Chapter 13

Yoon Mujin’s expression was unnervingly calm.

It was the face of a man finally putting into words a decision he had made long ago.

“It never paid enough to begin with. There was no future in it, either. I’ve reached this age without accomplishing anything, so it’s time to let go of my attachment, learn a trade, and find another way to make a living.”

He spoke of his own failure as though it meant nothing.

That dry voice grated against Jeong Iwon’s ears.

No future? You?

Something hot surged up from the pit of Jeong Iwon’s stomach. He clenched his teeth.

Yoon Mujin hadn’t failed because he lacked talent or prospects. Jeong Iwon knew the ugly truth behind it better than anyone.

The real reason Yoon Mujin had been driven out of the ring was Kang Taeon, Baek Hamin’s husband—a man who stood at the very pinnacle of power.

Kang Taeon had regarded the very existence of Yoon Mujin, a man who had lingered around his mate, as an eyesore. He maintained the facade of a gentleman, but behind the scenes, he had mobilized his overwhelming wealth and connections to seize control of the boxing association Yoon Mujin belonged to.

He cut off his sponsorships, had important matches canceled, and even bought off referees so that Yoon Mujin would never receive a fair judgment in the ring.

An enormous, invisible force had closed around Yoon Mujin’s throat and ruthlessly clipped his wings.

Jeong Iwon knew better than anyone how much Yoon Mujin had loved boxing—and how brilliantly his talent had shone from beneath those worn-out gloves.

A man who had come alive the moment he roared inside a ring thick with the smell of sweat had been trampled beneath the jealousy of a powerful man and driven from the sport. Now, he was resigning himself to manual labor in a crumbling, abandoned house.

No. This isn’t right.

Jeong Iwon’s fists clenched in fury, and his lips trembled.

He wanted to grab Yoon Mujin by the collar that very instant and yell at him not to give up. He wanted to force him back into the ring and tell him that was where he belonged, that was where he shone brightest.

But in the end, he couldn’t bring himself to say a word.

The shout that had risen to his throat slammed into the wall of reality and shattered.

By what right?

His heart hollow, Jeong Iwon slowly unclenched his fists.

He had no right to push Yoon Mujin back toward boxing. He and Yoon Mujin were nothing to each other. They were merely two awkward strangers who had ended up living under the same roof for a while because of a broken arm.

He had no right to reach that deeply into Yoon Mujin’s life, dig into the wound of a dream that had been trampled beneath someone else’s foot, and demand that he bleed for it all over again.

“…Do whatever you want.”

In the end, that was all Jeong Iwon could manage.

His voice was flat and cold.

He stared blankly at the post Yoon Mujin had just set upright before finally lowering his head and walking back toward his blue-roofed house as though he were running away.

One corner of his chest felt cold and sore, as if someone had punched straight through it.

He couldn’t tell whether he resented Yoon Mujin for giving up so easily, or whether he resented himself for being in such a pitiful position that he couldn’t even offer the man a single word of comfort.

Jeong Iwon dropped onto the wooden floor.

Beyond the wall, the steady thunk, thunk, thunk of Yoon Mujin’s hammering began again.

Jeong Iwon simply lay there, utterly limp.

Meanwhile, back in Seoul, a hellish schedule awaited Kwon Heeseong.

An unexpected tax issue had erupted at his entertainment company. Normally, it would have been the sort of problem he could solve by sacrificing an executive or two beneath him, but the timing was particularly unfortunate. The issue had caught the media’s attention, forcing Kwon Heeseong to take responsibility himself and clean up the mess.

He spent days and nights holed up in the company penthouse, buried beneath documents and breathing down the necks of his executives like a man hunting rats.

Only after several sleepless days did he finally manage to get the situation under control.

“Haah. Damn it. This is enough to drive me insane.”

Kwon Heeseong rubbed his bloodshot eyes before collapsing onto the sofa and yanking his tie loose.

Before he could even catch his breath, exhaustion crashed over him like a tidal wave.

He wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and sleep for several days straight.

Unfortunately, his misfortune wasn’t over yet.

The dust had barely settled when another thunderous order came down from the family home.

A summons from Chairman Kwon—the patriarch of Ilseong and Kwon Heeseong’s grandfather.

Dragging his exhausted body to the family residence, Kwon Heeseong entered the study.

Behind an enormous mahogany desk sat an old man with thick white hair and eyes as fierce as a tiger’s.

“Sit.”

Chairman Kwon’s voice was low, but it carried an authority that could not be disobeyed.

Kwon Heeseong swallowed dryly and obediently took the chair opposite him.

“You handled this incident well enough. But the fact that it made it into the media in the first place was your failure. How long do you intend to keep wandering around, wasting your time on meaningless things?”

“I’m sorry. From now on, I’ll make sure something like this—”

“Enough. I have no interest in hearing excuses.”

Chairman Kwon tapped his cane lightly against the marble floor.

“You’re old enough now. Stop wandering around and build a proper family. Secure your position. How long are you going to keep living like this?”

His gaze sharpened.

“Is this because of your background? Starting tomorrow, you’ll follow the schedule arranged by the secretariat. They’ve selected several suitable omegas. Choose a partner within the month and report your decision to me.”

It wasn’t a suggestion.

It was an order.

Kwon Heeseong’s expression twisted, but if he wanted to secure his position within the group and survive, he couldn’t openly defy his grandfather.

The fact that he wasn’t from Ilseong’s legitimate bloodline but had been brought into the family from outside had always been a weakness with a blade pressed against his throat.

And so, from that day onward, Kwon Heeseong’s matchmaking tour began.

Suites in the finest hotels.

Members-only private restaurants.

High-rise lounges with breathtaking views.

The venue changed, but the scene remained the same.

The same type of omega always sat across from him.

Dressed from head to toe in designer brands, wearing a perfectly composed smile, speaking in a polished voice that reeked of cultivated refinement.

“CEO Kwon, the group you launched recently has been performing remarkably well. I’ve been following the moves of your entertainment company with great interest.”

“Ah. Yes. Thank you.”

Kwon Heeseong idly rolled his champagne glass between his fingers, responding without the slightest sincerity.

Whenever the omega across from him deliberately released pheromones in an attempt to appear alluring, the scent would brush against his nose and make his stomach twist.

Heavy roses.

Sweet vanilla.

Musk so strong it gave him a headache.

Not a single one of those scents stirred even the slightest attraction in him.

If anything, they only made him feel sick.

This is unbearable.

Honestly, even the smell of cow manure in that godforsaken countryside was better.

The ridiculous thought surfaced before he could stop it.

Kwon Heeseong frowned and swallowed a sigh.

He couldn’t understand why these meetings had suddenly been packed together so relentlessly that he could barely breathe.

His grandfather had been pressuring him about marriage for years, but he had never pushed this aggressively over such a short period.

Someone was clearly manipulating the situation behind the scenes.

Unable to endure it any longer, Kwon Heeseong quietly summoned the secretary who served as his hands and feet and ordered him to investigate.

A few days later, the chief secretary carefully placed a report in front of him.

Kwon Heeseong read it.

Then he burst into a disbelieving laugh.

“Ha. This is unbelievable. Kang Taeon, that crazy bastard.”

There it was.

The name written in the corner of the report.

Kang Taeon.

He was behind all of it.

Kang Taeon had already held the lavish wedding he wanted with Baek Hamin and obtained the love he had coveted for so long.

From the outside, he was a perfect victor.

A man who had everything.

And yet the suspicion and possessiveness coiled deep inside him still had something disturbingly pathological about them.

He continued to regard Kwon Heeseong—a man who had once hovered around Baek Hamin and shown interest in him—as a potential threat.

So while maintaining the appearance of friendly relations with Ilseong, Kang Taeon had secretly offered enormous concessions to the inner circle surrounding Chairman Kwon.

And then he had quietly used that influence.

The plan was simple.

Marry Kwon Heeseong off to another omega as quickly as possible and remove him from the board entirely.

Having uncovered the truth, Kwon Heeseong ground his teeth in fury.

“Look at him. He’s so anxious because he can’t even keep his own spouse under control.”

He sneered.

“And the great Kang Taeon is actually resorting to something this petty? He thinks he can just grab my private life and shake it around whenever he feels like it?”

He tore the documents into pieces and hurled the scraps into the air.

He would rather die than dance to Kang Taeon’s tune.

But if he wanted to escape the endless matchmaking meetings, he needed a convincing excuse.

Something Kang Taeon couldn’t interfere with.

Something his grandfather would have no choice but to accept.

And Kwon Heeseong had a very particular idea in mind.