<Episode 91>
Eveline regained consciousness but found herself not in reality. Instead, she was trapped in an illusion conjured by the goddess Yulias.
For the one minute Yulias had manifested in Eveline’s body, the girl had been entirely under the goddess’s control.
* * *
“Eve, are you alright?”
“Eveline.”
Her heart pounded as Elkais caught her before she could fall. His face was filled with concern and tenderness, despite having every reason to be angry at her. The warmth in his expression made her heart drum louder in her chest.
“I-I’m fine,” she stammered, gently pushing against his chest to stand on her own.
Her fingertips brushed against the mark she had left below his neck, and the thought made her ears burn with embarrassment.
“Eveline, why did you leave me?”
Elkais’s sudden embrace startled her. The intensity of his hold made her acutely aware of their closeness, especially since they weren’t alone. Abellard and Crown Prince Ferite were nearby—or at least, she thought they were.
“Eve?”
Eveline glanced toward Abellard, but Ferite was nowhere to be seen. Her thoughts briefly shifted, wondering which god was watching over the crown prince.
But Elkais’s arms around her waist made her mind go blank.
“Eveline. My Eveline.”
His soft, deep voice brushed against her ears, making her heart flutter as if butterflies had settled there.
“Don’t speak so close to my ear… it feels strange,” she murmured.
“How does it feel strange?” he asked, leaning closer.
She flinched at the proximity, twisting her body instinctively. Elkais, seeming to release her for a moment, only tightened his hold again.
Her back pressed against his firm chest, and she felt a pang in her heart as Abellard leaned into her from the front, his arms wrapping around her shoulders.
The marks Elkais had left on her chest earlier throbbed faintly, making her all too aware of their presence.
“Brother…” she stammered.
“Eve, why do I sense another alpha’s pheromones on you?”
“Well, I—”
“Eveline, focus on me,” Elkais interrupted, pressing firmly against her navel with his hand.
Eveline, already sensitive, gasped and struggled as his large hand applied pressure to her abdomen.
“Elkais! Stop—just let go for a moment!” she protested.
“No.”
Despite her squirming, Abellard buried his face against her chest, holding her tightly.
“Eve, won’t you apply my pheromones too?” he murmured.
“Brother…” Eveline was overwhelmed by the mingling scents—Elkais’s earthy forest aroma and Abellard’s cool aquatic notes. As a beta, she wasn’t used to pheromones affecting her so vividly, and the intensity made her dizzy.
Abellard tangled his fingers in her hair and pressed his lips to hers briefly, meeting her gaze afterward.
“Eve, which one of us do you like more?”
“…I like myself best, so let go of me, both of you,” she replied coolly, though her flushed face betrayed her discomfort.
Elkais clearly wasn’t pleased with her answer. Without a word, he pressed his hips against her backside.
Eveline froze, startled by the hard pressure against her through their clothing. It wasn’t muscle—it was something unmistakably firm.
“Elkais… step back for a moment. This isn’t…” she trailed off.
“Do you dislike it?” he asked.
“It’s not that I dislike it, but… my brother is here, and—”
“I want to see all of you, Eveline,” Elkais whispered.
Eveline’s mind grew hazy, her thoughts muddled further by the glimmer in Abellard’s eyes as he gazed at her. Behind her, it was Elkais’s touch that set her body alight.
Each stroke of his hand reminded her of the pleasure they had shared the night before, making her body burn. But with Abellard in front of her, she couldn’t shake the unsettling illusion that her reactions were directed at him instead. It was disorienting and wrong.
She had never seen Abellard that way before, which made her body’s strange response feel foreign and humiliating. The shame clashed with the residual desire simmering within her, leaving her feeling like nothing more than an omega—a creature stripped of identity and reduced to instinct.
“Brother, I…” she stammered, flustered.
“Let me kiss you,” Abellard said softly, his tone laced with yearning.
Elkais’s grip on her waist tightened, his hand sliding upward to touch her chest. Meanwhile, Abellard cupped her cheek, his gaze soft and filled with affection.
Eveline shivered, confused by the sensations. It was as if Abellard were the one touching her, not Elkais.
“If you push me away, I’ll die,” Abellard whispered.
“Brother—”
“Hmm? Eve.”
Abellard caressed her cheek with a blissful smile. When she turned her head to avoid him, his expression crumpled, tears spilling down his face.
“If you reject me, I’ll really die.”
“Stop talking nonsense and step back,” she said firmly.
“I want to kiss you too,” he murmured.
“Then I’ll bite your tongue,” she snapped.
Even though her body was burning with desire, kissing Abellard was out of the question. She couldn’t allow that boundary to blur.
“Is it because you still see me as your brother?” he asked.
“Yes,” she admitted, her voice trembling.
Abellard pressed a kiss to her cheek, making her body tense with discomfort. Before she could react, Elkais leaned in and kissed her neck.
“Elkais! What are you doing? Stop him!” she pleaded.
“Don’t you want all three of us to imprint?” he replied nonchalantly.
“Ah…”
Eveline froze as she remembered the plan. They had to imprint to survive.
<Imprinting requires a deep agreement. It’s not just physical.>
<What does that mean? Does that mean it’s possible without intimacy?>
<Yes, but only if the omega truly accepts the alpha as their fate. Otherwise, biting is meaningless.>
<How do you know this?>
<I accidentally bit an omega once.>
Eveline recalled Ferite’s explanation. Imprinting didn’t require intimacy—only consent and a mutual decision. If the crown prince said it, it must be true. He had been notorious for his escapades with omegas.
Ferite wouldn’t have shared this knowledge without reason.
“Let’s imprint,” she said finally.
“Yes, we should,” Elkais agreed.
Eveline tried to steady herself as Elkais loosened his grip on her waist.
But in an instant—
“Ah!”
“Someone like you isn’t needed for Eveline to imprint,” Elkais said coldly.
With a swift motion, he drew his sword and plunged it through Abellard’s collarbone. Blood splattered onto Eveline’s cheek as Abellard crumpled to the ground.
“Ah…”
The warmth of his blood against her skin brought her back to her senses.
“Guh…” Abellard groaned as Elkais withdrew the blade, letting him collapse fully.
Eveline turned, staring at Abellard’s fallen form in shock before whirling to face Elkais.
“Elkais! What have you done?”
“Now it’s just the two of us. We can imprint,” he said calmly.
Suddenly, Eveline felt her body move against her will. Her hand reached for the gun strapped to her garter belt and raised it to Elkais’s throat.
“No… no! Run, Elkais!” she screamed, but her body didn’t listen.
Bang!
The gun fired.
Eveline snapped out of the vision with a gasp.
But when she awoke, the nightmare was real. Elkais lay on the ground, a bullet wound in his neck. Abellard, bloodied and scarred, stood nearby, barely holding himself upright.
Eveline realized the truth—the vision Yulias had shown her was not merely a warning. It had been a cruel prelude to the goddess’s control over her body.
* * *
For a moment, Eveline’s mind cleared as she saw Abellard’s eyes shift from red to blue.
“Save Elkais, please!” Eveline cried, cradling the fallen Elkais in her arms.
“Brother!”
Abellard stood frozen, unable to process the chaotic scene before him. His eyes darted around in confusion as he struggled to make sense of it all. Elkais lay on the verge of death, having been shot by Eveline’s own hand. At the same time, Abellard noticed the icy spikes puncturing his own body—marks of some magical attack.
“Please, I’m begging you! Brother, save him! Save Elkais!” Eveline’s voice cracked as she wept, her tears streaming uncontrollably.
Abellard’s thoughts raced, trying to piece together what had happened, but they ground to a halt as he saw Eveline sobbing before him.
<If Eveline Wilden kills Elkais de Robein with her own hands, she will forever depend on you.>
The goddess Yulias’s words echoed in his mind. He hadn’t understood their implications until now.
If Elkais died here, Eveline would indeed become reliant on him—consumed by guilt and unable to let go of the weight of her actions.
“I… I can’t use my divine power,” Abellard stammered.
Eveline’s tear-filled eyes snapped toward him, wide with disbelief. She could see through his lie immediately.
“Brother,” she said softly.
“It’s true,” Abellard insisted, but his voice faltered.
“I can’t live without Elkais. Even knowing that, you would still lie to me?”
Her voice turned cold, steady despite her trembling frame.
“I swear… I can’t use it,” he repeated, though his own unease grew as Eveline seemed to regain her composure.
But he knew time was on his side. The longer he delayed, the closer Elkais came to death. And once that happened, Eveline would have no choice but to depend on him.
“It’s useless to save me,” Eveline said quietly. “If Elkais dies, I’ll keep choosing death.”
She was convinced the vision Yulias had shown her was the inevitable truth.
“Eve, what are you saying?” Abellard started to protest.
Bang!
Eveline pressed the gun to her neck and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Her crimson blood spilled onto the snow, stark and unforgiving in its cold finality.
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