MW 40

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“Young Master!”

Secretary Choi, who had rushed to Jaeha’s officetel after receiving an urgent call in the middle of the night, widened his eyes at the scene unfolding before him.

“Ugh.”

As Secretary Choi scrunched his face and covered his nose from the strong omega pheromone scent, a man lying on the bed covered in blood came into view.

Medical staff were moving busily to treat the man, and he wondered when Dr. Lee had been called.

He scanned the man’s torn forehead, bruised cheek, and the red handprints on his neck as if he had been choked, then looked at Jaeha with an aghast expression.

‘Gu Dohae?’

In the seven years since he had become his exclusive secretary, Jaeha had never once caused trouble. He had heard that the third-generation heirs of other conglomerates caused all sorts of trouble, big and small, but Jaeha was different.

He was always polite and had the character to never treat his employees poorly. Not once had he regretted joining Kangmyung Group. But this scene right now…

For a moment, his brain did not function properly at the sight before him, but Secretary Choi quickly came to his senses and realized that the man Jaeha had brought was not Gu Dohae of Sejin Group, but Seo Yijae.

“Young Master, what in the world is going on?”

“Secretary Choi. I apologize for the late hour. I called because I have a favor to ask.”

Jaeha’s white shirt was also stained with blood and a mess. Taking a sharp breath, he swallowed dryly to think as rationally as possible and waited for Jaeha to speak.

“Please move one patient from Sejin Hospital.”

“What? Surely, Young Master…”

“I will take responsibility and handle the aftermath, so for now, please mobilize all available personnel and move her somehow. Her name is Kim Heeju. She is 45 years old, a patient in the VIP ward. You must know her well, Secretary Choi. I once instructed you to look into her.”

What Jaeha said was true. A few days ago, he himself had reported the information he had investigated about Seo Yijae’s biological mother, Kim Heeju.

But to ask him to move a patient from Sejin Hospital. Secretly moving a patient was not an easy task, and furthermore, Sejin Group was the family of Gu Dohae, with whom Jaeha had been in engagement talks for a long time. It would not be good for him if this incident caused a stir.

“Young Master, Sejin Hospital is…”

“I will not be getting engaged to Gu Dohae. I have already told my parents.”

At Jaeha’s words, Secretary Choi’s mouth fell open even wider. Jaeha, who had been conversing with him, heard a faint groan from a distance and immediately turned to run to Yijae.

“Hngh…”

“Yijae, are you okay?”

Jaeha, who had carefully checked Yijae’s condition, wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead and spoke to Dr. Lee, who was instructing the nurses.

“Dr. Lee. He’s in so much pain, is there really no other way?”

Yijae, who had repeatedly fainted and had seizures on the way home, was finally able to fall into a deep sleep only after being given a strong suppressant.

“Because the suppressant was injected after his heat cycle began, administering any more medication could put a greater strain on the patient’s body. It will be painful, but for now, enduring it is the only way.”

Jaeha let out a long sigh at the fact that he could do nothing to help the struggling Yijae.

“Also, we’ll need to do a detailed examination, but it seems there’s a problem with his pheromone gland. It is highly likely due to an acquired factor, but for now, we will have to monitor his progress after this heat cycle passes safely.”

Hearing that there were no other methods available, Jaeha wiped his face with a helpless expression. Then, he felt the presence of Secretary Choi still standing behind him and turned his head.

“Secretary Choi.”

“Hoo. Just this once.”

“Thank you.”

In that short time, Secretary Choi was able to sense something from the way Jaeha looked at Yijae. He adjusted the glasses that had slid down the bridge of his nose and opened his mouth.

“To prevent any major issues, we will likely need a consent form from his legal child.”

If a signature was difficult, a thumbprint would also be fine. After quickly drafting the consent form, Secretary Choi approached the sleeping Yijae and pressed his thumb into an ink pad.

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Dohae, who woke up to the commotion spreading through the house in the early morning, came out of his room and frowned at the messy sight.

“What is all this about?”

Descending the stairs to the first-floor living room with his feet neatly in slippers, Dohae looked at his adoptive parents sitting on the sofa with serious faces and asked.

“Did someone come over?”

Mrs. Lee, who had been burying her face in her hands, shot her head up and suddenly screamed. Taking in her haggard appearance, which was different from her usual heavily made-up face, Dohae’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Mother?”

“I never should have let a dirty bloodline like yours into this house!”

At the sudden words, Yijae bit his lip. Dirty bloodline. It was a word that had been treated as a taboo ever since they decided to be in the same boat five years ago. No one in this house had ever uttered those words until now.

The thought that something was wrong drilled into Dohae’s mind. He took another step closer to them.

“What’s wrong, all of a sudden.”

“If even a single hair on our Dohyeon’s head is harmed, I won’t leave you, Seo Yijae, or your biological mother alone!”

Gu Dohyeon? What did that guy have to do with him?

Dohae scowled as he thought of him, who only caused trouble under the protection of his parents without any ability of his own.

“Mother. What does that mean…”

“Don’t even call me mother!”

The atmosphere was more serious than he had thought. Dohae, his face pale, grit his teeth. As he clenched his fists, not knowing what was going on, Chairman Gu, who had been silent, opened his mouth.

“Seo Yijae. That ungrateful thing beat up Dohyeon and ran away.”

Although his voice was toneless, Dohae felt the cold anger within it, and a chill went down his spine without him realizing.

‘Beat him up and ran away? That pathetic bastard? Shit, Seo Yijae. What the hell did you do.’

“How dare he, not knowing his place.”

Chairman Gu, unable to hide his anger, had his cheek twitch faintly across from Dohae’s bewildered face.

“I let him off the leash thinking he might be useful, but a dog that bites its master needs to be taught a harsh lesson.”

Chairman Gu, who had been tapping the armrest of his chair with a low voice, spoke quietly.

“The pheromone gland compatibility came out high.”

“Yes…”

At the black eyes that gave no hint of his thoughts, Dohae unknowingly swallowed dryly. He had thought that as the head of a group, he should not be taken lightly, but the anger in his eyes overwhelmed the atmosphere, giving off a fierce air.

“Then schedule the surgery as soon as possible. Within this month, if possible.”

“What? But school is…”

“Take a leave of absence.”

At the firm words, Dohae shut his mouth. Chairman Gu had shown no interest or mention of his procedure until now. He had just been busy calculating whether the pheromone transplant was possible and what use he could be.

“Isn’t it enough that I’ve waited this long? From what I know, you only have a few procedures left anyway, don’t you?”