Chapter 402 — A Curse or A Blessing? (10)

Chapter 402: 402 — A Curse or A Blessing? (10)

"Hmm? Isn’t that Raniel?" The words laced with mockery.

It was Vincent. He didn’t even try to hide his hatred or anger toward the other man.

Raniel exhaled sharply and turned on his heels, heading back toward his quarters. He didn’t have the strength to deal with him tonight. He was tired, and the conversation he had overheard was already weighing heavily on his heart. And now seeing Ilyan with someone else...

All he wanted was to return to his room and be left alone with his thoughts.

"Wait right there!"

Before Raniel could take another step, Vincent grabbed him by the throat. His fingers tightened around the omega’s neck, applying just enough pressure to choke him without killing him.

Raniel squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to concentrate on his breathing.

In and out.

Slowly...

So slowly that his vision had begun to turn black from the lack of oxygen.

Yet he endured. If he did, Vincent would eventually let go. He had done this before, after all, and Raniel had learned that struggling only made it worse.

"You see that woman over there?" Vincent asked, gesturing toward the green yard with his free hand and pointing at the golden-haired woman. "She’s an omega, but look at Ilyan. He’s perfectly fine with her company, isn’t he? You certainly aren’t as special as you think."

"I-I know. I never..." Raniel managed to whisper, his voice trembling beneath Vincent’s grip.

The alpha stared at him for a moment, his face devoid of any discernible emotion, or any worry. Then, he sneered and finally released Raniel’s throat.

"Good. Don’t ever forget your place."

The omega immediately brought a hand to his neck, rubbing the sore skin as he struggled to catch his breath. He simply coughed, unable to adjust the amount of air he could inhale without hurting himself—although a burning sensation clung to his throat. He didn’t look up, nor did he dare to say anything that might provoke Vincent further.

The man before him was High Priestess II’s son. He held a much higher status than he did.

Anyone in the temple had a higher status than him, in fact. Even the guard behind him. Even the servants working in the kitchen.

"The only good thing about you is your hair," Vincent continued, reaching out to grab a lock of Raniel’s long silver hair. He wound it around his fingers before giving it a sharp tug.

Raniel hissed in pain, but he neither cried nor said a word.

He had grown accustomed to hearing such things, whether they came from the High Priests, the servants, or Vincent himself.

He knew what they thought of him.

A monster.

A cursed being.

A weapon that should never have been allowed to live among ordinary people.

And now, even the one person he loved had someone else he could laugh with beneath the open sky.

Raniel lowered his head, his silver hair slipping between Vincent’s fingers as the latter finally let go.

He knew he wasn’t pretty. At least, not in the way people wanted him to be.

His eyes were cursed, his body was bound by chains, filled with scars, red and hideous to look at and his existence had brought nothing but misfortune to those who came close to him.

Even if his hair was the only beautiful thing about him, what did that matter when everything else was so grotesque?

A man as wonderful as Ilyan had no business being with someone like him.

Had it not been for the High Priests’ orders, Ilyan might never have looked his way twice. Perhaps he would have walked past him just as everyone else did, never sparing a second glance at the blindfolded monster hidden within the Temple’s walls.

That was the truth Raniel had always known.

He had simply forgotten it for a little while.

For a brief moment, he had allowed himself to believe that his life could become something out of a fairy tale.

That someone could love him despite his cursed eyes, and the sins he had been forced to carry. That perhaps, after everything he had endured, he could finally have something of his own.

A home, a family, someone who would stay despite everything.

But he had already lost their child, and now he was beginning to wonder whether he had been foolish to believe that Ilyan would stay with him forever.

After all, what could he possibly offer the alpha? A child? But any omega could give that to him.

Raniel couldn’t even walk beside him freely. He couldn’t look at him whenever he wanted, hold his hand in public, or accompany him beyond the Temple’s gates. He couldn’t even see the world they had once dreamed of exploring together without risking their lives.

Meanwhile, Ilyan could have anyone he wanted. He could have someone beautiful, someone who wasn’t bound by chains, someone who could stand beside him without attracting whispers and disgusted stares. Someone who could give him the life he deserved.

Someone better than Raniel.

The thought followed him all the way back to his quarters, growing heavier with every step. Even after the door closed behind him, he could still hear Vincent’s words echoing in his mind.

The only good thing about you is your hair.

Raniel stood in the middle of his room, motionless, until the silence became unbearable. Then, slowly, he raised his hands and touched his hair, running his fingers through the long silver strands that fell past his waist.

It was the only beautiful thing about him, wasn’t it?

He had always taken care of it, brushing it whenever he could and keeping it as neat as his circumstances allowed. Ilyan had once run his fingers through it, smiling as he told Raniel how much he loved its softness.

"I love you just the way you are."

The memory brought a faint smile to Raniel’s lips, but it disappeared almost as quickly as it had appeared.

Would Ilyan still love him if he no longer had this hair?