* * *

Instinctively, Henry raised a hand to cover it, his fingers brushing against the necklace.

The necklace had been accepted without doubt, believed to be a gift from Edwin.

Since it carried his pheromones, there seemed to be no reason to question it.

But Taylor had just poked a hole in that belief.

“Sometimes, I can’t help but feel people can be incredibly stupid.”

Taylor smirked as he watched Henry’s face shift through a range of expressions.

The mix of disbelief that Taylor couldn’t possibly have given him the necklace, and confusion over how it could be true if he had, was endearing in its own way.

“People are so fixated on the idea that an imprinted pair can only sense each other’s pheromones. They fail to consider anything else. Just because you can’t sense it doesn’t mean it’s not there.”

Taylor casually twirled in place, glancing up at the sky and around at the trees, weaving his words into the seemingly aimless actions.

“Simply placing the necklace in his vicinity would have been enough to absorb his pheromones. It’s that easy. It doesn’t take someone special to pull that off. Oh, but amplifying those pheromones? That’s another story. That part’s thanks to my own little secret.”

His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, as though he were sharing a precious secret.

His tone slid into casual informality as he added, “It’s just like how you have your ‘Pheros’. Everyone has their own unique weapon, right?”

Henry couldn’t hide his reaction to Taylor’s explanation.

“Pheromone amplification…”

Pheromone amplification, the ability to boost another’s pheromones to any desired level, was a rare gift, portrayed in the original story as something only Taylor possessed.

Even as someone familiar with the story, Henry had only known of the ability’s existence, never its mechanics.

It was a hidden card the original author had never fully unveiled.

Henry recalled Taylor’s methods from the original story, which had targeted Kayla.

Though he had expected Taylor to adjust his tactics now that Henry was the target, the use of pheromone amplification was an unexpected twist.

“Well, I suppose I don’t know everything.”

In the original, Taylor hadn’t used this ability, likely because it wasn’t necessary against Kayla.

Henry had dismissed it for that reason.

But now, it became clear that Taylor simply hadn’t needed it back then, making Henry regret underestimating him.

With his thoughts gathered, Henry regained his composure.

He reached for the necklace and yanked it off.

The chain snapped with a pitiful sound, now dangling uselessly in his hand.

“So, your plan was to lure me here using Edwin’s pheromones.”

Henry nodded, finally grasping Taylor’s intent.

It no longer mattered whether the necklace had genuinely been from Edwin or if Taylor had intercepted it.

What mattered was that Taylor, relentless as ever, wouldn’t stop at this.

After a brief glance at the necklace, Henry tossed it aside and fixed Taylor with a steely gaze.

“I expected anything from you, but not this.”

Taylor stopped mid-spin, his head tilting slightly as if dizzy from his twirling—or perhaps puzzled by Henry’s words.

“So, you knew I’d approach you, did you?”

Henry mirrored the smirk Taylor had flashed earlier.

“You’ve laid it all out. Why would I bother hiding anything?”

Henry had no intention of backing down.

With just the two of them present, it was the perfect moment to lay everything bare.

“Spreading rumors about me won’t make you better than me.”

Taylor’s eyebrow twitched in irritation.

“You should’ve just stayed in your domain. But it seems your need for recognition won’t let you rest.”

“Henry Timothy…”

Henry’s words stung, much like Taylor’s had earlier, and his expression darkened.

“You may have lorded over everyone back in your little territory, but you’re just a frog in a well. Out here, in the grand empire, you’re nothing. Didn’t you realize that when the Crown Prince refused to acknowledge you?”

“Shut up.”

Taylor’s growl didn’t faze Henry, who shook his head mockingly.

“But you can’t take that anger out on me. What, jealous because I’m better?”

“Henry Timothy!”

Taylor closed the distance between them with furious steps.

“If you keep spewing nonsense, you’ll regret it. What do you even know about me?”

“I know enough—that your abilities are mediocre, but your ambition is boundless. That’s what we call greed. Got it?”

Taylor stood frozen, seemingly blindsided by Henry’s relentless retort.

His body trembled with what could only be described as betrayal.

“You mean… yesterday, you sent Hena Timothy intentionally…”

“I thought the ridiculous rumors needed to be snuffed out before they grew. So, yes, I sent her.”

Henry admitted it without hesitation, nodding as if pleased with his own decision.

To Taylor, though, Henry’s smug expression was unbearably grating.

“I see. So that’s how it was.”

Taylor clenched his jaw. He’d thought Hena Timothy’s timing was suspicious, and now it all made sense.

“If we had just ignored each other from the start, none of this would’ve happened. Don’t you agree?” Henry said with a shrug.

Though, deep down, he knew Taylor would never have stayed quiet.

While Henry had prepared for Taylor’s arrival in the capital, he had never considered taking action against him in his own domain.

Facing him now was unexpected for Henry as well.

“Even now, if we stop interfering with each other—”

Henry’s words cut off as a sudden tightness gripped his chest.

It felt as though the air had thinned, leaving him gasping.

Clutching his chest, he scanned his surroundings, trying to make sense of the pain.

There was nothing.

No warning, no sign—just pain.

A soft laugh drifted to his ears, sharp and mocking.

Henry’s gaze snapped to Taylor, his eyes narrowing.

“Looking around like that won’t help you see anything.”

Taylor’s tone had shifted. Watching Henry’s reaction with a grin, he seemed to have been waiting for this exact moment.

“What did you do?”

“Just a little pheromone trickery, that’s all. I told you, didn’t I? I can amplify pheromones.”

Taylor’s calm reply set off alarm bells in Henry’s mind.

As expected, he hadn’t come here without a plan. His earlier seemingly aimless movements must have been to set up this trap.

“It’s the same as when I infused Edwin’s pheromones into that necklace. Eventually, you’ll fall into the trap I’ve laid for you, too.”

Taylor smiled mischievously, clearly entertained.

“I heightened your pheromones to forcibly trigger your cycle. Don’t think it’ll be easy to break—your bonded partner won’t be able to help you undo this so easily.”

Taking a step back, Taylor examined Henry’s increasingly flushed face, clapping his hands a couple of times as though delighted by the sight.

“Seeing you like this… you really are an omega, huh? That face of yours is unexpectedly alluring.”

The typically sharp atmosphere around Henry’s refined features now looked entirely different.

Taylor muttered in fascination, then abruptly reached out.

The moment his fingers brushed against Henry’s cheek, a sharp sting erupted.

Henry had slapped Taylor’s hand away.

“I won’t… let this… slide.”

“Ah, by all means. That rush was something else.”

Taylor let out a sly grin, adding that the hallucinations had been so agonizing he’d nearly clawed at his own head in frustration.

“But I wonder if that pheromone-saturated body of yours can return to normal. If a miracle doesn’t happen, even your brain might end up cooked.”

Looking at his slapped hand briefly, Taylor smirked and tapped Henry’s cheek again.

“Go ahead, ask Edwin for help. Struggle more, suffer harder. Maybe next time, you’ll think twice before messing with me.”

With a click of his tongue, Taylor turned his back, as if to say Henry had brought this upon himself.

He noticed Henry’s knight approaching from below but didn’t care.

He hadn’t kidnapped Henry by force, so there was no way for them to track him.

And even if their time together was discovered, Henry—whose mind was rapidly slipping away—wouldn’t be in any condition to explain what had happened.

Taylor’s goal was clear: to exploit this chance and melt Henry’s mind completely using amplified pheromones.

Left to deal with the aftermath, Henry’s knees gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.

“Young master!”

Sir Teher’s voice sounded faintly in the distance.

Forcing himself to lift his head, Henry caught sight of a figure rushing toward him.

The speed was incredible—by the time Henry tried to open his trembling lips, the person was already in front of him.

“E…Edwin.”

Sir Teher’s voice had unmistakably called his name, so why was Edwin the one standing before him?

As his foggy mind grappled with the question, Edwin supported Henry’s collapsing body.

“Henry, pull yourself together.”

Edwin’s firm, commanding tone made Henry laugh faintly, despite the dire situation.

Edwin always made impossible demands seem so natural.

Did he really think Henry could pull himself together just because he said so?

“You say… that as if… I could…”

He wanted to retort, but the words didn’t fully escape his lips. Instead, Henry slumped into Edwin’s arms.

Just before losing consciousness, Henry’s last thought was that Edwin’s embrace felt so big and warm.

* * *