By Zephyria 
35
Nicole’s squeals followed me like a shadow. This was Mr. Seymour’s territory, so it was safe, but there was no way to explain this to Nicole. After all, I couldn’t arbitrarily reveal anything when Mr. Seymour himself hadn’t disclosed his true profession to his family.
I hummed a tune while bouncing down the stairs. Though I already knew where the carpets were placed, I deliberately pretended not to know and wandered around the company building.
Occasionally, some employees looked at me curiously, but they soon lost interest thanks to the subtle restraining gestures of other employees.
“Not here either… Where should I look next…”
Lennox wasn’t in the spice storage warehouse on the third floor, nor in the precious metals room on the second floor. Since this was the largest and most profitable organization managed by the information guild, Lennox must be working here somewhere…
This won’t do. I’ll search for one more week, and if I still can’t find him, I’ll have to force the issue by asking Mr. Seymour if there are any orphanage-raised employees I could sponsor.
Having settled on this plan, I headed straight to the first-floor warehouse where the carpets were stacked. I’d used carpets as an excuse to come down, so I thought I should quickly buy something and go home.
And at the very moment I stepped into the warehouse…
~Carpet of Enchantment~
An artifact from an ancient kingdom. Please decorate the elegantly blooming dark red petals with your snow-white naked body. Anyone will flounder, captivated by your charm!
A carpet with geometrically represented dark red rose petals immediately caught my eye.
The item description calling it an artifact from an ancient kingdom was fine. That part wasn’t a problem… The issue was with the other options prominently displayed below it.
Recommended position: Doggy style
(If you ride naked) Stamina +18
(If you ride naked) Charm +18
“…T-this crazy game…!”
R-recommended position? If mounted naked? N-naked?
As I trembled, an employee approached me.
“Excuse me? What’s wrong, Young Master? Is there a problem with the merchandise?”
“No. It’s nothing…”
Should I buy it? Out of all the normal carpets, why this perverted one?
I unconsciously focused my gaze where the system’s guidance text had appeared, seeking an answer.
…Communication protocol blocked…
But the system remained silent.
An inevitable emptiness washed over me. At first, I felt relieved to be free from that meddlesome entity’s constant interference. The problem was that the relief didn’t last even a week.
Come to think of it, it should be normal for no one to read my thoughts or for my vision to be quiet, but perhaps I’d spent too much time with the system. The relief had disappeared, replaced by anxiety and unease… and now, damnit, loneliness.
Anyway, that’s not important right now…
Argh, argh, argh! Should I buy this? Or not? It was too embarrassing to buy, yet too regrettable to pass up. Though the stats were dubiously impure, raising two attributes by 18 each, not just 1 or 2, but 18!—was too good to ignore. It seemed almost like cheating for the price of just closing my eyes once.
Sigh, really… I really didn’t want to do this…
“I’ll take this one…”
“Excellent choice! The boss also said this authentic carpet from the ancient Kyra dynasty would command whatever price we asked if released to the market. Your eye for quality is extraordinary! Shall we send it to your mansion? Or would you like to take it with you now?”
“Umm. Send it to the mansion…”
Although it should have been a satisfying purchase, I strangely felt drained. I just wanted to go home and flop onto my bed.
I asked for Nicole to be called so we could leave immediately. The employee smiled subtly and replied that I could go ahead and return in the carriage first.
“Huh? Why? Did something happen to Nicole?”
“We received word that Mrs. Seymour is also coming here. It seems they’ll enjoy a cozy family dinner together.”
“Ah, I see. Can’t be helped then.”
At that point, I didn’t understand why an ordinary employee would smile so contentedly about someone else’s family having dinner. I only realized exactly who the employee was smiling at as I sauntered to the carriage door.
“It has been an honor to serve you, Your Highness.”
“…?”
The employee who had closely whispered this greeting disappeared without a trace after those final words. Not Young Lord Hamilton or Young Master, but Your Highness?
What? Had the Crown Prince planted people even in the information guild? Adrian’s intelligence network, which I’d never seen in the original work, was newly impressive.
“Wow, that startled me.”
As I stood there, unable to board the carriage while trying to calm my startled heart, the carriage door suddenly flung open by itself.
“How long do you plan to stand there looking surprised?”
“Hup…!”
Then my entire body was lifted up. It seemed today would be full of surprises.
“Well, your surprised face is worth seeing.”
The Crown Prince declared this with a self assured attitude, then slammed the carriage door shut. The carriage wheels soon began to roll slowly. I had a feeling it would take much longer than usual to reach the mansion.
“Hmm, uh, ahh…”
Why had I ended up in this state again when it wasn’t even my heat cycle?
The problem was that whenever I was with the Crown Prince, things always followed a similar pattern. No sooner had I been lifted into the carriage than the buttons of my top came undone. Even without releasing his pheromones, the Crown Prince buried his face in my nape and inhaled deeply as if there was something to smell. From then on, everything flowed naturally, he nibbled from my neck to my collarbone, chest, and even the tender skin on the inside of my arms.
Before I could complain about the pain, he would slightly cover the marks and then lick them wetly with his tongue, a technique that made my body heat up involuntarily.
“You should keep your face looking straight at me, my dear. It diminishes the value of my making time to see you.”
“Mmm, Your Highness.”
Honestly, if you’re going to make such demands, at least stop sucking on my chest! My head inevitably tilted backward as he placed my hardened nipples between his lips, applying pressure and stimulating them with his fingertips. I suddenly realized I could feel the carriage’s soft cushion behind my back.
Perhaps because it was rented from a shop, the ride wasn’t very comfortable. The wheels seemed to catch on uneven gravel, making my body shake even when I was still. The Crown Prince appeared to enjoy this movement. His handsome face, smiling pleasantly, made that clear.
“How strange. I haven’t released any pheromones, yet such potent pheromones are leaking from somewhere. Hmm? Do you know the reason?”
He glanced at my lower body, which had begun to dampen with fluid, and asked mockingly.
The fact that my pheromones were slowly being released without a drop of alpha pheromones was purely due to the physical sensations I was feeling. Normally, I could have made excuses about His Highness releasing pheromones first, but this time I had no such option and inevitably felt embarrassed.
Since revealing my identity after being formally invited to the Crown Prince’s palace, the Crown Prince would occasionally make time to visit me. Usually, it coincided with the start of my heat cycle. It seemed that since he hadn’t completely overwhelmed the influence of the Grazio ducal house yet, these visits were very unofficial and secretive.
At first, I was irritated because his intentions in visiting me right on schedule were so transparent, but now I found it rather convenient. Well, it was much better for my physical condition the next day than forcibly suppressing it with inhibitors, right? If it couldn’t be avoided anyway, I might as well use it to my advantage. I could increase his affection by catering to his regular visits, while resolving my cycle. Honestly, the tingling sensation left on my body wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
“Don’t tease me…”
“What a ridiculous thing to say. Who told you to look so tempting in the first place?”
“That’s too much…”
Only after seeing my face and neck flushed red with embarrassment did the Crown Prince smile with satisfaction. Ugh, he’s so mean. When he came to calm my heat cycle, he would be the one with crazed eyes, pouring out pheromones.
His face, looking so composed, couldn’t be more annoying. I pulled the Crown Prince’s neck toward me as if pleading and deliberately made sobbing sounds right by his ear.
After several times of suppressing my heat cycle with his pheromones instead of inhibitors, the weakness of the romance character “Adrian Pierson” was already in the palm of my hand.