"How many omegas are in the palace, Dimitri?"
"There are twenty-two of them. You're the 23rd omega, Miss Silverfang."
"That low?" She chuckles a bit. "I guess omegas are really at the brink of extinction."
"It's a shame that they are getting lower each year," Dimitri shakes his head, rather unamused.
"They may be the most inferior wolves but they are qualities that are different from alphas and betas."
"What? Their ability to impregnate? Because I'm sure that betas and alphas are capable of doing that, too."
"They are also capable of making an alpha weak with their pheromones. Even the king gets weak from their scent." He grins.
The trip wasn't really unpleasant. It's the opposite, rather. Dimitri has been such a great companion to be with and he made sure to make her feel comfortable.
Perhaps this is some kind of training for alpha attendants to swoon their omegas with their charm.
But then again, Maridawn is no omega. She is just attracted to the appeal of the Greymunds and nothing else. Who knows after her one-week stay, she could have gone to bed with him. And that doesn't count as illegal. Once she gets her results, she is no longer an omega for the king anymore.
This could be a great way of parting between the two of them.
They finally reach the palace gates and Maridawn is drawn to the long wrought iron gate that is protecting the king's palace. What impresses her is the design of the elegant golden rose statues embellishing the gate frame.
It is more impressive than the old tattered traditional gate the Silverfang possessed, as they prefer the traditional over the state-of-the-art designs.
And soon, it moves automatically yet slowly as she braces for what's within this threshold.
Then the limousine enters.
And as expected, it is bigger than her own imagination. The king prefers nature over the quantity of the buildings here as they were designed to please anyone's eyes.
Trees of beautiful pink peonies are in the circular boulevard as they enter the entrance and a large fountain with the statue of two koi fishes, sprouting water from their mouths.
As they move forward, Maridawn catches a glimpse of what's behind the large main building as she sees young soldiers on their training.
It seems that the palace only wants to see the aesthetics of the beautiful gardens rather than their militia. As they only pass a few buildings and more breathtaking views of the garden."
"This is a fusion of Japanese and European-inspired landscape designed by the current king himself," Dimitri explains, observing Maridawn's eyes glued at the window. "He has a fascination towards nature that he hired the best landscape architects to design what he envisions."
"I see. The king has an exotic taste of beauty," Maridawn says. Her eyes are set at the flowery shrubs located next to what seems like the main palace.
Truthfully, Maridawn has no interest in the landscape but even her eyes couldn't be mesmerized by the design.
"The concubine area is within the southeast," Dimitri quips. A hearty laugh resonates in the limousine as he observes Maridawn.
"What's so funny, Dimitri?" she asks.
"Well, earlier you were too serious and I thought that nothing fazes you at all. Yet, here you are admiring the architectural design done by the king."
"Well, he is expected to do great things. He's the king after all," Maridawn says, haughtily.
"Oh, then I guess you won't be uncomfortable giving him an offspring when that time comes," he says, his smile hasn't fade a bit.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She raises an inquisitive brow.
But before they continue their conversation, his phone vibrates in his pants pocket.
"Excuse me, Miss Silverfang," he says as he takes out his silver phone and flips it up. "Hello?"
Yes, Maridawn can't believe her eyes that people are still using flip phones in this day and age.
"Ah, yes, she's here." He says as he glances in Maridawn's direction.
His calm cheerful mood goes south, replacing a different side of Dimitri: eyes widening like a pair of saucers and his jaw drops hard.
"W-what? Madam Ping, that's far from the King's palace!" He exclaims. It takes a while before he composes himself before he sighs. "I understand. I will inform Kevin."
"What was that?" Maridawn asks as soon as Dimitri hangs up the phone. Because she's pretty sure that the topic is about her, after all.
He just sighs, this time, louder than the first one. "Well, there were some changes with your assigned pavilion house, Miss Maridawn," he says, sheepishly.
It is the first time Maridawn has seen Dimitri distressed since he often hides his feelings with his professionalism.
"It's just a change of pavilion house, why the fuss?"
He hesitates for a moment. "Your supposed pavilion house was taken by one of the king's favorites. I'm afraid we are assigned at the farthest pavilion away from the palace."
She starts thinking for a moment. "Are you saying that there is a lesser chance for me to meet the king?"
He nods. She's right on the bat. "I'm sorry, I should have fought for that pavilion before taking you here."
She hums a bit then smiles. "Why, Dimitri, there's nothing to worry about that. That means we're far away from other omegas, right?"
"That's correct, but you're still at a huge disadvantage, Miss Silverfang." Dimitri frowns, his demeanor turns apprehensive. "The king has never gone farther to the concubine houses as it brings inconvenience to him."
That means she won't have a chance to sleep with him this week, she thought.
"But we will change the pavilion house as you please, Miss Silverfang. It will be your home from now on."
She curtly nods and she continues to watch at the sights of the pavilion houses in every corner.
Each has its own personal taste of unique buildings. Some are breathtakingly beautiful, others prefer a minimalist touch that is still appealing to the eyes.
Huh, the omegas sure have a luxurious time here within the palace, she thought.
The drive to her new home takes a while as they have to pass by a lot of these pavilion houses and next, a garden with a circular pond.
"There's your pavilion, Miss Silverfang. Over there."
And Maridawn, who has been impressed with the scenery, frowns the moment her eyes lock at the small house on the tiny hill.
That's where I'm staying?" She doesn't need to feign her disgust.
The aesthetics of the building looks simple yet elegant.
It's not tacky or a run-down building, rather, due to the lack of maintenance and the way she sees it, it looks more like a cottage than a pavilion house. A small one that reminds her of the cottage houses on her trip to Versailles.
In fact, it's as small as the maid headquarters in the Silverfang Estate.
She's not pleased with it at all.
"We will renovate it during your stay as soon as we can, Miss Silverfang, my deepest apologies," Dimitri lowers his head with a slight bow.
"Things like these happen from time to time. I have nothing to complain about the place," she says rather sourly.
After all, she will only stay here for a week. As soon as her results are delivered here, she has nothing to worry about.
"Thank you so much, Miss Silverfang. We will make you the most comfortable wolf in this pavilion!"
"By the way, this has been bothering me a lot, Dimitri," she asks.
"What is it, Miss Silverfang?"
She hesitates a while. "If the king doesn't really show up here as you say, what will the omega do if she won't be mated here?"
Dimitri looks at her with a sad smile. "If the king never acknowledges the omega then she will be living for the rest of life without ever being mated. I'm afraid that's how it is."
"Will that be a problem then, Dimitri?" Maridawn asks.
Again he doesn't immediately answer. His calculating eyes avert from her gaze, carefully thinking of the right response.
"If I may be honest with you, Miss Silverfang," his words falter as he smiles again. "If an omega hasn't been mated even once, there will be complications and the omega will die."