Ch 62

Ideun, confirming that the elegant wooden mansion was engulfed in wavering flames, followed the van carrying Secretary Baek. When the vehicle stopped in a back alley of a bustling district, Ideun took out two pills and swallowed them. After confirming that Secretary Baek had gotten out of the van ahead, he also put on a mask.

Ideun’s eyebrow arched crookedly as he followed through a small door nestled between filthy, narrow alleyways instead of the main entrance. Who would have thought that he would end up in a place like this in his lifetime?

Though the entrance was shabby, descending the stairs into the basement revealed a rather systematic atmosphere. Ideun briefly glanced at the person standing behind him. He had only asked for an appropriate location, yet they had found something this perfect.

Ideun was guided into a dimly lit space resembling an office, though not so dark as to obscure objects. He was offered a seat but remained standing, refusing to move any further.

“Is this really how it should be done?”

At the slurred words of a burly man covered in tattoos, Ideun gave a short nod.

“Hah… But giving birth control to an Alpha…”

Muttering to himself, the burly man walked over to a locker in the corner, secured with multiple padlocks. He opened it and, as if accustomed to it, swiftly picked out a few items from the numerous options inside and placed them on the table.

“This is an injectable contraceptive. This one is an Omega heat inducer, and this… This is a recent product, top-notch stuff. I haven’t tried mixing them all together yet, but… well, this should be quite intense. Do we proceed like this? Once injected, that’s it. No complaints later—I’m not responsible for anything that happens.”

Ideun gave a light nod in response to the burly man’s repeated confirmation. Secretary Baek, who had been waiting outside, was dragged in and forcibly seated in a chair.

Secretary Baek was still thrashing about and shouting through his gag, but bound as he was, that was the extent of his resistance. In front of Ideun’s eyes, the burly man injected all three syringes into Secretary Baek in succession.

“Now, let’s get going. Just pick a place that suits your liking, and we’ll put him right in.”

As he followed the burly man, a faint crease formed between Ideun’s brows. Knowing what kind of place this was and actually witnessing it firsthand were two entirely different things. The deeper they went inside, the stronger the suffocating pheromone scent became, causing his head to throb. Even though he had taken medicine before entering, the overwhelming pheromone stench was unavoidable.

Rather than individual rooms, the space was divided into sections by iron bars, teeming with mindless beasts devoid of any reason.

“That one over there is the worst of the lot.”

There was no need for a response. The last thing Ideun saw before leaving the space was Secretary Baek, now unbound, being thrown into a cramped section where three frenzied Alphas soon followed.

Now, there was only one way for Secretary Baek to escape this place: for his heart to stop and his blood to grow cold.

“Aaaargh! Fuck! Stay away, you bastards! Get the fuck—”

Whether they had removed his gag or not, Secretary Baek’s desperate screams grew distant, vanishing completely as the iron door shut behind them.

***

Stepping out of the taxi, Ji-an briefly gazed at the high-walled estate with its familiar tiled roof. He then approached the guards stationed at the entrance.

He had agonized over this countless times inside the taxi, but no amount of overthinking would lead him to an answer.

And he wasn’t even sure if this was the right or wrong thing to do. But as Ideun had said, rather than coming to a strange conclusion on his own, it was better to confront things directly.

As Ji-an approached the entrance, the man wearing earphones visibly flinched.

Does he recognize me? I could just be a regular diner. Last time, when I came looking like a beggar, I was treated the same as any other customer. But the way he subtly averted his gaze and cleared his throat as Ji-an neared made him certain. So, Ji-an deliberately stepped closer.

“Hello.”

“Where would you like to be guided?”

“Is Chairman Choi here?”

“…….”

“If she’s busy or out, then there’s nothing I can do. I didn’t make an appointment, so just show me to a seat inside. I’ll eat quietly in a corner and leave.”

Ji-an had been the one to show up unannounced each time, despite how busy the woman was. But he didn’t even have a way to contact her. He already knew grandmother and Ahjussi weren’t on good terms, so asking Ahjussi was out of the question.

Honestly, even when Ji-an left his hotel room today, he hadn’t expected to come here. Since when did he become such an impulsive person?

If Chairman Choi was there, he’d see her. If he didn’t want to, then that was that. Either way, Ji-an would get to eat here, so it wasn’t a bad deal. What should he eat today? He recalled seeing spicy braised short ribs on the menu.

As he waited, the staff who had asked him to hold on stepped away and began talking into a device. Seeing this, Ji-an figured they were reporting his arrival. But the moment he thought of the spicy braised short ribs, his mouth started watering more than the thought of meeting grandmother.

“Excuse me!”

Forget about seeing grandmother, just take me inside alone. Food comes first, even before visiting Mount Geumgang, and they say even ghosts look better-fed after death. Right now, spicy braised short ribs take priority over Grandma.

With a small smile at the staff member who turned his way, Ji-an said, “I’ll just eat in the hall. No need to see grandmother.”

But his hopes were shattered by the response: “Please wait a moment.”

Ji-an had only worn a hoodie and a thin padded vest, assuming he would only be moving between indoor spaces via car. But now, standing still in the chilly open air, he began to shiver.

I should’ve just come to eat… Hugging himself instinctively, Ji-an crossed his arms and bounced slightly on his feet, trying to keep warm. After waiting outside for several minutes, he finally followed a uniformed attendant inside, already regretting his bold decision to seek out grandmother.

After all the disgraceful behavior he’d shown—including fainting—she must utterly despise him by now. And now, he had to tell her that he and Ahjussi were getting along well, that they even had a child on the way and planned to raise it together.

But he couldn’t just elope. The consequences of his actions were his to bear. He had to atone for the mess he had made without foreseeing the future.

Should he kneel? Bow deeply? No, he had to prostrate himself completely and beg for forgiveness.

But what if his grandmother refused to accept it? No, wait. Back then, hadn’t Ahjussi said she approved? But that was right before he lost consciousness… Maybe he had imagined it.

They say it’s better to get a beating first…

As Ji-an agonized endlessly on the way to the inner quarters, he suddenly found himself standing before an elegant, old-fashioned sliding door.

“Chairman, Seo Ji-an has arrived.”

Ahjussi. I just want to go back. This isn’t right. I was wrong.

He glanced at the person who had urgently announced his arrival, but the man was not looking at him. Before he could protest further, the sliding doors opened to both sides. Ji-an clasped his hands neatly in front of him, lowered his gaze to a forty-five-degree angle, and stepped inside.

“What is it this time? What do you want to eat?”

“Spicy braised short ribs!”

…At the sound of his grandmother’s slightly low, firm voice—one that always felt like an interrogation—Ji-an blurted out a menu instead of a greeting.

He hadn’t bowed properly, nor had he knelt. Instead, he now sat across from his grandmother, who was clad in a fine hanbok and seated on a thick cushion. Since he had not spoken first, a heavy silence hung between them.

“…Grandmother.”

“What is it?”

“This…”

Ji-an, who had broken the silence, fiddled with the handles of a small paper bag before cautiously pushing it toward her. His decision to come here had been impulsive, and since he had gotten into a taxi without much thought, this was all he had with him.

A set of glutinous rice twisted donuts that he had bought on a whim because he wanted to eat them.

It wasn’t chosen with grandmother’s tastes in mind, nor was it anything luxurious—just a 15,000-won(about $10) set of street-sold glutinous rice twisted donuts. Even as he offered it, he felt self-conscious, but surely this was better than coming empty-handed? He couldn’t very well give her the lip balm or baby wool ball in his bag.

Because there was quite a distance between them, it was not Ji-an but the person standing at attention in a corner of the room who moved instead. She was likely the chairman’s aide or secretary. The middle-aged woman silently set the paper bag down on the low tea table in front of grandmother’s cushion.

“I wasn’t planning on coming here, but I suddenly wanted to. Every time I visit, I always end up just eating, and I’ve never brought anything for you. But these twisted donuts… when I sampled them, they were so delicious. Even better than the ones sold at the market, so I…”

As the yellow paper box in front of grandmother was opened, revealing an assortment of twisted donuts, Ji-an hurriedly rattled on. Suddenly, he felt so small and embarrassed. Was this what it meant to seem unrefined? He had only thought of one thing and hadn’t considered what would come next.

“…It’s good.”

At grandmother’s words, spoken as she picked up a donut with her hand rather than using utensils, Ji-an clamped his lips shut.

“They taste just like the ones from the twisted donut shop in front of the gukbap place I used to run.”

Hearing her say this after eating the whole donut—when he had expected her to not even touch it—Ji-an lowered his head and muttered, “I’m sorry.”

“What are you sorry for?”

“…For upsetting you, for being rude, and for coming without an appointment. Even Ahjussi always makes an appointment before visiting, but I didn’t.”

“At least you know.”

“I won’t do it again next time.”

“Why not? Just do as you please. So, you came today because you wanted spicy braised short ribs? What’s Ideun up to? Why are you wandering around alone?”

“Ahjussi… he’s busy.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.”

When Ji-an answered honestly, all he got in return was a disapproving expression and a sigh.

“But, Grandmother.”

“What.”

“I do want spicy braised short ribs, but… I also have something to ask.”

“Go ahead.”

As he watched grandmother instruct someone to clear away the donuts—saying that eating too much greasy food was hard on an old stomach—and order sujeonggwa to be brought instead, Ji-an clenched his fists.

“Can I… stay by Ahjussi’s side?”

“Why? Have you grown tired of him? He’s an incompetent fool who can’t even take care of his own people, so if you say you’ve had enough, what could I do to stop you?”

“I’m lacking in so many ways.”

“Who in the world is perfect?”

Ji-an, who had been staring at the floor, unable to even look at his grandmother, slightly turned his head at the sound of knocking and the doors sliding open. Why did her words sound like permission? They weren’t warm, nor were they particularly kind, yet to him, her words felt more affectionate than anyone else’s.

Only after a generous Korean meal, with spicy braised short ribs as the main dish, was set before Ji-an and the others had left did he finally meet his grandmother’s gaze.

“Then… I’m not leaving.”

“Just eat.”

“Even if a gentle spring rain falls, I’m not leaving.”

“Start with the bean sprout soup in front of you.”

“Grandmother, I’m telling you, I’m not leaving.”

“I’ll prepare some refreshments for you, so be sure to take them with you this time.”

“I’m going to marry Ahjussi.”

Ji-an had been declaring his intent to stay by Ahjussi’s side, but as grandmother kept focusing only on his meal, he blurted it out without thinking. Not only that, but in his urgency, he had even slipped into informal speech.

“Food gets cold if you don’t eat. Just focus on your meal.”

“Ahjussi told me we should get married!”

Ji-an’s voice grew louder, still holding his spoon untouched.

“…Why are your hands empty?”

When he realized his grandmother’s gaze had landed on his completely empty hands, Ji-an momentarily lost his words.

Well… because he had only said it out loud, without actually having anything to show for it?

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

As his grandmother let out another deep, disapproving sigh, Ji-an finally fell silent and picked up his spoon.

Right, just eat. Eating is what matters. Cold meat doesn’t taste good. Yeah. Of all things, cold meat is the worst.

“Go and bring the box.”

Then again, who would believe it? That Choi Ideun had actually asked him to marry him. Even Ji-an himself couldn’t believe it—it felt like a dream.

But it really had happened. That outstanding Alpha had knelt before him and said he wanted to live together, just the two of them, along with their little snake and Bobo…It had really happened.