The Omega’s Second-Chance Mates

The Twin's Gamble

Chapter 3

They gestured their hands, welcoming that person, or must I say, Prince Alfonso, as he set himself on the stage. I swallowed my gasp, seeing the familiar man with dark brown hair, forest green eyes, and chiseled features, remembering he was beside the lycan princes earlier.

No way...

That was Prince Alfonso?

The man I met his gaze earlier!

"Cous, introduce yourself." Prince Alejandro urged him and tapped his back with his eyes looking like they were smiling as they sparkled in an impish look.

Prince Alfonso smiled wryly but managed to curve up his lips into a welcoming smile. "I am Alfonso de Carteret, eldest son of Prince Adonis and Princess Consort Siobhan."

The hall was filled with whispers and murmurs, like crickets singing in the middle of the night from his introduction. However, everyone paid respect to him. Men would bow, and women would curtsy in spite of that.

While I was there, starstruck that the charming man was a prince. A lycan prince!

Something was stirring inside me, which I couldn't explain properly. I had no idea why I had to feel that way, but there was something in Prince Alfonso that could tickle me from the butterflies fluttering my stomach.

"Let's begin." Prince Alistair clapped his hands to gather our attention. "And, of course, same rules."

That sparked another wave of murmurs from everyone around here. I blinked so many times when I learned they would stick to their rules.

Prince Alistair meant that only young women who hadn't met their mates were allowed to partake in this silly game. Then, they were going to pick more than two ladies who were present in the area where they were at.

"It seems this will be our chance, Lady Czerie."

As I spun around, the brim of the flute glass grazed against my lips, emitting a soft popping sound. My gaze met Lady Ivory, her lips adorned with a radiant smile illuminating the room.

"Lady Ivory..." I glanced at the cheerful crowd before laying my eyes on her. "How are you doing? Already study?"

She simply shook her head and emptied the champagne in her flute glass. "I will do that later. For now, let's forget about studying, shall we?" She winked. "We must beseech the Twin Garnets's wisdom to pick either or both of us."

I hid my smile by almost pressing the body of the glass in my lips. "I wonder how they would know the ladies with no mate yet..." I was only talking to myself, but it seemed Lady Ivory mistook it that I was talking to her the moment her mouth opened.

"Who knows... It must be surprising again." How her lips sloped up was enough for me to think that she was looking forward to the mischievousness of His Highnesses. "You know His Highnesses..."

As much as a glimmer of delight flickered within me, the weight of past humiliation weighed heavily on my thoughts. The mere recollection of our previous encounter made me long to shrink away from their penetrating gazes.

With synchronized steps, the twins advanced, their faces adorned with wide grins. "Now, direct your attention to the bottom of your glasses," they chimed in perfect unison. Their words flowed seamlessly as if their minds were intricately connected.

Our heads synchronized, lowering our attention to the bottom of our glasses. Curiosity filled my being upon noticing a crimson mark at the bottom of my glass.

"Huh..." I muttered, wondering what was the meaning of this. But my question in my mind had been answered when they spoke.

"To notice if a lady has no mate," they paused as I had to look up as to what they were up to. "You shall know it when seeing a red dot. If the bottom is spotless, it means they are already paired. No need to participate."

My heart started to race at their explanation, checking the bottom of my glass again. I had to recheck it if I was dreaming or not.

The red dot was still there. It meant—

My attention heeded on Lady Ivory when she let out a soft squeal. Her eyes were glinting with excitement. "Let me see yours." She checked mine and smiled sheepishly. "I need to check if you are included. I might not know... Perhaps, you already have a mate you did not tell me about."

"You are being silly, Lady Ivory." Chuckling, I couldn't help glancing at the bottom of my glass again. "But I am enthralled by this game."

I wouldn't lie that I was not looking forward to the mischievousness of Prince Alistair and Prince Alejandro. Being the Twin Garnets, they specialized in unique ways to pick a potential mate for their 'victim.'

I had wanted to be a victim. I was in desperation to meet my mate already. I wanted to feel how it felt to be loved and loved by my mate.

"We sought the assistance of the student body organization to gather information about the ladies who have already found their mates and those who are still awaiting theirs." This time, it was Prince Alejandro who continued the explanation. "Now, please let our single ladies step forward. Show yourselves, mademoiselles."

Lady Ivory intertwined her fingers with mine, guiding me forward in a gentle tug. As we advanced, my pulse reverberated in my ears, amplifying the anticipation courting me. My gaze locked onto Prince Alfonso, who stood transfixed, his eyes widening in awe as he surveyed the gathering of unpaired ladies, their unspoken desires palpable in the air.

I was eager to get his attention but stopped, not wanting to be delusional.

Just because I met his gaze earlier did not mean he remembered me. Perhaps, he was just doing it out of courtesy.

My shoulders felt like they shouldered an established building out of nowhere, not wanting to partake in this game as they started to pick a few ladies to be on the platform.

However, as doubt crept into my mind, my gaze instinctively focused on the elevated platform where the twins' index fingers were aimed in my direction.

"Yes, you."

"Huh?" I parroted, fluttering my eyelids in surprise, pointing at myself. "Me?"

With synchronized nods, Prince Alistair and Alejandro granted their approval and uttered, "Indeed, my lady. Step forward and present yourself as a potential mate for our cousin."

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇

Fidgeting my hands, I made a side glance at the ladies beside me. All in all, there were five ladies, including me, that the Twin Garnets picked. One by one, we introduced ourselves to the crowds starting from left to right. I was the last one who introduced myself to everyone.

I did not know how it happened as to why they picked me, but this game was certainly not making me fall asleep so easily later. It was supposed to make me delighted since this was the chance I had been waiting for, but being in this situation now, I suddenly wanted to go back on my words.

But when I looked for Lady Ivory in the crowds, she had this thumbs up as if she was supporting me all the way. That certainly added nervousness to my being.

"Let's begin with the fun part, eh?" Prince Alejandro's cheerful, teasing tone as he and Prince Alistair went to the end of the line with us.

Prince Alistair was near Lady Georgia, while Prince Alejandro positioned himself near me. As for Prince Alfonso, he was at the front, in the middle, to oversee us.

I happened to meet his gaze, witnessing his eyes widen before his lips formed a smile that almost swooned me. I returned the smile, assuming that he remembered me.

My gaze inadvertently fell upon Prince Alfonso's left earlobe, where a solitary emerald drop earring, adorned with a black hoop, dangled with subtle elegance. Caught in a momentary trance, I found myself captivated by the intricate details of the emerald drop earring. The rich green hue reflected a hint of royalty, perfectly complementing Prince Alfonso's noble countenance. Its gentle sway with each movement created an air of sophistication, accentuating his regal charm.

I could surmise that Prince Alistair and Prince Alejandro insisted Prince Alfonso wear one since His Highnesses were the ones who started the fashion of wearing an elegant earring to embellish their earlobe.

It was late when I noticed His Highnesses also had an earring in their earlobe. Or I must have failed to notice their beguiling presence since my attention was not heeding them.

Prince Alistair wore an hourglass earring on his right earlobe, the delicate frame adorned with shimmering particles of pulverized amazonite, mimicking the flowing sands of time. On the other hand, Prince Alejandro, bearing an uncanny resemblance to his twin brother, also embraced the hourglass design, delicately suspended from his left earlobe, mirroring Alistair's choice of accessories. The sand used in it was crafted from finely powdered lazurite.

These two... They would never fail to wear a matching accessory just so they could be easily identified from which was which and who was who.

"Lady Noble, Lady Marvel, Lady Wicker, Lady Sable, and Lady Grieco. Which one of you shall be our cousin's potential mate?"

I snapped back to reality when we were being called. When the twins were checking us individually, I had to purse my lips into a thin line. My heart almost ripped out of my ribcage when they were standing before me, their eyes narrowed, fixating on my presence with a curious intensity. It was as if they were unraveling the threads of memory, attempting to discern whether our paths had crossed in the past.

"Does she seem familiar?"

I immediately lowered my head, hearing that question from Prince Alistair. The loud melodious beats of my heart waved with uncertainty when Prince Alejandro said those words.

"Indeed... But I cannot fathom it."

I secretly bit my tongue, silently praying they wouldn't recall anything about last year and the past few days. If they would, I could have sworn I would let myself be devoured by a well fortified void of madness if they wouldn't choose to avert their attention from me.

Watching them like birds chirping in the tree branch was slightly making my insides clenched. How long were they going to stare at each other from mind-linking? My heart, that was about to shun away by the waves of precariousness, kept flipping vigorously.

I watched them starting to nod as if they had reached a conclusion before turning their heads on me.

Hold on... Why were they smiling now right now?

"What now, Alis, Alec?"

A sonorous question sent chills down my spine when Prince Alfonso spoke. It was not quite dominating, but there was a hint of hastiness.

"Yes," they said in unison before gesturing their hand to me. "We are putting our bet on Lady Grieco."

I blinked, letting this field of fluttering butterflies take my breath away. "Me?" What?

Did I hear them right?

They were putting their bet on me?!

"Her?" Prince Alfonso asked, slightly arching his eyebrow.

"Indeed," His Highnesses said.

"H-How come are you certain about this, Your Highnesses?" I couldn't help but to ask.

Yes, I was delighted I was chosen, but were they certain about this? How could I, a mere Omega, become a potential mate for someone with royal blood?

Fate was absolutely making fun of me.

They smiled sheepishly. "Instinct, Lady Grieco. Instinct." They winked at the same time, making me feel this flowing jolting sensation through the vessels of my body.

Prince Alfonso released a guttural sound at the back of his throat. "Are you really sure?"

My amber gaze set on him as he did the same. I was the first one to drop the gaze when His Highnesses chuckled.

"You sound like you do not trust us, Alfie." Prince Alistair's lips curved into a knowing smirk. "Do not be like that to us." His finger swung side by side while tsking.

"How about we have a bet, dear cousin?" Prince Alejandro asked before approaching him and draping his arm over his shoulders. "If we are wrong in this matchmaking game, you can have our Cloveshire Citadel. Yeah?"

My eyes widened when they talked about the castle where His Highnesses lived on their own. It was a gift bestowed by Grand Alpha King Apollo to them when they were 18. Supposedly, it should be two castles for each of them, but they requested to live under the same roof.

"And if you are right?" Prince Alfonso's forehead creased like a wrinkled tunic. His gaze shifted with a hint of slight trepidation, looking like he wanted to renege. That kind of reaction he had instantly made me regret being here.

"If we are right that she is your mate," Prince Alistair chimed in, crossing his arms over his chest. "You shall begin your courtship with her starting tomorrow and pay a fine of one million gold coins on each of us. Game?"

My gasp stuck behind my mouth at his words.

Courtship... Oh, no... Why did they look so confident that I was His Highness, Prince Alfonso's mate?

Was I really his mate?! Was this a dream come true that I could finally have a mate?!

And what was that? A hefty fine of one million gold coins on each of them?!

That amount could unmistakably purchase an island and a ship!

"Game."

My shoulders were weighted up at Prince Alfonso's convicted reply. Was it just me, or was he assuming his cousins would be wrong this time?

I watched His Highnesses have the biggest glimmering smile on their rosy lips. Their eyes were filled with mischievousness and condescending reactions. Their charismatic personality floated above others like the clouds hanging up in the sky, rich with a blue hue and rays of refined sunlight. It seemed like they knew that their victory was already reckoned on.

"Well, in that case, remove the enchanting jewelry you have on," they suggested.

"Incantation jewelry?" All the girls on the stage were surprised at what they said.

My eyes hastily darted at the earring Prince Alfonso was wearing. Was that it? Was that the jewelry that had incantation on it?

Wearing incantation jewelry depends on what incantation had asked the divine priest or priestess to bless it. It could be protection, incognito... Or it could be concealing the scent of the wearer. Neither the people around him would notice it. Not only that, it could tame your wolf inside you, and you wouldn't be alerted if your mate was in your proximity.

That fact brought a caress to my heart. Then, this meant that Prince Alfonso had already awakened his wolf and was just using incantation jewelry to hinder finding his mate.

And his mate had the probability that it could be... me.

"Indeed." Prince Alejandro kept tapping Prince Alfonso's back. "Now, Alfonso."

Anticipation wrecked inside me as soon as Prince Alfonso reached for his earring, which I assumed was a magnetic earring since he could easily remove it, unlike Prince Alistair and Prince Alejandro, who deliberately pierced their earlobe just so they could wear a pairing hourglass earring.

I inhaled a sharp gasp, my body trembling and my breathing became erratic. In that moment, an overwhelming sensation coursed through me, as if my long-awaited desires were finally being realized.

As my senses heightened, Prince Alfonso and I both inhaled deeply while I was capturing his scent that mingled with the surrounding ambiance. The air filled with the intoxicating scent of warm sandalwood, hinting at his strong and confident presence. It wrapped around me like an invisible thread, pulling me closer to the source and igniting an irresistible attraction that stirred my soul. The tantalizing fragrance carried promises of destiny and entwined fates, fueling my heart with an unquenchable longing.

At that moment, my wolf stirred within, whispering a word I never thought I would hear.

'Mate.'