Aileen wanted to improve her mood, so she ordered an iced coffee with milk as soon as she entered a cafe. Then, she sat on one of the visitor's settees near the window and thought about how heartbreaking Sephania's family was. No one knew how many languid sighs escaped her cherry lips until her gloomy expression attracted someone's attention without her knowing.
"Is something saddening you, miss?"
Aileen was startled, and bafflement filled her face as she was not expecting someone to greet her in this fairly quiet cafe. As if this didn't already amaze her, the person who greeted her was none other than the one she didn't want to see! Even though the man's hair color was different, Aileen could still recognize him.
"A... Alpha Lionel! What are you doing here?" As far as Aileen knew, the Alpha King had never visited the Southern district—the residential area of the wizards who had fled to the Unbound Havens. After all, the head in charge of the Southern District was the vampire clan, so werewolf clans were rarely seen in this area.
It wasn't that Aileen hated Lionel. On the contrary, she was helplessly curious about the young man. It was like a magnet pulling her closer to the young man. However, she was not eager to face the Alpha right now. Aileen had two good reasons why she was reluctant to be alone with this Alpha, but she did not dare to oppose the ruler of the Werewolf Realm. She had no choice but to let the Alpha King sit facing her.
"Who made you cry?" The tense but gentle tone echoed Aileen's reverie, who continued to wonder about Lionel's purpose in coming to her.
"What?"
"Your eyes look puffy."
"I'm not crying," Aileen denied, looking down, hoping the Alpha King would quickly get bored and leave her sight. The problem was that the man had no intention of moving from his seat.
'What does he want from me? Does he know I'm a black magician?' Cold sweat began to pour out from the top of her head to her back—feeling worried that her death would come today.
Yes, this was the first reason. Aileen was born as a black wizard, thus having a dark and evil core energy. Her adoptive father used a forbidden seal to seal the evil aura in her heart so that Aileen was not influenced by evil thoughts or had the intention of hurting someone. Even so, her core was the power of evil and darkness, in complete contrast to the Alpha King's core with the power of light.
The second reason ... she had no idea that Lionel, who looked so compassionate and friendly, would actually be so heartless. Otherwise, why did the Alpha allow the higher-ups to make such unfair rules? Even though the fate of deformed vampires was already decided, they still had time before they turned into crazy vampires. Can't they just wait while they figure out a way to keep them from turning into a frenzied state?
"Aileen, look into my eyes," stated Lionel in a tone as soft as silk, as if a high voice would make Aileen run in fear. Even so, his voice still contained an inexorable authority that made Aileen raise her head without her brain's command. "Do you think I will hurt you?"
Aileen stared closely at the pair of blue eyes like the vast sea and realized the man had no evil intentions toward her. Nonetheless, Aileen had difficulty finding her voice when she wanted to answer―so she only shook her head to answer the Alpha King's question.
"Then you don't need to be afraid of me. I didn't come here to intimidate you. Just think of me as the same as other young men—sitting around relaxing because I skipped work."
Whether it was the way Lionel spoke or maybe because of the man's mischievous grin, Aileen couldn't help but giggle. "You skip work? Is that allowed?"
Like a mother scolding her child, because he didn't want to study, Lionel put on a child-like sullen face. "I'm not a god. If I work and drain my brain 7x24 hours, I will also lose my mind."
If Aileen hadn't remembered Sephania's departure as a result of Lionel's decision, she could have continued laughing―now her laughter looked stiff. She was guilty because she had enjoyed chatting with Lionel. Aileen felt like she had to get out of here―get away from Lionel, but didn't have the courage.
As if the situation wasn't already bad enough, Jerome—Lionel's brother came to the same cafe and sat next to Lionel without asking. Aileen was stunned when she saw the pair of twins. Now Lionel's hair was black like his brother... if it weren't for the different colors of their eyes, even Aileen would have difficulty telling them apart.
"Ares was looking for you earlier."
"Did you tell him?"
"I told him you would be back in a moment. Why did you scare her?" Jerome's blunt question made Aileen shrink even more in her seat while Lionel snorted in annoyance as he protested fearlessly.
"I'm not like you—how have I ever gotten complaints about scaring someone? Even little kids like me!" taunted Lionel in a proud tone as if he were someone worth fighting for. "Ah, Aileen," Lionel's sudden call made Aileen feel her heart jump out of its place. "I don't know if you have met my twin. He is my older brother—Jerome Wildridge."
Aileen became increasingly uneasy when she received a piercing gaze from Jerome's pair of hazel eyes.
The next second, Aileen's whole body was shivering as if she were at the North Pole—and she was freezing!! Her blue eyes widened when she realized her iced milk coffee had frozen into ice.
"Jerome, you crossed the limit. Stop it."
A booming voice was heard right before Jerome could answer. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY SISTER!?"