Chapter 91
-The nation you will govern will experience unprecedented progress in civilization. The academic and medical research that has been hidden until now will achieve meaningful results during your term, and history will record that it opened a Renaissance brighter and more prosperous than ever before.
“…”
-The day when Korea’s national status and prestige will be reevaluated is not far off, and you should rightfully be at the center of it, Congressman.
Tae-geon began to captivate Congressman Kim’s soul by reciting a grand blueprint.
-Safe and powerful high-quality suppressants will further strengthen the ideals of democracy – freedom and equality – and become the cornerstone of social justice that you will lead. The future that Taeryeong Group dreams of aligns with your intentions. Please allow us at Taeryeong to be part of the moment when your historic achievements are realized.
Congressman Kim was completely won over by Tae-geon’s honeyed words, which felt as sweet as if his tongue was coated with honey.
Once again, a low laugh spread to Congressman Kim’s ears as he bombarded Tae-geon with questions about specific plans and promises in an excited voice, but Kim, swept up in excitement, failed to notice it.
*
“Why isn’t Ju-on coming?”
“…”
“Did you tell him not to come?”
“…”
Tae-geon remained silent with furrowed brows as Hyeon-woo kept asking about Ju-on all day. It had been over five days since Ju-on had last appeared. Tae-geon had been by Hyeon-woo’s side the whole time, filling in for Ju-on’s absence.
Hyeon-woo was irritated with Tae-geon. Just when he thought he had found a way to finally crush that smug face, it was thwarted before it even began. It was his own mistake for revealing his hand too early.
Crunch, crunch.
Hyeon-woo bit his nails habitually. Tae-geon, who was about to reach out to stop him without thinking, froze his movement and pulled his arm back.
“Don’t do that. It keeps getting worse.”
Hyeon-woo was annoyed by Tae-geon’s petty interference.
“Don’t pretend to care. It’s disgusting.”
“…”
“Didn’t you not want to see me like this? That’s why you left me with Ju-on and kept avoiding me, right? Why are you suddenly acting like this?”
It seems Hyeon-woo’s embrace with Ju-on had been quite a shock. Hyeon-woo was irritated by Tae-geon’s obsessive behavior towards him now, when he used to hardly come home before.
With all his plans falling apart, his already sensitive nerves became even sharper. Hyeon-woo clenched his fists, his eyes flashing as he curled his lips.
“Ah, are you keeping watch?”
“…”
Tae-geon narrowed his eyes, as if waiting for Hyeon-woo to continue. Hyeon-woo deliberately paused for a beat before slowly opening his mouth.
“Are you monitoring now to make sure this vulgar hole doesn’t get mixed up with other cocks?”
Tae-geon’s face instantly contorted. Catching this, a thrill spread through Hyeon-woo’s entire body.
“Looks like I’m right.”
Hyeon-woo continued to sneer.
“But Tae-geon, I can’t get mixed up with you anymore. You know, it’s so horrible that I have seizures even if your fingertips just brush me, how could I do that with you?”
“…”
“Even if I got mixed up with every cock in the world, I couldn’t do it with you. No, I won’t do it.”
Hyeon-woo, having spilled out everything inside, glared at Tae-geon with an expression that finally seemed relieved. Tae-geon, who had been silently staring at Hyeon-woo like this, suddenly lowered his head and gave a low snort. At this, Hyeon-woo’s face scrunched up fiercely.
Tae-geon slowly approached Hyeon-woo, who was sitting on the bed, with slow steps. He leaned his upper body deeply towards Hyeon-woo, who was shrinking his shoulders.
“Hyeon-woo.”
The fine hairs stood up on Hyeon-woo’s ear where Tae-geon’s hot breath touched.
“There’s something I recently learned about.”
“…”
“It’s called a brain death machine, there’s a rod with a small metal ball at the end. If you strike here, the temporal area, with it, even a healthy person instantly becomes a vegetable.”
Tae-geon continued speaking while pretending to tap Hyeon-woo’s temple with his fingertip.
“I wonder if a person in a brain-dead state can still have seizures?”
The terrifying content was completely at odds with the affectionate whispering voice. It took some time to grasp the meaning due to this disconnect. Soon, goosebumps crept over Hyeon-woo’s body as he jerked back. Hyeon-woo’s lips trembled, his eyes wide with shock.
“…Why…”
“…”
“Why are you asking me that…?”
Tae-geon curled his lips as he looked at Hyeon-woo, whose complexion had turned pale.
Hyeon-woo’s eyes, which had been frozen in fear, caught sight of Tae-geon’s mischievously sneering face and burst into uncontrollable anger. Tae-geon’s image was reflected in the center of his fiercely burning eyes.
“Is this funny to you?! What’s your purpose in saying such things!”
“What purpose would I have.”
Tae-geon leisurely straightened up.
“I was just curious, so I asked.”
“…”
“You’re smart, aren’t you.”
Unable to contain himself any longer, Hyeon-woo picked up a pillow and threw it at Tae-geon as he turned to leave the room. The pillow that hit the closed door instead of Tae-geon fell ungracefully. He was completely toying with him like kneading dough.
Hyeon-woo’s shoulders heaved greatly with unrelenting anger.
“…As if such a thing exists in this world.”
He was angry at himself for falling for it every time, being treated like an idiot, a fool, with such nonsensical words. The voice whispering lowly in his ear didn’t sound like a joke at all, and he had been fooled.
He was already aware of Tae-geon’s unusual obsession with him. He had planned to use that to scratch at Tae-geon, but as if laying bare all his intentions, Tae-geon even brought up brain death, and Hyeon-woo ended up getting more than he bargained for. Hyeon-woo was thoroughly provoked.
At one time, Tae-geon’s possessiveness had felt special, making him feel intoxicated with superiority. He had also believed that Tae-geon was his entire world, so he refrained from any behavior that might make Tae-geon uncomfortable. As a result, he hadn’t formed a single proper relationship until he turned twenty-one.
He had never even seriously considered what kind of life he wanted to live or what his dreams were, like others did.
He truly was a fool. Look at me now, he thought. Look at me, choosing to stay in Tae-geon’s palm again. He had chosen to stay by Tae-geon’s side intending to hurt him, but he hadn’t accomplished anything properly.
Hyeon-woo rubbed his heated forehead. His whole body was hot. He thought it was because the anger provoked by Tae-geon hadn’t subsided, but that wasn’t it. As time passed, he was getting hotter and hotter.
He hurriedly put on his coat and went outside. He could sense Tae-geon following not far behind. Hyeon-woo tried hard not to pay attention to that direction as he hurried towards his destination.
He hated this damned body that was sending signals of an impending heat cycle even in this situation. Gasping for breath from the intensified burning sensation, Hyeon-woo finally reached the pharmacy and quickly entered.
Tae-geon’s steps also stopped. Through the front glass of the pharmacy, he could see Hyeon-woo grabbing large quantities of suppressants.
“Haah.”
Tae-geon let out a deep sigh and rubbed his tired face. The suppressants would be of no use this time either. It hadn’t even been a month since the countless nights when he and Hyeon-woo had intimately mixed their bodies almost every day. Hyeon-woo’s body, accustomed to his pheromones, wouldn’t respond to such drugs.
‘Even if I got mixed up with every cock in the world, I couldn’t do it with you. No, I won’t do it.’
Unlike the sharp voice directed at him, Hyeon-woo’s body, entering the early stages of heat, began to emit a sweet scent. Blood rushed to Tae-geon’s lower abdomen at the intense pheromones of Hyeon-woo that he was smelling after a long time.
He had pressed his body close to Hyeon-woo and released his own pheromones. He felt pathetic, like a perverted sex maniac, getting aroused while muttering about brain death in Hyeon-woo’s ear in an elevated mood, but he thought it was fortunate that he had given him a pheromone shower in advance like that.
It was obvious what kind of misfortune might have befallen Hyeon-woo by now if he had left the house without even that.
Normal alphas and omegas could control their pheromones without special training. Just as snakes flick their tongues to regulate their body temperature, pheromones were also an area that could be instinctively controlled without anyone teaching it. But in Hyeon-woo’s case, perhaps due to his manifestation issues, he not only couldn’t detect pheromones but didn’t even have a concept of controlling them.
Since Hyeon-woo had seizures even at the slightest touch, Tae-geon had been inwardly worried about how he would react to his pheromones, but fortunately, there were no rejection symptoms throughout the pheromone shower. He didn’t even detect the large amount of pheromones being released. Paradoxically, this made Tae-geon feel bitter.
While he had become imprinted on Hyeon-woo’s pheromones, the fact that his own had no influence on Hyeon-woo made him feel twisted inside, yet at the same time, a sense of relief washed over him. The fact that Hyeon-woo couldn’t imprint on any alpha other than himself. That no one else could connect with Hyeon-woo.
Since the basis of imprinting is distinguishing the pheromones of a potential alpha or omega mate from others, it was never applicable to Hyeon-woo in the first place.
Tae-geon felt deep self-loathing for having such selfish thoughts about Hyeon-woo, who had even developed pheromone control issues as a side effect of this. At the same time, a vague sense of fear came over Tae-geon. He suddenly realized that the more his selfish desires towards Hyeon-woo materialized, the more Hyeon-woo was breaking down in proportion.
