It was a somewhat impulsive action, so my heart pounded in a different way than when I had searched Seo Baek-han’s name earlier.

Well, it probably wouldn’t be a big deal. I’m only twelve years old, and all I’ve done in terms of external activities is show my face at a royal-sponsored concert. And that event was even last night.

Ah, right. I’m the first Alpha Trait/Phenotype born in the DH family, so maybe there will be some talk about that?

“…There’s really nothing.”

However, unlike my anxious expectations, there wasn’t a single article when I entered ‘Joo Tae-hyun’ into the search bar. To be exact, there were far more stories about other Joo Tae-hyuns than ‘DH’s Joo Tae-hyun.’

Reporters, businessmen, police officers, soldiers, public officials, restaurant owners…

My story was hard to find, buried under Joo Tae-hyuns from all sorts of professions. It’s not an unusual name, but it’s not exactly common either. If not that, I’d occasionally see very old posts written in strange language like, “Hyungs, noonahs, please recommend items Joo Tae-hyun bbuing.”

After hesitating for a while at the more pathetic-than-expected result, Joo Tae-hyun clicked on the people dictionary page of the portal site and diligently scrolled through to see where his information was located. He carefully looked from the first page, lest he miss it… but it wasn’t there.

A notice popped up saying that the people dictionary wasn’t arranged based on social position or asset size, but rather changed dynamically depending on how much people searched for the person and how much they clicked on the information.

Then, what could be said about his social position, which would appear after three or four pages?

Joo Tae-hyun

DH / Age 10

Family: The youngest of 4 sons and 1 daughter of Joo Il-wook, Chairman of DH Group / Yoo Young-hwa, Director of the Archery Association.

That one line was all there was to explain Joo Tae-hyun. Without even a slightly low-quality photo like other people had.

From the start, I didn’t expect as much as Seo Baek-han. On a whim, I searched for a few peers I had met yesterday, and the results weren’t as pathetic as mine. At least there were a few short articles about what competitions they had entered and what awards they had won.

A little while ago, I was ashamed of myself for thinking, “I’m still young, so it’s okay, right?” The thought that my parents might have deliberately not exposed me because I started external activities late also briefly crossed my mind.

But it’s all just excuses. Even if I had just stayed home, if I was really outstanding, I would have shined somehow.

Like Seo Baek-han.

“Haa…”

Joo Tae-hyun tossed and turned his uncomfortable body and lay down facing the back of the sofa. Had he grown again in the meantime? There wasn’t enough space to stretch his legs out already.

In any case, all I can do right now is study hard and go to a good school.

When I think about it, that’s what Seo Baek-han has been doing all along. Studying hard and going to a good school. Of course, he had more opportunities to show off his achievements because he was smarter than other people, and he probably wouldn’t miss that timing, being so smart.

By the way, what is a good school? Can you learn more if you go to an expensive private school? Or should I go abroad? There’s probably no better way to broaden your horizons than that, right? It definitely wasn’t because Seo Baek-han was going to America that I was imagining this. My parents had been talking about studying abroad for a while now…

“…What am I thinking?”

After fiddling with the phone, which had become warm from the heat, for a long time, Joo Tae-hyun closed his eyes. Was it because he had been holding the device, which he usually didn’t even go near, all morning? His eyes were very dry.

Joo Tae-hyun gently rubbed his eyelids, which were as hot as the screen, with his fingertips, and before he knew it, he fell fast asleep.

He usually didn’t enjoy taking naps because he hated how quickly the day passed, but he had tossed and turned all night worrying about whether or not to touch his phone, so he was strangely sleepy.

A voice calling his name affectionately lingered and scattered around his ears several times, but strangely, he couldn’t open his eyes. He just felt languid all over.

Someone came and went, putting a blanket over him, turning on the humidifier because he must be dry, and raising the temperature in the study so he wouldn’t be cold. They even delicately adjusted everything from the chroma of the lighting to the angle of the curtains, lest the beautifully sleeping child be awakened by the light. It was the familiar love and friendly consideration he always received.

Joo Tae-hyun woke up shallowly and whined as if acting spoiled, but soon closed his mouth and fell back into a peaceful sleep.

Director Yoo Young-hwa gazed at her youngest son’s sleeping face, then carefully called out to him.

“Tae-hyun, baby?”

But wasn’t it a little strange for his nap to be this long?

Yoo Young-hwa had rushed home after receiving a call from the nanny saying that her precious youngest was strangely only sleeping today. She was so dedicated to her work at the association that she preferred to be called Director rather than Manager, but before the nanny could even finish saying that the child wasn’t in good condition, she had packed up her work and run out of the office. It just so happened that Chairman Joo was out inspecting factories in the Suwon area with the eldest son, so she couldn’t reach him either.

“He’s been sleeping since one o’clock?”

“He’s been sleeping soundly since one o’clock, and he was dozing off before that too. He seemed to be sleeping so deeply that I didn’t wake him up, but he’s never been like this, so…”

“No, still, you should have tried to wake him up if he was sleeping all day.”

“I thought he might be tired from going out yesterday.”

“Ah… That’s true.”

“Mom?”

“Oh, yeah, Mom just got here.”

Joo Kyung-han and Joo Yoon-woo, who only had morning classes today, were also standing next to Director Yoo with worried faces.

“It seems like our youngest overdid it yesterday.”

“I guess so.”

Yoo Young-hwa lightly stroked her young son’s forehead, which was covered in beads of sweat, with a worried expression. Was he too hot? He was wrapped up tightly in a blanket and the heating was on, so he must be hot. But it’s better to be hot than cold…

“…Oh my.”

“What’s wrong, ma’am?”

“No, it’s Tae-hyun. His temperature is strangely…”

Yoo Young-hwa, who was trying to wake Joo Tae-hyun without much thought, tilted her head at the heat she felt in her hand. Strange? Even though young children usually have a slightly higher body temperature, this is a bit… It felt ominous for some reason. Like he had a fever…

“…Wait, a fever?”

“Yes? What did you just say, ma’am-“

“Call, call the family doctor! Call the family doctor quickly!”

“Yes?”

The moment the child’s small, panting breaths from the past flashed through her mind, Yoo Young-hwa let out a shrill scream without realizing it.

Before she could accurately recognize the situation or make a proper judgment, the memories that had been tightly sealed deep inside her came to life on their own and overwhelmed Yoo Young-hwa in an instant.

She almost lost her three-year-old son to Emergence fever.

Fortunately, it seemed like she had barely avoided the terrible event, but she had to leave that small child alone in the isolation room.

Our youngest, who couldn’t even see his family after finally opening his eyes after being sick for a long time, and was left all alone in the hospital room without knowing why. Our Tae-hyun, who had been quietly receiving treatment for over three months, which must have felt like an eternity to a young child, without ever getting annoyed or fussy.

A small body with holes all over it like cookie dough, my poor baby who had to endure pain that he wouldn’t have known if it weren’t for his parents’ ignorance.

The nightmare from that time vividly resurfaced in an instant, breaking Yoo Young-hwa down at once. It made it impossible for her to be in her right mind.

“Mom? What’s wrong? What’s wrong with Tae-hyun?”

“Kids, Dad… Contact Dad and your brothers quickly… Tae-hyun, Tae-hyun…!”

“Mom, calm down! What’s wrong!”

“Oppa, Tae-hyun is breathing. He’s breathing… Uh, fever, he has a slight fever!”

“He has a fever?”

While the nanny supported Yoo Young-hwa, who was gasping for breath, Joo Kyung-han quickly contacted the family doctor and other places. Joo Yoon-woo tried to perform first aid that he could do with his trembling hands.

It hadn’t even been 10 years since Joo Tae-hyun had collapsed with a high fever. Everyone in the family had memorized the first aid methods for dealing with fever in children and the abnormal symptoms caused by Emergence fever so well that they could recite them in their sleep.

After that, it took less than an hour for several heavy sedans to race to the Pyeongchang-dong residence.

By Zephyria

Hello, I'm Zephyria, an avid BL reader^^ I post AI/Machine assisted translation. Mostly BL. Check my Ko-fi for more HSA chapters~

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