The Married Alpha Who Refuses to Be a Heartthrob (A/B/O · Alpha POV) - Chapter 16

These past few days, Kaes kept spotting Abe lingering below his office window, which was starting to grate on him.

Kaes had just arrived at the governor’s mansion when he received a letter from Keith:

[Kaes:

Got something interesting to share. Haven’t seen Aither since arriving at court, and the Queen can’t find him either—she’s getting pretty worked up. Went to tend my grandfather’s grave today. Though he was king for only 29 days, most still call him Admiral.

Don’t feed Xiaolu so much—if he gets any fatter, he won’t be able to fly.]

Receiving Keith’s letter lifted Kaes’s spirits somewhat. The words “Admiral” felt vaguely familiar.

Vansen had mentioned that the former SSS was this man—and he was Keith’s grandfather.

Admiral Wen Hua, the top-ranked brother from twenty-five years ago.

Kaes felt he should look into the Bain Perella family.

Erlan brought Abe to the office. “Abe has been here for three days now. We should host a welcome dinner for him. What do you think, Governor?” he suggested.

Abe grew nervous upon hearing this and hastily waved his hands. “Thank you for your kindness, Inspector, but I really don’t need…”

Abe assumed Kaes would refuse. But Kaes, unusually patient, gave Abe a thoughtful look and said kindly, “The Inspector is right. Abe has been here for three days. Let’s host it tomorrow evening.”

“Really?” Abe was flattered and delighted, looking at Kaes as if their relationship was improving.

Kaes nodded. He was in a decent mood today after receiving Keith’s letter: “Is there anything you need to prepare?”

“I’d like to go shopping for a few outfits. I’ll just take the maid with me.” Abe smiled, feeling revitalized. He intended to buy some nice clothes—after all, he was the star of the dinner party. He also wanted to captivate Kaes.

…

Kaes disliked large gatherings, especially in this A/B/O world where some people liked to release their scents.

The mere thought of that scene made him feel suffocated. It was a chaotic mix of pheromones and perfumes.

He’d learned to apply three layers of barrier patches. Now he headed to the street selling magical supplies, hoping to find some elixir that could block others’ pheromones.

He happened upon Vansen, who was buying basic supplies. Vansen greeted him and asked what he was doing there.

Kaes: “The governor’s mansion is hosting a dinner for Abe tomorrow night. I’m here looking for something to block all pheromones… I’d also like it if you could come.”

“Hey, I’ve got just the thing. Here.” Vansen produced a vial. “I always carry potions like this with me.”

Neither Alphas nor Omegas would get the upper hand on him.

Kaes didn’t know Vansen’s secondary gender, and Vansen had no intention of revealing it.

Vansen seemed like a walking potion treasure trove. Kaes thanked him and accepted the vial.

Vansen looked regretful. “I can’t come. The church’s been swamped lately. I need to brew some potions in advance. That prisoner nearly escaped yesterday—luckily it was a false alarm.”

“Who’s locked up?”

“A monster!” Vansen’s tone held mystery as he pondered. “I don’t know who he really is. He looks bizarre—hair all over his face and body, only a pair of green eyes visible.”

“Every day, the prisoner huddles in the corner, banging his head against the wall. But his wounds heal themselves, growing back thicker fur. His body becomes more hunched, turning more and more into a monster. Isn’t that bizarre?”

Kaes listened, sensing the creature wasn’t very bright. “Is he mentally unstable? Does he have a name?”

Vansen shook his head. “Don’t know his name. We all call him Ghost. Oh, and he likes to draw ghosts, skulls, grim reapers… all that stuff on the walls with his own blood. Trouble if he ever escapes. Gotta head back to the church to keep watch.”

After bidding Vansen farewell, Kaes spotted a biography of a naval admiral on the street and casually bought it.

…

That evening, the chefs at the governor’s mansion were already preparing ingredients for tomorrow’s banquet. Not only would guests from Erlan attend tomorrow night, but also nobles and wealthy merchants residing in Lanqi.

Kaes was flipping through the biography he’d bought in his bedroom, which also included background information on Lanqi and Bain Perella.

“What are you reading?” Xiaolu flew over and landed on Kaes’s head, tugging at his hair with its beak.

“Stop messing around.” Kaes grabbed the bird that was ruffling his hair.

“Help! I’m telling Kiss!” Xiaolu bent its neck, pecking at Kaes’s fingers.

“Go ahead.” Kaes placed Xiaolu on the book’s spine.

“I can read you a bedtime story.” Xiaolu lowered its head, flipping pages with its beak.

“Seriously?”

Does this bird even recognize words? Only after locking Xiaolu in its cage did the room finally quiet down.

Xiaolu hopped around inside the cage: “It’s just Kiss’s grandfather’s story. I’ve heard them tell it so many times, I could recite it.”

…

Twenty-five years ago, Bain Perella was formerly the Wood Empire.

Wood and Lanqi were mortal enemies. After their conflict, the Wood Dynasty fell, leaving only one surviving prince: Adam.

Though Adam was an SSS-tier wizard, his mental state was sometimes unstable. The Pope hoped he would regain his sanity before governing the nation.

At this juncture, Admiral Wen Hua of the Wood Dynasty repelled the Lanqi Empire and was proclaimed king.

The Wood Dynasty was renamed the Bain Perella Dynasty. Tragically, the admiral reigned for only 29 days before his death.

Following the tradition of primogeniture, his eldest daughter ascended the throne—the current Queen.

The legend lies in the fact that Admiral Wen Hua was merely an unremarkable general of the previous dynasty, possessing only S-rank melee combat skills.

It is said he obtained some mystical artifact, proclaiming himself the Guardian of the Imperial Mausoleum, capable of transforming ordinary talent into extraordinary prowess.

The Admiral was the first-generation Guardian of the Imperial Mausoleum.

Many dream of attaining SSS-rank power overnight, akin to “overnight riches,” without needing to strive for it themselves.

Alas, the world fails to grasp the true mystery behind it, leaving them to indulge in mere daydreams.

After Admiral Wen Hua’s death, his uniquely enchanted longsword remained locked away in the imperial palace, never circulating among the masses.

The current Guardian of the Imperial Mausoleum is Aither. Perhaps yesterday he was a lowly dung-carrier, yet today he stands as an SSS-tier powerhouse.

This is the dream of most people….

After analyzing the situation, Keith concluded that Aither and the original host were originally evenly matched. However, Aither had the blessing of the First Auxiliary, the Pope, granting a direct 800% attack boost. The original host’s support had likely vanished long ago—truly a stroke of bad luck.

The candle flame flickered. Kaes thought it was caused by a draft from the window. He shielded the flame with his hand, and the trembling light finally steadied.

But he felt no breeze. Only then did Kaes remember the window was shut.

He looked toward the window. It was indeed closed. How could the candle flame move on its own?

He walked around the room holding the candlestick. Besides his own footsteps, he thought he faintly heard another pair of shuffling sounds.

A dark shadow flashed across the ceiling above. Kaes hurriedly looked up but saw nothing. The room felt inexplicably unsettling.

“Help!” Xiaolu suddenly shrieked, scrambling frantically in its cage. “Ghost!”

“Where?” Kaes had only glimpsed a dark figure darting across the ceiling—he hadn’t seen clearly.

Someone knocked on Kaes’s door: “Something’s happened!”

Kaes opened the door to find Long Shi standing outside, his expression grave and his sword at his side. “Kaes, someone reported a death on East 1st Street. It’s suspicious.”

“Who?”

“Name unknown. The patrolman relaying the message said it was a painter who sold his work.” Long Shi wanted Kaes to go investigate with him.

Kaes was even more anxious than him. Could it be the painter who’d done his portrait?

He hurriedly pulled on his coat and hat. “Let’s go… How did he die?”

“The neighbor heard screams and kept saying it was a ghost. Annoyed by the disturbance late at night, the neighbor knocked on the door. When they went to check, the man was already dead. Now they’re terrified, convinced a ghost killed him.”

The two hurried out of the governor’s mansion, boarding a carriage together, followed by several mounted guards.