The Sweet Alpha Crown Prince Loves Me So Much

Lulu squeezed her eyes shut. The air was still, like the calm before a storm.

Carl Lindbergh, sitting opposite her, wore an unreadable expression.

Their reunion, a moment that should have been filled with joy and relief, was overshadowed by Carl’s persistent questions about the novel. He’d been reeling from the shock of her revelation.

His eyes had widened in disbelief when Jae-young described the novel he was reading as a ‘dark, smutty, 19+ BL fantasy novel.’

He’d asked repeatedly if she meant that kind of ‘dark’.

The fact that most of the characters were homosexual was one thing, but he couldn’t understand why a romance fantasy novel would be described as ‘bleak’ and ‘angsty’.

“So, you’re saying it’s not just… two people falling in love, with some magic and occasional plot twists thrown in?”

Lulu nodded miserably, then hung her head low.

She felt like she’d been caught writing 19+ fanfiction by her own brother. Or like her teacher had discovered the crude drawings she’d doodled in her notebook.

“Adrian Heineken assaults his childhood friend, and Belfry just… forgives him? And they fall in love, get married, have kids?”

“I didn’t read that far, but… probably?”

There had been dozens of explicit scenes, even before they officially became a couple, so she assumed they’d have a child by the end of the second volume, at the latest.

Omegaverse stories weren’t complete without mpreg.

“This is insane.”

Carl Lindbergh, finally understanding the true nature of the novel, rubbed his forehead.

“That’s how it usually goes. They sleep together even if they don’t have feelings for each other. Their good looks are the plot, and physical intimacy leads to love…”

“Stop.”

Carl Lindbergh glared at Lulu, who mumbled her excuses, fidgeting nervously and avoiding his gaze.

How had his innocent little sister become… this?

According to her, the novel wasn’t as… wholesome as he’d assumed.

The Heineken Empire was indeed prosperous, the Imperial family and nobility still thriving, but Adrian Heineken’s unexpected… tendencies were causing some unrest.

“And Belfry… he was in love with Adrian Heineken?”

“It’s… complicated. In the novel, Belfry realizes his feelings for Adrian after they… you know. But recently, the real Belfry… he treats the Crown Prince like… a superior, nothing more, nothing less. There’s no hint of romantic love, or even a first crush.”

The flashbacks from Belfry’s perspective, however, had depicted a classic first love scenario.

For example, Adrian’s increasingly inappropriate behavior towards Belfry, bordering on harassment, had been met with tears, but never with hatred.

Carl, listening to her ramblings, looked bewildered.

“Jae-young, feelings can be… misleading. Harassment is harassment. It doesn’t magically transform into love.”

While he couldn’t deny the possibility, Carl Lindbergh had a different perspective.

Adrian had simply taken advantage of Belfry’s devotion, and Belfry, in turn, was in a position where he couldn’t refuse, couldn’t bring himself to hate Adrian, no matter what.

Loyalty could sometimes be mistaken for love, but it was closer to… acceptance.

Carl Lindbergh smacked his thigh, and Lulu flinched.

She was suddenly annoyed.

Not only was Adrian Heineken, the supposed ‘hardcore, obsessive Alpha’, turning out to be a softie, but she felt like she was being treated like a criminal for reading BL novels.

“That’s how it is in Omegaverse. They get aroused, they do it, they do it again, then they get pregnant, and then they just… accept their fate. You’re such an old man.”

Strictly speaking, that wasn’t always the case, but the Omegaverse novels Jeon Jae-young had read followed that pattern.

Carl, his blood pressure rising, retorted, “How can you call that love? One party has all the power, the other has no choice but to submit. That’s not love, it’s resignation. Love is about equality, about mutual respect.”

And what ‘verse’? The only ‘verse’ Carl Lindbergh knew was the one that had taken his sister’s life – the bus.

“That’s why he regrets it so much! Do you think Belfry just… accepted it? He struggled, he ran away, he even broke his ankle trying to escape.”

Lulu, seeing the disgust on Carl Lindbergh’s face, closed her eyes.

“…And that… was part of his journey towards realizing his love?”

Carl Lindbergh muttered, absently rubbing his own ankle.

He tried to understand the emotional connection between Adrian Heineken and Belfry, a connection that didn’t align with the Adrian he knew.

He wanted to respect her preferences, but he couldn’t help but lecture her.

“Jae-young, imagine this. You have a childhood friend, a chaebol heir, whose parents pay both your parents’ salaries

your salary.”

Lulu’s eyes widened at the unexpected scenario.

“You respect them, you respect their child, you get along well. Then, one day, your friend gets… aroused, and shoves a radish this big, no,

big, up your ass…”

Carl Lindbergh, demonstrating with his arm, trailed off.

Even with his attempt to sanitize the description, ‘radish’ was a rather tame and inaccurate representation, considering what he knew.

“And then, as if that wasn’t enough, he breaks your ankle. Could you forgive him? Would that… turn into love?”

The thought made him shudder, even though he knew the Adrian he was with wasn’t capable of such cruelty.

He would have punched him, even if he eventually forgave him.

“And keep in mind, Adrian isn’t just a chaebol heir. He’s the Crown Prince. You can’t just… hit him.”

Belfry, with his unwavering loyalty, wouldn’t want to tarnish the Crown Prince’s reputation or the Imperial family’s honor by having him punished under Imperial Law.

Carl sighed. Fiction and reality were vastly different.

“I have to admit, I was naive. I didn’t know what kind of novel it was. You said you liked it, so I assumed Adrian was a kind and righteous character. All the protagonists in the romance novels I’ve read are like that.”

Lulu’s cheeks flushed.

Carl, noticing her visible embarrassment, felt a pang of sympathy.

He was finally beginning to understand how much Jeon Jae-young had suppressed her true self.

He wasn’t going to scold her or question her taste in novels.

It was fiction, after all. Exaggeration and sensationalism were to be expected. He could forgive her for that.

He simply wanted her to understand that it wasn’t a… healthy portrayal of love.

“What about you, Oppa?”

Lulu, who’d been silent until now, finally spoke.

“What about me?”

“Do you… dislike Adrian now? Because he’s… a flawed character?”

That was absurd. Carl chuckled.

“He’s still a kind and righteous protagonist to me.”

“But what about… as a person? I know this might be weird to say, but you’ve probably never even imagined being in a relationship with a man before.”

Lulu’s cheeks were still flushed. She kept glancing away, but she asked her questions directly, her voice soft.

She seemed so much younger than Leia Lindbergh, whom he’d initially mistaken for Jae-young.

Was she worried he’d start hating her favorite character? How cute.

“I… I really like Adrian. It might have started strangely, but I’ve… grown to love him. I want to reciprocate his feelings.”

Even his occasional bouts of jealousy were endearing.

“Hmm.”

Lulu scooted closer.

“He turned out alright. Even if he does act crazy sometimes. He seems to know his boundaries. I never thought I’d be attracted to a man, but Adrian is… well, he’s gorgeous.”

Carl Lindbergh, picturing Adrian, sighed dreamily.

“Honestly, when he suddenly asked me to have his children, I thought he was insane. But then I realized it was perfectly normal in this world. Adrian is always so… reasonable… wait, what?”

He narrowed his eyes at Lulu, who was now practically pressed against his side, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“…So, you’re ready for the radish now?”

“What?”

“Is it really that big? Wow, I’m so excited for you, Oppa. Tell me all about it later.”

While normally she’d be mortified to learn about her brother’s sex life, Lulu didn’t care anymore.

A face like Carl Lindbergh’s, a body like Adrian Heineken’s…

Carl, seeing her wide-eyed, eager expression, looked at her incredulously.

“Seriously, Jae-young…”

“What’s the big deal? You’re both adults, you like each other. It’s bound to happen. I’m talking about the real thing, not just… child’s play.”

“What ‘real thing’? You’re so shameless.”

Carl Lindbergh’s face turned as red as a ripe persimmon.

“Oppa, you don’t know how delicious a virgin Alpha can be. I highly recommend it.”

“Jae-young!”

Carl Lindbergh yelled, cutting her off mid-sentence.

❖ ❖ ❖

After his lively debate with Lulu, Carl, having skipped lunch, fell asleep.

He woke with a start, hours later, long after dinner, his sleep disturbed by a strange, unsettling dream.

He couldn’t recall the details, but it had been dark and… unpleasant.

Lying alone in his large bed, staring out at the darkening sky, he felt an overwhelming wave of loneliness wash over him.

He chided himself for being so sentimental after only a few days apart, then sighed. He missed Adrian, and there was nothing he could do about it.

He reached into his pocket, his fingers closing around the smooth, cool surface of the violet magic stone. The formula he’d added was his heartfelt wish, his silent prayer.

He closed his eyes, focusing on the stone in his hand.

He felt a faint vibration, a gentle hum, as he poured his ‘will’, his voice, into the stone.

He whispered a message, then, hesitating for a moment, pressed his lips against the stone. He grinned as a butterfly, shimmering with light, fluttered from the stone.

The butterfly gracefully navigated the narrow gap in the window and soared into the night sky.

Carl, suddenly embarrassed by his own behavior, by his whispered words and his childish excitement, scratched his cheek.

“I feel like a magical girl.”

He was suddenly hungry.

Instead of pulling the servant’s bell, he decided to visit the kitchen himself.

He donned the fur cloak, meticulously brushed by Marco, and fastened the magic stone to his waist.

He traced the smooth surface of the magic stone with his fingertips, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Below the original inscription, ‘Wherever you are, whoever you’re with,’ he’d added another line, in his own neat handwriting: ‘I can hear your voice.’ The magic stone shimmered briefly, then faded.