Lyra's POV
"Please—please don't do this to me, please." No matter how much I begged, he wasn't even paying attention. His eyes were filled with anger, like everything was my fault. Even though I hadn't done anything.
And just then—the door slammed open, making both of us freeze and look toward it.
"Sorin... I think you didn't hear what I said. Follow me now, and stop bullying the servants all the time." Nyro's voice rang through the room, calm yet cold. His eyes held nothing but pity as he turned and walked away.
As soon as he left, I glanced at Sorin, who then threw the hot ethmoid onto the ground.
"I'm gonna make your life hell. Fucking hell. Remember that."
He left after spitting those words, and I collapsed to my knees, breathless. So many things had just happened... My life was never easy before, but now it felt like true hell was only beginning.
"Lyra, are you okay?" At the sound of that voice, I looked up—it was Perry. Her face was filled with worry. She must've heard what had happened.
"My girl, what happened to you? How did you end up tangled with His Highness Sorin?" She helped me to my feet, and we both left the kitchen and returned to the servants' quarters. She had saved some food for me so I could eat later.
Perry is such a kind soul. She treated my wound gently. While doing so, she told me that it was indeed a real marking—and now that it's done, there's nothing I can do. I'm a marked omega.
Her words echoed painfully in my chest.
She carefully applied some cooling ointment on my neck, the sting making me flinch slightly, and then wrapped it with a clean white bandage.
As I ate quietly a while later, she told me about the five princes:
The first prince is Nyro, 26 years old, with brown hair. The one who helped me by accident and saved me from Sorin and Aria.
The second prince is Sorin, 24 years old. I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive him.
The third prince is Vorn, 22 years old. She said he has green hair, and he's known for being incredibly beautiful.
And then there are the twins—Aurel and Ashen, the fourth and fifth princes. They're both 20 years old, with identical features and matching black hair.
Everyone in the palace knew Sorin was a playboy. He spent his nights with different omegas from various packs, and sometimes even picked servants—only the extremely beautiful ones, of course. Among all his brothers, he was the only one who slept around like that.
Nyro, on the other hand, was very strict. It was widely said that he would be the next king of the pack. That's what Perry had told me.
But I had never met the other three brothers. And honestly, I had no desire to see them either.
Just then, Aria's personal guard appeared. The moment he saw me, he glared sharply at Perry, which made her quickly slip away without saying a word.
And by the look on his face, I could already tell—Aria had summoned me again, probably to punish me.
"Don't just stand there, bitch. Go do your job, you freeloader," he snapped.
He stood at the door with his arms folded across his chest, eyes scanning the servants' quarters like he owned the place.
Huh? What did he just say? Aria didn't summon me after all? He was just here to tell me to get to work? Really?
Since it turned out to be nothing, I came out and began doing all the chores in the palace—wiping the long hallways, dusting the picture frames hanging on the walls, and cleaning every little corner I could find.
Even though I was working alone, I could still feel the sharp eyes of the other servants watching me. Like needles.
I'm sure they all think I seduced Sorin.
But even if I tried to say something—even if I tried to explain what really happened—they'd just think I was making excuses for my mistakes.
The other servants were making me do all kinds of work, but I didn't complain. There's nothing wrong with working—at least it keeps my mind off things.
Then one of them handed me gardening duty. I didn't know anything about gardening, but they still sent me out, saying I had to clean the entire garden.
So I grabbed a broom and walked out. The garden's entrance alone was massive, like a gate to another world. But strangely… there were no other servants around. It felt like I was completely alone.
Still, I got to work, cleaning as much as I could. After a long while, I finally sat down in front of a bed of roses. They were in full bloom, looking more beautiful than any drawing I'd seen in books. Real flowers… they're different. So alive.
Just then, I heard a rustling sound. I flinched and quickly turned around.
Two guys were standing there. Their faces looked exactly the same… even their hair.
Wait—black hair, same face…
The twin princes?
Before I could even stand up, both of them walked toward me and sat down right beside me.
"Who are you?" the prince on my right asked, his voice calm but curious.
"What are you doing here in our garden?" the one seated on my left followed up.
I didn't know where to look, so I kept my eyes ahead, speaking softly, "Your Highness, I was told to clean the garden… that's why I came."
I could feel their eyes on me, studying me closely—as if trying to figure out whether I was telling the truth. Then, suddenly, I heard them both sniffing the air near me.
"Hey… you're the one who seduced Sorin last night, aren't you? And he marked you," one of them said bluntly.
My chest tightened. I quickly shook my head. "No… I didn't seduce anyone. I was just lost… I only arrived at the palace yesterday. Prince Sorin pulled me into that room by force—and he marked me without my permission."