Kelvora did not sleep.
It glittered.
Even at midnight, the city shone like a crown of glass and steel beneath the stars. Towers of silver reflected neon lights. Elevated trains sliced through the air like quiet comets. Digital billboards flickered across buildings, displaying stock prices, corporate emblems, and one symbol that appeared more often than any other—
A black crest.
A single word beneath it.
VALE.
In Kelvora, that name meant power.
It meant control.
It meant fear.
Because Vale Corporation didn't just run businesses.
It ran the city.
Hospitals. Banks. Security forces. Pharmaceuticals. Even the suppressants that regulated secondary genders.
Everything traced back to one family.
And at the top of that family—
stood Kaizen Vale.
Inside the tallest tower in Kelvora, on the sixty-second floor, silence dominated the boardroom.
Ten executives sat around a long obsidian table.
None of them spoke.
None of them dared.
The air was thick—not with scent, not with sound—
but pressure.
Heavy.
Instinctual.
Alpha.
At the head of the table sat a man dressed entirely in black.
Tailored suit. Silver watch. Gloves resting neatly beside a stack of documents.
His posture was relaxed.
Yet everyone else sat straight like soldiers awaiting judgment.
Kaizen Vale didn't look intimidating at first glance.
He didn't shout.
Didn't slam tables.
Didn't threaten.
He simply watched.
And that was worse.
Sharp grey eyes scanned the report in front of him.
Cold. Precise. Unreadable.
Too handsome for his own good.
Too calm for someone with this much authority.
His beauty wasn't soft.
It was cutting.
Like a blade wrapped in silk.
One of the executives swallowed nervously.
"S-Sir… the West District merger… we may need two more months—"
"Denied."
One word.
Low.
Flat.
Final.
The man immediately shut up.
Kaizen closed the file with a soft click.
"Two months means our competitors move first," he said quietly. "We move next week."
"But the risk—"
"Then don't fail."
Silence again.
No one argued.
Because when Kaizen spoke—
the city obeyed.
Across Kelvora, several kilometers away, life felt completely different.
No glass towers.
No suffocating boardrooms.
Just noise.
Laughter.
Crowds.
The warm chaos of Kelvora Central College.
Students rushed through the gates. Bikes parked crookedly. Music leaked from someone's headphones. The smell of coffee and street food filled the air.
It felt human.
Alive.
Messy.
Normal.
And right in the middle of it—
"Lior! Wait up!"
A boy turned at the call of his name.
Soft brown hair catching sunlight.
Loose white shirt sleeves rolled up.
Bag slung lazily over one shoulder.
There was nothing flashy about him.
Yet people looked.
They always looked.
Girls slowed their steps.
Alphas unconsciously straightened.
Betas smiled without realizing.
It wasn't beauty alone.
It was presence.
Warm.
Gentle.
But strangely commanding.
Like quiet gravity.
Lior.
Second-year literature major.
Top of his class.
Chronic coffee addict.
And unfortunately—
far too noticeable.
He sighed. "Why is everyone staring today…?"
"Because you exist," someone teased from behind.
Lior rolled his eyes.
"Not funny, Alaric."
Alaric jogged up beside him, slightly out of breath.
Soft silver hair. Kind eyes. A cardigan that looked too big for him.
He looked like the type of person who apologized when someone else bumped into him.
The complete opposite of the sharp, aggressive Omegas society liked to stereotype.
"You know it's true," Alaric laughed. "Half the campus has a crush on you."
"I'd rather they didn't."
"You say that every day."
"Because it's annoying every day."
Alaric only smiled.
He'd known Lior long enough to understand.
Lior didn't hate people.
He just hated attention.
Especially the kind tied to instincts.
Especially the kind tied to what he was.
A secret they kept quiet.
A rare category.
A dangerous one.
A Dominant Omega.
The kind corporations fought over.
The kind Alphas tried to claim.
The kind society treated like property.
Which meant—
staying invisible was safer.
Unfortunately, Lior had never been good at being invisible.
"By the way," Alaric said casually, "my brother's picking me up today."
Lior groaned immediately.
"The scary one?"
"He's not scary!"
"He absolutely is."
Alaric laughed. "He's just… serious."
"Last time he looked at me, I felt like I was being audited."
"That's just his face."
"That's worse."
They both burst into quiet laughter.
Neither of them noticed—
a black car turning the corner toward the campus gate.
Windows tinted.
Engine silent.
Elegant.
Expensive.
Dangerous-looking.
The kind of car that didn't belong near a college.
Students began slowing down.
Whispers spread.
"…Is that—"
"No way…"
"Why is he here—"
The car stopped.
The door opened.
And the noise died.
Like someone had pressed mute on the world.
Polished shoes touched the ground first.
Then long legs.
Then him
Kaizen Vale stepped out.
Tall.
Perfect posture.
Black suit sharp against the sunlight.
Cold grey eyes scanning the area like he owned it.
Maybe because he did.
The air changed.
Even the wind felt heavier.
Instincts reacted before logic could.
Alphas stiffened.
Betas stepped back.
Some Omegas lowered their gazes automatically.
Authority.
Pure Alpha dominance.
Kaizen didn't say anything.
Didn't need to.
He simply stood there.
And the entire campus made space.
His gaze moved once searching.
Until it stopped.
On one person.
Lior.
For a moment time stretched.
Lior felt it.
That pressure again.
Stronger.
Sharper.
Like being pinned in place without being touched.
Their eyes met.
Grey.
Gold-brown.
Cold winter.
Warm sunlight.
Kaizen frowned slightly.
Not annoyed.
Not angry.
Surprised.
Like he'd discovered something unexpected.
Something interesting.
Something rare.
Lior didn't look away.
Didn't bow his head.
Didn't step back.
He just stared back stubbornly.
Unmoved.
And somehow—
that made Kaizen's gaze darken.
Intrigued.
Behind him, Alaric waved brightly.
"Brother!"
The spell broke.
Kaizen finally shifted his attention away.
But the strange tightness in Lior's chest didn't disappear.
"…See?" Lior muttered under his breath. "Terrifying."
Alaric only laughed.
But from a distance—
Kaizen glanced back once more.
Just once.
At the boy who didn't lower his eyes.
At the Omega who didn't submit.
At Lior.
And for the first time in years—
something unfamiliar stirred in Kelvora's king interest