Chapter 10: The Mysterious King
"How long have you been 'experimenting', Mr. Blackwell?"
Now that the cat is out of the bag, Orga doesn't need to hide it. After he promised the two that he would keep the secret all to himself, Dimitri is hoping that the male omega concubine will concede and reveal some bits…that pique his interest.
If Maridawn knows this—
"Since I became the king's favorite concubine," he simply answers without beating around the bush.
Before he asks another question, his colleague intervenes, moving her head, and facing his direction. "What brings you here, Dimitri?"
Dimitri knows it's a way to avoid more questions, seeing that his alpha attendant obviously wants to change the subject.
Ah, well. The rare male omega's peculiarities don't interest him at all. He turns to his colleague. "I've come here wondering why Mr. Blackwell decided to change pavilions on short notice before the arrival of my concubine. And now I see why." He crosses his arms as he leans comfortably on the wall.
Orga is busying himself putting out the contents of his boxes without a single glance or acknowledgment of what he said.
Dimitri makes a mental note that the number one favorite concubine doesn't give a damn about anything other than…in his own world.
"About that, on behalf of my omega concubine, I apologize for the sudden transfer. We make sure that the former pavilion's renovations will be finished for your concubine to have a better, newly-renovated place."
"If you don't mind me asking, how long does the renovation take?"
"Err…" Frieda laughs nervously as she scratches her chin. "After two months, I'm afraid."
The curve of his lips nearly faltered before composing himself back to his facade. "Come again?"
"That's two months, Dimitri," she sighs. "The building has been completely blown away and well…thankfully we don't have servants so none are injured during Orga's experiment."
Except for me, she mentally notes, and fortunately, her wounds were healed through her regenerative healing factor.
'Thank God I'm a freaking alpha!'
Dimitri's smile loosens as he sighs. "That means we will be at the farthest place even during the Red Moon."
"Oh, don't worry!" She grins as she pats his back. "Look at the bright side, you have your privacy in your new place—where is it again?"
"The Red Swan pavilion…that needs tons of renovation," he says as he heaves another sigh.
"That far, huh?" A pang of nauseating guilt overwhelms her as she observes a noticeable dejection marred on his face.
Best to change topics again. She glances at her omega who is once again in his world, reading his journal. That means he doesn't mind if they chatter while he's doing…something else.
"So, what's your omega like, Dimitri?"
"A beauty beyond wonder."
She blinks twice before scratching her chin. "Did I hear that right? You, complimenting someone's beauty? Or is it a way to express your favoritism just because you're in charge of her?"
Dimitri shrugs. "Maybe but I believe that my concubine will reach the ranks as His Majesty's favorite."
His mood reverts back to his usual, motivated self, a side Frieda hasn't seen before.
"I'll make sure of that."
<<<>>>
Maridawn tries to compose herself, letting the information of a male Blackwell wolf slide. She makes a mental note to visit Felicia's older brother and once she's out of the palace, she and the young heir need to talk.
She badly wanted to use her phone but Dimitri confiscated it before she brought it with her inside the palace. The only way to communicate with the outside world is through letters.
As old-fashioned as it was, it irritated her that the Palace is starting to become a prison for concubines.
Ah well, again, she reminds herself since yesterday that the results will show up and she can leave and make this a distant memory.
She turns to Madame Ping who is clearly observing her every movement. She wonders if this is just a habit of hers but it doesn't even faze Maridawn even a bit.
"Tell me about the king, Madame Ping."
From the start, even if she will never get the chance to see him before leaving, she has been curious about the king. In fact, all the sources about his presence have been an enigma that hasn't been tackled till now.
The paparazzi are terrible at getting any source. Let alone a picture of the king's face is still shrouded in mystery that only a few have seen him in public. But then again, he is the king. As antediluvian as it sounds, he and the kings before him made this country great again.
"Did Master Dimitri mention anything about me?"
She nods. "You were a former late queen's servant, is that right?"
"I don't appreciate that the young master revealed my time with the queen but yes, that is indeed true."
She pauses before she continues. "It's good that you've taken interest in the king, young mistress. The first step for the king to get an interest in you is to make sure you know him more before your first encounter."
"Unfortunately, even when I was the former maid of his mother, I have never once met the king after the infancy stage since the queen promoted me to deal with young omega concubines."
"But I know…" A warm smile slightly curves which catches Maridawn off-guard. "...her son is a great man if she is his mother. I assure you of that."
"How can I get to know him if you haven't even seen him in person?"
"You don't have to. What you need to do as a concubine is that you have to act like one. And that's why since you are new here, we will train you twice as the former newcomers before you."
Maridawn raises her brow. "You mean even children who were assigned as omegas are forced to be here?"
"As unfortunate as it sounds, yes. Most of the omegas who got their assigned rank are immediately placed in the palace. That means they can't see their families again…unless they become the king's favorites." She once again observes Maridawn's expression.
"Do you pity the omega concubines, young mistress?"
Maridawn frowns, her droopy eyes boring to the old lady's means it is otherwise. According to Dimitri, the Silverfang family detests the omegas and that is why he warned her not to rile up the latest omega or else it will be difficult to deal with her later on.
Not like today was easier.
"The concubines here are living lavish lives and I believe it's better that way than to spread their filthy pheromones everywhere. I think the king did an excellent job chaining these pathetic lower ranks here."
"If you haven't realized already, mistress. You are also one of them." Madam Ping knows what she's signing up for seeing the latest omega is being in denial.
Well, she is second to Orga who had been shutting himself in his room for months when he first arrived here.
These omegas from the alpha families are indeed adding another crease of wrinkle to her face, she sighs.
Now that she said it, Maridawn's features express a deathly glare.
"With all due respect, Madame Ping and I really meant it, seeing you have years of wisdom," she pauses for a while before giving a deep sigh. "I am a proud alpha from the Silverfang family. Again, my family can't bear an omega. It has never been in our family for generations."
"I'll only stay here to listen to your lectures as politics and history interest me for a moment as I have nothing to do here anyway." She shakes her head.
Madame Ping grimaces, her hand clenching a bit before relaxing. "Suit yourself, young mistress. I'll be looking forward to seeing the result in your mailbox.
"I'm sure my doctor will make sure the results are accurate," she hums as she slowly stands up. "I believe that's the end of your lecture today, is that right?"
The old woman nods, sternly. "Yes, you need more rest as the ointment will make you desirable for the king."
'Ugh, please don't remind me.'
"I'll just go back to the bedroom and take a rest. If you excuse me." Without looking back, she heads outside, thanking the heavens that it's finally over.
Maridawn closes the door as she sighs and her mind wanders where Dimitri has been at this time.
'Perhaps to get the clothes and all things that I needed as requested? But the maids are doing that for me.'
She decides to just go back to bed and have a rest and since it's a small pavilion (no, it's a cottage, she's sure it's a damn cottage), she doesn't need to roam around for a quick tour.
Yes, she needs some shut-eye. It's been a long day…even if it hasn't reached lunchtime yet.
As she walks into the loggia and passes by the gloomy courtyard, she overheard the chattering of two maids.
"It's awful, Nadine! I can't believe the king did that to his concubine!"
She stops her trail and stands where a small monument of two koi fishes concealing her presence.
"What did she do to anger him?"
"I've heard she spilled hot tea on his foot while she was nervously serving him tea."
"Really? Just for a minor mistake? Why did they execute her immediately?"
Execute? Maridawn's jaw drops slightly as she is trying to process what the maid had said.
The king still uses the method of execution in this modern time?!
Gifts
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received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone