?

　　“I suppose that is up to you to determine. Annaliese was a rather complicated character since she did whatever means necessary to achieve her goal. But for some, that is not a trait to be praised for.” Augustus explained.

　　“If you put it that way, would that not make all of us like Annaliese? You, me, Cassian and Isaiah, we are all doing whatever means necessary to achieve our own goals, right? Even if it means using others along the way?”

　　“Yes, I will not deny that. But I suppose some of us are more desperate than others.” He said with a completely straight face.

　　“I don’t think I appreciate what you are trying to say, Prince Augustus.”

　　“I mean no offence, I am merely making an observation.”

　　I looked past his words, not wanting to argue with him over something like this when I was clearly here to get along with him. I glanced back onto the book as I absentmindedly trailed my index finger over the title.

　　“What do you think R. Vitale’s message was?” I asked, curious to see what his opinion on the controversial book was. I turned back to look at him as he stopped midway from picking out a book from the shelf. He gave me a sideways glance, as though to make sure it was me who had asked him the question.

　　“In my opinion, R. Vitale’s message was not just about alphas or omegas or even betas but it was about the existence of the second gender. In fact, it was showcasing the reality of those burdened with their second gender.”

　　I blinked at him as I was not expecting him to give such an answer. Part of me was ready to hear him paint the book in a negative light. I then tried to recall the story of the book properly, from start to finish. For such a short tale, the narrative introduced an abundance of characters from all different second genders but ultimately the focus of the story was the Cursed Prince and Annaliese. Overall, it was a tragic tale disguised as a romance.

　　I looked up at him, watching his side profile as he nonchalantly opened a new book and started to scan the contents.? “Why do you say that?”

　　Augustus turned to me with a confused look on his face, as though he was not expecting me to continue with this topic. His expression then returned to his indifference as he fully turned his body to me.

　　“You mentioned that there is a biological reason why alphas and omegas are drawn to each other, yes? I’m guessing you are referring to the instinct of mating.”

　　“That’s right. Even though it might not be as strong for betas, they too have such instincts to procreate.” I added to my opinion.

　　“Yes that’s true but the difference between betas and the other two is that they have their own free will to be with whoever they want. Whereas it’s quite the opposite for alphas and omegas. They lose the part of them that makes them human or even think rationally whenever their heat cycle arrives. All they can think about is to follow their instincts, the wolf inside them and to form what I can only deem as a forced bond. Is that not tragic to say the least?”

　　I stayed silent, unable to rebuttal his words as they were all true. The pain and desperation I feel when going through my heat is not something I should take lightly, and the thought that an alphas scent would only drive me to grow even more insane was truly a terrifying thought.

　　I frowned and stared hard at the book in my hands, reading the title of the poem over and over again. It was not just a mere poem about the first meeting about the Cursed Prince and Annaliese, it was making fun of how they were drawn to each other from the very moment they laid eyes on each other and yet that attraction was their only downfall.

　　No amount of planning on Annaliese's part saved her from her tragic end. No amount of determination in the Cursed Prince’s part allowed him to break his curse. They were damned from the very beginning and this poem was making fun of that now that I took the time to properly understand it. If what Augustus said is true, if this collection of poetry was really written by R. Vitale then why would they make fun of their own story? Nothing was making sense anymore as I continued to ponder over this topic.

　　I then looked up at him suddenly, ignoring the fact that my hood slipped off from my head. “To put it in simpler terms, you are saying that R. Vitale’s message is criticising the concept of forming bonds and mating?” I asked him.

　　“Yes.”

　　“I cannot accept that answer and I also do not believe that R. Vitale wrote this collection of poetry.”

　　His eyes widened ever so slightly. “And why is that?”

　　“The way I see it, R. Vitale truly admired the concept of bonds because throughout the story, it was not just Annaliese and the Cursed Prince’s bond which was focused upon. Every character in the book was connected in one way or another and never once did R. Vitale push the idea that any of them were forced to bond with each other through their second gender.” I said confidently, never once looking away from Augustus’ grey eyes.

　　“Oh?” was all he said after my lengthy rant. “Could this be your way of hoping that you will bond with one of us without using our second genders as an excuse?”

　　I shook my head. “I was just stating my opinion about the book and nothing else. Besides, the last thing I would ever want in this lifetime is to have any affection towards the three of you.”

　　Augustus smiled, a genuine smile and the sheer sight of his beautiful face made me tense up. “If I recall correctly, Annaliese said the same about the Cursed Prince and yet she fell in love with him first.”

　　“And if I recall correctly, we are not characters in a novel, Augustus.” I said firmly.

　　I could then hear voices approaching us and remembered that my hood was off. Before I could move to fix it, Augustus placed the book he was holding on the shelf and reached out for me. I jerked backwards before his hands could touch me but he merely reached for my hood and pulled it over my head just as two patrons walked past us, clearly not even paying attention to our presence.

　　I was about to thank Augustus for his quick thinking but froze in place when he suddenly leaned over to me, his face was inches away from mine while his grip on the edge of my hood remained, stopping me from moving away from him.

　　“I have to admit that seeing you this passionate about your opinion is rather enticing.” He whispered, his warm breath tickling my cheek.

　　“Wha-” before I could say anything, he pulled away.

　　“It is getting late, I shall go gather some books I think you would appreciate but be sure to remove those you have read.” He said as he started to walk away. All I could do was stare at the back of his head until he turned the corner and disappeared from my sight.

　　After the intense conversation with Augustus, we both split up to get our books and met back by the counter a little while later. I was expecting him to leave immediately after we had purchased our books but he stood by my side until we left the bookstore.

　　“Thank you for your recommendations, Prince Augustus.” I said as we both waited for our carriage to arrive.

　　“I look forward to having intellectual debates with you regarding some of the books.”

　　“What if we have the same opinion?”

　　“I doubt that, because unlike me, you form your opinions through your heart and not your brain.”

　　I glared at him. “Excuse me?”

　　Just then, the carriage appeared and the young coachman greeted us happily. “Hello Miss, Sir, hope you enjoyed your time shopping!” he beamed with a toothy grin.

　　“We did, thank you.” I said with a smile.

　　Augustus then pulled the door of the carriage open even before the coachman could get down. He hopped inside and took his seat, instantly picking up the book he had left on his seat earlier.

　　The coachman looked confused as to what he should do, he hesitantly offered me his hand to help me up onto the carriage. “Could you get our purchases from the bookstore?” I smiled sweetly.

　　“Ah yes! I’ll go collect them now!” The boy said as he rushed inside of the bookstore.

　　With the boy gone, I immediately glared at Augustus. “Surely you were taught etiquette when you were younger?” I asked.

　　“All you have to do is ask nicely for my help.” He said monotonously.

　　I smiled even though I could feel my blood boiling. At least now I know to never rely on him to be a proper gentleman. I grabbed the handle by the side of the carriage and hoisted myself up onto the carriage, ignoring the squeeze of my corset and the weight of my dress pulling me down. I flopped down onto my seat and stared out of the window as fatigue engulfed me.