Which Alpha Do You Want? - Chapter 5

“What did the doctor say? It’s not a serious illness, is it?”

Seyeon had just returned back to the company from the hospital. She had quickly joined the team in the building. She rolled up her sleeves and got ready to start her shift. She had spent too much time at the hospital and it caused her to arrive late. As soon as she started working, Deputy Kim pondered, moving with her lips as she stared at her. She spoke first to ask Seyeon to see if she was feeling better.

“Uh, no…. It wasn’t a disease. I just need to take better care of myself…?”

“Really? That’s a relief. You can’t afford to get sick.”

When Deputy Kim said it was a relief it wasn’t a disease, Seyeon’s face lit up with a bitter smile. She had no idea what would happen in the future, but she figured it was better being an Omega than to get sick with a disease.

A call came in before the conversation got too long, and Deputy Kim moved to pick it up. She was relieved because she had been having trouble figuring out how to tell her colleagues that her class had been changed from Beta to Omega.

Although the doctor advised her to be confident, she needed mental preparation in order to reveal her class to the general public. She preferred to speak with only her superiors, who would receive an official letter and help her prepare for a quick job change. It was only a matter of when the rumors began to circulate after she left.

Seyeon moved to the corner on one side of the venue and waited. She had confirmed that there were no missing snacks that were prepared for the break in the middle of the briefing session. Her eyes were fixated on the representative who immediately stood at the podium. The man was being questioned by someone as her eyes watched the scene. She stood still on one side of the room to not disrupt the briefing.

Gong Yoo Seong. A successful entrepreneur who started his own wealth management platform company after working for a foreign company. He had an excellent academic background at a young age.

Although he was quite talented, he was also quite famous because he often appeared on TV. He had a good looking face that rivaled that of popular actors. When Seyeon told people she worked at Heim, they all asked, ‘What company is that?’ When she said it was the company of CEO ‘Gong Yoo Seong,’ everyone answered with, ‘You are working at a good place!’

“Alpha…?”

Seyeon had been staring at the CEO for some time and had unconsciously spoken to herself. Perhaps it was because she had spent the day looking at the photos of ten handsome Alphas. The representative’s appearance today reminded her of them. Should she call this an intuition? Sixth sense?

‘Perhaps the manifestation was caused by something in the environment around Seyeon.’

Her mind wandered to the doctor’s words. Because AI (Artificial Intelligence) is the company’s main operation, Heim doesn’t need a lot of employees. As a result, there were numerous occasions when employees of different ranks and positions collaborated. The CEO was no different. He frequently ran into the staff of the application service support team because he was always in charge in that field.

“Ay, no way. There is no way the CEO is an Alpha.”

However, Seyeon soon laughed at herself as she thought she had a ridiculous thought. Although he had appeared in many interviews and broadcasts, she had never heard that CEO Gong Yoo Seong identified as an Alpha. 

Many people like Alphas simply because of what their existence meant. Alphas were regarded as superior and higher in society compared to the general public. This meant if the CEO of a company was an Alpha, the company would gain credibility on its own. However, there was no reason to conceal such advantages.

Although it sounded plausible that there would be Alphas around her, she did not spend time alone with the CEO or work as a secretary alongside him to know. She was only working in the same space by chance today, but if it only manifested in that way then the chances of coincidence would be much higher than usual.

She seemed to have been mistaken by the similar environment because she wasn’t used to encountering Alphas through a cramming system just like today. In fact, CEO Gong was so handsome and talented enough to cause such a pleasant misunderstanding.

“Miss Seyeon, can you help me carry this after you finish?”

“Yes, I’ll be there!”

Seyeon quickly answered the team member’s call and quickly erased the ridiculous suspicion. She returned her focus to her work.

After the strategy briefing was completely finished, Seyeon stayed until the end because she was in charge of the finishing details. Her coworkers even suggested that they go for a beer when they left work. Possibly because of the indecent work they did. Seyeon also felt like a chimney that puffed out smoke like an endless gust of wind. She wanted to drink alcohol to wash away all of the shocks she had received today, but she had no choice other than to decline due to the test scheduled for the evening.

“Thankfully, it’s close by.”

Even though she knew the road would be blocked due to rush hour, she took a taxi without hesitation because it was only two stops away. It was the same route as getting on the subway that was quicker and easier. Unfortunately, she couldn’t take the crowded subway because she couldn’t stand smelling other people’s odor. She felt it was better to take a taxi and open the window a little, even though she was wearing a mask to block fine dust.

Now that she knew what had caused the problem, she felt relieved. She was always unsure if her body was abnormal that irritated her to think. That was why she assumed she would be single for the rest of her life, and she wondered why men’s fortunes were like a pension lottery. 

“Please go to the front of Exit 3 of Samsung Station.”

The taxi driver looked at her puzzled when she told him about the destination that was only two stops away. Wasn’t it better and faster to take the train? He just gave an awkward smile, shrugged his shoulders, and started the car.

Seyeon breathed through her mouth as she turned her head toward the half-open window. She had a habit of breathing through her mouth because she had a keen sense of smell. It gave her a headache when she exhaled so hard that her stomach was stuck to her back. The air she breathed was sweet. Perhaps due to her desperation, even though the air was covered with smoke.

It seemed insane that she was going to the ABO headquarters in this situation. She was usually engrossed in her work at the company and living a mundane life.

She was just looking out the window, and not really thinking about anything. However, she kept looking back on the new technology she received and was still unfamiliar with the phone she had changed to earlier in the day. The phone vibrated softly to alert her of an incoming call. She wanted to dismiss the sender, [Mom], when she saw it on the screen. She recalled, albeit belatedly, that she had informed her mother that she would be re-examined today.

“…….”

Telling the truth to her family would take more courage than telling her team members. It would be difficult to break the mindset that they had developed throughout their lives, no matter how distorted their perspective was.

There were no parents who would fully understand that their daughter would have to experience monthly estrus from now on. The people involved had no idea what would happen in the future, but it was clear that if she confided to them in a clumsy manner, she would be unable to sleep due to their concerns.

So it should be revealed in the end, but she decided to keep the fact that she had become Omega hidden for the time being.

‘You have to embrace at least three or four Alphas…’

Seyeon hurriedly shook her head to shake off the words of the doctor that came to mind. Why is it that this comes to mind all of a sudden?

“We have arrived.”

Meanwhile, the taxi driver told her that he had arrived at the location. She didn’t answer the phone and hurriedly handed over her card to quickly pay. The phone call ended after there was no answer, and a message arrived shortly after. She could tell her mother was worried even though she hadn’t read the message.

Seyeon had just gotten out of the taxi as she looked up at the sky and couldn’t think of anything to say when she realized the magnificent building in front of her was the headquarters of ABO.

[ABΩ_The Class]

The name of the building was written in an elegant font that was prominently displayed above it. Perhaps an Alpha’s wealth and taste combined created this architecture? It didn’t seem strange to assume it was a luxury hotel rather than a world organization based on its opulent appearance.

Yesterday, no, until this morning, she thought that even though she knew of its existence it had nothing to do with her…

She stared blankly at the building for a few moments before confirming that she still had time to call her mother. Her mother answers the phone quickly because Seyeon missed the previous call.

“Yeah, Mom. It’s over now.”

Seyeon felt exceptionally pleased that her parents were in Haenam, her father’s hometown. She would not have been able to hide her situation that changed in an instant if she had been living with her parents at the time.

Seyeon’s parents went down together last year to help their brothers with the pension. Following their retirement, they moved to the countryside. It was akin to a return to farming. Even after two years, she hasn’t gotten used to the desperate loneliness she felt when she returned to an empty home after work. So she always missed them, but she was fortunate to say that now she lived alone.

“Oh, it was nothing. I need to get back into a routine and reduce my stress.”

While pretending to be as calm as possible, she recited the words that office workers hear the most in hospitals. Fortunately, her mother seemed to believe it, and Seyeon went on to tell them to eat well. Then she hung up the phone with the excuse that there was a company dinner. She didn’t feel good as if she had a stone on her chest. She hadn’t even had dinner yet, come to think of it. Seyeon walked towards the building while clutching her aching stomach.

[Control No. K-O2026E009 (New) Pheromone Compatibility Test Request Case]

The ABO assigns a control number to every Alpha and Omega in existence. [K-O2026E009] has meaning to every letter and number within the label. The K stands for birth in Korea, O for Omega, 2026 for manifestation year and age, pheromone grade E, Seoul area code 00, and manifestation sequence 9.

In other words, consider it as an 26-year-old E-grade Omega that made an appearance in Seoul, Korea for the ninth time this year.

“I have never seen such a unique control number.”

The information in the control number showed that there was nothing interesting to see, even if it was really trash.

E is the lowest level of pheromone at this age, so its appearance this year is surprising.

Pheromone levels are highest in the twenties and thirties then gradually decline as people get older. Even if you start with an A-class, by the time you reach menopause, the class is lower to F-class. However, she’s in her twenties and already a grade E? It was said that it was so subtle that it couldn’t be detected normally. It would not have been revealed if it had been a little lower.

He wouldn’t have looked at it if he had been another Alpha, but he was different. As if he liked her, this strange figure raised the corners of his lips.