It would be hard for any normal person to live there.
But Hao couldn't care less. His soldiers knocked on the door, but it was already open.
Seeing that, he walked in without hesitation—but what he saw made him freeze in place.
Yue was sitting on the bed. His long, moonlight-colored hair flowed down his back.
His ears and tail were the same as always, but somehow looked softer. His vanilla skin glowed under the faint light. No matter how long Hao looked at him, he only found him breathtakingly beautiful. He had never seen such a beautiful omega in his life.
Yue was gently applying ointment to Han's wounded legs.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Hao's voice thundered.
Yue flinched at the sudden outburst. His attention had been fully on Han, and he hadn't even sensed Hao's arrival.
He turned around, and when Hao saw his face, his heart started beating wildly—so loud, it felt like it might burst out of his chest.
'What's happening? Why is my heart racing like this? This hasn't happened since… she left me.'
Hao wondered to himself as he stared at Yue.
When Yue realized it was Hao, his body stiffened. He knew Hao often tried to hurt his own son.
He had to stop that. So he quickly stood up and placed himself in front of Han to protect him—especially now, with all the knights in the room.
"Wow, he's really beautiful, isn't he?"
"I've never seen a wolf omega in real life before."
The knights whispered to each other, clearly taken aback by Yue's appearance.
But their voices were loud enough to reach Hao's ears—and it made him furious.
"All of you, get out!" he snapped.
The knights quickly obeyed, filing out of the room and shutting the door behind them.
Hao's gaze locked back onto Yue.
"Your Majesty," Yue said cautiously. "What are you doing here?"
Hao stepped closer.
"You're the consort I married a week ago, right?"
Yue immediately dropped to his knees and bowed.
"You're right, Your Majesty—but please, listen to me."
Hao's attention drifted to Han, who sat behind Yue. The boy was staring at him without a shred of fear.
"You little bastard, what are you looking at? I'll gouge your eyes out if you keep staring at me!" Hao barked.
Yue felt panic rising again. This was getting out of hand.
If things continued like this, there would never be any reconciliation between father and son.
"Ugh—" he suddenly winced as pain shot through his knees.
"Get up," Hao said, holding Yue's hand to help him stand.
"Your Majesty, please forgive my rudeness," Yue said once on his feet,
"but did you see how the royal tutor beat His Highness? He's only five years old, yet she showed no mercy."
Hao glanced coldly at Han's legs—then turned that same gaze toward Yue, still holding his hand.
"She's the royal tutor. She's taught many princes. That's how she teaches. It's his fault for not learning properly."
"Your Majesty?" Yue took a step back, pulling his hand away.
"How can you say that? He's just a child. A five-year-old child," Yue said, his voice trembling as he looked back at Han, whose face was turning gloomy.
Yue's tail began to wave in agitation, a sign of rising anger. When he looked back at Hao, Han was glaring at his father from behind yue's back
"You're just a consort here. Don't cross your line," Hao said sharply.
"What I do and how I treat others is none of your concern."
His words were cold and brutal. He meant to push Yue away—to stop him from taking Han's side again.
But instead, Yue bowed his head.
"You're right, Your Majesty. I must have forgotten my place," he said softly.
His voice was low and broken, and it made something twist painfully in Hao's chest.
For a brief moment, all he wanted was to pull Yue into his arms and forget everything.
Hao glanced around the room as if trying to make a decision. Then he stepped closer—just three steps—and stood right in front of Yue.
He looked down, but Yue was still looking up at him, fearless.
And then, without warning, Hao wrapped his arms around Yue's thin waist, pulling him close—pressing their bodies together.
Yue didn't like it. Not at all. He was straight.
The thought of another man touching him this way had never crossed his mind—but he couldn't push Hao away, not if he wanted to complete the mission.
Suddenly, Hao leaned closer to Yue's nape, catching him off guard—and sniffed his scent.
"Is this… jasmine?" he murmured. "It's very soothing."
Yue hadn't released any pheromones, yet the scent lingered around him. It was because Hao had come so close.
Yue placed both hands on Hao's chest, trying to create distance. "Your Majesty, please let go. There's a child here."
Hao glanced at Han.
"So that's the only problem? Then should I kill that bastard?"
Yue's eyes widened. He shoved Hao away, rushed toward Han, and scooped the boy into his arms.
"If you want to kill him, then you'll have to kill me first!" he cried out.
Hao froze. He didn't know what to say anymore. He stood there, looking around the room—as if, in that very moment, he had become the villain.
A cruel tyrant, watching an omega and a child clinging to each other in fear.
Hao was feeling that he was doing something wrong, but what exactly was wrong—he didn't know.
He stood there, frozen. His hands clenched by his sides, his breathing uneven.
He looked at Yue, who was tightly hugging Han, shielding the little boy like he was the most precious thing in the world.
Something inside Hao stirred, something unfamiliar. He wasn't sure if it was anger, guilt, or confusion.
He had punished people before. He had seen fear in others' eyes. But this... this felt different.
Yue wasn't afraid for himself—he was afraid for Han.