By Zephyria Angel.
I suddenly wondered what his real name was, but Koi didn’t ask. It was such a fitting name that he couldn’t think of anything else. Instead of asking his real name, he murmured “Angel” in his mouth. Angel smiled brightly at him and turned around.
He nonchalantly put a cigarette in his mouth, lit it, and started walking first. Koi followed him from behind. Everyone who passed by turned to look at him or was mesmerized. He was wearing a long coat and work boots. He was slightly shorter than Koi, but still quite tall, and his body was slender, making him look like a model.
The street they were walking on was no different from yesterday, but his presence easily turned the ordinary into the extraordinary. Watching him walk so lightly, as if he were air, Koi still felt dazed. Koi came to his senses when he suddenly realized that they had walked quite a distance.
“Um, just a moment.”
When he mustered up the courage to speak, Angel stopped walking and turned to look at him. Koi’s heart sank for no reason, and he tried to calm himself as he continued.
“I think we’ve walked quite a bit… Where are you going? It seems like we’re going too far.”
“Why? Do you have a reason to go back urgently?”
Angel asked gently. When Koi replied that it wasn’t that, he smiled and turned his head.
“Then it’s okay to walk a little further, right? It’s been a while since I’ve been out.”
“Uh…”
Koi, who had been flustered, soon nodded. There was still plenty of time before Ashley would be back. He thought it would be better to do this than just laze around. Come to think of it, it had been quite a while since he had walked the streets without any purpose like this.
The two started walking again, and it wasn’t long before Angel opened his mouth.
“How long has it been since you’ve been out? For me, it’s been two months.”
“Two months?”
Koi repeated his words in surprise. Then Angel smiled and replied nonchalantly.
“Everyone’s desperate to lock me up. There are already four people following us behind. Everything will have been reported to that guy, so he’s probably flying in by helicopter right now. He must be wondering what kind of guy I’m walking around with.”
“Lock you up?”
Angel’s words were all surprising, but the most bewildering thing was that part. Koi, without realizing it, turned around to look behind him, then hurriedly turned his gaze back to Angel and asked.
“A-Are you okay? Shouldn’t we go to the police…”
“Don’t worry. There’s no one in the world who can dare to imprison me.”
Angel said after exhaling cigarette smoke.
“Now that I’m almost done with my business here, I should leave soon. It’s about time.”
He swept his long hair back behind his ear and looked up at Koi before opening his mouth.
“The next time we meet, we’ll be strangers to each other, okay?”
Koi couldn’t answer readily at the unexpected words. To pretend not to know him, he didn’t know why, and he didn’t want to, but Angel’s attitude was firm.
“Promise me, you’ll never acknowledge me.”
“Quickly,” he urged. Koi had no choice but to nod and promise to do as he wanted. Then Angel smiled and suddenly tilted his head. His lips lightly touched Koi’s, and Angel said to Koi, whose eyes had widened in surprise.
“Good boy.”
Angel turned around and started walking again. Koi blankly stroked the lips that he had just kissed, then hurriedly moved his feet to follow. As they walked side by side, he felt the gazes pouring down on them so intensely. But Angel was indifferent, as if this kind of thing was commonplace, and just looked ahead as he walked.
“Tell me about yourself. If you can’t smell, how have you been controlling your Pheromones? No one probably knows you’re an Omega, right?”
At Angel’s sudden question, Koi hesitated and answered.
“Um… yes.”
Of course. Because he didn’t even know himself. Still feeling half-doubtful, Koi continued.
“I, I don’t have a Pheromone scent, do I…? But how do you know I’m an Omega…”
“Extreme Omega.”
Angel corrected Koi’s words and added.
“If you were a regular Omega, you wouldn’t feel this kind of bond. You felt it too, didn’t you? That’s why you grabbed me, right?”
That was true, but it was too weak to say that was the only reason. He needed objective evidence. Angel gave a simple answer to Koi’s words.
“You know, Omegas and Alphas are good-looking. Someone like you can’t be a Beta, right?”Occasionally, there were those who were beautiful or handsome enough to be mistaken for Omegas or Alphas, but they were a tiny minority. However, Koi had never thought of himself that way, so Ash’s words were simply bewildering. Besides, his only basis was his face? Still confused, Koi was met with Ash’s firm declaration.
“Trust me, I don’t kiss ugly guys.”
“Uh… okay.”
That was all he could say. If that was the case, why didn’t Koi emit any Pheromones? Enough for everyone to know him as a Beta.
Because he’s an Extreme Omega.
If Ash was right, this also made sense. Extreme Omegas were the only kind who could control their Pheromones without medication. Extreme Alphas could also control their Pheromones, but it was only temporary, and continued use would damage their brains. But Extreme Omegas were different. If they were determined, they could hide their identity for the rest of their lives.
Seeing Koi still confused, Ash asked, “Have you ever felt a feverish sensation or felt lethargic? Like a cold. But different from a cold.”
Suddenly, Koi remembered a strange cold he had in the past. When he honestly told Ash about it, Ash casually said, “That was your Manifestation. Our Manifestation period isn’t fixed. So don’t worry about your age.”
“That was my Manifestation?”
Koi repeated Ash’s words in surprise once again. Ash tapped the ash off his half-smoked cigarette and opened his mouth.
“Were you shocked by something, or was there something that emotionally shook you…? That’s often the case when you Manifest suddenly. Did something happen back then?”
〈The day you looked at me like I was a bug?〉
Suddenly, Koi remembered Ashley asking him the same question. Did Ashley perhaps notice? Maybe he had already been leaking Pheromones. If I really am an Extreme Omega…
Suddenly, Koi became anxious. He still couldn’t completely believe it, but still, the anxiety of ‘what if’ overwhelmed him.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing Koi’s face suddenly turn pale, Ash frowned and asked. Koi blinked rapidly and opened his mouth.
“Um, well… I’m not emitting any Pheromone scent, am I?”
He had asked before, but Koi confirmed again. Ash answered without getting annoyed.
“You’re not emitting any at all.”
He was less anxious, but that didn’t mean he was relieved.
“Um, if I don’t have a heat cycle, I won’t emit any scent forever…?”
“Maybe, maybe not.”
Ash, who had given an ambiguous answer, suddenly put his hand on Koi’s forehead. Koi hesitated, but as he remained still, Ash soon took his hand away and brought the cigarette to his mouth.
“Your lips were warm earlier. You have a fever. You don’t have a cold? You’re not lethargic or tired? You don’t feel more sluggish than usual?”
“Ah, yes. I’ve been feeling a bit like that since this morning…”
“That’s because your heat cycle is coming soon.”
Ash, who gave a clear answer, added, “Once it comes, you’ll know that you’re not a Beta.”
An even greater anxiety overwhelmed him. Once again, Ashley’s words resurfaced in his mind.
〈I don’t need Omega Pheromones.〉
“Can I hide that Pheromone scent even when my heat cycle comes?”
He asked with hope, but the answer he received was negative.
“No, you can’t. Just because you’re an Extreme Omega doesn’t mean you’re omnipotent.”
This time, Ash continued without hesitation.
“If you want to hide it, you’ll have to lock yourself away where no one knows. It’ll be a bit tough, though.”
“Then, what about hiding Pheromones normally? Can you tell me how to do that?”
Koi was desperate. He didn’t know how he had hidden his Pheromones until now, but if he really became an Omega, he couldn’t even imagine what Ashley’s reaction would be.
Seeing that Koi couldn’t hide his anxiety, Ash seemed to think for a moment before opening his mouth.
“The easiest way is… well, to give yourself a suggestion.”
“A suggestion?”
Ash nodded and explained.
“Think of it as a spell that prevents Pheromones from coming out. If you keep repeating it, Pheromones won’t leak.”
“…Is that possible?”
“Why don’t you try it?”
Ash, who had replied jokingly to Koi, who was half-doubting, soon added in a cynical tone.
“Be careful, if that suggestion is broken, even the person you least want to can smell your Pheromones.”
Koi couldn’t say anything and just stared at Ash. His head felt like it was about to explode.
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