Bondage and Marriage - 37

Noah suddenly woke up from his sleep. He felt strange and stayed half-asleep, wondering why he had woken up. Then, he noticed something brushing near his face. It didn’t quite touch his skin, but it was just enough to tickle lightly, like a brush against fine hair. Was it his hair? Or maybe a bug? His groggy mind struggled to understand what was happening. Although his consciousness was waking, his body remained deeply in slumber.

As Noah tried to go back to sleep, the strange ticklish sensation persisted. It felt as if someone was watching him intently or tracing the outline of his face without actually touching him. He tried to ignore it, but a sudden jolt in his body finally made him fully wake up.

Groaning, he struggled to open his heavy eyelids. The first thing he saw was Ian, staring directly down at him. Noah blinked slowly and adjusted his gaze. He had already noticed the odd swaying of his body, but now he understood why. Ian was moving his hips rhythmically between Noah’s legs, producing a faintly sticky sound.

Without regard for Noah’s groaning or soft gasps as Ian thrust deep inside him, Ian carried on until he satisfied himself. Then, he pulled away. Fully awake now, Noah rubbed his drowsy eyes and forced his heavy body upright. Looking at the clock, he saw it was well past 10, nearing 11.

Usually, Ian would leave for work around 8 a.m. So why was he still home? While Noah sat blankly on the bed, still half-asleep, Ian, now neatly dressed as if nothing had happened, threw some clothes onto the bed. Noah instinctively turned his head to look, and Ian nodded toward the clothes.

“Come down to the dining room at noon.”

“…Huh?”

Before Noah could clarify, Ian left the bedroom without further explanation, leaving Noah staring dumbfounded at the closed door. Couldn’t he have explained just a little more? Grumbling, Noah looked down at himself. Having passed out after being relentlessly teased by Ian the night before, he hadn’t cleaned himself properly. His body bore scattered marks and felt sticky.

Lately, Ian had been biting him excessively, leaving no area unmarked. Noah stepped into the bathroom, feeling uncomfortable, and was startled by his reflection in the full-length mirror. Last night, Ian had truly gone overboard, leaving him looking like a chewed-up dog toy. Well, not that it mattered to Noah—he enjoyed pain, after all—but it certainly looked like Ian had marked his territory like a wild animal. Noah touched the leather collar around his neck. It was smooth on the inside and didn’t chafe, but it felt a little tight. Obviously, it wasn’t something he could wear in public. Judging by how Ian hadn’t removed it, it seemed the morning guests had already left while Noah was still asleep.

After showering, Noah put on the clothes Ian had left. The V-neck top revealed not only his neck but also the bite marks Ian had left all over his body. For Noah, who had shown worse to the household staff before, this was no big deal. Casually, he walked out wearing the slightly provocative outfit.

However, when he reached the dining room, he realized the guests hadn’t all left. Dmitri and Sasha were still there. Approaching the table in confusion, Noah sat beside Ian. Sasha’s cheeks turned a faint red as her eyes widened at Noah’s revealing outfit, which showcased the traces of last night’s events. Dmitri, on the other hand, looked overly pleased as he stared at Noah with a smug expression.

“Ian…?” Noah called softly, but Ian didn’t respond.

Why would Ian, who despised Dmitri so much, keep him around for lunch after sending the other guests away? Ian had always said he wasn’t into swapping, so surely that wasn’t what this was about.

It wasn’t just Noah who misinterpreted the lunch. Dmitri and Sasha seemed to share the same misunderstanding. Sasha’s face turned pale, while Dmitri kept grinning at Noah in a way that made his skin crawl. Noah frowned slightly, unable to understand Ian’s intentions. Dmitri, however, seemed to be having a great time all on his own.

“The lunch today is excellent. Well, they say good-looking food tastes even better, don’t they?” Dmitri said, clearly referring to Noah.

Noah couldn’t hide his discomfort. Why are you looking at me when you talk about food? Am I supposed to be the appetizing dish? Whatever the comparison, it was nauseating. Ian, however, continued eating calmly, only responding with a nonchalant “I see.”

Though the table was mostly silent, Dmitri chattered enthusiastically throughout the meal. He mostly talked about himself but occasionally complimented Noah and Sasha in ways neither found flattering. Still, Noah couldn’t help but marvel at the chef’s talent. Despite the distasteful conversation, the food was surprisingly appetizing and went down easily.

Finally, when the meal ended and tea and dessert were served, it was obvious to anyone that Dmitri was in a flustered state. Sasha couldn’t hide the disgust on her face and kept her head down, while Noah rolled his eyes and glanced at Ian, whose face was rather cold. At first, Noah thought Ian might be considering a swap, but judging by Ian’s demeanor, it seemed Dmitri was the only one misunderstanding the situation. Ian raised his teacup and began to speak.

“Well then, shall we have a conversation?”

“Oh, wonderful. Where shall we start? I’m fine with the bedroom, but the dining room works too…” Dmitri replied enthusiastically.

Sasha bit her lip and lowered her gaze, and Ian, unbothered, calmly interrupted Dmitri’s suggestive rambling.

“The dining room works fine. Then, since we’ve finished our meal, why don’t we discuss the transfer of the mining rights to the Kolimskaya mine?”

Dmitri’s cheerful expression froze.

“What did you say?”

“I’m referring to the mining rights you own,” Ian clarified.

His tone was relaxed, as if they were chatting idly after a meal, but Dmitri’s face had hardened completely. Noah’s eyes widened in surprise. Oh, is this why Ian invited Dmitri to lunch? This was suddenly getting interesting.

Ian sipped his tea gracefully, clearly enjoying Dmitri’s shocked expression. Ian’s only reason for designating Dmitri as a business partner had been simple: Dmitri owned the mining rights to the titanium mine in Kolimskaya, Russia.

This secretive mine, known only to a select few, had been discovered on land owned by Dmitri’s father. Much of Dmitri’s considerable wealth stemmed from owning the mine. Even after the war, when titanium-based weapon production ceased, Dmitri continued to reap significant benefits from the mine. Otherwise, why would Ian associate with someone as unpleasant as Dmitri? Though officially business partners, Ian had only tolerated him out of necessity. However, Dmitri had crossed a line with his behavior, and Ian’s patience had finally run out.

“How do you even know about the mine? No—what do you mean by transfer?” Dmitri asked, his voice rising.

Ian discarded any pretense of politeness, and Dmitri dropped his false smile. Though Dmitri’s face twisted in anger, Ian remained utterly composed. From the start, Ian had held the upper hand, even if Dmitri had deluded himself into believing otherwise.

“Exactly what I said. I want you to transfer the mining rights to me.”

“Are you joking? Do you mean to tell me I should hand over the rights for the price of borrowing your Omega for a few nights? Are you serious?”

“I’ve never been more serious, Mr. Solovyov.”

As Dmitri shot to his feet in anger, Sasha flinched reflexively, but Ian remained as calm as ever. Noah, his eyes darting around, found the unfolding drama endlessly entertaining. He carefully maintained a neutral expression, so as not to appear too amused.

Dmitri, having had his pride wounded, quickly showed his true colors. Though he had feigned civility in public, he now revealed his threatening demeanor.

“Enough of these ridiculous jokes. I’ll be borrowing your Omega for a few days. You know your business expansion won’t succeed without my support.”

At Dmitri’s veiled threat, Ian smirked—a condescending and mocking expression that only further enraged Dmitri. Watching from the sidelines, Noah privately thought, If I were Dmitri, I’d be furious too. Of course, if it were Noah, he’d be savoring the humiliation that followed Ian’s smirk.

Ian finally dropped the pretense of addressing Dmitri politely. “Solovyov,” Ian began, his tone dripping with the confidence of a victor, “there’s something you should know.”

Dmitri’s expression faltered. Sensing there might be more to Ian’s boldness, unease flickered across his face. That unease quickly turned to horror.

“I have Yulia’s video,” Ian stated.

“Yulia’s video?” Noah tilted his head slightly, puzzled by the unfamiliar reference. Dmitri, on the other hand, looked like he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. How could this young upstart possibly know about that?

“…What did you say?”

“And your face is very clearly visible in it. When committing such acts, you really should have taken more care to hide your identity.”

Dmitri’s face turned deathly pale. “You—you… How… how did you… How do you have that? Or even know about it?” he stammered.

Judging by Dmitri’s panicked reaction, it was clear that this so-called video of Yulia was an immensely dangerous weakness. Noah, who had been annoyed by Dmitri for some time, thoroughly enjoyed watching Ian dismantle him. Dmitri, utterly flustered, tried to deny it, but it was no use.

“Hah… You shouldn’t lie so blatantly! I don’t know where you heard about it, but such a video… I know nothing about it!”

“Oh, you don’t know? So you’re saying you’ve never seen the man with the dagger tattoo on his neck, laughing with the Greyhound gang in that video? That’s strange. He looked remarkably like you.”

“T-That’s…”

Ian smiled as Dmitry turned pale, trembling with both anger and fear. How pathetic.

Just as Dmitry was now, a year ago, he strutted around Russia as if it were his personal kingdom, toying with Omegas as he pleased. It didn’t matter if it was a passerby on the street, an employee at a shop he frequented, or even a back-alley prostitute. If Dmitry liked them, that was all that mattered. Post-war Russia was completely ruled by money and power, and Dmitry had plenty of both. The police sided with perpetrators, and Omegas, already the weakest in society, had nowhere to turn for help.

One day, Dmitry spotted an Omega at a hotel that caught his eye. She was a pretty blonde with blue eyes, exactly his type. Naturally, Dmitry, as an Alpha, thought she should be grateful for his attention. He took her, believing her protests to be nothing more than the usual feisty resistance Omegas displayed. She was so noisy that he gagged her and spent days indulging himself. But the problem arose after he was done.

Only then did Dmitry realize that the beautiful Omega he had taken was no ordinary woman. Her elegant attire made sense now—she was Yulia, the cherished daughter of Gusev, a powerful figure in Russia who was almost like royalty. Moreover, Gusev was allied with a notoriously brutal mafia boss.

The moment Gusev discovered who had violated his daughter, Dmitry’s fate was as good as sealed. Killing her outright wasn’t an option, so Dmitry decided to silence her another way. Before sending her home, Dmitry brought together his hired men and his collection of “pets” to stage a horrific two-day ordeal, recording it all. Only after that was Yulia allowed to return home. Even in front of her furious father, she could say nothing, having been left half-mad and suffering from trauma-induced aphasia.

Everyone in Russia knew that Gusev had vowed to rip apart the man who harmed his daughter. Yet, despite going to such lengths to keep her quiet, Dmitry stupidly bragged about his exploits with Omegas at Tear a few months ago, treating his heinous acts like heroic tales. That foolishness handed Ian the perfect weapon against him.

Dmitry also seemed unaware that his “errand boys” secretly recorded their activities to protect themselves. Ian had paid a hefty sum to acquire the video, but it was a small price compared to what he planned to extort from Dmitry.

“The mining rights… will that suffice?” Dmitry, who had fallen into a vulnerable position in an instant, stammered as he asked. For Dmitry, Ian holding Yulia’s video was no different from Ian holding his life. Ian sipped his tea leisurely and nodded.

“Let’s start with the mining rights.”

“Start? What do you mean, start? Do you have any idea how valuable those mining rights are?”

The rights represented a tenth of Dmitry’s entire fortune—a staggering amount. But that was Dmitry’s problem, not Ian’s. A fool should live within their limits. If Dmitry hadn’t tried to pull his schemes under Ian’s roof, he might’ve enjoyed a few more years of undeserved prestige. Ian’s smile was smooth but, to Dmitry, unbearably cruel.

“The price for borrowing an Omega, or even for the video, might be high. But is it really more expensive than your life?”