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Isabel Magnolia was a name well-known among the castle’s residents. Soon it might be a name that the whole kingdom knew, perhaps even beyond the kingdom’s borders her name would be uttered. But best of all? It would be in connection with King Levi Ackerman. Her cheeks flushed at the thought, her hands flying to cradle the small bump on her stomach.
It really had not been in the cards that Isabel would be in this situation. When she was but a child she had never imagined herself pregnant with the baby of her childhood friend. She had never expected to win the affection of the alpha she had admired for so long. If anything she was still a little shocked that she had managed to wrestle it from Eren’s hands, no matter how weak his grip on it was. She had played off joining Levi’s harem as a joke at first but her admiration soon developed into a full-blown crush.
And now she was carrying his heir!
The whole castle had ooh’d and aah’d over her when the news spread that the King’s first child was inside her. She was already being treated like a queen and she felt as though she was positively glowing with pride and satisfaction.
People stood aside for her and some even bowed slightly as she strode by them on her way from the royal kitchen towards Levi’s chamber with a teacup in hand. It was as though her unborn child had elevated her to one of royal blood on par with the King’s late mother. On the outside, she was calm and collected, the perfect picture of poise, but on the inside, she crowed with delight. She was living every omega’s biggest dream and she had even managed to out-maneuver Eren, the King’s personal maid and closest confidant.
How Isabel had managed that, she honestly had no idea, but she wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Though she guessed Levi had grown tired of chasing after the older omega without ever receiving anything but indulgent smiles in return. It was a subject often discussed when the consorts were gossiping among themselves. They all knew that none of them held a candle to Eren in Levi’s mind but as long as the maid kept refusing the alpha’s advances they all still had a chance of securing the attention of the King.
Perhaps this pregnancy was not just a symbol of change for the kingdom but also for the King himself? That would be lovely, then both Levi and Eren could finally move on from this cat-and-mouse game they had entertained for almost a decade. That way Isabel could swoop in and snatch the alpha right up. She loved that man and she hoped dearly that one day he would return her feelings. If Eren was no longer an obstacle then it was only a matter of time, and she could be patient if the reward was high enough. And for Levi’s affection? She would wait a lifetime.
It felt as though she had already waited for one, so what was one more, really?
She stifled a small giggle at her own thoughts, not wanting to have to explain her idle fantasies to the people around her.
Isabel finally managed to reach the west wing of the castle, where the King resided. Her presence hadn’t exactly been requested but Levi usually didn’t mind her dropping by unannounced, as long as she brought a cup of tea with her. Before she could knock on the door, however, she noticed that it hadn’t been properly shut.
This was quite unusual for the alpha, as he valued his privacy above almost everything else. The sight brought her back to reality from her little detour to cloud nine. The real world wasn’t quite as nice though, she admitted to herself when she heard the unmistakable sound of quiet moaning through the crack in the door. She wasn’t exactly shocked at the fact that Levi was bedding another consort, he had a whole harem after all, but she was a bit miffed that he had taken them to his bed, which had never happened before as far as she was aware. The only ones allowed in there were his personal maid and the people who brought him his tea.
Curiosity won out over caution and she could always use the tea as an excuse for why she was snooping. Having decided on a course of action she eased the cracked door open a little further, thankful for the fact that all of the castle’s doors were kept well-oiled and therefore didn’t make even the slightest squeak when moved. It was a good thing she had gone for stealth rather than forcing her way into the room to sate her curiosity. She was sure Levi would have had her head, heir or no heir, both for the intrusion and the expression she knew must have marred her face.
She had mused that Levi had grown tired of Eren and his indifference to the alpha’s attempts to court him.
But the sight of Levi’s besotted face at that moment told her otherwise. The alpha was sitting in the middle of the bed with his back to the headboard and with Eren on his lap. He was gripping onto Eren as though he was afraid that the omega was nothing more than a mirage, a dream the King had conjured up and which would disappear the moment the alpha let go of the older’s golden skin. Pale hands on Eren’s thighs, waist, arms, and finally face, guiding the other into passionate kiss after passionate kiss.
The worst thing by far was Eren’s own expression. Because Isabel knew why Eren had never appeared in the King’s bed before tonight, despite Levi’s many efforts to entice him. Eren refused to be another omega consort in the King’s harem, he was a romantic at heart and dreamed of being happily mated. Everyone knew, after all, he was never shy to share this with anyone who asked why he was foolish enough to deny the King anything at all.
But even so, here he was, gazing at Levi with soft eyes and a small smile curling at his lips. It was crystal clear that this was not the passionate embrace shared by a king and his consort, but instead something sacred shared between lovers, mates even.
Isabel had thought the baby, the heir, that she was carrying in her womb would have been enough to once and for all win over Levi’s affections. But as she looked at them now, she could see that it had been a childish thought, the King had been devoted to the older omega since the day Eren had been brought into the castle as Levi’s first and only maid. The boy had only been 10 years old at the time, but since that day he had relentlessly but (until recently) unsuccessfully tried to woo the then 16-year-old into becoming his. Eren knew it, Levi’s parents knew it, the whole castle knew it… she knew it. Isabel had known that nothing could measure up to Eren in Levi’s eyes but she had hoped that the other omega’s disinterest, age, and the fact that Levi was constantly being nagged by his advisors for his lack of an heir would have finally swayed the King towards her.
She should have known better, after all, she was simply one consort among many. The one most favored, yes, but never Levi’s actual favorite. That title was reserved solely for the older omega who was currently perched on top of the King with very little clothing. She could, even reluctantly, and only in the darkest of nights, admit to herself that had tradition not dictated that the King had a harem of consorts, and had Levi not been pressured into securing an heir since the moment he had inherited the crown from his late parents, then the alpha would have focused all his efforts on the brunet omega. He still tried, but Eren had been firm; he would not belong to an alpha if that alpha did not belong to him in return. She thought it admirable but unfathomable, he could have been the alpha’s consort and spent every night in his bed if only he wasn’t so stubborn!
The thing was, Eren’s heats were irregular and short, it was not something you could hide in a castle such as this one, and everyone knew what that meant for an omega: Eren was either infertile or close to being so. Levi had not seemed to care but his advisors had firmly and without hesitation made it clear that they would never let Levi settle down with Eren as his mate and queen if the omega was unable to give him an heir. That had been it, or so Isabel had thought. Levi had finally started to take an interest in his harem, and her especially. She had been over the moon, and when she finally fell pregnant, the King had seemed just as excited as her. Her future seemed set in stone, it was, after all, a tradition that the consort who managed to bear the King his first child would be made queen, and she had thought that she would be kept at the alpha’s side indefinitely. And on nights where she let herself dream about even the most preposterous things, she would dream that Levi would finally get over the older omega and maybe even mark Isabel as his mate.
Now all of her hopes and dreams lay shattered at her feet as she continued to take in the sight before her. Because Eren in Levi’s bed could only mean one thing.
Levi had decided to take Eren as his mate.
And if he took Eren as his mate, he would no longer have an interest in bedding any of his consorts, not even Isabel.
She could see it now, with horrible clarity, the plan that Levi (and perhaps Eren?) had laid. Levi could not tie himself to Eren without an heir, so now that he had ensured that Isabel was with child, he would be free to court and claim the other omega. Tears began to well in the corners of her eyes, and though she was hurt, she could not find it in herself to be truly angry. Levi had never made her any false promises, had not whispered sweetly in her ear post-coitus, or exerted any courting behavior toward her. The only thing that had sparked her fantasies were her own assumptions. Hell, Levi had still looked like a lovestruck fool whenever he looked at or talked about Eren. And what hurt the worst was admitting to herself that the reason she had been the most favored among the consorts was that she had the strongest resemblance to the alpha’s true love. If this child inherited the King’s dark hair it could probably even pass as the older omega’s own offspring.
Isabel’s shaking hand slowly came up to cover a mouth that wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all, a terribly sick feeling in her gut. She had never taken herself as an especially jealous person and had not minded the King’s visits to the other consorts or his clear affection for Eren. But as all these realizations hit her one after the other, she suddenly felt consumed with jealousy. She had done everything right and still, it had not been enough. Was she a more petty person she might have raged, might have sought revenge, might have tried to find a way to make the two lovers feel as miserable as she was feeling at this moment.
But Isabel could never hate Levi, and she cared for Eren despite it all. She had been Levi's friend long before she had joined his harem. Had she read the fine print on Levi’s sudden interest, she would have realized that this had been the end goal all along.
So she would take her tears, her jealousy, her hopes, and dreams, and bury them under the rose tree in the garden, where she had so often daydreamed of what life could be, had she only had the affection of the King.