Chapter 14
Siyeon frowned as she watched her clothes get replaced with new garments. White with red details, and markings. She wanted to ask why but wasn’t sure if it was appropriate. The same servant who bathed her gave her a sympathetic look before leaving.
It wasn’t until a week later she figured it out.
A carriage came through the gates, and Minji hadn’t bothered to really spend time with her. Siyeon trailed behind her, seeing the distant look in her eyes as she worked and at the end of the day, she would retire to bed, leaving Siyeon alone.
The alpha had stayed nearby, the servants giving her a new room that was directly next to Minji’s instead of a few halls over. But when the carriage came, it clicked.
A suitor from another kingdom for Minji’s hand.
“It is rather cold, shall we move this meeting inside?” He smiled while bowing in front of the King.
The queen walked quickly, taking Siyeon’s arm as they walked. The alpha was surprised, not once had she ever been touched by another omega that wasn’t Minji nor had she been properly spoken to by the queen herself.
“Stick close to Minji during this visit. You are her personal guard from here on out. Protect her with your life. Understood?” The queen whispered.
“Yes, your majesty…” Siyeon answered quietly.
The alpha found Minji in the drawing room, seeing her look out the window. Siyeon wanted to yell at her for not saying a word about anything changing, but she had no right. No right to demand answers.
“Your suitor is here…” Siyeon frowned.
Minji didn’t say a word, only turning back to see the alpha standing there with a defeated look on her face. It hurt the princess to see the alpha look upset, but she couldn’t force her into anything.
She held out her hand, watching the alpha silently obey the unspoken command, watching her kneel next to her and place her hands on Minji’s leg. She rested her chin in her palm, looking up at her worriedly.
“Did I… do something wrong?” The alpha whispered.
“No…” Minji sighed. “I can’t force you to like me… and I can’t force myself to like you…” she frowned. “And the deal was… if the alpha I purchased… if I didn’t make status… then I would have to entertain suitors again…” She whispered.
“He smells arrogant,” Siyeon mumbled.
“They usually are…” Minji frowned before moving her hand to rest it on Siyeon’s head. “Don’t leave when he arrives… stay very close to me…” She pleaded.
“I’ll stay right here,” Siyeon smiled, patting Minji’s leg to ensure she would stay right where she was.
“I have an idea to make… This more enjoyable for me… but you have to promise to go with everything I say…” Minji whispered.
“How so?” Siyeon frowned.
“Don’t react negatively to my words… But it’ll be fun to watch his reactions… My mother did it with Bora… It’s fun to watch their reactions,” the princess whispered.
The suitor joined them, a smug smile on his face as he walked in. Only for it to drop suddenly at the sight of the additional body in the room with them.
“I assumed we would be alone…” He frowned. “Who is this?” He asked while walking into the room.
“My pet,” Minji stated plainly before stroking Siyeon’s hair. “You don’t mind do you?” She asked, tilting her head at the suitor. She felt Siyeon tense under her hands, and she could only continue to stroke her head to try and keep her calm.
“Um… You can’t just… Dismiss her?” He scoffed.
“No, I simply cannot,” Minji frowned. “She’s my lovely alpha, why would I dismiss her? Does she make you uncomfortable?” She asked while continuing to run her fingers through the alpha’s hair.
Siyeon was a little taken back at her word usage, but she could smell the confusion coming off of this suitor, and when she glanced up, she had to hide her own smile at how stupid his face looked.
Oh, Minji was good.
But she didn’t expect her heart to skip a few beats when she heard Minji say she was her lovely alpha. She didn’t think those words would ever have an effect on her, but here she was, starting to swoon over those little words.
The conversation was boring, Siyeon was bored, and Minji was bored. The suitor wouldn’t stop to breathe, and Siyeon wondered if this was exactly how it was before she came along. Just sitting and listening to some idiot omega go on and on about nonsense. She let out a huff, already bored with his words while shifting on her knees, resting more on her legs.
Minji barely glanced down, watching Siyeon struggle to keep her sanity. It had taken the princess years to master the art of keeping a straight face and being bored. Siyeon had yet to figure it out. She watched as the alpha crossed her arms on the omega’s lap, deciding to rest her head on her own arms. She wished she could do the same.
“And of course, we decided to merge our kingdoms when my older brother became of age…” The suitor continued.
Minji put her hand on Siyeon’s, watching her start to pick at her skin before pinching it gently. The omega smiled at her actions, just enjoying her being there. It was bearable with her there. Something else to think about while this omega went on and on about how great he was.
“Princess, what are you doing?” He frowned.
“Hm?” Minji glanced up, seeing the displeased expression on his face.
“Why don’t we enjoy alone time?” He suggested.
“Mm… No,” Minji smiled. “I’m never alone,” She chuckled.
“Never?” He asked. “Even in… Private areas?” He frowned.
“She accompanies me everywhere,” Minji sighed. “Is that a problem?” She asked, tilting her head again.
“Well… If we were to continue, then… Yes… It would be… I would want to speak with you without an audience…” He mumbled.
The day had gone by slowly, Minji deciding that Siyeon needed a walk and of course, the suitor had followed. Minji wanted to be away from him and enjoy her time with Siyeon, but that didn’t happen and now she was suffering even outside.
“Your gardens are cute compared to ours,” He smiled. “Much smaller and not as vibrant.” Minji wondered if he ever ran out of words.
Siyeon saw how displeased she looked and couldn’t help herself. She watched as he tried to step closer to her, and she really didn’t like that. So she barreled between them, holding onto Minji’s arm instead of this suitor taking her place as Minji’s right hand.
“Oh… Well… Aren’t you going to scold her?” He scoffed.
“Why would I scold her? She was here before you.” Minji held onto the alpha’s arm, missing the smug smile Siyeon had on her face.
Dinner was another delightful event. The suitor was surprised to see the youngest princess with her alpha when he entered.
“Does everyone have an alpha as a pet?” He asked, just a little too loudly.
“She’s my bonded mate,” Yoohyeon growled at him.
Bora immediately took her to sit, far from the suitor since she was clearly agitated already. Yoohyeon was already on edge with a newcomer and stressed with her duties on top of carrying a pup. Bora wasn’t going to let her bite this suitor’s head off.
“Where’s your sister?” The king frowned.
“I’m here,” Minji smiled while walking into the dining hall. “Just getting a little bit of air.” It was a lie. She wanted to watch the suitor’s reaction to Bora and Siyeon needed to stop giggling before they walked in.
During dinner, it was nothing less. Minji milked the entire thing, watching as the suitor desperately tried to ignore Siyeon and made the biggest mistake of his life by commenting on the many alphas that ran the place. The monarchs were a little shocked at his forwardness, explaining that it was their decision and that he needed to keep his mouth shut in regard to the staff.
His next big mistake was reaching for Minji.
Siyeon caught it first, and let out a low growl before his fingers made contact with her sleeve, causing the alpha to fully turn and snarl at him. It caught him off guard, nearly fell out of his seat as Siyeon continued to growl and bare her teeth at the stranger.
“Siyeon!” Minji shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her back. She wrapped an arm around Siyeon’s shoulders, keeping her back while the suitor collected himself and sat back in his seat. “I’m so sorry…” She whispered, genuine with her words this time.
She didn’t expect Siyeon to snap at him.
“She should be wearing a muzzle!” He shouted.
The king went to speak and have a servant grab a muzzle before his wife interrupted him.
“You shouldn’t have touched her,” The queen stated plainly.
“I only meant to catch her attention,” He frowned. “This alpha is clearly too aggressive,” He scoffed.
“You touched her owner without permission and you expect us to listen to you?” The queen chuckled. “If any of us were to touch the princess without warning, the alpha would do the same to us, right Minji?” She asked, watching her daughter nod her head.
“She’s snapped on everyone,” Minji lied. Siyeon had only snapped at her, Bora, and the king. No one else.
By nightfall, Siyeon was about to retire to her own room when she saw the suitor walking down the hall, unaware of his surroundings. She glared at him before deciding to barge in on Minji, seeing her sitting at her vanity.
“What are you doing?” Minji chuckled.
“He’s coming to see you,” Siyeon grumbled after shutting the door behind her.
The princess let out a sigh as she pulled the ribbon in her hair, watching it flow down her shoulders. She set it on the little table, walking over to the alpha before hearing the footsteps draw closer.
“He’s persistent… I’ll give him that,” She frowned. “He’s boring… And this game is a lot more fun…” Minji sighed.
“What do we do now?” Siyeon asked, tilting her head at the princess.
“I have an idea… But it’s… Weird…” She frowned.
“Weird how?” Siyeon whispered.
“Scent me, I want to see how he reacts,” the omega smirked.
Siyeon was quick to release her scent, trying to scent the princess the best she could with the little amount of time she had. The footsteps drew closer and they had to suppress quite a few giggles before Minji had the alpha hop in the bed.
Just as they predicted, there was a knock on the door, and Minji had to keep Siyeon’s mouth shut to keep her giggling quiet. The omega pressed a finger to her lips, warning her silently as she got up to answer the door.
“My apologies for the late call…” The suitor frowned.
“I was just about to sleep, why are you here?” Minji sighed while leaning on the door.
“I came to ask…” He trailed off when he caught a new scent, sniffing the air before looking down at the omega. “Ask… if you…” He frowned. “What is that scent…” He whispered.
“What scent?” Minji feigned innocence, oh how this was a fun game.
“It smells… different than you…” He muttered.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about…” Minji sighed while opening the door more. And as she predicted, the suitor took a peek inside, seeing the alpha in Minji’s bed. “I smell normal?” She asked.
“She sleeps in your bed?!” He glared.
“I told you, she doesn’t leave my side.” Minji shut the door, making sure to keep it shut before walking over to the bed.
The two listened to his frustrated groans before he left, listening to the footsteps fade away before they burst into laughter.
“Oh, his face! Did you see his face?!” Minji laughed.
“You couldn’t price that even if you tried!” Siyeon snorted. “Well…” She sighed. “I should get to my room…” She mumbled.
“No… Stay with me. In case he tries to come back,” Minji pouted. “You’re supposed to never leave my side… Make it believable,” She frowned.
“You didn’t sleep well last time we spent the night together…” the alpha frowned.
“So? If I don’t sleep again I’ll just make that a game too,” Minji shrugged. “Just… It’s cold… And you’re very warm… So, please… Stay with me?” She whispered.