Into The Rose Garden

Vol. 2 Chapter 2.1 - The fate flows

Viscount Derbyshire was a prominent figure among the nobility. He was a charismatic alpha aristocrat in his early 60s with a dignified appearance. He had a reputation among the aristocracy, much like Teiwind, and was known for his meddling nature and a keen eye for investment. He inherited a substantial fortune from his ancestors and multiplied that wealth on his own in this generation.

As Klopp’s first employer, he was genuinely fond of the young investor whom he believed he had discovered. Knowing that Klopp was single, having a nosy nature, he tried to connect Klopp with a good omega by any means necessary. On several occasions, he invited Klopp to his house, under the guise of business proposals, and made him socialize with unfamiliar omegas over tea.

“Viscount, please, I beg you. Please stop forcing me into sudden blind dates. It’s bad for my reputation to decline them. Besides, I’m not yet ready to settle down. My job is still my primary concern.”

“You have to find someone first to settle down. Once the right person appears, you’ll settle down quickly. Why else do you think we work? To establish a family. Trust me. You’ll thank me later and express your gratitude.”

No matter how one looked at it, Viscount Derbyshire was relentless. Watching him laugh heartily, Klopp sighed in secret.

Then, the viscount happened to attend a distant relative’s wedding. Aristocrat weddings were like a grand matchmaking market. As soon as Klopp heard the news, he quickly tried to schedule appointments with other clients to act busy. But somehow, Derbyshire knew about this and kidnapped Klopp. The viscount took him in a carriage to the wedding of an aristocrat whose face and name he didn’t even know.

“Even if you don’t have any backing up, you’re an excellent scion of an aristocratic family, so your spouse should also be an aristocrat. You have outstanding talents and appearance. There’s no doubt you’d fit perfectly into a household without an alpha child among the respectable families. I guarantee it. You’ll definitely inherit a title too.”

Even if Klopp said he wasn’t interested in titles, Derbyshire confidently said, “Why aren’t you interested in a title? It’s not good to be too modest, Sir Klopp of Bandyke.” It was as if he would sell Klopp immediately, bustling among the guests. When Viscount Derbyshire introduced the dashing bachelor alpha, who had lost some of his countryside nature, there was a flurry of interested omegas.

“Hello, Sir Bandyke.”

“Call me Klopp.”

Klopp had already gotten exhausted from the very first omega he was introduced to, but he politely smiled and greeted the omegas. As it was more important for him to meet and impress their influential parents than to get the omega themselves, Klopp had to keep his mouth shut and do his best. Viscount Derbyshire, interpreting this as not being uninterested, dragged Klopp around and introduced him to countless omegas. Along the way, he made some good business contacts, including one who was interested in his abilities as an investor. The day’s sacrifices were well worth it.

Before that day ended, Klopp was introduced to the omega son of someone far like the friend of a relative of a relative to Viscount Derbyshire.

He was called Rayfiel of Westport, and he bore a striking resemblance to someone Klopp knew. He had the same blond hair, blue eyes, and very similar features as the ill-tempered and arrogant count, but Rayfiel’s personality was completely different. He was polite and careful in his choice of words. There was no arrogance in his eyes, just innocence and warmth.

Klopp instantly liked him. Rayfiel didn’t give off the impression of disliking Klopp either. If they were quite similar, a kind and innocent omega was much better than an ill-tempered alpha. Moreover, despite being a male, like an omega, Rayfiel’s petite frame was very endearing, combined with his neat, simple, but sincere attire. Yes, if I were to date blond hair and blue-eyed omega, this kind of omega would be much better for my emotional stability and a healthy future.

Unlike the other omegas he had coldly treated, Viscount Derbyshire somehow sensed that Klopp had shown some interest in Rayfiel, so he discreetly led people away to another area. Suddenly, they were left alone, and Klopp felt awkward.

I knew you were rooting for me, but this is too much, Old Man!

“The Viscount is always ahead of us. He’s an impatient person. I apologize.”

Rayfiel simply gave a small laugh. It was a genuine, unaffected smile, unlike the condescending count’s.

“I heard that the Viscount is very fond of Sir Bandyke.”

“Call me Klopp.”

“Then, please call me Rayfiel.”

Taking advantage of the time they had alone, they strolled through the beautifully decorated wedding ceremony garden and started their conversation topic with the weather, then to other topics. Even without much conversation, Klopp could tell that Rayfiel was a nice omega. He had manners and, above all, lacked the typical arrogance of the aristocrats. Rayfiel laughed genuinely, without any pretense, and seeing that, Klopp felt his heart melting.

“Sir Klopp, you don’t feel unfamiliar to me. I feel strangely close to you.”

“I feel the same way. It’s as if we’ve known each other for a long time.”

“Is that so? Could it be that we’ve met each other in our previous life?”

Klopp smiled in response to Rayfiel’s sweet and pretty smile. But inwardly, he felt bad. He knew that the familiarity he felt was not some romantic past-life connection but it was more akin to the arrogant count he’d met in the rose garden .

What Klopp and Rayfiel felt wasn’t exactly a strong love, but there was definitely a mutual attraction between them. Klopp pursued his relationship with Rayfiel in earnest. It was a bit early, but for alpha and omega of marriageable age to be in a relationship for that long was a sure sign of marriage.

The people around them were pleased, saying that the two matched each other well. Viscount Derbyshire, in particular, was going crazy as if they were about to get married right away. However, Klopp didn’t spread the news of their relationship with his own mouth. He felt burdened by the excessive attention. Even in the Westport family who didn’t know Klopp was well yet, he wanted to keep their private lives quiet until they officially announced their engagement.

Nevertheless, their relationship grew steadily closer, and they began holding hands, sharing light embraces and kisses. When he was in university, Klopp had engaged in intimate encounters with many omegas at the drop of a hat, like unleashed ponies, hoping to enjoy the limited time away from parental scrutiny. But he didn’t want to do that with Rayfiel. It wasn’t because he didn’t have any sexual desires, but rather because their relationship was genuine and serious, so he was more cautious.

Rayfiel also shared the same serious attitude. Considering Klopp’s circumstances, where he couldn’t afford to hire many servants, Rayfiel practiced taking care of household chores himself. From Klopp’s perspective, he didn’t think Rayfiel needed to do household chores, but as an omega raised in an aristocratic family, Rayfiel seemed to consider household management as his duty. He even insisted that he was not bad at it. Sometimes, Klopp would laugh when he saw Rayfiel coming out with a bandage on his finger.

“Don’t laugh. Dealing with such a big fish is so difficult.”

“Do you really need to practice cooking fish?”

“In the Bandyke family, they cook salmon during special holidays, so I should learn it too.”

Rayfiel averted his gaze and covered the bandaged finger with his other hand. His round ears were irresistibly cute when they turned red. On one hand, he felt so sorry for him that he’d injured his finger like that when all he’d ever had to do in his life was probably just washing a handkerchief. Klopp resolved to quickly earn money and establish a prosperous household, dreaming of a larger house and hiring a cook. He decided that once he achieved that, he would propose to Rayfiel.

As Klopp worked hard and imagine a harmonious family, Rayfiel was always present in it. He felt that if he married Rayfiel, they could live happily together for a lifetime. It might be somewhat dull and tranquil, but that was exactly what the peaceful home that Klopp desired. The last thing he wanted was for there to be cold eyes and accusations between family members.

Although he had never witnessed or experienced such things, ever since he started dreaming of a family, he’d been worried that something would happen to his family. He worried that he might make a mistake or that a sudden misfortune might strike them. Captured by such strange fears, there were times when he would wake up in the middle of the night with nightmares he couldn’t remember.

It was probably because he was overwhelmed by something that he hadn’t fully settled in yet. This uncharacteristic anxiety in himself must have come from him growing up in a boring, quiet family in the countryside.

To get himself settled, he threw himself into work, sacrificing sleep and taking advantage of the aristocrat’s assets to make a profit. The more he worked, the more his skills became renowned, and more aristocrats sought him out. With that, his wealth steadily increased, and if this continued to pass smoothly without major issues, he felt that he could propose to Rayfiel by early next year.

As he became busier with work, he had less time to spend on dating Rayfiel, but fortunately, Rayfiel understood him and didn’t get upset. He understood why Klopp was so devoted to his work even without Klopp telling him. Even if they couldn’t meet, Rayfiel still diligently prepared for their marriage. He would occasionally gift Klopp homemade snacks.

“This is very delicious.”

“Really? I’ll bring you more next time.”

“Thank you. I should give you a present as well.”

“It’s okay. I baked a lot just for practice, so I’m sharing it with you.”

The practice was for Klopp and the future Bandykes, so he couldn’t pretend to be oblivious. However, at this point, Klopp knew giving small gifts to Rayfiel wouldn’t hold much significance. His wealth had accumulated to some extent, and it was about time for them to get engaged. But he didn’t want Rayfiel to get the slightest hint of his engagement plan.

Without Rayfiel knowing, Klopp secretly went to a jeweler to purchase the engagement ring. Honestly, since way before, he had already looked through various different gemstones and designs, so he had ordered an elegant and sophisticated ring, making sure it wasn’t too flashy. He received a message that the ring was completed and went to pick it up. If it weren’t for the introduction from Viscount Derbyshire, he wouldn’t have been able to enter the exclusive members-only jewelry store that aristocrats frequented, let alone buy it at a much affordable price.

“Platinum with sapphire. Here is the ring.”

The polite attendant brought the ring to Klopp, who was sitting on a waiting sofa. The ring was more magnificent than he had imagined. He went to the manager’s desk to sign a check to pay the remaining amount. As the manager searched through the ledger and looked for Klopp’s name, Klopp overheard a conversation between the omega aristocrats who were browsing the various jewels on display in glass cases.

“Did you hear? Recently, Count Teiwind made a bad investment and suffered a huge loss. That’s why he didn’t attend the jewelry auction this time.”

“Well, he’s so wealthy that it shouldn’t be a big blow to him.”

“I heard he invested in a gem mine in the east. If that goes well, he’ll recover several times the loss from this time.”

“Oh, really? Then, should we also invest in that?”

When Klopp heard that conversation, his face turned sullen. There was only one gem mine in the east that he knew of, and it had already been completely depleted. Occasionally, a couple of gems were found there, but they were of low value. It was no longer worth investing a large sum of money into that gem mine. There were occasionally people who didn’t know it was a depleted mine and invested due to its past reputation, but it was the first time Klopp heard that the aristocrats who were knowledgeable in investment information had touched that mine. While they would still get a cut loss, they should take their hands off it immediately.

The conversation among the omegas quickly moved on to another topic. Klopp thought about joining the conversation to know more about it, but the manager had just found the ledger and handed him the receipt for the remaining balance. Klopp wrote the exact amount in the checkbook and signed it, but the omegas had already followed another staff member’s guidance and went into the inner room. Putting the ring, which was wrapped in a small silk box, into his pocket, Klopp left the jewelry store.

‘Count Teiwind is from a distinguished family, so he should be able to manage his investments on his own. He’s not a nouveau riche who has only touched money for 10-20 years. He probably has steady investment options and has hired capable managers. Besides, it has nothing to do with me.’

Klopp quickly put aside his thoughts and touched the ring box in his pocket. He caught a passing carriage and headed towards the office.

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