out, lights floated along the black horizon, where darkness and ocean merged.
In truth, he didn’t mind his current life.
The moment the alpha, once deprived of everything, killed his former owner and, simultaneously, began commanding others, Chairman Jung had fled to China. The old man had sensed, perhaps instinctively, that the dogs he had sold were now conspiring to hunt him down.
And so, Director Yeon had patiently chipped away at the old man’s daily life, constantly reminding him that he was always surrounded by people loyal to Director Yeon. He drove the aging alpha to the edge of sanity, just as a dog trainer would push a fighting dog to its limits.
The man’s daily life was largely devoid of excitement; his only little amusement came when Chairman Jung suffered a fit. He hadn’t yet severed the old man completely, like Chief Nam wanted, because it would be no fun if the old man who abused him died too easily. Life was currently dull enough already—if Chairman Jung died, it felt like there’d be no more interesting developments.
But now that Chief Nam had delivered Jung Heeyeon to him, the time was approaching to finally devour Chairman Jung. As regretful as it was, he owed Chief Nam. It was time to keep his promise.
Director Yeon’s alpha gaze drifted from the bleak night sea back to Jung Heeyeon.
As he watched the omega’s calm face in quietness, his phone buzzed. A message from Kim Chulwoo had arrived.
It was Jung Heeyeon’s personal information.
Attached were Jung Heeyeon’s birth registration and resident ID card. Knowing that this information wouldn’t have been found so quickly by his assistant, he figured Chief Nam must have sent the photos. Skimming the details indifferently, his eyes narrowed slightly as he double-checked the numbers. He had assumed Jung Heeyeon looked young, but he was practically a newborn.
Director Yeon spoke in a relaxed tone.
“Heeyeon.”
Jung Heeyeon, who had been gazing at the endless sea, slowly turned his head at the sound of someone calling his name. He wondered how this unfamiliar man knew his name, but he didn’t ask. Hearing his name spoken by another’s voice simply felt strange.
“…Yes?”
Jung Heeyeon answered a bit slowly. It felt awkward to respond to his own name. Until now, he’d only ever been addressed in two ways: either as ‘young master’ or ’that mutt brat’.
“You’re nineteen years old?”
The man across from him asked in a gentle voice, his eyes faintly carrying a trace of a smile.
“Yes.”
Jung Heeyeon wasn’t used to having his name called by others. The reason for his slow response was that he needed a moment to confirm he was indeed the one being addressed.
However, he was certain about his age. The man who had called him a ‘mutt’, the person he referred to as “Chairman” instead of “Grandfather”, had always looked forward to the year he would turn twenty.
“So you’re just a baby.”
Director Yeon chuckled softly, muttering to himself. Jung Heeyeon looked back at him with a clear, innocent expression. Now that the man saw him up close, his fair cheeks didn’t just look like baby fat; they really were baby fat. It seemed like they’d feel squishy if poked with a finger.
“I’m not a baby.”
Jung Heeyeon answered with a slightly puzzled look, as though he’d heard something strange. He wasn’t offended by being called a baby; he just made that expression as he’d heard a statement that didn’t quite make sense.
A hint of expression crossed his gentle face for the first time, his brow slightly furrowed. His lips were pressed together as if he were speaking seriously. The slight upturn at the corners of his lips made him look more endearing than stubborn.
“Babies usually don’t like being called a baby.”
“It’s not like that… I mean, I’m nineteen…?”
At the earnest reply, Director Yeon let out a soft laugh, a real laugh rather than the ambiguous sound that could be mistaken for a sigh. Jung Heeyeon didn’t understand why Director Yeon was laughing and could only stare at him blankly.
Jung Heeyeon had lived in isolation for nineteen years. While the house was large and had a spacious garden, the solid walls prevented him from glimpsing the outside world. All he had learned in those nineteen years was how submissive an omega should be to an alpha. The only reason he had gotten into the car with this stranger was because the man beside him was an alpha.
He had been taught things like stock market and real estate knowledge just to match the level of conversation, but he had learned nothing else. Most of all, human relationships were a concept utterly foreign to him. Every word he knew was from its definition in the dictionary, not the meaning they carried in social interactions.
“Did I… make a mistake?”
Jung Heeyeon asked cautiously. Being called a baby didn’t feel right since he would be an adult in a month, but the man’s reaction made him wonder if he was wrong. He didn’t want to upset the alpha sitting next to him. The learned fear and helplessness slowly seeped into his fingertips.
“A mistake?”
As Jung Heeyeon’s pheromones grew unstable, Director Yeon narrowed his eyes slightly, frowning just a bit.
It was good that he had made Kim Chulwoo follow in another car. Like Director Yeon, he was also an alpha who had been raised in the hutch. While he had been forced to learn how to resist the influence of pheromones, which would prevent any major incidents, the fact that Jeong Heeyeon was a dominant omega posed a different kind of problem.
Director Yeon cracked the window slightly. The winter’s cold air seeped into the warm car, but he didn’t mind it. The sharp flow of wind was preferable to being overwhelmed by omega pheromones. If even he, who was adept at handling pheromones, felt this affected, then Kim Chulwoo would likely struggle.
The reason Director Yeon specifically changed the driver to a beta was to prepare for situations like this, where Jung Heeyeon couldn’t control his pheromones.
“Heeyeon.”
“Yes.”
“I’m not going to devour you.”
“…Devour me?”
Director Yeon let out another low laugh. Normally, he should have been annoyed, but strangely, he didn’t feel that way. He had thought that killing Chairman Jung would end even the faint traces of amusement left in his life, but unexpectedly, something genuinely entertaining showed up.
“Oh, you really are a baby.”
The look on Jung Heeyeon’s face as he questioned whether he’d be devoured made him look utterly innocuous. At Director Yeon’s reaction, Jung Heeyeon’s lips moved slightly, only to fall silent. It seemed that the man’s words held a meaning he didn’t fully understand.
“If someone else calls you a baby, tell them not to.”
“…How about you, Director?”
Jung Heeyeon asked, recalling how the other alpha had called the man beside him ’Director’.
“I’ll call you however I want.”
Instead of asking why, Jung Heeyeon just blinked. He looked at Director Yeon blankly when a growling sound came from his stomach. Lowering his eyelids, he gazed at his own belly. He was used to being starved, but he felt uneasy about showing his hunger in front of an alpha.
“Are you hungry?”
The man’s question drew Jung Heeyeon’s gaze back to him. He debated whether to answer honestly or lie. If he were in front of the Chairman, he would’ve been hit for showing a vulgar sign of hunger.
“Is there anything nearby that a baby can eat?”
Leaning back into his seat, Director Yeon asked the driver. The driver gradually slowed the car and replied.
“It’s late, so only convenience stores are open, sir.”
Though no specific orders were given, the seasoned driver stopped in front of a convenience store. The only place with lights on at that hour was the convenience store.
“Get something babies like to eat.”
“Yes, sir.”
Jung Heeyeon’s gaze followed the driver as he walked away. Though he found this unfamiliar world fascinating, it was too dark to see much.
Soon, the driver returned from the store carrying a plastic bag. He opened the back door and handed the bag to Jung Heeyeon, who glanced at Director Yeon to gauge his reaction.
“Babies need to eat a lot.”
Only then did Jung Heeyeon realize that Director Yeon was teasing him. Rather than frowning, he obediently took out the contents of the bag. It was a triangular object labeled as a ‘triangle kimbap’.
His meals had always been strictly controlled—just enough to avoid gaining weight and always healthy food. This was supposedly to maintain his body for bearing a desirable child for the alphas.
Intrigued by the unfamiliar shape, Jung Heeyeon examined the kimbap, reading the instructions on the wrapper. Following the arrows, he pulled at the plastic, and the wrap slid off to the side. The seaweed, which had wrapped around the white rice, remained stuck between the plastic.
“…?”
Wondering why they would make food so complicated, he fidgeted with it again. Watching his awkward attempts, the man chuckled softly and grabbed the slender wrist. His large hand contrasted with Jung Heeyeon’s small one as he peeled off the remaining plastic wrap. Unlike Jung Heeyeon’s clumsy attempt, the plastic came off cleanly, leaving the seaweed intact.
Director Yeon noticed that the wrist he was holding had bruises but chose not to ask about the cause. He simply found it intriguing, his lips deeply curled in amusement.
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