Into The Rose Garden

On the evening of the full moon, Klopp was forced to wear the black full attire he rarely wore at Martha’s nagging.

“Do I really need to dress up like this?”

“What are you saying? If you don’t wear these nice clothes on a day like today, when will you wear them? Turn around.”

Klopp turned around, and Martha inspected the vest for wrinkles, grabbed the hem and pulled it down. Then she brought a suit that was in perfect condition, not a single wrinkle to be found. After buttoning all the cuffs, Martha adjusted the suit’s shoulder pads with a brush she had brought with her.

“Keep your hair neat, and let’s see. Your shirt’s too tucked in. Roll up your sleeves.”

While redoing the cuffs, Martha slightly pulled the shirt sleeves and let them peek out of the black suit sleeves. Finally, she meticulously adjusted the tie to ensure it wasn’t crooked, then put her hands on her hips and looked at her work with great satisfaction.

“And the shoes are shiny. It’s brilliant. The omegas will be dazzled.”

“I don’t need to impress everyone, just that one person’s eyes are enough.”

“Did you remember to bring the ring?”

Klopp smiled at Martha while looking at his reflection in the full-length mirror.

He heard the sound of a carriage arriving. As he descended the stairs, Martha extended the same level of care to the perfectly maintained hat and cane.

“I hope you’ll be accepted. It’s boring for me to be alone at home.”

“Don’t worry, next year I’ll make sure you’re too busy babysitting to be bored.”

Klopp smiled broadly and bid farewell to Martha before boarding the carriage. Martha stood at the entrance and waved his hand.

“Don’t even think about coming home if you fail. I won’t open the door!”

“That will never happen.”

The carriage, carrying a young alpha who felt slightly nervous before an important event, raced toward its destination. The road, which was usually annoyingly close, seemed unusually long today. Looking at the grand mansion in the distance, Klopp took out a small box from his jacket pocket. The ring sparkled more than usual.

Normally, he was supposed to go to Westport Estate to pick up Rayfiel. However, he couldn’t do that today. Last time, he had arrived a bit late and caused a commotion, so the Westport estate arranged a carriage to bring their precious omega son to the Count’s estate. Klopp was slightly disappointed because he wanted to meet Rayfiel quickly, but at the same time, he was more excited. He laughed to himself while imagining how cute and lovely Rayfiel would look.

The driveway of the estate was crowded with carriages of other guests who had already arrived. Waiting for his turn, a footman approached and opened his carriage door. Neatly buttoning his jacket to keep it from wrinkling, Klopp got off the carriage and walked straight into the entrance.

The gray-haired butler, dressed more formally than usual, with impeccable posture, was politely greeting the distinguished guests arriving one after another.

“Good evening, Marquis Wolflake.”

“Hm, Hugo. How have you been?”

“Thanks to you, I’ve been well. You, lead Marquis Wolflake to his seat.”

The tall, black-haired alpha followed the footman’s guidance and headed inside. The butler who received him showed no signs of unease. As Klopp followed behind, he extended an invitation. At first, the butler nodded politely, but when he saw the recipient’s name written on the invitation’s cover, he narrowed his eyebrows and raised his head. Then, his eyes, which had always appeared cold and indifferent, widened.

“Klopp… Sir Bandyke?!”

“Why? Is there something on my face?”

The butler looked at Klopp as if he couldn’t believe his eyes, quickly scanning him up and down. Klopp knows very well how much the butler resents his nagging and angry behavior toward Aelock. They had always maintained a certain distance between them, and there had been no explicit display of his feelings, but his behavior now was so inappropriate that Klopp didn’t feel good about it.

“How rude.”

“I apologize. I was just very, no, quite surprised compared to how you usually are.”

“Because I’m a country bumpkin who only cares about money yet I am dressed extravagantly, which makes me unbefitting of the Count’s prestigious soirée?”

Tilting his head, Klopp glanced downward and looked at the footman. When the corners of his mouth slightly lifted, the butler seemed slightly taken aback and shook his head. Quickly composing himself, the butler smiled his usual cold smile.

“No, not at all. Today, you are a splendid guest who adds glory to the soirée. I was honestly amazed. I didn’t expect to see you in such fine form. I suppose I have to pay the price for losing today’s wager. You, lead Lord Bendyke to the table.”

“A wager?”

Although Klopp asked repeatedly, the butler pretended not to hear and called for the footman who had been waiting, guiding Klopp to the rose garden where the soirée was taking place. Before following the footman, Klopp looked intently at the butler and he replied, “It’s a private conversation between me and my master,” as he approached the entrance. Since the butler was already receiving other guests, Klopp couldn’t pry any further and followed the footman.

“To think they’re now also betting on people. I must definitely ask and find out later.”

The moment he entered the rose garden with a frowned expression, his spiteful resolve vanished.

In the center of the magnificent rose garden, where dozens, no, hundreds of lanterns seemed like sprinkling stars, there stood a grand stage where musicians would perform. Tables for dozens of guests were arranged in a stable arrangement, with almost as many footmen and maids moving between them as there were guests. But that wasn’t what left Klopp speechless.

On the silk sheets covering the tables, scented candles exuding a faint fragrance were sparkling on silver candlesticks. Next to them, there laid rare flowers that were obviously not grown in the garden, blooming and flourishing. The chairs, covered with silk covers that matched the table, had small flower wreaths hanging on them. Even the large number of roses hung with white silk ribbons around the surrounding flower beds and the colorful roses scattered on the floor—what on earth was all this?

How much did this cost? You damned count!

He wanted to immediately find Aelock and question how much he had exceeded his limits. But he couldn’t find him. When he asked the servants, they had no idea of his whereabouts. “We also don’t know where the Count is at the moment,” “Until just now, he was talking to the conductor in the music hall, but he’s not there now,” were the only responses he received.

He wanted to go to the butler and demanded the Count’s presence right away, but it would likely cause a big commotion since he was receiving important guests, so he suppressed the urge. He’d still show up eventually. Klopp tapped his fingers on the table and gritted his teeth.

He was sitting in one of the best seats right in the front and center. It made sense since he had worked hard to quickly restore the Count’s reputation, which had been wobbling in the hands of his dumb son. But deep down, he was surprised. This shouldn’t be necessary.

Looking at the other tables in the same row, everyone was a marquis, count, viscount, and so on, it felt as if it was a royal New Year’s party or some kind of grand ceremony. Among them, Klopp was the only one without a title. While he didn’t feel intimidated, it wasn’t comfortable either. He couldn’t understand why he was given such a seat. Just as he was beginning to suspect that Aelock was playing him for a wager, Rayfiel appeared from the other side of the room.

Klopp’s mouth dropped open as soon as he saw him, and he jumped to his feet.

Dressed in a light blue suit, he was stunningly beautiful and lovely, drawing the attention of everyone around him. Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the attention, Rayfiel nervously looked around with a tense gaze and noticed his lover standing up from his seat. A smile bloomed on Rayfiel’s fair face as he saw him.

“He’s the eldest son of Westport, isn’t he?”

“His wife is such a beauty, and their son is equally remarkable.”

“Do you know who that man is?”

“They’re soon to be engaged. Although he comes from a poor family, he is talented and highly anticipated as an alpha heir. It seems that Westport, who doesn’t have an alpha successor, plans to make him their son-in-law.”

“Oh, they make such a well-matched and cute couple.”

The words were spoken so loudly, but they were barely audible to Klopp. He walked over to Rayfiel and took his hand, kissing the back of it lightly, then his cheek.

In the meantime, as Klopp returned to his seat, he felt a chilling gaze on the back of his neck. Instinctively, he glanced aside with a mix of anger and vigilance, and there he saw Marquis Wolflake, the man he had seen earlier, staring at them with eyes that shone ominously like a wolf. It felt as if he was challenging Klopp, and despite the impoliteness, Klopp didn’t avert his gaze but stared back intently. Then, Wolflake turned his gaze away first.

‘What a strange man.’

I’ll be updating 2 parts at a time for Chapter 5.

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