By Zephyria 
“Cassian, Cassian?”
At the sound of his name, he snapped back to his senses and looked up. Eina was looking up at him with a puzzled expression. Cassian reacted with a flustered “Oops,” which made Eina let out an embarrassed laugh.
“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve been lost in thought this whole time.”
“I was listening.”
Damn, that was too fast. As expected, Eina frowned. Clearing his throat with a cough, Cassian skillfully changed the subject.
“So, is there anyone who has said they would invest right now?”
“Uh, well….”
As he had anticipated, she couldn’t answer easily. I knew it, he thought, looking down at his friend, who replied with an awkward smile.
“Uh, look, there are plenty of people who are interested… why don’t you meet him in person and hear him out? Then you’ll feel more confident about it too.”
The reason Eina was being so proactive was obvious. If word got out that ‘Count Herringer had invested,’ it would be much easier to garner interest and secure investments from others.
The problem was that Cassian had absolutely no interest in the business.
“Eina, I’m sorry, but I don’t find stories about shipwrecked treasure very credible.”
At his cold refusal, Eina hurriedly grabbed hold of him.
“Cassian, don’t be like that… just meet him, please.”
“I’m sorry, Eina.”
The alarm hadn’t gone off yet, but this was enough. Cassian turned away and spoke.
“I’ll see you next time.”
For some reason, he kept feeling anxious. It was probably because he had left that troublemaking peanut alone. I really should get back quickly, he thought. Just then—
“Wait, Cassian! Just a moment!”
Eina hurriedly grabbed Cassian’s arm.
“Hic.”
Bliss’s shoulders jolted again. He hurriedly covered his mouth with one hand and held his breath, but it only had the opposite effect. The alcohol circulating through his body began to accelerate and race.
“Huuu, hic.”
The moment he was forced to inhale oxygen because he was out of breath, another hiccup escaped. Eventually, Bliss stood there, glancing around. Was there anywhere he could rest?
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Just as he was about to move away, he bumped into a man nearby. He apologized reflexively and looked up to find a group of men looking down at him.
“Oh, no, it’s fine. Did you come alone?”
One of them spoke with a smile. There was a faint scent. Is that a pheromone? Bliss wondered instinctively. The scent of a Dominant Alpha is different from that of a regular Alpha. In the case of a Dominant Alpha, the scent is so intensely sweet that it makes one’s mind go hazy, whereas an Alpha’s scent is much weaker and softer. The reason he perceived their scent as weak might be because Bliss had become accustomed to the pheromones of Dominant Alphas due to his family.
As he stood there blinking his dazed, drunken eyes, another man spoke up.
“If you’re alone, do you want to hang out with us? We happened to be bored ourselves.”
“Wait. This guy looks like Cassian’s partner.”
One of them suddenly interrupted. At that, the gathered men looked at the speaker and then shifted their gaze to Bliss.
“Really? He’s Cassian’s partner?”
Before the first man could answer the question, the man who had spoken earlier nodded and continued.
“He came with Cassian. I saw him greeting Baron Tammon earlier.”
“Ah, really…?”
Along with that, everyone’s interest suddenly cooled. The men looked at each other with indifferent expressions, soon losing interest in Bliss and turning their backs just as they had before. Seeing Bliss still standing there bewildered, one of them spoke.
“But why are you alone? Where is Cassian?”
Bliss hesitated at the sudden question and bit his lower lip. Thinking about what happened earlier, anger surged within him again. Seeing him huffing with his shoulders shaking, the men looked back one by one, puzzled.
“That bastard left me to go with a woman.”
“What?”
“Cassian did?”
At those words, everyone’s attention returned to Bliss. The men became intrigued and began to pour out questions, competing with one another.
“Gone with a woman? With whom?”
“How did you come together? What is your relationship with him?”
“Tell us one by one. Your glass is empty, isn’t it? Let’s get you something to drink.”
“Hey, over here. You.”
When one of them raised his hand and called out, a passing servant hurried over. The man took a champagne glass from the tray and held it out to Bliss.
“Here, drink. Let’s toast.”
“Toast?”
Why? As Bliss tilted his head, another man smiled and said,
“To celebrate us meeting like this.”
Ah, I see. Once Bliss understood, the man looked around at his companions.
“Now, everyone together. What’s your name?”
“Bli—Blair.”
When he hurriedly corrected his name, the man nodded and shouted,
“Now, a toast to Bliblair!”
What a son of a bitch.
Unaware that Bliss’s expression had turned menacing, they drained their glasses in one gulp.
“By the way.”
One man stared at Bliss, holding his empty glass, and spoke.
“What exactly is your relationship with that guy?”
What should he say? Bliss racked his brain urgently. Perhaps because he had moved too vigorously earlier, his brain cells were exhausted, and nothing came to mind easily.
“Uh, well, I mean….”
While Bliss struggled to think of an idea, one of the men chuckled and said,
“Surely you aren’t that kind of partner for him.”
“Pardon?”
What did that mean? While Bliss just blinked again, another man spoke.
“That’s impossible. That bastard Cassian is an impotent.”
What?
Bliss’s eyes widened in sheer bewilderment. Ignoring his confused reaction, they continued to exchange words.
“True. That guy has never done anything with a woman.”
“Is it because of Eina? Was she the last one he dated?”
“Probably not. Didn’t he date someone briefly after that?”
“Who cares. It’s a fact that he hasn’t had a woman for almost ten years? Maybe more? Anyway, it’s been a long time.”
“Ten years? That’s ridiculous. At that point, it would have rotted away.”
“Who knows if it really rotted. Who would dare check if Count Herringer’s lower half is still functioning?”
“Anyway, if he can’t function, the Duke’s family is finished.”
“That’s why I’m working hard to spread my seeds. For the sake of the family, of course.”
At those words, the other men burst into laughter. Bliss wrinkled his nose at the unpleasant atmosphere when someone spoke up.
“I’ve always wanted to take that arrogant bastard down a peg.”
“Why not? There are plenty of ways.”
“Right. Like asking him to go hunting together.”
“Since accidents happen where one might mistake the prey and shoot the wrong thing.”
Laughter erupted again. They seemed to think they were joking, but Bliss didn’t find it funny at all. One of them spoke while drinking.
“Anyway, just wait and see. I’ll definitely make that bastard’s nose flat.”
Huh?
Suddenly, Bliss’s ears perked up. As he looked up at the man, the man declared with a smirk,
“I will absolutely make Cassian Strickland kneel. He’ll end up begging me for mercy.”
That bastard will?
In that instant, sparks flew from Bliss’s eyes. What the hell is he babbling about? He felt the alcohol rush to the top of his head. That man was thinking something he absolutely should not. The only person Cassian should be kneeling and begging to is Bliss. Not some frog spawn like him. But what? Kneel and beg him?
How dare this piece of trash not know his place…!
It was right then. The violinist of the orchestra playing the music entered his field of vision.
What is this.
As Cassian frowned, Eina, who was holding his arm, asked with a forced smile,
“Um, then could you just lend me your name? I’ll just say that Count Herringer showed interest. Please, just help me with that, okay?”
Cassian looked down at his friend with complicated emotions. If Count Raylock saw his precious youngest daughter clinging to people so pathetically to beg for investment, he would probably collapse from the shock. Cassian also didn’t want to waste any more time.
“Get a grip, Eina.”
He snapped coldly at his friend.
“That guy is a fraud. Stop doing this useless thing and look at reality.”
“What….”
Eina’s cheeks flushed red. Just then, the alarm went off. Cassian turned off the alarm on his watch and looked away from her face, which was distorted with a mix of shame and anger. It was truly time to go. He couldn’t leave Bliss alone any longer. Just as he thought that—
“Kyaaaah!”
Along with a loud crashing sound, a scream echoed from the inner part of the party.