Chapter 49: A New Name for You

Chapter 49: Chapter 49: A New Name for You

Out of the private room, Daniel was already waiting for him outside.

Seeing Liam come out with two Betas and an Alpha, his brows couldn’t help drawing tight. The three of them took the hint, automatically opening a certain distance between themselves and Liam.

The three nodded a greeting to Daniel, Daniel returning it politely, walking them to the door alongside Liam. The moment they were out of sight, Liam was dragged off to Daniel’s office. Daniel still hadn’t recovered, sitting close beside Liam, with a great deal to say and no idea where to begin.

Liam headed him off, saying the whole lot in one run: "The pregnancy is four weeks along, perfectly healthy. Its Daddy is gone, but I have Grass Worms so there’s no worry about gestational pheromone disorder. Without a Daddy’s pheromones the baby may turn out to have only an ordinary constitution, but all I need is for the baby to be safe, the constitution doesn’t matter."

Everything Daniel had wanted to ask had been said outright by Liam, so he kept opening and closing his mouth like a malfunctioning robot. It was a good while before he wilted, his shoulders sagging. He asked:

"Your brother and sister know?"

"They know."

"What about the Alpha’s side? He’s gone, but surely his family ought to know?"

Liam spun it out coolly: "They don’t. The Alpha was about to die, so I took his seed while I was at it to carry on his line for him. I’d just finished taking it when he croaked."

His tone was as flat as a conversation about the weather, leaving Daniel gaping. It was a long while before he managed to give Liam a thumbs up. The shock passing, Daniel grew excited again. He said eagerly:

"So when the baby is born, could I be its godfather?"

Liam snorted a laugh: "Of course you could." Then he turned it back: "Never mind my business for the moment, let’s talk about yours. What’s this engagement about? That Alpha truly isn’t a man to entrust yourself to."

Daniel sighed, beginning to talk about his own situation. The more Liam heard the worse his face grew. In the end he had to exclaim:

"What is wrong with your Daddy? Why not choose to build up the family business instead of using you as the price to maintain a position?"

Daniel said miserably: "My Daddy doesn’t want this. They dragged it out four years for me, and with my eldest brother about to be promoted to Deputy Marshal of the 1st Legion the engagement could easily have been dropped, only for it all to happen at the last moment. The Masons were already no match for the Eugenes, and now that my brother has been hurt the family’s position has slid without a brake. Winning me another six months was the last thing my Daddy could do."

He leaned sadly against Liam’s shoulder, choking on a sob: "I don’t understand it, Liam. Back then my Daddy could marry my Papa and break the family’s marriage rule, so why can’t he give way one more time for me?"

Liam sighed, reaching out to stroke Daniel’s soft blond hair: "Because you’re an Omega. You already have fewer choices than an Alpha, and on top of that, the way people think about Omegas now is exactly the chain binding you."

Daniel lifted his head, his eyes brimming as he looked at Liam: "I really wish I were like you, just find an Alpha to borrow seed from and it’s done, no pressure on your shoulders at all."

Liam shook his head: "Let me tell you a story. There was an Omega, and he used to be the child of a wealthy house. The year he turned thirteen, his family arranged an engagement for him. But that Omega ran away from home outright, and though he was caught again very soon after, he used the most extreme method there is, putting a pair of scissors to his own gland, so the moment the match was made he would cut the gland through.

His family were so frightened they had to shelve the matter, right up until the year he turned seventeen, when he was found out to be only the false young master of that house. He happened to overhear his father and his brother discussing a marriage alliance for him. They gave it the fine name of finding a family of equal standing, but in that Omega’s heart it was utterly repellent. From that day on, he was planning his escape."

The pity was that before he could escape, it all happened, and by the time he opened his eyes again the soul had changed into someone else. Those words, Liam didn’t say.

Daniel wiped his tears: "So did he succeed?"

"He did." Liam said it firmly: "But the reason he succeeded was that he had been financially and personally independent since he was thirteen. When he left that house he not only took nothing with him, he transferred three billion silver stars back to them. If you want to follow him, to be master of your own life, then you first have to make yourself an independent body separate from your family."

Daniel still didn’t quite follow, so Liam smiled: "Meaning you have to have a business of your own, the sort of business that stands level with your own family’s."

Daniel sniffed: "I only have six months, how could I manage that?"

"You could." Liam ruffled his hair: "My target is over 700 billion silver stars in three years, and somebody still believes I can do it inside two. You’re that capable, you’ll certainly manage."

Daniel’s fists tightened, his eyes blazing. He wiped away his tears, nodding: "You’re right, I will certainly manage." Then he looked at Liam curiously: "That Omega you mentioned, it wouldn’t be you, would it?"

Liam rubbed his head: "What a lot of questions from a child. Take me to the port, my brother is coming to fetch me!"

Daniel pouted, letting out a snort. Although Liam wouldn’t admit it, Daniel was already certain of it. The air about Liam was too different from Benjamin’s and Isabella’s; in him Daniel could see the bearing of nobility cultivated over years, not something learned in a day or two.

He kept the thought to himself, reminding himself not to raise it in front of Liam again, to avoid touching his wound. Though which family he came from he had no idea; real and false young masters were very rare in this era. Perhaps when his second brother came home, he would ask whether he knew.

All the way to the port Liam and Daniel talked about the baby. What to watch out for, then the various nutritional supplements for pregnancy and so on, on which an unmarried Omega like Daniel was better informed than Liam.

"What are you going to name the baby?" Daniel asked.

"Haven’t thought of one yet. I’m rather bad at naming, I’ll deal with it later." Liam clicked his tongue.

The blue cat jumped out at this point: [Host, that other host has repaid the debt, would you like to look?]

Liam answered: [No hurry, just take it in first.] Then he remembered: [Oh right, I have the money to rename you now. I’ll give you a new name in a while.]

The blue cat brightened: [Host, remember to pick a really beautiful name, no more nonsense.]

[All right, all right, I know.]

Daniel was still rattling off some of the good names he had come up with, Liam listening attentively.

The car soon reached the waiting area at the port, where Benjamin had been waiting for some time. Daniel got out to greet him, handed Liam back to him, then went home. He had a goal now, and he needed to get back quickly to pursue it.

Benjamin watched Daniel’s car until it was out of sight. Liam called his brother’s soul back:

"Brother, let’s go home. I still have things to do today."

Benjamin started, hurriedly taking his brother out to the ship.

Once aboard, Liam said to the blue cat: [Out of the names Daniel came up with just now, I think there’s one that suits you very well.]

[Oh? Which one?] the blue cat asked curiously.

[Nirvana.]

The blue cat went blank for a moment. A row of characters ran across its eyes, seemingly as it looked up material on the name.

[Nirvana... Nirvana... risen from the ashes... Host, I like this name!]

Liam smiled: [Then let’s change it.] Risen from the ashes, which pointed at the system restarting after a long sleep, and pointed at himself living a new life as well.

[Converting silver stars into points... Conversion complete... Rename card purchased.] The mechanical system voice sounded: [Change stall name from "Woof Woof" to "Nirvana", do you confirm? Note, a rename can only be carried out once, please consider carefully before proceeding.]

[Change it!] Liam recited it silently in his head.

[Ting! Renaming in progress... Rename procedure complete! Congratulations to the host on a successful rename, the current stall name is Nirvana.]

[Hurrah!] The blue cat flew an excited circle in front of Liam, sparing no flattery: [The host is mighty! The host is number one! Host, you are the finest host in all the world!]

Liam very nearly snorted aloud, but with Benjamin beside him he didn’t dare laugh. The result was that his face now looked distinctly peculiar. Seeing it, Benjamin switched to autopilot, then turned to Liam to ask in a worried tone:

"What’s wrong with you? You haven’t said a word since we boarded, and you keep staring at your smart watch strangely. Don’t tell me somebody bullied you today?"

Liam hurriedly waved a hand: "Not at all. I’ve just landed a new piece of business, that’s all, so I’m very pleased." He said excitedly: "Brother, I’ve agreed to restore a planet for my friend’s family within three months. After those three months I’ll be paid one billion silver stars!"

Benjamin drew a deep breath, apparently in shock at the enormous figure. A minute later his brows knotted tight, and he asked:

"Three months for a billion in payment, is there any danger in it?"

Liam shook his head: "No danger, it only smells a bit. They used to use that planet to bury star-beast droppings."

Just hearing it was enough to catch the smell, and the look on Benjamin’s face at that moment was quite something. Liam laughed:

"I won’t be going down there in person either, only observing from outside. Over these three months I’ll only go a few times a month. But their side is mostly Alphas and Betas, so it isn’t very convenient for me to go alone. Could I trouble you to come with me on those days?"

Benjamin said at once: "Of course I’m coming with you. You’ve no idea, you were out all day today and your sister and I couldn’t sit still at home. If we let you go off alone again we’d both have heart failure."

Liam didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, then felt enormously warm.