Virgo idled in the lobby of the building, waiting for Lynsandra.

"She spent another night with him," he muttered, hands tucked into his pockets. "Did she drink again?"

From what he heard, Elias and Lynsandra had gone on a date. At this point, Virgo had developed trust issues with the word "date."

A moment later, he saw Lynsandra stepping out from the direction of the elevators. She was wearing the clothes he had sent upstairs earlier. Virgo didn’t notice that she had deliberately chosen something more reserved since that was sometimes part of her style.

"Good morning, Luna," Virgo greeted as she walked past him. He quickly fell into step beside her.

His brows lifted as his eyes scanned the side of her face. Even so, he wasn’t too distracted to move ahead and open the door for her.

"What is it?" she asked as soon as they stepped outside. "Virgo, just ask me what you want to ask."

Lynsandra stopped in front of the vehicle waiting for them and turned to face him, her head slightly tilted.

"Well..." He cleared his throat. "It’s nothing, really. I was just wondering what kind of date you had with Elias Hale."

He shrugged and forced a smile. "I heard you went on a date with him."

In truth, Virgo had seen Elias and Lynsandra leaving the manor the night before. They had driven past him as he was entering the premises. Later, Gareth confirmed that it seemed to be a date.

"It was... a date," she replied flatly. "Do I need to explain the details?"

She didn’t think Virgo would like to hear the details, though.

"No! Not—not at all!" he laughed quickly. "I was just wondering if the harem will be abolished soon."

"Huh..." Lynsandra leaned back slightly and crossed her arms.

Virgo maintained his smile and stepped forward to open the car door for her. "Please don’t mind me, Luna. I’m simply amused by everything that’s going on."

"It must be nice to live your life, Virgo," she quipped. "Not everyone is privileged enough to be amused by their boss’s personal life."

His face twisted as he watched her slide into the back seat.

Before the door fully closed, Lynsandra looked up at him. "Don’t worry, Virgo. Since I have a lot of free time, I’ll probably start looking for your mate as well."

"..." he hissed softly as she shut the door.

Virgo released a shallow breath. Instinctively, his gaze dropped to his hand. Like everyone else, he had the red thread, but his led to nowhere. It wasn’t broken. There was simply no one at the other end. A loose thread, which could mean many things.

Not dwelling on it, he jogged around the vehicle and took the front passenger seat. Moments later, they sped off.

During the ride, Lynsandra leaned back and turned her head toward the window. She could feel Virgo sneaking glances at her, but she ignored him this time.

Of course, he’d be intrigued, she thought.

[I’m just wondering if the harem will be abolished soon.]

Virgo’s earlier remark echoed in her mind, drawing a faint sigh from her lips. She folded her arms beneath her chest.

Was it really that simple?

Earlier, she hadn’t thought much about it—even though she had spent almost the entire morning with Elias. She told herself it didn’t matter how her relationship with him changed. Deep down, she knew it wouldn’t change that much.

Elias would still be Elias; untamed, hot-blooded, and fearlessly reckless. And a man like him understood where she stood.

"Virgo," she called after a stretch of silence.

He immediately turned in his seat to look at her. "Yes, Luna?"

"What were you expecting to happen from now on?" she asked, faint lines forming on his forehead. "Not just between me and Elias—but with everyone involved, and those affected by this entire harem setup?"

Virgo blinked, then rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, if Elias Hale reports to his brother, I’m sure the people of the North—and those in the Central Region who support them—will be pleased. The ones keeping tabs on this harem will definitely think Elias Hale is taking the lead."

"When you say it like that, you make it sound like a sport."

"Heh. It’s not like you don’t already know that." He exhaled softly. "It’s an expensive sport, Luna. The prize is the seat of the Alpha King. Anyone with a chance at that seat will be interested."

Of course, not right now.

But once Lynsandra married and allowed someone to mark her, that person would become the future Alpha King.

"What a sad sport," she said lightly, maintaining her composure as she looked out the window. "But that’s not what I’m asking."

"Then what is?" 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

She blinked slowly. "Nothing. Never mind, Virgo."

*****

"Hah!"

Elias flopped back onto the bed, fully dressed and ready to leave. But instead of heading out after Lynsandra had gone, he remained there.

"I don’t want to leave this place," he muttered. "It still smells like her."

The corners of his lips curled upward as he stared at the ceiling. His eyes squinted with quiet happiness—not just from last night, but from every moment he had spent with Lynsandra.

"I wonder... how am I supposed to act around her now?" he mused, though he didn’t dwell on it. "I just want to kiss her whenever I see her."

Just as he sat up on the edge of the bed, his phone vibrated on the bedside table. Lazily, he reached for it, but the moment he saw the caller’s name, his smile vanished.

Alpha Killian.

The Alpha of the North, and Elias’s older brother.

Elias exhaled deeply and answered the call, already regretting it.

"I heard you and the Luna went out last night," the man said from the other end. "And that you spent the night together."

"..."

"Well?" the voice continued, interest clear in his tone. "How was it, Eli? Do you think she’ll be able to bear your pups?"

Elias parted his lips, then closed them again. He let out another slow breath and leaned back, bracing one hand against the mattress.

"Who knows?" he replied, tilting his head back. "Don’t worry. I’ll work hard, brother."

"I know you will, Eli. Don’t forget what we discussed before you went there."

Then, the call ended.

"Damn it," Elias muttered as he dropped his hand and collapsed onto his back again, one arm resting over his forehead.

In a low whisper, he said, "I got too excited... and forgot some greedy bastard sees my relationship as an opportunity."