“Because if you’re suddenly hit with a stroke of luck that big, you won’t be able to handle it.”
“Hm.”
Yeon Yiseo picked a response that was just agreeable enough. Seo Eunwoo tilted his head, clearly not entirely understanding, but eventually shrugged as if to respect Yeon Yiseo’s stance.
“Anyway, if you ever need help, just call me, okay?”
“Got it.”
Satisfied with Yeon Yiseo’s easy answer, Eunwoo slurped the rest of his ade through the straw.
***
With ten days left until payday, Yeon Yiseo’s bank account was as parched as farmland during a six-month drought. He normally wasn’t this bad off—but the dinner he treated Eunwoo to had hit his budget hard.
No matter how many times he crunched the numbers, there was no way to stretch his remaining balance into a food budget. A few biscuits to hold him over for dinner—at most, he could keep that up for a few more days.
Thankfully, there was a Dymine party on the schedule tonight. When he’d first joined the company, these frequent parties had felt strange, but once he understood that they were a mix of networking and soft marketing, he accepted them as part of the job.
Especially given the nature of Dymine’s business, where mere product exposure was essentially a form of advertising, these events were actually quite efficient. Gathering influencers and celebrities during product launch season to maximize buzz? Smart. And for Yeon Yiseo, the fact that he could count on at least one decent meal made the grind feel more bearable.
He briefly worried that if he met Alexander again before their next appointment, Ethan might get mad about lingering pheromones—but thankfully, the two hadn’t been able to meet. They were both too busy.
Whether it was because Alexander hadn’t refreshed his pheromone mark, or because Yeon Yiseo was just drained, his body wasn’t feeling great. But the upside was that he’d gotten better at controlling his pheromones—no one had tried to cling to him or act weird.
He walked around the venue doing final checks before guests arrived. Tonight’s party was a private event, meant to boost promotion after the recent product launch by inviting influencers with strong public sway.
The finger foods caught his eye. Brightly colored and photogenic, clearly designed for social media shots, they looked so visually stimulating that it made his hunger even worse. No matter how well he’d adapted as a recessive Omega, there were limits to how long he could go with barely any food. The temptation to sneak a bite when no one was looking nearly overwhelmed him—but he held back, just barely.
Finally, the party began, and the invited guests started arriving. He was kept busy guiding people in, and by the time he had a moment to catch his breath, hours had already flown by. The pace of things had slowed a bit now, giving him some breathing room.
“I can’t help but feel like you took the spot I was supposed to have.”
Eunwoo’s words echoed in his head. He wanted to write them off as nonsense, but why couldn’t he? Between skipping meals and the pheromone deficiency, he was probably just thinking too negatively.
Deciding he needed something in his stomach, Yeon Yiseo picked up a tofu-based appetizer and brought it to his lips.
“You’ve been enjoying the food, I see.”
“Guh—… CEO.”
Startled, Yeon Yiseo nearly spat it out. He covered his mouth with one hand and turned to find Ethan standing behind him. The man should’ve been busy schmoozing with VIPs—what was he doing here? Ethan glanced at the Chinese spoon-shaped dish in Yeon Yiseo’s hand.
“Is it good?”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not grilling you to make you apologize. I’m just curious—is it good?”
Yeon Yiseo glanced down at the spoon in his hand before replying.
“Yes. It’s light and refreshing.”
“I see. Give me one.”
As Yeon Yiseo reached out to place the small dish in Ethan’s open hand, the CEO suddenly pulled his hand away.
“You were about to put the spoon in my hand?”
“Uh—no, I mean, it’s a dish.”
“Hm. Still no.”
Yeon Yiseo wasn’t sure what Ethan was getting at—until the man slightly parted his lips, eyes on him.
Oh. He wants to be fed.
“Sir, I really don’t think this is appropriate. People are watching.”
“So what you’re saying is, if no one were here, it would be fine?”
“No—I’m saying, in public places, it’s even more inappropriate.”
Yeon Yiseo glanced around, painfully aware of the curious stares being cast their way. There was no way Ethan didn’t feel those eyes. But he was acting like Yeon Yiseo was the only person here. It was extremely awkward.
Still, Ethan didn’t drop the playful smile from his face. That confirmed it—he was doing this to tease. And the more flustered Yeon Yiseo got, the more Ethan would double down. In that case, it’d be better to just give him what he wanted and get out fast.
Yeon Yiseo brought the spoon to Ethan’s mouth. The CEO accepted the bite as if it were nothing, chewed thoughtfully, then swallowed.
“You like these light flavors.”
“Yes. They seemed like a good choice for something casual.”
“A little too light for my tastes, but not bad.”
Just then, a senior executive came up and tapped Ethan on the shoulder. Seizing the opportunity, Yeon Yiseo gave a brief nod and quickly slipped away. Thankfully, Ethan didn’t call him back. Their eyes met briefly, and Ethan might have smiled—but Yeon Yiseo wasn’t sure.
He put as much distance between them as possible. His stomach was fuller now than it had been before, so the food no longer tempted him—which was a relief. Taking a deep breath, he mentally replayed what had just happened.
Ethan hadn’t always been like this. In the beginning, he’d treated Yeon Yiseo like any other subordinate, without any special interest. So why this sudden shift? He was acting like a mischievous child trying to get attention.
Things had definitely changed. The elevator incident could be chalked up to pheromonal reactions, but this? He couldn’t even use that as an excuse anymore.
“I can’t help but feel like you took the spot I was supposed to have.”
Eunwoo’s words came back again. Yeon Yiseo dug through his memories. When did Ethan start paying attention to me? The Dymine product launch event. That was probably the turning point. Although, ironically, it had been Alexander who’d carried him off after he collapsed that day.
“…That’s it.”
Yeon Yiseo bit his lower lip. It all started that day. That’s when he began getting tangled up with characters from Don’t Look for the Sickly Villain.
The idea that he might have replaced Eunwoo in this world made his skin crawl. A game is supposed to be just a game. If it becomes reality, there’s no fun in it. And if you are the protagonist? That’s a nightmare.
He shook himself. He was overreacting. This was all just coincidence, a series of random overlaps. Sure, it felt like too much, but still—just coincidence.
Thankfully, Alexander didn’t seem to have any personal feelings for him. And the same went for Tamir, who he’d met at the party. He hadn’t encountered the other target characters yet. As long as he could steer clear of Ethan’s growing interest, things might still be salvageable.
He didn’t need some fantasy windfall. Sure, if ten billion dollars dropped from the sky, he’d gladly take it—but that’s not how the world works. Everything comes with a price. Nothing is free. That’s just how life is.
If you want a huge payoff, you have to pay an equally huge cost. Yeon Yiseo didn’t want to gamble his life on something that uncertain.
“Excuse me, are you staff here?”
A voice called out behind him. Yeon Yiseo snapped out of his thoughts and turned with a practiced smile—only to find that the person addressing him was way too close and holding a drink.
“…Ah—!”
The liquid sloshed over, splashing onto both of their outfits. As soon as Yeon Yiseo realized what had happened, he rushed to apologize.
“Are you okay? I’m so sorry, I wasn’t paying attention… Did you get wet? If you need compensation for cleaning—”
“Oh, you.”
The man’s voice made Yeon Yiseo stop mid-sentence. He spoke like he recognized him. But besides Alexander, there was no one Yeon Yiseo knew well enough to be invited to a party like this. Who…?
Yeon Yiseo looked up—and froze.
“It’s you. What a coincidence, meeting here like this.”
It was Hugo Cruz.
His light brown hair and hazel green eyes shimmered under the lights, but it was that dazzling smile that stole the spotlight. The slightly downturned corners of his eyes dipped even lower when he smiled, revealing an immaculate set of white teeth—near perfection.
His gentle, soft features sparkled even without any dramatic lighting. It made perfect sense that he’d earned the nickname Mr. American Sweetheart.
After delivering a standout performance in a supporting film role, he was immediately cast as the lead in his next project, which went on to become one of the top three box-office hits that year. The two films he shot afterward were also hits, and his schedule was fully booked through the year after next. The man being hailed as America’s Sweetheart was currently one of the hottest stars in Hollywood.
And he was one of the romance target characters from Don’t Look for the Sickly Villain.
