VDN Ch 18

Chairman Seok greeted the man with a bright smile, as if he had never been angry.

“Hae-geon, you’ve arrived early.”

“Thanks to you.”

The man called Hae-geon returned the smile to Chairman Seok. Then, he plopped down on the sofa before Chairman Seok did. Crossing his long legs, he looked up at Chairman Seok and said,

“Do you beat people inside too?”

“You’ve seen something unsightly.”

Chairman Seok replied with a faint smile.

“It’s the fault of raising my only son poorly.”

Hae-geon’s gaze shifted to the bloody stain next to his shoe on the floor. He casually rubbed it with his shoe, a different attitude to his earlier demand to have it cleaned.

“Still, he’s your only son. Doesn’t it upset you to see him bleeding like this?”

“If a dog you’ve raised doesn’t listen, you have to make sure it understands. You can’t let what leaks inside also leak outside, can you?”

“Hmm.”

Hae-geon made a sound and flicked his foot as Chairman Seok added with a benevolent expression,

“Someday, Hae-geon, you’ll understand too. When you formally inherit the company.””

Hae-geon chuckled and said,

“You’re not going to let that company collapse before I inherit it, are you?”

Chairman Seok just looked at Hae-geon without responding. Hae-geon placed the shopping bag he was carrying on the table with a thud. The shopping bag had the brand of famous dried persimmons on it.

“Why give me something unnecessary and make me come here?”

“You must have been busy returning to the country. I took up your time.”

Chairman Seok smiled as he looked at the bag. Hae-geon widened his eyes innocently and said,

“Isn’t this too old-fashioned? My grandfather doesn’t really like these things.”

“It was a small token of sincerity. I didn’t expect you to return it immediately.”

Hae-geon let out a hearty laugh, then leaned slightly towards Chairman Seok.

“Chairman, eating things like this these days can upset your stomach. There’s no way my grandfather wouldn’t know what even I know.”

Chairman Seok silently picked up the teacup in front of him. His piercing gaze revealed no emotion. After a moment, Chairman Seok put down the teacup and said,

“I didn’t expect him to send you for this matter.”

“It’s because he is a very cautious person. And there was that news article recently.”

Hae-geon continued,

“He can’t trust his employees, he can’t come himself, so I, who am not publicly known, had to come.”

Hae-geon glanced at the teacup in front of him and remarked,

“The color is pretty.”

“It’s a tea that was difficult to acquire. I have other teas too, let me know if you’re interested.”

“No.”

Hae-geon smiled smoothly. The corners of his eyes curved mischievously. He stood up from the sofa and looked down at Chairman Seok.

“I told you. Eating just anything upsets my stomach.”

He then headed for the door without a word of goodbye. Soon, the door slammed shut, and Chairman Seok stared expressionlessly at the wall. After sitting still for a while, Chairman Seok, without any change in expression, picked up the teacup and threw it against the wall.

Crash!

The teacup shattered into pieces. A thick vein throbbed on his forehead.

“Arrogant brat.”

He glared at the door Hae-geon had exited with fierce, cold eyes.

***

“Gasp, young master, Are you okay?”

“Didn’t Young Master’s forehead get cut? What are we going to do?!”

Upon arriving at the office, Nam-woon’s subordinates were more agitated than he was. Seeing the usually fierce-looking men with sad faces, Nam-woon felt his troubled heart lighten. When Jang-mi took out a floral handkerchief, he smiled a little, and then the youngest, Deok-chil, made a fuss.

“Are you laughing now! Our young master’s only asset is his looks!”

“Is that an insult or a compliment?”

“… Of course, it’s a compliment!”

Deok-chil, who answered a beat late, clung to Nam-woon’s shoulder and whined, “Young master.” At first, he didn’t seem to do that, but as days passed, the office’s youngest, Deok-chil, increasingly fawned over Nam-woon. As the chatter dragged on, Yong-deuk, who was next to them, scolded.

“Deok-chil, don’t bother the young master, he’s tired.”

Then he looked at Nam-woon with a worried gaze.

“Will you be okay for tomorrow’s schedule?”

“Tomorrow’s schedule?”

“Isn’t tomorrow the day you go to the perfume shop? You were invited to Mr. Park’s store opening.”

“They said they’ve prepared something nice since the young master is visiting.”

Deok-chil added from beside Yong-deuk. Upon hearing the word ‘perfume,’ Nam-woon suddenly remembered something.

A pheromone perfume shop exclusively for traits. It was a unique shop where trait bearers like Alphas and Omegas could purchase specific scents. This was under Chairman Seok, and during the opening visit, Seok Nam-woon caused a minor incident. He accidentally discovered Kwon Seo-oh working there and threw alcohol on his face.

Seok Nam-woon and his companion thoroughly mock Kwon Seo-oh, humiliating him in front of others. However, Kwon Seo-oh tends to tolerate actions directed at him as long as his family isn’t involved, so Seok Nam-woon leaves the shop without much consequence; it was a small episode like that.

Should I not go…?

[…Loading…]

Ah, damn it.

[Welcome, Seok Nam-woon!]

[You must have been very lonely, right?]

The system that had been spouting nonsense immediately showed its true colors.

[It’s time to get back to your main job! The enemy of modern people is laziness! Be diligent in your main job!]

[I’ll give you a raffle ticket as a reward!]

Although reluctant, there was no avoiding the thing floating in the air.

“It’s been scheduled for a while. Let’s just go.”

“But you must be tired…”

Nam-woon abruptly stood up and roughly ruffled his hair, which was messy. With his disheveled bangs, Nam-woon grinned.

“If I do this, it won’t be visible, right?

***

[Threep]

The flashy sign of the shop came into view. Arriving in front of the store and parking the car, Yong-deuk said,

“Young master, today Mr. Moon, the executive director of Dae-moon Group is coming. He’s scheduled to come at the same time as you. As you know, we can’t ignore the Dae-moon Group in business, so please bear with it even if it’s hard.”

“Understood. Don’t worry.”

It seems Mr. Moon, the executive director of Dae-moon Group, is today’s companion.

Nam-woon responded as firmly as he could.

“Oh my, Mr. Seok. Have you arrived!”

As Nam-woon entered the store, a slender man with slightly long hair greeted him warmly. The interior of the store was as dark as a bar. Slow jazz music played inside, and the black interior combined with low lighting gave off a luxurious feel. Servers in neat suits were distributing drinks to customers.

“Mr. Seok, you look even more stylish than usual today! From head to toe, you’re so perfect that you fit our shop so well!”

Mr. Park blushed with admiration. He had encountered Seok Nam-woon before, but at that time, he had experienced such a terrible personality that he hardly noticed his appearance. But today, instead of the usual temperamental face, he seemed indifferent. Even his hair looked calm and natural, as if he had just had it done.

“That’s too kind of you. Congratulations on the opening.”

Mr. Seok, slightly embarrassed by Mr. Park’s praise, returned the congratulatory greeting with a smile. Surprisingly, he looked quite handsome. Mr. Park’s heart thumped foolishly. Mr. Park dropped his business smile and led Nam-woon inside with a genuine smile filled with sincerity. He explained in a cutesy voice,

“Our Threep shop is exclusively for trait bearers, but in fact, it was created with the intention that anyone can choose the scent they want, regardless of their trait. Alphas, omegas, anyone can spray or own their preferred scent.”

Mr. Park paused briefly and quickly added, glancing at Nam-woon,

“Betas are no exception.”

Nam-woon had been tuning out the talk of Alpha-Omega traits until the mention of Betas brought back his wandering soul. Mr. Park continued,

“Of course, it’s mostly used to slightly modify the scent to match one’s trait. And as you know, trait transformation is strictly prohibited, so even if you spray a lot, it obviously won’t change your trait, but it’s enough to enjoy for a while.”

Mr. Park whispered in Nam-woon’s ear,

“In fact, some more effective ones can even deceive others into thinking you have a different trait. I’ve prepared something for Mr. Seok, would you like to try it later?”

As Mr. Park approached, the sweet scent he had sprayed on himself gave Nam-woon a headache. Then, Mr. Park’s phone rang. “Excuse me for a moment,” he said as he answered the call, then apologized to Nam-woon with a sorry expression.

“I’m sorry, but I might have to step away for a moment. I was going to guide Mr. Seok around myself.

“It’s okay.”

“If you have any questions, you can find the manager inside, or you can ask any of the staff around.”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

Nam-woon actually felt relieved that Mr. Park had to leave. Having someone follow him around was burdensome. However, Mr. Park, who seemed to have urgent business, hesitated for a while before reluctantly moving away from Nam-woon’s side.

“How interesting…”

It was his first time in a perfume shop. Distracted by the colorful perfumes, he was looking around when he suddenly felt a burning sensation on the back of his head. Nam-woon turned around.

It was Kwon Seo-oh.