By Zephyria 
“…Hmm. I see.”
“There are always guys like this,” Prince Lee clicked his tongue again.
Although Second Prince was over forty, he was still young, but at times like this, it felt like he was looking after an old grandfather.
Anyway, does he like him?
Joo Tae-hyun…
Choi Yeon-jun had asked, Second Prince had asked, and even Joo Tae-hyun himself had asked.
Like a ghost tied to the land, he was always dragged back to this topic. He was starting to understand why people kept asking.
But weren’t emotions that he couldn’t be sure of ultimately not real?
It was true that he had been prejudiced against Joo Tae-hyun simply because he was a man. But if it was truly love, if he was really supposed to like him, shouldn’t he be less confused?
“Anyway, if you have no intention of divorcing Tae-hyun, go and beg. Grovel.”
“….”
“Surely I don’t need to explain what ‘grovel’ means, do I?”
It was as if he was dealing with someone who had never even held hands with anyone.
“I’m not saying you should literally fall down and wail, but tell Tae-hyun how you really feel.”
“What do you take me for?”
“What do I take you for? A romance idiot? Something like that.”
“Your Highness!”
“Before you got married, it seemed like you were changing partners every other day. What have you learned all this time?”
Even if they weren’t deeply involved, Prince Lee’s scolding continued for quite a while, saying that even though he had dated before, why didn’t he understand people’s feelings.
“…Yes, I understand perfectly what you mean.”
“Do you? It doesn’t seem like you do at all… Oh, Director Seo. Are you perhaps–”
Just as he was about to sigh, thinking that he had said enough, a short vibration sounded. It was a message from Secretary Nam.
“I apologize, Your Highness. It seems to be about Tae-hyun.”
“Oh? Oh, go ahead and check it.”
010-0000-0000
Director, Young Master Joo Tae-hyun has completed his discharge procedures.
He says he plans to stay at the Donghwa Hotel for the time being. What should we do?
“Is something wrong? Is Tae-hyun sick?”
“I must take my leave now, Your Highness.”
“Alright, Director Seo, take care of yourself too. You don’t look well.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“I’m not joking! You’re already at the hospital, so make sure you get a check-up.”
After scolding him the whole time, the additional words were kind. Second Prince was truly a good person, unlike him, who was full of greed.
Suddenly, Seo Baek-han recalled the day he shared drinks with Joo Tae-hyun at the hotel in Pyongyang.
Joo Tae-hyun, who always said that light shone from him and that was why he liked him.
Stepping out of the palace building, Seo Baek-han tightly closed his eyes at the scorching sun pouring down on him. Amidst the still-blowing cold wind, he felt as if his whole body was burning under the relentless sunlight.
“We plan to change the rooms every week. I apologize for the inconvenience, but please bear with us for about a month, Young Master.”
Joo Tae-hyun simply nodded, indicating that he understood.
Doctor Woo and the medical staff recommended that he live in a place where an unspecified number of people stayed, such as a hotel, for the time being.
The room in the main house was full of Joo Tae-hyun’s pheromones, and Seo Baek-han’s traces would still be somewhat present due to his last visit, so they recommended a completely new environment to accurately track the changes in pheromones.
Joo Tae-hyun looked around the room he would be staying in for a week.
Pheromone removal devices and various other devices were installed everywhere. He didn’t have much luggage to bring, so the scene was simple.
It was reasonably spacious and pleasant, but not quite up to the level of the top-tier rooms he occasionally stayed in. Next, they were going to have him stay in lower-floor rooms that he hadn’t used before… If he felt like he was on a solo trip, that was probably just the immature thought of a chaebol’s Young Master.
“You don’t necessarily have to be confined to the hotel. As long as your strength allows, do everything you want to do.”
“Yes. By the way, Doctor. Is there a way to completely sever the imprinting?”
“Young Master’s reaction is minimal, but since it’s a mutual imprinting, you can get the procedure. The risk is less than with a one-sided imprinting. However, considering Young Master’s current health condition, it’s too big of a risk.”
He knew. He had heard it several times already, but he asked today in case things might be different.
Pheromone rejection syndrome.
After this phenomenon, which was said to appear occasionally in specific situations, appeared in him, Seo Baek-han acted like a madman, to put it mildly.
He had several Alpha pheromone boosters injected in a short period of time, and he refused to let go of Joo Tae-hyun’s hand until the medical staff rushed in and forcibly separated them.
Joo Tae-hyun… just stood still. He couldn’t feel anything even when they were together now. He closed his eyes, built a nest in his imagination, and just huddled inside.
Then, before he knew it, he would fall asleep and… see the dead child in his dream. Or rather, he felt it. Perhaps due to his poor imagination, he couldn’t picture what the perfectly born child would have looked like. He could only indulge in the silly delusion that the child was still in his flat stomach.
It was strange and funny. It had only been a month, and it wasn’t as if he had desperately wanted to give birth. Only after taking out the dead fetus did he become so affectionate…
“Then–”
He was about to cautiously ask if it would be better to proceed with the procedure now, when the buzzer rang loudly.
“Ah, I ordered room service. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be delivered at set times every day.”
Doctor Woo, who loved watching him eat more than anything in the world, ran to open the door, telling him to make sure to eat everything and that he would check.
“Of course, if you’re going out, please contact us in advance to cancel–”
Doctor Woo, who loved watching him eat more than anything in the world, opened the door with a light step, but suddenly stopped talking.
“…Doctor?”
Joo Tae-hyun, curious about the disappearing presence, peeked his head out the door, and his face darkened in an instant.
Beyond the medical staff standing awkwardly at the entrance and Doctor Woo, who was frozen in the act of opening the door, he saw a familiar face.
“Can I eat regular food now?”
It was Seo Baek-han.
He had clearly heard that he had gone to Changgyeonggung Palace to see Second Prince today.
It wasn’t as if he had run away to avoid him. It had been decided in advance that he would be discharged around today. He just hadn’t told him.
He didn’t think Seo Baek-han really didn’t know. But since there didn’t seem to be any special measures, he thought it was good that there wouldn’t be any awkwardness between them.
“…Does our hotel let in people who aren’t guests so easily?”
The employee who had been preparing to serve behind Seo Baek-han looked at Joo Tae-hyun anxiously.
“I don’t remember allowing any visitors.”
He was saying it to make him uncomfortable. He knew that the elevator buttons themselves wouldn’t work without a key card, so how could security be so bad? He would have to tell his sister to properly train the employees.
“Secretary Nam checked in on the same floor. You can come up here, but you can’t just barge into the room.”
Seo Baek-han took the cart from the employee and lightly gestured for him to leave.
“So I rang the bell and waited. Until you opened the door, Tae-hyun.”
Even though it wasn’t the presidential suite, but the room right below it, so it couldn’t be small, it felt like the space was filled when Seo Baek-han entered.
“It doesn’t seem like Tae-hyun needs urgent medical attention, so could you excuse us for a moment?”
He was so dumbfounded by Seo Baek-han’s brazen attitude that he was about to kick him out immediately, but the topic he brought up next was something that would make anyone quiet.
“It’s difficult to carelessly spread the words that Second Prince told me.”
Ah… Come to think of it, he must be in a difficult situation too.
“…Everyone, please excuse us for a moment.”
If he had to pick the person who would be the busiest because of Seo Baek-han’s nonsense, it would definitely be Second Prince. Even though the debate over the abolition of the Crown Prince was being discussed whenever he was bored, wouldn’t this incident be the final blow? Even if the beginning was flimsy and crude, the original motive was never important.
He waited for Second Prince’s message with a slight tension, but Seo Baek-han covered his eyes with one hand and remained silent for a while.
Joo Tae-hyun swallowed unknowingly. What was going on? Was the situation that serious?
“Did Second Prince perhaps…”
He was about to say that he would cooperate with anything, whether it was the DH Group or his voice, if he needed anything to resolve this situation, but suddenly the pheromone removal device and the air purifier started flashing red and running loudly.
Why was it suddenly doing this?
Even though he was momentarily shaken by Seo Baek-han’s brazenly stepping inside, he wasn’t in an emotional state where his pheromones would fluctuate.
Could it be because of the smell of food? Even though he had ordered the food inside, it was just soup, bread, and some fruit. Even if the set table was the cause, there was no reason for the pheromone removal device to run. He looked around in confusion, but he couldn’t find the cause.
“…Tae-hyun, ah.”
Joo Tae-hyun, who reflexively turned his head at the voice calling him, froze in embarrassment.
Anyone could see that Seo Baek-han’s condition was not normal. Something seemed to be wrong. He couldn’t sense his pheromones, so he couldn’t know exactly.
“Why are you… doing this?”
“…I’m having a little trouble moving right now, so. At least you, go outside. Go out and…”
“I’ll get the doctor. He shouldn’t be far. What’s wrong?”
“…It seems to be a side effect of the injection.”
“Yes?”
“The injection, continuously… In an unfamiliar place, your pheromones suddenly rushed in.”
Seo Baek-han swallowed his unstable breath and mumbled unclear words. His voice was dreamy, as if he was having a dream, so Joo Tae-hyun also felt unreal.
“Wait a moment, outside–”
“No, no….”
“Hyung!”
“…I think I’m going into rut, so, so.”
Quickly, get out.