[BL] Alpha, You've Got the Wrong Mate!

Chapter 386: 386 — A Monster’s Birth (10)

Rare were the times Raniel had visitors at night. Despite being unable to see anything more than grey outlines, the young man could still hear. He recognized most footsteps instantly, but this one was unfamiliar to him.

As he lay on the floor wrapped in his thin blanket, he heard the faint sound of shoes against the marble floor. They weren’t the heavy boots of the guards but belonged to someone else entirely. However, he couldn’t figure out who.

Another alpha, perhaps.

It wouldn’t be the first time one had snuck into his room to torment him.

The moment he felt the stranger lower himself beside him, Raniel promptly reached for his blindfold and removed it, ready to punish whoever had dared enter his room—

"Did I wake you?"

Upon hearing the gentle voice, Raniel turned as though his life depended on it. Cold sweat ran down his forehead. His heart immediately began racing as he hurriedly wrapped the cloth around his eyes once more.

I nearly killed this man...

Then his thoughts abruptly halted.

So what if he had almost killed him? Why should it matter? It wouldn’t have been the first time he had taken the life of an alpha who had snuck into his room.

But the High Priests wouldn’t spare me.

He repeated the thought to himself, convincing himself that was the only reason his heart had nearly stopped.

"So? Did I wake you?" Ilyan asked softly. Then he hesitated. "Also, your eyes—"

Every hair on Raniel’s body stood on end.

What was he about to ask?

Had he seen them?

Did he find them hideous?

"Why do you hide them with this?" Ilyan gently pressed a finger against the white cloth covering Raniel’s eyes.

The omega almost forgot how to breathe.

Even though there was a layer of fabric separating them, he could still feel the warmth of Ilyan’s fingertip lingering against the side of his face. The sensation was so foreign that a strange shiver ran through his body, causing him to instinctively slap the alpha’s hand away.

"Don’t touch me." His voice came out very sharp. Colder than he intended.

Ilyan immediately raised both hands in surrender.

"I apologize. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable."

Raniel frowned.

Why was this man always apologizing? No one ever cared enough to admit their mistakes in front of Raniel until now.

Most people became angry when he snapped at them. Others would have insulted him or punished him for speaking out of turn. Yet somehow, Ilyan always reacted as though Raniel had done nothing wrong.

The alpha slowly lowered himself onto the floor across from him, making no attempt to move any closer.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

The room fell silent enough for Raniel to hear the distant rustling of leaves outside the window and the occasional chirping of insects hidden somewhere in the darkness.

"What are you doing here?" The omega finally asked.

The question had been bothering him ever since he recognized the alpha’s voice.

The alpha looked at him as though the answer should have been obvious.

"I wanted to see you."

"Why?" Raniel’s eyebrows immediately furrowed once more.

The alpha blinked, perplexed.

"What do you mean, why?"

"I mean exactly that." The omega tightened his grip around the thin blanket covering his body. "Why would you want to see me?"

The question seemed to genuinely confuse Ilyan.

"As I told you before, you’re my mate."

Raniel clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"That means nothing. Do you even know what mates are for?"

To the omega, it truly didn’t.

The High Priests spoke of mates as though they were blessings personally granted by the Gods themselves, but Raniel had never understood why. A stranger remained a stranger regardless of what title was attached to them. And in the books... Omega mates existed for the sole purpose of fulfilling an alpha’s carnal desires.

Ilyan opened his mouth as though he wanted to argue, but his gaze suddenly wandered around the room.

First, at the small space. Then, at the empty walls, the cold stone floor and the thin blanket wrapped around Raniel’s body.

Slowly, the smile faded from his face.

"You sleep here?" he asked quietly.

Raniel followed his gaze.

"Obviously." The answer was so evident that he couldn’t understand why the alpha looked disturbed by it.

"There isn’t even a bed."

"There doesn’t need to be one." The words left his mouth without hesitation.

After all, he had slept on the floor for as long as he could remember. The only difference was that the floor here was cleaner than some of the places he had slept on as a child.

However, the look on Ilyan’s face made it clear that he didn’t share the same opinion.

For several moments, the alpha simply stared at him.

Not with pity.

Not with disgust.

But with something Raniel couldn’t quite identify.

Rage, was it?

Then, as though suddenly remembering something, Ilyan reached into his robes and pulled out a small cloth bundle.

"I actually came to give this to you. I brought it for you."

Raniel immediately became wary. His body stiffened, and he slightly shifted backward.

"What is it?"

"A gift."

The word alone made the omega pause.

A gift.

The last gift he had received had been a snake. The High Priests had told him it would make an excellent companion, only for the creature to spend months biting him while he slept. And then, there was the second gift—this annoying man right in front of him.

Gifts never proved to be as amusing as he had read about.

His expression darkened immediately.

Noticing the reaction, Ilyan quickly placed the bundle on the floor between them before unfolding the cloth.

Inside were several pastries. Sweet bread dusted with sugar.

Raniel stared at them. His gaze shifted to Ilyan, then back at the pastries.

He couldn’t remember the last time someone had given him food without expecting something in return.

"I thought you might like them," Ilyan said softly. "When I went to check on nearby borders, I spotted a bakery in the lower district had a long line today, so I assumed they must be good."

The omega continued staring at the pastries as though they might suddenly attack him, or if they entered his body, he would be in pain, like the times before.

Did he bring this just because he wanted to see me? Just because he thought I might like them?

The concept felt so absurd that he didn’t know how to react.