It was something that didn’t make sense no matter how many times he heard it. However, the vial was found in Hae-jin’s room as solid evidence. There was also testimony from a servant who saw Hae-jin heading to Ryle’s room secretly at night.
Had Hae-jin, who was suffering from trauma, done this to rather lose his mind and fulfill the contract?
“…”
It was unsettling. It didn’t make sense at all. After Hae-jin returned to this place, the speck of dust that had settled inside Ryle’s eyelids grew in presence as if it would devour his pupils.
He was already planning to tell the Butler to straighten up his attitude as soon as the day broke. But wasn’t what happened last night too unexpected?
Hae-jin really, swallowed that with his own hands?
“What shall we do, Chairman?”
“…”
The Secretary’s gaze was also fixed on the vial. As if he didn’t understand it either. And there was one more thing that Ryle didn’t understand.
Why didn’t the Butler know Hae-jin well?
It wasn’t a matter of whether he understood his personality or not. He was bothered by the fact that he answered that he didn’t know when asked if he had time to get this vial. He had never immediately answered whether he had eaten or not. It was his role to grasp and pay attention to the guest’s every move.
But why did he always not know?
“Assign a guard to Jin. And, detain all the servants.”
“…All of them, you mean?”
He had asked what to do, but Ryle’s order was sudden. All the servants, even detaining them. The mansion was huge, so a large number of employees resided there.
Moreover, the word ‘all’ included the Butler, who had just brought decisive evidence.
“Yes.”
Even to the Secretary’s question, Ryle calmly expressed his affirmation. The Secretary, who bowed his head and contacted the external security team, suddenly raised his head again. Ryle’s order was not over here.
“…And investigate.”
“Investigate what?”
Ryle’s gaze, which had been directed at the glass bottle, finally went up to the Secretary. He thought he was staring at the glass bottle expressionlessly, but that was a mistake. The Secretary unknowingly swallowed hard as he saw the fierce eyes reaching him.
He had a feeling that something big was about to happen.
“Everything that happened since Jin came to this house.”
Ryle realized that he was missing something fundamental. He, who couldn’t even manage his pheromones, now miserably admitted it. The things that he had taken for granted like breathing and had not even suspected, had not been taken for granted all along.
It was truly a belated realization.