‘Huh? I think I heard a handsome man’s voice from somewhere?’

Valentin, who always prided himself on being able to distinguish between handsome men and those who were not by their voice, quickly raised his head.

The silhouette of the massive physique of the person standing against the sunset shone in the backlight.

‘That person is…!’

Indeed…. An overwhelmingly handsome man was approaching him. Moreover, he wasn’t just a simple handsome man.

It was the man who had captivated his eyes at the ball, making the heart of a virgin who had lived plainly in the city of artists, focusing only on studying and painting ascetically, flutter.

Considering the rumors and notoriety together, he was a person who should be feared, but at the same time, he was also someone who hit the bullseye of Valentin’s foolish taste.

“Marquis of Valkyries.”

Valentin pulled himself together from his staggering body and politely greeted him in a gentlemanly manner, lifting his hat. Addressing him formally by his title.

‘Ah… The pheromones again…’

The broad steps of the person walking quickly towards him and the faint emotional pheromones that came out when he was in a good mood made Valentin’s heart flutter. As if even he himself, who smelled those pheromones, felt as good as if he were floating on clouds….

That’s how much the other person was unknowingly telling him he was happy to see him through his pheromones.

‘That person must be really happy to see me.’

It seemed like he was compensating for the difficult and lonely wait in the waiting room and the disappointment of failing to have an audience.

He couldn’t distinguish whether it was simply because his pheromones were good that he felt good together, or whether his heart fluttered and he felt happy to encounter that person in an unexpected place.

A bright smile came out unknowingly, assimilating to the emotional pheromones like a sunflower in full bloom towards the sun. Reynard, who had walked up to Valentin, opened his mouth.

“Reynard.”

“Yes?”

Why are you introducing yourself again all of a sudden?

“Didn’t I ask you to call me by my name before?”

“Ah….”

Valentin’s face turned red as soon as he heard that.

Well, I thought it was just pillow talk. Who can’t say such sweet words in bed?

The memory of that night in bed floated vaguely in his mind as an association to the sudden request to call him by his name. At that thought, Valentin blushed unknowingly.

‘This damn brain again…! Back off, lewd devil!’

He clenched and unclenched his fists and fidgeted his feet, embarrassed by that thought that came to him unknowingly, not knowing that it made the heart of the alpha in front of him flutter.

The flushed red cheeks were also fresh. Reynard pleasantly watched Valentin’s gaze wander here and there for a while.

“Call me.”

What? Call you what? What should I call? Valentin looked at the other person with a question mark floating above his head.

He saw Reynard’s slightly excited face, as if expecting a lot, which didn’t suit him.

‘Ah…’

He was now asking Valentin to directly call him by his name.

“Rey…”

Why am I so nervous about this….

Someone whose reputation was so well-known throughout the empire that even a crying child would stop crying, equivalent to a tiger and dried persimmon…. Such a person was waiting for a single word from his mouth. Valentin swallowed the feeling of stupidly biting his tongue and struggled to move his mouth.

Unable to meet his gaze.

“Lord Reynard….”

“Reynard.”

You’re telling me to even drop the honorifics…! The voice that recited the name again, telling him to follow, was very firm.

The eyes that had widened round in perplexity grew even larger, but his expression was unyielding. It was an expression that expected Valentin to obediently repeat his words like a well-behaved child.

“Reynard….”

Finally, the mouth of the shy person opened, rubbing the tips of his hidden fingers behind his back and clicking his nails together.

Even at the words that came out as small as an ant’s voice, Reynard narrowed his eyes, looking pleased.

I’m so glad you look satisfied… Although I got burning cheeks….

“It’s even more pleasant to meet you in a place like this.”

Reynard politely bowed, asking for Valentin’s hand while keeping one arm behind his back, just like when they first met at the ball.

“Ah….”

Valentin knew he was formally requesting a greeting and extended his right hand.

This was the first time someone had treated him as an adult who had completed the coming-of-age ceremony and as an omega who had officially debuted in high society. Since he had been studying abroad for a long time while hiding his identity and had been in seclusion since returning, there were few opportunities to receive such treatment. The unfamiliarity brought shyness.

Warm lips softly pressed on Valentin’s white hand.

Instantly, the pheromones that had always been excellently controlled spread out centered around Valentin. It wasn’t sexual pheromones, but it contained shyness and pleasant feelings, so it was equally embarrassing.

Even though he must have clearly felt those pheromones, he seemed to want to politely pretend not to know, just smiling and asking something else.

“Where are you coming from?”

It was a kind question, as if he would raise his hand and stroke the platinum blonde hair at any moment.

“I’m on my way back from the palace of Her Majesty Empress Beatrice.”

But it was a complete flop. Valentin swallowed the words that were about to come out next. He didn’t want to brag about his pathetic and persistent self to someone he had spent the night with.

At Valentin’s answer, the alpha’s brows furrowed deeply. However, Valentin, who was cooling his flushed face with a hand fan from having done the tremendous feat of calling him by his name without honorifics, did not notice the change.

“It seems you had business until late.”

“Ah… No…. That’s not it….”

He looked up with a tearful expression as if saying, ‘Do I really have to say it?’, but as expected, his expression was unyielding.

“Okay. And?”

“I requested an audience… But I think I was rejected….”

In the end, he ended up boasting about his foolishness with his own mouth.

Reynard’s face, which contained displeasure, instantly brightened like sunlight, but Valentin, who was bowing his head and digging the innocent ground with the tip of his shoe out of embarrassment and shame, did not notice it at all.

“It’s dinner time, so of course you haven’t eaten.”

He said, taking out a pocket watch from his breast pocket and looking at it. Pressed by his momentum, Valentin slowly nodded.

“Let’s go have dinner together.”

Saying that, he offered his arm as if it was natural for Valentin to join him.

It was such a confident escort.

As if saying, this is where your arm belongs, and you can’t go anywhere else but here, Valentin naturally accepted the escort under his natural and overwhelming gaze.

“Uh…?”

Although he was an omega, he was still an adult man, no, he was a fresh 20-year-old who had just become an adult and should be boldly claiming to be an adult…! Unable to muster the courage to refuse the excessively natural escort proposal, Valentin stammered and was dragged along by his confident arm.

‘Why am I always like this in front of this person…?’

It was really strange.

I thought I was never someone who couldn’t say what I wanted to say, but was it because he was such an incredible person? Or was it because he was at the pinnacle of alphas on the opposite side due to the characteristics of the type? If not that, was it because he was a very scary person, as Dalton had told him?

Valentin sighed deeply, realizing his strange self who stumbled and couldn’t speak well only in front of Reynard and was dragged around pathetically.

Indeed, he was a leader among virgins who didn’t even know his own heart properly.

* * *

Reynard’s carriage was nearby.

Although it was not clearly visible as the sun had completely set, it was evident that the black carriage was as massive and flawlessly solid as him.

Once again naturally receiving his escort, Valentin lightly boarded the carriage. Comfortably leaning back against the very comfortable ride, unlike the huge body, the man sitting across from Valentin opened his mouth again.

“Has your body been alright since that day?”

It was natural for Valentin to turn red like a radish again at those words.

This person doesn’t know the meaning of embarrassment, asking an old omega if his body is okay or whatnot…. He had a lot of words he wanted to say stuck in his throat, but his greatly shrunken reason only produced a very polite answer. How could he dare to someone who, in terms of notoriety and scariness, could beat not only a tiger but also a dried persimmon….

“Yes…. I’m fine….”

The ant that had crawled into the cave earlier came out and made a sound again.

“That’s a relief. I was very worried after sending you off like that that day. I thought I might have overworked someone who said it was their first time.”

“Huh…!”

Fi…first…! How can you suddenly say such things so blatantly, no, not blatantly, but outside where everyone else is…! No, is a carriage considered outside? Should this be considered indoors?

Anyway, to say such things so suddenly…!

Valentin was surprised that he could not find caution or skilled manners in Reynard’s words towards an omega. He just opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish, not knowing where and how to point out his excessive honesty that was almost rude.

Embarrassment rushed in intensely, making even his ears turn red.

‘Who the hell is this person…?’

Valentin raised his flushed face and examined his face.