I am not just an Omega

Omega Leveling (2)

Chapter 12

Olivia’s POV

Night had fallen over the Alpha’s castle, and with it came a silence heavier than the stone walls themselves. The echo of polished floors, distant footsteps, and flickering torches were the only sounds accompanying Olivia as she moved through the grand halls. She had spent the entire day cleaning, dusting, and arranging the decorations for the coming celebration. The castle was alive with the flurry of servants preparing for Mal’s eighteenth birthday. Banners of silk, golden streamers, and carved silver lanterns lined the walls. Musicians had already begun tuning their instruments, and the aroma of spiced cakes and roasted meats seeped through the corridors.

Olivia paused for a moment in the grand hall, inhaling the scent. A bitter smile tugged at her lips. Mal’s birthday. Once, she would have been excited, waiting for the perfect gift, practicing her smile, and hoping to see the joy in her best friend’s eyes. But that girl, the one who had once shared every secret and every dream with her, had long since abandoned that bond. Now, the celebration meant only one thing—reminders of loss, betrayal, and her mother locked away.

As she straightened a golden-framed portrait along the wall, a group of workers approached, carrying a large frame. Olivia froze. It was her own image—captured years ago in a photograph that now hung in the hall for the grand celebration. She blinked, unsure whether to feel humiliated or… honored. But no matter. Her face, her expression, had become a mask she wore for survival, just as her silence had.

The night deepened. Shadows swallowed the corners of the hall, and the soft whisper of the wind outside made the castle feel endless. Olivia had just set down her bucket and rag, ready to return to her small, sparse quarters, when a sound made her stop.

A low moan, sharp and desperate, echoed from somewhere above. Her pulse quickened. In the Alpha’s castle, such noises at this hour were forbidden. Who would dare make themselves heard like that in the dead of night?

Curiosity, reckless and burning, propelled her forward. She moved silently, a shadow among shadows, weaving past guards with practiced ease. Every step was careful, every heartbeat a drum warning her of danger. She climbed the staircases she had been told never to tread, entering a wing reserved strictly for the Alpha’s sons.

And then she saw it.

Levi.

Her breath caught. He was with a maid—a young, trembling girl who clung to him as though her life depended on it. Olivia froze, her hand gripping the railing so tightly her knuckles turned white. Levi’s movements were relentless, merciless, and the sound of their intimacy cut through the hall like a whip. Her stomach churned with shock. The Alpha’s son… one of the feared triplets… sleeping with a common maid. It was unthinkable.

For a heartbeat, Olivia considered retreating. She could vanish quietly, remain unseen. But as she turned, Levi’s voice cut through the air.

“Who’s there?”

Her heart nearly stopped. Panic surged, primal and immediate. Without thinking, she fled—darting into the shadows, hiding behind an ornate tapestry. Levi’s footsteps pounded as he searched, calling out, sniffing, sensing.

“I know you’re here somewhere!” he shouted. “Show yourself!”

Olivia held her breath, silent, every nerve screaming, every pulse a warning. He prowled the room, eyes sharp, ears attuned, but he could not find her. Eventually, his frustrated growl faded as he stormed off, leaving her trembling yet alive.

Her escape route was blocked for just a second longer—then, suddenly, she collided with someone. Strong, steady, immovable.

Lex.

Time slowed. His brown eyes met hers, unblinking, filled with an intensity that made her knees weak. Their shared history—the punishments, the fear, the unspoken tension—hung in the air between them like electricity. For a moment, the world narrowed to the space that separated them, to the heat in the room, to the pull of everything unsaid.

“I… I’m sorry, my lord,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I was just heading down.”

Lex’s expression softened. “No need to apologize. I should be the one asking… what are you doing here at this hour?”

She hesitated. The truth—the stairs, the forbidden wing, Levi—hung on the tip of her tongue. She swallowed it down, gave only a small shrug.

“You know… you shouldn’t be up there,” Lex murmured, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips.

“And if I do?” she replied, her voice cool, challenging.

He chuckled, low and amused, the kind of sound that made her chest tighten. “Then you should get going… before my brothers or Mal sees you.”

She nodded, murmuring, “Yes… my lord.”

“Come on. Don’t call me that,” Lex said, stepping closer.

Olivia tilted her head, feigning innocence, though her pulse raced. “But that’s what you are, my lord,” she said lightly.

“You are right… my lady,” he replied, a playful sparkle in his eyes.

A small smile ghosted across her lips, fleeting and fragile. But then reality crashed back—the memory of her mother, the absence of her father, the injustice that had defined her life. She frowned, bitterness curling inside her.

“Don’t call me that,” she said firmly, before turning away and walking down the corridor.

Lex watched her retreating figure, a question in his gaze. She had smiled… and then hardened again. Olivia had changed. She wasn’t the same girl who once clung to his hand in the courtyard. The fire in her eyes was sharper, colder, more dangerous.

And elsewhere, Mal watched from the shadows, hidden but attentive. Every word, every gesture was recorded in her mind. Her pulse quickened, her jealousy flaring, but not in the way it had before.

Fear.

Mal’s thoughts twisted. He still loves her. Mother was right. She’s dangerous. She’s a problem. And I know exactly how to handle her.

Chapter 11

Olivia’s POV

It had been two days since the guards dragged her mother away. Two days of silence, two days of being locked in her own thoughts, with nothing but the echo of her mother’s last words—be strong, Olivia, be strong—burning in her chest.

She had not been allowed to see her. Not even a glimpse. No word, no assurance, nothing. Just silence and the cold comfort of the walls of the Alpha’s palace.

Work had resumed, though. She had no choice. The Alpha’s sons still required their chambers spotless, their boots polished, their halls swept as if her mother’s imprisonment wasn’t gnawing her alive inside. She carried her rag and her bucket as if it were armor, her back straighter than ever, her jaw tight.

Rumors had already reached her ears—Mal’s eighteenth birthday was tomorrow. A grand celebration, whispers said. The halls would be drenched in silk and wine, musicians playing until the moon slept. Olivia could almost laugh. Once, long ago, she would have been at Mal’s side, clapping, laughing, eating cake with childish joy. Back when Mal was her best friend. Back before betrayal, before envy curdled friendship into poison.

Now Mal’s birthday meant nothing to her. Nothing but another reminder of what was stolen from her.

She had grown quieter than ever. She barely spoke, not even when the other maids tried to make small talk. But soon they stopped trying at all. They saw it—the faint, glowing flicker of her blue eyes beneath her lowered lashes. A dangerous light. An unexplainable light.

They began to fear her.

She didn’t mind the space, but she hated the fear. She didn’t want their trembling, their whispers. Yet she said nothing, let them scatter like frightened birds when she entered the room. Perhaps fear was all she had left to command.

Hours passed that day with her cleaning corridors, polishing golden handles until they reflected her own tired face back at her. She didn’t even notice the shadow that fell across her until a guard cleared his throat.

She froze. His armor gleamed, but his eyes darted nervously, as if he feared being seen speaking to her.

“Do not tell anyone I came to you,” he whispered. His voice was sharp but low, cautious. “I serve Lord Lex directly. I am here with a message. The royal sick bay needs cleaning. Go there. Alone.”

And with that, he was gone, leaving her heart racing.

The sick bay.

Lex.

Her chest tightened. It had been years since she had last seen him up close, and the last time… he had been her nightmare. The chains, the punishments, the cruelty disguised as protection.

Still, her feet carried her there. She knocked twice.

“Come in,” came his voice. Calm, steady, but weaker than she remembered.

She opened the door.

Lex was there. Half-dressed, no shirt, his torso wrapped in linen from fresh wounds. His skin gleamed faintly with sweat, his body still powerful despite the injuries. His abs flexed as he shifted, his frame broader than she remembered.

Her golden skin caught his eyes instantly. For a long moment, their gazes locked. His brown eyes were darker, older, but softened with something she could not name. She didn’t blink, didn’t smile, didn’t speak. She simply looked away and began cleaning.

The silence cut him.

“Olivia…” His voice faltered.

She scrubbed the edge of the table harder.

“Olivia, I… I…” His words tangled, his throat dry, as if he’d rehearsed this but couldn’t force it past his lips.

She stilled, slowly lifting her eyes to him.

“I… I’m glad to see you here,” he finally managed.

Her brows furrowed. Glad? That was it? She almost laughed. He couldn’t even say what he needed to say.

She turned away, gripping the cloth until her knuckles whitened.

Then, his voice cracked.

“Olivia—I’m sorry!”

The words hit her like a blade, sharp and unwelcome. Her body froze, but she didn’t turn.

Lex pushed on, desperation spilling from him.

“I’m sorry for hurting you. For putting you through all of that. I thought… I thought that was the only way to keep you safe. To protect you. But I was wrong, Olivia. I was wrong. I was blind. I am so, so sorry.”

Her chest ached, but her face remained cold.

He tried again, his voice softer now, raw.

“I heard about your mother. I’ll do everything in my power to free her. I swear it. I know it wasn’t you who sent the assassin after my father—it was Mal. I know it now. Please, forgive me. Please.”

Her rag slipped from her fingers, falling to the floor with a dull sound. Slowly, she turned, her blue eyes glowing faint beneath the dim light.

She smiled. But it wasn’t kind. It wasn’t forgiving.

“Maybe it was me,” she said quietly.

And she walked out.

Lex sat there, stunned, his chest heaving as if he’d just been stabbed. He wanted her forgiveness, begged for it, but she gave him nothing. Nothing but a cruel maybe, as if she could become the villain he once accused her of being.

Outside, her steps echoed like thunder against the stone halls. Her thoughts were fire, burning, breaking through every scar she carried. She wasn’t the same girl he had once punished. She wasn’t the servant they all thought they could break.

She whispered to herself, almost like a vow, “They must pay.”

So lost in her fury, she didn’t notice Mal standing nearby.

“Olivia!” Mal’s sharp voice called, smug and curious.

But Olivia didn’t answer. She kept walking.

Then Mal saw it. The glow.

Olivia’s eyes burned a thick, unnatural blue. A wolf’s glow—but not gold, not red, not silver. Something new. Something dangerous.

Mal’s breath caught in her throat.

Does she… does she have a wolf?

Her mind reeled. No. No, impossible. She’s an omega. She can’t. She shouldn’t.

But she had seen it. The glow was real.

And for the first time, Mal felt not jealousy, but fear.