NOVEL NEXT c3
Kwon Ihyeok was more certain than anyone else. No, it wasn’t a matter of trust or certainty. It was just natural. It might seem arrogant in a way, but it was reasonable to some extent. Hyeseong had been assisting him by his side for several years.
“Why do you think it’s not true, that my resignation is not sincere?”
As if hosting a quiz show or a talk show, Hyeseong was asking Ihyeok persistently.
“Cheon Hyeseong. Do you have to say that aloud? It’s obvious. That you’re by my side.”
Hyeseong’s hand gripping the tablet slightly tensed up. Taking short breaths to find his pace against his heartbeat trying to escape the monotonous rhythm, Hyeseong regained his composure.
“It’s not obvious. Nothing in the world is obvious. Representative-nim.”
“……”
At Hyeseong’s voice tinged with a bit of unfairness, Ihyeok’s face slowly began to turn cold. Hyeseong tried hard to avoid his gaze. Although he gave off a cold and sharp atmosphere, it wasn’t usually a threatening impression. But now, Kwon Ihyeok’s expression was somewhat scary. Ihyeok in his days of using his fists had always had that expression.
“I will submit my resignation letter again today. Please process it. Then I’ll be leaving now.”
Ihyeok didn’t hold Hyeseong back anymore. He didn’t utter a single word until the moment Hyeseong closed the door and left.
“What did the representative say?”
When Hyeseong returned to the secretarial team office, a secretary carefully approached and asked. Hyeseong briefly explained the current situation to her and how he planned to deal with it in the future.
Fortunately, Ihyeok had no external schedule at all today. After roughly finishing his tasks, Hyeseong stretched and suddenly felt a sharp headache.
“Ugh……”
Hyeseong quietly leaned over the monitor and covered his mouth with his hand. From time to time, his stomach would churn or headaches would rush in like now. Hyeseong was not unaware of the reason.
“Secretary Han.”
After quietly pondering, Hyeseong slowly got up from his seat and went to Secretary Han’s desk.
“I’m sorry, but I think I’ll have to take the afternoon off urgently.”
“What? All of a sudden?”
“I’m not feeling very well.”
“Ah… come to think of it, Team Leader’s complexion has gotten much worse lately. It must be because you have a lot to take care of before resigning.”
The first person Hyeseong told about his resignation was none other than Secretary Han. She was on the same secretarial team and would be most affected by his resignation. At first, she was surprised and tried to persuade him to think about it again, but quickly backed down at Hyeseong’s adamant attitude.
“I’m sorry, but I have a favor to ask. If any new issues arise regarding the scandal, please contact me right away.”
“Yes. Don’t worry and go ahead.”
“Ah, and please deliver this to the representative on my behalf.”
“Ah……”
Secretary Han’s expression looking at the white envelope marked as a letter of resignation was quite complicated. From questioning why he wrote another resignation letter to repulsion as to why she had to deliver it on his behalf. But Hyeseong just said please and left the office. He couldn’t explain everything to her one by one.
After leaving the company, Hyeseong immediately took a bus. The destination was the university hospital closest to here. Getting off the bus, Hyeseong familiarly entered the hospital and took the elevator to the 5th floor.
Constitution and
Hyeseong went to where the signboard pointed and sat down familiarly in the waiting room.
“Cheon Hyeseong. Please come in.”
After 10 minutes, following the nurse’s call, Hyeseong slowly entered the doctor’s office.
“Hello. Doctor.”
“Ah, you’re here. Please sit here.”
The doctor, recognizing Hyeseong, smiled kindly and pointed to the front seat.
“Why didn’t you come for your last regular checkup?”
“I was a bit busy with work… I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize to me. If you’ve been adapting well to the changed constitution, then there’s no problem. But the fact that you suddenly made an appointment and came to see me today means…”
Hyeseong’s expression darkened a little at the doctor’s sharp point, which seemed kind at first glance. It was definitely as he said.
“It seems my body still hasn’t adapted. To the omega constitution.”
A bitter smile hung on Hyeseong’s lips.
“Actually, it’s natural. You’ve lived as a beta until now and thought you were a beta.”
Hyeseong slowly recalled a few months ago when he visited this place at the doctor’s words.
* * *
Hyeseong, who was diagnosed with his constitution later than ordinary peers, was a beta. Even after receiving the constitution result that he finally obtained after dozens of tests when he had just become an adult, Hyeseong had no emotion.
However, despite being a beta, Hyeseong was able to faintly sense the pheromones of alphas. Since it was generally common for betas to be unable to smell pheromones, he thought it was strange. But he had heard that very rarely, there were cases of betas who could detect pheromones.
So Hyeseong believed without a doubt. That he was a beta. Just a slightly unusual beta.
The reason Hyeseong, who never even thought of visiting the constitution department of a university hospital in his lifetime, was very trivial. Strangely, from a certain day on, he felt the pheromones of alphas more strongly, and every time, headaches would rush in. He went to a clinic near his house due to the change in his physical condition, but what he heard there was,
“Hmm, it would be good for you to go to a big hospital for this. I’ll write you a referral, so go to the Constitution Department and get checked.”
Until then, he didn’t think much of it. What constitution department? Is this doctor a quack? But he decided that there was no harm in going. The first thing Hyeseong heard from the doctor when he came to the university hospital was shocking.
“In conclusion, Cheon Hyeseong-ssi, you are not a beta but an omega.”
“…Pardon?”
What, are they filming a hidden camera on me now? I heard that kind of program is popular these days. What if the constitution I knew suddenly changed? Are they trying to trick me with this kind of topic?
“You must be surprised, but take a look here. What I’m pointing to is a kind of pheromone gland.”
The doctor turned the computer monitor towards Hyeseong and began to explain.
“And this shape is a typical form of an omega pheromone gland.”
“Doctor, I am a beta.”
Hyeseong shook his head and said. There must be some misunderstanding.
“Cheon Hyeseong-ssi, you can feel the pheromones of alphas, right?”
“Yes. But I heard that sometimes betas can also feel pheromones.”
“Well, that’s right. But the reason Cheon Hyeseong-ssi can feel the pheromones of alphas is because you are an omega. Did you happen to be diagnosed as a beta after becoming an adult?”
Hyeseong remained silent. Realizing it was an affirmation, the doctor nodded as if he knew it would be like that.
“Very rarely, there are cases where the constitution develops late. Like you, Cheon Hyeseong-ssi. When determining whether one is an alpha or an omega, we usually make a judgment based on this pheromone gland, but the patient’s pheromone gland likely developed late.”
Hyeseong’s head gradually began to feel dizzy. What on earth is this? Even if it developed late, how could the hospital that determines the constitution not catch it? There must have been many other criteria to judge the constitution besides the pheromone gland.
“By any chance, did you go to a small hospital like a local clinic instead of a big hospital when you got your constitution diagnosed?”
“I guess that was the problem.”
Hyeseong let out a deep sigh. Because his constitution developed late, Hyeseong had to annoyingly go to the hospital every time since high school. What’s the big deal with that damn constitution? With a childish mindset that it didn’t matter much even if he didn’t know, Hyeseong only went to the small hospital in the neighborhood where he used to live.
And then, when he became an adult, he received the result of being a beta there.
“Well, it happens from time to time. That’s why we recommend getting your constitution test done at a large hospital if possible.”
The doctor cleared his throat again and continued, leaving the dazed Hyeseong.
“So in other words, Hyeseong-ssi was in a state before fully manifesting as an omega until now. You can understand it like that.”
The reason he could faintly feel the pheromones wasn’t because he was a special beta. It was because he was an incomplete omega.
“And now it has fully manifested as an omega?”
“Yes.”
“Then why did it suddenly manifest now when it was fine all along?”
“Well… actually, since this case happens with a very rare probability, the exact reason is still unknown. Currently, academic circles consider exposure to an excessive amount of alpha pheromones as the biggest reason, but…”
Excessive exposure to alpha pheromones? Hyeseong’s heart slowly began to beat.
“Have you been heavily exposed to the pheromones of another alpha recently? For example, having sexual relations with an alpha or something.”
“……”
Hyeseong’s gaze gradually turned to the ground. His head was ringing and his mind turned as white as a blank sheet of paper. And in the emptied mind, a memory suddenly came to mind.